Gateway Journal Day 03: Gondolas A-Plenty

Quick journal entry today. Decided to draw a variety of the gondolas that one sees in the waterways of Gateway's Canal City... I was just struck by the variety and elegance of them.

Many of them are "taxis" essentially, ferrying folks from one place to another for a modest sum, but others were personal vehicles or delivery vehicles. The personal vehicles tended to be a little more lavish, or festooned with designs and lanterns. I had fun trying to catch glimpses of the eccentric characters that rode in these as they zipped past me on my perch.

So, a little info about propulsion: Gateway is a very magical city, but not always in the way you would expect. Magic has become very common, ever since the invention of Leystones, often referred to as "stones". They are essentially crystals or gems infused with magical energy that can then be, for a lack of a better term, "programmed" to do different things.

Easily 80 - 90% of the watercraft I have seen thus far utilize Leystones as their primary mode of power, though they often vary in the exact way they are employed. Some are mounted on poles that the gondola steersman puts into the water and uses to steer. Others are mounted on the rear of the craft and essentially push them forward. Apparantly there are varying arguments as to which method is the most efficient or proper... I will stay out of it for my part.

As you will hopefully see in my journals in the coming months, these stones are used everywhere, for many things.... and people usually walk around with them either hanging on a chain around their neck, or floating just above their head (they have become something of a fashion accessory too, given that you can purchase a variety of styles and shapes of Leystones).

They are also used as power sources for massive "machines" or "Constructs", as they call them. For instance, the trains here in Gateway use massive leystones to hurdle from one end of the city to the other.

There are people who don't use them, either out of stubbornness, or because they feel they are a waste of money (Leystones apparantly have lately become subject to serious inflation, there are certain manufacturers of Leystones that are favored by Gateway's ruling council, making it increasingly difficult for the "mom and pop" Leystone maker to compete with rising costs).

Anyways, I think I am going to buy one tomorrow and see what things are possible... I am a little apprehensive about it, but I will be sure to get some instruction first before I accidentally turn someone into a wombat or something.