Urithiru

Urithiru
by Ben McSweeney
World	Roshar
Universe	Cosmere

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“ Urithiru was said to be the center of the Silver Kingdoms, a city that held ten thrones, one for each king. It was the most majestic, most amazing, most important city in all the world. ”

— Jasnah's opinion of Urithiru

Urithiru is a tower-city on Roshar that functioned as the home of the Knights Radiant and the central point of the Silver Kingdoms during the Heraldic Epochs.

Location

Urithiru on the map of Roshar

Urithiru is located almost exactly in the middle of the Rosharan continent, in the mountains that comprise the border of Emul and Greater Hexi. The tower sits on the east side of one of those mountains, leaning against two slopes.

The plateau on which the tower is located is at a considerable altitude. The air is thin enough to make physical activity difficult. The cliffs beneath it extend further than the eye can see. This location is high enough that both highstorms and the Everstorm pass beneath it, which makes it difficult for the tower's current occupants to obtain stormlight.

Historically, there was some disagreement as to whether or not Urithiru is accessible by means other than Oathgate travel or flight. Ancient chroniclers Varala and Sinbian both stated that it was impossible, but in Nohadon's eighth parable from The Way of Kings, he claims that he walked from Abamabar to Urithiru (which he confirms in Dalinar's dream, saying that he did not use an Oathgate, only a guide, which was akin to "taking a ferry across a river."). As is later revealed, there is an entrance at the bottom of the mountain which can be used to exit the tower on foot.

There is an unnamed village in the foothills of the mountain to the south of the tower, but it is apparently not visible from the tower, as all Dalinar can see is clouds and rocks. In addition, Urithiru sits relatively closely to the Valley of the Nightwatcher.

Appearance

Top-down view of with the Oathgates.

Urithiru is as wide as a city and as tall as a small mountain. It consists of 10 semi-circular levels, with each level being 18 stories tall, for a total of 180 floors. Going down, each level is wider than the one above it, with the roofs of the wider levels having fields and gardens built on them. There are numerous balconies on the sides of the tower. The bottom level has wide sections jutting out at the perimeter, each the size of a plateau. These areas have grooves, which in the past were furrows for growing crops, and planter boxes around the edges. In front of the tower is a massive plaza surrounded by the ten Oathgate platforms.

The lower levels "meld" into the mountain on either side, but the center and the upper levels have a flat side on the stormward side. Rooms in this flat side have windows facing the Origin. The glass windows miraculously survived thousands of years of abandonment utterly intact.

The center column of Urithiru is one solid window, also facing the Origin. This column has a footprint the size of a ballroom and is full of dozens of lifts, which look like the exterior balconies and crawl up and down vertical channels in the walls using Stormlight.

Because the tower is high enough to be above the highstorms, long chains with cages exist to lower gemstones down to renew Stormlight.

The interior of Urithiru is filled with tunnels that twist about in strange curves, which Dalinar hypothesizes was done to fool invaders. Navani's scholars have also found oddly shaped groups of rooms and murals of fanciful animals (including some that might be lions, though those do not exist on Roshar), along with gold and copper metals embedded in the walls, presumably fabrials that they have been unable to understand.

The tower is comprised of multiple rooms of different functionality, including sleeping quarters, meeting halls, libraries and bathhouses. Most of them have high ceilings.

Strata

Each tunnel in Urithiru has distinctive patterns of strata. Known strata colors include shades of brown, yellow, red, orange, and emerald green, though it would appear that only Surgebinders are capable of perceiving the various colours. The stone itself is smooth to the touch and hard enough that it can't be scratched with a knife. Notably, the same strata patterns can be seen on Kholinar windblades, indicating similar (perhaps shared) origin.

Shallan theorizes that the strata might be veins, though she's unsure of what they would be carrying.

Known strata descriptions:

• Third floor corridor where Sadeas's body is found: "twisted with lines—natural strata of alternating earthy colors, like those made by crem drying in layers."
• Bathhouse where Vedekar Perel's body is found: "spiraled, twisting around the floor, ceiling, and walls like the threads of a screw"; "curving, twisting medley of oranges, reds, and browns—ballooning out across the sides of this chamber in wide bands before coiling back into narrow stripes to continue down the hall that led out the other side"
• On the way to Dalinar's quarters: "wide reddish strata alternating with smaller yellow ones"; "sloping slightly upward"
• Shallan's quarters: "bright circular patterns"
• Room where Dalinar inspects the honor blade: "no strata"
• Sparring room: "grey and black"
• Sadeas' quarters, side room: "muted pattern of strata"; "oranges and reds that blended together so evenly you could almost pretend the wall was all one hue"
• Passageway to the theater: "emerald cast"
• Small chamber where Dalinar and Navani worked: "like the folds of a fan"
• While Shallan chased the Midnight Mother: "danced on the walls"
• Storage room near the top of the tower: "a line of red crystal embedded in the stone wall [...] started at the ceiling and wound all the way down the wall--within the pattern of the light green and grey strata--to the floor. It was smooth to the touch, distinct in texture from the rock around it [...] like the other strata lines ripple out from this one, getting wider as they move away from it"

Notable locations

The Breakaway

The Breakaway is a large, cavernous hall as large as a small town within Urithiru's walls. While its previous function is unknown, after the Alethi arrive at the tower, it becomes their central market area, with stalls, food stands, and taverns. Many of the establishments are tents or simply roped-off areas, but an increasing number of permanent structures is being built there. Merchants from all ten highprincedoms mingle here and all kinds of goods can be purchased, including illicit ones like firemoss. The atmosphere is chaotic, busy, and varied. The Breakaway has a large, round well at its center, which, like all wells at Urithiru, never seems to run out of water no matter how much is taken from it. It is unclear where the water comes from.

Oathgate Platforms

The Oathgate platforms of Urithiru are arranged in a circle on the grand plateau in front of the tower. The platforms are 10 feet high, with ramps leading up to them. The small control buildings in the center of each platform have mosaics on the floor showing Dawnchant glyphs. In each control room, the keyhole is at the center of a ten-pointed star on a metal plate. At the present, the plateau in front of the Oathgates is used for storing lumber and training soldiers.

The Gem Archive

The Urithiru gem archive is used as a study hall for scholars and scholarly ardents working on uncovering the city's mysteries. As is later discovered, the panels on its walls are actually drawers, holding rows of gemstones that, when stormlight is put in them, vibrate in certain patterns, allowing them to hold messages. It is also where meetings concerning the city's functionality and fabrials are held.

The Theater

A room resembling a theater can be found on the tower's third level, near the Breakaway. It's a large chamber with round walls and rows of benches facing a raised platform that served as a stage for concerts or plays. Past the theater's back door (the one which would be, presumably, used by the audience), there is a circular room with large vertical slits in the walls, some of which face Breakaway. However, neither it nor the theater itself can be reached directly from the market.

Re-Shephir's Chamber

The room in which Re-Shephir hides until being banished by Shallan has likely once been a library; however, by the time the Alethi arrive there, its collection has been destroyed by the Unmade. A notable feature of the room is a column of gemstones in its center, around which Re-Shephir coiled when discovered. Though it's appearance is unusual, its purpose - and whether there is a purpose to it beyond decoration - remains unknown. Renarin theorizes that it's a giant fabrial that does "being a city."

The Top Platform

The platform atop Urithiru is the smallest floor of the whole tower. It is open-air, allowing the viewer to observe their entire surroundings. It appears to be Dalinar's favourite spot in the tower to think, and has seen its fair share of notable events related to him, such as him swearing his First and Second Ideals as a Bondsmith and marrying Navani.

The Meeting Room

The meeting room is located near the top of the tower. From the moment the Alethi arrive in the city, it is used as their main meeting chamber, both for discussing strategy and when speaking with foreign dignitaries. Though it is initially barren, a table is brought in at some point, which Shallan and Dalinar use to create a real-time map of Roshar.

Mechanisms

Urithiru displays a number of unusual properties that allow humans to survive despite its high altitude. Among those are heightened pressure; increased temperature; and general conditions encouraging plant growth. In addition, there is a number of fabrials, such as the elevators connecting Urithiru's floors and the gem archive capable of preserving recordings of human voices. There is also a strange column of gems in the tower's lower levels, although its current purpose is unclear.

Urithiru was once home of the spren Sibling. However, at some point it withdrew from mankind, and currently slumbers. This explains why many of Urithiru's systems are currently non-functional. At the present, only some elevators work when gemstones are inserted, and the gem archive appears to be the sole functional fabrial remaining. Of the life support system, only increased pressure remains maintained.

History

Pre-Recreance

Urithiru was constructed at some point early on during the Silver Kingdoms era. Initially, many wished for it to be constructed in Alethela; however, it was eventually built elsewhere, in a place considered to be "closest to Honor". It's unclear whether it was created by Heralds, Surgebinders or Shards themselves.

Though it's unclear whether it was originally built for this purpose, Urithiru was the headquarters of the Knights Radiant orders, as well as the center of the Silver Kingdoms, holding ten thrones, one for each king. Even following the temporary end of the cycle of Desolations, it remained an important location as both the home of the Radiants and the Oathgate hub. During that time, Urithiru had a large population of not only Radiants, but also ordinary people - servants, traders, craftsmen and so on. At one point, the Unmade Re-Shephir invaded the tower, and was trapped and sealed by an unknown Lightweaver.

Eventually, the unknown systems that allowed people to inhabit Urithiru - most importantly, raising its temperature to allow people to live comfortably and grow foods - began to fail for unclear reasons. This forced the Knights Radiant to abandon the tower, leaving behind only the gem archive where they coded their last messages.

Between this and the Day of Recreance, the Oathgates in the 9 surviving cities were sealed, leaving Urithiru locked away from the world.

Era of Solitude

Some time after the tower was abandoned, Re-Shephir broke out of her confinement, but remained within the tower.

Though Urithiru had faded into myth by the Era of Solitude, Szeth was familiar with it, and would visit it often after becoming a Truthless. He had gone by the village at the bottom of the tower's mountain so many times that he mused that at some point, they had started thinking of him as some sort of god, leaving out tributes of spheres for him to use for stormlight.

Jasnah Kholin began an effort to rediscover the city after growing convinced that a new Desolation was coming. While she herself was unable to do so, her student, Shallan Davar, managed to complete her works and pinpoint the location of Stormseat, an ancient city that possessed an Oathgate, but was destroyed long before Urithiru was abandoned. She eventually managed to locate Stormseat - now called Narak - and, as the Listeners summoned the Everstorm, transported the Alethi army through its Oathgate, rediscovering Urithiru.

True Desolation

Following the arrival of the Everstorm, Urithiru became the centre of Alethi military power, with most highprinces, chief among them House Kholin, relocating there along with their armies. The Alethi began to reinhabit the tower, although they were unable to reactivate most of Urithiru's systems, such as the heating or the main elevator. Following a string of strange accidents, Re-Shephir was tracked down and banished from the tower by a team led by Shallan Davar Several Oathgates - that of Vedenar, Azimir and Thaylen City - were unlocked to reenable fast transportation across the continent.

As a prelude to the Battle of Thaylen Field, the Voidbringers attacked Urithiru through the subverted Kholinar Oathgate. Although initially somewhat successful, they were eventually pushed back and out of the city.

Culture

Though massively important in the past, prior to the coming of the Everstorm Urithiru was all but unknown to Vorins who didn't study the Knights Radiant, with Shallan being unfamiliar even with its name. This could be the result of the Hierocracy working to suppress all knowledge of Radiants, similar to how they discredited Surgebinding.

In contrast, Shinovar is familiar with Urithiru, at least insofar as the traditions surrounding it are concerned. According to the Shin, the stones in Urithiru are unhallowed, making them fine to walk on, as opposed to the rest of non-soil-covered Roshar. Szeth also has no problem recognizing Urithiru for what it is, and made it one of his first destinations after becoming Truthless, suggesting that the Shin - or at least their leaders - had known its location all along.

Trivia

• The stones of Urithiru being unhallowed is part of Shin culture rather than something magical.
• For some time, it was theorized that Urithiru might be a spaceship or something akin to a spaceship that Ashynites used to travel from their ruined homeworld to Roshar. This has been debunked.
• In similar vein, it has been theorized that the Kholinar windblades power Urithiru in some fashion, though this, too, was debunked.
• The inspiration for the Breakaway was Korean night markets, street bazaars that typically operate only at night.

Notes

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