Graal

The city of Graal is located in what is perceived as the north of the world. It is said that it was one of the original founding cities of the world, set up by The Pioneers. However this heritage is hotly disputed. Many believe that Graal is too flawed to be a founding city, unwilling to admit such a poor city could have once been the basin of all the world's civilisation. The city is a mixture of all architecture and peoples from across the Multiverse. It is often home to the very, very poor and the very, very rich and is run by the banking system. Governor Albin is also the head of the one of the banking chains known as Mor Constabulary Bank. Graal is governed by a bankocracy, meaning that the banks control the entire city and have done for for several decades. Graal is also home to the infamous Tournament, sponsored by Governor Albin, where men and women can risk their lives in combat for glory and gold -- all to entertain the masses.

Description
Generally the city is dark and polluted, often cast by a thin veil of fog. The architecture and style would be similar to that of modern Earth but there are many other styles dotted around. The central districts of the city have incredibly broad streets which were once designed to accommodate the massive fabricator robots that now stand like giant monoliths in the middle of these wide streets. The fabricators are attached to tracks that they once ran along. Amongst these streets are often outdoor markets or semi-permanent structures built by traders.

Further from the city centre the streets, which are more recently built, become more narrow as they were not built for or by the fabricators. The buildings in these districts are normally smaller and of an inferior quality to the original structures at the heart of the city. Most of the industrial buildings are in the outer urban areas, while the centre of the city is for the richer traders, banks or residences.

Amphitheatre Fulminis
Main article: Amphitheatre Fulminis

The Amphitheatre Fulminis is one of the key locations for entertainment in the city of Graal, providing host to The Tournament in which combatants take part in several kinds of battle culminating in the main event where two gladiators will fight to the death. The Tournament has long been Graal's most popular sport but since Albin Leigh became governor of Graal, he began to rent the amphitheatre directly from the government (essentially himself) and turned the whole event into a grand event of epic proportions. The amphitheatre is ancient, built during the times of the Pioneers, but has been advanced with modern technology including light displays, illuminating the amphitheatre brighter than the taller buildings around it, and an invisible shield to keep the rain and debris from falling onto the pitch.

Law & Order
See also: Graal Metropolitan Police Department

The law and order of Graal is maintained by the Graal Metropolitan Police Department whose officers patrol the streets, arrest the criminals and keep the peace. However, like most things in Graal, the police are heavily corrupt and it is very rare to find an uncorrupted officer in the entire city. One such person is Kale Median, but he is only kept safe by the influence of his father, the chief of police, Kale Median Snr. Those that do not tow the line are dealt with by other officers. This doesn't mean that all criminals are free to do as they please, just the influential and the rich. Broken into boroughs, each borough of the city has its own chief constable who may, or may not, defer to the chief of police as that chief constable deems necessary. A patrol usually consists of a sergeant and three constables.

Bankocracy
See also: List of Banks in Graal

The city of Graal is governed by a series of banking families. All of the city's money is run through these banks and these banks run the city in turn with that money. It is set up as a democracy, where every citizen can vote, but only candidates from these families can take the role of governor and the other family members take positions in the government body.

Governor
See also: Albin Leigh

The governor of Graal is Albin Leigh, who rose to power through a grand scheme of buying up votes of slaves. His unusual meteoric rise was unprecedented, unexpected and largely unwelcome by the other banking families. For the first time in history the Mor Constabulary Bank was in charge of Graal. As well as being governor of the city, Albin is in control of the Ampitheatre Fulminis and The Tournament that is frequently held there. This adds to Albin's immense popularity amongst the people of the city, making him almost impossible to oust from power by the other families.