⚙️The Sea of Moving Sands

For a casual glance the sea of moving sands is just a lifeless desert, but nothing is as it seems in this strange region.

Mirages

Mirages are the first thing you would notice. Giant buildings, mountains and lost cities show up on the horizon about six times more often than in other planet Ruby deserts. Usually it is a natural phenomena and mirages show exact copies of other landscapes, but meteorologists still can't explain some anecdotal sightings of features that don't exist on ruby anymore., like oceans or the Lost city of Ruby.

Quicksand

The other well known feature is quicksand. Puddles, rivers and even lakes are scattered throughout the whole region. Many explorers and extreme sport enthusiasts still disappear every year. Thanks to portable suspended animation technology they are usually recovered alive. The question is when. Currently the record for the longest recovery goes to a Chali desert nomad named Chuchali who was stuck under the surface for 33 years. Now he leads a meditation seminar for under the sand yoga retreat. When asked why he was all alone in the most dangerous part of Ruby, the brave explorer said “I was looking for a dune that no one has surfed on yet. I wanted to make a name for myself.”

Industry

The last thing “The Sea” is known for is its industry. You would think that a vast region with nothing to see from one horizon to the next would not have a lot of it. But you are wrong. It is the industrial powerhouse of the whole nation. But where are the machines? They are under the sand. The moist quicksand is the perfect heat insulator for an overheating planet. Vast tunnel systems and industrial complexes are suspended in giant lakes of damp sand and heavy chains anchor them to rock formations. Some vents and chimneys do extend to the surface, but are usually mistaken for mirages.

Population

The locals live and work in these giant factories where stuff from Zen soda cans to hover-boards are manufactured. They usually live in giant pod diggers that can tunnel to any place at The Sea of moving sands. Their lifestyle closely resembles life at a space station. That's why the largest space academy recruitment office is at one of the leisure spaces for Zenergy drink factory workers.

Workers don't dress as we understand factory attire. Most of the manual labor is done by AI so locals usually work as engineers or highly skilled supporting personnel. AR glasses that monitor local machine stats, power backpacks for portable sensors and space like jumpsuits are a must. It’s no coincidence that the first delegation from the Emerald planet mistaken locals for androids.