Italy is a land shared by five great states, at peace for some fifty years, beneath which lie the five linked Invisible Cities and a network of portals.
| Type | Region |
| Spanish entry | Italia |
Political map
Five states share the territory: Venice, the Papal States, Naples, Milan and Florence. None rules the rest; they “divided the spheres of influence”, and “in Italy there had been no war for at least 50 years”.
Hidden map
The five invisible cities — Milan, Naples, Venice, Florence and Rome — are also “the five important cities of Italy” and are linked to one another. Where the political list says Papal States, this one says Rome.
Travel
To the south lies “a whole network of plains with some canals”, passable by barge, leading “toward Venice” or to several points, including by “a creek that goes toward Pavia”. The Apennines run alongside, at times “some 10, 15 kilometers” away. The fast route is “the network of portals”, a way “instead of crossing Italy, of arriving straight in Naples”.
Prophecy
The fate of the five cities decides the whole region. Over the peace hangs an undated, unattributed announcement: «toda Italia terminarán para siempre el infierno y la oscuridad» (roughly, “all Italy … hell and darkness will end forever”).
Open questions
- Whether the Papal States and Rome are one piece under two names.
- Whether the cities’ union is the portal network or another bond; who controls the portals and at what cost.
- Which war ended fifty years ago, and who keeps the balance.
- Whether the announcement is fate, prophecy or one voice’s fear.
- The cities’ appearance and size.