Tag: Pietas

I named the Nizamrak Building after my friend and mentor, the late author Barbara Karmazin. Nizamrak is Karmazin backward. BK, as she was affectionately known, loved the idea of having a site named after her. When my son Jamin created a print of the building, she was delighted.

It was always in my mind that the letters in Nizamrak were an acrostic, but I didn't know what they represented. When I wrote A Stolen Heart, I learned the meaning. A group of toddlers in a day care had been killed in "friendly fire" and Luc ( or "Cyr" as he was known in that life) was responsible. He never got over finding their tiny bodies, nor did he forgive himself. How could such a thing happen? You'll have to read A Stolen Heart to find out, but this incident had far reaching consequences and changed the course of many lives. The children's names were Nazeeya, Ida, Zahir, Addison, Makenna, Rayner, Amris, and Keagan. This is not the only thing to bear some aspect of their names, and because their deaths occurred over twelve thousand years ago, there is no telling how many ways the names have been used. But no matter what Luc does to honor them, he cannot free himself of the guilt he feels.

Locations inside the Nizamrak

• • Parking, Transportation, Tube Train - Underground (fifteen floors)
  • Bank of Tarth - Suite 100 (ground) - 800
  • Non-Lucsondis-owned businesses, medical facilities, storage, employee housing, daycare, etc. - Suite 900-4000
  • For Women Only - Suite 4100 - 5000
  • Lucsondis Entertainment - Suite 5100 - 6000
  • idBot - Suite 6100 - 7000
  • CyberEgo - Suite 7100 - 8000
  • Lucsondis Enterprises - Suite 19100 - 19900
  • Unoccupied (on purpose) - Suite 20000
  • Penthouse "The Loft" - Suite 20100 - 20300

Tradestandard labor laws require employers to provide living quarters to employees near the place where they work. Exceptions are available (for example, in Her Crystal Clear Truth, Shohn Lexius lives elsewhere yet has her office in the Nizamrak Building. Luc Saint-Cyr's penthouse is the Building's top three floors.

The two-hundredth floor (Suite 20000) is vacant by design to provide privacy and security for the Loft. The Loft (Luc Saint-Cyr's penthouse) supports a full parking deck for his fleet of cars, and an entertainment facility. The penthouse occupies the top three floors. Private living and sleeping quarters take up most of the top floor, and provide space for the rooftop pool. The rooftop also has weather and privacy shielding.

Because of its design and height, the Nizamrak Building is equipped with anti-terrorism devices and the highest security idBot can provide. Repulsor technology prevents aircraft from approaching, eliminating the need for traditional blinking lights required on tall buildings. Failsafes turn on the lights in case of power failures or emergencies.

Discrete express elevators run to the penthouse, including one solely for vehicles and delivery. A separate, stacked elevator system transports passengers rapidly to various sections of the building. An industrial elevator system handles delivery. Private parking for those qualified is housed underground. The Tube (the Tarth City tube train) makes scheduled stops. The Nizamrak Building is one of the few tall buildings into which the tube is not permitted to run. All transportation (except Luc Saint-Cyr's private fleet) is underground. This gives the black-glass fronted building a sleek appearance. It is wider at the base than at the top.

More information is available in the Tarthian Empire Companion.

Image below courtesy of  Jamin Allen

Visiting Tarth?

Should you visit the Tarthian Empire be sure to stop in and say hello to the employees at Lucsondis Enterprises. I'm sure they'd be glad to see you. Here's the full address.

Lucsondis Enterprises Corporate Headquarters
Nizamrak Building, Suite 19800
100225 Destine Pietan Plaza
Tarth City, Di Lusso DistrictTarth, Tarthian Empire

As you can see, I am highly detailed when it comes to worldbuilding. It's one of my favorite things to do.