Ostholm
| Ostholm | |
|---|---|
 Ostholm from the east, 2046 | |
| Location | Off the western coast of Ulmarka |
| Area | c. 14 km² |
| Country | Ulmarkan Empire |
| Population | Uninhabited (since 2039) |
| Known for | Ostholm experiments (2034–2038) |
Ostholm (/ˈɔst.hɔlm/) is a small, treeless island off the western coast of Ulmarka, part of the Ulmarkan Empire. A sealing station for most of its history, it was leased in 2034 by the Hand Physicians, a breakaway faction of the Cult of Landon, who used it in secret for the Ostholm experiments, human experimentation that killed at least 24 people.[1]
The experiments were discovered when the Ring Guard searched the island in April 2039, after the movement had been banned in Ulmarka; seven survivors were found. Another survivor, Casey, had escaped the island alone by boat a year earlier. The island has been uninhabited since, and access is forbidden.[2]
Geography
[edit]Ostholm is a low, rocky island of about fourteen square kilometres, exposed to the open ocean on its western side and fringed with seal haul-outs. Its only landing is a small stone jetty on the sheltered eastern shore, facing Ulmarka. The islet of Skarnes, where Casey lives, lies about forty kilometres to the north-west.
History
[edit]The island served as a sealing station until the hunting of grey seals was banned in 2033. In 2034 the empty station buildings were leased by the Hand Physicians, who told the wider movement that the island would be used as a retreat house. For four years the faction, led by Eskil Brenndal, carried out the experiments there in secret.[1]
The Ulmarkan state was not involved in the experiments, which were the work of the faction alone. After the Ring Guard discovered them in 2039, the empire publicised the findings widely and cited them as justification for the Hand Trials, the persecution of the movement's members that began later that year.[2]
Today
[edit]The facility buildings stand derelict and are closed to visitors. Exiled Landonites and survivors' groups have asked for a memorial on the island; the Ulmarkan government has refused, and keeps the island as a reminder of what it calls the true nature of the movement.
See also
- Ostholm experiments
- Casey
- Skarnes
- Hand Trials
- Hand Physicians
- Cult of Landon–Hand Physicians jurisdictional discrepancy
- 2049 Sylvaris Bombing–Ulmarkan Controversy Causality Discrepancy