|
''Predator Cities'' is the title of a tetralogy, sometimes called the ''Predator Cities Quartet'', consisting of four novels: ''Mortal Engines'' (2001), ''Predator's Gold'' (2003), ''Infernal Devices'' (2005), and ''A Darkling Plain'' (2006), written by the British author Philip Reeve. Originally known as the ''Mortal Engines Quartet'', it was known in the United States as the ''Hungry City Chronicles'', over the author's objections to this title.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=The Mortal Engines Quartet… )〕 ==Locations''== ''The Mortal Engines Quartet'' is set in a distant future, known as the Traction Era, in which Earth has been reduced to wasteland by a devastating conflict, known as the Sixty Minute War. Nations no longer exist, except in the lands of the Anti-Traction League; whereas Traction Cities – mobile cities mounted on caterpillar tracks – are fiercely independent city-states, which use giant mechanical jaws to dismantle one another for resources. Trade is mostly accomplished by airship, or between mobile cities of roughly equal size (unable to devour each other). Old-Tech (technology from before the Traction Era, some from the 21st century) is the most sought-after commodity. *The Great Hunting Ground – Consists of Europe and Northern Asia, and is the domain of the Traction Cities. It is a muddy wasteland, in which the constant movement of the cities has destroyed all vegetation. The land is identified by city-dwellers as the "Out-Country". *The Ice Wastes – New name for the Arctic, wherein Traction Cities use iron runners to skate across the ice. In some places, the ice is thin, and they risk falling in the ocean. *Africa – Africa is split between the Sahara Desert, governed by Traction Cities, and the southern regions, run by Anti-Tractionists. Areas of the southern continent include the static cities of Zagwa and Tibetsi, and the highland area known as the Mountains of the Moon. *The Dead Continent – North America, supposedly reduced to an irradiated wasteland by the Sixty Minute War. In ''Predator's Gold'', it is proven not to be completely dead; in the north there are forests with some animals which survived the Sixty Minute War. *Asia – The stronghold of the Anti-Traction League. Eastern China is evidently irradiated by the War, and the Himalayas are now the center of civilization, where the mountains make it impossible for cities to approach. *Nuevo Maya – New name for South America, severed from North America when "slow bombs" destroyed Central America during the War. Static settlements rule the Andes, but the lowlands are filled with ziggurat Traction Cities. Protagonists Tom and Hester visit Nuevo Maya between the first two books, but it is never visited in the text. Philip Reeve has said that he will explore Nuevo Mayo in more detail in the future. *Antarctica – Mentioned only once, and evidently the domain of oil-drilling Traction Cities. Tom and Hester visit Antarctica between the first two books, but it is never visited in the text. *Australia Though not mentioned in the original series or Fever Crumb, Philip Reeve says that he will explore places like Australia and Nuevo Maya in the future, as he never had a chance to do so in the original quartet. *Anchorage-in-Vineland – The static and stable version of the Traction City of Anchorage, that had decided to stop wandering the Arctic wastes and settle in the green and unspoilt land of Vineland (in North America). When Anchorage was a Traction City, it was not predatory but gained its wealth by trading with other cities, under more scrupulous leaders. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Predator Cities」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|