book 1 finished, created some images for the cover, working towards publishable

world/locations/thorngate.md

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+# Thorngate — Northern Compact Hub
+
+A regional administrative center four days' carriage ride north of Drenwick. Houses the Arcane Compact's northern trade oversight offices.
+
+## Character
+
+A functional posting, not a prestigious one. Thorngate handles trade regulation for the northern territories — important work that nobody glamorous wants to do. The kind of place careers go to cool down, or to disappear.
+
+## Distance from Drenwick
+
+- **By carriage:** 4 days
+- **By horseback (direct):** ~3 days
+
+## Significance (Book 1)
+
+Cassius Rykhard was "reassigned" to Thorngate after the Floundry case — framed as an administrative transfer, functionally an exile to keep him away from Drenwick and the evidence trail. The posting carries enough authority to look like a lateral move on paper while removing him from everything that matters.
+
+## Potential (Book 2+)
+
+Cass operating from Thorngate with institutional distance from scrutiny. A base of operations far enough from Drenwick to feel safe, close enough to still pull strings.