Flooded and stricken by extreme poverty, devastated since the first cycle of the Long Night, neglected by the Administration and riddled with organized crime, Devět is all of these things at once. At the time of the Advent, the Morena Axis plunged deep into the Vltava upstream from the district, forcing the river to spill into the area and transforming it into an archipelago. Ground floors were abandoned to the waters, and boats took over the streets. This first cataclysm had barely been absorbed when a nuclear warhead, deflected by the Artifact, struck the heart of Devět. Even today, this irradiated zone, with its treacherous currents and vitrified ground, bears the silhouettes of the victims, seared into the walls for eternity. Whether natural or artificial, the hundreds of islands that make up the district vary greatly in size, composition, terrain, and purpose. An islet of just a few square metres may serve as a refuge for a solitary fisherman, while others are home to shops, harbours, craftsmen’s workshops, taverns, and more. The largest and best-known island lies to the north and is called “the Butte.” Across its few square kilometres, the impoverished population crowds into makeshift shelters, making use of every available patch of land. It is here that the Administration’s main buildings can be found: the Friedhof Dispensary, run by the Directorate of Integrity and focused more on prevention than treatment; the Grébovka Enclave, the inaccessible stronghold of the mysterious Prefect Sibenk; and finally, on a neighbouring islet, the worst posting imaginable for a Prague Black Guard after the Line: Blockhaus DEVET.