Rhythm
Rhythm, Illuminatia
Population:
- 825,468 (250 AI Census)
- 1,800,000 (300 AI estimate)
Rank: 16
Demonym: Rhythmanian
Primary trading partners: Rhapsody, Hendrix, Voyage a Deux, Rossini, Copland
Rhythm is the second-largest constituent of the West Coast Megalopolitan Complex and is Illuminatia's 16th-largest city.
Rhythm is a dense urban city with compact suburban districts. The city is situated on an understated bay at the inward bow of the central west coast of Illuminatia. Rhythm sits opposite Rhapsody at the other end of this bay.
A primary settlement city, the Rhythm metropolitan region in recent years has effectively merged into adjacent metropolitan Rhapsody, which is much larger. The two cities maintain separate trade and media markets for technical purposes, although functionally, there is plenty of overlap.
Rhythm is the financial and information hub of Illuminatia's west coast, specializing in related industries to the extent that the city attracts a steady workforce migration from Rhapsody. The most influential banks, money management, and financial services firms of the west coast are based here, including the region's largest bank, the Rhythm Currencyhouse.
Rhythm is served by one non-profit newspaper, the Rhythm Affiliated. The dominant institution of higher education here is the University of Trivial Knowledge. Regional linguistic policing organization Take For Granite, Inc is also based in Rhythm.
As of the 250 AI Census, Rhythm had a population of 825,468 residents. The city has experienced significant growth since then, and it is estimated the city will have a population over 1,800,000 by the 300 AI Census, or an increase of approximately 220% within 50 AU.
As with all of the central west coastal region of Illuminatia, including Rhapsody, Rhythm was settled by members from the Second Multiversal Duplication of the Lucidus I ship, albeit fewer modules landed here than did in Rhythm's much larger metropolitan neighbor to the south. Multiple landings still influenced the momentum of the seeded population at the Rhythm settlements, combining with steady inward migration to cement Rhythm's status as a large, rapidly-growing city.
Rhythm, like many of Illuminatia's largest cities, finds the origin of its name in musical terminology.