The Cradle of the Clouds are a mountain range on the Island Where The Mountains Transfix The Sky, a large island east of the Stormlands inhabited by the Ganeta-Meru. The peaks of these mountains, rising sharply and unnaturally high above the surrounding landscape, are covered in snow for much of the year. Traversal through the Cradle of the Clouds is exceptionally difficult, though the Ganeta-Meru rarely attempt such journeys regardless due to religious reasons.
The Cradle of the Clouds are central to Ganeta-Meru religious and spiritual life. Rarely entered except for ritual purposes, the mountains are said to have been the first things to exist in the world, after which they brought the clouds into being at their highest peaks. The clouds themselves brought rain, filling the ocean where they touched stone and turning into plants and animals where they struck dirt. The mountains, then, are seen as benevolent nature spirits that allow the Ganeta-Meru to prosper, and are therefore afforded the utmost respect. Ganeta-Meru monarchs regularly speak to the Cradle at shrines near the rivers that run from them, especially in times of crisis - their input, through rarely given, is always the surest route to success.
All three major rivers on the Island Where The Mountains Transfix The Sky - the Northern, Southern, and Shard rivers - begin in the Cradle of the Clouds before flowing out into the Na-Gaesa Ocean.