Fair enough! Added to the list.
also, Omake!
Kenshi: A Tale of Storms
It was a stormy night in the village of Starlight. The winds howled across the coast, great waves marking the shore. A rarity, the village elders knew. The great storms came once a decade if that, but this was potentially a precursor to one of those terrible storms.
Huddled close together in the dark of there home, the small family gathered around the fire pit for warmth.
"Mama? Have you ever seen a storm before?"
Young Kirakira asked into the chill. Even with the fire pit for warmth the air was cold, and talk was all they could really do to keep warm.
Kumo knew her child was smart. Kira had proven time and again, from learning her letters and numbers to organizing the village's children into there own tiny militia. There was even that tiny scrap of fur and bone currently curled up in her lap, the pup she had rescued a day earlier from the shoreline. Kira was smart, but she was still a child. She had never experienced a storm before, not really.
"Well, dear heart. There are a few places I have been, that have had storms hit. This may look bad here, but if we were further up the coast, these shallow waves would be much worse."
Kira gasped in disbelief. Little Lim joined her, the young one following along with her sister. Kumo couldn't help but coo over how adorable her children were, and lost a few minutes simply cuddling her adorable baby girls, her husband beside her.
Eventually though, her adorable little genius wormed her way out of the blankets and stared up at her, determined. Kumo giggled at the look on her daughter's face. Such determination!
"Alright, alright. Do you remember the map in Green Finger's house? The one that shows the shape of the world?"
Kira nodded, her head bobbling up and down at speed. It was adorable enough to earn another hug, though this time her baby girl was far too excited to hold still.
"Yes, well. If you look at that map, our village is right in the center of two other stretches of land. That means we only ever see the mildest efforts pf the great storms. Thats how we can live here, so close to the coast. We are sheltered from the worst of the storms, and with that shelter we find prosperity."
Kira seemed to think about that for a moment, biting her lips in the manner of thinkers everywhere. When she turned her face back up to Kumo, she couldn't help but coo at the look of curiosity in her eyes.
"If we get the smallest storm, then whats it look like everywhere else?"
At that, Kumo had to sigh. Her daughter was relentless once she had a thought, and no deflection would shake her so easily. Settling deeper into the blankets, Kumo began her story. About places far, far away and much more grand, and terrifying, than here.
.........
If tales of storms are what you seek, dear heart, then i shall give them to you.
The storms of the Northern Coast are mild yes, but don't let that fool you. Even here, the storms can raise the water far back, surrounding us with a small sea. Why do you think our village is set upon this small mesa? Why our walls are so high and thick, beyond the raids of the Cannibals? Shelter against the storm, and the mighty winds that herald it.
But you wish to hear of other places, and other storms. I have not traveled as far as some, but i have heard tales of truly amazing places. The southern coast is a much wilder place, the sea there contending with high cliffs and mountains. This causes the Storms there to split, east and west. The Western storms are something else then, rolling through the southern Bonefields and covering up the Hook. It is a place where great storms can be felt every year, covering the land in water. There the storms can last for days, even weeks, and leave all miserably wet and chill. Be careful if you should ever find yourself there, the ground becomes treacherous and unstable the wetter things get. Stay in the city if you can, its safer than being out in a storm on your own.
Other storms...
Well, while i have never been there myself, i have seen the endless storm that rages across the Deadlands. If you should ever find yourself travelling the center of the island, take care. The endless rains across the dead lands are filled with burning acid, and can melt the skin from your bones in a matter of minutes! Only the most foolish or desperate travel through there, and only those who have made well there preparations can hope to ravel there unharmed. Be careful too, of the old world that sleeps there. The ground is just as treacherous as the storm, covered in pits and dips filled with acid from the endless storm. And the iron spiders...
That is a tale for another day, little one. You wished to hear about storms, did you not?
To the east, in the heart of the United Cities, there is the Great Desert. Though no water falls from the sky there, it has some of the most dangerous storms of all, even compared to all others. Great billowing gales of wind tear through the desert, and drags great clouds of sand with them. The Sand Storm is a most vicious thing, filling your eyes with pain and destroying all sight. Without the proper protection, you could fall off a sand dune, or stumble into a Skimmer nest, all because of the roaring sands. If you ever find yourself in those dunes, find shelter little one. And be wary of strangers! The Empire is a cruel place, and the slightest sign of weakness can lead to much worse things. I will tell you more when you are older, cub.
Where else....
Well, while I haven't been there myself, there are books about expeditions into the Ashlands. Those even beginning the attempt must deal with the endless ash clouds, constantly falling upon the ground there. None are certain as to where it comes from, exactly, but that is how the ashlands earned its name. Covered in ash, that constantly falls from the sky.
And finally...
To the north of us, there is the Leviathan Coast. A more beautiful land, I have never seen. The ground was painted so many colors, and the sky shine during the evenings! But there too is one of the most exposed areas of the island. And there, constant storms can be found. That land has no shelter, the mountains there acting only as defense for us down here in our coast. There, the storms can grow to massive things, the waves raising up taller than the tallest building in town! It was terrifying to witness, at first.
But it is also the home of the Leviathan's, those massive creatures. While we hid at the top of a mountain, I could see a small family of them stnading near the base. They almost seemed to enjoy the waves and the rain, merely staying near the mountain to avoid the worst of the wind. It was incredible to watch, little one!
Ah, but those are all the storms ai know of. Maybe one day you will find new storms, to tell me about?
...
Kira settled down at the end of the story, thinking. For a few minutes at least the small family huddled close, Kumo and Foto resting together as there daughters snuggled closer beneath the blankets. The fire crackled merrily in its small pit, blazing brightly in the dark. Pushing away the memories of things her story had drawn to the surface.
As Kumo was about to nod off, likely to yet another nightmare, her baby girl wiggled upright again. The movement seemed to rouse the pup in her lap, and shortly Kumo watched as the two held a starring contest.
Kumo hadn't said no when Kira had brought the small bit of fluff in. No creature so small should be left to fend for themselves, especially one abandoned by its mother. But Bone Dogs aren't normally tame, and even a baby can be dangerous in the right circumstances.
Before she can do more than finger her knife, her incredible daughter leaned down and kissed the pup on its snout. The beast looked utterly confused, and that look caused Kira to start giggling again. Apparently the kiss also broke the stare, because the tiny pup curled back up in Kira's lap and immediately went to sleep.
Sharing a look with Foto, Kumo couldn't help the grin spreading across her face. Their daughter had a way about her, and had managed to earn some small approval from the bone dog. A rare skill, but even more, a true blessing. Bone Dogs were loyal companions, and having one to guard there daughter very nearly guarantee's she shall live to grow up.
As Kira turned away from the small scrap of fluff in her lap, Kumo almost sighed at the look of wonder on her daughter's face. There was an innocence there, the child like wonder of the world that so many people forgot as they grew. Something she herself had forgotten, in the rush to save her father.
Kumo loved these moments the most, if she were being honest. Her children, so small and cute, such innocence that the world had not been able to take from them...
She would do everything in her power to see it thrive. That sparkle in her daughter's eye, the honest joy at the world's wonders.
She knew then, that Kira would not stay in the village. That joy, that sparkle, she knew it intimately. She had seen that same sparkle in the eyes of the greatest Tech Hunter's, those who traveled the breadth of the known world.
Truly, her child would be in for interesting times...
And Kumo could hardly wait to hear about all of them.
Notes:
This turned out far different than what i thought it would. Instead of a story about a place i love, it became a story about the many storms that wrack the island. Kenshi is an island continent, and a smallish one at that. Storms are a common issue for them, surrounded on all sides as they are by water.
And then i had the thought. A curious girl, unwilling to let go of the bone they had in regards to Storms.
What storms are there, in the land of Kenshi? And what storms will our little girl cause, as she grows?
food for thought, friends
