From Stone to the Stars

[X] [Raid] No, focus on food. (Increase Aquaculture: Wild Rice)

In the end, Kaspar decided to let the chance to finish the Hundred Bands for good pass the People by.

The spirits seemed to sense his decision. The years slowly warmed, winter arriving noticeably latter in many cases. This greatly helped in the cultivation of additional banks of wild rice. As before, Kaspar focused mostly on convincing Maksus to implement where possible. The new holder of the Crystalline Staff was deeply thankful for the help of his patron and peer of the Fingers. The younger man had never quite had the head for organization that Kaspar had. Combined with the enormous debt that Kaspar had managed to secure by convincing the People of Crystal Lake to take Marksus as their Big Man, he was more than happy to act on Kaspar's behalf.

Some whispered that it was inappropriate, to select a Big Man from among the Slate of another, especially when the new Big Man would take directions from their former patrons. Most quietly ignored the rumours as pernicious gossip spread by the last of the surviving Old Warriors. After all, was it really 'taking direction' when the directions were to increase supplies of food? That was simple good sense.

The gradual warming of the weather eventually reached a point where is started to become uncomfortable. The summers began getting longer and longer. In some cases, delaying autumn or even nipping at the edges of winter. The air shimmered, beaten down under the oppressive sun's rays. Trees and grasses started to burn under the unrelenting heat, dying and turning yellow or dropping their leaves in great numbers. Even the mighty Great and White Rivers started to feel kiss of the sun, their waters lapping lower and lower at their banks.

The People were no strangers to extremes of weather. In the dead of winter, a cup of water could be thrown into the air and it would freeze before it hit the ground. In the summers, a cloying heat, almost like a wet blanket, draped itself across everyone's shoulders. The heat that they now experienced was that, but worse in every way. No one among the People wanted to work or gather food, merely rest in the cool waters of the region's lakes and rivers. To do anything else was simply to suffer.

Many of the People that had once grumbled were suddenly thankful for the foresight of their leaders. Having planted as much wild rice as they had, made simply resting blessedly possible. There wasn't quite enough to feed all of the People, but it went a long way to staving off the need to properly hunt. Even as the heatwave started to turn into a stretch of multiple years, the People could subsist lazily with only a minimum of effort.

When the sun rose, one summer morning, chocked by soot and ash that Kaspar realized something was wrong. The few Fangs he'd sent out as scouts reported tales of hell on earth. Along the mouth of the White River, near where the Hundred Bands made camp, columns of smoke reached up into the skies and countless fires raged, completely out of control. No one was sure exactly what caused the fires to start, but they were only likely to end when the rains came.

It was unfortunate, then, that there wouldn't be even a single day of rain for two moons.

Ultimately, the Fingers were untouched after the fires finally burned down to nothing. At even the narrowest point, the islands the settlement was built on were far enough from shore that it was impossible for the fire to jump. Crystal Lake had a close encounter with a completely separate fire, but it had burned out before much damage could be done. Aside from a few moments of panic, the season was an ordeal easily overcome.

The People's reliance on water for transport and to grow food meant that there was only minimal impact on their ability to gather food. There were locations where the heat was intense enough to cook and kill wild rice planted along the riverbanks, but most of the plant survived. Whatever didn't was also guaranteed to grow back in subsequent years. Combined with the ability to make pemmican and the People managed to keep themselves generously fed.

Around a moon after the fires finally died down and the chill of winter started slowly creeping across the land, the People spotted an armada of canoes coming from the south. It was the Hundred Bands, but this time they did not come for war. Still, Kaspar meet them in full armour, crowned by the antlers of an elk, and all he could think was how pathetic they looked. Women and children made up the majority of the armada. Many bore burns or had ash ground so deeply into their hair and skin that it looked like the wore the night about themselves like a cloak.

There were few warriors amongst them. There were some men that Kaspar recalled clashing with in his youth, but not many. Too few. Those who were present looked old or injured. Some even bore wounds from battle that were still untreated. Only the minimum was done to prevent wound-rot. None of the warriors were willing to meet his eyes. They were defeated.

Calling up one of the captured Hundred Bands' Debtors, Kaspar asked him to translate. He could speak the language of the Hundred Bands well enough, but having a familiar face would go a long way to reassure the... refugees that had ended up on the People's doorstep. It was slow and halting, getting their story, but once the dam broke, Kaspar was nearly driven to his knees by the tide of sorrow that clawed itself from the throats of the Hundred Bands.

They had been weak from their last, failed raid against the People a generation ago. They had managed to turn their war with the West into a bloody stalemate and eventually started to slowly recover their strength. That changed as the world slowly dried out and eventually caught fire. West of the White River, many of the small, family farms that the Hundred Bands used to feed themselves were wiped out or abandoned in the face of the spirits' fury.

Fires raged through the lands of the Western Bands as well, forcing them to pull back. Not only was the mainland scorched, but apparently the fires jumped to their main island as well. Both tribes were heavily damaged, virtually crippled for the Hundred Bands when accounting for existing damage, but it wasn't something that either of them could truly take advantage of. A silent, uneasy peace broke out between the two factions.

Into the middle of this, the South Lake tribe struck, crashing into the Hundred Bands' disorganized south and east flanks. Suffering from overpopulation as a result of taking in refugees, disorganization, and a critical depletion of manpower, the Hundred Bands folded. No longer could they prevent South Lake from ravaging their heartlands.

Everyone in the current armada was all that remained of the Hundred Bands. Many had been enslaved by South Lake, others tried escaping to the west, but were cut down by their former enemies. Others escaped into the abundant waterways north and west of the White River. The last group turned their eyes to the People. They had warred in the past, but as far as the Hundred Bands knew, the People were the only possible source of succor. There had been a generation to heal the wounds caused by war. They prayed it was enough.

Pulling back slightly, Kaspar allowed his Slate to quietly debate what to do. The Hundred Bands were powerless. Just as they had the People of the Fingers almost a lifetime ago.

What would the People do?

[ ] [Refugees] "Kill them." (+1 Legitimacy)
[ ] [Refugees] "Tell them to set off and continue downriver."
[ ] [Refugees] "Embrace them as Brothers and Sisters. Divide them among the People's settlements." (-1 Stability)
[ ] [Refugees] "Accept them as Debtors." Kaspar knows this would be refused.

What was to be done about South Lake now that they - theoretically - occupied the former site of the Hundred Bands?

[ ] [Settlement] An opportunity! (Found Settlement: Hundred Isles)
[ ] [Settlement] New friends? (Trade: South Lake)
[ ] [Settlement] New face, same enemies. (Raid: South Lake)
[ ] [Settlement] Another test of the spirits. (Undergo Ordeal)
[ ] [Settlement] Party Hard! (Annual Festival)
[ ] [Settlement] New vistas. (Explore: Hundred Isles/Southwest White River)

AN: No time to update the first page or map. Will be visiting relatives tomorrow for Easter. Will be done sometime after that.