The sound of the rain falling into the stagnant marsh waters was the only audible noise beside the crackling fire and a background of people conversing. The wooden covering had already been put over the drying bricks outside. “When is the rain going to end,” Lenris thought to himself. It had been going two and a half days strong and showed no sign of giving up soon. A large male over a foot taller than Lenris approached, although beginning to fade with age his bright orange stripes across his shoulders and chest showed true. The kind of wisdom only achieved through experience marked his eyes. It was Ahvimech, a prominent village elder, he asked “When will you be able to finish the repairs on our trade hall?” “I’m doing what I can elder but the rainy season is never a favorable time to make bricks, I’m sorry.” Lenris replied with a less than completely confidant expression on his face. “The Naukem will be here before the next season, they won’t stop if they see our trade hall in its current condition” Ahvimech commented with the slightest hint of a critical air. With that he turned to leave. The collection of people began to disperse as they headed for bed. The light from the fires became lower and the noise waned.
The next morning Lenris awoke just before the sunrise. The smell of food being prepared permeated the building. Herbs being boiled with meat cooking in the same fire marked the sent. While enjoying this peaceful scene Lenris suddenly noticed something. There was a underlying quiet which had not been present for a time. He walked to the door and looked out. A slight breeze blew with just a hint of morning chill, the sun reflected off of the waters and the familiar noise of insects and birds gave the background life. The rain had cleared, this was good news. Lenris strode out to the trade hall where the bricks had been for days. Taking the wooden weather protection off he exposed the thick mud and straw mixture to the sunlight. Lenris made his way back to the center hall where breakfast was being served.
People sat in small groups on the ground around narrow tables with dark wicker legs while long, straight sticks composed the table face. Lenris’s tribe was a small one, under 200 people but still the quiet chatter filled the air. They all seemed more lively, invigorated by the sun shining in the sky. Lenris spotted one of the groups of people he normally ate with and walked to them. Five people were gathered around one end of a table the oldest of the party addressed him. “Rain’s gone, it’s a good day for you” she was a female about the same size as Lenris but with a fight in her eyes which he had never shared. Her name was Icressah, Lenris looked up to her, she was strong and nothing held her back. She was one of his closest friends at least when she wasn’t pressuring him into doing things her way, which didn’t happen often and he never said anything about it when it did. He took a portion of food from the center of the table, it was a simple meal of assorted raw vegetation and fowl meat with boiled tubers on the side. He then proceeded to engage in friendly banter.
