Riverside

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Riverside’s color is tan. The village sits far to the south, almost on a peninsula of its own, where The Great River turns into a lake. While the river is turbulent and dangerous, the lake is placid most of the time. This allows boats to be taken out for fishing.

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Along with The Farm, Riverside helps to provide meat to The Clan. Nets are the primary method used for catching fish from the lake, but rods and lines are also used. The fishhooks are made of a variety of substances. Metal fish hooks are only used by those fishing from the shore. It is a well-known fact in Riverside that having any metal in a boat will cause it to sink in deep water. Each boat is meticulously checked before being launched. Even still, the boats must be careful not to stray too far into the lake, lest they be caught in the river’s currents and pulled apart. After the fish are caught, they are brought to shore and smoked, boiled, or salted. They are then stored in the village until needed. The pungent odor of the fish can be smelled from half a mile away; although, those of Riverside don’t seem to notice it.

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Even though fishing is the primary function of Riverside, the villagers also make rope, weave nets, gather flints from the rocky shore, and build their own boats. Everyone, even the youngest children, are taught to swim, since the village is built very close to the lake’s edge. For safety, the dwellings are on the north side of the village, as far from the water as possible. The buildings are made of wooden boards, to act as flotation devices in case of a flood.

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During the winter, the lake freezes over hard enough that you can walk on the ice. The river beyond never freezes because of its fast-flowing current. This is the only season when the lake cannot be fished. The residents of Riverside spend the winter repairing nets and boats or making new ones as necessary.