02.01.2016
For spread from the many lakes that dotted the land in and around Suu-manth. The foothills to the west of the Knuckles were home to many tens of thousands of people, and millions of fish in the lakes. Suu-manth had grown amidst the lakes and came to be the premier location in the area for its high altitude fish, which had a distinct, fresh quality from the mountain runoff.
The mountains provided many ice caves which were mined for the ice to use when shipping the fish. Tons of fish left the city daily, destined for cities further into the plains which did not have as quality or as tasty a population of fish.
Hundreds of lakes in the area were surrounded by small fishing villages. The epicenter of Suu-manth was only a small fraction of the sprawl which was considered Suu-manth territory. The sun rose higher and eventually sunlight spilled through the Splitskin. The mountains glew red above and behind Dalence and Starhen, the man with silver hair.
The sun that made it through the pass turned the lakes below into an undulating spread of color. Like hundreds of gems tumbled down from the mountains. The fishing tribes had two generations ago banded together to form an allegiance. The resulting group focused on collecting the bountiful fish into a central market which could be the go-to place for the neighboring cities.
No longer would individual fishermen have to spend time traveling to distant peoples to form a contract for fish. The marketplace of Suu-manth handled the networks and distribution. The fishermen then sold their fish to the marketplace for a price which was set by well-versed inspectors who rated the fish and declared their worth.
The ice caves yielded the ice to pack with lakegrass and fish for the long journey to markets in other cities where the fish would be sold to individuals there. The scale of sale this marketplace enabled was the entire reason why Suu-manth had become the largest town in the entire Fist.
The Governor had been introduced twenty years go as the head of fishing and settler of disputes. The office came open every five years and the most respected person in the city was elected to the seat. And the seat was literal. The central market had grown in size over the years, and large swaths were now covered. Atop the Bleed Stone sat a chair fashioned from old fishing craft, oars, and nets. And this seat the Governor would occupy each day, under the dense roof, each day from First Fish (when the first fish of the new season was beheaded on the Bleed Stone) until Last Barrel, which marked the end of the fishing season for tax purposes.
The lakes froze over soon thereafter, and while ice fishing was still an option, the central marketplace suspended operation for several months until the lakes thawed and First Fish. First Fish was a main event as well. From the lake next to the Bleed Stone, the fishermen raced to be the first to haul in a fish after the bell was tolled. The person to catch that First Fish was carried to the Bleed Stone, where the fish was killed, prepared, and eaten by the individual and the Governor. This fisherman was made an adviser to the Governor for the season, because he had good luck in the Catch.
It was here at the Bleed Stone that Dalence and Starhen requested Audience with the Governor and the First Catcher. They had to wait for an hour before they’d be seen. So the two shared a breakfast and tea at a popular stand in the marketplace. They quietly rehearsed what they’d say.