Oasis Number Nine

The land

Gently rolling ground under desert, 858 m up; far from any sea; hot desert.

Cover

desert

Elevation

858 m

Relief

gently rolling ground

The sea

far from any sea

Climate

hot desert

The patch

about 1.85 km north to south and 1.71 km across; 1,853 m north to south, 1,706 m east to west, 3.16 km²

Centre

23.0083°N 12.5083°E

What the land offers a builder

Of this land: earth, stone, sand, hide, bone, cloth, rope, glass, fire. Of the region: reed, turf. The land allows: ground, stilts.

Now

Clear and cool here, 04:29 local, the dry, as always, full dark.

The wild

Animals here this month: oryx (feeding), hyena (feeding), antelope (rutting), wild ass (feeding), ostrich (feeding), fox (feeding).

The lay of the land

• The low knoll (knoll): a rounded rise with a clear view across the surrounding patch
• The north hill (hill): a broad shoulder of high ground dry underfoot after rain

What stands here

THE EARTH HUT — on the low knoll. House-sized, about 6 m. Earth, stone. On the ground.
"A stout earth hut roofed with stone, set low out of the wind with a central hearth"
A roof of stone atop the top: pitched low to shed rain and heavy gusts. A hearth of stone inside the centre: set with flat stones to hold the embers through the night. A doorway of earth facing the south: fitted with a heavy latch on the leeward side. A storage rack of earth along the north side, hung with dry provisions, cordage, and spare gear.
Of this land: earth, stone.

THE FIRING KILN — beside the north hill. Small, about 4 m. Earth, turf. On the ground.
"A thick-walled earth kiln with a low draft tunnel and a sheltered fuel rack"
A chimney flue of earth atop the top: daubed tight to draw a steady draft. A fuel rack of turf along the east side: stacked with dry kindling under a narrow eave.
Of this land: earth. Of the region: turf.

The story, as Helena Varga tells it

Of the place

• Old Mesa Hold was laid out by Helena Varga, who marked the low knoll first and set the earth hut to face out of the prevailing weather.

Of the people

• They keep a dry stack of fuel beside the earth hut and share the first meal at the hearth with any traveller who crosses the low knoll. (heard when a people lives here)
• Before winter sets in they check the lashings and stones of the firing kiln and sing the names of the first four who came. (heard when a people lives here)

The people

THE PEOPLE OF OASIS NUMBER NINE — herders, hunters, and gardeners, seasonal, in bands.
Names from their own tongue. They hold the rain sacred.
They keep: rain songs; age groups; burial in the fire; the feast of the rains' return; gifts to strangers; winter camps away.
They like earth, hide, clear, and wildebeest. They dislike frost, fog, and stone. Open to strangers.
Their words: hearth sumunanwo, river or sea boyowenu, winter or the rains timo, the dead odoti, home yena, stranger dungo, feast angi, child ngonngise, old one kobengwa, the place Enenge, the beast tuyebi, the sky odemuko.
Their herd: antelope.
Founders: four. Lore: 2 lines.

Ways

herding, hunting, gardening

Settlement

seasonal

Kinship

bands

Marriage

either

Naming

given names

To strangers

open

They hold sacred

the rain

They keep

rain songs; age groups; burial in the fire; the feast of the rains' return; gifts to strangers; winter camps away

They like

earth, hide, clear and wildebeest

They dislike

frost, fog and stone

Their herd

antelope, 2 head

Founders

4

Counted

4 named folk, a household of 0, 0 born here, 0 died here

Founded

9 November 2026

Their words

hearth sumunanwo, river or sea boyowenu, winter or the rains timo, the dead odoti, home yena, stranger dungo, feast angi, child ngonngise, old one kobengwa, the place Enenge, the beast tuyebi, the sky odemuko.

Their lore

• They keep a dry stack of fuel beside the earth hut and share the first meal at the hearth with any traveller who crosses the low knoll.
• Before winter sets in they check the lashings and stones of the firing kiln and sing the names of the first four who came.

Named folk

The chronicle

Every line is a record the land wrote; the names in quotes are the owner's words. What the chronicle does not say did not happen.

Year 1

The annals: 1 first roof; 1 founders; 1 people founded; 1 swarm; 1 ways changed.

• The dry, as always, the first year of Oasis Number Nine: the first roof went up at Oasis Number Nine: the earth hut. kept
• The dry, as always, the first year of Oasis Number Nine: the ways of the people changed: name. kept
• The dry, as always, the first year of Old Mesa Hold: a swarm of fox at dusk over the low knoll.
• The dry, as always, the first year of Old Mesa Hold: four came to Old Mesa Hold and lit the hearth. The net-mender "Minso", the potter "Sangtemo", the fire-keeper "Milotowu", the keeper of the shrine "Isangkote". kept
• The dry, as always, the first year of Old Mesa Hold: Helena Varga called a people to Old Mesa Hold: the people of Old Mesa Hold. kept

Here now

the net-mender "Minso" (folk) · the potter "Sangtemo" (folk) · the fire-keeper "Milotowu" (folk) · the keeper of the shrine "Isangkote" (folk)