Chapter 552 — Spring
Blade of Dawn · Page 1 of 4
The weather was turning warm, and the snow was melting away.
The ice and snow on the northwestern highlands had melted into murmuring streams; the brooks gathered and poured into the river channels, then split into several branches in the lowlands south of the Giantwood Pass, flowing southeast with the lay of the land. The crisscrossing waterways around the Giantwood Pass had irrigated a stretch of fertile soil, making this place one of the largest grain-producing regions on the Holy Spirit Plain—and also a strategic point contested back and forth between the Eastern rebels and the royal army.
The fires of war had drawn very near. They had briefly died down in winter, but as the weather warmed, the shadow of war returned to this land with the rising waters of the river channels.
Grey-haired Sam brought his sons and daughters to the upper reaches of the river. The stones stacked last year on the "Harvest Stone" were still there, only a few missing—most likely kicked away by animals that had come to drink; and beneath the remaining stones, some rough carvings could still faintly be seen, depicting the sacred emblems of the Three Gods of Abundance in a crude hand.
Sam stepped forward and, with an almost reverent air, cleared the old stones from the Harvest Stone. Then he took out the red ginger grass he carried with him, squeezed out its juice, and smeared it over the emblems of the Three Gods of Abundance. His two sons picked up new stones of suitable size from the nearby riverbank and placed them on the flat top of the Harvest Stone, piling them into a small heap. Only when all this was done did the youngest daughter come forward and plant a tender green branch in the middle of the stone pile.
Sam bowed his head and murmured softly: "Goddess of Spring, you are the first herald of the Month of Revival. May the red ginger grass dye your skirts red and draw you to this land..."
The children all bowed their heads and prayed along with their father.
In human faith, the God of Abundance is made up of three different goddesses. The eldest sister is Gaia, Mother Goddess of the Earth, also called the Goddess of Life and Mother of the Land; she governs the whole earth and all plants that grow upon it. Eve, Goddess of Harvest, is the Earth Mother's younger sister; she governs specifically the crops among plants, protecting the harvests of mortals. Flora, Goddess of Spring, is the youngest of the Three Gods of Abundance—and also the liveliest—
The Ansus believe that whenever the Month of Revival comes and the ice and snow upon the earth melt away, Flora, Goddess of Spring, is the first to run out from her palace and come to the earth to seek evidence that winter has ended. The red ginger grass can catch this goddess's attention, and the first tender branches to turn green in the Month of Revival can delight her. She will remember the location of every green branch, and after spring ends and she returns to her palace, she will tell the Goddess of Harvest what has happened upon the earth—and thus the farmers' yearly harvest is assured.
Nearly all farmers worship the Three Gods of Abundance—even if they are also followers of the Holy Light or the Blood God, they will not neglect the annual spring offerings to the Gods of Abundance.
But could a few extra catties of grain... really be enough to live on in peace?
When the brief prayer ended, Sam lifted his head and, watching the green branch in the middle of the stone pile slowly crumble to dust and scatter on the wind, let out a faint breath: "The goddess has accepted our offering. This year's harvest won't be bad."
"Last year's harvest wasn't bad either, and we still went hungry," the eldest son muttered under his breath. "The goddess can only bless a good harvest—she can't stop us from going hungry."