Dear Arturo,

The hospitality you experienced at the hands of the Madnakhi is by no means uncharacteristic but you are wrong to assume that they are a naturally peaceful and reasonable race. They are as prone to spite and bitterness as all mankind. The six peaks have even gone to war at times but their feuds usually do not end in bloodshed. I will tell you a tale of Madnakhi bitterness which came to a peaceful end.

In days of old a feud befell our forefathers. A drought came. Rain and food were scarce for three years. Our wells were not enough to keep farms and gardens from withering so thousands were tasked with carrying buckets up from the east sea. Hundreds and hundreds more worked to remove the seawater’s salt. It was a harsh time for all.

The peak of Gan houses more gardens than anywhere on the mountains. It is home to most of the husbandmen who work the fertile plots below the peaks and above the barren west desert. More than half of Madnakh’s food comes from Gan and so the high priest made sure the Gani were not hoarding what belonged to all.

In the third year of the drought the reeve of Gan announced that his prized goat cheese was stolen. He blamed the warriors of neighbouring Shang, saying that only the mighty men there could have climbed his walls and escaped with his food. The reeve of Shang took the accusation for an insult and said that the reeve of Gan was wrong to have hoarded food for himself.

Each peak expelled from their streets any who came from the other. No one from the other peak was to walk among them. The Shangri took to launching pebbles at the Gani and the Gani took to launching inedible pits. The two began to hate each other. The high priest feared that if nothing changed then Shang would attack and blood be spilled on the mountains.

But it was not the high priest who would end this dispute. Citizens from either peak still had to mingle in the crews of water-bearers from the sea. Among them was an old man of Gan and a young girl of Shang. When the old man fell and drop his bucket the young girl came and helped him to his feet.

“Bless you,” said the man. “But aren’t you of Shang? I’m from Gan, don’t you know?”

“I knew not,” said the girl. “But why must an old man like you climb the mountain?”

“Because we all must eat,” said the man. “Young and old, of Gan or of Shang. I lift up water for us both and now you have lifted me up from the ground. It was better before this feud. We kept your people fed and you sheltered us from the desert devils.”

The two at once struck up a friendship and agreed that the feud must end. They agreed that the girl would take some cheese from the old man and sneak it into the reeve’s house. If his cheese were returned then he would relent.

But the reeve said, “Look! It is returned but only after I accused the Shangri! This proves it was them!”

And again they assailed each other with pebbles and pits.

The young girl and old man thought again and created a new plan. The old man gave the girl a costume worn by the desert devils for her to wear. Then she would steal the cheese back and let the reeve believe that it was not the Shangri in the first place.

She did this but the reeve said, “Look! The Shangri have given up protecting us and let devils slip into my home! How long will we bear their ill will?”

And again they assailed each other with pebbles and pits.

It seemed that no matter what they did the reeve would blame his neighbours atop Shang. He might as well blame Shang for the drought itself.

Then the young girl realized that if Gan’s reeve would blame Shang for the drought then maybe he would blame them for ending it. The girl and the old man spoke to the reeve of Shang and the next morning their slings and catapults were full not of pebbles but dozens of water buckets, filled and hammered shut on top.

The buckets were launched. Some broke while still in the air and others smashed open against houses. When the reeve of Gan woke up he looked to his window and saw rain falling from the sky and mist rising up from below. He ran to his balcony, singing and dancing that the drought had ended. But he slipped, tumbled off his balcony, and followed a cascading flow of water all the way down to the sea.

People of both peaks laughed at the sight. The two neighbours were tired of the feud and to see the grouchy old reeve slide all the way down to the sea was a delight to both. When the reeve finished climbing back up, he found the two people joining hands and agreeing to forgive each other. As they did so, the young girl of Shang and the old man of Gan looked out and saw dark clouds on the horizon.

But who stole the reeve’s cheese in the first place? Well, before the drought when his pantry was full it was hard to notice but the reeve soon learned that he had a habit of eating in his sleep.

I told this tale to the mayor as I was writing and she found it much to her liking. She says she will turn it into verse and share it with you the next time you visit. I wonder if her other responsibilities will keep her from that. Let’s not be too eager to hear it any time soon.

Health to you and your family, Arturo.

Your friend,

Sidwid Hull.