A figure in a woolen cloak walked the path of the forest, her dark feet bare and near silent. Achieng was happy. A woman had just had the healthy birth of their second child. A healthy girl. Achieng had visited once the birth was done, to bless the child in the name of the Warm Goddess. It was a duty and a pleasure to welcome new little lives into the world. It had been her mother's job, and her grandmother's job, and one day, with her own daughters, perhaps it would be theirs too.

The forest seemed strangely busy today. Tugging back her hood, Achieng revealed her face. It was soft and pleasant, and tattooed with the symbols of a Goddess dedicate. Within the season, she'd become a full priestess, and the two marks on her cheeks would be joined by a third on her forehead.