Khemenu
Khemenu, the Eight-Town, stands east of the West Road's toll bar, inside a ring wall on an island of the Lilywater. Its heart is the Hearth, a great fire in the middle of the square that never goes out, with a bell that tells the hours. Around it stand the Hall, where the masters of the four callings teach, the Council House, the Lockhouse (the bank, your depot, the market board and the mail), shops, an inn, and a broken quay where a ferryman waits for night.
For now the toll bar is down. The toll-keepers say the first frog through will not come by the road at all, and that when it happens, everyone will hear the bell.
Folk here keep their own hours: lamps lit at dusk, the market at noon, drills by the statue in the morning. Some of them have trouble that only a stranger can help with.
Left: where Khemenu lies in the world (the lit box); click another place to go there.
Landmarks
- Ember hearth: You see the Ember Hearth. A brazier of black stone big as a house, and a fire that has never gone out.
- Hearth bell: You see the Hearth bell. Rung every five minutes, so the fields know where home is.
- Mailbox: You see the Hearth mailbox. Its slot is warm.