The river flows vast and strong, spring rain falls gently. The Long River of Tarsus comes from the East, witnessing the comings and goings of the Mexica fleet, and observing the spring plowing of various tribes along the way.
At the end of the Long River, in the desolate Trascal Basin, columns of smoke from slash-and-burn agriculture gradually rise. After only a few days, the wisps of smoke quickly dissipate in the spring rain. Old weeds and shrubs are burned away by the mountain fires, revealing fertile fields, nurtured by rain and dew, awaiting cultivation.
