River People

The River People lived differently due to time working differently for them, and the first settlers of the Tomb were all Outsiders.^[3]

• Outsiders — are those who came outside of the Tomb of Ariel.^[2]
• Riverborn^[4]
• River Nomads^[5]

The River People did not have the same perception of time as humans. They still measured time in months and years, but these were essentially traditions brought in by those who had come from the outside. Although there were seasonal changes within the Tomb of Ariel, the concept of a solar year was useless. Children growing up on the Great River put more meaning into traveling upstream and getting an older body than into an empty thing, like getting older by an imaginary year.^[6]

Main article: Cities of the Great River

• Sybils
• Followers of Weaver
• Seekers
• Serpent King and his people

In the Great River, it is the River People who have the history, starting with the sybils who entered the Tomb with their people. There were also all kinds of humans and creatures who came seeking truth, which is said to be hidden at the Estuary. It is said to be the golden age when the heralds of the Nightmare Spell came to the Great River. The Sybils established their cities and powerful Seekers built solitary manors among the waves. They escaped the end and lived in peace and prosperity within the Tomb of Ariel. But the golden age came to an end when the gods' voices became silent, and the sybils turned their gazes to the Estuary. This led to the birth of the Defilement, a new beginning for the River People.^[2]

• The River People ate what the river gave most of the year.^[7]
• Those who died untimely are sent downstream to return to the Estuary, the origin of everything.^[8]
• The River People were granted the Citadel formerly known as the Black Obelisk after escaping the Tomb of Ariel, allowing them to establish a permanent home in the Dream Realm.^[1]
• The River People gave Ananke the title "Ananke of Weave, the Silk Weaver" after learning how she had carried them across eternity within the Ark Amulets to a new world.^[1]
• Although the conditions of the Dream Realm made the original function of the Houses of Youth unnecessary, the River People still built a House of Youth and a House of Parting in their city of Web, adapting them to new purposes while preserving their essential role in society.^[1]