I awoke the next morning to the familiar sound of the village coming to life. The sounds of crackling fires, clattering of tools, and chatter of the tribe filled the morning air. After some time spent in my thoughts, I decided to find Mako. There was something the elder had mentioned about Mako creating something out of mud that had sparked my curiosity.

Pushing the flap of my dwelling aside, I stepped out, instantly greeted by the warm glow of the morning sun. Squinting against the bright light, I made my way towards the area where I knew I would find Mako.

As I approached, I could see Mako's broad back hunched over what appeared to be a table of sorts. I walked up to him and clapped a hand on his shoulder, "Good morning, Mako. Elder Akara mentioned that you've been up to something interesting?"

Mako turned to me with a broad grin on his face. His hands, smeared with mud, gestured toward an assortment of shapes sitting on the table. "Ah, Tak, I was hoping you'd come by. Look at these."

What I saw took my breath away. Lying on the table were several objects shaped out of mud and hardened under the sun. They were crude and simple but represented something so much more - the beginning of pottery.

"This... Mako, this is fantastic," I breathed out in awe, gently picking up one of the hardened mud pieces. It was rough around the edges, but the concept, the birth of a whole new craft, was nothing short of revolutionary.

Mako chuckled, rubbing the back of his head bashfully. "Well, I thought about what you said, about using mud to store our excess food. I'm still learning, but I think this could really help us."

I nodded, a proud smile stretching across my face. "You've done an amazing job, Mako. This...this is the beginning of something big. I can feel it."

With that, Mako and I spent the rest of the morning discussing the possibilities of his newfound craft, not realizing that we were on the cusp of another transformational moment for our tribe.

"Tak," Mako began hesitantly, his brows furrowing as he watched me examining his work, "What are you thinking?"

I glanced up, locking eyes with my friend. "Mako, have you ever thought about molding this... mud into a different shape? Something that could hold... let's say water or even the corn we grow?"

Mako's expression was thoughtful as he tried to understand my point. "You mean like... a pot?"

"Yes, exactly!" I exclaimed, excited to see him catching onto the idea. "Imagine if we could shape this mud into a pot. We could use it to store water, grains, berries... just about anything."

"But how?" Mako asked, his tone both puzzled and curious. He eyed the sun-hardened clay in my hands, seemingly trying to picture it in a new form.

With a smile, I set down the piece of mud and began to illustrate with my hands. "See, if we take a lump of wet mud, we can shape it in our hands like this," I said, forming a hollow shape with my hands. "We start from the base, gradually building up the walls while keeping the inside hollow. Once the shape is formed, we let it dry under the sun."

Mako's eyes lit up with understanding, his mouth slowly forming into a wide grin. "Tak, that... that might just work! We could make all sorts of shapes. The possibilities could be endless!"

"Exactly, Mako. That's the spirit," I stated, sharing his excitement. "This is the dawn of a new era for us. An era of pottery."

And thus, as the morning sun rose higher, we sat there, imagining a future shaped by our hands and the simple, humble mud. Our tribe had farmed, hunted, and now, we were about to craft in ways we'd never imagined. Our lives were changing, and it was thrilling.

As Mako began to shape the wet mud with an intensity I'd rarely seen before, I found my thoughts drifting once again. The realization of what we'd stumbled upon was slowly sinking in - the impact it could have on our lives was beyond anything they could anticipate.

"Mako," I began, my gaze firmly fixed on his hands skillfully molding the clay, "do you think we could use this for more than just pottery?"

Mako paused in his work, looking up at me with furrowed brows. "What do you mean, Tak?"

I pursed my lips, considering my words carefully. "I mean, if we can shape this mud into pots, what's stopping us from shaping it into... bricks?"

Mako looked confused, and rightly so. "Bricks?" He echoed, clearly puzzled. "Why would we need bricks, Tak?"

I gestured around us, at the makeshift huts and shelters that made up our tribe's homes. "Look around, Mako. We use wood and leaves for our homes, which we have to replace regularly. It's laborious, and not always safe. But imagine if we could make our homes from something sturdier... something like bricks. They would be more durable and could provide better shelter."

Mako watched me, silent for a few moments as he absorbed my words. Then slowly, a slow smile spread across his face. "Bricks..." he mumbled, seemingly testing the word. "Tak, you might be onto something. We could try, at least."

I returned his smile, a wave of relief washing over me. Having Mako's support always meant a lot. "Thank you, Mako. We have so much to learn and so much more we can do. This... this is just the beginning."

"If you happen to find any reddish-colored sand or dirt, let me know." I told him.

Mako looked at me gazing into my eyes as if trying to figure out what I meant. "You want dirt?" His question made me smile, I was not speaking of dirt.

Shaking my head I said, "No, not dirt. This reddish dirt is special, it can be molded into shapes like the mud you're working with now. The color gives it a more appealing look and I believe it may last longer."

"Ok, Tak. If I come across any I'll let you know. This reddish dirt sounds interesting," Mako said as his eyes drifted to his unfinished piece of work.

As Mako turned back to his mud, a sense of excitement began to bubble within me. We were on the precipice of something great, something that could transform our way of life.

As I approached the riverbank, I found Yenar hunched over a collection of stones, his nimble fingers deftly shaping them into crude tools. Despite his age, his movements were sure and swift, the result of years of honed skill. His gaze was intense, the deep-set coals of his eyes focused on the task at hand.

"Yenar," I greeted him, coming to stand beside him. His work never ceased to amaze me; his ability to create functional tools from mere rocks was something I admired greatly.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

Yenar glanced up at my arrival, his furrowed brow softening at the sight of me. "Tak," he returned my greeting, his voice as gruff as ever. "What brings you to my little workshop this morning?"

"I wanted to talk to you about something," I replied, glancing at the tools scattered around him. "It's about the mud that Mako has been working with."

The elder statesman's eyes lit up with curiosity. "Mud, you say? And what about it?"

"I was thinking... we can make pots from it, but what if we could make something else? Something more... permanent?"

"Permanent?" Yenar echoed, his curiosity piqued. "Like what?"

I took a deep breath, gathering my thoughts. "Like bricks, for our homes."

Yenar paused in his work, setting his stone down as he turned to look at me. His gaze was unreadable, his face as etched and unmoving as the stones he worked on. But behind the deep-set coals of his eyes, I saw a glimmer of interest.

"Bricks, you say?" He repeated slowly, mulling over my words. "That's... quite a concept, Tak. An intriguing one, I must admit. Have you spoken to Mako about this?"

I nodded, the spark of excitement within me flaring up once again. "Yes, he agrees that it's worth a try."

Yenar returned his attention to his stone tools, his nimble fingers resuming their work. "Intriguing indeed," he muttered, more to himself than to me. "I'm eager to see how it turns out, Tak. Our tribe could use some good change."

His words were the affirmation I needed. It seemed that my ideas were not as far-fetched as they sometimes felt. With the support of Mako and Yenar, I felt a renewed sense of determination. We were indeed on the brink of something monumental. The age of the Ashaya Tribe's progression was just beginning.

I looked at Yenar with hope in my eyes, "Can you help me with this, Yenar?"

Yenar's hands, still busied by his work, halted for a moment. His eyes turned towards me, revealing an inquisitive gleam. "I've got my hands full, lad," he responded, his voice carrying a trace of regret. "But tell me, how can I help?"

"I need something to mold the bricks," I answered him, my eyes darting toward the stone tools scattered around him.

"Mold?" Yenar echoed, confusion drawing his bushy eyebrows together. "What do you mean by that, Tak?"

"Well," I started, carefully choosing my words, "when we make pots, we shape them with our hands. But for bricks, we need something uniform, something that can give them a consistent shape and size."

Yenar's face was a picture of concentration as he listened. His eyes had that far-off look, as though he was trying to picture what I was saying.

"Imagine a box," I continued, "but it's open at the top and bottom. We can press the mud into it, and when we lift it up, we have a brick of consistent size. I was thinking, maybe you could make such a 'mold' from stone."

Yenar sat back, crossing his arms as he looked at me, an odd mix of fascination and skepticism in his gaze. He was silent for a long moment, contemplating. Then, slowly, he nodded, "That's quite a thought, Tak. If it works, it could indeed be a major advancement for our tribe. Let me think about this. I will see what can be done."

A surge of gratitude washed over me. I nodded, expressing my appreciation, "Thank you, Yenar. Your help means a lot to me."

The old man merely waved me off, his attention already drifting back to his stone tools. Yet, I saw a spark in his eyes that wasn't there before, an ember of excitement for this new challenge. As I left Yenar to his thoughts, I couldn't help but feel that the wheels of progress were truly beginning to turn.

As I left Yenar to his work, I walked down the river bank, my feet tracing the familiar, worn path. The gentle murmuring of the river was soothing, a constant in my ever-changing world.

I found my thoughts returning to my former life, my days immersed in research on medieval and ancient time periods for my novel. I chuckled to myself, a wry smile pulling at my lips. Who knew that my penchant for history would serve me so well in this situation?

I looked at the rippling water, lost in thought. Back then, all that knowledge was just fodder for my fiction, details to make my narrative more believable. Now, they were lifelines, the keys to survival, and perhaps, prosperity.

I had to laugh at the irony. I had been so focused on portraying the struggles of my characters, I had never imagined I'd live through similar experiences myself.

"I should've paid more attention to those primitive crafting channels on the internet," I joked aloud, my voice echoing across the serene landscape. I could almost picture myself, lounging on my old, worn-out couch, mindlessly scrolling through videos, half-listening to a guy demonstrating how to make a stone axe or a pot from river clay.

Funny, how those things we take for granted can become crucial in unexpected circumstances. It was as if fate had a weird sense of humor, throwing me into a plot twist that even I, a seasoned writer, hadn't seen coming.

My laughter dwindled to a soft chuckle, the sound carried away by the whispering wind. The sun was beginning to set, painting the sky with a palette of fiery reds and calming oranges. It was time to head back, back to my tribe, my family. There was much to do, and a bright new day awaited.

My steps were slow and thoughtful as I made my way back to the tribe, the path under my feet feeling like an echo of a forgotten time. It was a quiet evening, the dying light casting long shadows on the lush landscape. But inside me, a storm of thoughts was brewing, a tornado of ideas and questions about the future of our society.

What sort of society should we become? I found myself pondering. Monarchy, the rule of one, had stood the test of time in my old world, giving birth to dynasties and kingdoms that shaped the course of history. But it also often brought corruption, and the lust for power could poison the soul.

An empire, a state under an emperor or empress, brought with it even more absolute power. It created vast expanses of land, dominated by a single ruler, but also sowed seeds of revolt and dissent, turning brother against brother in the struggle for power.

Feudalism, the system of loyalties and protections during the Middle Ages, brought order and stability but created rigid social hierarchies and a wide chasm between the haves and have-nots.

I found myself shaking my head, banishing the unsettling thoughts. I didn't want that for us. I didn't want our unity to crumble under the weight of power and wealth. I didn't want to see the spark in the eyes of my tribe, especially my young siblings, dimmed by social status or birthright.

Could we create a society where one's merit decided their worth? Where the best, the most skilled, and the most dedicated held the reins, not by virtue of birth or wealth but due to their abilities?

Could we learn from the mistakes of past societies and create a better future?

I didn't have the answers, and the uncertainty was unnerving. But as I walked, my heart fluttered with a strange optimism. We were at the dawn of our civilization, and we had a chance, a rare opportunity to shape it in a way that echoed our values.

My thoughts, like a brook, continued to flow, weaving around the boulders of uncertainty and fear, nurturing the seeds of hope and determination. By the time I reached the edge of our settlement, I was ready. Ready to take on the challenges of a new day, armed with dreams of a brighter future for my tribe.

There was a certain beauty to be found in observing the tribe from a distance, a peace rarely seen during modern times that allowed me to gain perspective. I watched as my tribesmen went about their day-to-day activities, the rhythm of their work almost musical, a symphony of life in full swing.

I saw children playing a rough-and-tumble game, their laughter carried to me on the wind. It was a sound full of life, full of promise. I saw men and women, young and old, engaging in various tasks with focus, their bodies bending and stretching in a dance as old as time itself.

As I watched, my mind was alive with questions. How far would we go as a tribe? What heights would we scale? What would we look like as we evolved through the ages? The canvas of time stretched out before us was vast and unknown, a territory uncharted and yet so full of possibilities.

A soft smile curved my lips as I pondered the future. I found myself yearning for the ability to step outside of time, to watch our journey unfold like an epic saga, to witness the metamorphosis of our tribe as we navigated the currents of change.

But time, like a river, flowed only in one direction. There was no going back, no fast-forwarding to the future. We could only take one step at a time, drawing upon our courage and resilience, guided by our shared dreams and aspirations.

And maybe that was for the best. After all, the beauty of a journey lay not in its destination but in the experiences it offered along the way. The struggles we would face, the victories we would celebrate, the bonds we would forge - they would define us, shape us into who we were meant to be.

As I watched my tribe, I felt a swell of pride and affection. These were my people. This was my tribe. And together, we would create a legacy that would echo through the ages. I did not know what the future held, but one thing was certain - it was a future I looked forward to with eagerness and hope.