Grey-bear and the Weaving Guild

Grey-bear is the head of the weavers guild of Carlyle. She has lead the weaving lessons and allocated mice to weaving duties for the last two years. The "Great Weaving House" in Carlyle produces all of the woven materials used by the Searbay mice.

Everything from the great tents and canopies used for celebration days  right down to the hard wearing sandals used by the miners are produced in the weaving house. The tents themselves are kept on one of the house’s attached storehouses. Other nearby storehouses hold the other woven products until they are needed.

One of the most sought after cloths produced by the Weaving house are the rarely produced silken blankets. These wonderfully warm and soft blankets are given to new mothers to swaddle their pinkies and traditionally they are handed onto the eldest as it comes of age. The reason these are in such short supply is that it is rarely that the silk producing worms appear on the island. Sometimes the Mecha Corp return with a worm or two that they discover while on their patrols, but this is very rare as they have more pressing duties.

As well as producing tents, and clothing, the woven materials of The Great Weaving House are used for other purposes. For instance they produce mats in various sizes. These are used to line tunnels, and for creating the roof of the covered way to the black-stone mine. Also as a platforms for crossing mud, which are used by the down-collectors who work among the water reeds. Surprisingly some of the boatmen use the mats to form the body of their coracles (subsequently sealed).

Inside the weaving house mice work in specific areas each mouse having a specific skill and working on a production line to create one type of item. There are similarities in the way weaving workers are organised to that of the Mecha Corp. They use the term “Paw” to describe a team of product specialists.

Getting to the Black-stone mine

The mice used to mine black-stone on the island but not any longer. The island mine ran out of black-stone about four years ago. Searching the nearby mainland for another source of black-stone was an epic adventure, but more black-stone was found.

The new mine is out of sight of the island over the hill crest. The journey to the new mine is perilous but many mice have to make that trip almost every day. In an effort to make the journey to the mine less dangerous a safe-path is being constructed on the mainland from the beach all the way to the mine. It is not complete yet and probably wont be completed for another year or two.

The safe path is a combination of full tunnel and covered way. It starts beneath a rock on the beach and heads uphill towards the mine. The tunnel passes under the rock and on the far side a ditch has been excavated and covered over with twigs and grass. The long term plan is eventually to dig this ditch deeper and cover it over with soil making it a complete tunnel, but that is going to have to wait until the covered way is completed.

The full journey to the mine, crosses the water of the bay, climbs the beach, dives into the short tunnel under the rock and along the covered way which already reaches to the top of the first hill. From that point mice have to rely on their wits and the protection of the Mecha Corp as they run to the mine in the valley beyond.

Each day as the mice return with their loads of black-stone, they spend a short time to extend the covered way a little.

Black-face Wire Works

Black-stone

The Black-face wire works in Carlyle is one of the larger manufactory buildings in the city. The output of the enterprise is a vital constituent in many of the electronic devices produced in the city. However it's primary reason for existing is to provide the delicate wiring needed for the construction of the Power Suits for the Mech Core.

The building runs from the top of a hill to its base in an odd long thin building. The red-dirt and the black-stone go into the building at the top. Wire comes out of the doors at the bottom.  Thirty mice work inside the building  as many again work outside constantly shifting the red-dirt and black-stone from the docks up to the top of the hill.

Those inside always emerge from a work shift with faces blackened by dust and sometimes burned, and a season never passes without some poor mouse being lost to accident within the walls.

The pounding of hammers during the working times acts as signal to the nearby school mice that they must learn hard and fast and that they can only rest when the hammers stop.