Granvruck Coomen

Night Ice by Adam Jones

Granvruk Coomen are the deliver people who deliver ice to dwellings in the cities of the Yenari Empire. They have to go out at the height of the day, when most people are indoors trying to be the least active possible. Since the day only lasts 90 Earth days before the sun sets and freezing temperatures return. People on Didome can store Night Ice in insulated warehouses to be used in the daytime. The Coomen are the ice delivery people of the Yenari Empire.

Perception

Purpose

Ice is needed in most of the cities for residents to stay cool, refrigerate food, and dehumidify houses through condensation. A typical person in a Yenari city might need anywhere from 10-30 kg of ice every Ock Cycle. This means that the Granvruk Coomen need to constantly go around the city streets delivering ice to all the households.

Social Status

The Coomen are regaurded as laborers and get little respect even though the Ice they provide gives much needed cooling during the hight of the day.

History

Ice was and often still is consided a winter time harvest in rual villages. Towards dawn the villagers would cut the ice out of the frozen rivers and ponds and store in insulated pits in the ground to use for later. As larger cities developed it became les practical for the ice to be harvested in small villages and shipped to the cities. Now most cities have a ice district, in a location next to a source of water. The water is pumped into shallow ponds allowed to freeze and then cut into block and stored in warehouses to be delivered later.

Night Ice Block by Ann Forstie

Operations

Workplace

The system of ice distrubution is based around the Vrukool, a place in the city with space and access to a water source. The Vrukool is where the Coomen work in the night cutting and preparing the ice into standard sizes. The ice in the night is then brought to a Vrukhouse and stored until it is needed in the day. During the day the Coomen load a Icetor cart and use a Shardreck to pull the insulated cart to each house to deliver the ice.

Dangers & Hazards

The largest hazard the Coomen face is delivering the ice in the heat of the day. Often times in the Yenari Empire the heat and humidity get so high that strenuous labor increase the risk of heat stroke. At particularly hot time, the Coomen must go out and deliver extra ice. Often times they are equiped with a Cale to help them not over heat. But coomen have been known to die of heat stroke if they were not allowed to wear a cale.