Calla Bryn Sturgis is one of seventy or so communities along the 6,000-mile arc of the Borderlands known as the Grand Crescent in Mid-world. Calla Bryn Sturgis is located approximately a third of the way down the Crescent, and was the site of the first major battle fought by Roland Deschain's ka-tet on their road to the Dark Tower.
Calla Bryn Sturgis is primarily an agricultural community, rice being one of its primary products. The town has existed for at least a millennium; the population of the Calla is not large, around 140 able-bodied men, a slightly smaller number of women, and approximately 99 pre-pubescent children. Another addition to the town is Andy the Messenger Robot, a lovable servant robot who has inhabited the town since time out of mind. The majority of the community's children are born as twins. The rare "singleton" child is a cause for much excitement in the Calla.
Calla Bryn Sturgis, like most of the towns in the Calla Borderlands, is set up similar to the New England town style, including the use of a town meeting. Due to the enormous importance of rice to the community's survival, many aspect of Calla life demonstrate respect or even mysticism to the crop. A common weapon, sharpened plates (similar to the chakram) named Orizas (or 'Rizas) after Lady Oriza (the first user of the weapon), share a name with the genus for rice plants, oryza. The term "commala" refers to a number of aspects of Calla life, most notably the Rice Song to which Roland danced to win the favor of the Calla's citizens.
Wolves of the Calla[]
Calla Bryn Sturgis has been losing children to the Wolves of Thunderclap for approximately six generations. The Wolves come slightly less often than once a generation. With each visit, the Wolves steal one child from each pair of twins between the ages of two and thirteen. The children are kept for approximately six weeks and are returned to the Calla "roont" - they grow to a prodigious size, and have very limited mental capabilities. Roont children generally do not live very long, and usually die in agony.
Allusions[]
The Calla was named in part after John Sturges, director of The Magnificent Seven.
Apeparances[]
- Wolves of the Calla
- Song of Susannah
- The Dark Tower (mentioned)