Decamper
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CYOA: The One That Fell
- Thread starter Decamper
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Decamper
..!
- Joined
- Jul 28, 2014
- Messages
- 1,159
Wood tore with sickeningly loud cracks, and sailors screamed as they were flung into the sea. Between flashes of lightning bodies and debris churned above the immense, inky blackness. Its tendrils seemed to reach up to ensnare the dead and dying, dragging them into its endless maw. The sea did not discriminate between man and women, slave or guard; all were welcome to its eternal slumber.
Slowly, she realised the constant, oppressive roar of the surf had been broken by moments of silence. Her eyesight followed, the blackness being pricked with white specks all around her. The coarseness of her sand crusted rags reached her next, followed quickly by a blinding pain that washed over every inch of her body. She gasped as seemingly every muscle spasmed at once, doing her best not to scream out against her own flesh. After steadying her breathing, she relaxed her body inch by inch, from the toes and fingers inward, and soon enough she could flex her limbs without having to fight the urge to cut them off.
With her body once again under her mind's will, she gingerly rotated her neck, taking a look around her. She was lying on her back, and every three to four seconds the surf would reach up to her waist, not-so gently shoving her further up the rocky beach. The moon was only a sliver in sky, granting little light to see by, but she could make out a towering blackness cutting off the beach to her left, while to her right the beach seemed to continue for quite some ways until it curved out of view. She tilted her head to get an inverted view of a tree line up the beach, but it was hard to tell if the forest was close to her, or if the trees were tall enough to confuse her depth perception.
With a deep breath she attempted to prop herself up onto her elbows, and promptly vomited out a pailful of sea water. A few moments later she tried again, and after successfully mastering the half-sit, she edged her way backwards up the beach. Once out of the frigid waves' grasp, she dropped herself heavily back onto the rocks in exhaustion. Trying to catch her breath, she decide to...
1) put off the hard work until morning. she'd made it out of the ocean, so if she died in her sleep, at least she would die dry.
2) see if she could get onto her feet without toppling over to take a closer look around the beach. It would be good to know if there was something keen on eating her around before she passed out again.
3) drag herself the rest of the way to the tree line. She might pass out from exhaustion, but at least she'd be out of sight.
Slowly, she realised the constant, oppressive roar of the surf had been broken by moments of silence. Her eyesight followed, the blackness being pricked with white specks all around her. The coarseness of her sand crusted rags reached her next, followed quickly by a blinding pain that washed over every inch of her body. She gasped as seemingly every muscle spasmed at once, doing her best not to scream out against her own flesh. After steadying her breathing, she relaxed her body inch by inch, from the toes and fingers inward, and soon enough she could flex her limbs without having to fight the urge to cut them off.
With her body once again under her mind's will, she gingerly rotated her neck, taking a look around her. She was lying on her back, and every three to four seconds the surf would reach up to her waist, not-so gently shoving her further up the rocky beach. The moon was only a sliver in sky, granting little light to see by, but she could make out a towering blackness cutting off the beach to her left, while to her right the beach seemed to continue for quite some ways until it curved out of view. She tilted her head to get an inverted view of a tree line up the beach, but it was hard to tell if the forest was close to her, or if the trees were tall enough to confuse her depth perception.
With a deep breath she attempted to prop herself up onto her elbows, and promptly vomited out a pailful of sea water. A few moments later she tried again, and after successfully mastering the half-sit, she edged her way backwards up the beach. Once out of the frigid waves' grasp, she dropped herself heavily back onto the rocks in exhaustion. Trying to catch her breath, she decide to...
1) put off the hard work until morning. she'd made it out of the ocean, so if she died in her sleep, at least she would die dry.
2) see if she could get onto her feet without toppling over to take a closer look around the beach. It would be good to know if there was something keen on eating her around before she passed out again.
3) drag herself the rest of the way to the tree line. She might pass out from exhaustion, but at least she'd be out of sight.
SouthernKing
crickety cricket
option 1
JohannaK
Heroically Clueless
1
Omega124
Challenging Fate
Option 3
Decamper
..!
- Joined
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(Coin toss decides 3)
Trying to catch her breath, she decide to drag herself the rest of the way to the tree line. She might pass out from exhaustion, but at least she'd be out of sight. She twisted her neck once again, trying to gauge how far it was to the forest. Jungle? Whatever it was, she still couldn’t tell how close it was, and looking upside down was making her nauseous again.
With a deep breath she rolled herself over, the effort once again causing her stomach to rebel for a handful of agonising moments. Settled down once again she began dragging herself up the rocks. At first her legs refused to help, uselessly scraping along behind her, but after some time they came to their senses and began to sluggishly push her forward. It was excruciating, her skin still raw from the salt tearing on the jagged rocks. More than once she found herself lying dazed and still, unsure of how long she had been dozing off.
Then the rocks gave way to soft, moss covered earth, but a some sort of dry, stick like undergrowth made pushing into the woods difficult. She wiggled a bit further in, crushing the plants out of her way, then lay still, too tired to roll onto her back. Beyond the blood pounding in her head, she thought she could hear a chorus of chittering in the woods around her. It grew louder, mixing with her hammering heartbeat until the two formed a wall of blaring sound.
She was back in the ocean, the raging of the water all around her. Flashes of lightning above revealed dozens of corpses sinking around her. Hundreds. Thousands. With each flash the dead falling into the hungry depths grew. Lightning raged around her, the crashing of thunder reaching her through the churning sea, and she realised the lightning was coming from below. She peered into the black depths, until the next flash blinded her.
With a gasp she raised her hand to shield her eyes. As her pupils adjusted, she let her hand fall back to her side and looked at the sunlight streaming through the tree cover. The trees weren’t very tall at all. It had felt like it had taken her all night to drag herself off the beach, but it must have been less than a dozen yards. She sat up, and a pile of branches and wide leaves fell off her. She must have rolled over and scrounged up some cover while she slept, or so she thought until she noticed a smoldering fire by her feet.
She gingerly stood up. A bit wobbly, but she’d manage. She was in a sad state though. Her clothes hadn’t been the finest before the shipwreck, but now they were threadbare rags that hadn’t done much to protect her battered and bloodied skin beneath. The lack of shoes would be a problem soon, she painfully realised as she limped out onto the beach’s sharp rocks.
Yesterday’s storm had blown off, and now only a light breeze lazily pushed the few remaining puffy grey clouds across the sky. The beach was made up of large, jagged black boulders with smaller stones and pebbles between them. She could make out some wreckage strewn along the shore, along with a few suspiciously corpse-like lumps. To her right the beach ended in a tall cliff face that stretched out along the coast and further inland as far as she could see. Lucky, she thought, if she had washed ashore just a little further down the coast she would have been dashed against the cliff face. In the opposite direction the beach continued on quite a ways until curving out of sight.
Turning around, she looked into the forest. The small trees were grown close together, their wide leaves forming a thick canopy. The undergrowth was made up of a waist high tangle of brown, stick like vines that snaked around and hung between the tree trunks, and below the vines the ground was covered in a colourful carpet of moss.
Her gaze came to rest on the fire pit. Whoever had lit it would likely still be nearby, and might come back soon. But who? Someone else from the ship? A sailor, slave, or guard? Or someone else? She mulled it over for a few moments, then decided to...
1) … search the wreckage and corpses along the beach. She couldn’t very well set out into the wild in the condition she was, and who knows, maybe there would be something useful washed ashore, or even another survivor?
2) ... head towards the cliffs. If she could find a way up, she could get a good view of the surroundings, and keep watch on the beach if her unknown companion came back.
3) ... walk along the coast. She’d probably run into the stranger, or strangers, that way, but if whoever they were had wanted her dead, they could have done it last night.
4) … push into the undergrowth. Whoever it was that had been around her last night, she didn’t want to be around when they came back.
Trying to catch her breath, she decide to drag herself the rest of the way to the tree line. She might pass out from exhaustion, but at least she'd be out of sight. She twisted her neck once again, trying to gauge how far it was to the forest. Jungle? Whatever it was, she still couldn’t tell how close it was, and looking upside down was making her nauseous again.
With a deep breath she rolled herself over, the effort once again causing her stomach to rebel for a handful of agonising moments. Settled down once again she began dragging herself up the rocks. At first her legs refused to help, uselessly scraping along behind her, but after some time they came to their senses and began to sluggishly push her forward. It was excruciating, her skin still raw from the salt tearing on the jagged rocks. More than once she found herself lying dazed and still, unsure of how long she had been dozing off.
Then the rocks gave way to soft, moss covered earth, but a some sort of dry, stick like undergrowth made pushing into the woods difficult. She wiggled a bit further in, crushing the plants out of her way, then lay still, too tired to roll onto her back. Beyond the blood pounding in her head, she thought she could hear a chorus of chittering in the woods around her. It grew louder, mixing with her hammering heartbeat until the two formed a wall of blaring sound.
She was back in the ocean, the raging of the water all around her. Flashes of lightning above revealed dozens of corpses sinking around her. Hundreds. Thousands. With each flash the dead falling into the hungry depths grew. Lightning raged around her, the crashing of thunder reaching her through the churning sea, and she realised the lightning was coming from below. She peered into the black depths, until the next flash blinded her.
With a gasp she raised her hand to shield her eyes. As her pupils adjusted, she let her hand fall back to her side and looked at the sunlight streaming through the tree cover. The trees weren’t very tall at all. It had felt like it had taken her all night to drag herself off the beach, but it must have been less than a dozen yards. She sat up, and a pile of branches and wide leaves fell off her. She must have rolled over and scrounged up some cover while she slept, or so she thought until she noticed a smoldering fire by her feet.
She gingerly stood up. A bit wobbly, but she’d manage. She was in a sad state though. Her clothes hadn’t been the finest before the shipwreck, but now they were threadbare rags that hadn’t done much to protect her battered and bloodied skin beneath. The lack of shoes would be a problem soon, she painfully realised as she limped out onto the beach’s sharp rocks.
Yesterday’s storm had blown off, and now only a light breeze lazily pushed the few remaining puffy grey clouds across the sky. The beach was made up of large, jagged black boulders with smaller stones and pebbles between them. She could make out some wreckage strewn along the shore, along with a few suspiciously corpse-like lumps. To her right the beach ended in a tall cliff face that stretched out along the coast and further inland as far as she could see. Lucky, she thought, if she had washed ashore just a little further down the coast she would have been dashed against the cliff face. In the opposite direction the beach continued on quite a ways until curving out of sight.
Turning around, she looked into the forest. The small trees were grown close together, their wide leaves forming a thick canopy. The undergrowth was made up of a waist high tangle of brown, stick like vines that snaked around and hung between the tree trunks, and below the vines the ground was covered in a colourful carpet of moss.
Her gaze came to rest on the fire pit. Whoever had lit it would likely still be nearby, and might come back soon. But who? Someone else from the ship? A sailor, slave, or guard? Or someone else? She mulled it over for a few moments, then decided to...
1) … search the wreckage and corpses along the beach. She couldn’t very well set out into the wild in the condition she was, and who knows, maybe there would be something useful washed ashore, or even another survivor?
2) ... head towards the cliffs. If she could find a way up, she could get a good view of the surroundings, and keep watch on the beach if her unknown companion came back.
3) ... walk along the coast. She’d probably run into the stranger, or strangers, that way, but if whoever they were had wanted her dead, they could have done it last night.
4) … push into the undergrowth. Whoever it was that had been around her last night, she didn’t want to be around when they came back.
JohannaK
Heroically Clueless
4
Decamper
..!
- Joined
- Jul 28, 2014
- Messages
- 1,159
(Coin toss decides 1)
She mulled it over for a few moments, then decided to search the wreckage and corpses along the beach. She couldn’t very well set out into the wild in the condition she was, and who knows, maybe there would be something useful washed ashore, or even another survivor?
Most of the wreckage was just chunks of shredded wood, and most of it worn and brittle. She did find a length of fabric from a sail that she tore into strips and wrapped around her feet. Despite doing her best to avoid particularly malicious looking rocks, the rough beach stones had still managed to strip the remaining skin off her feet. She briefly had her hopes raised when she ran across a small chest, but after getting it open found it to be full spoiled bread, rotted by the sea. A better find came shortly after, in the form of an intact and half-full water skin lodged beneath a submerged boulder. It even still had an only somewhat worn shoulder strap, and it fit snugly across her chest.
[item gained: waterskin]
She intentionally avoided the corpses during her first comb over of her section of the beach, but after being sure she had found whatever was worth finding among the debris, she steeled herself and approached the first body.
He was lying face down a ways up the beach, around the same place she had awoken. He still had his slave shackles on his ankles and wrists, and must have drowned as he had no other serious injuries. She moved away to find the next corpse; a slave wouldn’t have anything of use.
The next few were the same, but she lucked out with the last cadaver. A guard, once a big man, broad shouldered with arms as large around as her thigh. Now he was blue and bloated, his weaponised body now broken and shattered, jammed between two jagged boulders. While his leathers were shredded and useless, he miraculously still had an intact scabbard tied to his waist. She unfortunately had to rip the belt to free it, but she figured she could find a way to tie it to her water skin strap. The Katathi-style long knife was curved and single edged, not uncommon among the ship’s guards, as most had been from Katath, but this man was taller, and had much darker skin than the average Katathi. It was notched and worn, its grip rotting and uncomfortable, and the seawater was doing the iron no favours, but its weight felt comfortable in her hands.
[item gained: worn Katathi knife]
She felt even luckier when she found another guard, this time with her hardened leather armour still mostly intact. The guard was lying face down, and when she turned the corpse over she was surprised to see the guard’s eyes moving sluggishly beneath their lids. The woman was a stereotypical Katathi mercenary; hair short cropped, ears adorned with a dozen copper rings, and face pocked and weathered with old scars. The Katathi was in a sorry state, the hair over her left temple was matted with blood, her breathing was wet and shallow, and her skin was cold and greying. After feeling the weakness of the guard’s pulse, she…
1) ...left the guard where she lay and…
2) ...dragged the guard up to the tree line and…
a) ...removed her armour. She wouldn’t be needing it anytime soon.
b) ...took nothing from her. Even if the guard died soon, it wasn’t for her to take.
(choose one number and one letter)
Inventory
She mulled it over for a few moments, then decided to search the wreckage and corpses along the beach. She couldn’t very well set out into the wild in the condition she was, and who knows, maybe there would be something useful washed ashore, or even another survivor?
Most of the wreckage was just chunks of shredded wood, and most of it worn and brittle. She did find a length of fabric from a sail that she tore into strips and wrapped around her feet. Despite doing her best to avoid particularly malicious looking rocks, the rough beach stones had still managed to strip the remaining skin off her feet. She briefly had her hopes raised when she ran across a small chest, but after getting it open found it to be full spoiled bread, rotted by the sea. A better find came shortly after, in the form of an intact and half-full water skin lodged beneath a submerged boulder. It even still had an only somewhat worn shoulder strap, and it fit snugly across her chest.
[item gained: waterskin]
She intentionally avoided the corpses during her first comb over of her section of the beach, but after being sure she had found whatever was worth finding among the debris, she steeled herself and approached the first body.
He was lying face down a ways up the beach, around the same place she had awoken. He still had his slave shackles on his ankles and wrists, and must have drowned as he had no other serious injuries. She moved away to find the next corpse; a slave wouldn’t have anything of use.
The next few were the same, but she lucked out with the last cadaver. A guard, once a big man, broad shouldered with arms as large around as her thigh. Now he was blue and bloated, his weaponised body now broken and shattered, jammed between two jagged boulders. While his leathers were shredded and useless, he miraculously still had an intact scabbard tied to his waist. She unfortunately had to rip the belt to free it, but she figured she could find a way to tie it to her water skin strap. The Katathi-style long knife was curved and single edged, not uncommon among the ship’s guards, as most had been from Katath, but this man was taller, and had much darker skin than the average Katathi. It was notched and worn, its grip rotting and uncomfortable, and the seawater was doing the iron no favours, but its weight felt comfortable in her hands.
[item gained: worn Katathi knife]
She felt even luckier when she found another guard, this time with her hardened leather armour still mostly intact. The guard was lying face down, and when she turned the corpse over she was surprised to see the guard’s eyes moving sluggishly beneath their lids. The woman was a stereotypical Katathi mercenary; hair short cropped, ears adorned with a dozen copper rings, and face pocked and weathered with old scars. The Katathi was in a sorry state, the hair over her left temple was matted with blood, her breathing was wet and shallow, and her skin was cold and greying. After feeling the weakness of the guard’s pulse, she…
1) ...left the guard where she lay and…
2) ...dragged the guard up to the tree line and…
a) ...removed her armour. She wouldn’t be needing it anytime soon.
b) ...took nothing from her. Even if the guard died soon, it wasn’t for her to take.
(choose one number and one letter)
Inventory
Spoiler :
Last edited:
JohannaK
Heroically Clueless
1a
Omega124
Challenging Fate
2b
Decamper
..!
- Joined
- Jul 28, 2014
- Messages
- 1,159
(2 and A win)
After feeling the weakness of the guard’s pulse, she dragged the guard up to the tree line and removed her armour. She wouldn’t be needing it anytime soon. The guard was a bit smaller than her, but the armour still fit well enough, if a bit too snug. It likely wouldn’t hold for long anyways, the hardened breastplates were already softening, and the side straps were tearing. It would do better protecting her against the elements than from actual focused violence, but that was fine for the time being.
After getting her new kit assorted, she focused again on the guard. She had her in the same place she had slept last night. She doubted the Katathi would survive the day, but nonetheless she bent down and forced some water into the guard’s mouth. To her surprise the guard swallowed it without any prodding, and after a few seconds the guard’s eyes weakly fluttered open. She groaned and squinted against the sunlight, but was too weak to raise her arm to ward off the glare. After a moment the Katathi’s dark eyes found the her silhouette, and slowly focused on her face.
‘Who…’ the guard croaked, her voice dying out before she could force out the rest of the sentence..
She shook her head and put a hand on the guard’s shoulder. ‘Don’t speak, not yet. Rest.’ On command the guard’s eyelids slid shut and her head slumped to the side.
As she was kneeling next to the guard, thinking over if she should waste more time with the dying guard or just leave her, she heard a stirring on the beach. She tensed, hearing the sound get closer. Slowly and measured, she rose and turned, drawing the curved blade from her waterskin strap.
A man was two dozen paces away, down the curved side of the beach. He walked towards her, a spear clutched in his left hand, something else made of sharp edges dangling from his right. As he got closer she saw he was in as bad shape as she was. His dark reddish chestnut skin bruised and cut, clothes little better than rags. He didn’t have any slave shackles on.
He stopped a few yards away from her, and for a moment they eyed one another silently. When he realised she wasn’t going to speak first, he cleared his throat and hefted the thing in his right hand, and spoke in an accented but acceptable Katathi, ‘I was looking for rabbit, or deer, but could only find things like this.’ The thing in his hand clacked together as he waggled it. Some sort of large beetle. ‘Didn’t know when you were going to wake up. I got hungry.’
His tone was casual, but the spear was rigid in his hand, tip elevated slightly higher than at rest. She searched his eyes, and found violence in them. She didn’t doubt he found the same in hers. But at the same time, she thought she caught a glint of something else. Fear? Nervousness? She drew a breath, then…
1) ...spun on her heel and ran into the woods. The man seemed as likely to stab her as feed her, and she didn’t feel in any shape to fight.
2) ...dashed towards him, knife tightly gripped and eager for blood. She was still exhausted, but he looked worse off and she had armour. She could take him.
3) ...sheathed her knife. If he had meant her harm, he would have done so last night. Anyways, she was starving.
4) ...jerked head down the beach, warning him off, and readied her blade. If he wanted a fight, he would get one, or he could leave. His choice.
Inventory
After feeling the weakness of the guard’s pulse, she dragged the guard up to the tree line and removed her armour. She wouldn’t be needing it anytime soon. The guard was a bit smaller than her, but the armour still fit well enough, if a bit too snug. It likely wouldn’t hold for long anyways, the hardened breastplates were already softening, and the side straps were tearing. It would do better protecting her against the elements than from actual focused violence, but that was fine for the time being.
After getting her new kit assorted, she focused again on the guard. She had her in the same place she had slept last night. She doubted the Katathi would survive the day, but nonetheless she bent down and forced some water into the guard’s mouth. To her surprise the guard swallowed it without any prodding, and after a few seconds the guard’s eyes weakly fluttered open. She groaned and squinted against the sunlight, but was too weak to raise her arm to ward off the glare. After a moment the Katathi’s dark eyes found the her silhouette, and slowly focused on her face.
‘Who…’ the guard croaked, her voice dying out before she could force out the rest of the sentence..
She shook her head and put a hand on the guard’s shoulder. ‘Don’t speak, not yet. Rest.’ On command the guard’s eyelids slid shut and her head slumped to the side.
As she was kneeling next to the guard, thinking over if she should waste more time with the dying guard or just leave her, she heard a stirring on the beach. She tensed, hearing the sound get closer. Slowly and measured, she rose and turned, drawing the curved blade from her waterskin strap.
A man was two dozen paces away, down the curved side of the beach. He walked towards her, a spear clutched in his left hand, something else made of sharp edges dangling from his right. As he got closer she saw he was in as bad shape as she was. His dark reddish chestnut skin bruised and cut, clothes little better than rags. He didn’t have any slave shackles on.
He stopped a few yards away from her, and for a moment they eyed one another silently. When he realised she wasn’t going to speak first, he cleared his throat and hefted the thing in his right hand, and spoke in an accented but acceptable Katathi, ‘I was looking for rabbit, or deer, but could only find things like this.’ The thing in his hand clacked together as he waggled it. Some sort of large beetle. ‘Didn’t know when you were going to wake up. I got hungry.’
His tone was casual, but the spear was rigid in his hand, tip elevated slightly higher than at rest. She searched his eyes, and found violence in them. She didn’t doubt he found the same in hers. But at the same time, she thought she caught a glint of something else. Fear? Nervousness? She drew a breath, then…
1) ...spun on her heel and ran into the woods. The man seemed as likely to stab her as feed her, and she didn’t feel in any shape to fight.
2) ...dashed towards him, knife tightly gripped and eager for blood. She was still exhausted, but he looked worse off and she had armour. She could take him.
3) ...sheathed her knife. If he had meant her harm, he would have done so last night. Anyways, she was starving.
4) ...jerked head down the beach, warning him off, and readied her blade. If he wanted a fight, he would get one, or he could leave. His choice.
Inventory
Spoiler :
JohannaK
Heroically Clueless
3
Decamper
..!
- Joined
- Jul 28, 2014
- Messages
- 1,159
(3 wins)
She drew a breath, then sheathed her knife. If he had meant her harm, he would have done so lastnight. Anyways, she was starving. The man let out a pent up breath and his spear top dropped down to a relaxed position. She knelt down beside the sleeping guard as the man walked over to her. He looked at the guard for a moment, then dropped the beetle carcass to the ground and began working on getting a fire going.
'She won't be getting better. You know that, yeah?' He said, his back to the two women. 'I'm surprised she lasted the night, but tonight will be worse for her.'
She shrugged, though he couldn't see it. She had nothing to add, he was pointing out the obvious. But the guard had briefly awoken, and that had to be something.
Soon enough the man had a small fire going, and was roasting the cat-sized beetle over the flames. Greedy juices sizzled as they dropped out from the crackling shell. The two of them sat across from each other on either side of the fire, the guard next slumbering next to her.
The man cleared his throat, looking through the smoke at her. 'I've been about an hour down the coast,' he gestured down the curved coastline, 'it continuous north for a few leagues, then looks to swing north west pretty sharply around a low mountain. Haven't been up that bluff yet,' he pointed to the cliff on the other end of the beach, 'but I'll bet this isn't a small island.'
'I take it we made it then.' She said dryly. He nodded. Neither seemed enthused by the idea. His eyes sharply flicked over to the guard.
They say in silence for a few moments, then he spoke up again. 'I'm not going to ask who you are, since I doubt you'd tell me.' She snorted. 'So I'll return that pleasure.'
As he continued talking, she realised that what she saw before in his eyes wasn't fear, it was shyness. The scars on his face, lithe muscular physique and sharpness in his gaze left no question that he had led a life of violence, but the bastard didn't know how to talk to people.
He prattled on 'I doubt you'd tell me your name,' she shook her head, 'so I'll call you... Sheks. It means-'
'Goat? Thanks.'
'What?'
'Sheks. Goat in Lerric?'
The man's eyes grew wide. 'Do I look like a Lerlander?' He slapped his dark skin.
She shrugged, 'I don't judge.'
'No. Not goat. It means ‘Stranger.’' She shrugged again. Silly name anyways.
He was staring at her expectantly for a few awkward breaths. She cocked an eyebrow. 'What?'
'I've name you, now you must name me.' When she said nothing, he added, 'it's only polite...' He took the steaming beetle out of the fire and began working off the shell with a sharp rock.
'Let me think on it.'
He shrugged, seemingly satisfied. He handed her a chunk of shell wrapped in leaves over to her. They ate in silence for a time. The insect's meat was full of tough tendons and globs of grease, and was both intensely bitter and sour. It was the best thing she’d ever eaten.
Wiping grease off his hands, the man stood and picked up his spear. He looked up and down the beach, then up at the sun, and said, ‘We should get moving soon. If this is where we think we are, there’s a chance we landed by a colony.’ He gestured up at the cliff. ‘As I see it, we have a few options. One, we go up that rise to get a look around. It wouldn’t be an easy climb though, especially if we bring your friend along.’
‘Two, we hug the beach. All of the colonies have ports, but they might be spaced out pretty far apart. We also don’t have the best cover on the beach. We’d be looking at windy nights with little food, and something might see us.’
She interrupted. ‘Three, walk off into the woods.’
He nodded. ‘As you say Stranger. Might run head on into a settlement today. Or we might get lost for a week and get eaten by a demon.’ He scratched his ear as he looked around, then shrugged and said, ‘Up to you. Wherever we go though, it’ll be slow going dragging her along.’ He nudged the guard with his toe. The woman, Stranger, thought for a moment, then said…
1) ...’We’ll go up the bluff. We need to get a bearing on where we are before we run off and get lost…’
2) …’Let’s head out along the coast. We’ll run into a port sooner or later…’
3) …’We should push into the woods. There’s a chance we’ll find a settlement soon, and there should be more food and cover inland…’
a) …’and we’re taking the guard. She’s not dead yet.’
b) …’and we’ll leave the guard. She’s lost anyways.’
X: The man’s name will be _______________
Inventory
She drew a breath, then sheathed her knife. If he had meant her harm, he would have done so lastnight. Anyways, she was starving. The man let out a pent up breath and his spear top dropped down to a relaxed position. She knelt down beside the sleeping guard as the man walked over to her. He looked at the guard for a moment, then dropped the beetle carcass to the ground and began working on getting a fire going.
'She won't be getting better. You know that, yeah?' He said, his back to the two women. 'I'm surprised she lasted the night, but tonight will be worse for her.'
She shrugged, though he couldn't see it. She had nothing to add, he was pointing out the obvious. But the guard had briefly awoken, and that had to be something.
Soon enough the man had a small fire going, and was roasting the cat-sized beetle over the flames. Greedy juices sizzled as they dropped out from the crackling shell. The two of them sat across from each other on either side of the fire, the guard next slumbering next to her.
The man cleared his throat, looking through the smoke at her. 'I've been about an hour down the coast,' he gestured down the curved coastline, 'it continuous north for a few leagues, then looks to swing north west pretty sharply around a low mountain. Haven't been up that bluff yet,' he pointed to the cliff on the other end of the beach, 'but I'll bet this isn't a small island.'
'I take it we made it then.' She said dryly. He nodded. Neither seemed enthused by the idea. His eyes sharply flicked over to the guard.
They say in silence for a few moments, then he spoke up again. 'I'm not going to ask who you are, since I doubt you'd tell me.' She snorted. 'So I'll return that pleasure.'
As he continued talking, she realised that what she saw before in his eyes wasn't fear, it was shyness. The scars on his face, lithe muscular physique and sharpness in his gaze left no question that he had led a life of violence, but the bastard didn't know how to talk to people.
He prattled on 'I doubt you'd tell me your name,' she shook her head, 'so I'll call you... Sheks. It means-'
'Goat? Thanks.'
'What?'
'Sheks. Goat in Lerric?'
The man's eyes grew wide. 'Do I look like a Lerlander?' He slapped his dark skin.
She shrugged, 'I don't judge.'
'No. Not goat. It means ‘Stranger.’' She shrugged again. Silly name anyways.
He was staring at her expectantly for a few awkward breaths. She cocked an eyebrow. 'What?'
'I've name you, now you must name me.' When she said nothing, he added, 'it's only polite...' He took the steaming beetle out of the fire and began working off the shell with a sharp rock.
'Let me think on it.'
He shrugged, seemingly satisfied. He handed her a chunk of shell wrapped in leaves over to her. They ate in silence for a time. The insect's meat was full of tough tendons and globs of grease, and was both intensely bitter and sour. It was the best thing she’d ever eaten.
Wiping grease off his hands, the man stood and picked up his spear. He looked up and down the beach, then up at the sun, and said, ‘We should get moving soon. If this is where we think we are, there’s a chance we landed by a colony.’ He gestured up at the cliff. ‘As I see it, we have a few options. One, we go up that rise to get a look around. It wouldn’t be an easy climb though, especially if we bring your friend along.’
‘Two, we hug the beach. All of the colonies have ports, but they might be spaced out pretty far apart. We also don’t have the best cover on the beach. We’d be looking at windy nights with little food, and something might see us.’
She interrupted. ‘Three, walk off into the woods.’
He nodded. ‘As you say Stranger. Might run head on into a settlement today. Or we might get lost for a week and get eaten by a demon.’ He scratched his ear as he looked around, then shrugged and said, ‘Up to you. Wherever we go though, it’ll be slow going dragging her along.’ He nudged the guard with his toe. The woman, Stranger, thought for a moment, then said…
1) ...’We’ll go up the bluff. We need to get a bearing on where we are before we run off and get lost…’
2) …’Let’s head out along the coast. We’ll run into a port sooner or later…’
3) …’We should push into the woods. There’s a chance we’ll find a settlement soon, and there should be more food and cover inland…’
a) …’and we’re taking the guard. She’s not dead yet.’
b) …’and we’ll leave the guard. She’s lost anyways.’
X: The man’s name will be _______________
Inventory
Spoiler :
JohannaK
Heroically Clueless
2a, he's Shekels. (funfact: the first guy I fell in love with went by Shek on a certain forum. Sheks are basically giant winged snakes in this Spanish fantasy series)
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