On the run...

[tyrtix]

Damn, i'm sure i've put enough road between me and that assassin, better he does not know i am still alive...barely. He beated me, a lot, he was hidden in shadows, i was distracted, and he got me, my health and my belongings.

I fell down in the water from my knarr deck, it was freezing and i lost consciousness. When i woke up, i just took my legs and run, white spots dancing in my eyes. South, there was safety, and unsettled lands for me, or so people told me some times. I stole a boat and rowed it trough rapids, waterfalls and placid lakes, trough mountains and forests. The lands started to show less sign of man touch, no felled trees, lots of animals and resources...i had to rebuild the boat two times, risked my life in the fast waters many times. In a moment in wich i felt more safe, i took time to make myself a basic axe and a saw with some bone shards from a rabbit carcass half eaten by a fox.

The lands around me started to change, it was cold, and i was nearly naked, the forest was dark, but somehow i liked it, and the liken covered soil showed tracks of lots of wildlife. In this dark, damp and cold forest, i decided to make my new home... my fortress in the middle of the civilized people, left behind forever: i did not wanted anyone around for a LOT of time. In a stroke of luck i found a freshly dead boar: i think he died after he broke a leg, i took the carcass to the boat and continued exploring the rivers. There! a sweet little island in the middle of a placid lake, i've found my new home. There was a cave on the shore of the lake, large beaches, and i saw an area with water just over the soil, must be a mudflat, i could gather some good clay. I dropped some resources i gathered while getting there, made me a spruce hat and some clothing to stay warmer and safer in the woods, and started hauling some of the logs that were lying around, i was surely in need of firewood.




I was preparing for the fire when someone showed up on the river: i paniked a bit, then i saw the man waving at me, he was friendly, and he was like me, in search of a safer place. We chatted a bit, he told his name to me, but i don't want to say that name, people here wants to stay unknown. Afted the departure of my "neighbor", i made myself a better axe, searched and studied the wildlife that surrounded me and made myself enjoy a bit of relax by making some cone cows. The new spitroast was sending a really good rabbid aroma, things seems to be a bit nicer now, thou is really cold and i need to stay not too far from the fire for too long.
Now i have a new shelter, a decent table and chair, and i can make, finally, a decent dinner, at least i can regain a bit of my body strenght.

I saw some ore around, started gathering, and made a kiln for burning some bricks, soon i'll have back some metal to work with and make some decent tools, i need nails to build the stonestead i want on this small patch of land.



(continue...)

[SmackMcBacon]

An interesting tale, keep on running you brave soul.

[Jesus_Smith_Nandez]

And I raaaan
I ran
So
Far
Awayyyy
W
A
Y

[tyrtix]

... i've heard a rustle between the bushes while i was sleeping, behind my leanto. I said all at once " Hey, i want to sleep, get out of here and we'll settle the thing, i'm tired of running away".
In a moment i was on my feet, axe in my hand, when i saw it...or he, or she... i really could not tell. It was like a woman, maybe... but was made of wood instead of flesh, hair were a mix of long, dry yellowish grass and strands of lichen, the eyes were two glowing embers of bloodstone, but they were alive like a fire. A dryad, i heard of such creatures: monsters from the heart of the woods, that may eat a hunter or fisherman alive, if they were on the wrong spot. I was petrified on the spot, could not move. She raised a hand, fingers, well, more claws, were more similar to roots of a tree, i bet she was near to tear me down on the spot. Instead, she showed to me a sandsone rock, and a piece of myrkwood, then stomped a bit on the ground, running here and there moving their hands, pointed at my leanto, then from her gestures, i understood i could build a home in that spot. With some crackling sounds, seemed like the creature smiled to me, then started to run back in the bushes, and in the blink of an eye, she vanished.



So i started: while i was around searching for some ore to smelt in ingots for the nails and other bits, i got the best sandstone rocks i could find. All the logs i gathered were useful to make all the small pieces here and there, then i gathered a good quantity of fir boughs. I choosed a planewood tree and an ash one for the beams and planks, then, in what was like a frenzy, i built my home. When i finished it, it was like the house melted inside the woods, not something out of place, but more like a rabbit hole or a bird nest.
I still cannot say i'm safe, but i also found some good seeds and i started some farming, i won't move from here anymore.

[Stoneface]

Quality thread, would read again 10/10.

[tyrtix]

thanks for the appreciation

[tyrtix]

Here is... clouds start to show in the sky, everyday the wind gets more cold. I need to prepare myself for winter. During my exploration i found a number of plants i can start growing consistently, and to make from wild to fresh, tamed ones that will be juicy and will lasts for a lot of time. So, i started by plowing some plots, then paving them, so i could move easier between them. I have planted some carrots, a bunch of beeet-like roots, a wild pumpkin and some cereals, maybe barley: having flour for the winter especially is important. It's an hard work, but i have to say that farming is rewarding for the soul: things that grow makes a life full.



I was still planning for further farming, when a bear showed up on the island shore. His eyes were not those of a calm animal, i froze myself, then runned for the boat. I thought that even if bears are good at swimming, nothing beats a boat with robust oars. The bear was near to outrun me, i jumped on the boat and suddenly i was on deep waters, holding my axe. The bear followed my into the waters, and after some seconds in wich any kind of horrible death filled my mind, i decided that a bear pelt could be a nice and warm addition on my bed. I stroke one of the olive oars on the head of the bear, and the handle broke, a pointed stake was now at the place of the paddle. The bear was already bleeding from the head, so i got a bit near to him, and i pierced some times the bear pelt with that improvised spear, until the blood filled the nearby waters, making them red. This bear, and another two boars i had luck to find in the woods, founded a place into my new cellar: i hanged some hams preserved with salt and herbs, and planned to make some sausages in the next days. I expect snow in, maybe, the next two weeks.

[Amanda44]

Nice ... and gratz on the bear!

[tyrtix]

thanks :3 wait for the snow to come!

[shubla]

Build walls man!