(continued from chapter 1)
Certainly, the stick trick had been the hardest thing he had done on the island thus far. His arms were exhausted from rubbing the sticks together profusely, he was parched and needed water soon. As he lowered the burning stick into the pit, he smothered it into the dry leaves and kindling. For a moment there was nothing, then a light smoke flew out of the wooden pile lighting up a red glow. His hard work had paid off but he knew he couldn't rest yet. He had to keep moving and gather things for shelter.
He journeyed back to the salvageable parts of his small wooden boat. The front part of the boat was in shambles. The back was still usable. The rounded bottom part of the boat was cracked in half. He dragged the bottom of the boat with his formidable strength, his back was towards the tree line. He let out an intense exhale as he dropped it on the ground. The Ranger hacked down a few more thick branches. In his arms gathered some large tree leafs and put them on top of the branches.
After he dropped the leaves and branches on the ground he instinctively turned his head hearing some rustling behind him. He slightly smiled. He knew the dense jungle-like forest was full of life; deer, fox and various other furry creatures. He would eat well tonight.
The Ranger tilted the boat onto its side, planting the thick branches under the rim of the elevated boat. On the ground he laid down various green leaves and Old Man's Beard green moss leaving a kind of leaf bed.
* * *
The Ranger noticed night was coming fast and he didn't have much time to finish his shelter. He threw a few more thick branches on the blazing, smoldering fire and walked back to the shambled boat to retrieve his rope. Sometimes when he thought about rope he thought about his old mentor.
He was a sort of small, tan, bald-headed man. Old, the wrinkles on his were definitely present but they weren't excessive. The Pirate suspected he was older then his actual years.
"Savage!...Savage!..." said Leto. The Pirate was panting, exhausted and he stopped and turned to Leto. "Free your bounds!" He shouted.
The Pirate looked down at the thick rope around his wrists. He pulled and rolled his hands and wrists in circular motions. He pulled and struggled again but to no avail. He growled.
"Savage! Use the blades in your mouth for more then just crushing them together." Scolded Leto.
The pirate looked at his mentor puzzled for a moment, then he looked down at the roped bounds and immediately bit down into the rope. Munching and slicing through the rope with his teeth. At least this method stood a better chance against the rope then using his hands. He frantically chewed away at the bounds but even at that pace it was taking a long time.
Leto swept at The Pirate's feet with a long wooden spear. He fell on his back and shot Leto a mean glance as he struggled with his rope bounds.
"The enemy won't wait for you!" Leto pulled out his sword and swung downwards towards The Pirates face. The Pirate held up his chewed bounds to block the swing. The sword cut deep into the rope. It didn't snap but he instantly took advantage of the blade by trapping the blade between his wrists and twisting the rope around the blade and now The Pirate had possession of the weapon. He held up the sabre as if to strike Leto. "Good, you finally learned to make your circumstances work for your benefit. Now we use the rope for our shelter," said Leto.
* * *
The Ranger's mind snapped back to the present. There was only about eight feet of rope left but it was more then enough. Looping the rope over his shoulder, he made his way back to his quick shelter. He looped the rope around the two Y shaped tree branches holding up the roof of the tent, part of the torn canopy from his boat folded over the rope. The canopy was incredibly wet as it just started to dry above the fire.
Night time was quickly approaching. He was rapidly running out of energy and needed to rest, but he know that if he slept now he would miss out on any chance of food early the next day.
Missing that early food source would cripple his energy level that we would need.
* * *
He had to at least set up a dead fall or two before the day ended. He pushed through his exhaustion and found several heavy rocks. He first placed them at the corners of the tent holding the canopy firmly to the ground. He was so tired that even this process made this arms drag.
He felt heavy and light headed at the same time. He shook his head keeping his wits about him, he searched in the low light for a couple of short sticks that could support a foot long rock. After running, his hands clumsily felt through the dirt and rocks he found one that could possibly support the weight of a deadly huge rock. He found a place near a small hole in the ground to place his deadly trap. The huge rock he found barely sat still on the stick. He adjusted the for balance and realized his chances of catching small prey were low since he had no bait. His eyelids weighed heavily upon his face. His head nodded a couple of times. He needed sleep immediately. The Ranger got to barely got to his feet and staggered the encampment. Darkness was now upon him as he lost his balance and fell to the ground. He almost crawled to the fire but mustered the last of his energy reserves to get back to his knees. He would sleep more comfortably then the night before! He crawled to him modest camp entrance and collapsed into the opening headfirst almost caving in the tent with his feet.
As his world went black he remembered the enduring face of Leto smiling at him for another successful day of survival completed.
CHAPTER 2
The Ranger awoke to the sounds of birds chirping. Daylight shined through the trees. The Ranger slowly got to his feet and checked his leather boots for any deadly creature that may have been dwelling in them. The shelter had survived the first night, but there was still room for improvement.
It rained for a spell overnight. The rain had fallen through the holes but only spilt on his chest and legs. He cursed himself for not setting up at proper container to collect the water. He quickly sucked up the water droplets on his chest and arms. This tiny bit of water was already helping.
He got to his feet and sluggishly looked at the wet vegetation all around him and sucked more water from the the nearest green palm leaf. He then tore off the huge leaf and folded it into a cup. He took some of the rope line from his ship's mast, poked a few small holes into the top edges of the fragile palm leaf and carefully threaded the line through the holes. He had made a very crude and simple container for water. It would not last him more then a day or two but at least it was something to place the rainwater in for now. He planned on upgrading the container by using tree bark later. For now he had to gather as much water and save enough for later before
the sun would dry up his wet haven of liquid life.
He picked up his trusty axe which gleamed under the sunlight. It was hidden under some moss on purpose. The Ranger would never allow an enemy to find his weapon and kill him in his sleep. Not that there was anyone on the island he thought but he did it out his combative instincts.
He loved having his hand axe with him again and it reminded him that he wasn't truly alone, his silver ally was with him. It would assist him in living in
anyway it could.
* * *
The Ranger was hungry and knew it was now time to hunt. This had never been a problem, especially since Leto instructed him in the ways of the hunt many years ago. He looked forward to checking his small dead fall traps first. Maybe a small mouse or other editable creature would be lying there waiting for him to cook it.
The first trap he checked, the rock was lying on the ground. Something had activated it, but whatever it was it succeeded evading death. Feeling a little disappointed but unsurprised, The Ranger set forth for his second option, making another weapon. He had to use his nearest resource for this and the forest trees were plentiful here. Thank the gods he had his sharp silver friend.
* * *
There were plenty of branches to choose from. He found one and immediately hacked if off with the blade of his axe. He was thankful that the edge wasn't dulled yet. He sharpened the branch into a sharp point. He also chopped down several others and took them back bundled in his arms to home camp. It was safe to have extra hunting weapons in case he lost one or damaged it. They could also be used for another trap to catch prey.
After some hard shaves and some burning in his right arm he tossed the spear into the air and caught it. He did this to test the weight and grip, but mostly for the pleasant sense of completeness, it gave him satisfaction.
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