Having stalked off from the most annoying of annoying FM, his final sang words floating across the expanse of the river had me gnashing my teeth muttering choice words I had learned from my mother who had learned from her mother; she who had been from another world and knew words of cursing the average Gorean would not know.
Shaking him from my thoughts traveling further and deeper into the Trees, I made my way back to my camp to scramble up the tree that held my platform hunting shelter to lay on my chest and belly to hang my head over to get the exact spot I had seen the Tarsk coming through last night, a small herd of them; it was my intention to dig a dug-out and lay a trap, then it would be an easier kill to do singularly.
Climbing back down the tree, my thoughts drifted to Him again and I had to wonder the why of it considering my entire life I had been taught to hate men, especially men like him; yet here I am about to dig a hole to prove I am quite capable of pretty much anything and I could feed us both. Besides if I fed him Tarsk maybe he wouldn't be a cannibal and keep trying to eat me.
Pulling my dark tresses still woven with leaves and twigs into hands I twist it up and secure it out of my face with rib bones from Slees before I turn to the brush where digging and hunting supplies are kept hidden wrapped in hides to keep them safe until needed again like now.
Crouching, nimble fingers pull the overgrowth aside and dig with both hands to pull finally what she needed free. Quickly unwrapping the tarp of skins to reveal fishing spears, extra arrows and the digging tools; the latter she pulled from the rest to begin the laborious work of digging.
It was ahns before she was finally done with the digging, her arms screaming with the effort it took to put her tools away, and she was sure there was not one spot on her that was not covered in mud but that mattered not, it was just better for the masking of her scent anyway, especially since she needed to hunt soon to replenish her meat supply before the Tarsk was caught, killed, and smoked.
Her scent being masked she also hoped helped kept her exact whereabouts hidden from anything that would consider her prey while she sat and wove together the covering of the prey pit she had spent the entire first half of the day digging out, luckily this part did not take as long but the next part would.
Finishing the Living Lattice, made from vines still rooted from the trees and brush surrounding the pit, it was time to meticulously scrape up the upper topmost layer of the surrounding forest floor and tuck it in the lattice, working tirelessly to make it look like it was perfectly safe to walk on as well as hide the scent of the pit, since it kept the lattice moist so it did not dry up and turn brown thus giving away its location.
After much of the day spent laboring she finally gathered a spear, her bow and quiver of arrows securing them all but the spear upon her person along with her skinning knife, she made her way down the path to go try her hand at fishing while checking her traps and snares which to her dismay were empty though was to be expected considering she placed them late in the day yesterday and today she knew she kept her prey away due to her work on the pit but the morrow would be a different story and she looked forward with the work of preserving the meat of her catches and kills before predators smelled it and came to make more trouble then she already had dealing with the Savage Cannibal who made her want to throttle him as well as dance at night under the moons around the fire of camp as a PG was known to do.
Shaking her head free of the thoughts of him that had crept in once again, she focused on fishing using a three pronged spear to catch a couple Arsit Fish that I quickly gut, leaving the scales and skin on em before packing them tightly in mud to return to camp and bury them in the coals of the fire I quickly got going; this kept the scent from carrying revealing my camp to others. Once they were done and I peeled the caked mud free, it would take the scales and skin with it leaving me with a filling meaty meal.
Having ate my fill, I made haste to clean any signs and smells of food having been here, taking the scale caked mud down to the water's edge where I placed it about my traps hoping to better lure the Marsh Gant in.
Returning to camp, I took advantage of the rare time I could actually sit and relax; folding my limbs, I sat on a fallen log to shed my boots made from the leather of Bosk so I could swing my bare feet as again my thoughts wandered to the man who haunted my thoughts, sleeping and awake.
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