《How to get lost: a wanderers guide》Day 7: Sharpen your knives
Advertisement
Hello again. Yesterday was a rather dark day for me.
But, I feel much better today, I've said it before I'll say it again. Sleep makes mountains into molehills and impassable walls into interesting puzzles.
Well, except I haven't said it before I guess. Just kind of thought of it right this very moment. But its a good thought, I think, and I'm sure I'll say it again sometime.
By no means do I intend to forget my thoughts of yesterday, nor my actions of the day before. It is a valuable lesson indeed, that your actions can have dire consequences. Whether thats a forest fire or horrible diarrhea. It all depends on your actions.
And diet.
So today I lazed about, taking my time. For a variety of reasons really. For one, my guts are thoroughly empty, and very delicate. So I dedicated a lot of time today to finding sources of food, and stockpililing what I could of it. So I can gorge myself when I'm finally feeling fully put together again.
Hopefully that'll be tomorrow morning.
For another, I haven't really had much of a chance to relax yet in my life. To just kinda, sit still, smell the flowers. That kinda thing. I've been on the go for as long as I can remember. It's nice to just relax.
I woke with the rising sun, and spent the first bit of my day just watching as the sky once again went through its brilliant transformation of colors.
Truly beautiful.
Then I, very gently, picked myself up off the ground and had a look about the place.
I was on a small spit of land between rivers. Comprised of a few dozen slender trees and a large variety of grasses and bushes. I made sure to steer clear of those blasted red berries, and the area I had soiled with my, uh, stuff.
Advertisement
I then set about exploring the river and the lands around it.
Bizarre things flitted about in the deep cold waters of the streams. Flashes of silver and movement all I could make out of them. I set about catching one of these mysterious thingamabobs. Diving happily into the crisp clean water after them.
For a while I was unsuccessful, until I discerned their hiding spots. They ducked under overhanging banks and rocks. Lurking in the shadows, before making another speedy sprint towards another hiding spot. So I hovered over one such rock, my hand sitting absolutely still under it. Waiting for an unsuspecting mystery creature to fall into my trap.
It took a while. My hands became heavily wrinkled and I began shivering intensely before one finally fell for it.
I scooped the surprisingly slippery and slimy mass of struggling muscle into my arms. It writhed madly, thrashing and snapping in a desperate bid to re-enter its prefered domain. But I was resolute in my desire to examine these things closer. And so I threw it ashore, and waded after it.
Bulging eyes and gaping mouth attached to a sleek silver scaled body. Stubby flat and see through appendages grew from its sides, back, bottom, and top. Twin gashes fluttered angrily in the air on either side of its body, just behind its head. The thing thrashed, and seemed to be trying to scream, though it made little noise.
Fascinating things.
It flailed about for quite a while before finally becoming very still. Closer examination howe it to be very much dead. I still have no idea what killed it, but in the spirit of understanding, I went back into the river for more. To see if these reactions were unique or not.
After I warmed myself back up of course. Nothing warms me up quite like covering my whole body in fire. I was careful o do this away from and trees this time. Another firetree party is something I am keen to avoid.
Advertisement
Catching the odd things darting about in the river occupied my time for a while. I haven't named them yet. There are so many that could work! Darters, silver-quicks, land-dead-water-alive, so on and so forth. It would have been easier if there was just the one kind, but they came in all sizes and colors.
Do I have to come up with a name for every single last one of them? That sounds like such a waste of time.
Watching and seeing what the animals around me are willing to eat was also time consuming. Note: none ate the shiny red berries. I did see a fat-fur open up a rotted log with a swipe of some very respectable claws, and gobble up a bunch of wee little things writhing inside. I'll try that in the morning, the fat-fur seemed to find them delectable.
Later, that very same fat-fur sniffed out the small pile of steadily worse smelling river things. Watching the fluffy beastie devour them finally shifted their existence from mysterious river thing, to food source. I'll have to try a fresh one for breakfast tomorrow along with the wriggly things. The smell from the old ones was starting to get pretty bad before they became fat-fur food.
I do wish I was feeling hungry, my guts are still rebelling at the very idea of eating though. I've been collecting supplies of berries after seeing a swarm of small feathered things denude a few bushes. Hopefully that will help tide me over in the morning before I go looking for river things or wriggly things.
I have so many things to name!
All in all, today was a day of rest and learning. Which was quite enjoyable. I could go on, but my hand is getting stiff from writing, so I guess I'll stop here for today.
Tomorrow is going to be a day of travel and new experiences. I'm very excited, and I hope to cover lots of ground.
Good night.
Advertisement
- In Serial119 Chapters
All Songs: A Hero Past the 25th
At world’s edge stands a tower made by the gods. Every 1000 years, champions gather to the Trophaeum, to make the dying planet of Ortho anew. But they say this cycle will be the last. An age of chaos is to come. A mad twist of fate brought to Ortho a maid from another world in place of a champion, but time made that maid a champion of champions. Itaka Izumi is living out her lifelong dream, journeying across the fantastic realms of Noertia in search of success as an adventurer—as well as a cure for her loneliness. But Izumi’s dream comes with a definite time limit, in the ever-changing shape of ruthless daemons, their shadow about to eclipse all life. Witness this tragic tale of love blooming in the midst of blackest despair, as faithfully accounted by the bard Waramoti. STATUS: VERSE 7 underway! A new chapter every MON, WED, FRI The Original Trilogy: Verse 1 | Verse 2 | Verse 3 Too many weird words and terms? Refer to our new online glossary!
8 398 - In Serial135 Chapters
Immovable Mage
What do you call a mage incapable of casting spells? In this story, we usually call him Terry. When the boy is accepted into Arcana Academy, his talent in the pillars of mana foundation awes everyone. All the bigger is the eventual disappointment when Terry turns out to be an utter failure at spellwork. Diagnosis? Major aspect impairment. No cure. Ever. Faced with expulsion, Terry is blessed with the unexpected kindness of others. Terry loses his spot in the Academy but in exchange, he finds a home with a family. Terry starts to train as a pure mana cultivator but never stops looking for his own path as a mage – day after day, season after season, always searching for compatible spellwork… Until finally, Terry’s perseverance earns him a single spell – the only spell he will ever be able to cast. Disclaimers: Chapter Frequency: I aim for one chapter a week. Chapter Length: I try to keep chapters between 3000 and 6000 words. Binge Preference: I plan for 30 chapters per arc. If you want to binge a complete arc, then that is the number to wait for. I will also add a line to chapters indicating the beginning and end of an arc. Advanced Access: I have created a patreon page with early access to four chapters for patrons. What to Expect: Progression fantasy with a western fantasy setting and with eastern fantasy elements. A main character that is forced to explore a very narrow path of magic due to a permanent condition. A main character that is a part of a larger cast. A main character that is growing but won't become the strongest around anytime soon. A story following a single main character but with introduction or theme setting scenes without the main character. What Not to Expect: Edgy grimdark characters – I will never write a sexual violence scene or gory descriptions of torture. I hate reading it and I would hate writing it even more. Romance – romantic relationships will never be the focus of the story and only appear in the background. The main character is preoccupied with other stuff. Other forms of relationships (family, friends, companions) play a bigger role. Cover: The cover art was commisioned from redditor Linh-Nguyen87. The font is alita brush by Inovatype Typefoundry. Overview: 001–030 Arc 1, Cultivating Perseverance: complete. 031–060 Arc 2, Undying Defiance: complete. 061–090 Arc 3, Unyielding Fury: scheduled for publishing. 091–120 Arc 4, Savage Hope: scheduled for publishing. 121–150 Arc 5, Self-Made Fate: first draft in progress. 151–180 Arc 6, Heretic Style: sketching in progress. Further Arcs are still in the sketching and idea collection phase.
8 200 - In Serial103 Chapters
NEW EARTH - A World of Chaos
In 2050, an unprecedented nuclear disaster forced all human beings to seek refuge in underground refuges. Not knowing when the level of radiation will reach acceptable levels, the world leaders decided to bet everything on the next generation. They reallocated all their resources into a single project. A new VRMMORPG about to be released is redesigned to accommodate the world population. It will not only provide people with a goal and leisure but also serve as a test to find the future leaders that will rebuild Earth. Follow the adventures of an orphan as he climbs from nothing to the very top. He will face many difficulties, venture into a boundless world and finally build up his own kingdom. Caught in the storm of the struggles for power, he has no choice but to grow stronger. This is the story of the man to be known as the Emperor of Chaos. Here's an edited version available on Amazon: Book 1: https://amzn.to/2MuPDF6
8 119 - In Serial9 Chapters
Eternal Awakening [LitRPG] [EtA Book 1]
A 17-year old boy must use his wits and work with his friends to get first place in a tournament that takes place in an online deep-immersive Role-Playing-Game He must juggle his real-life problems with problems in the real world, and make sure that his sister does not get into harm's way. What will he do when he loses 2 people close to his heart, just before the most important battle in the tournament?
8 333 - In Serial6 Chapters
Polymyth Equation
In a world where super powers exist, a company attempts to market itself as creating training programs for heroes and other super powered occupations. Confidence and optimistic projections soon give way to frustration and worry that they are not up to the task. The problem is, how does one make a one size fits all program for people who fly, or shoot beams, or can turn into living metal? An ambitious project is carried out. To create a fully self maintaining facility, a modular training complex run by a self learning AI created solely to improve itself and the location. A flawless, exciting idea. Or at least a cost cutting shortcut that sounds good in a board meeting But what of the mind now forced to take this task? What will it think, what will it want? And what might it BUILD? -- A Dungeon fic from another angle. Image by JD Hancock [participant in the NaNoWriMo Royal Road challenge]
8 110 - In Serial9 Chapters
Dungeon Isolation
About a dedicated gamer who reached the very end of a game after 6 years of playing non-stop. Forgetting anything around him and only focusing on the game. Only caring about his personal health, hygiene and looks, he dismissed everything as he immersed himself to complete the impossible game, even when the real world collapsed and dungeons formed all around. The Arisen amongst the populace of Earth took up arms against the monsters within them, gaining supernatural powers in the process. The 20 year old posted his victory over the once-thought-unbeatable game, on the forums that were once watched by the whole world and gameplay streamed live to a million spectators and players. He only receives meager praise from five people of the millions that he had imagined would be there. He wandered outside in the dark of night aiming for the vending machine placed in a dark alleyway, but slipped inside the barrier of a rank 1 dungeon unbeknownst to anyone including himself. (Get ready for the most over-powered protagonist on the entire Earth. He shatters the nine heavens. Turns the constellations upside down with his almighty energy, that is a magnet to all forms of harems, and it even rivals Kir###'s harem gathering power! First, ready yourselves for the most slice-of-life, snail-paced, slow plot development and worm-sized chapters in the whole of Royal Road. Don't even think about enjoying this one!) I don't post on weekends.
8.09 168

