D.A.B, day 27
Two days later. Sailing.
It's early but we all make our way along the ridge and the trail down to the harbour. The windy and fairly stormy night doesn't seem to have had any effect in the harbour, but there are some debris washed ashore. We gather it up and pile it beside the other dried wood here, since we might transport it to the stone beach and carry it to the furnace. Then we push the catamaran down on the rollers and in the water, and we load up the catamaran with our things and make sure the canoe is secured on, and everything looks good. Then we untie the anchoring rope and cast off. It feels a bit weird manoeuvering the catamaran, and paddling against the wind isn't fun and we need to make longer paddles, but the long poles to push against the bottom helps a lot. The catamaran sure is far more stable and big, and as we clear the ridge and turn north, we get side wind and I raise the sail. Neither of my companions have sailed before, so this construction and sail handling is all on me, but it is a fairly simple rig, and we pick up speed. The sail feels like it should be bigger compared to the mast and boom, but I kind of limited the size due to lack fabric with fairly low visible colours, and didn't change that plan enough when I decided to make the sail from woven leaves as that at least makes the sail bigger. I should definitely have thought about using that first green-brown tarp that Xuela found before we packed it this morning. Oh well, we will know if a woven leaves sail works. There is probably a way more efficient sail solution, but I focused on something simple that I knew, and so the catamaran could be handled by one person while steering. In the end, we move and we don't have to paddle. Yay! This sure feels far better than in the canoe when we rescued Bokyli, and the smile on both Reiley and Bokyli's faces warms my heart as we make our way north. Koru is happy as long as she doesn't have to be in the water, and she sure is on the lookout for sharks. Any shark that comes far too close is likely to get stabbed by a spear or get an arrow.
I have become more attentive to Bokyli's changes, and although I can't say what have changed from day to day, the overall impact is that Bokyli looks just a little more human than the day before, and with that unfortunately a bit sexier too. It's more or less my fault one way or another, but I blame the damn alien bastards for some of it, at least when it comes to the body shape. The lingerie and corset kind of makes it obvious what female shapes and parts are considered attractive, and Bokyli's body change all too well.
Since I have manage to charge my mobile phones battery, I've of course showed them some of the functions, and beside the music, the camera really fascinated them. That also meant showing pictures from my old life, which have pictures of human women, and they absolutely noticed the women in a couple of party pictures. Skipping and instead showing pictures of vehicles, cities and environments didn't help. I didn't even consider the advertising, but Reiley and Bokyli instantly noticed the lingerie model in the background, and some superhero costumes are not much better. But considering a couple of aliens on a movie poster, they get why I don't really care about them not being human. What playing with the mobile and its camera did, was making it possible for us to hear each others true voices. As I hoped a recorded voice isn't translated, and it make sense that the DAB's computor might need to know who is talking and what sounds they make to cancel it out and provide the correct translation. That revelation was magnificent, and Reiley and Bokyli actually have nice voices and their accents kind of makes sense as it helps to cover up the natural voice. Xuela? Screeching combined with nails on a black board. Koru's way to speak is better, but just ... weird.
But yeah, Bokyli now knows how several attractive human women look, so I guess we will see exactly how well her body can change. Yesterday her long back fur started to fall off, and this morning Bokyli was really surprised when she realised that her nipples actually have become sensitive and erogenous. Reiley caught Bokyli playing with herself, and I've noticed that Bokyli makes the occasional caressing motion through the corset or even with a hand inside the corset as we sail. It's a bit distracting, but I too would want to play with a new erogenous spots that had just showed up, and it's not like her hands are busy with other things. Still, I try to teach them how to work the simple rigging and rudder, and Koru is getting the same lesson.
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We pass the spot where we picked up Bokyli something like 10 days ago, and continue north while we stay fairly close to the shore depending on depth and waves. The catamaran cut through water well and is stable, but it is fairly slow and I should probably have made the catamaran wider with a taller mast. I just don't know how much it would help with rolling in the waves. I don't like how visible we are to anyone looking, but it is, as it is. I also don't like how wet we're becoming, but the catamaran deck is just 80 cm above the water loaded up like this, and there is nothing to stop bow and wave spray from hitting us, but that was assumed to happen and the deck have a splash guard at the front. Unfortunately, there is water from angled directions hitting the sides, and the splash guard is weaved and water force itself through the small holes, so we might have to double layer it and add a bit to the front sides. We will wash off once we reach Raider river. Reshaping the bows and adding splash diverters will be a future upgrade, as will improved sail and sail handling be. But we need some experience first to really know.
I want to make some kind of life preservers to use onboard the catamaran or canoe and there are some cork like material in the Raider valley, but for now we just have a long line with a dried log in the end to act as a float that we can throw out to someone fallen overboard to grab hold off. At least the catamaran shouldn't tip over, and there are simple rope railings. I really should teach them how to swim better, but there is a uncomfortable risk being down by the river to actually practise swimming. By the harbour with Xuela as lookout might be safer for swimming practise. It's best to learn in fairly shallow water without a current, and the harbour cove is kind of nice with a similar sand and rock mixture as the Salt Boon cove. Actually, the harbour see the sunset over the ocean, so maybe we could have a bit of fun in the sun after a days work is done, and finish the day with a barbeque and playing in the water.
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Can I make a good enough frisbee from woven or braided grass like Koru's straw hat?
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We pass the cliffy knoll that Reiley and me climbed up on, and continue further north than either of us two have been. Soon we reach Raider river, and since Xuela signals it seem safe, we sail upstream after I've taken a few headings to the features I can see. With the wind and sail the catamaran works it's way upstream without issue, and we just have to do the occasional pole correction. Koru and Bokyli is ready with their bows - just in case - and we are prepared for combat.
After an hour we reach the small island that Xuela and Koru have told us about. With Bokyli and Reiley on watch, I help Koru unload the canoe and make it ready, and Koru starts to paddle upstream. Koru in her wide brimmed woven green straw hat kind of look like she is on a pleasure paddle, and she is just missing a straw to chew on. Although her hat is a bit Crocodile Dundee with all the shark teeth she tied on. Kind of feminine and badass at the same time. A perfect match for Koru.
I wonder if we will ever see Koru again, and if this Kima lizard person will be with her. Koru might decide to return to King's Camp and accept death by oath, but I find that very unlikely. Koru is more likely to run into problem from the dinosaurs. I've almost been here a month now, and big dangerous dinosaurs and their noises, calls and screeching have just become a part of the background now. Then again, I haven't spend much time on the grasslands, especially after Bokyli joined us. I'm honestly the one that have moved the least, and over a very limited area.
I hope that Koru will be able to bring some of those green-blue rocks she told me there is by the river, and on Kima's cliff. Beside a ridge where the river passes through a S shaped gorge, that colour was one of the identifying marks Koru told Xuela to look for so she would find the right cliff. I pretty much heard that by accident as neither of them saw any importance in green-blue rocks. I might be very wrong, as there is a huge amount of minerals and rocks I know shit about - especially on an alien planet - but I really hope those rocks are green-blue due to copper content. Actually making copper from them will suck and be trial and error, and I don't really see much use in copper weapons or more copper wire, but beside making water storage containers, making copper from ore might be another blue Star Fall. And those are worth a lot of effort. Koru will try to take a good look on that cliff, especially to see how hard it will be to make a fortified camp there. If there is copper and King's Camp aggression can be dealt with, it might be worth to do.
Reiley give me a Direction to our home, but I climb up a high tree and take a few headings to try and make out where this island is, as all the trees along the river makes it hard to see. I start the mobile phone and take several photos and videos. The ridges are easy to see, and so is panorama mountain, which is our slightly bad name for the mountain the ridges comes from. I return down, and with nose clamps on I plant a few sanctuary flowers in the middle of the island, and give them some diluted pee, ash and bone fertilizer. Then we all wash off before we cast off. The island is high enough that the middle shouldn't be flooded no matter what, as the river banks are lower, but I have no idea if the flowers will catch and spread. Absolutely worth to try, and the flowers seem to prefer shade. Since I've told my companions of my plan to plant sanctuary flower, the damn alien bastards know it too, and if it would work and they don't like it, I assume they will do something about these plants. I've tried to not leave visible tracks, but anyone really looking might find something.
The last thing I do before masking our tracks, is place the slightly broken pot from the Salt Boon ambush camp slightly buried at the shore where it should be visible from up streams, and beside half filled with salt, I add a bit of raw meat on the outside. My hope is that something will eat it and leave foot prints, but the pot with a bit of salt will remain visible for any passing Raider to notice. Just a small clue that dinosaurs might be responsible for Koru's group disappearance on their home journey. We have a bit of torn bloody cloth we might hang low in the water stuck on a branch further downstream, but there just don't seem to be any good spot for it to naturally end up.
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We follow Raider river downstream, and just before we reach the sea, we anchor so I can plant a few more sanctuary flowers in amongst the trees. Bokyli hurry to cut off some long grass so they can weave improved temporary splash guards since we will have time during the voyage. After washing off and erasing tracks, we cast off, and beyond the shore we head north. We have Xuela's rapport of what the terrain is like, but we still want to see it and we need to explore to unlock visions. Sure, I still won't actually use the vision due to the annoying 'Mighty Spirits' wake-up phrase, but I still want them available. I really would like to use that 'warning of the unknown', and it would be excellent while moving around like this. Admittedly, I am being dumb for not using it.
The goal for today, is a big rocky island a hundred meters offshore, but it will take several hours to reach, and we use the time to improve our sailing skills, weave improved splash guards and come up with other improvements to the catamaran. Beside some spray diverters for the bows and completing the job of waterproofing more new surfaces with hot tar, some kind of keel that can be lowered would help to limit side drift, and a simple winch would make sail trimming far easier and lessen the risk of wet hands loosing their grip of the rope in strong wind. Spare rope and a spare anchor will also be stored onboard in one of the holds.
Seeing Reiley and Bokyli sitting or lounging as we sail makes me really wish I hade been on Earth in a modern boat, with the human equivalent to Reiley and Bokyli. I would have been happy and felt damn lucky, and I start the mobile phone and take a few pictures and video. Completely unnecessary, but I can and they like it. Reiley and Bokyli both look damn good and sexy, but bikinis and sun hats instead of camouflage coverall and camouflage hats would of course change the impression. Well, that corset sure looks good on Bokyli, and so do their chokers style necklaces. It's kind of obvious why Bokyli doesn't like necklaces that bounce and move around as she runs and leaps, and a decorated choker or just slightly larger is a practical and common way to wear jewellery in her culture. Reiley really liked how Bokyli's choker looked, so Bokyli made one for Reiley.
A shark starts to follow us, and it might be because Bokyli have cut herself on the grass while weaving and there have been blood in the water, but I'm not that worried since the catamaran is much bigger than the shark and won't easily tip over. Still, doesn't really feel secure to sit on the deck woven from branches, on a catamaran literally made by amateurs from two dugouts also made by amateurs, and know there is a predator like that far too close for comfort. How well does an arrow cut through water? Do we need more shark teeth or meat?
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