D.A.B, day 28
Losing my shit.
"... have earned you a gift, and a star is falling."
Uuuhh... what?
The orange animation doesn't care that my eyes are closed, and I sit up and blink. Groggy and disoriented. It's not even morning yet and I can hear rain. I look at my watch. Oh, those damn alien bastard. You just had to wait until I just hit deep sleep, didn't you? Actually, why the hell am I getting a Star Fall? I have awoken Reiley and she looks around for danger.
"Incoming Star Fall."
Reiley just looks at me, and we hear the rain tapping on the roof. Realisation hits her and she groans:
"They really are bastards. Incoming Star Fall!"
Unlike me, Reiley is quick out of bed while I am still trying to get my bearings. Crap. I slip into my shorts and put my hat on and I follow her up to the balcony in my flip-flops. Xuela is not happy and just groans as Reiley shakes her awake and shouts "Incoming Star Fall!" before she continue up the stairs to the path over the cliff. The light night rain ensure I will be really awake. Damn alien bastards. The blue Star falling through the rain cloudy night sky is easy to see, and we take headings just to be prudent. Well, at least it won't fall far away. But why is it blue?
"Do I have to fly and get it?"
We hear Xuela's unhappy and miserable voice from the balcony, and I understand her reluctance. It's night and raining. Two things Xuela really dislike.
"No. It will fall on the ridge somewhere close to the high fields, so we can get it. Go back to sleep."
"Thank you."
Reiley looks at me and disapprove that I'm being easy on Xuela, but shrug and give me a kiss. It might be too heavy for Xuela. Bokyli comes leaping up with Vekalie close behind. Reiley seems completely awake and eager as she gives me another kiss and say:
"Lets kit up."
I nod, and... "FUCK!!"
"Kima will protect Lord Arne!"
Kima's smiling face and playing tongue from half a meter away ensure I'll wake up screaming when I eventually manage to sleep.
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The pouring rain makes the rock faces slippery, and I've slipped on rock and mud more than once. At least the Star Fall was easy to find and the spot not horrible to reach. I guess the damn alien bastard didn't see much point as Kima, Bokyli and Vekalie are excellent in this terrain. They all kitted up and stood out in the rain, and I honestly didn't bother saying no. This is after all Kima and Vekalie's first Star Fall, and it is a rainy night. I could have stayed behind and I wish I had, but I want to make a good impression on our new members, and to see how they are in this kind of conditions.
Reiley and Bokyli are really appreciating their hats as the rain have been pouring down and most are soaked, although the hat and coverall have helped me and Reiley a lot and we're honestly more than okay. Despite the dark rainy night and mud, Reiley is in a wonderful mood, and have been since we opened the Star Fall and found another camouflaged bow and a quiver with 16 arrows, just like Bokyli's. There is no doubt that the bow is Reiley's, and I have reassured her that the bow is hers. She hurt raiders during the raid on Lake Camp and killed during the ambush on Koru's group, and she did shoot those dinosaurs yesterday. Frankly, with that armoured corset, the last bow might have been intended for her. But it is as it is, and Reiley now have a Star Fall bow. Reiley doesn't hide how happy she is to have it, and she must have been very jealous of Koru and Bokyli's bows.
Kima likes the weather, rain and dark, and is all creepy smiles from way too close when I least expect it. Sure, Reiley likes to feel rain and shower in it, and I enjoy accompanying her, but slipping and climbing on a jungle covered rocky ridge in the middle of a rainy night is not enjoyable. Kima seem to think it is, and is happy that it rains a lot here. The ocean and rivers are just magical to her. Being raised in a desert, abundant water is something new to Kima, and so is washing, showering, using soap or brushing teeth. Kima really like the wide rivers she only heard tales about before, and she played a lot in the river while waiting to be picked up. Diving from the cliff was so fun, and the water was so clear that she could see the wiggling animals in the water! Kima fished by diving on them with an improvised two point spear. If she missed, well, then she just got to do it again. When she caught something she made a tiny fire and grilled it. Good practise and good life. The lush green nature and sea is just fantastic to her. Well, she is not alone in thinking that in this group. Or playing in the water. Or liking fish.
There is no point in waking up Xuela again as she probably prefer to be informed tomorrow, so we go to the community hut. Koru is awake and greet us as we return, beamingly happy for another blue Star Fall, and Koru have lit a fire as we asked to help us warm and dry. Kima insist on staying outside and guard us so no-one followed us home.
I just sigh as I see the first white package have lacy lingerie, and hear a synchronized: "That's for me!"
"I prayed for it!"
"I did too!"
Vekalie just looks confused as Reiley and Bokyli eyes each other and the package.
"I'm going out to pee. Sort it out between yourselves. You might want to check which one it fits."
I return a few minutes later, and Reiley is looking pleased as the lingerie package is beside her. Vekalie still seems confused. I appreciate that Kima try to fulfil her duty and guard me, but it makes it harder to pee. But it would be a good opportunity to kill me when I'm alone outside in the rain, so I can hardly complain of her vigilance. The next big white package is camouflage ... something? It's ponchos. Two camouflaged rain ponchos with hoods and two capes with hoods in the same material.
"Funny. Very funny. You damn alien bastard." The others look at me, but I am smiling. It's a good joke, and it will be good to have. Reiley, Bokyli and Vekalie have understood the capes. "These two is what my kind call ponchos. Soldiers often wear this kind to avoid getting wet in the rain, or can use them as protection against wind, rain or snow when making a camp out in nature. If it is folded right, you can even used it to keep stuff dry as you swim cross a river."
There is a few "Ooohh!" as they get my reaction, and we listen to the rain hammering on the roof, and the water overflowing the rain collecting pots. They all get the joke and agree it is good to have and we try them on and take a walk outside. The rain just beads off and they're very impressed. The simple size adjustments and flexibility means anyone can use a poncho or a cape. Well, they are tent sized for Queral. Who is still sleeping. Even with my hat and coverall, they all insist one poncho is mine, and honestly I don't complain. They're right that I'm usually behind us getting these blue Star Falls and all the extra stuff, so I should keep some for myself, and Reiley will use a cape as we walk back tonight. We will probably have the other two for lending as needed in the community hut. The lookout with roof will probably be finished tomorrow, so the person guarding up there won't need one, but if we move around or scout they will be useful. Items like these ponchos makes me more convinced that a larger group would have gotten something they needed more like tools, water bottles or blankets.
The last two packages are big and blue, and the first contain transparent plastic like fabric? Very big fabric. Oh! From the eyelets and shape, I understand that it is a sail. So the other package might be a foresail or something. Well, I did explain what kind of sail I wanted to make and complained about the visibility, and I guess making a boat for journeys along the coast is technology the DAB's would like to see used more, and a proper coastal boat like the catamaran is a lot of work for a dedicated purpose and technology to be rewarded for. Sure, I didn't make the dugouts, but Koru's group spent a lot of time and manpower on them, and Koru helped. The sails are unexpected but very nice to have and the others agree. The damn alien bastards seem to have a thing for rewarding someone with an upgraded item once you made something that work, like the crossbow, lighters and now a sail.
There is something lumpy that fall out as we open up the other blue package and it's a bunch of small pouches... Sunglasses! Yes! I hold up two pairs and rotate them 90 degree from each other. Polarized sunglasses! Just what you want on the glittering sea, and I explained sunglasses to them as we sailed back south as I was planning to do something to shade the eyes. The hats helped, but polarized sunglasses will be so much nicer. Each pouch have a small figure showing which pair is intended for which person, which is nice. We have differently shaped head, ears and sizes, and some sunglasses are more or less goggle like with a flexible band with adjustability to go around the head, but the one marked for me fits me well. Feels comfortable too. Very nice. Will absolutely be used when I'm not sailing, and I will make a protective case. We all try out our pair, and they fit well. Reiley and Bokyli looks so good wearing sunglasses, and it will be fun to see their reaction to how it change reflections. The big goggles fit Koru well, and it would be kind of obvious who they were intended for. Same with the very strange goggles for Kima. The more normal looking goggles will probably fit Xuela well. Xuela have complained about the sky reflecting in water, and the polarized goggles should help a lot. Unless her fashion sense makes her go 'nope'. When Reiley ask about it, I realise I'm whistling the old 'Men in Black' theme, and they are literal aliens wearing sunglasses. Although it is night so going Blues Brothers kind of fit too. Sadly, we don't have 106 miles to Chicago.
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Kima, Vekalie and Queral have gotten sunglasses, but I decide to also give them a Star Fall water bottle each. They're new to our group, but getting good stuff will help them feel part of the group instead of excluded or being a lower tier, and beside water bottles being very useful, we have enough of them.
It is at least an hour left before the sky will become brighter, and I really need to try and get some sleep. And dry up.
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I'm awakened by my watch buzzing informing me it's soon noon. I am very thankful for the light blocking stone roof, and the cliffs that keep the interior temperature in the hut fairly cool and even. Sounds are another thing and I hear faint working noises. I'm kind of slow to wake up and I just want to sleep more, but I'm wasting daylight and I should take another sun height reading with Reiley and Bokyli. Shit. Yeah, I need to do that too. So, I pull on shorts and go outside to take a shit and wash off. The sky is cloudy and it looks...
"FUCK!"
"Lord Arne slept well?"
Kima is looking down at me from the cliff the front wall is supported against. My heart is beating like a drum! Fucking hell! I'm happy that I'm sitting on the toilet, and the toilet is a stable construction. I did not expect to see anyone perched there. Especially Kima wearing a green straw hat. I would say it looks silly, but Kima's smile sure doesn't make me feel better. And does she have to do that thing with her tongue?
"Shouldn't you be sleeping?"
"Kima don't need as much sleep as Lord Arne."
I checked the porch area before going outside as usual, but the cliffs above are hidden from view, and I should have used the dormer window. I guess it's good to be aware of that blind spot. Crap. I asked Kima to not go into the hut unless asked, or if she need to protect me or others from danger, but I didn't mention the cliffs outside now did I? And I have to admit it is a good lookout spot to cover the hut and path below. And Kima seems to have no cultural norms about letting a person have some privacy on the toilet. Or anywhere else. Then again Kima's people live in groups in caves and doesn't wear clothes. They only have jewellery and ceremonial garbs for decoration. She is wearing the body armour vest and technically she is guarding. Kima has climbed down and is crouching weirdly with her back towards me and her tail raised. Is she ... pooping on my porch?
"Why are you crouching like that?"
"So Lord Arne can claim Kima?"
Face-palm. My instinctive use of certain exclamation words are of course helpfully translated, and Kima have not understood that potential sex with her is nightmare fuel, and there will be no 'claiming'. I guess I'll have to learn to use Feck or something instead. Wouldn't surprise me to learn that too will be helpfully translated after a while.
"As I said last night; that word was not a command. I sometimes use the word 'fuck' when I'm surprised or as a modifier, just like 'shit', 'crap' and a few others. Please have Reiley explain it to you again."
"Kima understands. Kima is ready whenever Lord Arne want. Should Kima help Lord Arne wash? Lady Reiley told Kima about Lord Arne's morning routine."
What?
Oh, that... Fuck. I mean feck. Reiley got me good, and Kima is right about morning sex, as that have happened quite a few times with Reiley. Kima is of course happy to be helpful and act as my guardian mistress, with all that means. That I'm another species doesn't seem to bother her, and she did swear that oath without having seen me.
Kima looks so silly in that hat, and made from green leaves it makes her stand out. Which is good and bad. I stop myself from asking about the hat, as I assume Kima have made it since we used hats yesterday and during the night for practical reasons. Better to not ask and act as it is the most normal thing. Who knows, Kima is nocturnal and lizard like, so a hat might help shade her eyes during the day or something, although why isn't she using the goggles? Anyway, that is not important just now. I ask Kima to look away as I finish on the toilet, and as I wash I remember her wandering side eyes, and sure enough, one of them looks away as I look at her.
Her crouching position is explained as Kima show me that she have two 'birthing holes'; one on each side just below her tail. Because her kind can have two different pregnancies in two different stages at the same time, and bulging backs doesn't get in the way when they move on all fours or work. Kima's continued talk about child making and giving birth makes me blank out a bit, especially when I understand that me absent-mindedly stroking Kima's back, ridges and tail last night was foreplay, and her caressing my back with her raised tail was signalling that she was ready. I'm happy I didn't know that then, or that I didn't go further from the tail.
Now I need to wash my hands again. Wasn't bleach made by electrolysis of brine?
Kima helpfully informs me that Queral woke up this morning and seems to be fine, and Bokyli have taken Koru along to show Vekalie and Queral around and work in the jungle making more bricks, ash cement, charcoal and so on, but Reiley is working on Xuela's hut. So I head up to her and Kima hurries to climb up there after me. Yes, I know Kima is dead set on being my guardian mistress, but she should probably do some work instead of just guarding me. With what, I don't know, as Kima have literally been trained to fight, torture and work as a bodyguard. And that is basically it. Venomous women like her are not strong or good workers, but she should be able to do something. Like feed a kiln or so. Apparently Kima finds the sanctuary flower smell repulsive, but she isn't as effected as the dinosaurs, so she can visit the low ground jungle, especially if we have offshore wind.
Reiley's too innocent face turns into a smile when Kima inform her that I didn't need her body or assistance, which say all I need to know, but I kiss Reiley and we have a touching moment. I need to make sure Reiley still feel appreciated and as my favourite. Which she is, but I can't assume she won't have doubts, even though our hut is our hut. Reiley gives me more information about Queral, that they've already accepted into the group.
Xcolb ub Queral is a noble woman from an advanced culture, and she was on a ship voyage to attend her cousins wedding. But the ship was attacked and she was taken by pirates as hostage for ransom, and brought to a pirate haven. At first she was scared, but she was treated quite well, and quickly became friends with several people in that pirate harbour town, and it became a bit like one of those adventures she had read about. Queral is educated and very well read as she loves to read and her family estate had a big library. She was bored and started to give helpful suggestion to the pirates, and before she knew it she was helping with inventory, accounting and dabbled in medicine and so on. She even got to play with steam engines and guns! Her family would never let her do that! The pirate captains started to come to her with all sort of problems and paid her with luxury goods, books and other things they had plundered, and that pistol was a gift, so life was nice. Unfortunately, she had proved to be too valuable, so the pirate leaders kept raising the ransom.
And then she woke up here.
Queral climbed up high in a tree on a hill to look around, and saw the huge dinosaurs. So she stayed in that tree for the whole first day as she was not prepared for the sun to move like that and set. Queral have never experienced a night before and she became terrified and couldn't sleep. It was so dark and there were horrible sounds and huge monsters hiding in the dark, and she was so relieved and happy to see the sun rise again the next day. Queral didn't want to climb down, but she needed to find water and was hungry. She had seen the waterfall and thus the river from her tree and the ocean glittering beyond, so she had to risk it. Once she got to the river she moved downstream to find a safe place. Kima ambushed her. Then she doesn't remember anything before waking up this morning from Bokyli poking her, and Bokyli and the others greeted her. Queral's sleep might been exhaustion combined with Kima's venom.
They have told Queral about me and that I am from a very advanced culture, and Queral is really looking forward to talking with me. Reiley is proud that I have explained the concept of firearms, guns, engines and how a steam engine works well enough that she understood what Queral was talking about. They all really want to know how Queral never experienced a night before, but Reiley and Bokyli remembered me talking about weird planets, when I talked about how a planet have to be in the habitable zone from the sun to be liveable. They think that Queral must be from one of those weird planets, and from a slightly higher gravity too. Which sounds interesting. But, instead of me finding Queral and the others, it's better to work here and wait for Queral's return. Apparently Queral have very different cultural norms for what a woman should wear, and for her the most important parts to cover is the front of the groin and navel plus lower arms and hands. Half fingers gloves are practical, but also risqué and daring. But showing the palm or back of the hand and wrist is just indecent for a woman. So Reiley and the others going in armless dress or t-shirt or Bokyli's corset is just so indecent, and they do it in front of a man they're not married to.
Gloves? Important. Topless? Doesn't matter. Then again, I noticed that Queral is flat as a board, but her species might not have breasts.
So we work as we talk and plan, and the conversation flow free and Kima joins in. Kima really likes hats for their look and function, and started to weave her hat as soon as I left her last night. She can keep here eyes on the surrounding and do handcraft at the same time. She is planning to make a better hat now that she have gotten some experience. Kima looks so silly and the hat makes her stand out, but she also seem to really like her hat and is proud over it. Kima even talks about adding dinosaur teeth to her new hat, like Koru have shark teeth on her. Like a hat is a mark of belonging in our group, and a bit like a uniform, just like wearing that body armour vest. And Kima's kind do wear ceremonial clothes. Whatever. Reiley whispers that I should give the last camouflaged hat to Kima, but not today. Getting that hat would probably make Kima very happy. Kima is likely to always wear that body armour, but it won't be officially given to her today. Kima is also the only one without a metal knife, and we have spares, so I might give her that too. But not today.
As we work and talk, the topic change and Reiley suggest doing a small camouflaged lookout and guard hut above our hut. There is an okay spot on the cliff that would cover the path to our hut, its front, the cliff below and a lot of the sea side of the cliff which is in a blind side from the high lookout. It is not a bad idea, and since the size would be small due to the cliff, and the cliff would be most of two walls, it wouldn't be that much work, building material or time.
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