Chapter 8

Winter is certainly coming, the weather has gotten considerably colder compared to when I first awoke here, and the predators have become a lot more active. Likely in preparation for the winter, they are stocking up on as much food as they can eat. This has made the bear’s territory a lot less safe for me. I can hardly move without having to hide away from Teddy, which is what I’ve decided to name him.

Don’t judge me, if not for these little things I’d probably lose my mind. If my understanding of the seasons is still correct, then I’ve been in this forest alone for close to half a year! I think I deserve to at least name a few animals, no? That doesn’t make me crazy right?

“But then again, who the hell am I even talking to right now?” I question myself.

“Yeah, I might be losing it,” I sigh.

Due to having to leave the bear territory and not wanting to risk the wolf territory; My only option was either to brave the unknown and enter a different area of the forest or settle closer to the watering hole.

There was only one real option, the watering hole seems to be a neutral ground for all the animals. Although I’ve certainly seen animals being hunted close to the watering hole, very rarely is there any conflict there.

The proximity to water is only one of the perks, prey walking to my doorstep is another, if that didn’t seal the deal there is an even greater profit from living here. The true boon of this area is a large clay deposit. The tell-tale sign was the fact that the soil had an orange and red tint, and a lack of grass or shrubbery like the rest of the lake.

Clay changes everything, from the way I cook and store things, to the way that I live, and the amount of water I can drink!

Being able to drink more water is the most exciting part to me. When I first awoke here, I was extremely dehydrated. I barely managed to scrape by through drinking the sparse amount of juice that came from berries. Even then, that wasn’t very healthy, and it left me just slightly less thirsty and consistently tired.

Whenever it rained, I’d drink as much water as my body could handle, and I’d also try to collect some water for later in the hides and animal blatters that I had. But due to the lackluster curing process, drinking water from the hides would make me sick. If the water hadn’t already leaked or been evaporated by the time I was thirsty again.

When I finally began using fire, I could boil water using the hides as a makeshift container, but the hides could only be put over fire so much before they finally cracked or burst. Meaning I had to spend more and more time hunting, it just wasn’t efficient at all. But now… this clay is my ticket to a better future!

The first and most essential step to furthering my plans is stone tools!

I will need a lot more wood, and a lot more stone, and more clay than I can probably handle to properly prepare for this coming winter. Towards that purpose, a bone dagger and a few sharp sticks aren’t going to cut it anymore! I need to start making actual tools… but how does one make an axe?

Two Weeks Later

“How do you make an axe?!?!” I all but cried.

I’d tried many things: If I tie a stone to a piece of wood it falls off. If I try to shove the stone into the wood, it splinters or splits in half. I truly am stumped on this issue.

I decided to begin creating clay and clay products without the help of stone tools. That too was a learning experience. Learning how to properly mold the clay into the shape I wanted, ensuring that there were no holes or air pockets in the mold was a struggle. Even when that hurdle was climbed the clay would sometimes just burst into shards over the fire. Heat control is also apparently necessary to make clay tools!

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It took a few days, but once I mastered the basics of pottery, the first thing I created was pots for food and water storage. I could’ve made woven baskets from branches, but although they are light, they aren’t as durable, nor do they preserve food as well as pottery.

Immediately after I made clay pots, they began to show their use. Although the water would sometimes be a little dirty from the clay chips, its much better from what I used to deal with.

I also made a small brick oven, which makes boiling water and cooking food easier. Additionally, I began burying pots full of meat to keep them cold, it’s a primal refrigerator of sorts.

I still haven’t shaken my fear of using fire yet, if the smell of cooking meats attracts a predator it may spell the end of me. That, however, won’t change the fact that I’m slowly starving and losing more and more energy per day due to the lack of protein intake.

So, I’ve decided, rather than die weak and starving, why not fight with full vigor should a problem arise? Of course, I remain cautious, straining my ears to hear any unnatural sounds over the roaring of the fire. The lack of security is another large problem, sleeping in the trees won’t cut it forever, and it’ll be impossible to avoid the cold of the snow with my little makeshift tent. I need an actual shelter.

To that effort, the brick oven has come a long way. The process starts by mixing clay-dirt and water until it is thick as pizza dough. Then I simply form the mud into as rectangular a shape as I can manage before leaving them to sit for a while. After the sun has baked them into the desired shape, I place them in the oven to be completely cooked. Once the oven has done its magic, I take them out and let the bricks cool.

The process sounds simple, and it is, but the work is extremely tiring. Digging up clay, mixing it, forming it, putting it in the oven, removing it and allowing it to cool, then assembling the house.

The worst part is, that the house requires a monumental number of bricks! Due to my own requirements of course… I want a floor and foundation of bricks; I want a fireplace to keep the home warm and to be able to cook in comfort during the winter. I want an area I can dedicate to food storage, and lastly, I want double layered walls, meaning that there is an outer wall, then furs, leaves and any other insulation materials, then an inner wall, so that the house looks refined and not like a haphazardly assembled birds’ nest. Its my attempt at insulating the house from whatever nature throws at me.

The task will take up most of my time, but that is good. If I sat on my hands doing nothing, I might lose my mind. To sweeten the pie, all this building has taught me new things. For instance, by mixing warm ash with tree sap and water I can make a primitive mortar to solidly bind the bricks for my house together! That’s only one of the many things I learned during this whole ordeal.

I look at the not even half-built house,

“There is roughly 60 days before winter comes… time to get to work.” I grunt as I heave another load of bricks toward the house.

Mana-tula POV

“Elder! Elder! Look at this dambi!” A young man, barely older than 17, said as he ran up to me.

“Mahr-kel!” I yelled strictly, “Instead of boasting about your kill, go watch over the young ones! Go train your stalking abilities! One good hunt doesn’t make you a bantila!”

Although I dislike yelling at the young hunters its necessary, I’ve seen far too many of them return to the wilds or become broken due to their pride. As the Elder of the Tula tribe, it is my responsibility to direct these young ones down the right path, even at risk of them hating me.

“But elder…” Mahr-kel mopped at the reprimand, “This one is truly strange, look at its side.”

I decided to indulge him and look at the flank of the old dambi. As my brain registered what I saw, my eyes quickly grew sharp, and my breath baited.

“Good job!” I exclaimed to Mahr-kel, trying to keep up a calm façade. “Give me that dambi,” I said while slinging the animal over my shoulder.

“I will show this to the leader, I’m sure he will be pleased with your finding.” I remarked as I turned away from him and began walking through the pitched tents that dotted the clearing our tribe rested in.

“Thank you, Elder!” Mahr-kel said, with a slightly confused glint in his eyes and a strange sinking feeling in his stomach.

I simply waved over my shoulder as I continued walking.

“This may be troublesome…” I thought as I glanced at the dambi again.

There on its flank was a star shaped wound, a clear sign of other hunters.

“And if they aren’t our hunters….” I sighed.

“Let’s talk to the Honorable Tula first.” I grunted.