Trout's Landing.

The Trap Master stood in the cabin that he had claimed as his own as his skirmishers continued to report to him about the surrounding area. Geography wise, the land was still the same as on the various maps and graphs within the cabin. But that wasn't a surprise to him though and wasn't really what the skirmishers were reporting. It was the local fauna that he wanted extra notes for. With the giant spiders and the fish creatures he wanted to make extra sure that there weren't any new arrivals to the area that would surprise them.

So far so good though, the Trap Master thought as report after report gave him much the same. What animals they could find in the area all matched the ones that were expected in the area. At least so far. There was still alot of area to the west of them that still needed further scouting, but it was getting harder and harder for them to venture that way. The cold grew worse and worse and the skirmishers were forced to return sooner and sooner or risk being in a state that left them vulnerable to the local predators.

The Trap Master rubbed his claw in thought. He still recalled the blue flame at the fish creatures' village. It hadn't burnt them but had instead given them a comforting warmth, for a scant time. But as the cold seemed to be getting harsher and harsher that brief memory was enough to send the chill away if only for a moment.

He was hesitant to ask Jeb to conjure some though, he wasn't sure if Jeb even knew what it was that he conjured. To him it could just be a different color fire instead of what he saw as it seemed to burn away the soul of that fish creature.

But the tribe was slowing down. Work on the burrows, hunting, fishing, and scouting was grinding to a halt day by day and even collecting firewood was becoming a laborious affair. Perhaps he should talk to Jeb. He wasn't sure how the fire worked, but it brought them a measure of warmth that regular fire didn't quite achieve.

He noted how cold the skirmishers were getting and dismissed them so that they could get warm. Which was another problem. One of the tribes' only means of protection were the skirmishers, and they were as affected by the cold as the rest of the tribe was. Which just put them more at risk. Not like he was much better, he thought as he rubbed his scales to fight back the cold.

If the kobolds wanted to do anything more than hunker down below ground then he would need to speak to Jeb about the blue fire he produced. So with that he left the cabin and made for the admin building that Jeb had claimed.

He looked around at their new home and the tribe, it was almost hard to imagine that they were close to extinction with how lively everyone was despite the cold. There wasn't the fear and dread in their eyes when the Trap Master looked into them anymore. They didn't shy away from everything new either. It was like they were back home again.

He doubt that they've forgotten their former tropical home. But with how things have turned out for them, it wasn't hard to imagine that the bitter sting had lessened somewhat. He also doubt this lodge would become the sprawling mess of tunnels and caverns that their former home was. But at least it was something, the Trap Master thought as he crossed between fires to beat back the cold a little bit more.

He was about to enter the admin building when he spotted the Den Mother leaving from it.

"Hello Den-"

"Stupid lusty lizards! I'll show them!" She muttered as she passed by the Trap Master without so much as a look or greeting.

The Trap Master watched confused as she went over to where supplies were stored and shifted through them for a moment before huffing and jogging towards the boathouse. Even from here he could hear her doing something from within along with a fair amount of cursing.

After a long minute she reappeared from the boathouse. She had apparently gotten tangled in some fishnets and had to tear some of it away just to be free of it, though plenty still stuck to her legs and arms. She also carried a bundle of rope and an oar for some reason that the Trap Master couldn't fathom why.

He could only hear her grumbling something about the egg-maids as she passed by him and entered the building and making for the room she shared with Jeb. He'll go see Jeb another time, the Trap Master thought as he turned away from whatever was going to happen within and sought something better to do in the meantime.

He wandered over to the Chief as he oversaw the excavation of the burrows.

"How are things?"

"Going steady. Anything to report from the scouts?"

"Nothing we either didn't already know about."

"Good. We've had enough surprises of late. It will be good to have a moment of quiet." The Chief said.

"It will. Though with how much has happened, I'm worried we'll grow restless!" The Trap Master chuckled.

"Oh I doubt it'll stay quiet for long. But we all need a break and time to focus on building our home and not worrying about some new invader or pest."

The Trap Master stayed with the Chief for a time. Content just to watch as the tribe continued their work, even if it was slowing to a crawl. The generators and heaters Jeb had gotten them when they were making their burrows back at his cabin were still going for now. But he was worried that they're pushing them to their limits and what little progress their making was going to stop when the generators and heaters do.

One thing he missed about their tropical home. It didn't matter what time of year it was, it was always warm. Living near a volcano also helped keep things warm as well. Here it was like the sun warmth just wasn't a thing anymore. What little they got seemed to be sapped away before they even knew they had it.

Which made the supernatural fire that Jeb could create even more appealing. He wasn't sure how long it burned or what it actually used as fuel. But if Jeb can just summon it without the need for firewood as well as keep them warm?

The Trap Master shook his head as his gaze started to drift towards the admin building. As important as it was, Jeb was more than likely currently indisposed. Another time, he reminded himself as he left the Chief to oversee matters and headed towards the river.

As he did he could see some of his skirmishers gathered around a fire and were talking about something. As he neared he knew these were the ones that had the long-barreled rifles and had gone to Jeb for assistance when he had denied them. Which made when they saw him and their talking went dead silent all the more awkward.

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"Trap Master?" One of them asked while not meeting his eyes.

"What are you talking about?" He asked suspiciously.

The kobolds looked at one another almost conspiratorially when one of them sighed and broke.

"We were deciding if we wanted to continue where Jeb left off or if we should wait for him."

The Trap Master looked across the river at where Jeb had fastened the chain fencing against the rock wall, making a decent method of climbing. As he looked the kobolds continued.

"We didn't want to bother Jeb, but we aren't so sure about continuing without him."

"You seemed sure to go behind my back and seek his assistance." The Trap Master said in a tone harsher than he wanted it to be.

The skirmishers winced at his words.

"We just wanted to help and we had the tools to do so."

"And if Jeb wasn't the one to help you out, how many could've died if you had tried to do what he did?" The Trap Master scolded them.

The kobolds went silent at that and the Trap Master sighed to himself.

"If you want to help by all means, but don't be fools about how you do it. And certainly don't drag others down with you. I trained you all to be better than that."

"Yes Trap Master." They all said with downcast looks.

"So. What was it you wanted to do exactly?" The Trap Master asked after an awkward and tense pause.

The skirmishers shuffled a little bit, unsure if they should still speak or not. One of them eventually broke again and spoke up.

"Jeb was talking about some sort of rope bridge or something to make getting to the other side of the river and transporting the stone easier for us than trying to use a boat."

"Any ideas for a spot?"

The kobolds pointed to a couple places higher up around the same level as where the climbing fencing was. One was where the mountains on their side of the river started to climb, and the other was the large sycamore tree. Course they could do both, but that was for another time and if they wanted this side project done before too long they would have to decide one which.

Making a bridge from one side of the mountain to the other would be safer. Secure holdings and could be better fortified in case of attack. But it would also mean more digging that they couldn't really do at the moment.

A bridge, or even a sort of simple pulley system from the tree would be simpler and wouldn't require any more digging than needed. But it was also more vulnerable in case of an attack and wouldn't be as secure.

Both had advantages and disadvantages. But only one needed little time and resources to throw together. So the tree pulley was the choice, the Trap Master decided as he relayed what they were going to do. Now they just had to decide the how.

Rope could work, but for the system it would wear and tear, especially if it saw alot of use. But this world didn't have just rope laying around. It had metal cords and wire. He was sure he saw some among the crates of scraps that the tribe had collected while they were stripping Jeb's cabin. With an idea formed they broke to see to their tasks, a group was to search from a decent length of the metal cord while another made ready the boat that would take them over.

After the boat was prepared they waited until the group returned with a length of metal cable and a couple of tent stakes to hold each end. With that, the one group took the bundle and got into the boat before setting off towards the climbing fencing. The other made their way over to the tree. The Trap Master went with the group on the boat and it was he and another kobold that climbed the fencing to the desired point.

It was freezing, the Trap Master thought as the wind funneled through the mountain and got colder the higher they climbed. So they endeavored to hurry this up as fast as possible lest they get so cold they lose their grips and plummet down into the colder water!

So the Trap Master held one end of the metal cable to the rock while the other kobold hammered in a metal tent stake to secure this end of it. After that was done, the Trap Master turned and threw the other end across the way.

If it was any of the skirmishers he might've been worried about the tribe that were still fishing on the pier. But it wasn't and his aim was as good despite the cold as the cable end, with a metal stake of its own to secure some more weight to it, sailed through the air as it passed over the cold water of the river, the heads of kobolds and salamanders, and towards where a group of skirmishers waited to catch the flying cord.

Their catching wasn't quite as good though, the Trap Master thought as the skirmishers scattered as the staked end slammed into the ground with a thud. One of them quickly ran over and collected the end before running towards the tree with a couple others. Then they began to climb the tree, careful to keep the cord from getting caught in any of the branches. They couldn't tie it at the base because the level was too steep and would injure anyone trying to use it to get down.

So up they climbed until they were about even to the Trap Master and the others. They then secured the other end to the tree by wrapping the metal cord around the tree itself before using the tent stake to secure it in place.

With a tug the Trap Master hummed contentedly. More of a zipline than a pulley system, but it would work for now, he thought as he started to climb back down towards the boat to return to shore. Until he heard the sound of shuffling above him and turned his head up to see the other kobold securing the hammer he had brought against the metal cord.

"What are you doing?!"

"Testing it out! See you all on the other side!" The foolish kobold cried out and pushed himself off the rock wall and began to zip across the metal cord.

He screamed and yelled excitedly as he zipped down the line, the cord and hammer both holding strong as the tribe looked up and pointed and shouted at the foolish kobold. Then it got less exciting as he neared the tree and quickly seemed to realize that there wasn't anyway for him to stop, and he was too high to let go.

The only reason he didn't slam himself into the tree or skewer himself on a thick branch was the kobolds that had secured the other end had remained when they saw the scaly fool flying through the air and had the good sense to wait to catch him!

"I'M OKAY!" The foolish kobold called from within the tree.

"For now." The Trap Master muttered as he hurried down the climbing fencing and towards the boat.

This is what he gets for giving them any quarter, he thought as he glared at the tree where the kobolds were climbing down. He was going to have to harshen his training if he wanted such foolishness gone from the ranks of the skirmishers.

The kobold however didn't seem too concerned about his impending reprimand as many of the tribe that saw what had happened had swarmed him and were bombarding him with questions. Was he alright? Was it safe? Was it fun?

All of it died as the Trap Master marched forwards though.

"Just what were you thinking?!"

The kobold's excited grin vanished and he dipped his head.

"That we should test it?"

"By throwing yourself off a cliff?!" The Trap Master yelled even as a nearby commotion by the river started to draw the others' attention.

"How else were we supposed to test it?" The skirmisher asked.

"Anything else other than that! We can't afford to lose more of our numbers and we especially can't afford for some of us to throw ourselves into being reckless!" The Trap Master yelled as more and more kobolds started moving on to the next exciting thing happening.

"Trap Master!" One of them called in a panic.

"I've trained each and every one of you and I know for a fact that this didn't come from me or that training!" The Trap Master continued despite the urgent call from nearby.

"But Jeb-"

"JEB isn't human! Even if he was, he can afford to take certain risks because he can more than likely walk away from them compared to us! And he doesn't have to worry about being a dying breed!" The Trap Master retorted heatedly.

"TRAP MASTER!!!" The voice called more insistently.

The Trap Master glared at the kobold who appeared to be thoroughly reprimanded.

"We will finish this at a later date."

With that he turned and marched away and headed towards the pier where the commotion was taking place. If he hadn't done a headcount he would think perhaps one of them had gotten the idea to repeat the fool's feat. But instead found a couple of kobolds with a fishing line as they struggled to reel in a fish.

The Trap Master hurried over and grabbed onto the rod with the other two and the three of them worked to reel in the strong fish.

"What is it?!"

"We don't know!"

"Why didn't you just let it go?!"

"Because it wasn't what we caught! It latched onto our catch and we've been trying just to keep from being pulled in to cut the line!"

The Trap Master growled and with the three of them now working to haul in the mighty fish they started to make headway as it got closer and closer to the pier. It was also then that the kobolds started to notice that a strange, yet familiar, blue glow started to appear from within the murky water.

With a grunt the three of them pulled back one last time and the fish flew through the air and landed onto the pier and started to flop around. The kobolds all stared at the fish that had required three of their number to keep from dragging them off let alone haul it in!

The Trap Master huffed and turned towards the fish. It was a catfish. But there was something obviously different about it. The flesh was black like the bottom of the river save for its pale underbelly and it had boney spines along its back and at the tips of its fins. The eyes were milky white and appeared like it was blind. Its mouth was also filled with sharpened teeth that didn't fit with what he's read of the fish. But the strangest thing? The whiskers it had were glowing an eerie blue glow at the tips. A curious touch of the tip made the catfish lunge at his claw like it was a meal.

The Trap Master stared at the nightmarish fish for a moment before turning to one of the kobolds.

"Secure it somewhere sturdy. I'm getting Jeb."

At least now he had a better reason to disturb him, the Trap Master thought as he glanced down at the fish and wondered just how many other fish would see such transformations with Jeb in the area? Or if this strange transformation was limited to just the fish, he thought as he glanced down at his own slightly darker but still bright red scales and could swear that there was a slight edge in the center of them that wasn't there before.

Definitely something to speak with Jeb and the others about, the Trap Master thought as he hurried a little more towards the admin building. Also hoping he didn't walk in on whatever he, the Den Mother, and the two egg-maids were doing.