The Jaguar's Paw (Tribal Choose-Your-Own-Adventure)

[Fyrra]

"Where are we? How are the others?"

"We are a short walk from the coast," Kiche informs you while glancing toward Rayen, "not far from where we landed. When you collapsed, Aristide carried you, and I took this girl. Her ribs are cracked, but she will live."

Turning back toward you, Kiche points out to the sea. You still feel woozy from your trip here, and you don't see Aristide anywhere, but you follow Kiche's finger to find a large pile of wood in the sand. Further still is the ocean. "Shikoba got too close to the coatl's mouth. Either the venom killed him, or he died in a stomach. That girl, the one who practiced with your bow. I saw her swimming, but she could not swim the entire way. Isi was gone before I even found you."

"The rest are dead, I believe. Perhaps they found their own way, perhaps not, but a few others arrived after us. Tiriaq has a few scrapes and bruises, but nothing serious. I sent him to search the shoreline for anything we could use. The land-tiller has a deep gash in his arm, but Tiriaq found something we could wrap it with. He's been helping me. Aristide and Wapasha are scouting."

Your own head has been wrapped, as well. Standing up, you still don't feel very coherent, but you can walk. From what you've been told, you gather that Isi, Sacnite, and Shikoba are dead: your strongest warrior, Kiche's uncle, and Rayen's best friend (and a skilled toolmaker and bow-wielder besides) didn't make it. Kiche still looks like she always does, but you've known her long enough that the fatigue barely showing in her eyes is obvious. Everyone who lived is battered, and she's been taking care of everybody's wounds. Thankfully, she didn't get stuck with finding food as well.

You start walking, first toward the two you pulled onto the driftwood. Rayen has a sullen look in her eyes, and though she doesn't say anything just yet, she acknowledges your presence with a nod. Her dress is torn and faded, and Kiche is nude. She usually wears a wolf-skin on her back, so it's a little unusual for her. On the other hand, you can actually see her hair.

Getting reacquainted with your feet, you next walk to the driftwood pile. Catahecassa and Tiriaq are on the other side of it, both wearing less than Rayen was, with an assortment of objects scattered and sorted about. You can see a makeshift medical kit, javelins (deemed by Tiriaq to be useless after a day adrift), an iron shield with some sort of big, hairy beast embossed on the face, a carving knife, farming hoe, sickle, and many pieces of scrap-wood. Tiriaq, seeing you and your bow, grabs the knife and a few scraps of wood to carve, saying he'll have some arrows and a new bowstring for you come morning.

1) Is there anything else you wish to say or ask, to anyone? (multiple answers accepted here)

2) What are your plans for the afternoon? You can spend time resting with Rayen and Kiche at the campsite, follow Tiriaq and Catahecassa to the fishing spot they found, scout with Aristide and Wapasha, or scout on your own. If scouting, you can check along the shoreline for anything Tiriaq might have missed, or forage inland to the north-east, north-west, or due north. Kiche has only surveyed the immediate area due to everyone's wounds, and Wapasha and Aristide aren't knowledgeable on the local flora like you are.

 

[Fyrra]

Here's hoping this doesn't die. <,,<

 

[The Taleweaver]

What do we have in the way of provisions? Do we have any kind of rations that made it, or are we going to be surviving solely on what we can forage?

If we're relying on foraging, then I'd say let's head inland, to the north-west. -Carefully-.

If we have some kind of rations (not likely, I'd imagine), then we'll re-check the shoreline.​

 

[Fyrra]

There's a freshwater gulf, with the mouth of a river nearby. A few clay pots have made it ashore, so you can use those for water-storage away from the river. For food, Tiriaq and Catahecassa have been relying on fish that feed at dusk and dawn. Your choice on what that means to you.

Also, we aren't moving completely *just yet,* as two of our companions aren't present, and won't be until later tonight.

 

[Fyrra]

edit: if this dies, it dies. If you want to revive it and have to message a mod to do so, be sure to message me after your reply is made, or I probably won't see it.

After a quick survey of your immediate surroundings, you decide there isn't enough food for traveling. With Tiriaq and Catahecassa fishing at various spots, you could probably stay in the immediate area a while, but you don't like that you've been out for two entire days without much progress being done. At least what survivors you had took the initiative fulfill immediate survival needs without running off, but sitting in the same area immediately after a disaster brought on by unnatural means makes you feel uneasy. Your first thought is to go look for food that won't spoil very quickly, and fish doesn't meet that criterium. With Wapasha and Aristide off to the east somewhere, you set your eyes to the north-west, along the river. Picking up the iron shield in one hand, and a clay pot in another, you tell your nearby companions that you're going to look for more food, and then you set off.

It's fairly warm today, you notice after traveling a few kilometers out. The chirping of crickets and birds gets a little louder than you like, but you realize it's the lack of other noises that's altering your perception. Your headache diminishes as you pick up the pace, eyes scouring the land and water for anything either edible or useful. Your 'hunter' senses have been honed very well over the years, perhaps even more after the loss of your horse in the rainforests. You may not have anything but a damaged pot and a shield with which to defend yourself, but you take care not to stay too far out in the open, lest you be spotted by something or somebody you don't wish to meet. Many mushrooms are plucked from the earth and deposited into your pot. You know them to be edible, if a bit dry.

As you travel further, you notice a few carcasses left out by a tree. Getting closer, you see two of them move. Both have brown fur, one seems to have a few wooden sticks poking out of it, and the other is breathing but doesn't quite have its head up. Wolves. Most likely, the arrows protruding from the slightly lighter one originated from a nearby tribe. There are three dead ones nearby, and the conscious one is busy tending to the only other living wolf's wounds with its tongue.

1) What is your course of action regarding the wolves? (If attacking, how? What's your battle plan? You could also try to sneak past, though there isn't much in the way of cover. You'll probably be spotted that way, so what will you do if they do decide to give chase? Since you're being careful about foraging alone, assume you have access to anything from the encampment. You could also approach without hostile intentions, but what good would that do you?)

Further down, you find a tree with many red fruits dangling from it. Pending physical condition from the wolf encounter, you climb up it and fill the rest of your pot with apples. The return trip is uneventful, but you determine the footprints in the area point to the northeast of your current location, or due north from the encampment.

When you arrive, Wapasha, Aristide, Kiche, are standing around with somebody who looks somewhat familiar. The fourth person is of hispanic descent, sitting down, and still in his uniform. His face is heavily bruised, and bleeding at the lip. Wapasha's abdomen has a broad but shallow cut across the side, and he's holding a machete in both hands, staring at the spaniard as though he's daring him to move.

"Good to see you live," the french soldier comments, "We found this one skulking about. He tried to talk his way past us, but he was most unreasonable when Wapasha asked him to accompany us back here. We've been trying to have a friendly little chat with him in the meantime, but he seems to be upset for some reason."

"Tu Capitan promised us freedom when we landed, you pastry-eating mongrel. You've no right to drag me back here against my will," the spaniard spits back. Looking at him, you remember that he was the ship's navigator, Esteban. You also vaguely remember seeing him while you were out at sea.

Wapasha looks in your direction. "We believe he might know something about the serpent that attacked us. They preyed upon a village before we found them, so they must have seen something we hadn't at the time. Maybe they angered the wrong person... Someone capable of controlling that beast."

"It shouldn't matter," Esteban shouts, "We made it to shore! Even if somebody did send that thing after us, there's no way it could reach us across the gulf, and besides that, we had an agreement about parting ways without any more spilt blood!"

2) What are you going to do about Esteban?