Cervia's Log - 25 Achiel, 1 AoC
Bitternotts
F
or a few days afterward, I found myself wondering what had eaten that feral man. It’s not that I enjoy the thought. But given the symphony of beastly cries that I hear every night when I find some place to rest at the edge of the forest, I have no doubt that it houses many creatures that would make a quick snack of a hobbled, feeble man.
As previously expected, I have indeed traversed the southern end of this great, forested landmass. The beach now leads eastward and, at times, curves toward the northeast. My newly-acquired boots have made the travelling a little easier. However, my lack of socks, and the poor fit of those boots, means that the journey is still arduous and, at times, painful.
The nut-bearing bushes are found only occasionally near the shore. And I have to keep reminding myself to scan the tree line as I walk down the beach, because I dare not miss the chance to scavenge a few more nuts when the opportunity arises. Tonight, I will stop walking a little earlier so that I might scavenge through the forest’s edge while light remains. Ideally, I’d like to find some materials from which I can fashion some kind of pouch. My undergarment has no pockets and I can only forage as many nuts as I can eat while I’m standing at a bush. If I had some basic storage, I could at least stockpile a modest supply of those nuts when I do manage to find them.
The nuts are… unpleasant. They have little taste and are harder than any nuts I’m accustomed to eating back home. They leave a bitter aftertaste and I’ve noticed that they induce a mild case of nausea. But I now have no doubt that they’re edible. I’ve probably eaten 30 of them in the last week and they’re quite filling.
Since I’ve begun heading in an east/northeast direction, I’ve encountered no more people. However I have witnessed an odd, recurring phenomenon. On five of the last seven days, I’ve seen meteors falling from the sky. A meteor fall isn’t particularly shocking on its own. But all five of these meteors seem to have landed in roughly the same location – some unseen point in the sea, far off to the northeast. And while it’s hard to tell with the naked eye, they all seem to follow an identical trajectory as well.
Since they are all landing beyond the horizon, it’s impossible to say with certainty that they are truly landing in the same spot. And it may all be some trick of perception, driven by something in the planet’s atmospheric conditions. But I’ve never seen or heard of a planet where meteors fall, with great regularity, in the same target area from the same originating point.
Comments