When the group returned from their cave run, they asked Dale and Tom to come over and check out the things they had found. They met under one of the new crafting stations that Mark recently created. He started pulling items out. He put out the cave silk, chitin plates, resin, shell fragments, and the list went on.
While the group pulled out all the materials, Dale said, “Wait, I thought the cave was full of plants.”
Mark replied, “Well, it seems that it changes. Today we had bugs; they were called ‘Scuttlers’ and came in various forms.”
Tom picked up one of the chitin plates and thumped his fist on it. “Oh, I think you guys got the better end of the deal. The fibers and stuff were cool before, but this stuff. Well, cool is all I can say.”
Dale walked over and picked up a chunk of resin. “Oh, this is useful. I can make waterproofing and seal the clay pots to prevent leaking; it burns hot and is an amazing fire starter. Oh, glue. We can make glue; this will be amazing. This kind of thing changes camp life more than any weapon could.”
Mark said, “The new enemy brings new challenges. We all got bit. Some multiple times. Not bad, but some of it itches.”
Lena said, “With all the cuts and bites, I realize I need more protection. Arm guards, shin guards, and lightweight protection may be made of leather or fiber reinforced with chitin.”
Cora added, “Sharper weapons would help.”
As a group, they compiled a list. Mark wanted chitin bracers, reinforced leather boots, shin guards, and improved bows. Dale needed better gathering tools and stronger, heat-resistant containers. Tom saw possibilities for strings, cordage, rope, leatherworking, and eventually even a loom. Mark also wanted drying racks for better bows, arrows, handles, and spear shafts, while Cora and Lena wanted sharper weapons with greater reach.
Ava added that they should make a leather ball for Bramble. Everyone agreed that was a great idea. With the possibilities growing faster than the list, they finally divided up the immediate work.
Tom would start with making the wrist and shin guards as a first attempt at leather working. He needed better knives and tools to cut and punch holes. Mark would work on making tools. Dale planned to work on boiling the resin and making glue and other materials like sealant for the pottery to make them sealed better so that he could cook at higher temps with them.
Lena and Ava were planning to go check the traps both east and west, specifically looking for more leather goods and also gathering more fibers to work with the bindings.
Mark had a list of items he needed to make. He needed to make a hole punch for leatherworking so that Tom could punch even-sized holes in the leather when sewing them together. He also needed to gather more wood for bows, arrows, and tools.
Mark had plans for better and stronger bows. Most of those plans would take time. He needed Tom to make better strings and grips for the bows, along with Dale’s help drying and curing wood for strength and flexibility. They might even use resin to improve both.
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But for now he gathered simple items, as he had a project he wanted to complete today. In the cave he had seen that Ava was getting too close to the action, and he wanted to keep her safer and farther from danger. He then sat down and made a crude bow similar to the one he was currently using. He would make a couple better ones later, but he would have to wait until the parts he needed could be crafted. The bow stave was not particularly great, and the string was ok but not as good as what Dale and Tom had plans to make. But he did craft an okay practice bow.
He then crafted a dozen practice arrows. The arrows were not as straight as what Dale said he could get by curing the wood, but they would be good enough for what he wanted to do.
He sat down at the bench in the crafting station he was in and waited. It did not take long before Ava and Lena walked back into camp.
Mark called Ava over to share his plan with her. “Hello, Ava. I want to give you something I made for you.”
Ava said, “You made something for me?”
Mark said, “Yes, at the cave earlier today, I noticed that you got too close to real danger at times and got hurt. I wanted to make something that you could use to make more trips to the cave be less dangerous and safer for you.”
At that, he pulled out the crude practice bow that he created and the dozen arrows and handed them to her. “I want to give you some range options.”
Ava said, “You made me my own bow; that’s pretty cool. I have loved watching you shoot yours.”
Mark said, “This bow is a practice bow. Your real gift will take a few days to complete, as we have to make some better parts for it, but for now I want you to train with this bow and learn how to shoot and how to hit where you aim.”
Ava followed him out the west gate of camp and into the forest far enough that Ava could practice without any fear of hitting anyone in camp.
They set up a target against a tree, and Ava took the bow and an arrow and tried to place it correctly on the string. She had never shot before and put the arrow in the wrong place. Mark pulled out his bow and showed her how to string and unstring the bow. He explained how the arrows worked and how the fletchings are set on the arrows. He showed her how to nock the arrow and then pulled back his bow, told her to hold her breath and aim, and let go.
Mark’s example did not hit the center of the target, but it was close enough. Ava, on the other hand, completely missed the target. Bramble jumped up and ran over to the target and picked up her arrow in his mouth and brought it back to her.
Mark said, “That is pretty handy; he can fetch some of the arrows for you. That can make your practice go a little faster. But remember to be very careful. You want to make sure you practice enough that you won’t shoot Bramble or someone else when you are trying to fight using the bow.”
Mark then watched as Ava started shooting. The first 7 arrows missed completely. But after that she started to hit the target more regularly. Not in the center but close enough. Mark watched as she shot all 12 arrows over 10 times each.
Mark then said, “Great job, Ava. That is a great start. You need to keep practicing. Also, you could work with Bramble to help with returns. If you were able to shoot animals down and if they were small enough, he could bring them back to you. You could also teach him to root out small animals so that you could practice hunting them.”
When he returned to camp, he sat down in a chair and started watching the interactions of Tom and Dale. Dale was cooking up some resin. He had one batch at a boil and was scooping contaminants out of it, with a second batch still cooking. Tom was taking some of that resin and applying it to things and then testing it, trying to find out the right temperature and cooling time. While he was watching the two of them working, he received a new system message.
[Role Coordination Increased]
The camp was becoming organized. Everyone now had their own role and purpose.