Lost in Dreams (Amy)

[ericthered]

The tree immediately proves too smooth for her to climb (climbing roll 12). Everyone is disappointed.



James starts messing with the shelter, trying something else. Maybe she'll do better. And she says to sleep slightly elevated, out of the mud. Talc wants to go back to the pod. Gurman warns that the pod will attract hostiles.



They work on the shelter, and its getting Dark. Gurman assigns watch in shifts: first him, then Talc, then James.

[Anaya]

Amy's losing streak continued. She couldn't do anything right. Maybe she was doomed to sit helplessly in the rain and mud, until someone more competent came to the rescue. What a joke. As darkness fell, she settled down to sleep: Yet another task that she often failed. It'd be no surprise if she ended up lying awake all night.

[ericthered]

She fails her insomniac HT roll and starts an episode. She sleeps poorly, tossing and turning. She can see Gurman standing guard. And she knows the others are right next to her.


When she falls alseep, her dreams are restless. She dreams of this jungle. Its dark She dreams of pods. She dreams of a six-legged feathery creature picking its way around. She dreams of something... no someone, who looks like Gurman, wearing a uniform. They're picking their way through the forest, somehow able to see in the dark. Suddenly prickly vines swing curl with astonishing speed, and the Creature (a thortholite, was it?) is caught and starts spasming.

[Anaya]

Amy awoke in a cold sweat. The dream had felt frighteningly real. She strongly suspected that it was real. Before arriving on this insane planet, she'd dreamt about the battle above it. The conclusion was unavoidable: She was somehow receiving visions of actual events.

She kept replaying the poor soldier's death in her mind. What an awful way to go. The local wildlife was even more dangerous than Amy had feared. Or maybe some hidden foe was manipulating the vines. Either way, she needed to warn the others. But how could she do that without sounding insane or paranoid? Maybe she could disguise the dream as a memory of yesterday. Rising to her feet, she greeted the team.

"M-Morning. Any activity in the night? Even the plants in this place seem ready to pounce. While I was exploring yesterday, I could have sworn I saw them move by themselves sometimes..."

Unfortunately, she couldn't afford to sound too certain. Because if she claimed to have solid intel about predatory plants, then the others would wonder why she didn't mention them earlier. The best that she could manage was a 'hunch'. It'd hopefully be enough to put the idea in everyone's heads. The forewarning (even if not fully believed) might save some lives.

[ericthered]

Talc: "Lots of pods came down. Which means we have less space to maneuver, and that the fight is still on-going"

James: "I made some spears and digging sticks with the knife last night. hopefully they last at least a little." She is tapping her prosthetic legs against the fallen log she's sitting on. "I made three of them. Sorry Talc, I didn't see a point in making one for you. I made you a digging stick though."

Talc: "No offense taken."

Gurman: "I did some searching around last night. Its nice to move around in the dark properly. I found at least one root that's kind of edible. If its cooked. Or so the scanner claims. We'll need to be careful. Anyone any good at cooking?"


James: "Which plants? what color? what did they look like?"

[Anaya]

Amy gave James a precise description of the vines. She prided herself on having an excellent memory; Even if she usually couldn't put the information to good use. Maybe one of the group could glean something from it. Amy didn't want Gurman to suffer the same fate as the unfortunate soldier from her dream. She'd be keeping a close eye on the trees.

She gratefully accepted the spear and stick. Like the knife, they were tools more suited to her than some sci-fi pistol. She also received a call for one of her few practical skills. Amy jumped at the chance to actually be useful.

"I'm a decent cook. Let me see what I can finagle out of the local ingredients."

[ericthered]

"That's a lot of Detail" James says. "Are you sure of all of it? Let me know if you see it again."



The best way to be sure its edible was to boil the root. And then cook it into something better.



Gurman turned on the little round ring: turns out it was a heating element, designed for both cooking and use as a heater. The canteens fit in them... did she grab more than one for herself? That would make cooking much more conventient. The canteens can purify water by themselves, and they fit right into the heating element. Amy boils the root until its soft, and then tastes it. It was mostly bland with a weird aftertaste. but it was edible.



cooking roll.... a 6. Success by 6.


Frying it might improve the texture, or she could serve it as it is. She's not quite sure how to fry it though: all she has is the canteen. Or maybe a knife, but she wasn't sure how well those would work as a frying pan. She has a brief desire for salt, and she thinks of the ocean nearby. But she boils it down until its a little firmer, and then shows it to everyone, with a tiny bit of food bar crumbled on top. That won't last, but it will improve the texture.



She warns that it won't be gourmet, and the others taste it. Talc actually seems to like it. Gurman lets out a sigh of relief: "That's at least one source of food then. That's a huge relief." James eats the food slowly... "Is it going to taste worse when we run out of food bars? I suppose if they're just flavor that will stretch them a lot."


After breakfast James wants to go foraging with "Mills", looking for more of that root. "We're going to have to check all of the roots now. See what we can find. Bring your stick and spear"

[Anaya]

"I'm sure. Remembering is one of my strengths. And I'll definitely be keeping watch for those things."

The meal turned out about as well as it could have, given the strict culinary constraints. Amy was just glad to have done something right. Maybe she could scavenge some seasonings to improve the taste. That kind of goal would help her stay sane. She needed every mental lifeline that she could get.

So when James asked for a foraging partner, Amy didn't object. She could handle searching for roots. Granted, travelling with someone else would stop her from slipping away, as she'd originally planned. But after seeing someone get grabbed by plants, Amy was having second thoughts about being alone. Maybe sticking with this group was the smarter choice after all. Grabbing her stick and spear, she followed James into the forest.

"Right behind you..."

[ericthered]

They travel slowly, digging up as many types of plant as they can find. The uniforms have lots of pockets, otherwise they'd have a hard time carrying it all.

James: "Too bad you didn't grab the other uniforms from your Pod. The cloth would be useful. Maybe we should head back there at some point."

"So where are you from? I'm from the backwoods of Darmoth. Joined the Two Suns to see the universe. I guess I'm seeing it now, aren't I? Nice and up close." she seems more intent about talking about herself than forcing amy to answer.

They're digging when Amy spots the vines again. Just like in her dream. They're all splayed out, running from a single large woody base with bark shaped like scales. They're thick, almost as big around as her arm.

[Anaya]

"In hindsight, I should have taken more from the pod. But I was in a daze at the time. I just wanted to get far away from that awful scene. I might try making a solo trip later, to see whether I can find it again."

She couldn't bring anyone else to the pod. The moment that someone saw three corpses in there, they'd realise that there was one person too many. That'd be a death sentence. James had been prepared to shoot Amy over a missing name tag. No matter how friendly she acted now, she was one misstep away from becoming an executioner.

"It sounds like we have similar stories. I'm from nowhere; And wanted to be somewhere. Perhaps I'd have been better off staying where I was..."

Amy wondered what reaction she'd have gotten to claiming 'Earth' as her home. Did the blue marble still exist? Maybe it had become a dimly remembered myth. There were so many questions that she didn't dare to ask.

The foraging proceeded smoothly. Amy gathered anything that seemed like it might be edible; Along with the roots that had been their sole success so far. Then, with a shock, she spotted a familiar sight. Her guard instantly went up. She pointed James towards the possible predator.

"There! Those are the vines I saw before. They certainly look ominous. Let's keep our distance, just in case."