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CH. 7

  Ch 7

  An hour had passed since Matt began teaching them how to make cordage, and overall, the six women were making good progress. Although it would take days for them to produce enough cordage for items like snare traps and climbing kits, they had at least mastered the basic technique and just needed more practice. However, they had already managed to create enough cordage to make a bow drill for starting fires—a task Matt decided to focus on next. While he wasn’t entirely sure whether having a fire was a boon or a liability, he acknowledged that it would serve as a crucial morale booster. The bow drill was also a much more reliable method than banging rocks on metal like they had done the night before. Especially as it wasn’t good for any of their weapons to be used in such a manner and should be avoided whenever possible.

  During the lesson, Eleanor had taken the time to speak with each of the other women individually, so Matt wasn’t fully aware of every detail that had been discussed. Nevertheless, as he finished crafting the bow for the bow drill set and was about to explain the importance of finding a good fireboard and spindle, Eleanor addressed the group as a whole.

  "After talking with everyone, I believe we all agree that splitting from the others yesterday might have been a bit too hasty. However, there’s little we can do about it right now, as searching for them would be an exercise in futility. I’m convinced that there are other groups out there—when that mysterious voice spoke, it sounded like there were at least hundreds of us here, though I suspect millions would be more accurate. We have no idea how vast this area is or what else it holds, so it’s safe to assume that everyone is pretty spread out.

  "Our priority now must be what we can control: building up our camp and progressing as quickly as possible. Matt will take the lead for the next few days or weeks, though he has made it clear that he does not wish to lead us long term. Therefore, I will serve as acting leader until we can choose a permanent one, especially once Matt has helped us reach a point where our judgment is as solid as his, given our circumstances. Now, Matt, could you outline in general terms the skills you believe we should all focus on developing until then?"

  Matt exhaled deeply as he stood and regarded the group once more, taking in each of their unique shapes and sizes. He noted the slight build of Emily, who couldn’t have weighed more than 115 pounds, and contrasted it with the tall and muscular Eleanor, who weighed at least 160 pounds—a testament to her strength and capability. Most of the others fell somewhere between these two, though their fitness levels leaned closer to Emily’s than Eleanor’s, except for the woman with the staff, who, to put it mildly, was entirely out of shape.

  Thankfully all of the women had at least been wearing pants instead of dresses when they were transferred to from Earth. However, while everyone else sported well-fitting tops that were neither too tight nor too loose, the last woman wore a baggy T-shirt that likely obscured the full extent of her weight issues. Matt’s observations were more about adapting to the necessary adjustments than anything else, as he tried to assign each woman to a role suited to her strengths for the future. In this case, he was convinced that she would excel as a base tender, a role that required less exploration or constant movement. With this thought in mind, he began his instructions.

  “First, each of you needs to take a hard look at yourselves and each other, and then determine which roles you can best fill. Take Eleanor, for instance; it may be too early to decide if she is the ideal leader for your group, yet she certainly knows how to take charge—a quality that we sorely lack. And then there is Emily, who seems to be desperately trying to hold herself together as she clings to anyone she believes could help her survive. As for me, I long to find a quiet place to be alone, though that luxury is currently out of reach. Still, I remain hopeful that it will one day be possible. In the meantime, I will share some fundamental survival knowledge with you all.

  “Now that you have all learned the basics of making cordage and have been provided with a tool to help create fire, we can address another critical need: clothing. None of us arrived here with a change of clothes, and I expect this to become a pressing concern sooner rather than later—unless you all decide to embrace nudism. Fortunately, we have most of what we need to craft basic fur garments. I just have to locate the right bark and secure a method to boil and store water, and then we can tan the furs of the rats we killed.”

  Matt suppressed a snicker as he noticed a few of the women cringe at the thought of wearing clothing made from rats, his mind flashing back to his own past survival tactics, many of which others might find repulsive.

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  “All of you need to put aside your preconceptions about what’s “gross” because in the wild, many unpleasant tasks are necessary. I’ve dealt with rodents, eaten insects, and even had to relieve myself in the open—among many other repulsive experiences—to survive in isolation, and you all will eventually face similar challenges. That said, I won’t force anyone to do anything, but if you’d rather risk your life and impede the group than eat a simple cricket, then go ahead and do what you must.

  Now, regarding the specific skills I plan to teach to get us all to a level where survival is manageable—it’s simple. First, you’re all already familiar with making cordage. I’ve discussed fire-starting and tanning furs for clothing, which naturally includes preparing furs to be tanned. Beyond these, I intend to introduce some basic trapping techniques and a rudimentary method for constructing shelters from logs, since we currently lack many of the tools required for more sophisticated building.

  I know I’m rambling, but remember: fire, shelter, and protection are the three pillars we need to focus on. As much as I’d like things to be different, I’m convinced that the best approach involves tracking down the goblins and seizing whatever they have—tools, supplies, or anything that might support our survival. Even if their resources are crude, they could be exactly what we need.

  “What if there are hundreds of goblins?” Emily asked, her face showing clear worry.

  “Then we’ll dispatch hundreds of goblins before they have the chance to use us the way they intend,” Eleanor stated resolutely. “I’ve been pondering the goblin problem; if we ignore them, it will only grow worse. That’s also why I believe that after just a few days of preparation at this camp, we should abandon it and adopt a more nomadic approach.”

  “What the hell,” grumbled the overweight staff wielder. “I thought we spent all that time finding a good permanent base, and now you want to just up and leave it.”

  “Unless you’re fully ready to build a genuine line of defense, settling down anywhere just makes it easier for our enemies to attack us,” countered Eleanor firmly. “We need proper tools, and I’m willing to bet that capturing the goblin camp—or whatever structure they’ve got—will offer us a more secure and sustainable long-term base.”

  “Fine, but if it turns out to be a stinking disaster, you can be the one responsible for fixing it,” retorted the staff wielder with her arms crossed.

  “We can evaluate the location once we find it,” said Matt, clearly trying to steer the group away from another argument. “For now, I want every one of you to consider what role you can play to help the group, even if it’s not your first choice. And before anyone protests, know this: I’m about to venture into the forest to bring back monsters for us to fight. I don’t relish it one bit, but I’m the best-suited person for that task. So, gear up, embrace the hardship for now, and let’s hope that it all proves worthwhile in the end.”

  As Matt finished speaking, a long pause ensued until the bow-wielding women—whom he presumed to be the youngest in the group, though he could be wrong as her features spoke of Asian ancestry, and he found their ages hard to judge—spoke up.

  "Isn’t this the part where you ask us if we have any questions?" she asked looking disappointed about something.

  "No," Matt replied, "if you have any, handle them through Eleanor. I’ll address them only if she brings them to me. Honestly, after speaking with all of you, I feel like I need to crawl into a hole and take a long nap. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to focus on the bright side of my new role by slipping away to find something to bait here for all of us to kill."

  Matt simply smiled to himself as he noticed the slight pout forming on the bow-wielder’s face upon his departure. Although he heard a few of the other women call out for him to return, he continued his trek into the woods, intent on finding a target to vent his frustrations about the situation. Unbeknownst to them, he planned to outlevel the others by solo-targeting several foes before luring the rest to his chosen trap. Despite knowing the risk, Matt felt an urgent need to prove his independence—and to do that, he had to learn how to survive on his own. His primary concern was reaching a state where nothing in his vicinity could threaten him, though he doubted such a point was ever truly attainable.

  Alone once more, his mood began to lift as the stress of dealing with the women faded away. However, solitude was short-lived when the sound of shuffling leaves reminded him he was not entirely by himself. Whatever shared the forest with him seemed to vanish into the shadows the moment he strained his eyes to locate it, and he fought hard to keep the rising panic at bay.

  Recalling that natural camouflage was essential to many animals’ survival, Matt scanned his surroundings for any sign of movement. His thoughts raced through images of insects, snakes, and even some mammals. The more he considered each possibility, the more the thought of a snake—capable of disappearing low to the ground—persisted, though something about that idea felt off. If it hadn’t been for the goblins, he might have dismissed the uneasy feeling; instead, he had to accept that not everything he encountered would originate from Earth. This made him worry about Bob, as he couldn’t help but wonder whether the boar and rats he had killed were of terrestrial origin too. And if they were, what did that spell for the bobcat—and for his own chances of survival?

  Questions and thoughts like these kept threatening to distract him from the more pressing need before him. Namely, not dying because he got distracted when he should have been paying attention to his surroundings.

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