The Saga of Gerwin - Episode 2 (Treachery in the Trees)

It was a pity the animal did show her more interest but she felt good having given it some berries to eat. Also it was not everyday that you found a wild animal to be as fearless as this one and even feed from your hand. She felt good.

Gerwin eyes the plant sceptically. She did recall this flower but did not know if for good or bad reasons. As a girl she used to blow the seeds into the wind and watch them fly into infinity close by. Nostalgic he picks one of them and blows. She then decides it is time to find her way back and starts her march in the direction she believes she came from.

Unlucky in her search for food, Gerwin decides to call it quits, and heads back to Adiari's shack. Though she was unable to find anything substantial, the basket full of nuts and berries should provide for a tasty, if not splendidly filling, dinner.

Greeting you as you enter, Adiari looks with surprise at the basket you carry, taking it from you gingerly and setting it on the floor.
"I see you decided to go the simple route, eh dear? Well, I'm sure we can work with this...but you weren't able to find anything else?" she says, clearly somewhat disappointed.

"Oh, and any preferences about dinner, honey?" she adds absent-mindedly.

Gerwin looks confused. Had she not gotten out to get just that the dinner? Were the words of the druid, before, that they would eat what she got them to eat? Her face expressed just that question. "I am not used to these parts, I must apologise, I could not distinguish any mushrooms further more find any nutritious roots or plants. Unfortunately I did not come by any fruit tree that I noticed ... " She looks at the other fully knowing that this were but excuses and that she had probably failed in collecting something worthy of eating. "I did bump into a dear, but I am no hunter and would probably not have succeeded in the capture and just hurt the poor animal in vein. And even if I had been able to take it down, I might not have been able to carry it's weight, further more it would surely have been to much meat for the both of us and to leave it behind ..." then almost silently she adds "Besides I never killed anything." she seems ashamed.

Adiari nods as Gerwin apologizes, then shakes her head knowingly.
"It's alright girl, don't worry. Not everyone knows their way around the forest, and it takes a lot of work to learn how to fend for yourself in the outdoors," Adiari replies.

"On the other hand," she adds, examining the nuts and berries Gerwin brought in, "you didn't bring back anything poisonous or toxic..it's a start, at least."
"Probably should have tried harder to get that deer though..." she adds quietly, barely a murmur.

"As far as killing goes, that is something you will have to learn to deal with, in time. The cycle of life is harsh, yet necessary, and for life to continue there must always be death."
"Once you learn to accept that, you can truly be one with nature..."

Taking the basket over to the side, Adiari busies herself with preparing dinner, not bothering to ask Gerwin to help.
"I'll have food ready in a few minutes, dear..." the druid says. "Why don't you go out to the small pond, see if you can catch a few fish for the meal? A bit of meat would go over quite well...."

Gerwin nods. It was true, how could she become independent in a world that searched death to create more life when she was not able to bring that death upon others avoiding her own decay? It was the simple law of the strongest or smartest. She would sooner or later be forced to kill someone or something to avoid her own decay. For now she had always find way to avoid such fate. First there was Joachim protecting her for most of her life. Although he had his flaws he was certainly a good man ready to stand up for her at any time, leaving no room for any direct threat to her. But now she had him no longer by her side to make thinks easy. Instead she found that she had avoided further confrontations only due to some quick thinking. Sooner or later she would be forced to fight and kill or be killed. It was obvious. Of course one could sustain on fruits, roots and nuts but he would probably have to make up to this, it was just not natural. One had to feast on meat as well and to wait that this meat fell from the sky was very naive to believe. She would have to kill ... were it just some fish.

With that in mind she walks outside. On the way out she searches for some fishing rod, string or hook the woman might have assembled in her cabin. Failing to find those she goes outside to her pack and takes out the hook she had gotten a while ago. A rod was still missing but she would use some twig or the likes. She takes a strong string from inside the pack as well. She had some prepared always just in case. Most were for sewing but the stronger ones were just fit for the catch of a fish as well, as long as they did not happen to run into one that was to big. As bait she uses some of the dry meat she had in stack due to her findings among those death in the desert. She bind the hook onto the string with some practice from her sewing experience then proceeds in the search for a fitting rod. Once found she ties latter to the first and proceeds in moving to the lake. Here she adds some of the meet to the hook by piercing it. Then comes the hard part. Throwing. She succeeds after the second time the first time landing to close to her for it to make a difference. Silently she looks at the little lake and waits. Patients after all was said to be a virtue and now she needed a lot. But it was good like this since she had some more time alone to think about what she had encountered along the way. Idly she sits there and waits.

rolls

Gerwin constructs a makeshift fishing rod from the items in her pack, along with a thin branch to serve as the rod, and approaches the lake.
Staring at the clear-blue water and hoping for success, Gerwin chucks her line into the pond, smiling cautiously as it hits the water with a splash. Using a little bit of her trail rations to bait the hook, Gerwin takes a seat on the bench, easily sinking into the comfortably-carved wood as she waits for a bite.

Unfortunately, the poor maid seems to be completely out of luck for the day, and after a few minutes her hook is just as empty as before...

Gerwin waits for a bit before she realises her hook has been snatched of. She patiently retrieves it again. And proceeds as before, piercing a bit of dry meat onto it from her ration and swings the hook back onto the lake. It was actually quiet comfortable. She was not angry for having lost her first bate, eventually the fish would get the hook and then it would be a matter of skill to get them out. For a few minutes she thinks of how she would have to proceed to get the fish out, it would certainly hop a lot. She makes sure she has her club at hand to full fill a rapid knock out. Most things in life were like this. One would idly wait for something to happen, but when it was time to act one was never ready enough. So it was best to prepare as good as possible.

Her mind then wanders of to dreams and hopes she would like to be true and falls into a happy daydream. As eventually the smaller fishes nag of the bait a few more times she proceeds the same way as before. Retrieving the hook and planting a new bate. She was in no hurry for now. It would certainly take a bit more to get dark and she knew that the in between day and night was a good time for the bigger fishes to come out. What would Joachim be doing right now? He was probably as well still on his quest. Had he arrived at the town he was headed already? She was pretty sure the journey went of nicely. Also Joachim knew to take care of a fight if they encountered any bandits, although she doubted that. The desert was not a very visited place and after all Joachim was headed another path then her own. She pondered if he had gotten so much to think as she had in the last days. Probably not. Joachim was not one to ponder he was to rash and short minded it came to her again. She liked that. He was very intuitive about things and unlike her he did not nag on a thought to long. His presence felt so enlightening...

Gerwin felt into a deep nostalgic state. She missed the man she had married.

rolls

Gerwin continues to bait and throw the line for as long as it takes, eventually managing to catch several small fish. Placing them in a small water-filled bowl, Gerwin resumes her fishing.

"Any luck dear?" Adiari calls from inside the house, hearing Gerwin's reply and returning to her work.

The call had awoken you from a pleasant daydream, one which your mind quickly paints over, and you look up to find your rod shaking in your hands, getting stronger by the second...

"Huh ... " Gerwin is woken. "Oh yeah ..." Gerwin realises there is a sudden movement on her rod. "Wait on a second! I might actually need some help with this one." Gerwin does her best to keep the rod steady.

Slowly she tries to pull the string in. Careful not to force it, she moves backwards retrieving bit by bit of the rod. She pulls slowly. If she managed to get the fish near enough to the surface she might even attempt to pull it out with one single pulse. That in mind she tries to get the fish near to the pond bank so it would be forced to get out of the depths. Eventually as she sees the fish is close enough she tries her timing and pulls with all her strength. She tries to direct the pull upwards slightly in her direction, so the fish might get thrown out of the water flying in an arc the farthest away she is able onto land.

In all of this Gerwin is surprised that she is already standing on her two feet a bit away from the bank she had been seated on until now. This sure was a challenge it came to her mind, then it was time to act...

rolls

Gerwin struggles and wrestles with the line, managing to hold her ground while steadily pulling the line in.
Finally, she yanks on the line, sending the fish flying and flapping into the air, landing gently in her outstretched arms.

Shaking the water off her face, Gerwin drops the fish into the bowl, barely fitting its bulk into the small container.
As it thrashes and shakes in the water, the creature tears at the smaller fish caught earlier, crushing and crunching them until the water is reddish-brown.

Looking in to look at what you have caught, you wish you hadn't...