Something grumbled in my ear and I felt a hot breath on my cheek. My eyes snapped open and I almost screamed as the triceratops from last night took a bite of the clump of grass beside my head. I clenched my teeth as my breathing became quick little puffs of terror, my nostrils flaring with each panicked breath. The trike nudged my face pretty roughly to try and get the moist grass that I had been using as a pillow. Sometime during the night, my freezing body had finally given itself over to exhaustion and the end result was a stiff, aching corpse, an empty stomach and a pounding headache. I rolled my head out of the trike's way and shakily, I slowly lifted myself onto my hands and knees. The trike just kept munching away as I slowly backed away from it. When I was a good distance away, I finally stood up, my back protesting angrily. I stretched and rubbed my neck as a symphony of snaps echoed from seemingly every joint in my body. I rubbed my arms, trying to rid myself of the last of the shivers from last night as the sun shone brightly down on my skin. I yawned and rubbed my eyes. "I need a weapon… and clothes." I muttered as I looked around for anything that could be of use to me. I approached one of the large plants and examined it as I handled the leaves. But the stem was what captured my attention. I snapped the plant at its base and began tearing the stem length-wise, piling each fiber beside me. After an hour, my fingertips were a little sore, but I beamed down at my spoils. I gathered up the stack of flimsy plant fibers and carried them over to my little nook. Luckily the triceratops had decided to move on down the little island a ways. It was just a tiny little island, separated on the one side from the mainland by that tiny straight I had crossed yesterday.
I surveyed the area, my eyes landing on some of the stones that littered the beach. I searched until I found one that looked like shale and I hit it with another rock, splintering the piece just right so it would be sharp. I took my two new sharp tools and headed towards the dead tree on the other edge of the island. It was barely hanging on, a few more days and it would probably give way on its own, becoming drift wood as it floated off into the ocean. I couldn't allow that to happen, I needed the wood it could provide me with.
It took me forever to saw through the dead tree, but when it finally wielded and crashed to the ground with the sound of cracks and snaps, I beamed proudly at my work. I got busy hacking and sawing with my crude tools ignoring the pain that was beginning to radiate from my hands. I guess I wasn't used to this kind of labor wherever I came from.
I paused in my work, studying my hands which were now red and painful looking with dirt caked up under my fingernails. I looked along the length of my arms. They were slender and painfully so. I didn't have the muscle mass needed for the hard work I was attempting to complete.
Next my eyes drifted down to my thighs and I frowned slightly at the few new scratches I'd sustained since waking up yesterday. Most were partially hidden by dirt smudges and grass stains. Aside from my new cuts and bruises, my skin was fairly smooth. No scars or anything marring my complexion. My stomach growled, pulling me back to my senses as I looked at all the wood I had worked through. I had what I needed to make a tiny little shelter against the rock pillar, but still no clothes or anything to eat. Although I had seen that some of the plants over where the trike was hanging out had berries on them. I wondered, not for the first time, if they were safe to eat. There were also fish that I could somehow try to catch.
I sighed, frustrated at everything I still needed to do. I stood up and headed for all of the materials I had managed to gather. I had blisters popping up all over my palms, but I needed to get all of this done as fast as I could.
A few hours later had me standing there in a crude attempt at clothing made from leaves sewed together with the fibers I had collected. I had a couple spears, flimsier than I would have liked, but at least they gave me some sort of protection. Beside me, small enough that I'd have to crawl to get inside, was my little lean to that hopefully would keep me dry when it rained and off of predator's radars.
I walked up next to the little campfire that I had set up and, after many unsuccessful attempts, had finally gotten it lit right beside my little shelter and readjusted my makeshift temporary clothing while I smiled into the flames. "Now I need food. Desperately bad." I groaned, salivating as my mind wandered to thoughts of General Tsos chicken, or beef on wheck or cornbread. So many different foods crossed my mind, each as appetizing as the next. All painfully out of my abilities to produce.
I heard Killer's distinct call from a little ways away and turned to look at him. "Do you taste as much like chicken as you look?" I joked. Throughout the entire day, Killer had been hanging out around me and I had taken to his company rather affectionately. "I don't suppose you can help me catch a fish or anything?" I asked this to the triceratops who was bedding down for the night. "You know… like… spear it for me or something?" I held up my fingers to my forehead to mimic the trike's horns but dropped them feeling like a dork.
Instead I picked up one of my crude spears and headed down to the water's edge. I stood with only my feet submerged in the shallows as I targeted any fish that got near enough to my post. Jab after jab I missed every time. But I was hungry and my determination wouldn't waver. When a nice sized green and black fish swam by I just barely missed it. I gave chase to my aquatic prey, stabbing at it repeatedly until I was waist deep in the water. I sighed as it darted out of sight and I began to turn around and walk out when something caught my eye.
It was a fish, but it was swimming right toward me. I readied my spear as I waited for it to get within striking distance, but in the dim light of the evening, my heart skipped a beat. It was a piranha. Not just any piranha, this thing was huge. I began backing up frantically while still pointing my spear at the carnivorous fish.
I just barely got to a place with sure footing when the piranha came within striking distance. I thrust the spear forward, straight into the monster's open mouth, its teeth chomped down on the handle as its tail floundered feverishly. I worked against the beast's flailing motions to turn and guide the dying piranha onto land.
I had just turned around when a pain shot up my leg. I yelled, fighting back the urge to drop my catch as I stumbled forward. Another piranha, this one smaller than the first was gnawing on my calf. I reacted out of fear and pain and punched down at the creature, my fist connecting with its ugly head. After the second punch, its teeth which had been tearing into my leg, finally came loose as the piranha swam off a ways to recuperate before coming back for round two.
I whimpered and stumbled through the shallows, heading for the shoreline. Just as I cleared the water, a cacophony of splashing sounded behind me. I dropped to the ground and I turned to see a small swarm of piranhas, apparently drawn by my blood in the water. I shivered as I watched them in their frenzy then glanced at my leg to see the damage.
Back from wherever I had come from, I would have needed stitches. I had no idea what to do with the flesh that was ribbed up and hanging loose in some places. The sight made me queasy so I looked away and limped up to my campfire to cook my much earned dinner.
The piranha, now securely draped over the flames slowly cooked behind me while I took a few brood leaves and tied them around my calf using some of the plant fibers I had gathered earlier that day. I tried to ignore the trail of blood that oozed out of the non-absorbent foliage. With not much else I could do, I returned to my campfire and waited, quite impatiently, for my first meal.
