Realistic or Modern Bastard's Tale

[Mewmewcatfish]

Rose hopped down easily enough with Jesse when she found out it was just Mos and Aurora in the barn. She stood at her full height, as she spoke to the two of them with more clarity in her voice. Her mind clearly stronger than she earlier let on in town,"Well looks like you two had a fun time without us."

She was happy to see the young ones could handle themselves and seemed to be allright. At Jesse's mention of looking for more gear/intruders, Rose's excitement grew and she pulled out an axe, balancing it on her shoulders. Out of town she decided to drop the act, the new woman would either know of her bounty or not. She played the risk game many of times and as said before, she was optimistic in thinking the new girl would keep her secret for now. She started off behind Saxa and Jesse not wanting to be in her line of fire. She spoke to Jesse with a laugh,"You assume I have something in there to rob...just kidding."

She eyed Saxa and smiled,"Nice to really meet you, kid. Hope you know how to use that thing."

She smiled warmly, her tone friendly, regardless of the circumstances.

 

[Lexico]

Aurora climbed up to the hayloft with Mos as instructed by Shisa. She did not say anything when Shisa said she will guard them when they rest. She was in no mood to rest. But Mos was tired and he slept. The fastness which he goes to sleep had always amazed Aurora not only now even during those days.

She watched Shisa hiding near the door. After some time, when finally silence had taken over the place yet again Aurora would not tolerate it anylonger. "Shisa," she called, "can you tell me what happened that day when you killed my daddy?" Her voice was clear and there was no hate in it. She only wanted to know what happened and why they behaved so cruelly or why they attacked them in the first place.

 

[ScalpelsNSaws]

_______________________________________________________
The Cistern
_______________________________________________________

As Jesse, Shaun, Rose and Saxa decended into the darkness of the tunnels, a copper scent could be smelt as they approached the Cistern.

"Shaun, rake point with the shotgun." Jesse commanded him.

As they apprehensively entered the wide space, they could see the dead soldiers Aurora had shot. The fact they had been left, alongside all their equipment showed they were alone. Shaun knew they weren't currently alone however, as the glint of Ethan's scoped rifle could be seen poking out of one of the sleeping areas.

"Identify!" Shaun called to the concealed young man.

 

[Corvid15]

It was a trap question, it had to be. Aurora was going to push her off the ledge and kill her for good. Shisa gulped. She might as well tell the story.

"It was my rite of passage, I had turned 16 years old that day. The elders had looked for a good mark to raid, and we had found it. We needed supplies, and I needed to make my first human kill. The High Elder deemed the camp evil, and that we would be doing justice in our raid."

Shisa didn't turn around to face Aurora, she kept her eyes ahead and her voice somewhat low as she recounted that day.

"So, we raided. The elders on horseback, the rest of us who could raid on the ground. The previous Speaker before me, she told me who to kill and guided me through it. Arrow to the stomach, makes them stop. Gut them carefully so they're still alive. Pull out the heart and eat it."

"Carefully remove the head to set on the spirit altar. Take the hands to make my first set of rune bones. The rest of the body we take back and eat as a celebratory meal."

Shisa stopped, remembering, a few tears starting to form in the corners of her eyes.

"I remember you. You screamed for me to stop, for us to die. You attacked me with a knife."

Shisa pulled down the collar on her shirt, showing a scar going across her left shoulder and collarbone. From where Aurora attacked her all those years ago.

"I didn't understand why you were yelling his name, why you didn't want us to kill him. I still don't fully understand. Is that what you wanted to hear?"

 

[TheAdept]

Jesse was mainly a man of logic, but he also followed his instincts. There were times when he was being shot at, and times when he was being threatened. This was neither. This was a time when someone was aiming a gun with uncertainty. He couldn't be entirely certain, but this must be one of their own.

"Put the gun down, Ethan." Jesse tested

 

[Lyth]

Saxa kept her string slack as the group moved along, not wanting to burn herself out holding an arrow ready but not quite willing to disarm herself. A knowing smile was offered to Rose when the older woman mentioned her overall competency with the bow, it had served her well and kept her alive for this long, though she did miss her rifle terribly.

Careful, quiet steps were taken as she watched Jesse and Shaun for cues as to just where they were heading, something had been mentioned about a cistern but she couldn’t truly be sure. Having only known these people for less than a day, a surprising amount of trust was being handed over and Saxa was cautious. Trusting too freely in this world was a surefire way to wind up dead and robbed, something Saxa was eager to continue avoiding as she made her way West. The reassurance offered by Rose was humanizing and Saxa knew this was the closest sensation she’d felt to comfort in years.

Keeping her sharp eyes trained on the distance as they moved, glad they weren’t being tailed but anxious about not knowing the size of their group. A great deal of risk came with hesitation and she would need to know who deserved that hesitation, few things could provide a quicker end than accidentally killing a member of this group.
At least the leadership shown by Jesse and Shaun were giving her enough confidence in their ability to think quickly, though she’d only seen one of them in a fight.

Only time and an actual gunfight would tell the young traveler just how capable her new companions were, there was a fair amount of safety in numbers and the group seemed almost robust compared to others she’d seen. Perhaps months of patience were finally rewarding her, perhaps she was about to be murdered in an old cistern and stripped of her remaining valuables.
Her eyes moved over to Shaun for a moment, the first of the group to interact with her and outstandingly polite so far, though often one couldn’t trust anything at first glance on dry land. She wasn’t feeling any overall sense of doom from him and his body language was certainly calm, he also couldn’t have possibly known she was looking to join their group, unless she was victim to the most painfully overplanned robbery in recent history, for a pitiful haul.

The two bodies were something of a relaxing piece of evidence, no one had looted them and there weren’t enough travelers moving through to set a trap. It would seem the pair were likely lone scouts, ones that would certainly be marked missing once they missed check in, a floating deadline they couldn’t possibly predict.
She kept herself back, letting Jesse call the shots and Shaun take point, there wasn’t much sense in stumbling over herself to get in the way.

Aiming quite suddenly at the form tucked away, Saxa immediately felt the pull of anxiety that partnered with not knowing who might be a danger. She was ready to fire within moments and held her aim steady, only lightly relaxing her grip on the arrow once Jesse called out to the man. Just as quickly as she’d aimed, Saxa was disarming and keeping quiet.

“How many of you are there?” Saxa asked, keeping her voice soft as she loosely addressed the group. Whether or not she would even be given an answer wouldn’t be much of a bother either, she was still expecting some level of distrust.

 

[TheAdept]

A long needled, browned and blackened from the rusts of time and the filth it's dwelling was stuck in the beast known as Hawk. A cocktail of Old World poisons were then pushed into the jutting purple veins of the creature. Methamphetamine, another compound known once as "crack," anabolic chemicals, concentrated juices that caused hallucinations, and a small part a mix of dirt, mushroom bits, and rotted human blood, comprised this cocktail.

The doctor's dark yellow grin stretched as the syringe was emptied, and he went on to the next phase of the feeding. On a large trey as weathered as the blackish brown syringe was an art-piece, though perhaps too liberal, even for the world it existed in. Three cooked toddlers were propped into a standing position, and their guts lay before them as if it was them who had offered it to their god.

"Eat up, little one. You will need your strength." The doctor said laughing as he walked away.

 

[Lexico]

Aurora listened carefully. One would see her struggling to control herself while Shisa narrated the tragedy in detail.

"It was a full moon day. Previous night we had hunted a white tailed deer. It was a rare thing and our whole group had a heavy supper. We even sang and danced." She spoke without looking at Shisa's direction.

"We were peaceful group and were always traveling deep inside forests to avoid other violent gangs. Your people they came on us like ghosts and invaded like barbarians. I was taken out. One of your men mishandled me. I was violent, struggled hard, even tried to stab few of you. But then you people decided to give me the worst ever punishment. Made me witness my dad's cruel death."

Aurora paused. She surely was not about to weep or not start shedding tears. But she was remembering the terrible moments. "It was the biggest scar in my life. Not even a single day goes without me remembering those tragic moments. I might be burdened with those memory until my death."

 

[Corvid15]

"And that is yours to bear, as we all bear some weight of our past. I did what I was told, what I had to do. And in return, I became no longer a child, and the Lords did not smite me down."

Shisa kept her eyes on the field infront of her, scanning for any disturbance. Her voice was cool and detached. What one of the men did to Aurora was unacceptable, after that raid he was punished and brought before the harsh judgement of the Lords. His bones were broken, no one ate his flesh. To be disgraced and forgotten. To have ones bones broken was the ultimate disgrace, as the bones contain pieces of one's soul. To break them is for them to lose apart of their soul. While they can be mended, there soul is then no longer fully intact.

Wait, how had she not connected the dots. In the excitement, confusion, and events of the past few weeks, it hadn't clicked for Shisa until now. Aurora had fractured her ribs. While this is not as bad as a full break, Shisa didn't know how that had slipped her mind. But, there was no need for her to retaliate now, her bones had healed.

"Everyone dies its the cycle of life. There is no need to fret over their death. You still remember them, their mark is still on the world. There is no need to feel for them, they are apart of the land now."

Shisa still watched, perched perfectly still. She saw something moving in the fields, which then turned out to just be a rabbit. She would shoot it, but there's no guarantee on bone safety. And they had enough food at home. It was nice and secluded out here, maybe she would move all of her stuff into the old house.

 

[Obsidian]

As Jesse called out to him, seeing a strange new addition in the red-haired woman slacken her bow, and then aimed just to the right of Jesse, hearing a softened pop of gunfire before a bullet whistled past Jesse and the others, harmlessly picking off a piece of concrete from the wall behind the group. If that little hint wasn't enough to demonstrate Ethan's current grievance, the spite in his voice certainly would.

"Good to know that I have not entirely escaped your collective memory after all!" Ethan says, stepping out of the shadows, rifle in his hands, his voice echoing through the Cistern, "A real fucking shame you didn't recall as much before leaving me in Superior all by myself! No warning, no coming to find me, no waiting for me to return, not even leaving a message with one of the traders! You up and leave just like that! Real great and reliable companions you all make! Or have I failed to make a memorable impact in our little merry band?! Well, from now on I will make damn sure that none of you can ever get me out of your heads again!"

"And who's she?" Ethan said, turning his gaze to the red-haired woman, studying her with an unreadable expression, though his temper calmed somewhat, "You a new recruit? Wanting to join our gang, huh? Well, don't expect to rely on any of them, they'll forget you as quickly as they did me."

"Unless you take Shisa's example, ripping out human hearts out of peoples chests and eating them in front of everyone, while lacing all our food with human flesh so we can all be cannibals like her. Friendly warning, hun, always cook your own food, since you never know what these reprobates would put in it for you." Ethan says to the red-head, his temper cooling, but his voice edged with spite as he looks to Shaun with a smirk, "Or you could spread your legs for Shaun over there. He'll like you. He likes the women young enough to be his granddaughter. Isn't that right, Shaun?"

 

[TheAdept]

"Now thats enough bitching about Shisa! She isn't going anywhere." Jesse said sternly. His attitude about Shisa betrayed the fact he knew full well why everyone had such a problem with her. Besides Shaun anyway. He wasn't going to say anything about Ethan's comment because it was mostly true. Though 'daughter' was probably more accurate. Jesse could tell they were less than twenty years apart. His attitude helped him realize why Charles occasionally let Santos torture their raid victims.

"First of all, yeah we got separate. That crowd was thick as clay. But how did you not notice the swordfight? Seemed like everyone was gathering around." Jesse said, remembering what a spectacle duels always were. From Springs to Aurora to Collins, everyone gathered around when a duel broke out. It was a rare treat for the average waster in Culrud.

 

[Mewmewcatfish]

Rose didn't move as the gun went off. Some may think it was because she had balls of steal but it really was because she wasn't paying attention. She did feel slightly bad about leaving the young man, and held up a hand about to speak when he continued.

At his talk of Shisa, Rose looked over with wide eyes, hoping that her food hadn't been tampered with. She had some taste of human up North on the expedition but that was very rough times. Ethically she wasnt going to stand for it, but in a world of eat or be eaten she could understand peoples motives. She vowed to herself that she would never be in a situation where she would eat it again. The silent chatter between Shaun and Shisa made more sense to her now, and would have to talk about it later. As for now she remained silent. When he mentioned Shaun she let out a laugh shrugging,"Kids sort of got a point..."

After Jesse retorted Rose scratched her back with her axe,"Hey now. Let's not all turn into children. Sorry uh..shit..your name started with an E right? Erin? Yeah! Sorry we forgot you. Stuff got crazy. Jesse got in a fight and we figured it was best to leave. It wasn't cool. Alright! So I'll take my ownership, on forgetting ya. This time. Oh and uh careful where your shooting bub, or next time your getting an axe to your balls...even if they havent dropped yet."

She smirked, her tone slightly serious, but mostly light.

 

[ScalpelsNSaws]

Shaun flinched as the bullet sparred against the stonework near him. It was definitely Ethan. He'd been acting contemptible ever since the soup incident. Not just to Shisa, but Shaun too.

Shaun did feel bad about forgetting Ethan, and his anger was justified. What he was doing, however, was out of line. Had it just been Rose there and not Saxa or Jesse, Shaun might just have drowned Ethan in the Cistrn pool for such a vile comment. He did however step foreward and threaten him. "If you ever, ever, make such a statement about me again, boy, I'll use what the nobility taught me to flay you am I clear?"

All Shaun tried to do for Ethan and he says that. He had half a mind to shoot back, and he was carring a shotgun. He controlled his temper, stepping back but keeping his anger visible in his eyes for the little bastard.

 

[Lexico]

Aurora did not like Shisa's tone. Aurora knew Shisa feels guilty about the incident. Now it seem Shisa had justified herself by 'this is how it goes.'

"I am irritated by how you put everything lightly," She bursted out her feeling. "I know you like Shaun a lot. I am sorry to put this in this way. But if Shaun dies, will you say the same thing?"

Aurora started imitating her tone. "Everyone dies. It is the cycle of life. There is no need to fret over their death. There is no need to feel for them." Aurora paused her sarcasism. "...for Shaun's death, will that be your reaction?"

She clearly did not start this conversation to rekindle the bitterness. She only wanted to knew what happened during that day. But Shisa's narrative style had tempted her.

 

[Obsidian]

"It may come as a shock for you, Jesse, but I don't spend all of my time following you around. That's what you have Shaun for, after all." Ethan said to the dear leader, "As for your duel, I can only hope you took their heads, but I suppose what you do with your own enemies is up to you, boss."

"It's Ethan." He said to the old girl, smirking at her, "And if I wanted to kill any of you, then one of you would be dead right now. Bear that in mind should you think to swing those axes at me sometime."

"Ooooooh, did I touch a nerve there, Shaun?" Ethan mocked with a snide grin, giving out a laugh as he squares up to Shaun, enjoying getting under the old man's skin, "What's wrong? Don't you like someone voicing what everyone else thinks about you? Don't tell me that you feel embarrassed to be with Shisa, she would be so heartbroken to know that. After all, shouldn't you feel proud of your achievement, bedding a woman half your age? Though, perhaps not too much of an achievement, huh? I can't imagine many want psycho cannibals as their lovers. In that way, you have no competition there at all."

Ethan looked down at Shaun's shotgun, seeing the rage in the old man, and Ethan just grinned wider. "Awww, do you want to shoot me, Shaun?" Ethan laughed, "But you can't, can you? You still need me for our little revolution. How does that feel, Shaun? How does it feel to really want to kill someone, but you know that you just can't? But don't worry. You'll get your chance to try to kill me one day. Do try to be patient, won't you?"

With that, Ethan's spite was duely sated, and he stepped past Shaun to head to the tunnel, stopping in front of Saxa before giving her a look up and down, then looking into her eyes while giving her a smirk. "Welcome to our merry little band, recruit." He says, "Hope you enjoyed your introduction to what life is like down here, in our pleasant company." With that said, Ethan stepped past Saxa, giving her a wink as he passes, before headed down the tunnel to leave the rest to simmer, with Shaun likely pissed beyond belief. Ethan didn't care, though. They deserved it for leaving him behind, Shaun more than anyone. He's supposed to be the smart one, after all.

Ethan made his way out of the tunnel system and headed out to one of his usual target practice haunts, to shoot out the last of his annoyance before heading back for the night.

 

[Mewmewcatfish]

At Ethan's sassy retort, Rose raised her eyebrows keeping her smile on during the young mans threat. It didn't bother her much. She was too old to give a shit about an angry kids throw back, and sighed watching as he spoke to Shaun.

She noticed her old friends expression as the kid walked off and spoke evenly moving over to put her hand on the man's shoulder,"He's angry about being ditched. Let him have his tantrum, and move on. Shisa is a great girl, even if her dietary choices are a bit on the gross spectrum and you are too old to let that fetus get under your skin. Alright?"

She smirked, patting his shoulder before she followed the kid into the cistern,"Besides...we did leave him. Ethan..Ethan. Damn alzheimers.."

She laughed to herself mainly as she turned back to the cistern.

 

[KotaKotsu]

Hawk looked at the feast displayed before him, grabbing one of the cooked toddlers by their skull and squeezing it as if to test how tough the meat was. No sooner than a few squeezes later, a sickening sound of tearing flesh rings out in the room as he begins tearing off the head from the base of the neck.

The body crumples from the force used, it's intestines wrapping around itself and spilling out. Surprisingly, the other two bodies stay standing from the other body moving, due to how light the cooked corpse was. Hawk holds the head up to his face and starts moving the child's mouth. Hawk imagines what the child would have sounded like had they been alive, screaming as their head came off. He decided it was better that they weren't, taking a bite of the toddler's cheek.

While chewing, he realizes that his teeth have sharp pains coming from them. He roots around in the now open cheek of the toddler and rips out some teeth from the gums. He looks for the closest source of fire nearby him, using the dagger trophy from his victory in the coliseum. He heats up the blade by shoving it into the fire until red hot, and places some of the teeth into his cavities.

He presses the dagger onto the new lumps of teeth until they are flat.

 

[ScalpelsNSaws]

"Old enough to ignore him, not too old to knock his block off." Shaun said bitterly, responding to Rose. "I don't think you've got alsheimers, or you've forgot your sense of humour." He joked. He knew that Shisa would be livid that Ethan had basically gutted her reputation like a trout for Saxa and Rose. He had a reason to hate her, but it was agreed a while ago between everyone to keep the groups interests in the forefront, with petty squabbles on the back foot.

"Im gonna go get Shisa and the love birds, Rose, can you check these guys for insignias and get them out of here?"Shaun asked, nudging one of the bodies with his foot. He turned and began his walk back to the farm to make sure Aurora wasn't killing Shisa again.

 

[Lyth]

The force of dysfunction that would follow their arrival at the cistern was something Saxa was almost relieved to see, staying under the radar wouldn't be difficult if she kept her mouth shut. Keeping herself as uninteresting as possible was something that truly wasn't necessary, she really was the most boring person in the group.

With Ethan's outrage at the group's apparent disorganization, a tirade of dirty laundry was quickly laid out before Saxa. Information she was positive the others weren't interested in a newcomer having. She practically held still to prevent the outburst from ending, though she wasn't entirely invisible among the small group of travelers.
Treated to her own dose of Ethan, Saxa managed to stifle her laughter, aware she was a convenient device to drag Shaun. She wasn't entirely offended by the presumption of selling herself for comfort, this was a world where finances were limited and bartering could often get creative. Thankfully she'd never run short enough on supplies to be risking herself further by risking a child or worse, Saxa was aware of the way some would leer at her. Being a woman with all of her limbs and teeth was something of an edge in certain pockets of the mainland.

The news of Shisa being a cannibal was something of a surprise, given the overall nature of the group. It was no secret cannibals caused anxiety, even if they did hold a fascinating culture. Keeping care of her own food wouldn't be difficult after spending years keeping herself alive, though she was missing the ocean providing reliable protein. In her time alone, Saxa had hunted whatever game she could, relishing the odd large catch she could sell to local traders.

Saxa wouldn't say a word as the group began arguing, offering her some context on Ethan's barbs. The group wasn't getting along well, she would likely need to keep to herself and stay clear of any interpersonal drama. She was happy to see Rose make some attempt at smoothing things over after teasing the already upset Ethan, managing to de-escalate things quickly.

"Well thank you" Saxa replied, once Ethan had stopped to formally examine her and offer an interesting welcome. A note of amusement hung on her words, she was thankful for such a quick introduction to the group dynamics. She would glance up at the others once Ethan moved away from her, waiting for what damage control may come.

Instead things seemed to fizzle out with Shaun excusing himself to find the aforementioned cannibal, Saxa finally shouldered her bow and turned her attention to Rose.

"Would you like a hand?" Saxa offered, she was well versed in dragging bodies and knew things would be much easier with two.

 

[Corvid15]

Shisa bit her lip, not wanting to answer that question. In truth, she would miss Shaun. She still feels emotions like others, just processes them differently. That is why the Bone Speakers eat the dead, to remember them. It is part of their grieving process, the cycle of life and death. She wouldn't be so sad, as she knew she would remember him. It would be disheartening to know that his eternal spirit was in jeopardy because he was a non believer.

"I would mourn, but that is why we eat our dead. Its part of the process of grief. We eat them so they are always apart of us, so that we remember them. When something dies, that is the Lords' will for them to die."

Shisa bit her lip harder. She didn't feel guilt over what she did those years ago. Well, she used to not feel anything. But everyone else just made her feel guilty over everything. That every single thing she did was wrong, disrespecting her and her family.

"I used to be fine with everything. Used to. But all of you are making me question my entire life. Making me feel horrible for every single thing I do or did! Every move I make, every breath I take, someone's judging me. Everything I thought was right is now wrong. It was fine that I didn't feel anything for ripping out your father's heart. It was fine that I see what you cannot."

Shisa sat in the door now, legs over the edge. Just sitting there with Jesse's gun, not turning back to face Aurora. Her lip was bleeding now, she should never have come here. Well, she had to go on her quest, but she could have gone on alone. Not have to deal with everyone trying to get her to change, forcing her to be like them.

 

[ScalpelsNSaws]

As Shaun trudged onto the farm he'd been in a few hours ago, he could see Shisa keeping watch from her spot on the barn's balcony. He whistled up to her to get her attention and waved. He was glad Aurora had not tried to kill her again. He walked into the downstairs and ascended the newly, but hastily repaired ladder.

He called over to the younger couple, "It's clear back at the Cistern. Good shooting Aurora, you got all of them, head on back. Me and Shisa will meet you there at some point." He walked over to where she was sitting and sidled down next to her, seeing she was distressed as he did so. Slipping a hand over her shoulders, he was whispering comforting, reassuring words in her ear.

 

[Mewmewcatfish]

Rose chuckled at Shaun's response,"Well some things don't change luckily enough."

She eyed the bodies at the old mans request and shrugged,"Yeah yeah. Go get your lady!"

She shooed him off then leaned down digging in the corpses pockets, whilst looking for insignia. At Saxa's offer of help she nodded,"Sure! Thanks love!"

She found one insignia and pulled it off, shoving it away in her robe, as she found a small knife, a few bits of paper and a cracked watch. She pulled it off pocketing that as well when she sighed, rubbing her back slightly,"Well that was a tad embarrassing. Haha.. So where ya from honey?"

 

[TheAdept]

Jesse looked around the Cistern, contemplating. They had a lot of stuff, but now they had two horses.

“That’s the second time people got in here that weren’t supposed to be here. Even after Shaun assured me that wouldn’t happen. We need to move.”
Jesse tried to think of places The Bastards stayed when they were still around. It was mainly camping out in forests or holding up in abandoned buildings.

 

[Lexico]

Aurora had lot of things to argue with Shisa. How can she like a teenager complain that everyone finds fault with her when on the other side they were discussing about the murder of Aurora's father by Shisa. And she was tired of the argument. She remained calm after Shisa's outburst. She asked Mos to remain calm too. He was surprisingly more active today.

After Shaun came in and said the cistern was clear, she felt relived the uncomfortable silence was over. "Thank you Shaun. I will take Mos out for some fresh air," Aurora and Mos climbed down. She was still having the gun. "See you later," She waved at Shaun and walked out.

"Now be a good boy and repeat after me," She spoke to Mos while they walked around. Mos did understand but he was childishly preening and nothing came out of his mouth. She kept walking away from the farm and cistern.

 

[Lyth]

Saxa was quick to aid Rose in any way directed, almost disappointed by the minimal haul from the fallen Nobles, normally they had at least some kind of first aid on them. Perhaps they weren’t part of a scouting party or had stumbled there upon return, either way the cistern wasn’t likely the safest spot. Jesse’s comments on this being the second incident was enough to convince her that the group needed to pack up and get out of there, though she wasn’t going to be making suggestions when she was so new.

The only safe place she knew of was home and that really wasn’t something she was going to be explaining to the rest of the group. Hearing Rose’s question about where she was from had Saxa falling back on the vague direction that would explain just how far she’d traveled.

“The Southwest Coast” Saxa replied, which was really the most accurate location she was able to give without a map, getting home from land was a bit of an ordeal that required some specific navigation.

"Where are you from?" The returned question was polite but her curiosity was genuine, Rose likely had the best sense of survival within the group.