A Fighting Chance [II]

Lucian woke the following day feeling better than ever. He had high hopes for the hides that were soaking, and he planned on working diligently to complete an outfit before the day was over. Before getting up, he glanced at the timer floating in the bottom left corner of his vision.

[2:04:12:03]

"I slept a lot later than usual," Lucian rubbed his eyes and looked at the clock again. He usually woke up as the sun rose, but it was already what he considered 8 o'clock. "Well, it certainly didn't hurt for the skins to soak for a couple of extra hours."

He stood up and looked around the shack, seeing that the green rabbit was still fast asleep on the furs. Careful not to wake it, Lucian quietly grabbed the two pots and toted them out to the teepee-shaped smoker that he'd built.

"Moment of truth," Lucian grinned and pulled the lid from the larger pot.

A potent heat escaped the container, causing his eyes to water. He pulled out the heavy, rolled-up skin and tossed it over the tanning rack. It had taken on a light-red hue, but nothing about the skin looked damaged. Running his hand across the skin, it felt smooth and unbroken, though he could feel a slight heat radiating from it.

"This will work," He chuckled and carried the skin to one of the lower hanging branches of a nearby tree. Lucian needed to stretch the skin before smoking it, and his tanning rack wasn't sturdy enough to do so.

Using the twine he'd made from the rat fur, he strung one end of the skin over the branch. He stretched the hide to the ground and sat small boulders on the corners.

"These boulders are surprisingly light for their size," Lucian said, looking at the rocks he'd dragged over. "Oh, that reminds me, I never took a look inside the tigers' den!"

So many things were going on that he'd forgotten to check the place out, "I'll take a look after stretching the smaller skin."

He quickly walked away from the red-tinted hide and wiped his watering eyes. The burning sensation had only gotten worse when he rolled the skin out, and he wasn't sure how he'd be able to wear the damn thing. His only hope was that it would fade away with time, but even if it would be rough at first, he couldn't wave away the protection that a leather armor could afford him.

"I'm going to look like some ancient hunter or something," Lucian chuckled, thinking about the warriors in some of the books he'd read as a child. "Maybe one of these fruits will give me pointy ears, and I can start practicing with a bow."

He laughed at his joke and removed the lid from the second pot. The moment he did, the hairs on the back of his neck stood, and he jumped back out of instinct. He was surprised at himself for having moved so quickly, but his cheeks also started burning red when nothing happened after a few seconds. Still, he approached the bowl with caution and gazed inside.

The skin was rolled up tight, sitting just as it had been when he placed it there. Aside from its yellowish-brown pigment, he could scarcely tell that there had been a change. The hair on his neck and forearm was standing, but the feeling of unease was no longer present. Lucian reached down, and the moment his hand came within a few centimeters of the skin, a tiny spark jumped from the skin to his finger.

"Ow! What the hell?!" Lucian snatched his hand back while shaking it. Looking at his finger, he could see a small scorch mark on the tip. The hair on his body was no longer standing, and he suddenly remembered the effects of the yellow liquid when he drank it. "Some kind of static discharge?"

There was no shock when he reached for the skin the second time. He stood and looked at the skin for a while, waiting to see if it would do anything else, but nothing happened. Once he was sure it was safe, he began using his hands to stretch the skin outward.

The smaller saber-cat was only the size of a medium to large dog, so he didn't have any issues stretching the pelt without help. Lucian pulled at the skin for many minutes, holding it tight until it finally started to retain the larger shape.

Once Lucian felt he'd done the best he could with it, he rolled the skin into a cone-like shape. He used the rat hair twine and bones as yarn and needles to sew the skin together, forming what looked like a large party hat with an opening at the top. Once he was satisfied with the stitching, he slid it over the top of the teepee until it was stretched tight along the beams.

After finishing with the smaller skin, he repeated the process with the larger. The cone was as wide as a king-size blanket, and he struggled to pull it over the crown of the teepee, but he succeeded after some trial and error.

Once Lucian set the skins, it was time to start a fire. He gathered a large bundle of wood next to the teepee and only took a few small branches to the [Vorikan] Tile. The skins couldn't withstand the heat of a fire, so he had to let the pile of branches burn down and then shove the smoldering ashes as best he could under the teepee. The heat and smoke would lock in the preservatives from the brain and fruit mixture, and it would finally be ready to sew.

"Well, today's projects are almost done," Lucian muttered after the smoking process had started. Since he was using such primitive methods, he felt the need to let each side of the skin smoke for about an hour.

In the meantime, he performed his new routine of stretches, running between the two Tiles, and training with his dagger. The following day, he would rest and sew together some makeshift clothing.

"Tomorrow's the last full day before the Second Wave..."

*****

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