Erudition [IV]

After reveling in the sensations of what he now called the 'Happy Fruit,' Lucian stood and slowly sawed a path through the thick shrub with the serrated edge of his dagger. There were tens of other fruits on his side of the orange barrier, but he wanted to see just what he'd spent a psyon to unlock. Thankfully, the fruit was delicious, and the branches he was cutting out were wood, and he believed they would burn.

As Lucian tore through the Dense foliage, he stacked the cleaved branches and limbs on his own Tile. The pile was growing steadily more sizeable as he worked his way through the hedge. The wood was thin, and it wouldn't have any issues burning if he was lucky.

"Why is this fucking bush so thick?" He complained.

[Error]

"Thanks, Ed," Lucian rolled his eyes.

Lucian had been hacking and sawing at the brush for many minutes, and even with all that work, he still couldn't see the light through the other side of the leaves. There was still some leeway before he needed to start skinning the corpses, but now that he had a source of wood and food, he wanted to get started as soon as possible. Getting a glimpse at what lay within the new Tile would have to wait.

Lucian gathered the bushel of limbs he'd managed to acquire and toted them to a spot near his tanning rack. Using the leftover branches from the [Borol] trees that he'd accumulated, he built a tall teepee-like structure that would be used to smoke the hides after applying the brain solution. He couldn't help but grimace as he recalled how the last batch had turned out. It wasn't the use of piss that ruined the concoction, but the fact that there wasn't enough liquid to fully dissolve the brains. If it weren't for successfully plucking their bones and the bit of Twine he'd managed to create, the corpses of the rats would have been entirely useless.

"It's best to get started soon so that these hides don't suffer a similar fate," Lucian sighed and looked back toward the hedge he'd been hacking apart. "Don't worry. I'll uncover your secrets soon enough!"

Lucian proceeded to the [Vorikan] Tile and the two corpses that he'd left behind. A couple of rabbits had made it onto the Tile, and each one of their hops launched them meters into the air.

"Come to think of it..." After the initial opening, it seemed like gravity had returned to normal. On the [Borol] Tile just a moment ago, he'd felt no different than he had back on Earth. Now that he was back to the [Vorikan] Tile, Lucian believed he was even lighter than he'd been when facing the Saber-cat.

He jumped into the air and left an almost three-meter gap between himself and the ground. After landing with a soft thump, he turned toward the tiger's corpse with a grin. Lucian had been worried about maneuvering the beast, but with this shift in gravity, he felt that the job would be even more manageable than it had been with the rats.

He grabbed the tiger by one of its front legs, lifting it into the air with an ease that shouldn't be possible. Luckily, it hadn't had a chance to bloat, and there was no explosive excretion of waste. He rolled the beast over with practiced ease and began to work off the skin.

For such a large creature, it took him nearly an hour. It would have been quicker with the proper tools, but he had to work with what was available. This time, he had a plan. An abundance of different berries and fruits were growing from the hedge, and he could squeeze the juices from them to help dissolve the brain solution. This would take care of the main issue, even if it dyed the skin an odd color by the time he was finished.

"Alright, I don't have a way to keep the meat, but at least I'll have a hearty meal tonight," Lucian grinned as he dragged the hide out from under the beast, carrying it to the makeshift tanning rack. Fleshing the hide took him some time, and many of the strange rabbits gathered to watch as he methodically ran his blade down the skin, removing the flesh and fat from the pelt. Once he was finished, he cleaned off as much of the blood as possible and hung the skin to the side.

"Next, I need a bowl that won't tarnish the mixture as soon as I put liquid in it," He looked at the large clay bowls he'd crafted. All of them were dry after spending days in the open air, and now he had a way to harden them. Grabbing the tiger's claws and a small batch of branches, he walked back to the rocky terrain of the [Vorikan] Tile.

Lucian whittled away at one of the branches with his knife, turning the wood into a large pile of small shavings that he would use to start the fire. After breaking a few twigs off the larger branches, he began to strike one of the tiger claws against the ground, creating sparks that splattered onto the pile of wood shavings.

It wasn't instant, and it took a few tries for one to light. Once Lucian noticed the first ember, he gently blew on the pile until a small flame was lit. From there, he started piling on twigs and small limbs until there was a small, fast-burning fire. Satisfied with his work, he moved to the tiger cub, skinning it and repeating the process while he waited for the fire to burn down to embers.

Just before night fell, he had two fleshed hides and a smoldering fire that would be perfect for his needs. Lucian hung the semi-washed hides over the tanning rack and out of the reach of the wandering rabbits.

Grabbing the four large pots he had that were still in good condition, he sat them at the fire's edge and waited. Once he felt they were warm enough, he used one of the metal-like branches to work the bowls into the center of the embers.

Lucian left them amongst the smoldering branches and lay in the grass at the edge of the Tile. Without the canopy of leaves in the way, he could see the night sky far above him.

He stared at the stars, wondering which one was the Sun of Earth and just how far he was from his family.

"I hope you're doing well."