I had to make constant use of the map and compass to ensure I was heading in the right direction. I could no longer rely on the edge of the coast to guide me as I was inland now. It was more or less a straight line - as the crow flies - from where I made camp to where I was heading. Of course walking it was another matter entirely. There were hills, steep drops, trees and small pools of water to contend with, which was made harder when Chiron felt the urge to explore every one! I continued with the method I had yesterday by continuing to walk, and he soon caught up, feeling a little put out no doubt by my lack of interest in his exploration. The sky was darker than it had been yesterday, and I expected a storm to pass over soon. It was also mildly foggy which made looking for vantage points a waste of time. Every now an then, a few spots of drizzle would begin, forcing me to protect the map by putting it back in the bag. But it was always short lived, and would stop within minutes of starting. In the end, I opted to leave the map in the bag and keep carrying the compass instead. I knew it was merely a case of travelling North until I hit the coast again, so I could then take the map out then if I had deviated off course slightly. I really hoped that I would find the base today; I had begun to tire of camping and walking, and not having a stable and safe shelter above my head. I had begun to miss my own house, but I had known for a long time that it was lost for good. The only was I would get that back is if I turned out to be the greatest swordsman whoever lived. Otherwise I was mincemeat!
I crossed a small copse of trees and emerged from the top of a hill to see water stretched out before me. It is only a small body of water, linked to the main sea through a small inlet to the East. Well, that's what I thought until I decided to gain a better vantage point and scout it out. Instead of being a pool of water surrounded by high walls of dirt, as expected. It instead was a small wall further out into the water, with a thin connection to the mainland on one side. There was no way the L7 would be anywhere near here; even I could tell it was a terrible place to defend if it came to it. I performed the necessary checks for anything that should appear underground, therefore searching for everything ranging from coal to diamond. Nothing.
The next location was a little more favourable for my kind of exploration; it was along the coast! All I had to do was follow the coastline to the North West until I found it. From the map, I could tell this location was a little more enclosed than the last. It would probably be easier to navigate around and search for anything that would appear "underground". It had occurred to me that every location I had checked that fit the "maw" description had actually been a pool of water. Had I been doing this wrong? It was hard to find a hole or a "mouth" on an aerial view map that wasn't filled with water. Unless it was lined with a strange material... Maybe that's what the second part of the note referred to. Maybe the hole couldn't be found until you fully understood the second part of the message! So instead of looking for a hole, or a pool of water, I should look for a small area on the map that was composed of an odd material, possibly found underground! I stopped for a few minutes to look at the map. It was near to midday, and I decided to have a rest and have something to eat whilst I searched. I was going to start a fire to cook some meat, but thought better of it. Chances are I would only be resting for a few minutes, not nearly long enough to cook anything! Sitting beneath a tree, I took out a loaf of bread and gave half to Chiron. He seemed a little put out by this, but he ate it anyway. I ripped off a chunk and ate is slowly whilst studying the map. I scanned it a few times, looking for anything that fit the description. My eyes were always drawn to this one point on the map to the North West where a small red dot indicated, what I could assume to be, a lava pool. This was definitely unusual! Although I had found a surface lava pool around my area near to the beginning of establishing my house! Aside from that, I couldn't see any location on the map that screamed out at me. Putting the map away, I stood up and continued along, following the coastline.
The fifth location turned out to be worse than the last! It was a large pool of water, maybe even a lake, on a flat expanse of land. I really hope the L7 didn't set up their base here. If they did, they were more stupid than I thought! It was the least defensible location I could possible imagine. The surrounding area was flat for quite some distance, and there was no tree coverage, or cliffs to mask the area. A guard wouldn't have to be very far away to easily spot someone emerging from a base hidden around here!
I didn't stay long at the fifth location. Just long enough to make a quick check of the area. Not surprisingly I couldn't find anything that wasn't dirt or grass! Taking out the map, I crossed it from the map, along with the fourth, and faced South West. My next location was gong to take me back inland, so I would need the map out again. It was into mid afternoon, and the sky was still dark with rain clouds. It was going to rain tonight, at some point at least!
The sky has got darker since heading inland. I think it's nearly night, but with the cloud cover, it's hard to determine the position of the sun. Within about two hours of leaving the fifth location, I arrived at the last one of the day. It was a very good position to set up, from my point of view anyway. It was essentially a small pool of water hidden on three sides by large cliffs, and a copse of trees on the last. From above it looked like another pool of water, and you wouldn't suspect it at all. So far it was the most likely location to where the L7 were hiding. Putting the map away, I searched the area thoroughly for any sign of something unusual. I couldn't find anything! I was so determined that this was likely to be the place, and yet I couldn't find anything that hinted at this being the base of the L7. Obviously there were no signs or markers, but I was assuming I would find coal, or iron, or maybe even gold somewhere which I could mine and find something to help me gain access... But there was nothing. I sat at the edge of the water for some time, whilst the sky grew darker and darker.
I set up the camp for the night there. The sky was too dark for it to just be rain clouds. But after moments of erecting my tent, a downpour started. I knew it. Just as well I hadn't decided to continue on for a bit longer! Chiron has just shot in after having a little paddle around in the pool. Odd how he likes to swim, but hates the rain! I took out the map and crossed the sixth location off. Just two more to go... Well, at least another two. Who knows how long I'd be doing this for...
I'm facing the tent East this time. I have quite a journey ahead of me tomorrow, and I want to be up and about at the crack of dawn! It would take about six to seven hours to get to the more noticeable location tomorrow, followed by another two hour hike to the last area. If I didn't find it then, I would probably have to search the map again for more "holes"... I had a good feeling about the red dot. It was presumably lava, and this was almost exclusively found underground, unlike coal and iron, which could sometimes be found on the surface.My only concern was that lava was A. very noticeable, and B. very dangerous. If they had set up camp there, they would have to be careful about how they have set it up. I doubted they would be beneath the lava pit! Or would they...
Syeonyx signing off
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