literature

Exploring lit 2

Deviation Actions

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Archer yawned and stretched, rolling over in his sleeping bag and resting a few more minutes before sitting up slowly and using a hand to rub at his eyes. Curious as to the temperature outside, he unzipped the front of his tent, but was immediately met with a gust of frigid air, and he quickly zipped it back up. He felt around in his tent for his winter clothing, and jumped as the side of the tent rustled and pressed inwards, but as Archer observed the indentation he bit back a chuckle- it was a tokota pushing their nose against the side of the tent. The tent material flapped as the tokota exhaled, and Archer heard the crunch of snow as it padded away. Someone was trying to get their breakfast. Archer pulled on his winter clothes and unzipped the tent flap again, hunching his shoulders against a particularly strong gust of wind as he exited his tent. Archer was out camping with his friends Val, Ila, Suki, and Raejissa, and their tokotas, Echo, Miracle, Mini, Qasar, and Teddy. Their chosen spot to camp for the night had been on the side of a hill- not ideal, but it worked if they were only staying for the evening. They had managed to find a relatively flat outcrop of rock where they could pitch their tents, and their purpose out here today was to try and scout out some new places to hunt mountain goats. The terrain was perfect for them- hilly, rocky, and some areas of dense scrub brush that would serve as food, but the group hadn’t managed to find any of the elusive mountain goats quite yet. Archer’s, Val’s, Ila’s, Siki’s, and Raejissa’s tents were all pitched in a rough line parallel to where the outcrop started from the hillside, and the remains of a small campfire were a meter or so away from the row of tents. The toktoas had spent the night in a pile close to the camp fire, though now Teddy, Echo, and Qasar were awake, with Mini and Miracle still sleeping next to each other. Echo padded over to Archer and nosed at his hands, looking for food, but he gently pushed her head away and scratched at her ears. Teddy gave a low bark and then whined, licking his large muzzle. The sound woke up Miracle and Mini, and Val and Ila immediately poked their heads out of their tents.
“Anything up?” Val asked, and Archer shook his head.
“I think Teddy is getting a bit hungry for breakfast.” He said, and at the mention of his name, the large dire tokota wagged his tail and looked eagerly towards the handlers, eliciting a chuckle from Ila. Archer returned to his tent and fished around under the mess of sleeping bag and scattered clothing for his saddle bags, which he had been using as a pillow. They were filled with the essentials, including some food for his tokota, Echo. He heard a muffled shout to his right through the thin tent walls. Archer poked his head out of his tent to see Teddy sticking his head through his handler, Raejissa’s tent. He seemed to have most of his head and neck fitting inside the small space, leaving Archer to wonder where exactly Raejissa was positioned. He bit back a chuckle as Teddy made a strategic retreat out of the tent, who was followed by a somewhat disheveled Raejissa a few minutes later with a box of food for Teddy, who was now sitting by the camp fire with his tail wagging. The other handlers emerged from their tents, carrying food for their tokotas, who all wolfed it down happily, and the handlers gathered around the camp fire and rekindled the blaze, preparing a quick breakfast for themselves as their tokotas finished eating. With full bellies the tokotas once again flopped around the campfire, and their handlers used them as makeshift seats while they discussed their plans for the day.
“How about we head up to the top?” Suki suggested. “We might run into some goats on the way up, and from the top we might be able to see any that are below us.” Qasar yawned widely at the end of his handler’s statement and rested his head on Suki’s lap.
“How about we spiral our way up? That way we’ll get to the top, where we can look down, but we’ll also cover more area so we’re more likely to run into mountain goats.” Raejissa suggested, and Val nodded.
“That depends on how much time we want to spend up here.” Ila pointed out. Some of us do have to get back tomorrow, and I’m worried that if we spend the day working our way up the long way, we won’t be able to get back in time.” Ila said with a pointed glance at Suki, who sighed. Both handlers had to be back at their properties to take care of their tokotas, as the hired help would only be there for so long while they were out.
“How about instead of going straight up the hill, we climb at an angle? That way we cover more ground, but we don’t wind our way completely around the hill, saving time.” Archer suggested, and was met with nods from the group. With a plan reached, the handlers packed up camp, taking down the tents and rolling up sleeping bags. They put out the fire and saddled up the tokotas, who were now awake and alert, eager to head out. Archer and Echo lead the group up the hill, with Miracle and Val, Mini and Ila, Qasar and Suki, and Teddy and Raejissa taking up the rear. The group climbed in relative silence, not wanting to alarm any mountain goats and cause them to hide or stay still as they climbed, and their tokotas swung their heads around, ears pricked and looking for prey. Unfortunately, the group did not find any mountain goats on their trip up the hill, but the view from the top was compensation enough- the hill was situated on the edge of the bay that opened up to the ocean. The group of tokotas and handlers decided to have their lunch up there, though as the tokotas were playing, Teddy tripped over a rock and landed with a jarring thump. Immediately, the handlers and tokotas gathered around him to make sure the large dire was unhurt. Qasar, however, seemed more interested in the series of small stones that had tripped Teddy up.
“Hey guys, look at this.” Suki said, after everyone was done checking over Teddy to make sure he hadn’t been hurt by his fall. A small circle of carved stone was set into a larger rock, forming an indentation that had been just big enough for Teddy’s forepaw. Echo nosed around the edge of it, being somewhat cautious, but Miracle simply stuck his whole muzzle into the hole, and was forced out of the way by Mini trying to do the same. Intrigued, the handlers decided to shoo the tokotas away and take a picture of the oddly carved rock, thinking that the historical society in town might take an interest in what they had found.
“What do you think it is?” Val asked, peering curiously at the stone, while Raejissa simply stuck her hand inside and felt around.
“I think there’s carvings or something down here, does someone have a flashlight?” She asked, and one was promptly handed to her. The light was shown into the hole, illuminating more elaborate carvings, and another picture was taken of the design, as well as the area around it, before the handlers decided to work their way back down the hill.
Link to import sheet: Echo 8603 by TotemSpirit
Link to (hunting/fishing/exploring/caving) journal: Echo Tracker
Items/Companions: +5% Success rate towards Exploration activities-Tribe Points Catalog
Defects/Health Issues: none
13 HP=6(1291 words)+2(handler)+2(exploration)+2(tribe)+1(noncommissioned)

Link to import sheet: Teddy Trooper 8115 by TotemSpirit
Link to (hunting/fishing/exploring/caving) journal: Teddy Trooper 8115 - Tracker
Items/Companions: +5% Success rate towards Exploration activities-Tribe Points Catalog
Defects/Health Issues: none
12 HP=6(1291 words)+2(handler)+2(exploration)+2(tribe)
Blackbrier

Link to import sheet: Qasar 10128 by TotemSpirit
Link to (hunting/fishing/exploring/caving) journal: Crashys Hunting/Fishing/Exploration Tracker
Items/Companions: +5% Success rate towards Exploration activities-Tribe Points Catalog
Defects/Health Issues: none
TsuyokiTora 
12 HP=6(1291 words)+2(handler)+2(exploration)+2(tribe)

All of the above tokotas are owned by members of the SpiritsoftheAurora tribe

Link to import sheet: Minugluktuk 9798 by TotemSpirit
Link to (hunting/fishing/exploring) journal: || Tokotas Activity Bank
Items/Companions: Flint arrows, Brawny trait, Stork companion
Defects/Health Issues: None
10=6(1273 words)+2(handler)+2(hunting)
quercifolium
10 HP=6(1291 words)+2(handler)+2(exploration)
Link to import sheet: Milagro 11295 by TotemSpirit
Link to (hunting/fishing/exploring/caving) journal: Ghoul's Tokota Pack Tracker
Items/Companions: n/a
Defects/Health Issues: n/a
10 HP=6(1291 words)+2(handler)+2(exploration)
GhoulDog
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Comments4
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Blackbrier's avatar
-sobs- just getting around to all my messages! <3 But i loved reading this ;v;