Chapter 3: New Terra

There was no flash but I was blinded by the just-risen sun shining directly into my eyes; I guess they were going to make sure there was a little disorientation at all costs. After regaining my vision I took a good look around. I was in a thin bit of the forest, not quite a clearing, but I still had about 150 yards of visibility. I made a quick check of my gear to make sure it had all traveled with me safely. Everything seemed to be where it should be, and I found a dead fall to sit for a spell and refresh my memory from my maps.

The maps were nicely waterproofed and bound like a road atlas giving me large maps that covered thousands of square kilometers and detailed quadrangles covering just a few klicks. Even though it was like pulling teeth to get anything from them, what they did provide was well-built and high quality. I started with the topographical map, which was pretty standard fare, and centered on an icon that represented my drop-off point. The area immediately around me was lightly wooded and sloped gradually northward until you reached a cliff about ten miles away. The cliff ran roughly east-to-west, rising from a twenty to an eighty-foot height. A few miles to my west there was a small river that ran from a waterfall at the cliff face to a large lake a few hundred klicks south of me. The pool at the base of that waterfall was my immediate destination. I had identified three possible habitable sites on the ship, and was planning to hike to each one in turn to investigate. The pool would make a nice short hike and was my best bet for fishing my dinner. My first homestead candidate was about three miles east of the pool along the cliff face. The map showed possible caves in the area and if unoccupied, would save me from building a shelter. The plan was to follow the river north, spend lunch at the pool. I could head to the caves this afternoon of I still felt like walking, otherwise I would camp at the falls overnight

Standing up and heading towards the river I spoke into my implant; “Comms check” I said, not really sure of what I was to expect. It took about a minute before that same warm chime reassured me that they were listening, kind of. It took an hour to reach the river. I was pleased to see the banks were shallow and the river itself looked crossable if necessary. It wasn’t that deep but was moving fast enough that I was glad I didn’t have to try. It took another three hours to follow the river north and about noon (or near as I could reckon) I reached the waterfall.

The pool was perfect. The west bank had risen as I had made my way north and formed a steep four foot drop into the deepest part of the pool. The bottom was sandy with some mid-sized rocks and just screamed “swimming hole.” The east bank remained flat and accessible all the way to the cliff face, where a decent overhang would make easy shelter if needed. My “vegetable” maps (as I was calling them) listed edible plants, animals, and generally where to find them. According to my alien-enhanced maps, the creek supported a healthy population of fish in three edible varieties, so I made plans for a fresh lunch.

The first item on my mental survival list was water so I refilled the two canteens from the purifier. The kit was pretty clever, screwing directly onto the canteens and using a double-action hand pump, but I kicked myself for not asking how long the filter would last. I guess I would shortly have to begin acclimatizing myself to the local water, if the food didn’t do it for me. The water was clean and tasted about as good as anything that hadn’t been distilled from grain.

New rule: no pining for the fruits of a civilized world you’ll never see again. I was still hoping the lack of central air would make up for jackass drivers.

Survival item number two was fire; my eighteen month career in the boy scouts led me to believe that fire would deter predators, keep me warm, and allow me to cook food. I didn’t feel like discovering what raw river fish tasted like, so I dropped my gear and started scrounging for wood. Some scouting and sawing netted me a pile of deadwood in various sizes. The forest was thinner than I was used to, but the dead wood was more than plentiful. A little kindling and a Bic lighter gave me a small fire just under the largest overhang.