Rites of Ascension to Adulthood – Day 5

Day 5 – Welcome to the Jungle, We’ve Got Fun & Games

5th of Nymm, 989 YK

Tattoos in the morning. Meanings around stealth and awareness of our physical surroundings. Then we’re stripped down to a couple rags to cover our bits and pieces, hauled out into the jungle, blindfolded after a bit and led even farther out. They eventually stop and tell us to sit in silence for one hour and then remove the blindfolds. I feel a scroll tube placed in my lap and then hear five Tabaxi walking away from us. About 30 minutes go by and Brook says she’s done waiting and we all take our blindfolds off to find ourselves in the middle of the jungle, who knows where, and the sun has just set. We’ve each got a scroll tube, so we open those up and read ‘em. They tell us to fight to the death and the one that makes it back to Stormreach wins.

KIDDING! Sheesh! Tabaxi may have a bit of cruel streak sometimes but we’re not savages. We each have a piece of a map. We put those together and we can get a general idea of where we are and where Stormreach should be. Got it. We also each have another sheet with a list of items we need to acquire before we return to Stormreach. Each list is different and Pan and I can tell that searches for the stuff we each need will send us off in different directions from here since some are things you’d get from a stagnant pond, some are from a flowing stream, some will be found in hilly areas, some in caves and the last bit from a particular type of grove of trees. Of course, I had to get the flowing water one. By the Cat Lord I HATE water, but they probably know that and that’s why I got it. Brook (who loves water BTW) got the one with the stuff in the caves. So, it looks like we’re going to have to split up. We’ve been walking all day, we’re tired from the lack of food, and some of the nastier things in the jungle like to come out at night. Do we go ahead and get started or rest up together before heading out? We do a quick scout around for something to eat and both Brook and I find some edible berries, tubers, and treeworms. The worms taste nasty, but they do provide sustenance. Thank you, dad, for letting us come along on some of your shorter guide trips. We bring back what we find and have a little feast (very little, but hey). We rest up some and head off on our own as soon as light starts to shine a bit in the east (yay for a little direction sense too).