Loaded for Bear...or not. (Basic Wilderness Training for Philyra Nye)

[Desmodus]

Timestamp: Early Ioannes (I think?), Era XIV PF.

The elf paced nervously back and forth along the tree-line just to the north of Acumin's barrier, waiting for his student to arrive. He was clad in the customary sturdy green-and-earthtone clothes that rangers wore whenever they wanted to blend in with a forest environment; however, his hood was down, revealing long blue-black hair that glistened in the sunslight whenever the elf's head passed through a sunny patch between the shadows of branches. This tended to undermine the whole "Look, Ma! I'm a tree!" routine a bit.

This was the first time Kesiryl Lai-Haeth had trained a new recruit in some time, and chances were good that he was as anxious as his student would be. In spite of what Ethilde might think, Kesiryl Lai-Haeth was *not* a dolt, and he was not about to let the newest (not to mention hottest) Ranger in Acumin think that he was.

Philyra would know where and when to meet him, because he had left a note on her bunk one brightening as she returned from yet another shift of guard duty, a note written in his flowing script (which was actually quite graceful for a guy's handwriting) telling her all that she needed to know to ensure she would appear at her first class. Kesiryl would pretend at first not to have noticed the distinctive red tresses coming towards him from the city. Only when Philyra was within a few paces of him would he utter his greeting: "Serale, Philyra! Are you ready to brave the wilds of the Dolwoods with me?" He really would say exactly that, too, because he'd rehearsed the whole thing in his mind again and again while pacing here and waiting, and he had convinced himself that it would sound dramatic and hearty.

It was silly, but guys did that sort of thing when there were redheads around.

[Philyra Nye]

Philyra had been slightly suprised by the note, but only in the fact that it was there not by the contents themselves. She smiled at the though of learning more about being a ranger. She grabbed some rations and her backpack and headed out of the hall towards the designated location.

Pulling her hair around she began to rebraid the half undone braid. She didn't even register that she was doing it as she walked. She wonder briefly how far they would travel and what she would learn. She was comfortable in the woods, she wasn't exactly sure why, but she knew that is satisified something inside of her.

Her braid still resting on her chest she looked around at the magical commuity with its tree houses. She loved it here, but despite that she wanted to see more of nature. There was so much Carmelya had given them. Philyra had recieved the loveing attentions of a devoted mother all of her life, and in many ways saw the mother goddess in the same light. She had blessed Philyra with life and had blessed them to depart from a father who had carred little for them. It had been a blessing in a strange sort of way.

Philyra turned her attention back to the task at hand as she arrived at the location. She was simple dressed in the leathers of a ranger, but sadely they did little to hide the young rangers curves, and instead complimented them. She smiled at Kesiryl as she saw the blue-black haired man. "Vendui."

[Desmodus]

Kesiryl watched admiringly as Philyra braided her long red hair and looked over her beloved Acumin. He wondered briefly if there were somebody in particular in Acumin she was thinking about as she did so.

When she turned and greeted him, the elf greeted her smile with one of his own, a friendly smile that turned slightly crooked as it spread across his face, a peculiarity he could not help. "It is a lovely brightening to be out," he said, immediately cursing himself for what the rather lame conversational ploy. Just stick to business, Kes, and show her what you know, he said to himself, you aren't going to impress her by gawking like an idiot and asking her if she comes here often.

A pity he thought that, too. "So, do you come here often?" might have come across as something of a joke under the circumstances, considering how much time Philyra spent patrolling the perimeter of the Barrier. But Kesiryl was too busy not being a dolt to think of anything clever like that.

"In a sense, it's a pity that it's such a nice day," he continued after a moment, "given what we're training together. Although people can get into plenty of trouble even on a nice brightening like this one." He nodded his head skywards, then looked around at the nearby trees. After a moment he picked one and leaned his back against it. "Make yourself comfortable," he said, gesturing towards either a nearby tree or the grass in front of him. There were plenty of rocks and patches of smooth ground for Phily to seat herself on, should she choose to do so.

Once he was certain his student was situated, Kesiryl resumed talking. "So. I always start this training by asking my students three questions. The first is a bit of a riddle: What does a person need to survive in the wilderness that he -or she- does not need in a city or village?

"The second question is more prosaic. I want you to take a moment and inventory everything that you have on your person right now that might help you survive in the wilderness.

The third question is again a slight riddle. I want you to think: of all the things you have on you, what do you think is the most important to your ability to survive?"

[Philyra Nye]

Philyra was more concerned with the lessons that would be at hand to noticed the elves nerves and gideness around her. She wasn't opposed to flirting, or courting, and considering her parents actually enjoyed it. She hadn't actually found anyone who really grabbed her attention, but then again she had realy been focused on doing this ranger thing.

She took a seat on the soft grass and turned her attention towards her teacher.

She paused and thought about the three questions. She thought first about them in order. Her lips slipped between her lips as she thought. "For the first question. I would say creativity. The wilds provided a number of unique and special resources, and some times we need to think outside the box."

She went back to bitting her lip and then contiuned, "I have a my a cheep dagger and my bow and also some rations." She said before thinking about the last question. She raised on of her fingurs and tapped her chin. "I would say that my mind is my most important tool."

[Desmodus]

Kesiryl's eyes widened slightly in surprise at Phily's first answer. "That's a good answer, actually" he said, "although I think maybe I didn't phrase the question clearly enough for you to see what I was getting at. What I meant was: what sorts of basic needs does one have in the wilderness that one does not have in a city? You know, the sorts of things like food and shelter. I'll let you think about that and try to answer it again." He gave his student a sheepish grin and patted his hand on his chest. "My fault on that one, not yours."

The elf nodded next as the lovely young ranger inventoried her things. "How much water do you have with you, and how long do you think it would last you?" he asked after she had gone through all of her things.

Finally, he beamed when Philyra answered his third question. "Yes! Yes! Exactly! Students often fall for the trick: right after they inventory their stuff, they tend to think that the right answer is somewhere in the stuff that they have -or the stuff they forgot." Kesiryl gestured towards her with his hands as if he were presenting her at an awards ceremony. "But you nailed it. Yes! Absolutely your most importat asset in the wilderness is your mind. Your knowledge of the area, your skills, your ability to stay calm, and your will to live."

The teacher finally stopped gushing, although he showed no sign of being embarrassed for having done so. He was quite happy to praise a student for doing things well, especially one as radiant and fresh as Philyra Nye. "Now," he said, his face becoming serious, and his voice taking on a tone he hoped sounded impressive and authoritative, "with that in mind, now that we've thought a bit about what you need, and what you have, I want you to imagine this situation: suppose I disappear, and Acumin disappears, or you find yourself teleported away to another part of the forest. There's no sign of any sort of civilization. All you have is what you have on you," he gestured around at the trees and rocks, "and what lies to hand here in the forest. What would you do? What would you do first? What would you think about first, and what actions would you take?"

He realized that he was posing something of a stumper, and that it wasn't entirely fair. "Don't worry about getting everything 'right'," he said, trying to take the edge off of the challenge a bit. "The main thing is to go through the thought process."

[Philyra Nye]

"Ahh.." was all Philyra said in responce to the first statement. "One of the primary basic needs needed to surive in the wilderness that isn't needed in the community. The ability to supply thoughts needs. We all need some type of shelter, but the type of shelter one needs in town, and out of town are different. I could building a house or even the tree house." She waived to the majesty of the city behind them, "but I do need to know how to make an imprompt to shelter." She contiuned to think. "So we need shelter, but different types. Ability to make a fire, knowedge of plants and animals. Over all though I would say the basic needs are the same in both place, but in the wilds you have to provided them for yourself, instead of others supplying them"

She grabbed her waterskin as well. "The amont of water depends on how much I am willing to ration."

She put her hands on the ground behind her and leaned back and staired into the sky. "If it all vanished." She did a half smile, "first make sure I am awake." She said with a chuckle. "first determine were I am if possible. Determine any obvious threats, resources, and pinpoint north since from there I should be able to try and find something or some place usefull." She bit her lip for a moment before contiuning. "First thing thought would be to pray to the Mother godess, and then familiaries my self with my surronding." Much of this talk wasn't very organized, but was more of a verbal thought pattern.

[Desmodus]

Kesiryl was actually a bit deflated; not because his student got the answer to his sphynx-like riddle correct, but because she talked around the right answer in a way that detracted from the drama he was hoping to give it. "You have pretty much the right idea" he said. "The truth is, we don't actually have *any* needs in the wilderness that we don't have everywhere else, except, as you pointed out, a need to find new ways of meeting those needs, once our everyday contrivances are removed." He gestured at the trees around him. He was going to have his sphynx-like revelatory moment of triumph regardless. " No needs await us out here; we bring them all with us. It's just the means of meeting them that we sometimes misplace or leave behind, and must therefore replace, or do without." There, he had done it. Why didn't it feel satisfactory?

He smiled and nodded as his student went on to list the specific things one needed, like fire, shelter, plants, and so on. Yes, these were all things they were learning about how to obtain in the wilderness. The woman seemed to already have a course outline in her head for the training. That was either very encouraging or very discouraging, depending on how the elf wanted to look at it.

But now what Kesiryl really wanted to look at was Philyra, who was doing the whole recline-her-lithe-body-and-arch-her-head-back thing to a tee. Was she doing this on purpose? the elf wondered, and not being sure which answer he preferred to believe. It took a moment to break through the fog of his little rapturous episode and realize the young Ranger was actually answering his question. "Wha-erm, yes," he stammered like an idiot, while he pictured Ethilde scowling at him disapprovingly as only she could and mouthing the word: "dolt!"

Kesiryl cleared his throat. "What I mean is, yes, those are all good things. Now, we'll get to most if not all of those things. Not necessarily praying to Carmelya, although that is always a good idea, but it isn't a skill I think I have to train you in." The imaginary Ethilde was rolling her eyes in exasperation and shaking her head at this point. It wasn't a particularly encouraging image for the poor teacher, but at least thinking of some female half-elf other than Phily kept his mind on the subject matter.

"Now one of the things you mentioned is water, which is arguably the most important of your needs, apart from air. Air, however, is rarely a short commodity in even the most abandoned and blasted of wilds." he plugged on bravely, doing his best to get distracted by neither the imaginary nor the real half-elf. "To tell you the truth, the idea of "rationing" water is overrated. You need water, and chances are that, unless you weigh yourself down with several extra skins, you will never be carrying more than would last you a brightening or two, even in mild weather. Plus, water helps your energy level, and helps you think clearly, so actually, I'd recommend taking a good swig of water when you realize you're lost, rather than doing the reverse and starting to skimp on it."

He paused a moment. "That means that you should never wander too far from known water sources if you can help it. But I didn't give you much choice, did I, since I magicked you out into the middle of nowhere. Now, there are a couple different ways you can find water. Some are more useful in a forest environment than in other kinds. Can you think of some ways to find water in a strange forest, Philyra?"

[Philyra Nye]

Philyra nodded hear head and sat up as he started teaching. She tilted her head and listened to his question about water. "Hmm that is a good question."

Her grey eyes half closed as she thought and she chewed on a strand of hair as she thought. "Watching for plants that are very water needy." Her eyes were still narrow. "Animal tracks. Water is as much a resources for them as for us."

OOC: sorry for short reply school stuff.

[Desmodus]

Kesiryl smiled at Philyra's answers. They were good answers, and the ranger would have smiled even if his student hadn't been the Flame of Acumin. "Yes, very good," he said. "If there's water in the area, usually other plants and animals will have found it already. Of course, you have to know a bit about the plants in the area, as well as have some ability to track animals, to use those clues effectively.

"There's lots of other things you can do, of course. One is simply to look for low ground. Water flows downhill, after all, so any surface water will tend to run into low beds or holes. After a good rainfall, it will also for a while be in little holes, or even cupped in the leaves of plants for a while.

"Another thing to look for is bugs. Bugs tend to congregate around water, and congregations of them are often fairly easy to pick out even without tracking skills."

Kesiryl stood up. "We're going to find us some water. No, not back in town, although, of course, following signs of human activity is also a perfectly good way to search for water. We're going northwest." He pointed. "I'll let you lead the way a bit, where we'll come to a fairly large clearing. You won't miss it, and I suspect you may even know it. Once we get there, I'll let you look for some water."

Philyra would have no trouble finding the place, as her teacher had said. It was an old clearing, made shortly before the Pox outbreak, and intended for pasturage. Shrubs and weeds had begun to encroach, however. "Here we are," said Kesiryl. He seemed far more at ease walking out in the open country than he had been earlier. "Now, I want you to look around and tell me how to find some water."

There would seem actually to be very little that would tell Philyra anything. There didn't seem to be much that promised water in the immediate vicinity, although the moss on the old trees just past the edge of the clearing looked cool and damp. The land seemed mostly flat, although it sloped ever so slightly as one went east, and a small hill rose nearby, also partly cleared. Somewhere farther off and a bit to the east of that rise there were birds on the wing. Large, black birds, circling in a leisurely way with their broad wings spread. She probably knew from past familiarity with the countryside that she could find a creek simply by walking far enough north, but Kesiryl probably meant for her to use her skills to find something closer at hand.

[Philyra Nye]

Philyra chuckled at her self for missing the obvious signs of going down hill. It seemed so obvious that it had completely missed her. She turned her attention back to her teacher and lead the way out to the clearing.

She stopped and though for a moment as she looked around. Obviously her teacher wouldn't lead her to a spot that was filled with water. She pulled her braid around as she looked around. Her grey eyes took in the slight slop to the east and the hill the east. Water might run to low spots but it also ran to spots between two rising areas.

She threw her braid back over the shoulder and moved towards the east. The black birds also suggested something, but that could be anything, even water. Animals were known to die trying to get to water and even at watering spots as preidtors needed water as well as their food sources.

She began to move to the east, as quietly as she could. First she didn't want to distrub the wilds, and black birds could also mean more then just water. She was hopeing to find the area around the hill to see if water was gathering their in a stream.

She kept a close eyes on the topography, but also to see if their were any whole or other supplies of water in the woods before running into the spring.

[Desmodus]

Kesiryl followed Philyra noiselessly as she set off North-by-Northeast. She had generally the right idea, and the right direction, but it took awhile. The ground, as it turned out, didn't offer many obvious tracks that the young ranger could find with her limited skills, and bugs wouldn't actually be a useful clue until they were quite close. Eventually, however, after about a quarter candlemark of plodding around in the woods, they could hear the familiar rushing sound of water flowing over rocks. The creek here, apparently, was fairly shallow.

Kesiryl looked at Philyra and smiled his friendly, crooked smile. "I think we have a hit, but now be careful. Water also attracts snakes." Following the sound took them to the creek. Where the water was shallow, the banks were also shallow, meaning they could reach the water's edge easily on a patch of sand and mud, rather than having to contend with steep slopes and/or vegetation.

"OK," said the instructor, "that took a bit, but you found it. We were a bit lucky that there are shallows here so that the water makes some noise. There was an easier way, though." The elf pointed up towards where the hill was, although it was difficult to see from where they were. "That hill was close by, wasn't too high or difficult to ascend, and had been cleared. It might have been profitable to go up it and have a look. Had you done so, you would have seen the course of the creek quite clearly."

Kesiryl shrugged. "But it still worked, and now we're here. The next question is: what do we do with the water? How can we be sure that it's safe? What do we need to make proper use of it?" The ranger found a large, low, flat bit of rock sticking up above the mixed mud and sand on the creek's edge, brushed a spot clean, and sat down, waiting to see what answer Philyra would come up with. The air was just a bit cooler here than it had been in the clearing, a combined effect of the shade and the proximity of the creek.

[Philyra Nye]

Philyra chuckled at the comment of using the hill. "It so much funner to wander throught the trees." She grinned mischeviously, but then turned her attention back to the conversation.

"I know that boiling water will clean it of diesese, but other then assuming that the water needs to be boiled I am not sure how to identify weather or not the water is drinkable."

[Desmodus]

Kesiryl grinned back at Philyra's response, but he managed to keep his manner businesslike. "It's fun because we are close to civilization, and know that we may stroll back home any time we please," he said calmly. "But I would ask you to keep in mind that you are training to deal with situations where that is not an option."

The elf eyed the stream itself while he listened to Philyra's answer. He nodded. "Yes, boiling can certainly cleanse a water of many ill humors," he agreed quietly. Then he turned to face his student. "Do you have the equipment with you right now, or could you make it from what is around you, that you need to boil water?"

The question was meant to be rhetorical; Kesiryl was fairly certain that the answer was "No". He hadn't suggested that Philyra bring a cooking-pot or teapot with her, after all. "One thing you'll be learning in all this," he continued, "is the importance of preparedness. Figure out what you need to take with you before you head out into the wilderness, then make sure you either have it or can make it before you set out. Once you're out here, you either have something with you, make it from the things around you, or do without it."

He shrugged. "Fortunately, you don't have to boil water from this creek, but it's a good idea to filter it. You can make a funnel out of leaves, or a stocking, and fill it with sand, charcoal from a recent fire, or clean grass. You pour the water through it into another container. That should filter out the larger particles of silt, mosquito eggs, and such, but it won't cleanse diseases out of it." He gestured around him, then towards the stream. "We have plenty of sand for you to use here, and of course water. Let's see what you can do with that, plus whatever you have on you."

The elf laced his fingers in front of his right knee, then leaned back, waiting to see what Philyra would to next. "Once you've gotten started on that, I'll explain more about collecting good water," he added.

[Philyra Nye]

Philyra shook her self at her own sillyness. "Preperation, it always ssems to come to that. You never know what you will need come across, and as such make sure you have something prepared for what situations you can think of before they arise."

Philyra looked around searching for a large enough leaf that would allow her to work on cleaning the water. She finally picked on and then carefully turned the leaf into a filter and knelt down and began to collect some sand. She shook her head and place it on the ground and pulled out her water container and then lifted the leaf and attempted to filter out water into the container.

[Desmodus]

It took a large leaf to make a decent funnel, or else two leaves stitched or stuck together some way. Two unattached leaves could be made to work, as well, but the resulting funnel had to be held to keep sand in, if one used sand rather than grass, resulting in a labor-intensive process. It was about a half a candlemark of trial and error before Philyra got a decent apparatus together. Morever, it took time for the water to trickle through the filter. It was a time-consuming, nerve-wracking, often frustrating process.

Kesiryl monitored his student carefully while she worked. Her attitude and persistence were as important, if not more so, than her success in filtering water on the first try. "Preparedness is very important, Philyra" he confirmed quietly, as she struggled to juggle her leaves, grass and sand without losing too much water. "You either bring something with you, you obtain or make it, or you do without. Sometimes the last option is actually the best one to choose, but it's important to know when that is."

The elf suppressed the urge to help Philyra as he watched her struggle. Everything from empathy to a sense of chivalry to...other desires made him want to go over to her and help her perform the task. But she had to do it herself. "One way to be prepared is having the right equipment, as I noted. Know what you might need should you end up in the countryside, wherever you are. Another is to have the right skills, like first aid, or tracking, or the skills you are learning now. Another is to know the territory itself. Know the terrain, the climate, the flora and fauna near you. Another type of preparedness is physical fitness and health -not a problem for a young, active Ranger like yourself, as long as you are conscientious about your training.

"But the most important preparedness is mental preparedness. Be prepared to have to survive. Be prepared to maintain the will to survive in the face of fatigue, fear, and distress. Be prepared for unexpected opportunities as well as unexpected setbacks. If you despair, you could very well die, no matter how much water you manage to boil."

By now, water had started to trickle through Philyra's filter into her water container. "We started with water," remarked Kesiryl, "because it was what you suggested as the first priority. It is a very high priority, but as a rule, there is one thing that one should always obtain before even water, and that is shelter. It is easy to forget that when it is warm and sunny as it is today. Not many people are likely to die of exposure in the month of Ioannes, even in the Dolwood; they are a lot more likely to die of thirst first.

"But weather can turn cold, even in the summer months, and when it does get cold, an exposed person can die within candlemarks, long before they die of thirst."

The elf gestured that Philyra was to continue filtering her water. "Keep doing that until you are able to fill your container, and while you do, I'd like you to tell me what you can about finding shelter in the wilderness. What sort of things does a person need shelter *from*, and where could one find such a thing here in the woods around Acumin?"