13th of Septober, 5500
Morning
Chill in the air, winter approaching quickly.
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Small game scarce.
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Afternoon
Tommo encountered a wolf to the south, beyond the caves. It nearly made it inside.
We’ve been too trusting of the predators out here. They’re hungrier than we are.
Schmidt in charge of building defenses. Plans for a ‘kill box’. Not my favorite name.
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M’ikayla, Coleman, and Schmidt building walls. Very efficient work with six hands.
Evening
The killbox was completed within the day.
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Schmidt explained the strategy over dinner. The design was simple: a chokepoint to funnel attackers into a vulnerable position. Across a long, open expanse, they would be exposed, easy targets for our defenders waiting behind barricades.
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“Fish in a barrel,” he says.
7th of Decembary, 5500
Early Morning
Manhunting cats from the south, dozens of them.
Not jaguars or tigers. Housecats.
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Schmidt saw it as an opportunity to test the Kill Box.
Unanimous veto.
Dawn
Put out a call for a caravan. May have failed to mention the housecat situation.
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As expected, the cats ambushed them as they arrived.
The caravaners dealt with the majority of the threat with a practiced efficiency that was both horrifying and impressive.
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They seemed unfazed, almost as if a horde of mad animals was just another day for them.
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"Happens more than you'd think," one of them said.
10th of Decembary, 5500
Afternoon
Speak of the god-damned devil.
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A MAD MEGASLOTH! Tommo found himself in the path of its blind rage, while taking a walk outside the killbox.
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He was badly beaten by the time Nikita drew its attention with a shot from her rifle.
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She lured it away from the killbox, then slipped through a side door to return to my son.
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Nikita's heroics gave me the time I needed. The severity of his wounds was beyond anything I'd seen.
As I worked to stem the bleeding, my hands moved with a precision I didn't know I possessed.
Night
Tommo is resting now.
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My mind wanders back to a decision made in Aprimay.
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We sheltered those goats because Tommo insisted. We sold the goats for medicine, and that medicine saved Tommo’s life.
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Schlitzer could learn a thing or two from this boy.
14th of Decembary, 5500
Afternoon
Raided this afternoon. Seven tribals, their leader riding a muffalo, white as the driven snow.
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They passed through our unfinished eastern wall.
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The first skirmish erupted by the storage sheds. Schmidt and I fought back-to-back.
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Schmidt's axe found its mark time and again, but eventually, a club struck him down, and he crumpled.
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I found myself pushed towards the dining hall, my body aching, my breaths coming in ragged gasps. It was there that a club struck me from behind. The world spun, and darkness claimed me.
When I awoke, it was a scene of quiet devastation. Coleman, Schlitzer, and Nikita had somehow evaded injury.
The others are stable now, thanks to Schlitzer. It’s good to have a combat medic around.
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The raiders lay defeated, their invasion repelled, but at a terrible cost.
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It is becoming more clear how many dangers lurk outside our walls.
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