Shelter for Three

Ko, Level 4 Kobold
Stats:
Health - 32
Stamina - 20
Mana - 16
Nutrition - 8/16
Attributes:
Endurance - 3
Strength - 4
Coordination - 4
Focus - 3
Intelligence - 6
Traits:
Hyper Adaptability
Kobold Work Ethic
Skills:
2: Influence - Influence other sentient creatures to make them behave in accordance with your own ideals. Typically done with words and positive reinforcement.
3: Mining
4: Trapping
Spells:
1: Trigger - Create a specific action or effect at a distance when a certain predetermined condition occurs. More complex actions and conditions require more mana and must be cast closer to the target.

The first catch came only a few minutes after setting up the bucket. It was a small fish, maybe half a meal. The fish almost toppled the bucket, prompting him to move the rocks around and make a better spot for the bucket to land in. After the next catch, he couldn’t sit still any longer. He left Elise to watch the bucket while he found the perfect spot to excavate a small shelter.

Switching between excavating and running back to the fishing bucket to reset it was annoying, but it was still more productive than one or the other. One of the concessions to the bucket fishing was that he would build his home between two trees adjacent to the stream. It wasn’t the best setup, but he could figure out the bracing and structure to make a sort of one room hovel half under the roots. The place would end up being more visible than ideal, but it would keep the whole thing above the water level.

After a bunch of planing and test digging with the spade end of his pick, he was finally happy with the spot. The first task would be to dig out an area approximately four to five feet across and about 3 feet deep under a raised root. The goal here would be to make a space just large enough for him and Elise to sleep in. A larger space for crafting or walking around in could wait till after this first night. So he began digging.

He got about a fourth of the way through the excavation before Elise pointed out that she really need a place to cook all of these fish, not just stack them on stones next to the stream. She could cook, but she had never built stuff from scratch like him. He considered the problem for a bit before settling on a fire and stones above it to lay the fish on. It was limiting having no way to cut significant amounts of wood but there were twigs and small branches that presumably fell from the canopy.

He described the solution and what was need to Elise, she gave him that look of being surprised and impressed yet again and offered to gather the stuff for it. Accepting immediately Ko got back to his digging with a smile, he couldn’t recall the last time that someone was actually impressed by him. This relocation thing was turning out great as far as he was concerned.

A while later, Elise had gathered enough sticks and dry plants to keep a fire going long enough to cook something. Ko demonstrated his idea for cooking on stones, washing the stones and fish in the stream before laying them in layers, fish on stones on sticks. The setup worked. The hard sticks burned slower than normal wood, which made them last long enough. Elise requested his dagger at one point to cut and prepare the fish, he was **** to give it up, but let her borrow it anyway.

When they were finishing the meal, she mentioned that she thought they had caught and cooked seven fish, but she had only eaten three.

“Did you really eat more than me?” She asked, incredulously looking him up and down. “Where do you put them?” She chuckled.

Looking up at her and looking around, he thought for a moment.

“I only ate three fish.” He stated, puzzled.

“You sure?” She asked, like it was a joke of some sort.

“Yes, three and three are six, not seven.” He hadn’t really paid attention to how many they had originally, so it was just strange.

“I know there were seven.” She insisted, annoyance entering her voice.

“And then there were six!” A high pitched voice exclaimed from above.

Ko immediately grabbed his dagger and swiveled to face the voice. It was a very small humanoid, only a foot tall at most. They were perched on a root, looking down over the fire and holding the remains of a cooked fish. The intruder was lithe and slim, taller than a fairy and built like a tiny duelist. He assumed from the shape that this intruder was female, but it was tough to tell with the rigid looking armor she wore. She even had a sword that looked to be half her height hanging from her belt. If she was larger he might be terrified of her, but at about a third of his height he felt more concerned that he hadn’t noticed her presence, awareness being incredibly important to survival.

He stared at her for a few seconds assessing the danger, or wondering what to say.

“Well hello to you two too! My name is a Sera Adriana Belladonna! What are your names?” She practically shouted everything she said, which ironically made her statements only a little louder than normal speech.

“My name’s Elise.” The dwarf women responded before Ko could get his thoughts together.

“I’m Ko.” He said simply, wondering how things had gone so quickly from normal, relatively, to talking to this fairy like entity that called herself Sera something.

“Nice to meet you Elise and Ko! Do you know of a place where I could bed down for the night? That is, when it is actually night.” Sera gave a meaningful glance towards the direction the sun was not quite visible from.

Regaining his senses, Ko glanced around at Elise, the fire, and towards the hole that was just out of sight. His mind racing as he considered how he could turn this situation to his advantage. He wanted Sera on his side, like Elise, and really everyone possible.

“I’m building a place. You could join us there, and we can get more food.” He gave his best smile and **** himself to relax.

She looked him up and down, then shrugged. “Sure, there does seem to be a lack of civilization around here, so I suppose I would not find much better.” She trailed off. “Anyway, I will return in a few hours! I want to see what else is here!”

Sera looked around quickly, dropped the remains of her fish and dashed off. One moment she was there, the next she was 20 feet away on another root, then she was gone.

He could see her running, but the speed and near silence of it was startling. She looked impossibly fast, like she had her own personal sense of time and had just jogged off almost faster than his eyes could follow. He made a note to keep her as happy with him as possible. Then he turned to Elise, who was staring at the place Sera disappeared.

“What is she?” Elise asked, seeming perplexed and a bit awestruck.

“I believe she’s a fairy of some sort.” Ko responded carefully. “A fast one who we could really use helping us.” Thinking a bit more, he added that he might be able to stop Sera with his triggers or traps. It was a petty thing to mention, but it had the desired effect of Elise seeing him as slightly more powerful than he personally considered himself.

A few hours of work later, he had the space dug out for the first room. It was small, requiring anyone larger than him to crawl in, but it was large enough to fit both him and Elise lying down. The ceiling was mostly composed of two roots overhead, with the opening made similarly to the bucket material, sticks and plants woven into a hard enough shape to support the excavated and packed dirt. The structure would only be visible within about 20 feet or so, not as well hidden as he would hope, but still difficult to find.

The real genius of the design so far was the somewhat incidental lack of space. It would require Elise and him to sleep almost in contact with each other. A stray hand or arm would be expected in close quarters like this. Yet it would still be far better than sleeping on the hard ground outside. Sera, being much smaller, would have enough space for more privacy on one side of the room where he had added a cutout slightly wider than her height. Overall, he was quite happy with his simple construction. It would need much improvement over time, but this was great for only one day of effort.

Meanwhile, Elise had helped by gathering the few materials available, and later managing the fishing setup. Soon the sun was beginning to set and the forest was just starting to darken as the next meal of fish was ready.

“Hello again, Ko and Elise!” Sera announced herself as she leapt down into the clearing around the stream and the fire. She snatched a fillet off the hot stones and was back to a perch in moments.

Ko wasn’t happy that she was taking from him without giving anything in return, but he kept his cheery appearance with the knowledge that she could be very useful in the future. She might be like a dragon for him, eating and taking, but ultimately protecting him. He could get more control slowly. He could be patient.

He didn’t say much as Elise and Sera began to talk a little. It was clear that they were from different worlds than him and even each other. Elise was apparently a server at a tavern or somewhere similar. She was apparently quite popular there, but it was clear she didn’t fully understand why. He could see why. If her serving outfit was like her current outfit, anyone taller than her would have a great view down its front and anyone shorter would see every one of her copious curves.

Sera was quite different. She acted like someone who was both knowledgeable and capable in combat. She had no fear of animals and people far larger than her, and seemed to be more interested in having fun than anything else. She probably figured out as much about Elise as he had, though she acted like Elise’s popularity was just as much a mystery to her.

Strangely, he realized that none of the three seemed able to remember names from before recent events. Events were still there, but they were all a little hazy. Sera must have realized this too, but she only shrugged and continued when faced with gaps. It was a little perplexing at first. Then he saw her staring into the distance after a story about a friend. She must be avoiding the issue. Elise, still, was none the wiser.

When they were all done eating, Ko lead the way to his hut. Neither of them seemed to think very much of it, but as Sera pointed out, it was better than the ground outside and less likely to be stumbled upon.

Sera inspected it briefly, then went straight for the nook that was obviously sized for her. Ko followed and began to get comfortable in the back. Finally, Elise crawled in and began to get as comfortable as possible in the space that was only barely large enough for her. They ended up with their heads on the nook side, and Elise was out surprisingly quickly. That’s when Ko realized that Sera was still in her armor, sitting against the wall and watching them.

She stood up a minute later and began to take off her armor, watching him and smiling. They could both see moderately in the darkness, one from his draconic ancestry and the other from her fey lineage. Their eyes met more than once as he watched her strip.

First off were the gloves, made of some tough material, likely hardened leather over the forearms and softer leather for the fingers. They were held on by lacing, which she quickly untied and loosened. Next was the breastplate, held tight by multiple tiny buckles. It was smooth and the buckles and straps were perfectly uniform, a sure sign of wealth. Under that was a fine shirt, grey with the lack of light. He could barely make out her shape beneath it, revealing a slim frame, moderate breasts, and lithe muscles. She had the body of an elven statue at the size of a doll. The next item removed was her knee high boots made of hardened leather and laced like the gloves. The boots had small metal spikes on the soles, probably for grip on bark.

Her tight leggings were left on, despite his wish that those would follow the boots. He knew why though, they were all still sleeping on dirt. Sera gave him a last knowing smile before laying down beside her things, one hand resting on her sword, the other on her chest.

Ko was as puzzled as he was happy. He felt she would be a powerful ally, and an enjoyable one too. He would probably dream of something special after seeing so much more in one day than he had ever expected. Sera was even an active participant in it, and his last thoughts were about how great this new chance could be. There would be so much to do in the morning.