Author's note: This chapter will be much shorter, but is moreover a filler so the next chapter makes sense. Not entirely boring, but does have a cliffhanger.
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Water washed over the excruciatingly hot sand, cooling down the surface and retreating once more to the depths. As the water washed up, then went down, it would occasionally take debris with it. This was the debris of a ship, but not just any ship. It was the debris of the same ship which had sailed off the coast of Airin a mere day ago. The ship Lynne was on no more and no less than a full 24 hours ago.
Lynne was awake long before the others, having scavenged the wreck before they even realized it. Barrels, crates, cloth: It was all taken apart, with bits and pieces stolen from it. It was like it got whisked away by the watery shores, abandoning the ones who needed it most. As soon as she realized someone was waking up, she took hold of her handmade backpack, clinging to it for survival.
Her mind raced, and her breathing quickened. What would they think of her stealing from the wreckage? Would they hang her, or worse, have her beheaded right then and there? Anxiety and worry took her body captive, and before anyone could lift their head even the slightest bit, she was gone. A whisper in the night, a phantom in the light of day.
Lynne bolted through the empty field, rather far from the wreck with people around it like a campfire. Before her brain could comprehend what it was doing, it stopped abruptly and stared at the view in front of her. Her breathing was ragged, and her whole body shook with terror. Yet, this place seemed to ease all nerves. This view seemed to relax that itch she's had her whole life, her itch for peace and quiet.
Lynne went to the bottom of a small cliff in the mesa: It looked like a dried river had eroded this place to resemble a staircase. Climbing up, she reached a rather large rock wall, with nothing suspicious about it or abnormal. "This place," she whispered, "Is perfect." Without hesitation, she then scouted the nearby area: No animals, a few berry bushes, and something all the way past the river. Whatever they were, they were tall for sure.
Off in the far distance, she saw some semi-dead trees. They looked as if they had recently dried up: A few leaves still hung on some branches, and the trunks looked sturdy for sure. They towered to the top of the sky, well over hundreds of feet tall. Lynne decided right then and there that those trees could be turned into supplies, like an axe and pickaxe. Once some tools were made, she was on a smooth and steady path towards making her house and living alone.
Having a plan and supplies, such as newfound berries for nutrition, Lynne head off toward the treeline. Although the Mesa plains were hot, Lynne was wearing a very loose, but comfortable dress. It allowed airflow and kept her cool, while also not revealing anything that doesn't need to be shown. While out on her journey for wood and supplies, she tripped slightly, feeling water rush onto her feet. It was a river...?
The crystal clear stream and red sand nearby couldn't keep her away. It was calm, yet the red sand made it look like fire. She thought for a minute on if she should name the river or not, as this could be an essential water source for her. Allowing herself to think up a name, Lynne took a sip from the river to finalize it. The water was cool: Refreshing, almost. But she couldn't help to think about how the red sand pierced a gaze, without having eyes.
"Phoenix." She said, and picked up some of the moist sand. It was not hot, however, did warm up quickly under the blazing sun. She set it back, and rinsed her hand in the newly named Phoenix river. Standing back to her full height and dusting herself off, Lynne found herself not far from the trees which could sustain her ambitious plans to live comfortably.
Upon arriving at the base of the colossal trees, spanning from the deep brown dirt to the clear and high sky, Lynne smelled the air around her with a deep sigh. It smelled fresh, somehow, and this wood was definitely Spruce. Lynne loved trees and plants, and could tell just based off the scent alone.
Lynne took the base of the tree and began to kick it. The tree barely budged in response, but this didn't stop her. After about an hour of kicking, she managed to get the smaller tree to the ground. It didn't take long after that for her to use her crafting skills and a nearby rock to make a very jagged axe.
It took Lynne the whole evening to chop many upon many logs. Hours passed, and the day grew weary and tired. The sun fell from the sky, not as high and mighty as it once was, and allowed the moon to replace its' spot in the sky. As nighttime approached, Lynne realized she still had some wood to transport to her new home.
Picking up the last few bits of wood in one hand, she then picked up the hem of her dress in the other hand. The familiar and uneven stitching reminded Lynne how she made the dress herself, and how much she wished she knew how to sew at the same time. She, after having picked up the essential items, began her trek back to the cliff.
The cliff did not contain very much besides a single torch she managed to light and stick in a large pile of dirt. The only other thing there, very far from the torch, was a huge pile of logs and planks she had prepared for building. Heaving the logs on her shoulder to the pile, Lynne let out a deep heave of air, and took the moment to catch her breath.
Picking up the torch she made not long ago and sticking it in some sturdy dirt on the cliff's side, she began work on her house. Grabbing her trusty shovel and pickaxe, Lynne shoveled away all the dirt, slowly approaching the stone and possible ores underneath. One the hard rock was brought into the light, Lynne took her pickaxe and began to swing.
Clink, clink, clink. She continued to pick and chip away at the stone. It didn't take more than 3 hours for her to have dug out a hole big enough to find coal for her. After a rather long and enduring session of "how do I light coal on fire," Lynne managed more torches and a base structure for the house's interior.
More chipping away at bark. More mining, and more placing and sealing wood together with pieces of stone she thinned out to resemble a parasol. She never has seen a parasol, but assumed that's close to what it looked like, if it were described as flat at the top. It took the whole night to finally manage what she planned a day or more ago. She has not eaten, and barely has drank anything.
She took the night to labor on this house, yet, she felt unsatisfied with it. Lynne had managed a sturdy and rather nice house in the cliff's side, but it looked...bland. She was exhausted, and a mess as well: Dirt caked her hands and arms, and she looked beyond tired. She simply could no longer work like this: She needed a break for a bit.
Opening the new door, and going to the room she labeled her room, she found her 'bed.' Laying herself down onto the flat wood and cloth full of harvested sheep's wool, Lynne let out a sigh. It was not a sigh of relief or relaxation, moreover discontent. She felt more lonely than she had expected, and actually didn't enjoy it for some reason. She never was the social type, but didn't expect to be this lonely.
Many moments passed before Lynne's mind began to wander. Letting her brain wander off seemed to make Lynne at ease: An escape from the hardships she currently faces, and the ones she has previously faced. It didn't take long for her mind to snap from the daze. A sharp and somewhat quick knocking arrived at her doorstep...