“We’d need to build our walls around the perimeter of our entire clearing,” Trel said with a dry chuckle.
“Something to work toward,” I said. “Imagine riding on top of one. We wouldn’t need a tree fort, their backs are just as high, and I bet they can run as fast as the trikes.”
“They are powerful,” Sheela said as she scooped up clay into one of the baskets.
“They are scary,” Kacerie said. “Everything on this planet is dangerous.”
“You are lucky Victor saved you,” Trel scoffed. “You would have gotten--”
“I know,” the pink-haired woman interrupted. “Look, I’m really thankful to Victor, and you, and Sheela, and Galmine. I know I was a pain for the last few days, but I’m going to work to help you all survive. I was one of the best hairdressers in my city, maybe even my world, so I’m just trying to come to grips with the fact that I’m never going back home. I don’t have the skill set that you or Sheela have. I want to get better and offer something unique to you all. I want to be part of the team. Okay?”
Kacerie’s words caught Trel off guard a bit, and I saw the spider-woman’s lips pull to the side. Neither of them said anything more for a few moments, so I turned my head toward the lake to make sure nothing was sneaking up on us. It looked clear, so I grabbed a full basket from Sheela and then ordered Bob to step out of the water some so I could tie it to his saddle.
“Well, we do need grooming,” Trel finally said. “My hair is normally far more beautiful. I’ve grown used to the odor of our bodies, but we all need baths and a way to wash our clothes. It isn’t as important as a new fort, but we’ll eventually need to clean ourselves and upkeep our appearance.”
“Hmmm,” Kacerie said as she looked down at the clay she was scooping up in her hands. It covered up her forearms, and she froze for half a moment. “Huh. I think I know of something I can do.”
“What’s that?” I asked.
“Soap,” she replied. “I’ve never made it, but I know what goes into it. I bet I could figure it out.”
“You can make soap?” Trel’s voice seemed to quicken with excitement. “Really?”
“I think I can,” Kacerie said. “It’s just animal fat and lye. There must be two or three hundred pounds of fat on each of the giant dinosaurs that Victor killed. I’ll just need to heat it up to render it and then combine it with lye and maybe something for scent and texture.”
“But lye?” Trel asked urgently. “How do you make that?”
“It’s wood ash,” Kacerie said. “Like I said, I’ve never done it before, but I can try it. Too bad we don’t have any metal pots or pans, but I could probably heat the water enough in a thick clay pot. I think I just need to put some wood ash in water, heat it, and then take the lye off the top. Then I’ll mix it with the rendered animal fat and whatever we come up with for scent.”
“This is of interest to me,” Trel said quickly. “I will help you make it.”
“Yeah,” Kacerie said as she nodded to herself. “I think I can do it. Then we can all clean ourselves, our clothes, and our cookware. It will help keep us from getting sick.”
“Ohhh,” Trel moaned. “I can’t wait. A bath with soap and warm water sounds divine. Did I tell you that I am a duchess? I had ten servants who would wash my body and then massage the finest oils into my skin.” Trel let out a long sigh and then looked off into the distance as if she was daydreaming.
“I like the idea, Kacerie,” I said, “but we have to build the fort walls first before you start playing with it.”
“Got it,” she agreed, but her beautiful face now wore a wide grin. “Once we have soap, I’d be able to shave that beard off you, and I can cut everyone’s hair.”
“You’d be able to shave this off?” I asked as I ran my hand through my beard. I didn’t really have access to a mirror, so I didn’t know exactly how long it had gotten.
“Yes, shave his beard off,” Trel said. “He has a handsome face. I want to see it all the time.”
“These stone knives are really sharp,” Kacerie said as she reached into the pocket of her jeans and pulled one of the blades out. “I could easily shave your face with it. I’ve done it with thousands of my male clients.”
“Sounds good,” I said. “Kacerie, I think we are starting to figure out a role for you, and it is an important one. Sanitation is critical for survival.”
“Yeah. I think I like the idea.” The pink-haired woman smiled at me again, and her pale blue eyes glittered. We stared at each other for a few moments, and then she looked back down to the clay basket.
“Speaking of baths and showering,” I said as I grabbed another basket and tied it onto Bob’s back. “Trel, we need to get water to the camp. How do we do it?”
“Not from here,” she said as she gestured to the lake. “It’s too far away. Didn’t you say that the river where you normally get water is closer?”
“Yeah,” I said. “It’s still about a mile away though. The lake is like three.”
“And it’s also over a hill,” Trel said. “I’d like to see the river. I think the flowing water could help us.”
“Help us move the water a mile?” I asked.
“Yeah,” she replied as she tapped on her lips with her black finger. “There is no energy in this lake, it moves, but not quickly. The river should have energy that we might be able to use. I’ll need to see it again. Just so you know, I have no idea about plumbing, but I am a genius, so I’m sure I’ll figure out something.”
“I think you will,” I said as I grabbed the last basket. “Let’s get the jugs filled up and then go--” my words caught in my throat as I spotted movement on the other side of the lake. It took me half a second to realize what was going on, but as soon as I did, I let out a gasp of surprise.
“Do you see those raptors?” I asked as I nodded across the lake.
“Where?” Trel and Kacerie asked.
“They are in the trees,” Sheela hissed and the other two women gasped.
It was difficult to see them since the dinos had feathers that were black and dark red, but once I identified the movements, it was easier to pick them out of the jungle. There was a group of maybe eight of them I could see, and they appeared to be sneaking up on the two brontos.
“Why do they think they can attack those big long-necked ones?” Trel asked. “It looks like they are much smaller.”
“They are bigger than the green feathered dinos,” I whispered, and then I saw one of the raptors emerge from the trees.
My estimation of its size had been spot on. The green deinonychus raptors were about as large as Great Danes, and maybe weighed two-hundred pounds, but these new raptors were nearly as big as a horse, and even though they were all the way on the other side of the lake, it was obvious that their claws were longer than my arm.
“I still don’t see how they expect to take down the--”
“Let’s get out of the valley and get water from the river,” I interrupted Trel as I commanded my gang of dinos to exit the water. It was too far away for my Eye-Q to identify the new species of raptors, but I was getting a sinking feeling in my stomach, and my instinct was telling me I didn’t want to be anywhere close to the battle that was about to go down.
“They are so small though,” Trel said. “The big ones will just step on them.”
“Maybe, but let’s fucking go.” My voice was a growl now, maybe because of my headache, and Trel nodded before she got up in the saddle with me.
Then the raptors attacked the brontos, and I couldn’t look away.
I had first counted eight raptors hiding in the jungle, but over twenty poured out of the trees and sprinted toward the two brontos. The massive dinos were standing hip deep on the shore of the lake and didn’t seem to notice their attackers at first, but that changed as soon as the raptor in the point position reached the long tail of the smaller bronto I guessed was the female. She let out a bellow that seemed to shake the ground when the raptor latched onto her tail, and the male swung around his head to face the wave of attackers.