The Necessity of Travel

This is something I did not think about personally when I was having you start off, although I did place them in the rules. So here's what we'll do. You do, somewhere in the group, have a tinderbox. You'll have to forage for wood, normally, although there are lots of dead trees around as already stated, so it'll be easy to find wood for the fire tonight.

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Beyond the small opening, there's nothing else that would really serve as shelter, but at least it's not raining, right?

Ideally, if you're going to make a cave your shelter, you'd probably want to ensure that no one - or nothing - else was trying to do the same. Fur clumps or shed skin could indicate that there was a beast that made this cave its home. Leftover, worn tools, or paintings could indicate that a man lived here. Thankfully you find neither. There's a curtain of moss and ivy that hangs along the rear of the cave, where the rock is close to the ground before it rears up, making nearly enough space to stand - but not quite. There are old scorch marks on the ceiling. Someone must have been stupid enough to start a fire under the arcing overhang at some point long ago. They would have smoked themselves out, no matter who they were, and there's none of the wood left, so it had to have been ages ago.

So you have a choice.

The cave is indeed, just a small hole in the side of the hill. There's no openings in the rock, and all the poking that Oxana does makes that very clear. It might not be the most comfortable, but it's going to be safe at least. There's not, however, a lot of option other than close to the entrance though. This hole is not that deep. There's room for the four of you to lie down in a row, and for you to put your packs at your feet, or perhaps on the side, and that's it. You're not all bunched up on each other, but you're not more than a couple feet apart.

Johnsan and Irwin make a ramshackle line of pointy sticks that will surprise anyone that comes close. By that time everyone's hungry, so you eat what little you have and settle in for the night. Each of you agrees to take a watch, and then you're asleep, save for the watcher.In fact, you haven't slept this good for days, not even in the village. You awaken refreshed, but still in the dark. By the time the sun hits the entrance to the cave, it's mid-morning for everything that wasn't in the shadow of a high hill. By that time, you've all managed to have breakfast, and you can't help but notice that there are plants growing here. Probably not enough to support a whole village, but enough to replenish your supplies. So you have a decision to make. Do you want to push ahead with your journey, or should you pause here to try to collect more food for rations?