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Frank tosses Steve another handful of chips after he complains about still being hungry. Maya teases him for being a glutton. “Hey! I’m a growing boy boy. I need energy for my stunts!” Steve protests, puffing up dramatically.

Brad teases him, "Just make sure you're growing up, not out," he says with a grin, holding a hand (palm facing his belly) several inches in front of himself.

As they drive off Brad keeps glancing out the windows in case of threats. But it appears that the Deer-hunter either wasn't interested in humanoids, or was smart enough to realize the encampment would have been a more dangerous target. Not sure if it's appetite is normally this large or if it had been short on food on the other side of the Rift. Hopefully it'll have moved on by the time they pass back this way heading home.

Foraging with Liz at the break stop, he considers her question briefly then replies, "We should be okay. We're not that far away, and we have good line of sight." Like Lysanthra, he's prepared for trouble. He's got his armour on, e-pistol and vibro-knife on his hips, while he carries his bow ready in case of small game to add to the cookpot. If he spots any useful herbs he'll grab them with his draw-hand and put them away or draw Lys' attention to them.

Frank tosses Steve another handful of chips after he complains about still being hungry. Maya teases him for being a glutton. “Hey! I’m a growing boy boy. I need energy for my stunts!” Steve protests, puffing up dramatically.

Brad teases him, "Just make sure you're growing up, not out," he says with a grin, holding a hand (palm facing his belly) several inches in front of himself.

Maya rolls her eyes, "Are stunts mandatory during this trip?" and drifts into conversation with Sam, who still carries the weight of Megana’s disappearance like a stone in his chest.

The valley passes in uneasy quiet. Whatever came through the Rift is long gone, but the carnage it left behind, like piles of deer and one massive elk, tells its own story. Something huge moved through here. Something that didn’t bother hiding.

As they drive off Brad keeps glancing out the windows in case of threats. But it appears that the Deer-hunter either wasn't interested in humanoids, or was smart enough to realize the encampment would have been a more dangerous target. Not sure if it's appetite is normally this large or if it had been short on food on the other side of the Rift. Hopefully it'll have moved on by the time they pass back this way heading home.

By early afternoon, Brad calls for a fuel stop, using all of the spare fuel from the trailer. The warming weather melts the snow into thick mud, and Steve has to help push the ATV free once. Eventually they reach an old pre‑cataclysm highway, reading "Wyoming State 191," its rusted sign barely legible after centuries of corrosion.

Late Lunch Break
The group votes to stop. Larry’s crew begins much‑needed maintenance while Frank debates what to cook next. They pull over beside an open field with a clear view in every direction. Geiger readings stay normal. The sun warms the Mountaineer’s solar panels, giving the batteries some more juice. Lysanthra wakes from a brief, jostled nap. Johnny and Sam build a fire from ancient fencepost wood, the smoke curling into the shifting wind... Warm air. Cold air. Back and forth. Like the valley can’t decide what season it wants to be.

Frank pauses mid‑prep, squinting northward. Something moves above the distant mountains. Something flying.
Something… big.

Brad and Liz fan out into the field, seeing opportunity in the landscape. Maybe they can forage something to add to Frank’s arsenal of spices. But even as they search, the wind carries a faint, low hum across the plains. Not quite thunder. Not quite anything familiar. They feel as though they aren't alone.

Lysanthra begins feeling uneasy in the field, being out in the open. She gets Brad's attention and asks, "Should we hurry back to the group or carefully keep searching?" She wants to explore a little more for anything useful but she also wants to be very careful. Liz is glad she grabbed the pistol just in case she needs it. She really hopes she doesn't have to use it though. She would swear they were being watched and she keeps looking for what or who it could be.

Foraging with Liz at the break stop, he considers her question briefly then replies, "We should be okay. We're not that far away, and we have good line of sight." Like Lysanthra, he's prepared for trouble. He's got his armor on, e-pistol and vibro-knife on his hips, while he carries his bow ready in case of small game to add to the cookpot. If he spots any useful herbs he'll grab them with his draw-hand and put them away or draw Lys' attention to them.

The two eventually happen across a field of assorted wild potatoes; yellow, russet, Idahoan and Indian. They both immediately recognize the plants. There's enough to probably fill two fifty pound sacks full. But they will need help.

Lysanthra excitedly yells towards the group "Hey guys, we got goodies over here. Come give us a hand real quick". She is very pleased they found such a significant amount of potatoes in one area. Liz gets on her knees beside the Indian potato plant closest to her and begins digging in.

Adding to Lysanthra's words, Brad calls out, "And make sure you bring a few sacks!"

He slings his bow and starts digging up potatoes using his (still turned off) vibroknife.

"Definitely have to mark this area on the map. We may be able to harvest more depending on when we're next passing through this area."

Lysanthra’s voice rings out across the brushy field, bright and triumphant. “Hey y’all, we got goodies over here! Come give us a hand real quick!” She’s practically glowing because who doesn’t get excited about stumbling onto a potato jackpot in the middle of nowhere? Liz drops to her knees beside the nearest Indian potato plant and digs in like she’s unearthing buried treasure. The ground is still hard from cold weather, making the process tedious.

Brad adds his own enthusiasm, shouting, “And bring a few sacks!” He slings his bow, flicks his vibro‑knife off (safety first), and starts carving up soil. “We’re marking this spot on the map. If we pass through again, we’re hitting the potato lottery twice.” The knife makes digging much easier than what Liz is going through.

Johnny stays behind to help Frank, while Maya, Steve, and Sam hustle over with… one single 50‑pound gunny sack. They stare down at the dirt just in time to see Liz lift a perfect russet potato like she’s presenting a newborn lion cub.

Steve breaks the silence, “You’d never guess from the plants. How come there are so many different types?”

Sam shrugs, “Could’ve been a garden. Or a farm. Y’know… from a time when people actually planned where their food grew.”

“Makes sense,” Maya agrees, already carefully scraping at the cold dirt, nervous of breaking a nail.

Soon everyone’s working their own little patch, and the sack fills fast, reds, russets, fingerlings, plains Indian, a whole potato rainbow. Sam grins, “We’ll let Frank and Johnny sort ’em. They know more about the different types than I do.”

The mood stays light, earthy, pleasantly productive… right up until Brad pauses mid‑dig, squints at something pale in the soil, and brushes away a bit more dirt. That’s when he realizes the “root” he’s tugging on is not a root at all. It’s a human arm bone.

Liz is amused by the fact that Maya seems afraid to get dirty, while her own hands are now covered in soil. She enjoys feeling the earth under her fingernails. Lysanthra pulls out another potato and looks up. She noticed Brad freeze in place. Walking over to him, she looks down at what he could be staring at and notices the bone sticking out of the dirt. Instantly she kneels to inspect it closer without touching it. Liz can tell it's from a person, and she can't help but wonder who they were and what happened to them.

with a serious look on his face, Brad clears away some more dirt, looking to get a better look at the bone(s). (Biology 60%, maybe Medical Doctor 80%, though I'd expect a, possibly large, penalty).

He's trying to get an idea of a) how old it is, and b) assuming it's a full skeleton, if he can see any obvious injuries (broken/missing bones, damage to the bones (blade/tooth marks, etc).

OOC: Maybe I should have taken Forensics after all.

Liz is amused by Maya being afraid to get dirty, while her own hands are now covered in soil. She enjoys feeling the earth under her fingernails. Lysanthra pulls out another potato and looks up. She noticed Brad freeze in place. Walking over to him, she looks down at what he could be staring at and notices the bone sticking out of the dirt. Instantly she kneels to inspect it closer without touching it. Liz can tell it's from a person, and she can't help but wonder who they were and what happened to them.

With a serious expression, Brad clears away some more dirt, looking to get a better look at the bones. He manages to clear away the partial skeleton of a human female. Her head and lower body are missing and the chew scrapes on her clavicle indicate that she was eaten by animals postmortem. The size and condition of the remaining bones places the woman's death age at around mid 30s or 40s.

Steve and Sam gather around, oohing and aahing. Maya, on the other hand, quickly runs for the water, "Oh gross! Never again! It's on me! I'm never eating potatoes again!"

Steve stifles a laugh as Sam seems to take in every detail, "Damn... She was either alone or the group she was in was ambushed. Otherwise, she would have been properly buried. Not after she'd been eaten..." His knowledge seems to surprise everyone. Brad is usually the expert, but he seems to have figured it out. He looks around at everyone looking at him, "What..." he defends, "It's obvious! Look at that!" Pointing at the face down skeleton, with biting scrapes across her shoulder blade.

OOC: by "how old it is" I meant more how long they've been dead.

IC: "Yeah, I'd have to dig her up more to see if there's any clear cause of death, but it's clear that either she was alone, her companions fled and never came back, or her companions are also around here," he gestures to the field around them

[zoology 40%, Wilderness survival 45%; can Brad get an idea what had been chewing on her, via the tooth marks? Wolves, big/small cats, other known scavengers, etc. might give some indications as to what the local predators include.]

He'll excavate some more trying to determine what killed her (and putting any potatoes unearthed in the process in the sack. Waste not, want not). If he fully reveals the remains, after any study he needs to do, Brad will turn her over onto her back and then start collecting medium to large rocks to make a cairn.

"Yeah, I'd have to dig her up more to see if there's any clear cause of death, but it's clear that either she was alone, her companions fled and never came back, or her companions are also around here," he gestures to the field around them.

Brad continues digging, unearthing more of the skeleton. She's had both of her arms broken, but healed. A few broken ribs, also healed and a broken leg, which, once again, had healed. With a potato field growing over the top of her body, the rate of decomposition is complete and no clear sign of her being actively buried, then her body must have been here for decades if not over a century. With the state of the bones and position of the body, no obvious injuries, he figures she either sustained a wound that infected her, bled out or starvation. The bite marks are made from medium to large predator, maybe a coyote or wolf, but nothing massive. Although, canine predators have a tendency of eating the bones too. Although, most mammals don't like the taste of human unless desperate.

Upon full excavation of her body, Maya and Steve have fully given up on harvesting anymore potatoes. Sam and Liz continue digging. Brad happens upon a deteriorated canvas sack. Upon opening it, he finds the dried husks of various styles of potatoes in it. She may have died and the potatoes took root and began growing. Over time, the elements, wind, erosion and terrain eventually buried her.

Meanwhile, back at camp, Frank continues preparing food as he watches Steve try to comfort Maya after her first encounter with a cadaver.