[center][b]Ards[/b][/center]

[b]E) Explore / G) Prospect further[/b]
[hider=Danr's Fears]
[i]Skraelings.[/i] The word resonated within Danr's head, over and over. He had been at peace in this tranquil land, pleased with the success that his people had found, until that one word had wandered into his mind. Now it would not leave; he incessantly repeated it in his mind, tormented by it. In all of Danr's lifetime and in his father's, the Ards had never encountered any foreigners save the other warring tribes of their frigid homeland, much less any foreigner that was not human. Still, in his peoples' folk tales there was mention of 'Skraelings', strange people from other lands. The tales near always had a bloody end for one side when Skraelings appeared in the story.

The chieftain sat on the ground a little ways from the small town of Njor, with five buildings that already billowed smoke from their warm hearths. He stared off into the bleak landscape with suspicion, a heavy feeling in his chest and tingling in his limbs. Was it fear? [i]"Is this what cowards feel like?"[/i] the chieftain asked himself, being so unaccustomed to worry and nervousness. As he stared off into the distance, he wondered if there were Skraelings here. [i]"Suppose the Skraelings already know that we are here"[/i], he silently mused. Perhaps one day the warriors would awake to find warriors breaking down their doors and the village aflame. The paranoid chieftain thought back to the boatbuilders on his homeland, and how his tribe had laid in hiding for days before making their strike, taking their weaker enemies unaware and massacring them. That fate would not befall the Ards, he vowed.

The chieftain stopped entertaining thoughts of fear and hopelessness, though he remained every bit as paranoid. The slight tingle of the cold that he felt made way for a burning desire. At a brisk walk he returned to a village, and shortly after barking out orders to the nearest people to gather the rest of the tribe in the mead hall, his people were ready to be addressed.

The chief, a tall and stout man already, loomed over the crowd after standing atop a table in the feasting hall. After some time, the last of the Ards somehow crammed in to the crowded room. He boomed, his voice loud enough that he needn't even shush the murmurings of the crowd, "My mind is plagued by thoughts...thoughts of Skraelings." The crowd's murmuring instantly died down once he at last spoke to them. It was replaced by obvious skepticism and confusion on the faces of many people.

"Suppose that we are not only people in these lands, nor the first people here. We know there's a pine wood nearby and that there are some animals to hunt nearby. This is not enough. I want to ensure that there are no skraelings living nearby. We need to explore our new homeland anyways."

All the some hundred men stood to their feet in preparation to grab their weapons and leave. They were stopped as soon as their chieftain proclaimed, "No! We will not march as one great horde, for we need organization if we are to scout these lands effectively."

He soon arranged three scout parties, each consisting of twenty archers and spearmen. Two of his closest friends and most trusted warriors were placed in command of two of the scout parties. One would trek south of Njor and the other would head west. Danr would personally lead the third scouting party, taking it southwest. Each of the three groups carried a rather large yet thin and flat stone. Be it with mud, blood, or coloring from crushed plants, they would paint maps of what they saw on these stone tablets as they went. Each group was ordered to travel for three and a half days before turning back so that they would be home in a week. Aside from simply mapping their surroundings and searching for signs of skraelings, the groups were also told to take mental note of any resources they encountered or beasts that they saw.[/hider]

[b]A) Improve Food[/b]
[hider=Dag's Task]
Dag hefted his battleaxe over one shoulder and stuffed the pockets of his fur clothing with dried meat from the storage room. Now he had to find the others before they left, and go on a journey with the rest of the tribe's true men and great warriors. Eagerly he spun around, only to find the chieftain right behind him. Dag looked down at Danr. Danr's beard was barely graying and his shoulders were still broad and his stature formidable, as every warrior-chief of the Ards ought to be. Yet Dag still had to gaze down to look into the eyes of his father, so tall and robust was he. The warrior gods surely envied Dag for his form.

"Father, I am ready!" Dag proclaimed to the chieftain.

"No, you remain here." Danr replied. There was a time when that would have crushed the spirits of his son, but that time had faded shortly after Dag became stronger than even his father. Now his son only felt anger at such things. Before he got a good blow or even a few strongly worded insults, Danr continued, "Many of our warriors must stay with the people here, to protect them from any danger that comes. They need a leader, and I need someone to ensure that the tribe does not idle or slacken while I am gone. You must be every bit as demanding as I am: only give food to those that work hard and remain loyal to us. The Ards cannot afford to be made lame by the slothful and weak."

"What shall we do while you are away?" asked Dag, now satisfied with his role.

"Build fishing boats. I know that our people can make nothing like the wonders that carried us from our homeland to here, yet we only need something that can row a little ways into the ocean so that our fishers may have some success. This is crucial; our warriors need good food, and in time we will hunt these lands and drive the animals ever farther away. The sea god's bounty shall always be there, it is our salvation."

Danr clapped his son on the shoulder, and then spun around to leave. Dag allowed the tribespeople to see off the scouts, and then he was quick to put them at work on the tasks at hand. More trees were felled. Small rowboats and oars were shaped by some, while others set about building a small pier and dock on the nearby shorline.[/hider]

[b]Summary:[/b]

-Danr is worried about what he calls 'skraelings': strange, nonhuman people from other lands that appear in the stories of his people. He suspects that some skraelings might inhabit this new land.

-Three scout parties have left to explore the land, search for signs of the 'skraelings', and look for resources. One went south from Njor, one west, and one southwest.

-Most of the people ended up remaining in Njor. Danr's son Dag is having them build fishing boats and a small pier/dock on the shoreline.