Months of pre-planning, of cutting and sawing, of laying foundation and setting the stones ... Months of hard labor, of sweat dripping from her brow, of agony and strain on muscles that hadn't seen this much action in a while ... Months of evolving with the environment, of dodging hungry teeth, of nearly drowning in monsoon rains ... Months of secrecy, of quietly surveying the land, of observing nearby settlements without interaction ...
Really now, it was a small wonder she hadn't been discovered in all this time. The folks around here really did tend to avoid delving into the jungles, didn't they? Not that Naira could fault them. The jaguars here could be as big as buses, and venomous vipers did little to appease one's sense of security when they camouflaged with the fauna so well they were practically invisible.
Several dozen times, the Reaver stopped to reconsider her final destination. This place was remote, desolate ... but incredibly hostile. There were other lands where the climate was more hospitable and the precipitation came at a normal rate. But there were whispers if you listened well enough. Talk of wars. Of conflict. Of things she both had no involvement with and had no interest in.
After all, hadn't she come from enough of that?
Staking her claim in the midst of a lethal rainforest suddenly took on a shine of gold. Perhaps it was a bit out there and reclusive. But it would be peaceful (when prowling panthers didn't make attempts at her un-life). A chance for her to breath easier. Catch up with her inner turmoil. Soothe the weariness of her very soul.
Deep Forest offered her the very same ... in the end. But at least here there were still signs of life overflowing in every cubic millimeter of space, and not a simple deafening silence of stagnation.
So she laid down the last log of wood, rolled out the last carpet, arranged the last stone until her large 'cabin' (if you could call it that, since it took more an appearance of a two story house) was finished. A long sloping roof to help rain carry on its merry way. Large windows to invite in the sun, framed first with mesh and then with glass to keep the ever-annoying bloodsucking bugs at bay.
The humidity of this place was torture. Despite the whole place being up along the coastline where a cool ocean breeze was available, the thick vegetation blocked most of the jungle's inner sanctums from its refreshing wisp. And it wasn't like there were electrical outlets anywhere for Naira to plug in a fan ... So for all of the months it took for her to actually construct the home, it took another whole one to rig a water turbine. Hydroelectricity, courtesy of a very wide and very fast river not too far from her base of operations. And now the homestead was made comfortable by the numerous ceiling fans circulating air.
Now all that was left was to bring in her treasures: peculiar knickknacks from all corners of different worlds. The entire chronology of Shakespeare's works. Precious figurines from extinct cultures. Plants that didn't belong. Complex poultices meant to cure common ailments almost instantaneously.
Lastly, her mead. Barrels and barrels of her precious honey wine, fermented for years. Most was very strong, and all could go a while longer to become more potent. Naira wasn't sure she could find this world's version of bees, but if she could start up an aviary with the local insect variety, then her craft could continue. Otherwise, the walls of the home's main hall were lined with bottles and bottles of amber liquid, each labeled with their ingredients.
She was lucky to get her last bit of stock over to this realm before the remnants of her favored Reaver ability (teleportation) fizzled out. It'd been getting weaker over the last year ... and finally seemed to be gone from her. Purged like a bug. The last bit of fire smothered from life.
With all of her affairs finally in order, Naira drew an arm across her forehead. Beads of sweat smeared across humidified flesh.
"At least it'll be dark soon," she muttered to herself. Fabulous hues of navy and blackened gold scored stretches across the sky. Even now she could see the thin blanket of stars protruding through the colorful veil. "Think it's time to call it a night."
