Soon, the whole party, except a few of the older cats, are busy collecting suitable materials from just outside the cave or from wreckage blown inside. Even the older cats are busy using the fibrous material from their beds to wind into ropes to tie the raft together. Fortunately, Lucinda has packed some long rope, and Brango found some in the items of his equipment he managed to salvage, but they will need more than this to hold the material together.
Lucinda produces a sharp knife from her gear, and Brango has also located some tools he brought during their flight from the mudslide and the thunderstorm.
Then there is the long trek through the tunnels to the lake. Several trips are needed to bring enough material to assemble a stable raft. It would be a disaster if the raft collapsed into this deep water. They have already seen one of the lake’s inhabitants, a large eel that would have no trouble in attacking a cat.
After several treks back and forth from the cave entrance, they have gathered enough material for Lucinda’s satisfaction, and they set about building. Lucinda leads the team, having read the instructions while preparing for anything they might encounter. Lucinda is great at theory, but Nero, who has spent his whole life on ships or around ports with his mother, has some practical experience.
Soon they are busy building the raft, but will it be secure enough? Nero dares not risk all the cats at once over these treacherous lake waters.
The images and videos were generated by AI from the author’s prompts.
