Five
Struck the broken glass obelisk with a large rock to break off a hefty piece, and then used a smaller rock to chip away at it. Fashioned a sort of hand-axe. Felt very proud of myself.
Took it to the forest to test on a fallen tree. The trees here are sticky and fibrous on the inside. You don’t really chop the wood, but sort of peel away thin ribbons at the grain. Not sure how useful this wood could be.
Saw an animal! For sure this time! I stood up from my chopping and there it was!
It was short and stout and solid. A quadruped with stubby legs, standing at roughly knee-height. Black fur, dappled with spots of grey and white along its back in a pattern that mimics the light through the trees. Twinkling, intelligent eyes.
We looked at each other. Its nose twitched pensively. I made a noise; a sort of desperate, lonely squeak. And then it ran, its body arching every stride like a lizard. It rustled back into the undergrowth and I was left, heart pounding.
The weather is taking a turn. The wind whips bitterly against my skin at night. I think I need a proper shelter. I carried the meagre scraps of wood I cut back to camp, but I can’t concentrate on anything from all of the excitement about the animal and I doubt what I have could be useful anyway. For the past two nights I have slept curled-up under the plastic raft. The sand makes my skin itch.