Woodrat considered this to be a decent day.The Sky overhead looked clear, with no Thunderheads in sight to worry about, and plenty of light coming down from Sky. A bored Thunderhead meant choppy waves and the constant threat of being electrocuted by a thunderbolt. Worse were the bastards that delighted in making it rain. The rain cooled off the smoke and the fish swam away, knowing what was coming. Being stuck on a small raft made of scrap wood, Woodrat couldn't get out of the way like the fish could. The rain would come down from Sky, sink into the smoke, and eventually get low enough to pick up some heat and turn to steam.

Woodrat had been on the Invincible when the ship had come across a small sloop that had been caught in a rainstorm. The ship was fine, but the crew had been cooked all the way through by the superheated rain. It wasn't a good way to die, not that Woodrat felt that any way was a good way. He had made his way back from death twice before and he'd vowed to never let it happen again. He could endure a lot, but not years chained to an oar on one of the big ships that sailed the deep smoke, slowly working their way up to the surface and another chance at life.He turned his thoughts away from things like that. The Sky above was clear, and the smoke was like smooth glass. It would have been a great day for sailing, if he'd had even a scrap of sail. But making sailcloth took heat, and Woodrat was low on heat. Low on smoke and fuel as well. As the day was brightened from the Fire below and the Sky above him, he started the routine of getting a little stronger. Fishing had been good yesterday, and the named lamprey he had caught was good eating, with lots of fuel in it. He never wanted to face another smokesucker like that again, but he had to admit it was nice to have some solid food. The little fishies faded quick with little to eat, and hardly any smoke in them. Eating the last of the big lamprey increased his fuel by 30, and breathing in some of the smoke would give him another 12. That was double what he had eaten yesterday.He moved as much of his fuel as he could into his furnace to increase his heat, and then burned more fuel, mixing it with heat to make smoke. It put him another step away from going cold and dying. Hopefully he could take another step today. Getting stronger gave him both a better chance at survival, and a better chance at a good spot in the crew of any ship that rescued him. The only place for the smoke-starved was chained to an oar.

Status Change: You have gotten stronger! A little more and you can begin the process of seeking promotion to Ship's Mate.Smoke = 652/1025  Heat = 57/825  Fuel =601/1620  Furnace = 0/12  Smoke Eating = 0/12