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Nate walked the beach looking for anything useful carried in by the tide. It seemed relics from the old life washed up now and then in addition to wolves. While he idly found amusement in the idea of uncovering buried treasure or the wreck of a ship, his main focus was more practical. Food — crabs or mollusks in the tide pools, eggs under sand. He kept an eye out too for tools or trade goods that might benefit the traders and crafters among Walosi: sturdy bones, shiny shells, kelp for cordage.

He'd been moderately successful. A thick strand of seaweed roped over his shoulders like the collar of a carriage horse. In a rough skin roll he carried a modest collection of oysters and an octopus (with the welt of a suction cup on his nose for the trouble), and the jawbone of a seal.

It was plenty to return to the rest with, but he found himself drawn to wavegazing. Nate sat in the sand close enough for waves to lap his toes now and then, watching the gulls wheel and dive in deep water after some distant shoal.