The hallway is a bitch

When Gil queried if the Gulley had an orchard she shook her head. "There are plenty of healing supplies, but not much else." And really, it was right next door effectively. "The plains would give us the opportunity to expand our grazing flocks, and potentially plant an orchard of our own, but with one right there within reach, would it be worth the effort? We can maintain our position on both islands, but we would have to give up obsidian beach." She'd stopped by to check out Sakana's map this morning, and they really had three options worth exploring. "The only question would be whether we divert our attention to the swamplands, another natural barrier if you don't know your way, an abundance of healing herbs also. It's often quite foggy which offers another layer of protection were someone to raid from that direction, though they could use it to try and cover their approach. It's not the most pleasant of environments, but it has its advantages. Another option, and my least preferred, would be to encompass the shrine." Her tone was conflicted, and she stretched her paws out in the sand considering her words carefully.

"While I do have an emotional connection to the shrine, beyond the birch there is not so much it has to offer in the way of resources, which leaves me reluctant to suggest it as a viable option. While the river would run as a barrier to the west and the north, it is just another stepping stone to the orchard." She used a nail to sketch out the borders in the sand in front of her, "The swamp, however, is on the other side," It would have the river as a barrier between the islands and their outer territory and she pointed at her sketch to illustrate her point. She took a deep breath and then added the tall grass plain, "but if we move our interest to the tall grass plain, we can then expand into Rio Grande from the north-western edge. It would almost encompass the Shrine by default unless others approach from the west. There is good hunting, good grazing..." Not that the raiders had any intention of becoming farmers, but it might encourage some with those sort of aspirations to come and join them, and help keep their fighters fed and supplied. After all, they'd also need somewhere to put all their raided supplies when they won and ferrying them out to the island could be a pain.

"speech"