Carol's Crossing

## Warrior-Scholar

Doctor Utah "The Fist" Carol was the youngest member of the initial expedition that uncovered The Great Expanse, though he was known more as a gunslinger than as an intellectual. Having taken an interest in the pursuit of archeological relics by way of Doctor Portico's example, Carol had been swashbuckling and shooting his way across the land for most of his young adult life in search of danger, glory, and the preservation of what had come before him.

*"It is the duty of all fine gentlemen to use their hands for more than the turning of pages, the cracking of skulls is an equally fine pursuit."*

## Left Behind

During the final days of the expedition, Carol was dissatisfied with the fact that he had yet to have time for a proper hunting expedition. Carol enjoyed hunting in his free time, and had been looking forward to pursuing large game animals upon arriving in the new lands they hoped to discover. One morning, roughly 4 days prior to the end of the expedition, Carol set out with a hiking pack and a breach-loading rifle into the wilderness. One of the members of the expeditionary party who spoke to him briefly before his departure reports him as saying "I'm off to claim my birth-right, I shall return soon with good eating and an even better story."

4 days came and went, and Doctor Carol did not return to the camp. After waiting an extra day for his return, it was decided that he had perished in the wilderness, and that he would unfortunately have to be left behind for the time being. With their deadline fast approaching and the crew anxious to return home, the ship departed.

Doctor Carol had, infact, not perished in the wilderness. He had stumbled upon a great beast in the Northern savannas of The Southwest Territory, and engaged in single-combat with it over a period of a day and a half. Upon slaying and skinning the great animal, Carol knew that he would have no time to reach the camp before his comrades departed home. Instead of attempting to make the trek, Carol began making himself a raft out of what material was available and spent a day or so preparing himself for departure on the sea. His plan was to intercept the path of the returning ship, however he did not anticipate that they would wait for him an extra day, and he ended up on a small tropical island instead.

## The Crossing

When *KMS Rose* was making its return trip to Port Orleans, they passed a small tropical island and made note of it on their charts. To their surprise, they saw a large fire burning on the shore, and when they came closer to investigate they saw Doctor Carol as well. Row-boats were immediately dispatched to retrieve Doctor Carol, who was quite jovial about the whole thing. Webb asked Carol "How in the world did you manage to get lost *ahead* of us?" To which Carol famously responded "Just an extended foot-movement my dear man, felt like spicing things up with a leisurely ocean crossing."

Webb marked the island "Carol's Crossing" on his map, a name which gained a laugh from Carol. Following the expedition, Carol would return to the little island and establish it as his own loosely governed territory. Carol's Crossing is now a bustling hub for traders, adventurers, mercenaries, and pirates alike.