Sundown at Dawn...Tools to survive

As the story continues, Starr knows the pre-requisites to survival are food, water and shelter. In addition, he has wounds to tend to:

 

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Before going further into his inventory, He needed to tend to his wounds. Infection was a real possibility and needed to be dealt with immediately. He sat at the water’s edge and washed the wounds with clean lake water. He remained there until the sun and UV rays had dried and sanitized the wounds. Starr gritted his teeth against the pain as he squeezed some of the antibiotic  cream   into both entry and exit bullet holes in his shoulder, followed by the same treatment to his head wound. The cream would promote healing and forestall infection. Next, to seal the wounds, he went back to the balsam pine that had been his shelter last night and cut a slash diagonally across the trunk of the tree. Within a few minutes, the cut was weeping clear sap, resembling honey in color and texture. He scooped as much of the sticky substance as he could onto the end of his index finger and smeared it over all three wounds, effectively sealing them. In a short time, the pitch would turn black and would provide a waterproof sterile seal, keeping contaminants out while remaining flexible.

    Then he turned his attention to his broken and throbbing clavicle. In addition to the grip of the Randall wrapped in parachute cord, he had a pigtail of woven parachute cord hanging from the tip of the knife sheath.  He left the grip alone for now and unwrapped the ten feet of cord from the sheath.  He used this cord to fashion a sling for his left arm which needed to remain immobile in order to begin to knit. That done, the pain eased substantially, and he went back to his inventory.

    There was one more necessary item which he hoped had stayed securely in his jacket pocket during his time in the water.  Since his days in the military, Starr had carried a fire starter in the pocket of every jacket that he owned. This was simply a small slab of soft magnesium metal with an inset rod of flint running down one edge. No bigger than a stick of gum, it could help to start a fire under most adverse conditions. The user would simply gather some hopefully dry tinder, small twigs, a little birch bark and whatever else could be found. Next a sharp knife could scrape some magnesium powder from the edge of the starter onto the tinder. Finally, a sharp blow along the flint by the knife blade would send a shower of sparks onto the tinder, and usually after an attempt or two, a spark would catch the mix of tinder and magnesium.  In moments a hot burning fire would result.

    A quick search of his still damp jacket produced the prize right where it had been for months. It never hurts to prepare, particularly when going into the wilderness far from home.

    In a few minutes, Starr had a small fire going as he searched for larger dry wood. The Randall made short work of a small, dead, standing pitch-filled pine. He soon had a roaring fire going. As the fire warmed him to the bone, his spirits rose and he knew that he now had everything needed to survive.

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