The touch surprised him, though not unpleasantly. People didn't just touch Striders. It was almost like they were a plague all their own. And if some of them were like Gregor, masquerading as Striders but with that skull tattoo...<br/><br/>It was so close. He could almost grasp it. But she was right. He let a bit of the stress fall away as she touched him, and when she stopped he felt a curious sort of longing for her to keep going. He cleared his throat a little and nodded. "Right. Right, of course." He stayed where he was for a moment, then moved to collect his belt and hatchet, carrying both back inside. He paused to hang both from posts next to his coat and armor, then crossed back to the table. A collection of writing implements were included within the binder, and he flipped it open and thumbed through to an empty page. He wetted the tip of his pen with his tongue, thought for a moment, then began to write, listing out each thought to a bullet point.<br/><ul>
<li data-xf-list-type="ul"><i>First known instance of Plague in Nexco 10 years ago</i></li>
<li data-xf-list-type="ul"><i>Rio Grande poisoning renders southern reaches barren</i></li>
<li data-xf-list-type="ul"><i>Striders begin systematically burning out infection</i></li>
<li data-xf-list-type="ul"><i>Rate slows greatly; isolated cases remain </i></li>
<li data-xf-list-type="ul"><i>Gregor infiltrated Strider organization</i></li>
<li data-xf-list-type="ul"><i>Skull tattoo</i>, and next to this a small sketch of the drawing Malia had shown him before.</li>
<li data-xf-list-type="ul"><i>Plague poisoned knife planted in Land Runner's markings</i></li>
<li data-xf-list-type="ul"><i>Artificial plague</i></li>
</ul>He sat back again, exhaling slowly, eyes closed as he let the facts filter out of his mind. Now that they were written he didn't have to keep them all juggled, and could be more analytical. When he opened his eyes he looked at Malia, frowning thoughtfully. "Do you think it's possible that these men with the skull tattoo are actively trying to destroy what's left of humanity? Is that what their ultimate mission is? But why?" He looked back down and added those ideas, too, pen scratching loudly over the rough paper.