I have turned back north in hope of making contact with some of the natives. It is a risk, as I cannot be sure how many bumbling savages are under the sway of that ludicrous, obelisk worshipping cult, but it is also the only region that I definitively know is occupied.
I do not have much to offer in exchange for their aid, but I am sure that I can negotiate an alliance with at least one of this ARK's tribes. I was at the center of the Island's diplomatic disputes for years, after all. Why I am a seasoned, silver tongued negotiator! Surely I can coax a partnership out of these primitive desert dwellers.