I think b, since it has the prefix of end, it most likely means that its the end and noting can be done about it.
I whould say A I could be wrong but I think I am right if you feel I am messing with you can report me.
Answer:
"The man called Evans came swaying along the canoe until he could look over his companion's shoulder."
"The paper had the appearance of a rough map. By much folding it was creased and worn to the pitch of separation, and the second man held the discoloured fragments together where they had parted."
Explanation:
Hello. From the context of your question we can see that it relates to "The Treasure in the Forest" a tale written by HG Wells that presents the story of two men who sail in search of treasure after murdering a Chinese man and stealing the map he owned.
The story follows a plot full of adventures, mysteries and reflections and like every plot presents an element called exposition. The exposition can be found at the beginning of the story where important elements for the development of the entire plot are presented to the reader. In the case of the question above, the two response options selected above are two examples of exposition, where one of the characters and the map are presented, which is a central element in the entire narrative.