[Eastern Falyndar] Blood on the Shore (solo)

[Naar]

25th of Winter, 511AV [Eastern Falyndar was mostly vegetation from the immense jungle trees rising up from the earth and the thick vines and vegetation covering them to the grasses and mosses that covered the ground making it deceptive whether it was safe to plant your feet down or not. Travellers who came to Falyndar were weary and they should be because if the jungle didn’t kill you then surely something else would like the animals, and people, who called Falyndar home. Yet knowing this there were still men and women who would occasionally brave the shores. The Coasts of Falyndar in the east were flanked with vegetation and the jungle with only small areas of sand where a boat could be beached and travellers could come ashore and the one dock that was well known in the east was constantly watched which meant travellers didn’t often chance it.] [Whether or not they were travellers, pirates or maybe even Svefra he did not know but Naar had been watching them since they decided to land on the Eastern shore he had been watching. When he first seen them it had been by chance as he moved through the jungle and looked towards the water, through the mass of vegetation, they were on a rowboat and there were five of them in total. As they beached Naar had counted four men and one woman. He didn’t think they were pirates but they didn’t belong on that small sandy beach on the eastern shores. Were he not alone it was likely they’d have been killed shortly after making the beach but Naar decided that he would wait until nightfall.] [Hidden in the expanse of jungle he watched, from a suitable distance, as they collect drift wood and branches from nearby trees along with vines so that they could build a fire. He observed them. Noted what they carried and how they moved. Watching them he saw how two men carried what looked like Cutlasses and a third held a Bow in his hand at the ready in case of attack. Smart, Naar had thought to himself offhand though it would help him when the inevitable occurred. By the time wood was collected and they had made a small fire to cook on it was the late afternoon and Naar continued to watch silently, biding his time.] [As he watched, his eyes intent and focused on the people that he had been observing, he took slow and deep breaths controlling his own breathing and conserving himself for the later hours. It was like resting without actually sleeping. Using his left arm he leaned into a large tree back in the jungle, blending with it as he remained close, and let it support him. Wondering as he did this Naar had become curious as to what these people could have been thinking, if they were Svefra maybe they were waiting for others, and he made a mental note of this curiosity as though he might discover the answer. Naar also noticed how much they resembled him in a way.] [Tainted since birth he was of Mixed Blood and so not a true Myrian. Myri had shown Naar her mercy, as others considered it, by accepting him and granting him her mark after his rite of passage but this seemed to diminish the stigma surrounding him only slightly. As a male in a matriarchal society and a half breed as well Naar would never belong completely but he had discovered his niche since he was a child. Indeed his first moment of exhilaration came when he had hunt down and killed his first man. As luck would have it he was a traveller that a band of warriors from the Bloody Talons had captured and Naar was tasked to kill by his mother to prove his worth. The youth did so expediently and without remorse. It had earned his mothers approval if not her respect.] [Flashbacks such as that often gave Naar a momentary pause when he considered them but snapping back to reality he knew that was all in the past as were many other things. Near the tree he had concealed himself against, blending into as a kind of natural camouflage, he continued to watch and observe from a distance. Without being able to hear what was being said he could only guess as to the nature of the conversations that were being said but soon the sun started to die down, the fire was reduced to warm embers and two small tents were erected.] [Eyes were fixated on the tents as they were erected. Naar knew it was almost time. When the tents had finished being set up three of the people entered them, two of the men and the woman, and two others stayed out near the fire to share a bottle of liquor they produced. It would be the last thing they ever shared.]

[Naar]

[Watching the men drink by the remains of the fire was nothing. Naar was patient and in the shadows as time passed and the two made themselves at least somewhat drunk. With dark eyes fixating on both men Naar waited until the time he had been expecting came. One of the men needed to relieve himself and telling his partner that he would be right back he stood and moved off into the darkness leaving his comrade behind. It was never wise to trek off into an unknown land alone but doubly stupid in Falyndar knowing what was out there and that it was likely all manner of things were watching. Naar had smiled, thinly, and then moved off of the tree he’d been leaning into back in the thick vegetation of the jungle until he disappeared into the night.] [Trekking into jungle near the camp the man that had left was humming a tune and said something in a tongue that sounded like Fratva, that would mean these were Svefra, but Naar hadn’t heard much of it as he kept to the darkness. Masking his movements with the darkness and natural cover of the jungle Naar had moved to intercept the man as he went to take a piss. Slowly he’d move through the darkness but there was one problem and that was that Naar was not much for moving silently which meant he made mistakes. The Warrior placed his feet incorrectly, shifted wrong as he moved and made other minor errors that would alert anyone competent of his coming closer but the drunkenness of this man, a Svefra Naar had decided, kept him at least somewhat docile.] [Naar had almost crept up alongside him when it happened. Screaming loudly the man jumped back while still pissing, splashing some of his own urine back on himself, at what Naar could only imagine was some other jungle predator. Laughter followed though and the Warrior narrowed his eyes as this seemed some sort of joke that he didn’t find entirely comical. Next there was a voice, the Svefra’s comrade, calling for him and the Svefra replied in words that Naar could only partially understand saying...”Snake!”...amongst a few other words and apparently a small snake at that or the man would not have been in such a jovial mood after this encounter. Pressing himself back against a tree which he used to conceal himself Naar waited until the man seemed calm again and began to lace his breeches once again before moving closer.] [As he went Naar would fit his Bagh Nakh into the palm of his right hand. It was small crossbar meant to fit into his palm with four claws that would extend from between his fingers when he closed his hand around it. Deadly if used correctly and lethal depending on where a person was struck with it.] [Naar moved closer to the man, he didn’t try to conceal himself as he came near, and let the slight enhancement of speed that the mark of Myri granted him carry him towards the Svefra as he was alerted that something wasn’t right. With his left hand Naar affixed his palm over the Svefra’s mouth from behind, clamping down hard so the man couldn’t scream, while delivering a blow to the back of his right leg with the heel of his own to send the man to his knees. As the Svefra went down Naar would plant his foot behind the man’s knee in the crease so that he couldn’t stand again. Struggling the Svefra reached for the Cutlass on his belt but it was too late.] [Blood erupted from the throat of the Svefra as Naar drew the claws of his Bagh Nakh across the man’s throat ripping tendons, flesh, muscle and everything else in a deep and hard motion that caused his body to jerk briefly and then begin to lose strength. Naar held the man for several moments, ensuring his struggles ceased, and then took his hand off the man’s mouth and pushed him face first into the jungle floor before leaving him behind. He didn’t even pause as he removed his foot from the back of the Svefra’s knee and left him dead.] [Aware that he didn’t have much time before his companion clued in that something wasn’t right Naar moved through the jungle towards the tents and the small embers of the fire that remained.]

[Naar]

[Footsteps came swift through the jungle as Naar moved away from the man he had just killed and left face down in what was likely becoming a pool of his own blood from the neck wound he’d received. As he went, swiftly, Naar would crouch as he came closer to the tents and the fire before falling onto hands and knees. Inhaling slowly he didn’t want to alert the others before the man by the fire was dead so he knew that while he must be quick he must also be subtle so that the next Svefra did not turn before it was too late and call out for his companions. Down on hands and knees Naar waited before moving closer.] [Legs tensed and he rose up from his position on all fours before stalking closer to the fire where the Svefra sat as swiftly as he could without breaking into a full run. As he came closer though the Svefra, who was sitting by the fire again and drinking from the bottle, would hear him and say what sounded like...”Emilio?”...apparently believing Naar to be the man he had just killed and turning his head to see him. BLAST! Naar and the man locked eyes just as the Warrior raised his right arm and sent his Bagh Nakh down in a deep slash meant to carve itself across the side of the Svefra’s face, cutting deeply into his flesh, as the man screamed loudly what sounded like...”MYRIAN!!!”...before his voice became much more agonized. Naar would raise his foot as the Svefra came around after his face was cut open and kick him in the chest hard enough to throw him backwards onto the small embers of the fire which would burn him causing him to roll away moments later clutching his face.] [Improvise! Naar hadn’t been able to move as sneakily as he’d like apparently as he was turning around after kicking the Svefra into the embers of the fire je saw that one man was already emerging from his tent with what looked like a Cutlass. Knowing it was better to be on the attack then the defensive Naar would charge the man. Attacking like an animal Naar actually rushed the Svefra emerging from his tent and leapt at him, throwing his legs forward ahead of his body as he did so, and delivered a stiff double kick to the chest of the man that flung him back into his tent which collapsed down around him. Naar fell onto his back and rolled backwards before regaining his footing. As he did he would see the female Svefra and the other man emerging from the second tent. No time to waste he needed to act fast.] [Naar already fought like an animal. He punched and swiped quickly using his Bagh Nakh to compliment his unarmed fighting style and he kicked hard making his blows count. Advancing on the man and woman, both Svefra, who were now also emerging from their tent ready to fight Naar would rush close feinting another charge and ducking below the Svefra males arm as he went to deliver a heavy blow. Using his Bagh Nakh as he went down he’d deliver a slash across the abdomen of the man and then drive his left fist into his groin for which he received the sound of a moan as the man fell. It was a quick combination of moves that saw Naar recovering right as the female came at him.] [Bobbing his head to the side he barely managed to dodge a blow from the woman who clawed at him furiously knowing that she was likely fighting for her life. Naar used his left hand to help him parry her blows and then lunged in to sash with the Bagh Nakh. On his first hit he bloodied her arm, ripping four deep claw marks down it and causing her to recoil, and on the second blow he struck her across the face tearing open shallow cuts that were more psychologically damaging than physically so. Attempting to defend herself the woman flailed but Naar raised his left leg to deliver a heavy kick to the right side of her torso that winded her and caught her hard before finishing her with a swipe from the Bagh Nakh that caught her on the side of the neck and tore her open. It wasn’t pretty and she’d clutch at her own throat trying to stop the bleeding in a scene that would likely take several minutes for her to either die or pass out.] [All this took less than a minute to do but before Naar could turn around he felt large arms wrap themselves around him, locking his forearms to his sides, as a man captured him in a bear hug and was lifting Naar off his feet. Who was it? Not the man he had kicked back into the fire and certainly not the one he had maimed before killing the woman. Ahah, the Svefra he had kicked back into the tent. Lucky he seems to have lost his Cutlass anyways.]

[Naar]

[Lungs burning from the powerful hold that he had been caught in Naar struggled to break free of the Svefra’s arms but to no avail the man seemed almost impossibly strong, likely due to adrenaline, and would not relent his hold on the Warrior no matter how much he tried to draw his arms out of the emancipating hold. Gasping for breath as the Svefra squeezed again Naar’s right hand would loosen and he dropped the Bagh Nakh leaving him without a weapon while the Svefra turned with him in his hold and Naar saw as the man who he had cut across the abdomen recovered and came towards him. Gritting his teeth Naar would brace for a blow that shot in and split open the inside of his mouth causing blood to leak from the side of it and there were more of those coming too.] [Not having any intention of just letting the Svefra pummel and then kill him though Naar would lift his leg and send a boot into the stomach of the man punching him, kicking him right in the abdomen where he was cut and causing him to howl loudly, which gave him enough time to free himself from the man still squeezing the life out of him. Snapping his head backwards Naar would drive the back of his head into the front of the Svefra’s who was holding him causing the man to wobble just enough that he let Naar’s feet touch the ground again. Without wasting time the Warrior follow his head butt with a swift boot down onto the insole of the Svefra’s foot which caused enough pain to shoot through him that he released Naar. Bad idea.] [Using his elbow first Naar shot his right arm backwards while twisting at the waist and turning his hips slightly allowing him to drive a hard blow back into the face of the Svefra. He’d follow by turning completely and driving both his fists into the stomach of the man which sent him wobbling and falling back in pain. Naar would have finished him by the other man, the one who had punched him, charged causing the Warrior to whirl around and catch a shoulder to his gut. The Svefra hadn’t quite put all of his strength into it though, or he just wasn’t strong enough to lift Naar like his companion, so while Naar was knocked backwards he wasn’t thrown onto his back. Wrapping his arm around the Svefra’s head Naar would steady himself on a lead leg and use the other to strike driving knees into the chest of the man then.] [Naar was generous with the damage he dished out too. Enjoying the ability to inflict pain in others he’d have hammered his knee into the Svefra as many as four, even five times, before tightening his arm around the man’s neck and giving it a quick jerk so that he could break it. There was a bit of a snap and then the Svefra went limp. Naar dropped his body and turned his head to look around. Three dead and two still living. It looked like the man whose face he’d cut before kicking back into the embers of the fire was slowly recovering but the other man was already climbing back to his feet. Shaking his head Naar only looked at him and mouthed...”Sha’lokk.”...which the Svefra could not understand but was a grave insult that Naar used in this case more as an amusing insult to the man.] [With no intention to play with his quarry Naar moved towards the Svefra, the one who had been bear hugging him, leaning down on the way towards him to snatch up his Bagh Nakh and fit it back into his right palm, before engaging him in a short one sided battle. The Svefra came at Naar with punches that the Warrior evaded by backpedalling and weaving from one direction to the next. When the Svefra finally over extended himself trying to deliver one punch Naar took his wrist in his left hand, sidestepped around him to take his back, and delivered a swift swipe with the Bagh Nakh that caught him above the kidney before shoving him away and onto his stomach. It could be that the Svefra caught sight of a Cutlass in the wreckage of one of the tents then because he crawled towards it but Naar, having none of it, would intercept him by planting a foot on the middle of his back. Wheezing the Svefra seemed to give up then and Naar obliged him by bringing his heel down on the back of his neck next and snapping it. Easy and effective.] [Now only one man remained. Scarred for life from a heavy blow across the face that tore through his flesh and burnt from landing in the fire. Things were about to get much worse.]

[Naar]

[Ensuring that he was alone with the Svefra Naar turned his head to look at each of the others. Two dead with broken necks and one either dead or unconscious due to blood loss from having a hole ripped out of the side of her neck. Nodding his head Naar seemed satisfied that he and the Svefra he had maimed could now have a bit of time alone with one another. Walking towards the man who seemed to find a bit of strength right as Naar approached he would raise his left leg to kick the Svefra’s arms from underneath him while he was trying to lift himself off the ground. Shaking his head once Naar would crouch down near the man then and examine him.] [Watching the Svefra like a you might watch an insect Naar knew that he could kill the man, and that he would, but he hesitated because the desire to cling to life that the Svefra had intrigued him to an extent that he did not fully realize. Does this man not want to be welcomed into the grace of Dira? Naar wondered to himself without ever actually posing the question for surely the Svefra must have realized that landing on any small shore in Falyndar was a terrible idea and one that all but invited harm to fall upon them. Truly it could be no other way in his opinion.] [With his left hand Naar would reach out and grip the Svefra by his hair, yanking his head up so that he could look him in the eye, before his eyes passed to the Bagh Nakh that he held in his right palm. The Bloody Talons were ruthless, savage even by the standards of some of their kin, and Naar embodied this well for there would be no survivors if none were worthy and worth was quite subjective in his eyes as this man had not fought hard nor cut his teeth as it were. Almost pitying him Naar would tilt his head to the side and stare at the Svefra with alien eyes that seemed to look right through him, the Svefra wept and coughed up something that sounded like a plea but Naar wasn’t sure, he just stared as though he were trying to comprehend what manner of insect this man was.] [Once Naar had finished with the man he’d lift his head higher and grant him a swift death. Delivering a brutal swipe with the Bagh Nakh that carved out the man’s throat Naar would drop his head then and stand back onto his feet. Glancing at his weapon which was stained red from the blood of the dead Svefra Naar would have looked out towards the water and quietly said...”Queen Myri I offer the blood of the dead to you. Lady Dira I offer the bones of the dead to you.”...then he would slide the Bagh Nakh out of his palm and turn before beginning to complete his work.] 26th of Winter, 511AV [Naar was nowhere to be found but he had left signs for any others that came upon this small break in the Jungle that told anyone who thought to land a boat here to stay away. The Row Boat that the Svefra had come ashore on was burnt. Only ashes remained. Also the bodies of the Svefra were burnt so that Naar could complete his offering of blood and bones to both Myri and Dira and hope that they accepted this small sacrifice from him. On the shore near the water were five heads though. Each of them belonging to one of the dead Svefra. Naar had used the Bagh Nakh and his own hands to primitively remove them from the bodies of the dead before setting them out in a row as a warning for any who would come here uninvited. Once this was done he had left.] [Disappearing back into the jungle of Falyndar Naar would watch for other signs of those who did not belong. He would hunt them if they were discovered and he would offer their bones and blood to Myri and Dira as well hoping to appease the Goddesses. Naar did this because he was a believer not because he was a savage. Prowling the jungles he would wait until the next hunt...]

[Rage]

GRANTING OF XP Naar Observation - 2xp Camouflage - 2xp Stealth - 3xp Weapon: Bagh Nakh - 4xp Intelligence - 1xp Tactics - 1xp Unarmed Combat - 4xp Lores: Tactics: Striking at the most opportune moment Intelligence: Observing enemy movements before attacking Stealth: Using the cover of darkness to conceal attacks Stealth: Hiding one's own silhouette against surrounding shadows Tactics: Using the environment against an opponent Unarmed Combat: Escaping a bear hug Fashioning warning signs from the corpses of enemies [Myri] Offerings of blood in victory Items: [Looted] Cutlass [Looted] Half-empty bottle of rum Notes : A very entertaining combat thread. Good job on your first thread! A few things to note in the future: 1.) The jungle remains dangerous, even for a local familiar with area. Never travel alone in the jungle unless you are within five miles of Taloba. You never know what's lurking in the foliage. 2.) Myri's gnosis enhances weapon speed, not body movement. I'll let that slide since the typical Myrian is slightly faster and stronger than the average human. 3.) Upon victory, Myrians usually perform ritualistic cannibalization upon their fallen foes, eating their brains and hearts, believing that they gain their enemies' strength and intelligence from doing so - a practice likely originating from when Myri slew Ruros and at his heart and brain to replace him as the God of War. It is an insult on the part of the dead enemy if a Myrian refuses to eat these organs of theirs. It means the Myrian consider them to be weak and that eating their hearts and brains would gain them nothing. The slain's flesh can still be used as meat, their bones used for crafts. Myrians are not wasteful.