Closed Cliff Jumpers (Thuma)

A chance meeting between an Endal and a game scout

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The westernmost tip of Kalea, Wind Reach is home to an amazing group of people and their giant eagle mounts. [Lore]

Cliff Jumpers (Thuma)

Postby Khara on December 12th, 2014, 4:49 am

.
... 8th of Winter, 514av
The Unforgiving in Winter truly lived up to it's name. The Sanikas road was officially closed, more due to necessity than any strict rule and each venture out of Wind Reach was more arduous than the last. There was no rest for the hunters and game scouts, though. While there would inevitably be a shortage of food coming in that would require the city to dip into it's Winter stores, there was fierce determination not to have a repeat of last year's famine. Maybe it was for that reason that the game scouts were being sent further out than they normally would be once the snows had settled in.

It weren't too deep yet, but that didn't necessarily ease the overall strenuous act of traversing in such terrain. At least Khara's goal today was easy enough. Well, relatively easy. She had been sent around the cliffs outside of Wind Reach, all within view of home, really. Of course, there weren't many places Khara had ever been to where you couldn't easily see Mount Skyinarta. All to find evidence that the skygoat population hadn't quite left yet and to see if any hillgoats had ventured into the same territory. Information on the one would only benefit the Endals as their Eagles were just about the only things capable of catching the nimble creatures. The other, though? If she found evidence of them so close she could easily bring a hunter out with her the following day and that was something to look forward to.

Much better than her current task of walking slowly along a cliff face, looking for loose rubble, droppings, hair, disturbances in the snow, anything to signal she wasn't out here looking for troublesome animals for no good reason. Still, there was something to be said about the skygoats - they made things interesting, at least. The animals usually didn't stray too far from Wind Reach proper, normally that would have meant staying nice and close to home, but sightings had become rarer as Winter had drawn closer and now that it was here several game scouts had been sent out to find just where it was they had scrambled off to.

Khara paused at a place where the rough edges of the cliff face jutted out just above her head. There wasn't much of a ledge, but the small indentations would be more than enough to give hooves purchase when leaping about. Her eyes turned to the snow, at patches where rocks and other debris had seemed to plunge through the soft white powder. The storm that had left the light blanket had passed through only a handful of nights ago, but the small bit of melting caused by Syna's colder gaze wasn't enough to give the scout the clear impression of just how long ago the rocks had tumbled to break the perfect image.

The girl adjusted her shortbow on her shoulder and crouched down to began to push aside some of the snow, thankful for the gloves she had finally had a mind to purchase during the fall, to see if there were any other signs lurking near the punctures the rocks had created. A sudden shadow that passed overhead snapped Khara's attention upwards. The sky was clear, which unnerved her somewhat. The shadow had been far too big for a goat leaping overhead, and she surely would have heard it before she saw it. A Wind Eagle, then? Nothing to really be afraid of, for certain, but still... if an Endal believed she was trespassing on grounds they had decided to hunt or was disturbing their game, there could be issues. Of course there was also the off chance that they might see the scout and make use of her vantage point from the ground for the day to find any signs that passing overhead would surely miss. The chances of that were slim, though. Khara had never been that lucky.


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Last edited by Khara on December 13th, 2014, 6:18 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Cliff Jumpers (Thuma)

Postby Thuma on December 13th, 2014, 5:15 am

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Thuma | Yania | Shathisae | You

The air was crisp and cool, very cool, that morning. Especially when you're flying at exceptional speeds several hundred feet in the air. Thuma was perched at a comfortable spot on Shathisae's neck, Yania squashed right up behind her so as not to get in the way of the Eagle's wings.

Thuma's flightleader sent each of the flight members out a different direction today, told them to go farther than usual. It wasn't a surprising request, the Winter had come to Wind Reach long before the actual season began, so they had already begun preparing for it. The population of the local Fauna had grown thin, and much more difficult to spot. This would mean longer nights, more articulate hunts. Overall, more effort on Thuma and Yania's part.

"Thum, how far are we going? It's freezing, I just want to get this over with." Yania complained from her spot on Shathisae's neck, in her more comfortable language, Nari. Thuma could feel Shathisae's silent annoyance through their telepathic link due to the bond the two had. It was often that Yania was outspoken about, well, everything. She hardly ever shut up. On the other hand, Thuma was quite reserved, being far outside the norm in every way for an Inarta.

"Quiet, Yani. Focus on the task at hand. Pay attention to your surroundings." Thuma quickly chastised the loud sister, which was also another common thing. The Hunter shifted in her spot and settled so she was more comfortable. The silence went on for a few more minutes, and Thuma appreciated it.

She could focus on the wind blowing through her hair, whipping her and Yania's Katinus around. Thuma wore her scarf as usual, though this time it was actually because of the cold and not to hide the scar on her shoulder. Her talon sword hung off her hip, but she didn't plan to use it today. The cool air was refreshing, helped her keep her senses sharp. Even though the girl and her Eagle's bond gave her the added benefit of having a second set of eyes, advanced Eagle eyes at that, scanning the surroundings with them.

It was Yania's sudden shift that Thuma knew something was up. She didn't even have to ask where it was, she could feel the direction Yania's body was turned and automatically Shathisae knew to turn in the direction too. It wasn't long until Thuma noticed what Yania had seen. A black shape against the white. Not moving quickly, so not in danger. It hadn't noticed the huge Wind Eagle flying overhead yet.

"Lower." Thuma said softly to Shathisae, who quickly obliged. They flew very low, not so low that it would be safe for Yania to jump down, but low enough that they could get a better view of the ground. As they got closer to the moving being, Shathisae came to same conclusion as Thuma at the same time.

"It is not an animal." Shathisae's words went through Thuma's mind, in the usual Nari tongue, the bird refused to learn or speak any other language. It was hard to explain, how it felt when she spoke inside Thuma's mind. She could speak telepathically to anyone, all Wind Eagles could. To Thuma though, the words weren't surprising, as the presence of the Eagle's mind was always there.

"Possibly a hunter, but what would they be doing out this far? And why alone?" Yania's questions echoed the same ones going through Thuma's mind. It couldn't be a bad thing. If the hunter had found any game, or if perhaps they were tracking some, then Thuma could help them, maybe they could find Hillgoats. Thuma was optimistic about it.

"We will fly back around then land, see what they are doing." Thuma replied. The two obliged and the Eagle flew over the Hunter and quickly made a sharp U-turn. Yania squealed as they did this, the turns made her feel sick.

They flew overhead again, this time much lower to the ground, and Yania began to stand on the Eagle's back, crouching with her arms held out to steady her. Thuma knew this meant she planned to jump in and surprise the Hunter, a tactic often used on unsuspecting prey. As they were flying back over the wayward Hunter, Yania quickly leaped off the bird and landed in the Hunter's path.

When Yania landed, she gained her footing after a small stumble and pulled her bow, stringing it taut with an arrow.

"State your business. Are you a hunter?" Yania demanded from behind her longbow, facing whoever it was that had traveled so far without an Eagle. As she did this, Thuma and Shathisae went on to find a large enough clearing to land before joining the two.


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Cliff Jumpers (Thuma)

Postby Khara on December 22nd, 2014, 1:47 am

Khara froze as she tried - entirely unsuccessfully - to overcome the series of reactions she was forced to go through. The first was the uncomfortable leap her heart had done at being completely startled at the other teen dropping from the air in front of her; that alone was more than enough to knock the Chiet off balance and cut through the calm her focus on work had given her. The next was… Well the next left her trembling like the last leaf on a tree that was just waiting to tumble to the ground. Terror, confusion, agitation and even a tiny shred of annoyance all bundled together to steal her breath away and caused a spike of anxiety to shoot straight through the scout as surely as the arrow aimed at her.

The girl was used to being threatened by the upper castes. Usually in veiled hints through glares or slight shoves in the warrens. Azira was the only one who had outright said she might kill her, but that had been before they really had started working together and Khara had since learned that she hadn't been in any real danger that day; mostly. Then there was the other threat she had received, the one that echoed perpetually in her mind despite every promise from another to keep it from ever happening again. All in all, those threats were ones she was used to, ones she knew how to handle or hide from or shrink away from until they could be forgotten.

But this? Was the one with the longbow completely petching insane? Or was she just one of those upper castes who loved to terrify the lower for no other reason than they could? It didn't really matter to Khara, either way there was an arrow aimed at her as if she was some terrible creature rather than a fellow Inarta. Even if just throwing her weight around there was no promising a hand couldn't accidentally slip and what could have just been a cruel prank would end in the Chiet's death. Fear seemed a perfectly reasonable response.

Are you a hunter? The question echoed in the scout's mind, barely enough to cut through the sound of her own rapid pulse that thudded in her ears. Gods, did she look like she was trying to be a hunter? Sure Khara had spent some extra pinions near the middle of Fall to buy herself some newer clothing of finer material, but that was only because they were warmer - there wasn't even any sort of ornamentation! She still looked proper for her place, didn't she? Surely either Azira or Sira would have said otherwise if they got the impression she was trying to look above the next-to-nothing she was.

Khara could feel the horrible sensation of panic setting in, threatening loss of any remaining semblance of composure. She wanted to glance behind her, to hope that maybe there was a bear or something that was actually being aimed at, or maybe one of the other game scouts who were also out on the search for the goats would come from behind and diffuse the situation, or maybe miraculously the person who promised to protect her would be out this way for some reason and would…

"N-n-no. I-I'm n-not a hunter," Khara stuttered, words tripping over themselves as they barely managed to escape, each one struggled for against an onslaught of upset that threatened to topple over and completely engulf her. "I-I'm s-sup-p-posed to be here; tracking."

It was like she had forgotten how to speak properly entirely. As if in one instant the years of corrections to her stumbling were undone. It always happened to some extent when she was overly nervous but rarely did it slip this badly. Worse was that Khara was fully aware of it and flinched, knowing how it made her sound exactly opposite of the confidence she wanted to portray. She was supposed to be here, even if she had ventured out a bit farther than she had expected to that day. The Chiet knew that with the exact same certainty as the fact that she didn't want to end up dead in The Unforgiving because of some sadistic huntress' reaction to someone else in her hunting grounds for the day. And you thought Azira was crazy, her thoughts cleared enough to unhelpfully chime in.


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Cliff Jumpers (Thuma)

Postby Thuma on December 23rd, 2014, 9:54 pm

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Thuma | Yania | Shathisae | You



Yania squinted her eyes at the smaller girl. Oh she was such a nervous little thing, she seemed too delicate to be out in the wilderness like this. Though, upon further inspection, the hunter realized she was wearing some heavier clothing and her bow was only a shortbow. Not one an actual hunter would use. Though that did not make Yania lower her bow, it was fun to her. Living in the aeries with her sister and practically being one of the Endal was quickly getting to her head. She was entirely too bold in her actions and confident that her hand would not slip.

"Okay, well then wha-" Yania got cut off as her sister stepped around the rock barring the path from each other, shouting at her.

"Yania! Lower the bow! What are you doing? You're obviously frightening the girl." Thuma yelled out in a commanding voice, Shathisae right on her tail, following with long, heavy footsteps. An annoyed expression crossed Yania's face as she continued to stare at the other girl in their midst, and she slowly lowered her bow to the ground, her eyes not leaving the girl's face.

Thuma came closer, the scorn apparent. Even though the two were the same age, being twins, it was as if Thuma always had to babysit Yania. The other twin had the attitude of any other Inarta, but ten-fold.

"I swear, you have the ego of a Wind Eagle." Thuma whispered and turned to the other Inarta teen out with them.

What does that mean? Shathisae spoke up in her mind, a hint of hurt in her tone. Thuma just sighed and looked at the bird.

"Nothing bad, I'll tell you later." She said to the Eagle, whom just stoically stood in agreement. Thuma turned back to the matter at hand.

"You are not a hunter, nor do you have one with you." She observed, a confused look coming across her face as she noticed the girl's lack in weaponry, although there was a bow securely strapped against her back, and that she was trembling like a mini earthquake was happening right beneath her.

"She says she's a tracker." Yania told her sister. The Endal nodded in response and went into her own natural leader mode.

"I'm sorry if we startled you, my sister has absolutely no boundaries," She quickly turned a glaring eye at the Avora, whom just childishly stuck her tongue out, "We weren't expecting anybody out this far; even we weren't expecting to go out this far." She explained, turning her attention back to the Chiet.

Perhaps she was in the middle of tracking some animal. She could help us. Shathisae suggested and Thuma nodded in agreement.

"Well, were you sent this far? What would have brought you out here? Did you find something?" Thuma fired her questions at the tracker. She had come across a few hunters out on their own a few times before, but that was usually during the warmer seasons. She knew that Darklit Clearing would be rife with Endal on hunts during this season, and in fact planned on going on a few trips to the clearing herself.


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Cliff Jumpers (Thuma)

Postby Khara on December 24th, 2014, 7:00 am

As the scene between the twins unfolded in front of her, Khara only barely managed to calm the pounding of her heart. Whatever solace could be found in the more authoritative caste member's presence was also lost by her very existence as well. No matter how it came about, the Chiet still was nothing short of a nervous wreck upon every new encounter with an Endal. The bow that had been aimed at her was lowered, though, so that was something at least.

As the Endal began to ask questions of her, Khara's eyes flitted from the Avora, to the Endal, to the Wind Eagle, to eventually the mountain range. Had she really come out so far? Sure her mind was occupied and she had been following the same cliff face for at least a bell or two but... Her eyes wandered skyward, squinting at the Winter sun's position. Maybe she had been out longer than she thought. Stupid skygoats, she thought bitterly; not that they were really to blame.

"I... I... " Khara began, stumbling over the simplest of beginnings as her golden eyes fell downward at the snow and her hands. "I was sent out here to scout for Skygoats. They've moved a bit out away from Wind Reach after Fall. But we're supposed to be keeping an eye out for any hillgoat activity as well. I've been seeing some signs of them but not anything real clear... n-not until now."

As she spoke her hands twisted in on themselves and every other word caught in her throat. It wasn't supposed to be like this. Khara had started getting better about speaking with the upper castes, less nervous at least in regards to work things, but that had changed again. Granted the way the Avora had showed herself hadn't exactly helped matters but she still felt like some tiny mouse surrounded by hungry raptors who were only waiting for her to stay the wrong thing before they swooped in.


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Cliff Jumpers (Thuma)

Postby Thuma on January 6th, 2015, 10:32 pm

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Thuma | Yania | Shathisae | You



OOCI'm so sorry for how long it took to reply back! [insert excuse here]

Thuma kept watching the younger, smaller teen. The Chiet's eyes did not still for even second, flicking their focus from one thing to another and then another. She still seemed uncomfortable in the sister's presence, but she did scan her location and the things around her before answering.

Thuma nodded along as the girl explained her situation, trying not to focus on the hitch in her words. The Endal noticed that the game scout's eyes were an incredible golden color. Whenever Thuma saw other Inartas with this eye color, she became very jealous. Not only is it a beautiful color, there's a strong belief that this eye color means they were a Wind Eagle in a past life. None of the triplets, including Thuma's other sister Hadley, had golden eyes. They're all a shade of green. Thuma's being dark green and Yania's being a very very light, almost white, green. Like the color of a blade of grass when it's covered in frost.

Even with the Chiet's nervousness and the wringing of her hands, Thuma listened intently. It could very well be true that she had come out so far looking for Skygoats and Hillgoats. That had been what the group of three were looking for, with no luck, before they swooped in and surprised the game scout.

The stoic teen leaned her weight onto one leg, resting her right hand on the hilt of her talon sword. She glanced at Yania and knew they were thinking the same thing. The Hunter nodded but before she could say anything, Shathisae stepped forward, her heavy feet landing with loud thuds, and spoke directly to the small stranger.

Do not fret, we are only here for the good of the city, as you are. She spoke to the girl, using as soothing a telepathic tone as she could. Now what are the signs that you have been seeing? Being as intuitive as Wind Eagles usually are, Shathisae knew that the girl was under much distress due to the intimidating nature of the sisters. Although it was unusual that Shathisae spoke to anyone other than Yania or Thuma, it was not against her nature to care for Inarta girls.

Thuma tried not to let the surprise of the Eagle's words to the Chiet show across her face. It was very rare that Shathisae spoke to other people. Instead she just scanned her surroundings, taking notice of the tracks they had left and the tracks that the other girl had left. Yania still had her glaring eyes glued to the Chiet.


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Cliff Jumpers (Thuma)

Postby Khara on January 11th, 2015, 10:21 pm

Khara wasn't certain what sort of reply to expect from either of the two Inarta to her pitiful sounding explanation, but never had she dreamed that it would be the Wind Eagle who would address her. Despite the urge to look to see how the others were reacting, she kept her lowered gaze fixed towards Shathisae.

It wasn't the first time one of the Wind Eagles had spoken to her, she was even almost getting used to the way Sira made it seem as if it wasn't a big deal, but still Khara couldn't help but feel entirely undeserving of the privilege.

Even with the soothing nature of the voice within her mind, Khara found it hard to speak in reply. The entire situation had thrown her off her usual balance, precarious as it usually was. Still, lessons and culture had drilled into her head the necessity of responding to one of the Eagles when prompted to, anything less was downright disrespectful. The girl swallowed hard before trying again.

"I haven't seen any tracks," she began, once more overly aware of the loathing that she felt whenever she had to admit a lack of information. From somewhere in her memory came a familiar voice. Do me a favour. Try to have some faith in yourself. Azira's words echoed for a moment, enough to bolster a bit of courage in the Chiet.

A deep breath was forced and Khara could feel herself squaring her shoulders, even if she did keep her eyes downcast. "There has, however, been some evidence of disturbances of the rocks above, mostly just some pebbled or other debris that have fallen. I can't see up that high though to tell if it may be from the goats or just natural crumbling of the cliff face. I was considering trying to climb up a bit to see if I could make out anywhere that hooves may have scratched into the rock but..."

Her voice trailed off before she said something foolish like I was interrupted. "...I hadn't gotten that far just yet." Khara finished, feeling the choice in words was at least somewhat satisfactory.


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Cliff Jumpers (Thuma)

Postby Brandon Blackwing on October 24th, 2015, 4:24 pm

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KHARA

XP:

  • Observation +3
  • Mountaineering +1
  • Socialization +2
  • Tracking +1



Lore:
    N/A


Notes:
Thuma: Your grade has been withheld due to inactivity

Too bad this was abandoned, I think this may have become an entertaining read

Please remove or edit your post in the request thread.
Also please track your newly awarded xp and lores in your CS so both staff and graders alike can keep on grading your threads :)
If you have any questions, comments or concerns regarding your grade, please do not hesitate to send me a PM.



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