[Bronze Woods] Worms (Sam)

[Kelpie]

The two boys would not escape so easily. The stench of death returned to envelop them in a grisly embrace. The flap of large, heavy wings pushed the air around them forward, along with their bodies. The Kriital had returned, and it’s hazardous spit dripped furiously from it’s armored beak. Acid rain it appeared as it hailed down on the boys in droves. They would have to outrun the creature lest they suffer a gruesome fate by the claws of the beast. The Kriital had seen them weak from their retreat, a characteristic of nature for predators to chase after prey that fell back and fled. Instinct drove it to glide several meters above them, ready and willing to close it’s wings in a headlong dive once it saw an opportunity. The shadow passed over the boys several times as it circled around them, the acid still dripping and falling dangerously close to their fresh footprints. If the boys did not stop to look back or to engage the creature, their lives would be spared by the looming canopy that would act as a protective barrier. A trip, a single misstep, and their lives were forfeit.

[Aedai]

He was dragged from where he stood holding the two pieces of his broken spear. He moved his feet in the direction he was being dragged, not knowing what he was doing just letting Sam guide him. He soon found himself running besides Sam and he was unaware as to why. He started to slowly remember what his mother said and quickly imagined how she would feel if he just gave up and have another of her family members die. This thought in mind pushed away his depression for now to focus on survival. I have time to cry later, for now mother needs me alive and I have already failed father! I won't fail you mother!

He ran as quickly as his feet allowed him to. "Thanks Sam", he said to acknowledge that if he wasn't there he wouldn't have snapped out of his breakdown. He didn't need to say more, they had to focus on survival. His familiarity with the forest since he was young made it easier to pick out a path, especially this close to his old home. He noticed the shadow passing over, he heard the hiss of something hitting the floor. Of the acid that rain down on them. He didn't need to look behind to see if the Kriital was there, he knew the Kriital was in the sky. Aedai was glad the trees provided some cover against the spit, he didn't want to have another burn like his shoulder, and that was only from being on his shoulder. He could only imagine a direct contact with the spit.

The smell was unbearable but Aedai focused on what was ahead, running besides Sam as fast as he could. Screaming and looking ahead as he did, "You may have taken his corpse but you won't take mine!" If his father had never made Aedai familier with the forest, he didn't think it would have been possible to run from his current situation. He would not soil what his father taught him, he would put it to use to try and survive.

[Sama'el Sunsinger]

Sam whistled to Horse as soon as they hit the treeline, and the windrunner stallion needed no further urging to turn and follow them, soon nipping at Sam's heels as if he didn't understand why Sam and his friend didn't mount so they could flee faster. Sam would have felt more secure atop Horse, but Aedai with his strange ideas wouldn't have it. His sword was sheathed, mostly unused but for intimidation and defensive postures. He hoped he looked competent enough with it that the bird-beast had felt compelled to retreat.

If he wasn't devoting all his lung capacity to running, he might have sighed at Aedai's ill-conceived idea to yell at the kriital. For all he knew, that might draw it on, tracking them through the tree cover. Stranger things had happened. It seemed as nasty as a glassbeak, truly.

[Kelpie]

It didn't take long for the two boys to escape the treacherous creature that trailed them from above. The acid had dripped dangerously close, but the battle, although a short one, had been won. The boys had entered the shelter of the trees ahead, and the kriital screeched in response and flapped it's enormous wings, sending gusts of wind at their direction, pushing the young men forward. They had escaped with their lives, but a treasured spear had been broken, and hearts were made racing. This would be a valuable learning experience for the two, and they'd best be aware that Mizahar is full of malicious creatures that would gladly pursue them til the very end. THREAD END

[Kelpie]

Aedai: +2 Land Navigation, +1 Rhetoric, +1 Wilderness Survival, +2 Spear Lore: Following Marked Paths, Stories of Diarrhea, Confronting a Kriital Sama'el: Cooking +3; Scimitar +4; Horsemanship +2; Herbalism +2, +2 Rhetoric, +2 Leadership Lore: Reasons to Venture into the Wilds, Stories of Diarrhea, Confronting a Kriital Mod Note: I'm sorry this took so long to grant. I didn't have time to read through it all until now,hope you forgive me!