Closed Bloody Skies[Axe]

[Clyde Sullins]

70 Spring 513 Breath in. Breath out. Breath in. Breath out. Clyde did his best to calm his breathing, as he sat outside of Ravok, in the dirt. he had a hammer tucked into his belt, and a extra one in his pack. And sitting on the ground next to him, was his staff, always with him. A few more feet away, rested Rye, silent, lazily flickering his eyes, as he looked about, ever on guard and defending his master. Once more, Clyde was trying to meditate. To reach that level of existence inside of himself, were all outside distractions did not exist, and he could think and breath in peace. A state which would surely help in his magic, could he ever reach it. Breath in. Breath out... He repeated it in his head, and did as he thought, taking in breaths deeply, and slowly letting them out. But it did not seem to be working. He could still hear the birds in the trees. Still smell the scent of nature. Could see, even behind his closed eyelids, the odd changing tint of the light... Changing light? Clyde's eyes burst open, as he looked up, a sudden realization coming over him. It was confirmed, when he opened his eyes, and saw that the sun was beginning to set, and the hues of the sky were changing to those of orange and pink and red, from the once blue. He had stayed out to long, as he had been meditating. if he did not hurry, he would miss the last boat back to Ravok, and have to stay the night outside. Leaping up, he grabbed his staff, and whistled at Rye, as he began to run off. "Come on Rye! We are late! Lets not get left out!" The race was on, as Clyde began to jog towards Ravok's shore, where the barges were at. Rye easily kept up with his lope, but he was soon taking in ragged breaths from his run. He was certainly no marathon runner, running for miles and leagues on end. He did not yet have a stitch in his side, but he could not imagine it being far away.

[Axe]

It is often said that Zith hearing is so sharp that they could hear a person's heart beat. As such it was not difficult for her to clearly make out a whistling noise some distance from her current perch on a high tree branch, on the outskirts of the lands she called her territory. Her golden eyes, closed up until that point to keep the sun from stinging, opened wide. She trained her ears onto the direction of the noise, that certainly hadn't sounded like a bird. It was not overly difficult to hear the exclaimed words in the human common tongue, not when one was a Zith anyway

"Come on Rye! We are late! Lets not get left out!"

After processing the words for a moment, her grasp of the language limited, a slow toothy smile crept across her features. Her tongue slid out from its moist cavern and drew itself across her sharp and fearsome teeth.

A lost lamb? So far from the floating city? Oh, this is simply too delicious to pass up. Axe thought hungrily, her wings already unfurling.

Her hunting in recent days had been limited to wildlife, long had it been since her claws had been wet with human vital fluids. With no black shepherds around to protect this wayward lamb she intended to have some fun before the kill.

The sun's cursed glare was thankfully beginning to die away as the day began to give way to night. Long shadows were springing up all about her, sanctuaries from the cursed light.

The Zith managed to check herself from taking straight to the skies and following her newly acquired prey. The remaining light in the sky was still very much illuminating, any half aware fool would be able to see her in this light. The warrior side of her was quick to make way for the hunter as she glided to a nearby limb, setting down on it quickly and moving to the next silently as she was able.

Heading in the direction of the source of the noise proved to be useful as she was able to pick the prey's clumsy lumbering easily, her sensitive ears tuning in to every snapped branch. She was off through the tree tops, quickly tuning into another source of noise as she followed the noise.

Four legs instead of two? What could the prey have brought with him? Axe mused as she glided silently from branch to branch.

The prey was in a hurry, most likely head for the docks. Such a shame that they would never make it on her watch, the only trip they would be making was one to her stomach tonight. As she followed swiftly in the prey's wake she smirked at the sound of ragged gasps, they prey was getting tired. At this rate she probably wouldn't even need to use the axe on her back, her claws could probably dispatch one so weak.

It was almost disappointing, but Axe had no doubt she would be able to find some enjoyment out of this hunt before the prey expired. Oh, it promised to be a fun night indeed.

[Clyde Sullins]

Clyde of course, did not hear anything, or notice being followed. Even normal human senses would have trouble doing so, let alone his. Of course, that was why Clyde kept back ups, to make sure he knew when he was in danger. He was just starting to get out of breath, a small stitch forming in his side, when Rye barked once loudly, and froze. Clyde took a few more steps before realizing, and had to go back to him. Though he knew it meant he was in danger, and a threat was around, he was glad for the chance to catch his breath... He really needed to spend some more time running, to get better at it. He looked down at Rye, to see what he was looking at... But his eyes were not what was being used. Instead, his nose was up in the air, and he was smelling at something. "Petch..." Clyde said quietly, under his breath. If he had seen something, it meant it was near and visible. If he heard it, hopefully it meant the same... But if he smelled it... He had no petching clue which direction to look in. It also meant it was keeping well enough away from being seen or heard. Which meant it was likely making a conscious effort to not be seen or heard, or so he reasoned logically. Clyde wondered for a moment, what Rye was smelling. Yukmen? It had seen enough of those, with him, to know their scent quite well... What else? What other threats had he run into, since having Rye? The wolves were before they had met, he was almost certain... What else? Clutching his staff in hand, he let out a deep breath, his breathing nearly back to normal and calmed. Whatever it was, he was more than a match for it. After all, just a few seasons ago, he had single handedly taken on half of a Yukman horde, and killed dozens, if not hundreds. Surely no threat could be worse than that, around Ravok. Speaking to the general air, he looked about. "I know you are out there, whatever you are. If you are smart enough to understand me, and not some mindless beast, then show yourself. I promise I won't kill you, if you are civil and do so. I make no promises, if you continue to hide and be rude. Don't let appearances fool you. I am more than a match for anything you might be able to do. And if I am not capable, and am lying, what would you lose by showing yourself? If I lie, then you would easily be able to overcome me and kill me, even if you show yourself."

[Axe]

The man's declaration met Axe's ears as clear as if he had been standing next to her, causing her to pause on a tree branch. The creature with the prey had detected her, which caused her to lose the element of surprise. The barking sounded familiar, the Zith vaguely recalled a number of small creatures she had eaten made a similar sound. A dog, as the human meat called them.

The winged warrior was very displeased that she had been detected, however judging from her translation of the prey's words he had no idea what she was. The Zith however could see him well enough from her sanctuary of shadows, a rather unimpressive looking specimen of a human. He was tall and looked rather weak, appearing to be easy prey by all regards. Still his words sounded confidant, like he was sure that he could handle anything that was out here. If that was the case then this prey-meat was either supremely stupid or there was more to him than met her eyes.

He didn't exactly look particularly filling, maybe in combination with the dog he would make a good meal but even then the prey-meat didn't look too appetizing. His confidence was intriguing, open other possible status' that the warrior inside her looked over.

In her travels she had met very few humans that could sate her thirst for combat, one of them had possessed a build much like this man a had wielded a needle thin sword. He had been without a doubt one of the greatest fighters Axe had ever had the pleasure of fighting, she had feasted on his heart with great glee.

The man before her now did not appear to have any weapons, that she could see anyway. The light was still interfering with her vision, though that likely wouldn't be a problem for too much longer.

Another possibility floated around in her head, one that instantly would make this human unappetizing in every sense of the word. Axe had killed and eaten two wizards in her life, both had possessed similar builds to this man and both had tasted extremely revolting. It was entirely possible that this human possessed some form of power to make up for his weakness, it would make logical sense.

Of course there was always the possibility he was bluffing, in which case what did she have too lose really?

Eventually after some thought the warrior side of her, the dominant side that craved a worth opponent after being starved of one for so long decided to humor the human. She resisted the urge to take out her waraxe, first deciding it best to see if the human was worth of feeling its steel against his flesh.

"Very well, Prey-Meat, we shall play the game your way." Axe called out from her perch, her wings beating heavily.

The Zith glided to the ground, emerging from the wilds a fearsome predator. She stayed in the shade to better hide from the sun, but the human could see her if he possessed half of his wits.

"You are near this one's territory, Human-Meat, unwise if you know anything of the Zith. Explain to this one what is preventing her from rending you with her claws and eating you. Quickly." Axe said, her command of common halting and crude.

[Clyde Sullins]

"Very well, Prey-Meat, we shall play the game your way." Clyde hear this come from outside of his sight, though he was quickly able to tell the general direction from which the voice was coming. He turned to face it, and whatever should come out. Rye also turned in the same direction, no longer sniffing at the air, but glaring into the depth of the shadows with his eyes, seeing something Clyde could not yet. As the being who had spoken came nearer, he could hear an odd noise. It was only as she got really close, that he realized it was the beating of wings. A being that could talk, which had wings and could fly? A Zith! Suddenly Clyde remembered back to the Suvan Expedition, to when their group was attacked by Zith raiders. He himself had wounded many, and killed a few. That clearly, was where Rye had gotten the scent from. He had been with him, when they had attacked, and clearly recalled the beasts scent. "Zith..." He said, under his breath, as he recognized what she was. What the petch was this thing doing here? Not to mention, talking? He did not even know they could talk. From their last meeting, he had thought they were nothing but feral pack animals, who killed and ate. Apparently, they were at least somewhat intelligent, if they could speak. Or at least, this one could. "You are near this one's territory, Human-Meat, unwise if you know anything of the Zith. Explain to this one what is preventing her from rending you with her claws and eating you. Quickly." Clyde smiled, completely un-intimidated by the beast that stood before him, challenging him. He in turn, had a few words, which might prove a bit more effective, in intimidation. "Your territory? Says who? And I am not human meat. Or why don't you ask the last few Zith I encountered, who thought that. I did not catch their names, while their fur and skin was being roasted, nor the other one's, while his eyeballs melted out of his face, and his lungs burnt out from the inside. And in that case, there had been many Zith, not just one." "You can try if you want, to rend my flesh, and devour me. But the last Zith that tried, only received a meal of flames down his gullet. I can say for sure, that it did not sit well with him, up to the point before he died. Of course, if the need arose, I think I could be a bit more creative with you." "But as I said, as long as you remain civil, I will find no cause to kill you."

[Axe]

Axe narrowed her golden eyes as the human spoke, a queasy feeling growing in the pit of her stomach. He was a wizard, fantastic, and a boastful one at that. The Zith would have liked nothing more than to plant her waraxe into his head, checking herself by reminding herself that while weak physically wizards could be deadly in their own way.

She allowed the look of disgust to fill her expression and she spat to the side, glaring at the man. This weakling dared to question her hold over these lands? Were it not for his magic this man would already be blood ribbons in her claws.

"This one hunts in these lands, Wizard-Meat, the black shepherds hold no claim here. That makes it this one's territory, dispute the claim at your peril, Wizard-Meat." Axe growled out, obviously displeased.

Axe really hated wizards, not only were they complete weaklings without their magic to prop them up but they didn't even taste good. This wizard had some gall to attempt to intimidate her with threats of a fiery demise, instead of frightening her it angered her. She had been hoping for either a good meal or a good fight, it was clear that this meat would provide her with neither.

"This one has killed and eaten two human's who made similar claim. Their magic did not protect them from decapitation once the sun had set, this one doubts you would be much different."

The sun was steadily dying in the sky, a death that couldn't come soon enough in her opinion. Once the stars were clear in the black sky the advantage would be hers, this human had to know that. Though she had no intention of eating him, as the very thought had her stomach doing acrobatics, killing him was an entirely different story. If he made an opening move before the sky turned black escape would likely not be overly difficult. However Axe mused that there were other, less deadly prey in her territory to be found, things that would likely not turn her stomach.

Axe was savage, but she was not stupid. There was absolutely no gain, other than the sense of satisfaction she would get, in trying to kill this wizard. She couldn't eat him and he didn't look to have anything valuable on him, so really she would gain nothing for risking much. As such her glared softened to a suspicious gaze, her interest in the human gone.

"This one has no desire to eat you, nor risk injury from your cowardly methods of attack. So this one shall leave you be, Wizard-Meat, so long as you do not stray to close to this one's territory again. You may go." The Zith warrior said dismissively, turning her back to the human as she did.

There would really be no point in antagonizing this human any further, besides feeding her own pride. Wizard-Meat were not prey, not were they Good Meat, they were less than both in her eyes. Prey-Meat served a purpose, what purpose did wizards serve? Yes, she would leave this human be as spilling his blood on her axe would insult the steel her father had gifted her with.

[Clyde Sullins]

Some might call Clyde boastful, or big headed, when it came to his skills in magic. But then again, he would reason to anyone who said that, was it boasting, if that was your true skill? Was it boasting, if you could actually do exactly as you said, and more? Was it boasting, if you could rip the very earth from its foundation, throw onslaughts of flame, and bring down great elemental fury that would make most storms seem mild by comparison? He would reason, if you could do all of that, it was not boasting, but simply stating a fact. So perhaps he had good reason, to be sure of his abilities. "I never said I disputed your claim, and your right to hunt here. Far be it, if someone comes out here without aid or skill, they deserve nothing less than to be your meal. Would I really want such a fool to live on, and breed more of such ilk? Just know to leave me alone, and anyone with me, and I will have no issues with you." He smiled as she told him she had eaten two other mages. Either she was lying, and making it up to sound more scary, or the mages she had eaten were weaklings, not worthy of being called true wizards as he. "And as I said before, if you should kill by your lonesome, a mage, then I would not called that unskilled lout a true wizard, and so he deserved to die and be your meal. Those fools likely believed just because they knew a small bit of magic, they were safe from any dangers. I know well enough the dangers out here, to know few can boast that. Few can boast that they are strong enough to defend themselves from the multitude of threats out here, at least without lying." "But I tell you, I am unlike those unskilled and untrained fools. I know more about magics when I was but a child, let alone all that I know now, than those louts did on the day they were eaten. " He smiled once more, at her final bit of speech. Perhaps she was not as feral and weak-minded as the other Zith he had met? Perhaps this one actually had a small grain of intelligence in her. "Call them cowardly if you wish. I do not mind, I know the truth of them. And I know enough now of magic, to know what it takes to keep using it, even when you have seen what it truly is and costs. No coward would progress as far as I have, without quitting magic in fear. So for that alone, I am no coward. You are wise to say you do not want to fight. Neither do I. Isn't it so much easier, when we simply talk, and end things civilly? Though I cannot promise I will never return to these parts. I have reasons for coming out here, as much as you do. I think this place is big enough, for us to share." Clyde would give the Zith some time to answer all he had just said, and then he would prepare to leave. However, before he could do so, Rye would begin to let out a low growl, very different from the earlier bark he had used. Clyde looked around, to see quite a few men coming out of the trees, all of them armed. Coming from the direction Rye was growling in, were six men. One stood at the front, who apparently was the leader of them. He was a bit shorter than the rest, but still the leader. He seemed more compact than the other men, and better groomed, than the others around him. The rest with him were general thug types. Stupid looking, with weapons held in their hands, tall, musclebound. All with intimidating weapons, a large two handed sword with one, 2 of them with maces, one with a pair of clubs, and another with a spear. And they likely also had other weapons on them. The leader of the pack took a step forward, and grinned at the two of them. He held a small dagger in his hand, which he was tossing back and force from hand to hand. "Alright. Nice and easy now, toss down your weapons, and my men won't have to kill you. Just give over anything you have on you, and I assure you, you will live to see another day." Clyde stared back at him, anger burning in his own eyes. The audacity of the man. Surely by now, all of the bandits knew of him. Apparently, this was a new one, who thought to take over this area as there hunting grounds. And he was clearly lying. He planned to kill them both, should they surrender. "It looks like you are not the only one, who likes this spot. Perhaps we could work together?" The leader of the bandits continued to grin, and made a motion with his hand over his head. In response, the click of a crossbow being armed came from either direction. A few moments later, men with crossbows came out of the treeline, crossbows raised, one on there left, one on there right. Far enough away that if Clyde or the Zith charged, they would be shot. But close enough, to still be accurate. Clyde looked over at the Zith, and grinned. "If you don't mind, I will take care of the crossbowmen, with my cowardly magic. That should free you up afterward, to fight the rest without fear of a bolt in your back. Deal?"

[Axe]

Axe was about to reply to the wizard's rather irritating and arrogant statements sharply, threaten him with violence if he ever came around again and fly off. However her ears had caught wind of the men emerging from the trees at around the same time the human's dog had. The Zith turned sharply, her golden eyes gazing over the men quickly.

When the shorter one stepped forward and dared to threaten her Axe's eyes flashed with rage. This Prey-Meat dared to approach her territory, where many of his fellows had met there end, and threaten her? His death was as good as assured and she would enjoy hearing him beg for mercy when she ate him a piece at a time.

Her wings spread wide and her waraxe was already in her hands by the time the wizard made his offer of working together. The Zith snorted, the day she needed the assistance of a weakling wizard was the day that the moon fell out of the sky. Still, considering the numbers, she wasn't going to say no to a slight tip of the odds in her favor.

"You may do as you wish Wizard-Meat, just know that the little Prey-Meat with the dagger belongs to this one." Axe said, her voice filled with fury and hunger in equal measure.

The emerging crossbowmen caught her attention immediately, and soon enough she could feel the Call threatening to overcome her. It was roaring in her skull, finally a real battle after so long.

She met the wizard's grin with a savage and toothy one of her own, almost forgetting what he was in the pre battle fervor building inside of her.

"Handle them Wizard-Meat, the others shall lean to fear the name of Axe!" The Zith said, giving a mighty hypersonic screech in her native tongue.

It was time for her battle fury to be unleashed upon these humans, hopefully they would prove to be a challenge worthy of her waraxe. If not they would fall like wheat before her, bloody and broken. Hopefully this wizard was not all talk and was telling the truth in that he claimed to be stronger than the wizards she had encountered.

[Clyde Sullins]

Clyde just smiled back at the Zith, as she said she wanted the leader of the bunch. Clyde simply shrugged, and took a look at the two men. He took a few moments to gauge distance, and thought on the best mode of attack... Fire obviously. Part for its effectiveness, part for its intimidating nature. Many a foe had been deterred, simply by seeing his fire Reimancy. After all, who wanted to continue fighting, when the enemy could toss flame at you in great swathes? Not to mention, the fear of being next to be struck by the flame. Most would much rather face any mundane foe, even a axe wielding Zith, if it meant avoiding being roasted alive. The Zith would have been in quite a spot, had he not been here. She might have been okay with the blade and blunt wielding bandits. But the two crossbow ones would have been hard to deal with, with anything but another such ranged attack. She would have caught a bolt from one, if she had gone after either. Clyde would not make that mistake, and would be attacking both at once. Clyde would take in a deep breath, deep, deep, deeper, taking in as much air as his lungs could possibly hold, till they felt fit to burst from so much air in them. Then all at once he let it out, blowing out a great gout of res into the air before him, a silvery mist that occasionally glinted in the light of the falling sun. Swirling his hands, the res formed into a globe, and began to rise into the air. The ball was soon quite big, as it hovered over Clyde's head. With a twist of his hand, the outside burst into flames, as he transmuted the outer layer. All the while, each time he exhaled, another smaller bit of res would come out, and float up to join the ball. Then with another motion, he wrenched both hands away in either direction, palms out, in the directions of the crossbowmen. Following the gesture, a pair of great long fireballs split off from the mass of flame and res, speeding straight towards the two men wielding crossbows. Perhaps they did not have time to act. Or perhaps, they were so surprised to see a meteor of flame coming at them, that they panicked, and froze. Either way, they were both struck by the flames before even a single shot was fired. Clyde waited till they were just about to strike, only a tick before, and transmuted the entirety of the meteor into flames, the larger mass of fire balled up trailing more flame behind it, looking just like a real meteor descending from the skies. For most lesser Reimancers, the range would have been to much to transmute, and would have no control over the flames as they neared the target. But Clyde had no such issues, and was able to have total control throughout the entire flight, and able to wait to turn it all to flame. The flames struck the men bearing their crossbows, and continued on. The wood of their frames were doused in the fire, and quickly burst into flames, as the men dropped them. But the flaming meteors did not stop there, and kept on with their forward momentum, the flames catching the men right on the chest, and spreading over their entire bodies, over their clothes and hair. Both of them were doused in flames from head to toe, and threw themselves upon the ground screaming, trying to put themselves out to no avail. Clyde turned back to the rest of the bandits, a swirling ball of res and flames hovering over his head, about as big as both of the earlier thrown fireballs, combined. The bandits could possibly feel the heat from were they stood. He cut off the flow of new res he had been generating, and instead focused on the res he had already created. He nodded at the Zith, and smiled. "Crossbows taken care of. Here, why don't I break them up for you, and you can take them out easily one at a time." With that said, he tossed another fireball, this one much smaller, with a lazy motion of his right hand, right at the center of the group, arcing it in at them with and overhead shot. The fireball arced right at them, forcing them to break up. They each ran in a different direction, all six of them, as they all wanted to avoid the flame, and what had happened to the crossbowers. Not realizing the tactical mistake they were making, in splitting themselves up. There leader barked orders at them, to stay together, but none listened in the panic caused by the magic. Two of them ended up running right towards Clyde and the Zith, in their hurry to escape the flames. That done, Clyde smiled, and motioned for the Zith to attack, and let loose the rage she appeared to be holding just barely in check. With them all broken up and alone, they would be easy pickings for her to attack.

[Axe]

Axe didn't like magic, it was just something that offended her sensibilities as a warrior to kill an opponent by setting them on fire or sending them into an infinite emptiness. Even so she would be lying if she said that the sight of the wizard's spell hadn't been impressive and more than a little frightening. To command such power was not natural, and it was clear that he was cut from a different cloth from the wizards she had killed.

The warrior noted the two fools come right towards them, lambs to the slaughter in her eyes. With a few beats of her leathery wings Axe was airborne and rocketing towards the panicking bandits, her axe swinging with frightening speeds.

It was likely that the first man didn't even have time to register his end before the warrior's waraxe was lodged in his skull, a sickening bone crunching sound awakening the Call of battle thunderously. The Zith ruthlessly kicked the fresh corpse off of her axe and took flight again, diving on his companion.

Her axe clanged loudly against his mace, a weak and frail defense if she had ever seen one. A clumsy back handed swing came her way, which was easily battered aside. A quick swing sent her axe into his gut, sending him screaming to his knees as he clutched the painful wound. A casual rake of her claw across his throat silenced him to mere wet gurgles as she removed her axe from the soon to be corpse.

The Zith's hunger was far from sated and due to the wizard's spell she could thankfully take her time to properly enjoy this. Her sights set upon a large brute wielding a greatsword, golden eyes flashing as she wondered how well he could wield the weapon.

Axe was an extremely savage individual, something she took great pride in actually. However beyond that she was a warrior as well, and one who didn't just seek hapless slaughter but worthy opponents. She wanted to find a battle that tested her abilities to the limits, perhaps this bandit could deliver what few had.

The winged warrior descended upon him, blocking a skillful sword swing with a savage toothy grin. The man had clearly recovered his wits, and would prove to be a fun play mate at the least. The large man brought his blade into guard before him, a grim look on his face. Axe licked a splotch of blood from her lips before meeting his blade with her waraxe with a loud clang.

The man countered her light swing with a heavy outward arc, which the Zith dodged back from as her wings propelled her back from his range. He came at her with a heavy overhanded swing that actually managed to slice a few crimson hairs from her head as she dodged back. Axe moved in quickly, swinging the man's blade out wide and sending a clawed hand into his gut.

The man dropped his weapon, screaming as Axe removed his entrails with glee. Her weapon was grasped in both hands as the man fell to his knees, cleanly decapitating him with a single mighty swing.

Her blood was boiling now. More! She wanted more battle, it was like a drug the way the rush overcame her.

Her gaze turned about, looking for more fodder for her incredible hunger, her golden eyes burning brightly in the dying hours of the day.