[Flashback] Learning to Hunt

[Mayjor]

Season of Spring, 510 AV.

The cold Avanthal landscape scoffed at the concept of seasons.

"Let the seasons change, let them try to stop me from blanketing all that exists in a never-ending sea of white! Summer, Spring, Fall, Winter, none will change my ways!" It seemed to say. And it was true to an extent. The only difference between seasons was the amount of cold, white fluff layered on the ground.

Mayjor shook his head, as if to shake out an unwanted thought; his mind often wandered to strange places when bored. He sighed, and continued to wait patiently at the front gate of the city. Kayin was supposed to be waiting at the front gate for him to take him out to the Reaches, to show him the proper way to hunt... but yet, he was the one who ended up doing the waiting. He sat and watched the snow fall, silently drawing pictures in the fallen powder to idly pass the time. He stared out south, past the mountains, wondering what lie beyond them. Sure, he had heard stories of the strange civilizations that lived down there, but for all he knew it could be rumors and empty words. He felt a pang of desire; a desire to know what lies beyond, what kind of people there are, what kinds of plants, animals. He pushed his curiousity to the back of his mind. He should be focused on the hunt. He played with the spear he had, the weapon generally used to hunt. He weighed it from hand to hand felt the weight, the balance... it was kind of awkward to him. It was not the feel of his usual longsword, which was strapped at his left hip. That was a weapon he was familiar with, he could do some damage with that.

However, with the short reach of the sword, it truly was not ideal for hunting. He had a bow and quiver of arrows as well, more eager to try that than the spear. Wait... maybe, if he replaced the blade of the spear with his sword, it could be a worthy compromise! A long-spear! Yes, definately, he could...

He shook his head free of the strange idea. He stood and strode back and forth from one end of the gate to the other, his gnosis mark freeing him of the sting of cold. Where was Kayin?

[Cheshire]

Normally Kayin did not teach his hold mates to hunt. That was a lesser man's job and Kayin was far too busy to teach young Frostfawn's how to do their hold's most common job. He had missed the days when he took people out to hunt though. It had truely been a while since he had held his Longbow in his hands and felt the rush of the hunt. For Morwen knew how long he had been working at the barraks and even though he loved it more than any job he missed hunting. That was what had caused Kayin to skip work today. It really was not skipping due to the fact he was in charge of the kelvic devision of Icewatch but he was already feeling the sting of missing work. He had made a promise to Mayjor though. He told him he would take him hunting and as the leader of Frostfawn, he could never break his word. After saying goodbye to his wife Jedara, Kayin saddled up his Frostmarch and headed to the Reaches where he had told Mayjor he would wait for him. Sadly, he was late due to wanting to spend more time with Jedara. He knew it was the wrong thing to do but he barely had the chance to spend time with his wife lately. She was busy with Icewatch and he was busy with kelvic training and running the hold. As the Mayjor came into sight he directed his horse to slow. He dropped down onto the snow in front of Mayjor. He gave him an appologetic smile. "Sorry I am late. I wanted to spend a few extra minutes with my wife. It's hard to find time you know?" He laughed and ran his fingers through his dark hair. Kayin was one of the more down to earth leaders and by far the most friendly. At times he did not even seem to be a leadership figure because he did not really carry himself as such. In his mind if his hold was doing well why boss them around? He looked at Mayjor and smiled. "So are you ready to hunt? The snow is only going to worsen."

[Mayjor]

Mayjor smiled as Kayin approached, eager to begin.
"It's not a problem Kayin, I understand" Mayjor stated kindly. There was no problem with spending time with his wife, none at all. Even if there was, Kayin was not a person you could truly be mad at; he had this air of comfort and familiarity around him, as if you had known him your whole life. He did not have the air of an important and high ranking member of the city, a hold leader, rather more of the air of a close friend, informal and kind. He had been this way as long as Mayjor could remember, and he trusted him deeply.

"I'm ready whenever. Thank you for taking the time, I truly appreciate it." He eagerly said, in the middle of gathering his equipment. He made no attempt to conceal his enthusiasm. He began to load the equipment he brought onto his horse; of course, he had to find it in the snow first, absentmindedly having let it get blanketed in the white powder. He saddled up on his horse and followed Kayin out of the gates of Avanthal, struggling to see through the falling snow ahead of them. "Where, and what if i may ask, are we hunting exactly?"

[Cheshire]

The young Frostfawn's formalness struck a smile upon Kayin's face. He was truly not a very formal person. He never saw himself as higher than the others in his hold. He merely saw himself as a dedicated member of his hold who often helped to keep things in order. "Don't worry about being formal with me Mayjor. I'm not too high and mighty. I leave the reverence for queen Morwen. She is the one who deserves the praise." Kayin smiled and looked out over the reaches. He pondered what would be the best animal to hunt on his first go with Mayjor. He had not been hunting in a while. His duties in the Icewatch Barracks and with his hold had been taking a front seat to his love of hunting. When the two men reached the cold landscape of the Northern Reaches Kayin looked out over the frozen land and smiled. It was his old stomping grounds. He was instantly taken back to the days when he still got to roam the Talderan Tundra, hunting with his closest friend Yoh'vahn. The two had grown up a lot from those days but the snowy land still looked exactly the way he left it. "Let's hunt snow boar." Kayin had a sly smile on his face. It was the same animal he had hunted with Yoh'vahn last time he was in the Reaches.

[Mayjor]

Mayjor rode his horse in silent thought next to Kayin. He had seen snow boar before, eaten snow boar before, however he knew little about the animal itself. 'Is it dangerous? What will be the best way to approach the prey?' Are a few of the many thoughts that crossed his mind. He was not too worried; perhaps a bit nervous, but not at all worried. He was with a seasoned vet, who knew exactly what he was doing. He shouldn't just bother him with these inane questions he had, for surely he would tell him what he needed to know when the time came.

However, one thing nagged at Mayjor. He had no real experience in the cold, harsh landscape of the Northern Reaches. Where were the boar? Close? Far? He had no clue. He wondered if he would be taking an arduous 6 hour march, or a mere 15 minute jog. He was ready and eager to undertake either expedition, however it was a question he felt he needed to ask.

"So Kayin, exactly where are the boar? How far away are they?"

[Cheshire]

Avanthal Moding:

Although Kayin had been going to the Reaches longer than he had been married his companion had not. The prolonged time training the Kelvics had kept him from his old territory for far too long. "Snow Boar tend to live about a mile or two around the city. The farther out one ventures the stronger they get. We will stay within the mile mark and if you feel ready we will go farther. Sound good?" The snow boar were almost like natural training partners. He started to think of Yoh'vahn. The two had built their friendship here and he could not remember when their hunting days had stopped. He did not know how, they just did. "Before we head on let me brief you on what we might see." Kayin looked around to see if any animals were running around. "The animals are bigger here than any other place on Mizahar. The only place where the animals get as big as the Reaches is the Wastes. We let Icewatch take care if them." Kayin patted the side of his horse with his heel and signaled for Mayjor to follow.  The wind was blowing hard as the two reached Boar territory. The snow was falling lightly but it was showing signs of worsening. "The thing about Snow Boar is that they get hostile in Blizzards. The best we can guess is that they get scared in the snow. I'm sure Kenai, the Konti in town knows. She seems to be good with hostile animals." Kayin looked at Mayjor and then to the horizon. Deep within the swirling snow a snow boar was barely visable with it's white fur blending into the tundra around it. "Attack from the back. Those tasks can kill you in a heart beat." Kayin's words lost all inkling of his usual free spirit. These animals were dangerous, deadly even, if not dealt with properly.

[Mayjor]

Mayjor listened attentively as the snow slowly worsened. The boars become uneasy in blizzards; hopefully, they won't be out long enough to run into a situation like that. He already knew the animals out here were big, but the biggest in all of Mizahar? That was news to him. He noticed Kayin slowing his stride, and motioned his horse to do the same. Kayin was quite a wealth of information; however, as they had neared boar territory, he had noticed the change in Kayin's words and expressions. They had lost their carefree spirit, and through that lense Mayjor saw exactly the severity of the situation.

"Attack from the back. Those tusks can kill you in a heartbeat." He heard Kayin speak, almost a whisper so as to not alert the boar. This was a life or death situation, and should be treated as such. Mayjor slowly and quietly dismounted his horse, trying his best to not make any sound at all, however his skill in such things was not quite up to snuff. He fumbled his bow slightly, making what seemed to him the loudest noise which could possibly be made; however, it most likely was not as loud as he thought. Slightly embarassed to fumble like that in front of his hold leader, he notched his arrow to the taut string and slowly approached the boar, circling around to the back of the boar. He was determined to succeed in his first outing.

[Cheshire]

As the two hunters neared the boar Kayin's eyes turned a deep shade of green. This was the color of awareness. Every thing in him felt alive and on fire. He was surprised to see the young hunter moving up to the boar with such bravery. When he first went out he had been scared to death. He remembered his father inching toward the boar without fear and he stood back afraid. The boy was brave, it was good to see. Meanwhile, the large boar was sniffing at the ground in search of roots or other things to sate his hunger. His large ear flicked as an icy snowflake landed on it. He was hungry and he would have taken anything to stop the hunger in his stomach. He listened to any small animals creeping across the ice. For a moment the beast's heart raced. Was that food steps he heard? He looked around but he saw nothing but the frozen Reaches around him. The beast's neck was too thick to look behind him. It was the only matter that kept the two hunters alive. Every muscle in Kayin's body tensed as the animal looked around. He did not want this kid dieing on his watch. As the animal settled Kayin breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank Morwen" He breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Mayjor. "You need to get it injured enough to make sure it cannot rear back and attack you. Taking out a leg is always a good first step." Kayin's whisper was hushed to the point where one could barely hear him. Even the slightest sound could alert the boar.

[Mayjor]

Mayjor was aware. He heard every breath and step the boar took, and all the muscles tensed in his body as the boar reared up. He could picture the boar seeing him creeping upon it, quickly turning around and goring him with that massive spear they called a horn. Every possibility was running through Mayjor's head. Does he shoot it in the head first? No, then if it is not a crippling blow, the boar can attack before another arrow can be shot. Besides that, from this angle, a shot at the head was nigh impossible. Mayjor quietly pondered his options as the boar settled down, feeling the light weight of his bow in his hand. The string was notched with an arrow and as taut as possible, as if it were just begging to be shot. However, the shot itself was the conundrum. Then, as if a sign from above, he barely heard a whisper from Kayin;

"You need to get it injured enough to make sure it cannot rear back and attack you. Taking out a leg is always a good first step." Oh so simple it seemed now, why didn't he think of that? He took his bow, righted himself and took aim at the massive, fearsome boar. He focused, took in a slow and controlled deep breath, and slowly let it out, letting his arrow fly at the beast's rear right leg, and quickly began to notch another as he watched the arrow fly.

[Cheshire]

As the boar continued to search for food his broad nose uncovered a plump root under the snow. The Boar's search had finally paid off! Just as he was about to dig out the root a stabbing pain spread through his back leg. He squealed in pain and attempted to turn around. At even the slightest movement of his leg the pain intensified and roared at his nerves. Although the pain pulsated through his hind leg he turned around in rage to see the two Vantha standing behind him. An angry huff escaped from the boar's mouth leaving a trail of vapor in it's wake. The mighty beast shook it's head and squealed in rage. Kayin's eyes turned a bright orange with traces of green. He knew this movement. Every experienced hunter did. The boar was going to charge. He had not thought that it would attempt to attack with an injured leg but it seemed to be driven by pure anger. "It is preparing to charge. Get on the offensive and try to shoot out it's eyes and legs." Kayin unsheathed his Katana and looked at the great beast. "You will be fine, keep your wits about you and don't do anything stupid and we will make it back to town."