Completed Hunting in the Sun

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Built into the cliffs overlooking the Suvan Sea, Riverfall resides on the edge of grasslands of Cyphrus where the Bluevein River plunges off the plain and cascades down to the inland sea below. Home of the Akalak, Riverfall is a self-supporting city populated by devoted warriors. [Riverfall Codex]

Hunting in the Sun

Postby Merevaika on May 30th, 2015, 3:15 pm


Merevaika
15th Spring 515

Merevaika awoke when Syna awoke. The feeling of awaking pleased her, glad to have the day started. Recently, she had felt so sluggish and ill. It wasn't bad, not like the illness that had wiped out her pavillion, but it wasn't the nicest sensation either. Merevaika blinked away feelings at that thought. She had to remain strong and not stray from the objective. For today, that objective was hunting.

She picked up her bow, battered and scratched. She ran her finger along the carvings, treasuring memories of it. The bow had served and long and well, but eventually she would need to replace it. However, the bow still worked, and shot arrows as it did many years before. It shot them better, as Merevaika's skill slowly improved.

Beside the bow was a quiver, in which a large quantity of arrows hid, and on top of that, and archer's glove and arm guard. Merevaika put both on, feeling the soft, cool feel of the leather. She stretched her hand and bent her arm, ensuring the flexibility. Once satisfied with the fit, she grabbed the quiver, before making a sign to Denviel to follow.

They stole out of the tent as silently and stealthily as they could, as if they had robbed it. But Merevaika was pleased to say that the possessions she had with her, well, most of them anyway, had been bought with well-earned money. With honest money.

The concept of money and stealing were still ones she found hard to comprehend - or wished she found hard to comprehend. Possession was a strange word; the birds and the animals, they possessed nothing. They took what they needed from the land around and that was enough for them. The whole of nature provided for itself: Grass was food for deer, deer were food for predators, and when those predators died, their body returned to the soil. The circle of life. Her father had taught her that. Caiyha's domain had the cycle, and for that she respected the goddess. Every hunt went to her. She only wished she could repay her.

So when had ownership ever entered human lives? Why did they suddenly need to claim items, and claim that taking them was illegal, a punishable act? Merevaika understood bits of it. After all, humans were hopeless without anything. They could not work, or sleep, or hunt or eat without tools to guide them through life. They needed clothes for warmth due to lack of fur, they needed weapons to hunt and fight due to lack of claws and sharp teeth. Merevaika supposed that came into it. Their tools became their own, and people didn't want to give them up. They needed them. Perhaps this need to keep the things that kept them alive spread.

Merevaika shook her head. She was thinking to hard. Those thought weren't needed, not in her life. Her life consisted of more useful thoughts. Thoughts concerning food and hunting. Thoughts she should be thinking. She would be lucky to catch something today. That was what her main thought should be.
Last edited by Merevaika on June 17th, 2015, 6:08 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Postby Merevaika on June 17th, 2015, 5:56 am

Eryunt snorted, stamping the ground. He did that whenever Merevaika took too long with her human thoughts. Merevaika grinned, first settling the yvas pad upon him, then the yvas itself. She adjusted both to fit snugly on his back, before tightening the straps. He relaxed, ears dropping. Glad, perhaps, that they were finally leading? She gave another smile, pulling herself onto Eryunt's back with her bow in one hand and quiver strapped beside her leg for easy access.

Giving Denviel, who was marking his scent on a nearby tuft of grass, a short whistle, Merevaika urged her strider forward, letting him lead the way. He was the one carrying her after all, and so he would be the one to set the pace and direction. Thankfully, he broke into a faster gait, heading towards the sea of grass.

Merevaika was glad that he was returning to familiar terrain. The woods of Riverfall were strange, the trees alien, but the city itself was worse. Unlike Endrykas, it wasn't designed with horses in mind, the pathways narrow and built on a cliff face. Excursions into the city were often alone, with Denviel left to guard Eryunt and the tent.

The smells drifted towards her, smells of dirt and grass. Living in the Sea of Grass, they were everywhere and indistinguishable, but the reek of the sea and salt contrasted so much with the smell even the drykas could smell it. Was this what animals always felt? If so, they were blessed. It was the smell of home.

After bells of riding, they stopped by a small stream. It was the perfect location to rest, with water for the horse and dog, and may have plenty of animal tracks. She slowed Eryunt, signalling to him that this was the place to stop. Glad for the break, he immediately headed to the water, the dismounting of Merevaika unnoticed by the horse preoccupied with its needs. Denviel joined the horse, taking even faster slurps.

Merevaika stepped away, surveying the nearby landscape for signs of animals. The ground was muddy, wet from the river - or rain, Merevaika couldn't tell - and was covered in marks, but they all blurred as one. Some were distinctively predator, with claws and paws, while others were hooves, but none were specific. Perhaps some were even from herself or another hunter.

She didn't know where to start. She could guess and try to follow a trail, but she might have picked one that had passed through days ago and was miles from here. Or, Merevaika might pick lucky, and try to follow the trail of an animal who passes only a bell or so before her. "Help me, Caiyha," she whispered, although knowing that even if the goddess heard her, she wouldn't help. It was more to give Merevaika herself the strength and faith she needed.

She cast one quick looked at the horse and dog, just to check they were alright. Eryunt was still drinking, enjoying the cool fresh water, but Denviel was more agitated, sniffing the surrounding area frantically.
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Postby Merevaika on June 17th, 2015, 6:00 am

"What is it boy?" she asked, coming over. Denviel gave a friendly bark, stepping back to reveal his discovery. Small clots of dried blood, and it didn't look too old. The scent was strong enough for Denviel to smell anyway, strong enough to be picked up from all the other animal smells Merevaika was certain could be found in the area.

Merevaika examined them, trying to make sense of the tracks. The blood was from a wounded animal, that was certain, but could the tracks reveal anything else about it, or would the hunt be blind? She coughed a little, before returning to the tracks.

There were some slightly clearer prints, hooves close together. They seemed to belong to the wounded animal, but Merevaika wasn't certain. She could just be seeing something for the sake of it. "Denviel, follow the scent," she ordered, watching the dog sniff away at the ground. He seemed to understand, following tiny droplets or smears. They corresponded with the tracks that Merevaika had seen.

She bent over beside them, trying to draw further meaning. They were close together, what could that mean? The animal was small, perhaps? That didn't seem right however. Merevaika stepped to one side, away from the tracks to avoid destroying them. She tried walking in various ways, comparing the distance of her prints. It became clear once she had done so. Walking slower, as if injured, left a much shorter distance than a run. She smiled. The hunter would keep that in mind.

Merevaika walked forward, trying to picture the animal in question. She came up with the longed horn gazelle, the most common animal in the surrounding area. Trying to picture it moving along, she tried to match up the prints. It didn't work too well. There were deeper prints and lighter ones, which would have meant something to an experienced tracker, but not to Merevaika. Occasionally there was a gash in the dirt beside the lone prints, leading through thicker grass. When the grass started hiding the dirt, Merevaika called Eryunt, mounting him, before following her dog through the grass.

Denviel was made for this. He sniffed the ground occasionally, but led them quickly and efficiently, straight along the trail. Merevaika was thankful for having him. Perhaps without a dog, she could have tried to track the gazelle, but it would have been a whole lot harder. Not to mention slower.

The dog suddenly stopped, ears pricked and tail alert. Merevaika stopped behind him, looking around. Only a little bit further was their quarry. It limped slowly, back leg injured, and although it had seen the huntress and her animals, it was helpless, unable to run.

Merevaika almost felt bad for preparing to take the animal's life. But if she didn't, when it did die, the meat would be wasted. And Merevaika would still be hungry.
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Postby Merevaika on June 17th, 2015, 6:05 am

At a stop, she pulled an arrow from the quiver, fingering the feather at its end. Merevaika debated whether to approach. If she did, the gazelle might still try to run, fearing its life. That would mean a chase.

She didn't care. The risk was worth it. The animal was injured anyway.

She signaled to Denviel, telling him to be ready to go after the deer just in case. She then angled her strider slightly, ready to ride in the opposite direction. Then, she notched the arrow, pulling back the horse string. Her legs tightened around Eryunt, their breathing synchronised. She tried to steady her arm, arrow pointed towards the gazelle. Taking a deep breath she released, before instantly getting into the position to ride again, eyes following the path of the arrow.

It had missed, landing by the quarry's hooves. The startled gazelle leapt up, with a cry of pain, and bounded off as quickly as it could, but Denviel was already after it, growling and barking. It darted left and right, trying to throw him off, but the animal was too slow, and was unable to lose the dog.

Merevaika kicked Eryunt forward, guiding him round to face the gazelle straight on. She tightened her grip with her legs, this time even tighter to stay on the moving horse. Fumbling with an arrow, she managed to steady it and begin to aim. The huntress called out to Denviel, ordering him to fall back and away from the gazelle. She didn't want to shoot him instead.

This time the shot was much more hurried, zooming through the air with a whoosh. It landed in the animals back, not too far of the original wound. The gazelle fell, the pain of the new wound mixing with the old one. That was the only reason. If it hadn't been injured, Merevaika would have lost that arrow to the gazelle that would have ran off without a care. Of course, if it was healthy Merevaika wouldn't have found it in the first place.

She dismounted her horse and immediately broke into a run, joined by her dog. They approached the gazelle carefully, unsure whether or not it would get back up again. It could always kick. And that could hurt.

She approached from the side, hoping that it was the best way. Merevaika didn't know exactly how you were meant to approach a downed gazelle, but what she was doing felt right. Reaching out with her bow, she poked it, watching it twitch. The gazelle moved its head a little, stretching out its neck. It was as if it was asking for the pain to end.

Merevaika pulled out her knife, grabbing the gazelle's head tightly with her other arm. With one quick movement and without a second's thought, she made a deep slit, feeling the animal's spirit leave its body. It was dead.
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Postby Merevaika on June 17th, 2015, 6:07 am

First, Merevaika would leave a piece for the goddess Caiyha. She sawed off one of the ears, before placing it to the side, giving a quick thanks to the goddess of nature. That done, she turned to her portion of the kill.

The horns were the most prominent part, and looked like they could sell well. They were at least 25 inches long, and she wouldn't doubt that they were longer, and they were thick too. The rest of the gazelle wasn't in too bad a shape, although it wasn't the fattest one possible.

The worst part was the reason Merevaika was able to catch it: the leg. The meat and skin was torn, meaning a good bit would go to waste. No, not waste - someone or something would have it, even if it was just fed to the dogs, but it wasn't the most desirable thing.

Merevaika rose, signing to Eryunt for him to come closer and kneel. Hopefully, the weight of this extra animal wouldn't bother him too much. Slowly, she shifted the gazelle off the ground and onto the kneeling horse, trying to adjust it so it wouldn't be uncomfortable for the strider and so it wouldn't slip off. When she was satisfied with the position, she got the horse to rise, holding the gazelle on just in case. Then, she pulled the gazelle's legs under the horse's belly and tied them together, securing it in place further.

After that the rope work was messy and rather pointless, looping around the gazelle, around the horse and around the yvas. None of it was incredibly useful, but Merevaika felt that it could help, if the gazelle did seem to slip off.

Next, she herself mounted, adjusting for the extra load. Eryunt shifted uncomfortably but didn't protest, and immediately set of with a light trot. So he wanted to get the weight of as quickly as possible then. Merevaika didn't blame him. She too would go as fast as she could if it meant that at the end she would be load free. That didn't make her dismount, however, as she knew that if she walked, it would take too long to return to Riverfall. Eryunt could take just a little extra wait for the ride home. She would be sure to treat him to some apples when the got back.

As they made the journey home, Merevaika used it to decide what to do with the gazelle. There was a pelt shop, somewhere, so she could always go there to get it skinned. Perhaps they even bought meat there too, which would mean one less trip for her.

If not, she would look around for a good place to sell it, a place where she could get the most mizas out of what she had. The injured leg she would keep for herself, as it wasn't the best quality, but the rest could all be sold. And that injured leg could feed her and her dog, perhaps Kei as well. She didn't know if he would accept it, but she could offer a little. Although Merevaika hoped he would have food of his own. That would certainly help her out. Merevaika smiled. And to think that this morning the problem was if she would even get a kill.
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Hunting in the Sun

Postby Tribal on August 26th, 2015, 6:18 am

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R U L E S

Merevaika

Experience

  • Organisation: 1
  • Observation: 4
  • Philosophy: 1
  • Animal Husbandry: 2
  • Riding, Horse: 2
  • Wilderness Survival, Plains: 2
  • Tracking: 1
  • Logic: 1
  • Weapon, Shortbow: 1
  • Running: 1
  • Hunting: 2

Lore

  • Merevaika: Caiyha's domain is to be respected
  • Logic: People steal to survive
  • Eryunt: An impatient mount
  • The Sea of Grass: The smell of home
  • Animal Husbandry: Training Denviel to lead the hunt
  • Merevaika: Praying to Caiyha
  • Tracking: Following a blood trail
  • Tracking a wounded animal with a hunting dog
  • Mounted Combat: Using a weapon while riding
  • Putting an animal out of its misery
  • Merevaika: An offering for the goddess

Loot

1 x gazelle Merevaika can sell for 43 GM or keep to eat and butcher herself.

Notes

Great little hunting thread! Enjoy the rewards.
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Lost in the Tall Grass
 
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