Completed What goes up, must come down.

Summer job thread 4

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The Diamond of Kalea is located on Kalea's extreme west coast and called as such because its completely made of a crystalline substance called Skyglass. Home of the Alvina of the Stars, cultural mecca of knowledge seekers, and rife with Ethaefal, this remote city shimmers with its own unique light.

What goes up, must come down.

Postby Raeyn on June 29th, 2018, 2:14 pm

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19th of Summer 518AV

Willow goose meat was somewhat of a favourite, gamey meal of the Lhavit people. Especially in the summer once the inner city flocks were ripe for the picking, it was officially hunting season on these delicious wild birds. And who better to undertake the task of shooting them out of the sky than the city's very own ranged hunters. Raeyn being one of them.

He was contracted, along with a few others to man the fields of green along the Sharai peak. All archers he was very much familiar with after many years of venturing out in the unforgiving alone. But the hunt of pika and rabbits and the hunt of birds in flight were two completely different matters. The men split along the mountainside. Each with their own terrain to watch. Once the birds started showing up their would pick them off mid flight, one by one, scaring them in the direction of the next hunter just a few hundred feet away. It was quite an elaborate way of hunting but it sure as hell made the job far easier. And nobody who lived in the Misty Peaks ever wanted to make their life more difficult than it needed to be.

Much like the rest of his peers, Raeyn found himself a place to set up camp for the day. A little picnic blanket which Mara had packed for him along with some simple sandwiches and a blueberry tart as a treat for later, now lay splayed on the grass. Ruru had already found himself the comfiest spot, right in the centre where he now lay with his belly pointing towards Syna's sky. At the Edge Raeyn himself was perched, patiently polishing his bow, ensuring the string was pulled correctly and the feathers of his arrows had no bends in them. he had been waiting most of the morning to stop the flocks of wild geese in the sky so far with little luck.

"Darn it, Raeyn. You already took this spot." yelled a couple of hunters from the distance who were evidently arriving late to the party. "Which way?"

"Next time don't be late!" he replied in quite decent spirits to be certain. He waved his hand, pointing them in the direction. "Down the mointain a little. Head a little farther east. We saved you two lazy arses some spaces. If you hit the stream you've gone too far."

The Inarta hunter rubbed Ruru's belly roughly, to the pure glee of the animal, as he saw the two hunters off. once again in solitude, it was a waiting game. It wasn't his first rodeo by far. Albeit this time he was far better equipped to do the job with a far better aim than previous years had seen from him. It was going to be a lazy day, comparing to other hunts he had been on. He liked days like this where he could lay back and relax knowing that if he petched up the job, somebody else would pick up his slack.

It was then the the first call of the wild birds echoed from beyond the hill and like a torrent, all at once the mists became peppered with speckly birds. Raeyn jumped to his feed, bow in hand and aimed at the first winged creature he saw. A moment to adjust his aim to it's flight path and the arrow was released, hitting the neck and plummeting down to the ground, along with the suffocating animal. He didn't quite have the time to see where it fell. The fields would be scoured by helpers later anyway. He had mere moments to comb the sky for as many Willow geese as his eyes could see and his arrows could hit.


WORD COUNT: 624
Last edited by Raeyn on July 8th, 2018, 6:38 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Raeyn
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What goes up, must come down.

Postby Raeyn on June 29th, 2018, 2:26 pm

It was a lucky shot. The next might not be quite so good. As the watched the hunting dog race across the grass and bark as loud as the creature's lungs would let it, Raeyn placed himself in his happy place. The temple of Syna by the roaring flames that calmed his mind. It seemed his memories returned to that day quite often whenever he needed to focus on something as hard as this.

He breathed and steadied his heart rate using the meditation techniques he practiced so many times as of late. His mind filled with nothing but one great motivator; money. Even the voices in his head have to take a back seat to that as his eyes zoned in on another great fat bird that flew just a little too close to the hunter.

It seemed injured. Or perhaps it was just it's weight slowing it down. In spring and early summer the hunters had a habit of tossing bread out for the Willow geese to fatten them up and slow them down for easy pickings. Once again the hunter knocked on another arrow around the anchor point of his bow string. He rested it in the little groove that his thumb created against the wood of the bow. A ledge to stabilise it. Turning it diagonally to the ground Raeyn pulled back the bow string swiftly and aimed, willing for his muscles toto withstand the draw weight.

His hands shook a tiny bit so Raeyn's breathing stopped completely. Everything seemed to slow down as his brain quickly made an estimation of the bird's flight patterns. Against the arrow was released and again it hit the target.

Raeyn 2; birds 0


WORD COUNT: 284
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What goes up, must come down.

Postby Raeyn on June 29th, 2018, 2:42 pm

Ruru's cacophony of barking seemed to confused the geese who'se whole formation broke up completely. Some reached went for higher altitudes where the mists obscured their presence completely. Others flew lower and even closer to the hunter. Those, the stupid ones, were the one's Raeyn focused on. There was no point going for honour kills when the easy ones were basically begging him to shoot them down.

One bird became even so startled than it flew close enough to the ground for the dog to leap up and snatch it right out of the air with it's sharp teeth, breaking the creature's neck. To him this was play. Much like when his master threw him a ball to catch, this exercise served a similar purpose. Only from the dog's point of view all the weird large balls had wings.

"Come come." Raeyn smiled. The thrill of the hunt finally allowed him to blow off some steam from a quarter of a season of odd occurrences.

Fingers quickly tumbled for another arrow before the chance was gone. Once again he aimed, at a bird which had split off from the rest, now flying in a completely different direction. Raeyn's red, tied up hair made a pretty decent wind catcher so he adjusted the aim to compensate the force of the wind. Raising it a little higher so that the arch of trajectory didn't leave the arrow falling short of the target, he released and watch the arrow tear though the air, then flesh, then bone and one more bird dropped to the ground unceremoniously. Indeed he was keeping count. Including Ruru's kill this made for four dead birds. Already he was doing far better than last season.

Satisfied that the massive flock was on the right path towards the next group of hunters, Raeyn knocked on yet another arrow and aimed just as carefully. He was sure to pick another easy target. His eyes zoned in on it like the eyes of a hawk, suddenly seeing nothing else but it's pray.

There were few things that brought him closer to his Inarta kin than the hunt. In his prowess and strength Raeyn strived to embody a wind eagle. The creatures always fascinated him so. And even though no mortal could ever compare to the incredible hunting skills of those birds back from Wind Reach, a man needed ideals.

Raeyn bit down on his lip, stopping his breath to stop his hands from shaking beneath the draw weight of his bow. Then he breathed out, paused, and released the arrow. But he overshot the target. Loosing sight of the arrow Raeyn cursed loudly.

WORD COUNT: 441
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What goes up, must come down.

Postby Raeyn on June 29th, 2018, 3:01 pm

It wasn't a time to chase after stray arrows however. As the Willow geese slowly started disappearing from view in the direction of another hunter, Raeyn's eyes picked another straggler to kill. This time a smaller guy who'se wings flapped desperately in an attempt to keep up with it's elders. A runt of the bunch, perhaps a later hatch. Birds like this didn't make it long in the mountains where one's weaknesses often meant certain death among the animal folk for the environment of the Misty Peaks was traitorous at best and downright deadly on the worse days. A lucky bird whose luck was about to run out.

Taking a spring towards the far side of the hill in order to get a cleaner shot, the hunter planted his feet firmly in the dewy grass and aimed another broad arrow. He had it! He was so certain. A well aimed arrow could outrun any bird in flight.

And so another arrow was released. With an agonising cry the little guy fell to the ground. Raeyn didn't quite get a clean shot on it. But the broad tip of the game arrow shattered it's wing and so the creature didn't have long to live as it bleed out in the grass. Sharp god teeth would see it's end as Ruru sprang over to fetch the prey for his master.

Quite a heat of dead willow geese, some in a better shape than others, was now building up on Raeyn's blanket. Soon it became soaked with blood. But the hunter couldn't' complain. More birds meant more money and more money meant more freedom in this city.

The Inarta hunter was indeed ambitious. Sometimes the ambition would carry him far, other time it would prove to his downfall. But one thing was always a constant. He always approached every single task with the same burning ambition. An egoistical need to be the best at what he did. He reckoned he'd be able to get yet another kill before the flock completely disappeared from view. Although he was now aiming at little more than black and brown, speckled tails, he'd do his damnedest to try make the shot.

As he often found out, hurried shots never land and so for this one he took his time. he told himself it was alright to miss. A steady breath cleared his mind and zoned in on the last bird who'se life he'd try to take. With a swift move and a strain on his biceps, the Inarta pulled back the bow string with the the arrow firmly placed against it. Tail feathers swayed in the wind which was slowly starting to pick up.

He kept his bow almost completely vertical, adjusting it for a long distance shot. In his mind he calculated the trajectory, adjusting it a little for the creature's flight path which was no complicated task as the bird was flying directly away from him. Albeit his calculations now became more of a gut estimate than anything he could truly be sure of. Raeyns steadied his hand and gritted his teeth, releasing the arrow.

Once more he missed. A pity. he had been so sure he could make that shot but it was not to be so. Regardless his chance to make any more kills flew away with the remainder of the flocks but he wasn't disheartened. Considering the difficulty of hunting geese in this manner, he considered himself to have done rather well. A well deserved pat on the back waited for Raeyn and a rather delicious sweet treat, prepared by his sister.

WORD COUNT: 600
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What goes up, must come down.

Postby Raeyn on June 29th, 2018, 3:14 pm

With a mouth full of delicious blueberry tart, Raeyn began sorting though the birds, checking they were all sufficiently dead and none shown signs of illness. It was a common occurrence every year during a hunt like this. The easiest kills were always the sick ones and no one wanted to eat sick meat.

But then something else had grabbed his attention. The familiar goose calls echoed across the mountainside once more, coming back in his direction. But what was going on? Had one the hunters downhill messed up the job and failed to adequately heard the birds in the right direction? Raeyn wouldn't have been surprised if that was the case. He was once the perpetrator of a similar mistake himself, albeit many many years back back when he was still a youth and had his father by his side to help him correct his mistakes. And it seemed now it was time to take on that role of a father to some of the younger hunters.

He already had an arrow waiting for the first goose face that showed up out of the heavy mists that swallowed up the peak. A little too soon did he release the arrow that missed the target quite spectacularly but it did the job, startling the bird and sending it flying in the right direction, taking a load of other Willow Geese with it. The flock mentality taking over and causing them to follow the leader out of fear and confusion.

It seemed that this one megaflock had shattered into several smaller formations however for not a lot of time passed and more birds came hurling though the air in Raeyn's direction. It was a pleasure to see for the hunter. Another chance to correct his mistakes and bring down a few more winged shikesters.

Again he aimed and again did he miss yet another target. But that flock too followed the first one, over the hill and out of sight where more experienced hunters hand a chance to pick them off. At this point Raeyn's arms were starting to rather ache from the exhaustion of drawing the bow over and over again. There were blueberry tart crumbs still clinging to his bottom lip. He was a man of ambition however. That was true. And he didn't pay much attention to those thing until the job was done.


WORD COUNT: 396
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What goes up, must come down.

Postby Raeyn on June 29th, 2018, 3:26 pm

That was when he saw it. The thing that was terrifying the birds. From where Raeyn stood it was just a dark blood in the sky, the size of a man but with the wing span to rival that of wind eagles. Like an ominous haze it circled the hillside at such high an altitude that at first Raeyn though his eyes were deceiving him.

He felt panic freeze his spine in place as a silent prayer to Syna flowed from his lips. Fingers tumbled for an arrow as fast as he could possibly muster, almost dropping it before managing to, with a shaky grip, knock it onto his bow string. Eyes of disbelief followed the silhouetted long, slow circle around the mountain as he aimed.

It was a Zith. He was sure of it. Not that he had ever seen one of those terrifying beasts in person, but he had heard enough stories from Kalean mages who had the misfortune of almost loosing their lives to these primitive, vile beasts. There was no doubt about it. And if the bastards were as fearsome as the stories told, he stood no chance.

From behind his arrow tip, Raeyn watched as the black blob in the sky completed it's circle and flew for the eastern wall where it disappeared out of sight. He could have pissed his pants, such fear had overtaken him that even once he no longer had eyes on the Zith, he was still shaking.

Was it scouting out the city? It if wanted to it could have attacked the hunters and picked them off one by one just as they picked off the birds but it didn't do so. Instead it seemed to purposefully stay out of the range of their arrows, only staring at them. And if one Zith was hiding just beyond city walls, could there be more of them. Had anyone else spotted it?

So many questions filled Raeyn's mind that he didn't even know where to start. And then the voice came...

Follow it Raeyn. Go find it, bring it's head home as a trophy. Be brave little hunter.

As Ruru came closer to check on his master for the dog was well and truly fearless even faced with a Zith in it's path, Raeyn's head spun. We was well and truly confused and did not know what to do.

WORD COUNT: 398
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What goes up, must come down.

Postby Raeyn on June 29th, 2018, 3:41 pm

"Raeyn! Raeyn! What the hell are you just standing there for you lunatic!?" came the screams of the two hunter boys who had previously asked him for directions. They hurried towards the Inarta, looking just as shaken as he was. "Did you see that thing? What the hell was it doing all the way over here?"

Raeyn struggled for words as they came closer.

"We hid in the reeds at the sea bank the moment we heard the horns going off. That petch came right over our heads. I could have sworn it's eyes pierced right though my soul." cried the first one.

"Horns? What horns?" asked Raeyn with a quiet, trembling voice. His mind scoured for answers.

"Did you not hear them?" asked the second boy. "The alarm horns. They came just as it came from the eastern wall. Whoever was on patrol there sounded the alarm."

A horror of realisation washed over the first hunter. "You mean, you didn't hear? Then that means the guys up the mountain are in danger."

"No." Raeyn shook his head, sighing with relief. If the kids were to be believed that meant most of the hunting party further down the mountain was safe. Perhaps in spite of the terror presence, there would be no Lhavit casualties today. "I watched it turn around and fly off to the east. It seemed to only be patrolling."

"Patrolling?" the two boys echoed in unison. None of the hunters knew whether it was the right time to relax or fear for their lives. And it was unlikely that the master hunters not the Shinya would tell them anything. The presence of Zith was far too big a thread to the mountain city.


WORD COUNT: 286
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Raeyn
...and the Wind Chicken
 
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What goes up, must come down.

Postby Raeyn on June 29th, 2018, 3:51 pm

Eventually the whole massive hunting party was gathered and a geadcout was undertaken. It seemed all who signed up were to return home to their families safe and sound. Quite the crop of birds was hunted down too. But that's not what would be remembered from today. The real talk of the town on everyone's mind would be the Zith sighting, especially since as of late it wasn't the only one.

When Mara found out just how much danger her brother had found himself in, shike hit the fan. She hadn't stopped yelling the whole night. The Inarta household had really kept quite a few of their neighbours up that night and Raeyn's assurances of his safety would not calm her.

The season had barely begun and already so many strange things have taken place.


WORD COUNT: 135
WORD COUNT TOTAL: 3164
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Raeyn
...and the Wind Chicken
 
Posts: 343
Words: 310107
Joined roleplay: May 24th, 2018, 11:35 pm
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Lhavit Seasonal Challenge (1)

What goes up, must come down.

Postby Luminescence on July 7th, 2018, 1:22 pm

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✧・゚: *✧・゚:* *:・゚✧*:・゚✧
YOUR GRADES HAVE BEEN GIFTED
ENJOY!
✧・゚: *✧・゚:* *:・゚✧*:・゚✧

Raeyn

Skills
✦Observation +5
✦Cleaning +1
✦Socialization +2
✦Animal Husbandry +1
✦Hunting +5
✦Weapon: Shortbow +5
✦Meditation +1
✦Mathematics +2
✦Endurance +2


Lores
✦Willow goose: A favourite meat for Lhavitians
✦Hunting: Birds are very different from small mammals
✦Hunting: It's easier in a group
✦Cleaning: Polishing a bow
✦Raeyn: The Temple of the Sun is his happy place
✦Money: A good motivator
✦Hunting: Fattening birds up before their season makes them easier targets
✦Lore of estimating a bird's flight pattern
✦Hunting: No use trying for hard kills
✦Mathematics: Accounting for drop in arrow trajectory
✦Raeyn: Strives for the ideals of a Wind Eagle
✦Raeyn: Ambitious in all he does
✦Raeyn: Always has to be the best
✦Hunting: Checking kills
✦Zith: Huge, terrifying, and vile beasts
✦Endurance: Barely keeping composure while terrified
✦Zith: A confusing and threatening presence in Lhavit
✦Summer 518 AV: Just started, and already a strange season


Notes
You and these job threads! :P And also poor Rae, he got spooked good!


As always, please don't forget to edit or delete your grading request in the queue! If you have any questions or concerns regarding your grades, don't hesitate to shoot me a PM; I'll do what I can to fix whatever the issue may be!


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