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+--- Thread: An Icy Grave (/showthread.php?tid=11478)
An Icy Grave - V-Onyx-Three - Sep 02 2023
Any trek beyond Pegasus used to be considered a long journey for him, an arduous task that required breaks to rest before pressing on. But with age and frequent trips to visit the Blacksmith in Leo, Onyx-Three had gained an increase in stamina. Now trips to Ursa did not require any breaks at all. He felt confident enough in his skill with the bow and arrow as well as close combat that he had brought up the idea of trying to fight an ice beast to the Sentinel. The meadow deer in Pegasus might've posed a challenge as well, but he did not think they would be as difficult. And they also stuck around in herds which was really annoying. Ice beasts had a sense of mysteriousness due to their rarity, and Ursa was also a cave much less frequented in comparison to the others he knew of. Hopefully the one he found was big.
The Sentinel had come along of course, but Onyx-Three had requested that his father not interfere until it seemed like he was going to die. This would be different than training. There was always a distinct difference in sparring and fighting without holding back.
Cold winds blew the falling snow in a shallow diagonal, the icy substance catching onto his fur, tinging it with white. He had adjusted his stance onto all fours so there would be less resistance against the wind. Onyx-Three had been so used to a bipedal stance from his training that it felt strange now to walk like this. The quiver filled with Event Horizon enchanted arrows shifted from side to side with every step. He had found a way to attach a loop onto it to carry the dagger as well. Onyx-Three had barely ever used these arrows, too afraid to snap them to use without good reason.
He could feel nervousness begin to sink in already, even though he had not yet spotted a target. They had proposed this expedition, and it was of great necessity that they win. The Sentinel would be watching. Two sets of eyes squinted as they tried to catch a glimpse of an ice beast- or perhaps even a scent trail would be picked up on.
@The Sentinel
RE: An Icy Grave - The Sentinel - Sep 02 2023
The Sentinel would have looked, if one hadn't known any better, like a stalker.
He was lurking quite far back, so much so that if a strong wind picked up and tossed the powder snow into a blizzard, he'd have had to resort to magic to find his spawn again. Against the white, he was just a stark, black figure standing menacingly at the edge of Onyx-Three's vision. Of course, if one did know any better, they might have seen his presence as reassuring, instead.
His tracks--deep gouges left in the snowbanks--were being gradually covered over. He had, of course, warned his child of the dangers of Ursa: of Order and its creatures. It was the polar opposite of Draco, in more ways than one: cold and wide-open to Draco's hot and enclosed space, near-lifeless and still to Draco's pulsing and breathing.
Idly, he reached for his chaotic magic, wondering if he could summon something to help him keep a closer watch. He'd already accidentally thrown spores at his children; that helped, to some extent, feeding him a vague idea of what was happening. But what of something better? -Instead, though, he jolted as a feeling of sharper magic jittered through the air around him, hissing as it electrified snow and wind alike. He said nothing, but noted the brief charge and then dismissed it, wondering what else he'd been expecting.
Attention, then, turned back to the distant figure of his child: Onyx-Three on the hunt.
The Sentinel remained silent, however, as requested: simply watching. Just in case.
@V-Onyx-Three
RE: An Icy Grave - V-Onyx-Three - Sep 02 2023
Onyx-Three tried not to stray too far from the Sentinel, occasionally glancing back to catch a flash of black against pure white snow before proceeding. It was reassuring to know he was there, even if it also brought them an increased sense of nervousness at wanting to impress.
Ursa could be dangerous in more ways than one- ice beasts were not the only things to be afraid of here. Order, for one. It would be best to get this started as quickly as possible. What if it took hours to find one? The thought made him more aware of the chill starting to seep through his thick fur. But he knew that movement brought warmth, and pulled his focus back towards tracking one down.
There was a faint scent in the air- and were those footprints? Maybe, maybe not. It was not easy to tell in the snow. Only a moment later the trail was lost, and he was once again aimless. An ear swiveled back at the sound of hissing, but it was only the sound of the Sentinel's magic rather than an ice beast.
RE: An Icy Grave - V-Onyx-Three - Sep 02 2023
He pressed on, pausing to lick his nose every so often to prevent frostbite and also because it helped amplify his smell. This was much more frustrating than hunting in Pegasus, which at least had variation in scenery and a variety of other things to keep you preoccupied while you were tracking prey. Ursa was just white. A void of blank emptiness where the snow covered up all signs of existence. It was not easy to know where one was going, or where one had come from. It was easy to get lost.
Onyx-Three wasn't even sure how long he had spent in Ursa. The cold had a numbing effect on the mind as well, both sharpening focus as well as making it hard to think. He wondered if that would have any impact on his fighting performance.
RE: An Icy Grave - V-Onyx-Three - Sep 02 2023
He was wasting time. There was still no ice beast to be found, and his energy was flagging. Onyx-Three knew that one could not fight in a tired state anyway, so there was no point to continue looking for now. He found a flatter spot to rest. His extremities were numb, and as he rubbed his hands together, he found his fingers could feel nothing. Not that there was anything to feel but the cold.
Once some energy returned to his limbs, Onyx-Three set out once more. He was refreshed now, and it seemed like a much less daunting task now that he was energized. His nose stayed close to the ground, searching for tracks as his eyes continued to scan around him.
RE: An Icy Grave - Game Master Dark - Sep 02 2023
This creature was almost invisible, by comparison: motionless, an outcrop of shaggy icicles, lying flat atop a higher snow-covered ledge. It seemed to be resting, and doing so in a place that granted it vision over the plains of snow below, its white eyes scanning the mountainside, though its flanks were to Onyx-Three and it had not yet seen him coming.
It was not the largest of its kind, maybe nine feet long in total, but the shaggy white fur and branching antlers gave it a sense of ancient presence, as though it were an ancient god or spirit of its domain.
@V-Onyx-Three
RE: An Icy Grave - V-Onyx-Three - Sep 02 2023
His eyes almost missed it, the white fur allowing it to blend nearly seamlessly into the landscape. But it looked just irregular enough that led him to pause, and stare at the lump just a bit longer. There seemed to be something- antlers? branching off of it as well. That was an ice beast alright. It did not seem to have spotted him just yet, which evened the odds considering it did have the high ground. Onyx-Three was unable to see the full size of the lesser from this angle, but even so, it was smaller than expected. It felt strange to be able to be in the presence of the beast. Their eyes were filled with awe yet also fear- the kind that one may feel when seeing a mythical creature.
Onyx-Three glanced at the Sentinel and motioned at the ice beast as if to say 'look! I found it!' with a child-like sort of excitement. Maybe the cold really was making them crazy. He took the bow into his hands and cocked an enchanted arrow. They were here to win. It was important that he land as many shots as possible before it came within close combat range, which would render his arrows useless. Onyx-Three was starting to realize just how lucky he was that he had the element of surprise. The easiest target from his position to spot was the tail and the legs. It was unclear how useful it would be to attack the tail, whereas legs were essential to movement no matter the creature.
Ready, aim, fire- he let the arrow loose, and quickly moved to cock in another one in its place.
RE: An Icy Grave - Game Master Dark - Sep 03 2023
Jaws gaped in a warning for a split second, rows of backward-facing razor teeth gleaming, its white eyes pinned on its attacker. It could not understand, of course, how it'd been struck from so far away: but a brief appraisal seemed to tell it that this was a fight it did not want. V-Onyx-Three stood taller than the Ice Beast was long, and that jet black silhouette appeared to intimidate it: it turned, scrambling and limping, vanishing down behind its ledge and into the snow on the other side, out of sight.
At the very least, it would leave a trail of blood to follow.
@V-Onyx-Three
RE: An Icy Grave - V-Onyx-Three - Sep 03 2023
It surprised them how much damage the arrow did, even if they had expected the effects of magic. He prepared himself for an attack, but instead it chose to run away. Darn. This was not something he had expected. Onyx-Three was here to fight! Not to chase after some ice beast who he had expected would be much larger and frightening. Bow and arrows were returned to the quiver, as he had found from experience it was not easy to run at all with them in hand.
The snow was stained now with a trail of blood, the scent of it activating a hunting instinct within. He dropped onto all fours, sprinting after the ice beast in smooth, long strides that looked a lot more like a series of leaps. It was a slow start at first considering the bulk of the quiver, but Onyx-Three eventually fell into a steady gait. Surely the ice beast wouldn't be able to get away. Where would it even go? To find a friend? Were ice beasts solitary creatures? Maybe he should've done more research.
RE: An Icy Grave - The Sentinel - Sep 03 2023
And-... gone.
Vanished into the white: first prey, then would-be predator. A soft grunt escaped The Sentinel.
Blue ethereal wings spread from his back and lifted him, and rather than fly close to the ground as was his habit, he raised high to try and see over the ridge; at this moment, the magic simply... stopped.
The very much non-winged creature was dropped from a height of some twenty-five feet before his half-light-blinded eyes could pick out his child, and were there not a blanket of snow below, he'd have surely been returned to his chrysalis. As it was, he went down hard regardless, a snap beneath him followed by a sharp, agonizing bloom of pain. He made to stand--and could not, not without hobbling on one foot, not without raising himself up with the halberd.
Alarm snapped his head back upward, toward where Onyx-Three had disappeared to.
He could not help the child now, not even if he wanted to.
The Sentinel began a limping shuffle forward, half-dragging and half-carrying the broken leg in the air, but his speed was nothing compared to the nimble child who'd already vanished into the white.
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