Out of the Darkness (Closed)

[Aello]

Winter 51, 511 AV Aello moved through the Wildlands in silence, following the dark outline of the trees with her eyes. The way they sparkled in the pale moonlight, after having been kissed relentlessly by the ice queen herself. The frost that sank into their diamond-patterned backs, rough like a snake's skin, glistened. Droplets of moisture fell away from the tree's boughs, falling silently through the cool night air, until they met with the cold earth. Hardened by the weather. They plopped, splattering the terrain inaudibly as Aello made her way through, in search for a place to set up camp for the night. The aurist had found nothing suitable so far. Not enough of a stretch of uninhabited space to set up a fire safely. Build a shelter out of mud and sticks, the occasional leaf. Forcing her to keep searching. To keep on scanning the terrain with her wary eyes as she dragged herself along. Her things; and her companion, Yune, who was resting peacefully on her shoulder. Sound asleep, thin tendrils of silver mist spiraling past her tiny beak as she breathed in and out. As her chest rose and fell, silently, softly. Over and over again. Aello's hand tightened around her bow as she moved through a line of trees, into a denser portion of the forest. Her thumb danced over the delicate curve of the wood, serving to calm her, as her breath became more shallow. She was worried about what lurked in the night.

[Damian]

The forest, dense with woods and evergreen trees, shadowed the powder blue surface of snow. The moon's rays glinted off each delicate flake as they rested upon each other and shined like tiny diamonds. The shadows and swayed as if alive. They danced their way across the surface carefree as a butterfly in spring. Within the shadows, creatures of the night stirred, predators no doubt. Their prey tucked away in a cozy borrow or in a nest comforted by the warmth of a knot hole within a tree. Damian knew this as his matte black body, seemed to manifest out of the shadows that danced so freely. His body almost appeared to match the shadows against the ice and snow perfectly, one would almost mistake the dog as one. His nose buried into the cold ice as he continued to trace the scent of a rabbit. His thick paws crunched into the snow as he began to trot forward toward where the scent had traveled. From light, he moved back into shadows and vanished like a specter. The only sign of his existence was the, crunch, crunch, crunch of the ice under his weight. Moreover, it could of been the ominous glow of his eyes, a soft red almost a tint, that shined, pierced through the dark and seemed to float in the air. Deeper and deeper into the forest he traveled. All the while his nose picked up the subtle, trail of scent. Slowly it grew stronger and he knew he had grown closer to the rabbit's burrow. He stopped a moment as the scent veered off to the right. His tail swayed behind him as his floppy ears perked and picked up another sound. It sounded larger then rabbit, perhaps a sitikin or a chifenrat, both large nocturnal rodents that Damian had grown fond of their taste. No, it was heavier then that, a deer, no larger then hooves. Curiously, he began to move toward the sound. He slunk slowly through the bush toward the cautious steps that were being taken. Focused on the sound, he failed to catch the scent of a squalor asleep within some near by brush. The dirty brown bird woke with a start and fluttered off into the night's sky. Damian yipped and jumped away from the sudden flurry of noise. He landed with a slight grunt, his body posture quite alert. He figured he was only several yards away from whatever it was that made those loud crunching steps. Damian stopped to see if the steps grew further, if the creature had been scared off, or if he was in trouble. The sounds of an angry chicory bear as it charges you, was never a pleasant sound.

[Aello]

Aello moved through the forest with relative ease, although, she knew that without the aid of her magic to guide her through, she was making far more noise than usual. Stepping over fallen tree branches, and stumbling through patches of gnarled, twisted roots from time to time, along with the occasional bushy plant, complete with thorns, or sometimes, even burrs. As she kept on moving however, it got easier to see. Perhaps her eyes had dilated, and begun to adjust to travel through the darkness, or perhaps the moon was shining its light all the more brightly. Aello could not be certain, but, she knew she was being quieter, for her steps seemed far more muffled than before. There has to be a good place to set up camp somewhere around here, the spiritist thought as she forced herself to keep on moving. A small clearing, just large enough to set up a small fire, and a patch of space in which to sleep in relative comfort. Aello sighed. She missed being within a city's walls. She missed sleeping in a bed. She missed seeing other people. Talking to someone other than herself, or the animals that surrounded her. She was growing tired of having to keep going. Having to keep looking for a place to settle for yet another night. She wished, only, that she would happen upon some place, any place, away from Ravok. That she could start over there. Have a good life. A relatively normal life. For she knew, her life would never truly be normal. The girl smiled weakly as her grip tightened around her bow. As the cool nature of her cursed dagger continued to seep into her bones. "Eywaat," she whispered. "If you are watching over me right now. If you are listening, I want you to know of the joy your child Yune, has brought to my heart. How much joy all your bird's songs have brought. I only wish that I saw more of them, and that they could guide me back to a place where I belong, because I don't belong here. Not in the forest. I'm not like Jaeden..." A yip cut across the night, ending Aello's hushed prayer rather swiftly. Her eyes grew wide as she stopped dead in her tracks, and glanced from left to right. Her magic roared into life. Illuminating the forest which had once appeared so very dark. She could see Damian now, several feet ahead of her, by the side of a tree. His wispy red aura the color of her heart, which was beginning to pound. He is one who is not as he appears, Aello's mind whispered as she crept forward, whisking her magic and its whispers away. She was in no mood to listen, or tire herself any further. After she had taken several steps, Aello called out to Damian. "Hello!" The aurist paused a moment, allowing her words to rustle off the barren tree branches. "You seem a bit out of place boy. A dog far more suited for civilization than the Wildlands." She smiled weakly, as she finally turned a narrow bend, and caught sight of him. His glowing red eyes. She wasn't so sure she had ever seen anything like him, and if she had, it hadn't been for a very, very long time.

[Damian]

There weren't any odd sounds that alarmed Damian as he sat back onto his haunches. He was grateful for the slightly thicker fur during the winter season. He had walked around in the snow as a human and hated it so. He often wondered to himself as to why humans were cursed without weather protection? His tail swayed across the snowy surface as he relaxed a bit. However, the short period of tranquility in his mind was lost. "Hello!" Damian heard off, in the distance. He knew now it was a human that had made those steps. Even so, he didn't know where she was. His eyes darted around the forest as he stood back up, ears perked forward as much as they could. He panted a bit, breath visible in the night. A low excited growl began to form as more words were spoken to him. Damian understood every word but was unable, or more accurately, unwilling to reply in a form the human could understand. His eyes finally focused in on Aello as she rounded a tree trunk and into Damian's line of sight. He could make out her form clearly, though the colors never seemed to come through when he viewed the darkness. Slender, Damian was more surprised about such a delicate person could survive out in the forest. Damian had lived among the brush since puppy hood and was used to the creatures and noises within it. He knew how to find shelter; he even knew how to climb a tree. Aello however, appeared lost and out of place. He barked loudly as he adopted a friendlier posture. His tail wagged as he kept an eye on Aello. He was not a stranger to thieves and questionable people, which fueled his wariness of Aello's presence. He'd growl and back away a bit if Aello were to get to close to him. If Alleo could view his feelings, she would be able to see that the dog means no hostility toward her.

[Aello]

Aello smiled as she stared into Damian's deep red eyes. She could hear his tail wagging, hear it thumping against the back of his legs each time it shook back and forth. She laughed a little. "It's nice to meet you too," she called, as she took a few steps closer, extending her right hand towards the dog. Offering it to him to sniff, or perhaps lick. Whatever he wanted to do to get to know her, and come to realize that she meant him no harm. The girl was standing no more than ten feet away from him now. "Come on, it's alright," Aello cooed, willing him to come closer. "We're both just lost out here it seems, looking for other signs of life. Or perhaps, being frightened by it. It's sort of difficult for humans to tell the nature of a dog's calls. Although, it doesn't always seem too difficult for dogs to understand us." She chuckled as her eyes began to sparkle. The aurist could just make out the sound of her stomach beginning to rumble. "Which makes me wonder if you'd be interested in something to eat, just as much as I would be right now... it's getting so late, and I've yet to have dinner. Hopefully, there's something tasty in my pack, or something out here to eat." Aello paused, "not you of course. Something smaller would be suitable. A hare, or perhaps a few squirrels." The girl paused again. "You must like those." Her smile widened. She wondered how long it would take for the Kelvic to figure out that she knew.

[Damian]

His head tilted with curiosity when Aello approached him. He dipped his head down and sniffed at it, the scent appealing to him, not a hint of dishonest intentions. He barked at her and began to bob back and forth on his fore paws. Damian was clearly excited and comfortable around Aello. He trotted through the snow close by the girl, the snow crunching under his feet. His tongue hung out of his mouth as he kept an eye on Aello's face. He watched her eyes, the subtle features of her face spoke just as loudly as her voice to him. He did feel hungry and wanted to use Aello to possibly happen upon a larger animal. Maybe even help him create a fire! It did take him a bit longer to pick up on the hints that Aello knew about his abilities. But when he did he barked and then nosed Aello's clothes, then nosed the snow. He did this a few more times until Aello caught his animal charades that he wanted something warm to cover his skin. He thought to himself, He thought to himself, "Please mam, have a bunnyhugger to spare."

[Aello]

Aello giggled. Damian's nose tickled. It was cold, and she imagined, a bit wet, but she couldn't really tell with her clothes on. "You don't think I materialized out of the snow do you?" she asked with a small chuckle, as the dog kept on repeating his action, making her think that she had guessed incorrectly. That caused the girl to simply stare into the red eyes with wonder. What else could he be thinking? What else could he be trying to tell her? "Do I smell like the snow?" Aello asked, as she kept on watching. The dog didn't seem to stop though, so that couldn't be right. "Or is it something else? Hmm... is the snow making you cold maybe?" Aello asked. "It must be melting against your fur and chilling you to the bone. You probably want something to help you warm up. A fire maybe. Something to chase after. Clothes." Aello paused a minute. "I'm afraid that if it's something dry to slip into, the only thing I have to offer are two simple cotton dresses, which hardly seem appropriate. Although, we can easily remedy the other two things. Finding something to hunt with both our senses combined shouldn't be difficult. Nor is starting a fire once you've found dry enough wood." Aello paused for a moment. "So what'll it be then? Should we go for a hunt? That should get the blood flowing. Keep each of us warm." Aello smiled, allowing her eyes to sparkle. "Then we can roast ourselves by the side of a fire... and our dinner of course." Aello laughed a little. "Unless you prefer things raw." As the words left her lips, Aello raised her hand a little, and pat Damian's head for a moment, before giving him a quick scratch between the ears. "Come now stranger, we wouldn't want to keep on hunting too late into the night, when all the tasty animals are sleeping." The girl's smile widened as she pulled her hand away from the dark-haired dog. "Come along," she instructed, as she began to move past Damian, and further into the forest. Into the night.

[Damian]

When Aello guessed incorrectly, Damian would growl lowly as if to indicate it was incorrect. When Aelloo finally deciphered what his movement meant, he wagged and barked. However, he seemed to wilt when she told him about the dresses. No matter though, for the time being, he could make do with what he has. The twinkle in Aello's eyes did not go unobserved by the dog. He'd surely trust her, or rather use her to gain something for both of them Being alone, even for a short time, wasn't the way Damian wanted to live. His tail wagged at the thought of some meat, raw of course, and a hot fire. He always wanted to make a fire, but never could as he lacked the tools necessary. A deep rumble came from the pit of his stomach as he accepted the pets delightfully. His soft tongue, licked at Aello's hand affectionately before he began to follow. The noise of the barks most likely had awakened some of the smaller animals within their burrows. They would have to be extra quick if they were to eat tonight. As they began to travel, Damian close behind, his nose sniffed the air constantly. He could catch the scent of several animals near by. A few squirrels and a rabbit or two were within the area that surrounded them. After a short while he stopped and tugged on Aello's dress with his jaws. He dropped his nose back down to the snow and sniffed it for several seconds. When he finished he looked back up to Aello with a canine grin. His eyes shifted before his head did, the gentle nod to the right was an indication to look ahead. Perhaps the human could see the bunny that Damian could only smell.

[Aello]

Aello moved through the forest with relative ease, the light of the moon guiding her way. The terrain seemed a milky white with its glow; cold, harsh and uninviting. But, that wasn't saying much. This time of year, the forest was just that, especially if you didn't know how to handle yourself. Thus, the girl kept on making her way through until Damian tugged on her dress. His teeth sinking into the fabric along with a bit of his saliva. "What is it boy?" Aello whispered, as she stopped dead in her tracks and peered down at him. "Did you find something?" As if in response, Damian continued to sniff the ground, before pointing off into the distance. "That way?" Aello mouthed, as she tilted her head slightly to the side. She couldn't see anything, with the exception of Damian's eyes, and the dark outline of several trees. She sighed, calling her magic to her again, and willing the forest to light up. Now, she could see the mist that shrouded Damian again, a pale red as before. The trees glowed too now, and eerie green which reminded her of the glowing moss in the cave she had explored with her Kelvics, many seasons past. Last came the rabbit, its aura only a few shades lighter than Damian's. Through the magical link, Aello could sense its heart beat. Slow, it seemed, in comparison to her own. Hardly a thump to mention. Through the magical tie, Aello could sense more. A slight ache in her feet, which gave her the impression that the rabbit too, ached in much the same place. Telling her that either it had hurt itself earlier in its travels, or had been doing a great deal of running of late. Not only that, but she felt cold. So very, very cold. The girl shuddered, as she crouched a little closer to Damian. "I see it too," she whispered. "It's probably cold. We should get to it soon before it decides to go back inside, and hide away for the night." With that, Aello eased herself back up. She was in no mood to explain that she knew for certain. No mood to explain that she used magic. Aello beckoned with her free hand for Damian to follow, before lifting a single finger to her lips, reminding him to be quiet. After a moment, she reached behind her, and plucked a single raven-feather fletched arrow from her quiver. She deftly laced it onto the serving of her bow, and wrapped the three middle fingers of her right hand around it. She held the bow down, so that the arrow's point was directed at the ground, to a place a few inches before her step. Slowly, she inched the string back a little, but not by much. When she was ready, Aello took a deep breath in through the nose, and out through the mouth, and then crept forward. She was careful to raise her legs a little higher than before with each of her steps, before placing her foot delicately back down on the ground, so as to help reduce the noise she produced. Any stick or twig she could see, she was diligent about stepping over as opposed to on top of. She guided herself then, ever so slowly, towards the rabbit, and when it was within her sight, she fell back, behind the trunk of a nearby tree. She doubt now, that the creature was more than ten yards away. Aello took a deep breath, watching as little puffs of silver smoke escaped her lips. She could feel her back against the rough bark of the tree. It was so cold, much like her fingertips. She could feel her heart speeding up as she peered around the tree at the rabbit. She was afraid she'd spook it, and was wondering if it'd be best to send the dog in after it. Unless of course, he already had the mind to do so, and she just hadn't noticed.

[Damian]

Damian's tail swayed back and forth as he observed Aello closely. She seemed to focus in on the forest, and his head followed her gaze. The forest surroundings had muted and grayed shades to them and not the actual true color the forest had during the day. Though he could smell, almost see the scent trail left behind by the animal, he could not actually see where the rabbit hid. His head tilted when Aello revealed she could spot the rabbit. Damian couldn't see it, only the subtle possibly imaginary, scent trail along the ground. Excitedly, he attempted to find where the rabbit was, perhaps this human had better senses then himself. The thought excited him almost to the point of barking, she could be of great value as a part of a pack. But he restrained it when his hunger over shadowed that lesser urge. Damian followed Aello, light on his paws as moved through the forest. The scent of the creature grew stronger. He had time to study what possible features Aello could use as a hunter. He preferred to just use jaws and paws, but knew that humans had strange tools to do their dirty work. One of those tools he identified on Aello's body, well after a thorough admiration of her body. He couldn't help the desires within. Damian could tell that they were growing closer and took that opportunity to duck away from Aello and took another route away from her. He trusted Aello enough to not shoot at him. He didn't understand the concept of magic, but assumed Aello could see him in the shadows as he moved off to the sides near by the rabbit. He could smell the burrow now off to the right of where Aello hid herself. He was down wind of the rabbit as he waited for Aello to take the shot. In the event she missed, he was close enough to be able to chase after and hopefully catch it before it makes it back to its burrow. He laid flat in the snow, body and paws ready to pounce as he looked back over to where Aello hid.