The Wandering Herdsman Arrives (Cheshire)

[Krivak]

Timestamp: 4th Day of Winter, 511 AV Time: Late night, sometime after 22nd Bell Location: Outside the Icewall Gates A yellow pair of eyes saw something quite unusual in the frigid, seemingly lifeless terrain. Among the dazzling whites and dull greys of the Talderan Tundra, a brown blur appeared to trudge onward. The yellow eyes could tell three very important things about this abhorrence. The brown creature clearly didn't live in this area, it was very large, and most importantly, it was edible. Krivak continued sloshing through the damnable snow, inwardly cursing himself for traveling this far, especially since he had no idea where he was heading. His stomach was throbbing dully, not having found a proper grazing sight in weeks. Krivak had been living off the occasional conifer needles. Those things left a horrid taste in his mouth and didn't give much nourishment. He yearned for some sweet grass, or the delightful crunch of a potato or radish. He didn't know how much more of this he could take. The last several days, the weather had grown more severe. He hadn't realized Taldera had entered winter, one of the most dangerous seasons in the area. His long dreads of fur kept him insulated from the worst of the cold, but he could feel himself weakening from the constant travel and lack of nourishment. He continued onward, despising the bleak landscape that was the same view day after day. He sniffed at the air, a desperate hope at finding something other than snow and ice. His muzzle sniffed to his left, taking in deep wafts of frigid air. He detected nothing other than emptiness. He sniffed to his right, sniffing into the wind, when he picked up a woody smell. Hopeful at finding a better meal than waxy needles, he changed course, to take him against the wind. His eyes were having trouble staying open against the blasting and scouring wind. The wind ceased for a brief moment, and he forced his pained eyes open. He something incredibly unusual. It appeared to be a forest of tiny trees. But unlike the ones he had seen before, they had leaves, not needles. He hustled his large body over to the trees and bit down on one of the branches. The leaves were waxy like needles, and bitter, but were still a refreshing change. He munched cheerfully on several of the trees, most of which didn't even rise above his shoulders. Then the hairs on his neck stood up. His mouth stopped moving, have crushed and chewed leaves falling into the snow below. He could feel himself being watched by something. He looked around, his ears twitching to try and hear anything over the howling wind. His eyes were strained at best. He decided to challenge whatever was out there. So from the core of his chest, he let loose a loud, bellowing roar, which was often reserved for challenging males. The silence that followed were deafening. Krivak felt a heavy weight land on his back, and sharp claws dig in, finding purchase in his thick hide. He bellowed aloud in pain, and stumbled to his right. Whatever had landed on him let loose a feline roar and slashed at his back, shooting pain through him. He stumbled over a couple of trees, kicking up leaves and snow. He was an ALPHA BULL! He couldn't allow a stupid cat to best him! So he did the only thing he could to get the cat off of his back. He knelt both of his right legs, and then rolled to his right. His massive body weight crushed several of the little trees, and the cat was smart enough to leap away before suffering a similar fate. Krivak slowly regained his feet beneath him, and saw a small bit of blood smeared into the snow from his back. He could see the cat in front of him now. It was white and spotted, and not all that large. Krivak bellowed loudly at the cat, who didn't even flinch as it stared at him with unblinking yellow eyes. Krivak lowered his head, his horns pointed toward the cat as he charged his body forward. His hooves kicked up snow as he neared his attacker, the cat poised to pounce. The cat leapt directly at Krivak, souring upward to land on his back once more. Krivak was ready for this however, and slammed his lowered head upward. The horns didn't catch the cat, but the skull between them hit the feline in the stomach. Krivak continued forward and turned, maintaining his charge, ignoring all of the tiny trees that he trampled brutally. The cat was struggling to get up, still stunned from the blow. Krivak bore down upon it, when the cat rolled on its back and slashed upward at his neck. The claws dug grooves into his chest and stomach, thankfully his traveling pack protected the soft skin of his neck. But the cat paid a cost for its risky attack. One of Krivak's hooves stepped upon one of its hind legs, snapping it cleanly. The cat was no longer a threat. Krivak in pain, and not being the vindictive sort, didn't bother killing the injured cat. It was dead anyways. And it was likely Krivak was too. He wasn't in any immediate danger from the blood loss, but he knew it would eventually sap his strength as he traveled until he could no longer move. But continue onward he did, the blood slowly dripping down his back and stomach. After several grueling bells, his strength was on it's last leg. He was growing delirious, weak, his breath's ragged, his steps, staggering. He thought he saw a giant wall of bluish ice, and made his way toward it. His vision was blurring but he felt himself pass through the wall, perhaps through an opening. Then his legs gave out, accompanied by a pained bellowing. He fell over into the snow, unable to move further. He knew he was dead. As he slipped from consciousness, he reverted to the human form he knew so little of. The dark brown skin an amazing contrast to the clean surface of the Talderan plain. The blood continued to trickle out, a single drop falling upon Allana's bracer that hung from his neck hidden by his pack. It appeared he would join her after all.

[Cheshire]

OOCPlease change (solo) to (Cheshire). As always, twin guards and their bears stood watch over the land ahead of the Icewall gates. No one was getting in or out of the city without them knowing. Normally there was not too much to watch for, especially when Winter rolled around. Few dared to trek into Taldera when the snow began to fall. Before the guards a large animal approached. One that they had never seen. It seemed similar to musk ox, but not exactly. It was bloodied and seemed to be hanging on it's last threads of life. Before either of the guards could move to help it, it fell and changed into a man. So it was a Kelvic. The Vantha knew a lot about the feral race. Their Goddess was the only one who knew how to breed them true. The guard to the right of the gate's opening walked forward, his bear following closely. "I don't know if you can hear me, or if you are already dead but I'm taking you to the city." The man took the fallen one's arm over his shoulder and hoisted him onto the back of the bear. "We are heading to Whitevine. They'll tell us if he is going to make it." After a while the trio reached the hold of doctors and healers. "Wait here. Let me see who can help us." The guard disappeared into the hold, appearing a few chimes later with a few other Vantha in tow. An older looking man walked forward toward the man laid on the bear's back. "We'll help you from here." With a nod to the guard and his bear, the kelvic man was taken by the healers into the Hold. The work was long and of course a bit painful. Of course, pain was better than death. When the man woke we would find himself on a bed in the Whitevine Healing Center with a nurse at his side. "You sure can sleep. How are you feeling?" The nurse looking young, with long dark hair, and bright eyes the color of the aurora. "We stitched you up and it goes without saying you had a bit of frostbite. Not too much that we could not take care of though! You got the best medical work in the north!" With a smile the girl's eyes turned a warm spring green. "Can you tell me a bit about yourself? The guard who brought you to us said you were Kelvic. What is your name? How did you get here? The more information you can give us, the better."

[Krivak]

The deep blackness Krivak had settled into was invaded. The dark numbness was replaced by harsh sounds and biting pain. If he had been a lesser bull, he might have bellowed out in pain. Is this the pain of death? His eyelids felt so heavy, he was so tired. He'd always been told that he could rest when he was dead. So that's what he did. He dreamed of Allana. He hadn't dreamed of her since her death in Ravok. Krivak found himself wandering through the fog. It was so thick, so dense, he couldn't see a thing. Then a single shining point broke through the haze. A glitter in a sea of dull. He felt himself being dragged toward it. It was Allana's bracer. She loved that bracer, it was the only thing she had ever made herself. She would always tell him, "I bet I'm the first cow to make anything so beautiful." She was always so confident, so artistic yet strong. Krivak reached down and picked it up, the iron weight heavy in his powerful hand. He turned it end over end, looking at the only markings on it. 'A + K' Krivak had never learned to read, so he never knew what those symbols meant. As he looked up from the bracer, he found himself staring through a disembodied window. There was a beautiful woman in the room with his master. She was tall, thick in chest and hips, with dark, dreaded hair like his own. He knew that to be Allana, even though he'd never seen her human form before. Her skin was much fairer than his own, but that didn't take away from her warm beauty. Their master beckoned her closer. Like all of them, she complied obediently and immediately as a slave would. He watched their master mouth a single word. Krivak couldn't hear it through the fog, it seemed to dampen it. But at that order, Allana knelt before the master. The master then grabbed a large club off of his belt, the same club he would use to beat disobedient slaves. Krivak watched his mouth closely, trying to mouth the words that followed. "Look me in the eyes, show me your fear." Allana looked up at her master. But her eyes showed no pain, no fear. Not his Allana. She was too strong to be afraid. Their calves could have been the strongest in all the land. The master raised his club high, Allana's gaze iron and true. Then in one swift blow, he struck her in the temple with all of his might. Krivak screamed out at the two, but his voice was muffled, even inside his own head. Krivak found he was rooted to the spot, and couldn't move to save her. He saw her body fall to the floor, her eyes unblinking, no longer carrying that confidence. Her eyes told nothing. Then the master dragged her to the large table in his room, which had several sharp knives waiting. He picked up a large one, swung it high and brought it down at her neck. Krivak awoke, bellowing in rage and pain. The pain was overwhelming. His back and chest were on fire, but they compared nothing to see Allana like that. He found himself in a strange room on a bed. A woman was speaking to him in a kind and gentle voice. He scrambled, despite his large, bulking size, off of the bed and into a nearby corner. He wasn't scared, he had simply learned many years ago to watch your own back. 'How are you feeling?' He ignored the woman's question. He realized he was alive now, but still didn't know where he was. He didn't understand most of what she was saying. They stitched him up? But her voice was kind, and he was sure he needn't fear her. He saw her eyes change to green. He'd never seen such a trick before. He wondered if he could learn to do it. The kind woman with the magic eyes asked him several things. He understood what she was saying, so she must be speaking in his tongue. He, himself, hadn't communicated in human form for many years. The words he formed were slow and stumbling, but were made well enough to be understood. "I am... Krivak. I... ran... from... Ravok. Walked many bells. The weather was harsh. Snow was everywhere. There was a cat. Large cat. But no match for a bull." He looked around for his pack and for Allana's bracer. He couldn't see them. He began scanning the room frantically. Did they take her bracer?!? Quick as a flash, he was upon the poor nurse, he slammed both of his hands into the wall next to her, cutting off any escape. He would never harm her, he couldn't hurt anyone who hadn't hurt him or his herd. Through gritted teeth, "Where is it? Where's her bracer?!?"

[Cheshire]

OOCSorry this took so long. I'm going to try to move this along quicker from now on. The man woke, a wonderful sign. The girl was pleased and smiled at him. The man spoke slowly but the girl continued to follow along, nodding lightly at the words. "Krivak, that is a nice name." The talk of Ravok was very intriguing to hear. From what she had heard, Kelvics rarely got out of the city alive! "Wow, Ravok? You are a brave soul." She looked over him as she spoke. "And you ran all of the way too. You could put some of our bears to shame Krivak." She tapped him lightly on the shoulder playfully as she spoke. The playful air did not last very long though. Before the poor Vantha girl could brace herself, the man had her trapped. "A bracer…? I-I-I'm sorry. I don't don't know what you are talking about." She looked nervously around the room, at least what she could see from past the large man. There was no bracer to be seen though. "I have only seen you in what you were put into this room with… Perhaps you dropped it?" Her eyes turned a bright yellow as she looked at the man. "I don't know where it is… I'm sorry." She looked down, gripping tightly to the hem of her shirt. "Would you like me to call Icewatch?" She blushed slightly at the choice of her words. "Not on you… but to help find it. First I need to make sure you are well enough to leave." She attempted to scoot out from under his arms. "Come on, the quicker I can look you over the faster I can get someone to help you."

[Krivak]

Krivak instantly regretted his outburst. This female had done him no harm, and she didn't seem to be lying. And bulls don't hurt cows, they protect them. He heard her say several things that didn't quite make sense to him. Bears? Icewatch? He knew what bears were, but it seemed as if she were referring to them as pets. He stepped back away from her, arms dropping down, freeing her. He sat down on the bed and felt a familiar thud against his back. He chuckled and apologized to the young female. He reached around and grabbed the necklace string from around his neck. His bracer had been hanging down his back rather than his chest. He asked the female, "Where am I? I remember walking through the snow for days and days. Then a wild cat attacked me, and... and I won. Then I woke up here? I didn't expect to see anyone ever again... not since her..." Clearly the girl wanted to check him over and he would allow her. He leaned back, and his back screamed in pain from the wounds of the cat. He would comply to whatever the girl needed him to do. Was he in a village? A town? How far had he traveled?