[Flashback] Bones and Snakescales (Bones)

[Wrenmae]

Wrenmae struggled in his new form, Djed coursing through his body making the tiniest calculations on instinct rather than choice. He could barely breath and so when Djed enlarged his lungs, it was more in an answer to the agony of passing out than any other choice. And he went down on his face again. Spitting dirt and stone, he leveraged himself up again and swayed on the powerful muscles of his abdomen. It was tough, staying upright, and as he watched the giant snake move, he realized Bones could not speak in this form, instead moved by example. The tail slithered, undulated and shaped into an eternal 'S', the head directing the body through the enclosure of rocks they sat in, curling around the various stone and bones collected from the bear and rearing back. It took some time, but Wrenmae began moving his torso in accordance with Bones, undulating his way across the mountainside. He found that he steered himself with the directions of his abdominals, leaning and directing as the powerful muscles in his tale did the rest. Night had long since blackened the sky after Wrenmae finally began moving comparable to Bones. It wasn't perfect, but he could direct himself. The new form felt amazing, powerful, resilient...but as he watched the snake move, he realized he'd take a little more away from the situation if he tried the last form as well. Falling forward onto his hands, Wrenmae concentrated. His muscles elongated, the tale taking up more and more of the chest as it rose. his arms grew thick against his side, clinging to his bones as his spine creaked and twisted to accommodate. There was a moment of panic, the moment when Wrenmae didn't know how to move, struggling without arms or legs in the most terrifyingly claustrophobic position he'd ever been in. But he forced the void upon his mind, following its teaching to empty the fear and trepidation into a nothingness while he worked. He breathed, too thick where he didn't need to be and finally elongating himself out and shaping his head till a snake of comparable, but not quite full size slithered near Bones as well. It lasted only a moment, the Wren-snake picking up is head and staring at Bones before skin flecked away at the scales and the transformations reversed themselves. In frighteningly swift fashion, Wrenmae sprouted arms and legs as his body melded back into one, twisting and turning till his skin rewrapped his body and he sat shivering on the mountainside, naked. He clammored for his clothes, shoving them on and rekindling the fire, hurling a few sticks on the embers to call it into life. Pushing Res from his fingers to fan the fire with his reimancy. He waited for Bones to transform again as well, shivering against the firelight and inviting him over to take a seat. "That...took a lot out of me," he gasped with a smile, nudging a few of the bear bones over to the Dhani. "We may have time to make one or two fetishes with Malediction before morning...would you like to use my dagger?" He handed his blade over, around the fire, the flames glinting off the sheathed thing.

[Ssafirsotibones]

Bones simply watched, as the attempt at a dhani was tried by this... Human... To be honest, he had seen more nimble and dextrous snakes, freshly hatched out of a nest, than this humans attempt. But he guessed it was rather hard for him to do, never having been a snake. Eventually, he even had to admit to himself that Wren was not doing to bad of an imitation, he was catching on quite well for a human. Though he could not exactly imitate the form, movement, and grace, of a dhani. But he was much closer than he would have expected a human to get. Then he tried to go completely snake like Bones... Well... That was utter folly, but he would let him, and was not surprised when the form flickered, and died, unable to hold it, and he returned to human form, his body oddly shrinking. However he did notice, his transformations was not like his own... His own changes were a part of his nature, what he was... But Wren... He was forcing his form to take on another... And his body seemed to fight to regain its natural form its entire time, wanting to return to the one it had been when he was born... Not like Bones, and other dhani, who truly had multiple natural forms, all of which were as real as the next. He would have to recall that fact... That whatever he did was not natural, and would not remain, and would cost him dearly to try to long to go against what he had been made as... As Wren stood naked, trying to quickly rebuild the fire, Bones settled in, and began his change back to human. His change was slow and steady, and natural, unlike Wrens reverting to human form, which had seemed hurried and painful, and unnatural... By the time he was done, Wren had gotten the fire a bit bigger, and Bones walked over, putting his clothes back on... He smiled, a joy coming over him, having changed his form... It was always that way, a joyous feeling from shifting. It was almost like a release, something that built up in his body, as he stayed in one form, and was set free when he shifted. Bones took the proffered dagger, and went through the bear bones... As he had picked earlier, he would choose a bone from the leg, possibly having to hack it out. Though it would just mean more meat for him. He would do his best to carve the circle into the bone... And once he got to the story, he would go for one of a bear, which had avoided a human. Surely this bear, by its size and scars, had escaped many a foe. Perhaps this would lend Bones its leg strength, for speed, or its might. Though he had no way of knowing that in truth, the bear had no chance in the fight, having been entranced by magic, before being killed.

[Wrenmae]

They worked in tangent silence, Bones using one of his blades, Wren using the other. He took the claws of the bear and painstakingly slaved over the tiny circles, slow and deliberate as he marked each claw with a single letter. If he was to tell a story with these things, it would be one of strength and power, one that emulated the raw might a bear had to bring. The survival in the Kalean range, the scars that ran like ropes across its body. This creature had survived countless conflicts, and in doing so his claws had tasted blood...blood of man no doubt, and many more. Wrenmae wanted to borrow that strength, possess it. So he carved the letters for strength in each claw, cutting hair from the bear's hide and twisting it together. The bloody skin was drying now, and he wrapped the claws in the fold of a flap, tying the fetish up with the bear's hair, a completely created Malediction fetish. He didn't know its effects, had others and wasn't all that pleased with their abilities. This one...this one was different. He could feel the strength emenating from it, and the...sensation of anger, bloodlust, rage. He put the fetish in his pack, blinking blearily at the sun as it tickled the horizon. Bones was nearly finished with his fetish as well and Wrenmae held out his hand for his blade. "We'll part ways here, I think," he said at last, the quiet chirps of birds heralding their departure. "Thank you...I mean, thank you for showing me all that, Bones, it was nice to meet you...get to know who you were." He packed his things, leaving most of the bear where it had fallen, having no means to transport it. Part of him wanted to Maledict more, see what other secrets lay hidden in the bear, but he hadn't the time...Alvadas was in the distance and sleep wore on him. He saddled up Weaver and took off down the mountain, a quick wave at the Dhani before he rounded a bend. Sleep would dull his senses...and in a place like this, it could mean death. So he rode on. And rode on.

[Ssafirsotibones]

As Bones finished up his work, and returned the dagger, it seemed Wren was ready to go. He was packing up his stuff, and heading off. A bit silly really, since it was getting dark, and would be safer together, and near this campfire... But he would do as he pleased, and Bones would not argue... Bones on the other hand, would stick around for a bit. As Bones saw Wren riding off, he waved in reply, and stood up, cleaning off the leg bone, and stowing it in his gear... He wondered what powers it might hold... Then he put out his lantern, and stowed his gear, looking around once more for anything he had left... Then he disrobed one last time, changing into his snake form... Opening his mouth wide, he moved over to the bear were it lay dead, and grasped it in his massive jaws. Lifting it up, and tilting his head back, he opened his mouth once more, letting the bear slide in whole into the open maw. Best not to let it go to waste... And in a few days, once he was done digesting it, all that would be left of the beast, would be its bones, which Bones would bury... For know, he laid back down, to rest, and let his stomach get to work. He would curl his body around the fire and his gear, and rest... It was not to cold out that night, so he would be okay... Also the fire would help, along with his extra body heat produced as he ate... There he would stay, until the bear was nothing but white bones, ready to be passed... Bones had found a meal after all...

[Phoenix]

Wrenmae

Experience

Skill	XP Earned
Hypnotism	2
Morphing	5
Long Dagger	2
Unarmed	2
Riding (Horse)	1
Wilderness Survival	1
Cooking	1
Skinning	3
Carving	2
Malediction	1
Stealth	2
Teaching	4
Storytelling	2

Lores

•	Lore Earned
•	Hypnotizing a Bear
•	Maledicting a bear skull
•	Race: Dhani Fighting Tactics(Incomplete)
•	Model: Dhani Python
•	Model: Dhani Python Hybrid
•	Magic as a means to an end
•	Beginning Morphing

Bones

Experience

Skill	XP Earned
Tracking	3
Wilderness Survival	2
Observation	5
Malediction	1
Cooking	2
Storytelling	3
Carving	3
Gladius	5
Morphing	5
Stealth	3

Lores

•	Lore Earned
•	Smelling and Finding a fresh kill
•	Building a Campfire
•	Cowards fight with Magic
•	Race: Human Fighting Tactics (Incomplete)

The Order of the Phoenix

Shew! That was a lot, Guys! I hope I got everything! Great thread and a very interesting read! I liked it a lot

If you have any questions or concerns regarding your grade, please send me a PM and we can figure it out.