the Legacy

[Merinil]

[ǂ spring 68 482 av ǂ] [ pitrius citadel ] OOC : All materials are provided by her father. I'm not sure if that's allowed, but he's the one who's getting things like the horse hoof, chain and picks for her to use. She loved watching her father work. Malediction seemed so primal and ancient, in just how simple it was. Carving a circle into bone or painting onto a lock of hair. It was amazing how disastrous the results could be. And yet, so incredibly amazing. She preferred it Magecraft; the wild unpredictability was thrilling for a girl of only 21. She thought of trying it by herself, stealing the remains of a fish from the lake and carving tiny circles with her father's tools. But she was afraid of making a cursed item. Now she was going to be able to make something with him. "Daddy, where you goin'? I thought I was gonna get to make somethin' today." He glanced back at her from the doorway he'd just strode out of before continuing on his way to wherever he was going. Many long chimes later, he came back with the hoof of a horse, no horse attached. It was both disgusting and amazing at the same time. It was only the hoof part, no other fur or bones or flesh, but it was still intriguing. "You'll be maledicting this." He set the hoof down in front of the eager Merinil. It was mostly black with the occasional grey streak, and it seemed freshly cleaned. There was a small hole drilled into the tip of the hoof, probably for a string or chain to go through.

[Merinil]

Father picked up a pick and placed it next to her, on the table. He paced the room for a few chimes, half watching Merinil's reaction and half thinking of what to make her carve into the hoof. Strength, yes. Speed, yes. Burden...would that change it? Curse it somehow? Or give strength and speed under burden? That would be excellent to have. Of course, this was a mountain pony. Should she inscribe the rune for balance? These are all things a mountain pony has. A sturdy beast for traversing the mountains... He turned to Merinil. "Merinil, I would like you to carve four perfect circles, in a row, onto the hoof." He glared at her. "Now!" The fierceness of his last word made her stare at the hoof in front of her and instantly grabbed the pick. Perfect circles? She'd never carved before. How could she make perfect circles? And what would happen if they weren't perfect? Something terrible could happen! It would be awful to fail on her first try. She couldn't fail. Her hand was unsteady as she brought it to the hoof, and she barely scratched the surface when she moved it in a circle. It wasn't near perfect, not even close. More like an oval, with odd bumps. She had a secret hope that he didn't see her first try, but he was watching very closely. She brought the pick to the hoof again. Pressed harder and steadied her hand. It was better, but still not very visible and still more of an oval. At least she had gotten past the odd bumps phase. Again and again, she tried, pressing harder into the hoof each time, until she had a visible circle. And it was a circle. Near perfect. But her father didn't smile or congratulate her on her new circle, or skill at carving. He just stared and motioned her on with his fingers. Three more circles, and then what? She'd often see him prick his finger after carving or painting something. That'd be awful.

[Merinil]

She carved the other three circles, more quickly this time, and glanced at her father. He motioned for her to give him the pick, and she did. This time, he took it and showed her a maledicted deer bone ring, where the tiny circles had pictures and runes inside them. "I need you to draw four runes, one inside each circle." She nodded as he handed her the pick. "The first one: Balance. The second, Strength. The third, Speed, and the fourth, Burden." He looked at her and motioned her to carve. She did, carefully carving the words into each little ring in a row. When she was finished, she went over them again, to make them stand out more, until she could see them against the dark background of the hoof. Her father made her carve deeper and deeper into the hoof with the pick for bells. When she was finished, the circles appeared accurate and mostly without fault, although there were obvious places where her hand had faltered. She hoped it would still turn out okay. "Now, we must activate each circle with a drop of blood." She had forgotten about this part. Would it hurt? Getting cuts did hurt. He found his Isurian steel dagger made just for this purpose, and took her left hand. She closed her eyes and he made a swift cut against her palm, and crimson drops of blood welled up from the cut. It hurt to close her hand, but at least he used her non-dominant hand. He took the hand and positioned it so that whenever enough blood welled up to fall, it fell on a circle. This happened four times, once on each circle, until he took a bandage and wrapped it around her hand where the cut was. Then, he took a ball of twine, and cut off a piece with his dagger before stringing it through the hole on the hoof. He tied it, and then put it around her neck... IS THIS THE END?

[Gossamer]

. Character:Merinil Experience: +2 Maladiction, +2 Carving Lore: Father: Stern Teacher Acquisition: 1 Maladicted Mountain Pony Hoof - grats wearer 10% + on Strength, Speed, Balance, and Ability To Carry Weight over what they normally can already. Additional Note: Interesting read. You might want to note that pony hooves are fairly large and bulky to be worn as necklaces. .