[Flashback] The Cold Touch of Winter (Nustril, Cypress)

[Cypress]

Dolanne continued to stomp on the Yukman's head, without any urging from Cypress, leaving the stryders mistress at a momentary loss. She looked down at the man's face, now crushed beneath the force of hooves. What had once been a rocky semblance of a man was flattened into a collection of stones and mangled earth strung together by what she could only image was the creature's blood. It looked sickly and viscous contrasted against the pure white of the snow around it. The sight made her stomach grind and her jaw muscles tightened.

"Enough now... it's dead." She pressed a hand against the horses throat, steering her away from the fallen Yukman. She focused on Nustril and notched another barbed arrow looking the the sworded foe that had been knocked aside. She braced herself, blew the air out of her lungs and took aim. She released the bowstring letting the arrow fly at the Yukman. Her shot may have been true had it not been for the wind, but this arrow was caught mid flight and sent careening off into the snow, a useless twig. She swore under her breath pulling out another arrow and urging Dolanne a little closer. The Yukman had recovered his senses after being tossed aside by Nustril and had begun to move closer to both of them.

She hunkered a little lower on Dolanne's back and quickly notched another arrow. Taking careful aim she let it fly, this time it found its way into the Yukman's side, sinking into the rocky flesh and holding there. The force of the arrow combined with Nustril's tossing him like a ragdoll set him off balance and he dropped the sword in order to clutch a nearby tree for support. A rush of adrenaline rushed through Cy as she grabbed another arrow and prepared to shoot.

[Nustril]

The great cat was starting to wear down. His paws had become lumbering and his breathing was now labored. The truth was that he rarely fought true combat. Nustril was a hunter, not a soldier. This armor pinched his fur and weighed him down. Repeated blows to the head and shoulders from clubs were making him punch drunk and sloppy. Staggering forward a few steps he snarled at his opponents.

When the swordsman staggered it put new hope into him, if not new energy. He could be seen backing away from the Yukmen and screwing his muscles up in preparation for a leap. Too distracted by their apparent victory, the savages pressed the assault and matched him step for step. Nustril's roar sounded tired and slightly pitiful as he leapt forward. Catching one of the club wielding men with a paw on each side of his body, Nustril allowed all of his weight to bear him to the ground. Unable to get a good bite or claw in, as exhausted as he was, the tiger focused on keeping him buried beneath his bulk.

Slowly the struggles ceased, but something was wrong. It looked as if Cypress would be on her own for the rest of the battle. Moving behind the tiger, the last Yukman took several well aimed blows at the base of Nustril's skull. Letting out a feeble huff Nustril collapsed. Two enemies remained, though one was wounded, and the Drykas' great protector had failed.

[Cypress]

"Nustril!!!!" A blood curdling wail exploded from Cy's throat as her mate fell, but it was carried away by the wind as though she'd said nothing. Without hesitation she released her arrow and caught the attacking Yukman in the left shoulder. The arrow did not stick, only grazed his 'flesh', it did not even succeed in tearing his attention from Nustril, and his club took another strike at the already fallen tiger. Her eyes began to sting with tears that turned to ice almost as soon as they seeped free, and she squinted to clear her vision.

When the Yukman finally took note that his prey had fallen he turned and looked toward Cypress. She couldn't swallow past the tight lump in her throat and her hands began to shake as she notched another arrow. He started to lumber toward her and she shot her arrow, backing Dolanne away as he came closer. The arrow found a spot in the man's gut, biting deep into the flesh and sticking. This time he slowed, looking down at the wound. When his eyes were raised there was more determination than before and a visible thirst for blood. Her heart nearly stopped when she saw his face and she hardly thought to reach for another arrow. She reached over her shoulder, fumbling to grasp the fletching between her fingers. She paused briefly, breath caught in her throat and heart racing when she felt only two arrows remaining. She looked over her shoulder to confirm her fears.

"Two." She felt as though she were going to be sick, even tasting the bile that rose in her throat, but she took a deep breath, grabbed one arrow and turned back toward the approaching Yukman. He was fast approaching, luckily the other could still be seen holding onto the same tree for support. She drew the bowstring to her ear, thinking that at this range, if she were to miss, her next action should be to break the bow over her knee and prepare to die.

Calling on every calming memory she possessed, she blew out all her breath and took aim. A glimpse of Nustril's crumpled form on the ground crushed her heart and she let the arrow fly with all her force. It flew true and disappeared into the Yukman's mouth as he let out a screech of attack. The arrow stopped him where he stood and he began to choke. The sounds that emerged from him were the last sounds of life. The combination of wet gurgling and gutteral moaning as he grasped at the arrow's shaft brought the bile that had been in Cy's throat into her mouth. She spit into the snow and grabbed her last arrow, shooting it at the man and sending him staggering back to end in a crumpled pile on the ground. She spit again, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.

Her eyes moved to the last foe, he had begun to make his way toward the body of Nustril, clamping her knees tight she urged Dolanne forward to intercept him. reaching to her side she curled her fingers around her blades, unsheathing both. Because of the remaining stupor, she beat the Yukman to the tiger and stood stood fast. The wound on his side was streaming blood and she hoped he was weak enough for her to defeat. As he got closer he charged and she tightened her knees lifting Dolanne into a rear. Flying hooves knocked him back a few steps but did not put him down and he began to rush again. She took a deep breath, swearing to herself he would not make it to Nustril and swung one leg across Dolanne's back. The horse shifted anxiously and Cy waited for that brief moment until the Yukman was nearly upon them.

In a last act of desperation, she launched from Dolanne's back with her blades raised. The Yukman lifted both arms and swung at her, but with her blades driving down she caught the flesh on either side of his chest and used the weight of her body to drag them down the length of his body. The driving force of his fists connected on both sides of her skull with the force of a blacksmith's sledge and she felt dizzy, but it was too late for the Yukman. His body was splayed open wide by her blades and after another heavy armed swipe he fell forward, pushing Cy to the ground with the momentum of his dying body.

[Nustril]

Nustril's face was slashed and covered with abrasions. A section of his ear was missing. His shoulders bore the marks of several heavy blades and clubs which had struck his armor and been deflected. Beneath his armor he was likely just as bruised as he appeared on the outside. A thin layer of snow had begun to coat his black fur and the glimmering scales of his barding.

The valley was a scene of horror. Most recent kills were still steaming and oozing out thick blood onto the snowy ground surrounding them. Those killed first had already gone cold and been dusted in white powder. Weapons were buried in the snowdrift and scattered over the open ground. Two oxen stood shivering in the storm, still attached to their wagon and forgotten by both friend and foe.

First it would be necessary to remove the tiger's armor, and then he would have to be moved into the wagon. Whether he could rouse himself enough to aid her in these endeavors or not remained to be seen. She would have a difficult time of moving his massive bulk if not. Were he to awaken and shift then lifting him would prove much easier, but then he would have no garments to insulate his injured body from the storm. There was a reason he spent most of the harsh winters as a tiger.

[Cypress]

After several minutes of disorientation, Cy recovered her senses and shoved the body of the dead Yukman off her, rolling out from underneath to decide her next action. She was covered in the thick blood and it began to crystallize on her leathers, much to her distaste. The smell and sight of it turned her stomach but she pushed that aside and moved to Nustril.

Immediately after breathing a sigh of relief when she found life, she began to remove his armor, using her body as leverage to shift him as best she could, pulling pieces out from underneath him and setting them aside. The task along with the combat left her winded, her head throbbing from the force of the Yukman's fists, but there was no stopping if they were to survive. She returned the armor to the wagon, then led the oxen closer.

When she had reached Nustril she knelt down beside him, sinking her fingers into his fur. With her lips brushing softly against his ear she whispered. "Wake up for me.. I need your help. Please..." She held her breath, resting her head against him. "Please, my tiger.. wake now." She stroked his fur, purring softly as she waited and hoped. She waited for several minutes to no avail and began to chew on the inside of her lip, real fear starting to grow in her heart.

"Nustril.. please.. "

She got up, moving to the wagon to retrieve both their tarps, and a blanket. After placing the tarp over the oxen and the other over Dolanne, she laid the blanket over Nustril and climbed beneath it to hug him, hoping the added warmth would wake him enough to help her in his movement. She listened to his heart, it still pounded strong, so why would he not wake.

[Nustril]

There was no more pain. Nustril stood from his laying position and breathed deeply of the air around him. Looking up at the sky he opened his mouth in the feline approximation of a smile. Who could sleep on such a day, he asked himself. Testing the ground with a paw he found that his strength had returned. A bumblebee, flitting passed his nose, distracted his vision and then captivated his attention. Pawing at it, he gave chase.

Spring green surrounded him. The tiger cub explored the wilderness around him with wild abandon. Every ache and injury he had suffered since growing up was gone. It would be so pleasant to stay here. In fact, he thought, why shouldn't he. Too many things were wrong with Mizahar for him to prefer an adult version over his childhood.

An aged Pycon could be seen riding on the back of an otter as it climbed out of a stream in the distance. Both of them laughed and waved for Nustril to join them. A few more leaps and bounds, that is all it would take. He could rest with his mother and his friend by the cool water and speak of things that had nothing to do with death or pain.

Arms wrapped around his shoulders. The tiger let out the mewl of an injured kitten. All of the hurt in the world rushed back into his body. Cy was speaking to him. She needed him. One eye was swollen too badly to open, and only twitched as he opened his good eye. It was winter. Both his mother and his friend were long dead. They had lived good lives. Full lives. They had moved on, as was their destiny.

And Nustril's destiny was not to die in a frozen ditch.

[Cypress]

When his body shifted and the mewl followed, she relaxed in a full sigh of relief and pulled him closer.

"I didn't think you were coming back." She lay like that for a moment, matching her breath to his. "I will take care of you...I will fix everything, I just need you to get into the wagon for me and I will take it from there. Can you help me?"

She smoothed his fur, her touch as gentle as any touch that ever was. Her voice was soft and comforting. "That one thing is all I need from you, I promise." She moved from his side and began to prepare the wagon, moving their supplies to the side and creating a soft bed in which he could lay. When the spot was ready she returned to him, slipping her hands beneath his head. "Are you ready? I will help you all I can." She waited for his response.

[Nustril]

Each step was a lesson in agony. The pads of his paws were scraped from his mad scramble through the woods earlier, and the other damages to his body were well known to both. With Cy's aid he lifted first one leg, and then another. Staggering forward as if drunk Nustril made slow progress toward the wagon. It seemed as if he would collapse and lay still indefinitely when it was time for him to climb.

The tiger stopped with each front paw on the lip of the vehicle. Fog burst from his mouth with each labored breath. Blood obscured the vision of his one good eye. At the urging of his mistress he put forth his best effort. Kicking his back legs he flopped into the bed of the wagon, nearly tipping a barrel with his clumsiness. Heaving a sigh his head thumped lifelessly against the wood. Unconsciousness had come for him once more.

[Cypress]

After helping him into the wagon with a final push, she climbed in and covered him with the blankets. She pressed her face against his fur and closed her eyes. "Thank you."

Once he was secure she climbed out once more to gather up anything she thought might be of use to them. Though they were crude, she took what swords she could find and went over the bodies that had not been covered by the increasing snow. She did her best to help nature in covering those that were still visible, to mask the battle if they were stumbled upon. She took a look around before returning to the wagon, where with some water and a bar of soap she began to clean the visible wounds on her mate. The ears that had been sliced was still bleeding, even after she applied pressure to the wound. There was a real possibility that he could lose too much blood so she jumped from the wagon and broke a shard of ice from the underside of the wagon. When she had returned to his side she pressed the ice to the wound, hoping to slow the flow of blood by thickening it to ice..the ear was already lost, so there was little fear of losing more. She wrapped a piece of the ice against the ear, securing it with a piece of cotton torn from her chemise. She also applied ice to his eye in hopes of relieving discomfort and some of the swelling. Those wounds she could not see would have to wait, at least until he was awake and able to tell her of his pain. She stroked his fur, freeing it from crystallized blood.

"You saved us, my tiger. " She spoke softly as she curled beside him to offer her warmth.

She remained as such until his breathing had steadied and he seemed more relaxed in his unconsciousness, then she covered him securely to retain the heat they had made and climbed atop Dolanne. With the wagon in tow, she drove them out of the valley and away from any remaining Yukmen that might have been in the area, checking far too often on the safety of her tiger.

Thread Finished!

[Gossamer]

. Character:Cypress Experience: 1 XP Observation, 1 XP Riding, 4 XP shortbow, 1 XP Leadership Lore: Lore of Working as a Team with a kelvic partner, Lore of Yukman (fighting them), Lore of Armoring a kelvic Tiger (there might be a better term for this?) Character:Nustril Experience: 1 XP Tracking, 4 XP Unarmed Combat, 1 XP Strategy Lore: Lore of Yukman (fighting them), Lore of Working as a Team with a human partner. Lore of Dodging Cypress' arrows. Additional Note: Nice read. Great combat. I loved how you both planned the course of action, followed through, and I loved how Nustril took a lot of hits while Cypress lost a lot of arrows. Nustril, you're going to feel like a train ran you over for about ten to twenty days afterwards, so I'd rp soreness as par for the course. .