Completed [Bronze Woods] The Survival

[Xiulachu Falliron]

Xiulachu Falliron 44th of Spring 513 AV Throughout the forest, that has been Xiulachus home for just over three years, the wind was blowing and created a flash of light every time it swayed the forest canopy to allow the light to bleed through and strike the ground. With the sudden patches of land between trees that would have been dark enough for a small mouse to get through without notice; it was noticed when, by chance, the wind allowed the trees to sway enough for the mouse to me illuminated by the light that poured through and stand as a beacon to Xiulachus Owl-like eyes. Without notice Xiulachu quickly threw off his clothes and before the last piece of cloth hit the ground, a large owl appeared where Xiulachu had been standing and after memorizing where his clothes and backpack were stashed, it flew off towards where it last saw its prey, a small mouse. Xiulachus greatest joy is in being an owl and as he is flying off in search of an easy food source, a mouse, he can’t help but think of all the years he’s been living off of simple mice and finding shelter in the small amount of odd trees that have a hole hollowed out in them which gives Xiulachu a tight cubby to sleep in and even protects him from some of the woodland predators that like to roam the forest at night. During the tight turns and sudden jerks to avoid hitting trees while finding the small mouse that seemed to run even faster as it sensed its own death Xiulachu saw in the corner of his eye another owl that thought it would be the faster in attaining as easy a meal as a mouse. After carefully studying the new threat to his meal and in being in a close enough distance to strike at the mouse that has used up all of its stamina in a small burst of fright at seeing what Xiulachu thought was himself at first, but turning out to be the other owl; Xiulachu went into a sudden dive and in mere moments had the small mouse securely in his mouth with the only recognizable features of the, soon to be eaten, mouse being its tiny tail sticking out of Xiulachus mouth. Just as Xiulachu picked up the mouse in a sudden dive, the other mysterious owl went into a dive of its own except its target was not the mouse that was already in Xiulachus mouth, it was Xiulachu himself. Xiulachu, after having been training most of his life in aerial flight, but never really making much progress, was able to quickly barrel roll to the left to avoid the owl that had come in faster than it should have. This simple maneuver gave the owl no time to slow its descent and after being tricked by Xiulachu, who was purposefully flying at a tree before the other owl had swooped in on himself, had subsequently flown itself right into a large tree that Xiulachu had lined up for it. The resulting smack of the owl hitting the large tree, directly in front of it, could be heard for many meters out from where the incident had occurred which, if Owls could smirk, Xiulachu would have the biggest smile on his face right about now. After seeing that his job in this area was completed and seeing that the now immobile owl, who Xiulachu assumes is just knocked out after ramming head long into a tree, is no longer a threat; Xiulachu flew back to where he had taken off his clothing and back pack in a hurry after seeing the mouse. After landing near his clothing and pack, Xiulachu finished his meal with ease by swallowing the small mouse whole. When Xiulachu was complete with his meal and had a quick look around to make sure there were no predators, he quickly changed back into his human form and put his clothes on one by one starting with his undergarments, then his pants and his boots shortly after with his shirt and cloak being put on just after putting his pants on and securing his dagger to he waistband. Xiulachu took in his surrounding, as he did every time he changed his form in the Bronze woods, and noticed that the wind had not yet let up and that the light was still bleeding through in some places and even blinded Xiulachu for a moment as one of the trees being pressed by the wind allowed enough light to filter through and fall directly where Xiulachu was standing. After rubbing his eyes and in his mind saying to himself that he should be more vigilant after having just been attacked by an owl and he should be less careless by not blinding himself for even as short a time as a few moments because in that amount of time it would be just enough for a predator to jump at him and have themselves an easy meal, as Xiulachu had just finished from. When Xiulachu shook off the temporary blindness that came from looking at the sun, he walked easily and swiftly through to woods towards a small encampment he had made temporarily.

[Xiulachu Falliron]

Xiulachu Falliron --- Through the mass of trees Xiulachu walked and he walked with great vigor due to his recent victory over a would-be thief. Through the many trees Xiulachu noted in his mind a small water source that he could use to fill his waterskin and a small formation of trees that were grown tightly together that would allow none but the smallest of animals to enter and exit from. On his way back to his camp he also noted a tree that was much bigger than the other trees that surrounded it. This one tree brought an idea to Xiulachus mind and before he left the area where the tree was he made sure to write in his notebook, which he always carried around, to be sure to return to this spot that would make an excellent location for a home to be made up high in the safe and secure branches of the massive tree that seemed to rise fifty feet higher than those around it and had a mass that doubled any tree in Xiulachus view. With the notes being written down and completed, Xiulachu continued his journey to the small camp that he had set up just before going on a hunt for food. The wind blew past Xiulachus face in a short gust with the trees swaying every which way, allowing sunlight to pierce the veil that was the upper canopy of the large closely grown forest known only as the bronze woods. Xiulachu had never understood the meaning for the name of the forest to which he had survived and lived in his whole life. The entire idea that a forest could be bronze was preposterous to Xiulachu and made not a bit of sense. Xiulachu loved the feeling of flight yet he still could not shake the feeling he got every time he turned into a human and was forced to walk to get around. After many hours of walking through the tense forest, Xiulachu finally made his way to his small camp; a small ring of rocks with a few pieces of logs measuring from five to seven inches in length and a large tree just a meter away where Xiulachu would stash his pack with all his equipment inside, including his clothing. But first Xiulachu wanted to test himself at creating a fire inside the circle of stones he had spent the better part of a day collecting. Though Xiulachu had had many successes lighting a fire, he still felt it necessary to train himself to the point of it becoming second thought, him lighting a fire without thinking about the steps needed to actually light the fire. Xiulachu raised his right hand to take his backpack off his back and after taking it off he placed it in front of him he opened it and after a few moments of fiddling around with the contents he finally found the flint and steel which would be used to light the fire. With the steel in his left hand and the flint in his right hand Xiulachu began to scrape the steel with the flint at a forty degree angle which produced a few sparks but none resulting in a fire. Xiulachu had to think hard why he was not able to use the flint and steel to make the fire and after a few moments of though and argument with himself he finally realized that he needed something to catch the spark and start the fire. Xiulachu quickly began searching for dry leaves on the ground near his camp and after collecting a suitable amount he took them over to his small stone circle with the three small logs that would be fuel for the impending fire. Scattered about the logs were the leaves, dry leaves that would work as the impromptu char cloth for the fire. Alright, now lets try this again. Xiulachu said to himself in the common tongue. With the Steel in his left hand and the sharpened flint in his right hand, Xiulachu scraped the flint against the steel at a forty degree angle four times before a spark was able to ignite the leaves around the logs. With Xiulachu blowing softly at first then harder when the flames began to take root, Xiulachu had finally created a fire that would most likely burn for many hours. Proud of himself and a little tired, Xiulachu picked up his pack and placed the flint and steel inside of it and threw the pack over his back and quickly had it secured to his back. Xiulachu walked steadily towards the tree that would be his safe bed for the night and quickly climbed up to the nearest branch he could reach and slung his pack up over it and quickly secured it so that it didn’t fall when he let it go. The jump down from the branch he had used as his support had ended not in an injured Xiulachu, but in him transforming into his true form, a Hawk Owl. With three flaps of his wings Xiulachu was up in a cubby that looked like a hole had been cut straight in the large tree, big enough for Xiulachu to fit snugly inside with no worries of any animal or monster going through his personal items that now hung just below where he sat or Xiulachu being in any sort of danger. Without fear Xiulachu slowly faded off into a deep sleep with no worry in the world.

[Xiulachu Falliron]

Xiulachu Falliron 45th of Spring 513 AV Xiulachu found the nice nights rest to be most pleasing when he slowly woke up the next morning to the loud chirps that echoed through the forest. This day he knew would be a good day when he looked down and to the left to see his pack had not been disturbed while he rested. With a great stretch of his wings, Xiulachu flew off from the spot he had been sleeping on all night and quickly flew in long circles out from the massive tree. Xiulachu took notice of the state of his small encampment and noticed that there were a few new tracks that had appeared over night. The tell-tail signs that someone, or something, had been through the camp had not frightened Xiulachu in the least bit; being in the Bronze woods always came with its own risks of being attacked while sleeping. Luck was with Xiulachu in him being a Kelvic that could transform to his true self, a Hawk Owl. Sleeping in the trees served as a barrier to those that would try to attack him while he slept, or if they even saw him high up in the trees in the first place. While flying around in his true form let Xiulachu think more clearly about his feelings and also gave him a better understanding about how to survive in such a wild place as the Bronze Woods. Xiulachu quickly put all his thoughts aside for it was the start of a new day and he needed to collect his bag full of his personal items. As quick as any avian creature could be, Xiulachu dove down and banked to the right to fly in a circle and pick up enough speed to fly up to where his bag was hanging on a branch. All around him the trees swayed in the wind as he swiftly flew up to the tree limb that supported his bag and, without any trouble, carried the light bag off the limb and flew down to the ground. When Xiulachu hit the ground and dropped the bag, he quickly switched into his human form - oh how he hated when he had to transform into a human – though he was in no hurry to leave he quickly took his clothes out of his bag and proceeded to put his clothes on one at a time; first his undergarments, then his pants, his shirt, his boots, then his cloak while attaching his daggers sheath to his waist band. After placing his pack on his back Xiulachu set out from camp towards the nearest road he had scouted the other day. Walking in a forest had always seemed to have a calming effect over Xiulachu, at any time when he became agitated or scared a simple walk in the Bronze woods would always calm him enough to forget that he had even been mad in the first place. Though the walk that Xiulachu was doing now was not out of any need to calm himself he still couldn't help but feel a sort of calmness even when it’s not necessary. Such a feeling has always been one of the reasons why Xiulachu had never really left the Bronze woods. As time begin to fade and Xiulachu slipped into a sort of zombie like state while he walked, he let go of all his surroundings. Yet to do such in a place like the Bronze woods would be like inviting the many predators to an easy meal that they would take without hesitation. Xiulachu snapped out of the meditation-like state in an instant due to his many sensed telling him that he was being followed. Though he may have been wrong, he still felt like there was something watching, waiting for the right time to strike from the shadows. It was probably just Xiulachus Imagination running wild when he quickly checked the area when he felt he was being watched and found no sign that anyone was following him. Though he would now be on his guard walking through the forest he still felt the calming effects that the loud chirps of the many bird species made. While walking with a steady pace again Xiulachu noticed that the trees were steadily becoming wider and wider apart from each other and Xiulachu, with his heightened sight, could see what looked like a dirt road just one hundred meters in front of where he was now walking. When Xiulachu peaked his head from the tree line along the road he could only see more road in either direction and no sight of any humans. With a burst of speed, which would only be matched by a scurrying mouse running from the owl chasing it, Xiulachu ran across the road to the other side and quickly found himself in the presence of trees once more. Xiulachu always hated crossing the roads of Syliras, too many people liked to follow them and where there was a mass of people there always seemed to be trouble. Though Xiulachu never really thought of himself as an isolationist, he still didn't like to be around any large cities or any public places that made him come into any sort of contact with more than a small group of people. While pondering his own thoughts while passing through the many trees that inhabit the Bronze Woods, Xiulachu came upon a rather large tree that looked like it would support a decent sized house if one could build one around the tree at the middle of the tree. After studying the tree for a few more minutes Xiulachu made sure to mark the tree with his the initials of his first name; a large ‘X’. After walking through the forest after marking the tree that Xiulachu hoped one day to be the base of one of his future homes, Xiulachu came upon a lake. A lake in the middle of the woods confused Xiulachu a great deal and the fact that the lake had the smell of salt made Xiulachus mind race in thought at how such a lake could exist so far from the sea. Through the few years that Xiulachu had been living he had always been taught over and over again by his father that salt water is deadly and should not be consumed, thus Xiulachu took it to the extreme to keep as far from the water as possible while still being in as short a distance that he could clearly see the water sway about s the wind pushed small waves ashore. Xiulachu also noticed that strange rock-like structures seemed to cover the entire length of the lake, as far as Xiulachu could see. Not wanting to take any chances with discovering any new monsters that could probably overwhelm Xiulachu and force him to change into his owl form to get away and in the act loose his items, Xiulachu began to head south and before he entered the line of trees that stood in front of him, he looked back to get one last look at the strange lake that created a multitude of questions.

[Accolade]

Xiulachu

Experience

Skill	XP Earned
Observation	+ 4 XP
Wilderness Survival	+ 3 XP
Hunting	+ 1 XP
Writing	+ 1 XP

Lores

•	Lore Earned
•	Darned Competition
•	Flying Through the Trees
•	X Marks the Spot
•	A Salty Lake

Notes :

Please note that in most regards, your PC remains a novice, so nothing should come very easily to him. Keep writing!

The Sylir has spoken

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