Solo Failed Hunt

[Lian Windrunner]

Timestamp: 65th Day of Summer, 514 AV Lian woke abruptly, startled out of his slumber by a slight sound. Blinking blearily, he looked around his pavilion to see what had caused him to wake. The small, fearful sound came again, and with it, a shifting of soft flesh beneath his arm. So that's what it was. Lian had always been a restless sleeper, and he must have shifted in his sleep, pinning his captive with his arm. The young girl must have felt it even in her exhausted sleep after the night's...activities. And either she was awake, and desperately trying not to let him know that she was, or her dreams had taken a fearful turn with the sensation of being pinned. Was she dreaming of last night, perhaps? Lian had had to punish the girl yet again for resisting his efforts to breed her. Lian shifted to his side so that he could get a better look at his captive. She whimpered softly as he put more pressure on her abdomen in the process. Her bare flesh felt smooth, and warm beneath his arm. Lian pulled his arm away, only to place his hand gently on the girl's abdomen. The girl shuddered, and tried to cringe away from his touch, but firm pressure prevented her escape. So she was awake, then. And clearly afraid that he was going to exercise his rights again. Lian was tempted to, but the firmness of his captive's abdomen distracted him. Was it wishful thinking on his part, or was there a slight swelling there? Lian pulled his hand away to get a better look. The early morning light was dim within the pavilion, so it was hard to see clearly. But was her abdomen slightly rounded? Or was that a trick of the light? Lian considered just asking the girl, but he decided against it. Seirei was stubborn. Even if she knew for certain that she was pregnant, she wouldn't tell him. The girl didn't believe his promise to use her less often once he succeeded in impregnating her. Not telling him was likely a small revenge on her part. But it was a useless one. Until he was certain that his captive was pregnant, he would do his duty to his people, and try to get her with child each night. So by not telling him, she was only prolonging her suffering. And she was suffering. Even in the dim light of the pavilion, Lian could see dark bruises marring her thighs, and abdomen. If he looked, he knew that he would see more bruises on her chest and arms. After last night, there was likely a hand shaped bruise on her throat. Angered by the girl's continued defiance, her pained cries had pushed him over the edge. So he had silenced her by squeezing her throat until her cries were cut off. The girl had not passed out from the rough treatment, so he didn't think he had caused her any real damage. But it was quite likely that he had squeezed hard enough to bruise the tender flesh. For a moment, Lian felt deep remorse for treating the girl so harshly. But he squashed it ruthlessly as usual. She deserves what she gets. he thought as remorse turned to anger as it so often did when his captive was involved. How many times have I told her that disobedience will be punished? Far too many to count. Seirei brings her suffering on herself with her continued defiance. If she defies me when I try to do my duty to my people, then any pain she suffers when I punish her for her defiance is her own fault. Lian sighed as he stood. "Don't resist me next time." he told Seirei coldly. "You can't stop me from breeding you. It's only a matter of time before I succeed in getting you with child. Haven't you learned that by now? What has your defiance gotten you? Only more pain. If you fight me, you only force me to punish you for your disobediance. This doesn't have to hurt at all, you know. You might even learn to like it. Many women do." The girl didn't acknowledge his words in any way, but Lian knew that she was listening to him. He just hoped that she would take his words to heart, and accept her fate. "I'm going to go hunting today. It's unlikely that I will be back much before dark, so the day is yours to do with as you please. If you do go out, I want you home before dark, though. You won't like what happens if you're not here when I get home." The girl shivered. She had only disobeyed him on that once. That had been early on in her captivity when she was still testing the boundaries of the freedom he allowed her. After the punishment that had resulted from that bit of defiance, she had never again risked being late. Lian sighed again. "I suggest that you get some more rest. After last night, you're going to be very sore. Moving around too much is likely to make it worse. But if the pain is too bad, I want you to go see that healer friend of yours. I won't have you risking your health in your defiance." Once again, the girl gave no acknowledgement of his words. Having said what he wanted to say, Lian got dressed quickly. He wanted to get out as soon as possible, so he decided against his daily venture into the Web. Instead, he quickly gathered his gear, and left the pavilion.

[Lian Windrunner]

The early morning sun was uncomfortably warm on Lian's skin, but he knew that it was only going to get worse as the day progressed. His throat felt parched, so he took a small sip from his water skin. The warm water wasn't at all refreshing the way cool water would be, but it did slake his thirst a bit. Lian glanced up at the sky more out of habit than any real hope. As he'd suspected, there wasn't a single cloud in the sky. It looks like we aren't going to get any rain today either. If this keeps up for much longer we're really going to be in trouble. he thought worriedly. Prey was scarce. And the predators were getting as desperate as they were. His people had to compete for what little prey there was with savage, dangerous creatures that were as likely to see humans as prey as they were deer or rabbits. Hunger only made the predators even more vicious. Earlier in the season, vicious wild dogs had savaged a hunting party. Even now, Lian didn't know if all of the hunters who had returned had survived their injuries or not. And now, weeks after the incident, things were only getting worse. Food wasn't the only problem. With the intense heat, and lack of rain, the streams and ponds were drying up. Water was becoming as scarce as food was. The lack of water made things even worse. Animals were dying of thirst before they could starve. Lian was startled out of his depressing thoughts by an animated voice speaking loudly. He couldn't help but hear bits and pieces of the conversation as the first voice was joined by two more. They were talking about the child that had been born four days ago. The child in question was the first child to be born to one of the captive women. And for a people who desperately needed something they could rejoice in, the birth of a child was welcome news indeed. A lot of the other captives are pregnant now. With luck, Seirei will be carrying my child soon, too. Maybe she already is. It was a pleasant thought. Lian allowed it to distract him until he reached the edge of the city. Talise was waiting for him when he arrived, having sensed his need for her presence. Lian didn't have any treats for his strider, so he bent down, and picked a generous handful of grass and offered it to her. The grass was dry, and mostly brown due to lack of rain. Talise snorted at the offering, but that didn't stop her from taking it. When she was done, she lipped his hand, clearly looking for more, so Lian picked another handful of grass, and offered it to her as well. Talise ate it, and the three other handfuls of grass that Lian picked for her. Lian felt bad that he didn't have a better treat to give his strider, but until the rains came, and food became more plentiful, grass would have to do. When Talise had had her treat, Lian picked a few blades of grass that still had a bit of green to them for himself. He had heard somewhere that chewing on grass helped with hunger. And while he wasn't sure if it was wishful thinking or not, it did seem to help somewhat. Lian placed his yvas carefully on Talise's back, and tightened strap. She was feeling frisky, so she inhaled deeply as he did so. Lian gave her an annoyed look, and gave her a warning tap on the side. She exhaled, and he tried to tighten the strap again. Sensing Lian's mood, the strider cooperated this time, much to Lian's relief. Lian quickly attached his yvas bags to the yvas, and double checked to make sure that they were secure. Then he checked his bow, and quiver, making sure that they wouldn't shift too much while he rode. The bow's string was tight, and ready to be used. When he was ready, Lian mounted Talise, and they were off.

[Lian Windrunner]

Even in the short time since he had left his pavillion, it had gotten hotter. But Lian was out in the Sea of Grass now. The need to stay alert overrode the discomfort caused by the heat. Once out of the city, Lian used his legs to ask Talise for a brisk trot, and he got one. There was no use even looking for game this close to the city. As he rode, Lian took note of his surroundings. The grass was brown, and brittle. It crunched loudly under Talise's hooves. Sneaking up on prey would be even harder now as a result...assuming that he actually found any. The flowers from the previous season were all withered, dead. The air was still, and stale. There wasn't even a hint of a breeze to cool things down a bit. Other than the sounds of their passing, everything was silent. The familiar calls of birds as they went about their business were absent. That put Lian on alert. He knew from one of his childhood lessons that birds would fall silent if they felt threatened. But a brief trip into the Web told him that there were no dangerous predators nearby. Maybe the birds are too hot to sing. he mused. Or maybe they're all dead. The insects they eat feed on the plants...which are dead or dying. No insects means that the birds will starve. As he rode, Lian kept a sharp eye on his surroundings. Every once in a while, he would see a faint deer hoof print in the dry ground, or a tuft of brown fur. It was an encouraging sign that deer had been in the area, but there wasn't enough of a trail for someone as inexperienced as he was in tracking to follow with any hope of success. He also found what looked like a few paw prints. Lian shifted his weight, asking Talise to stop. When she did, he dismounted so he could get a better look at the prints. The prints consisted of four indentations; a larger one at the bottom, with four smaller ones curved above it. Each indentation was roundish, made by the pads of the creature's paw. A few of the prints had even smaller indentations above the smaller round ones. These looked like small dots. Lian guessed that they were made by the animal's claws. The size and shape of the prints looked similar to the dog paw prints he'd seen a thousand times all throughout Endrykas. Wild dogs have been here. They're probably after the deer. Lian knew that he was no match for a wild dog in the best of times. He certainly couldn't handle a savage beast maddened by hunger, and perfectly willing to eat him if it could take him down. Besides, even if he wanted to follow the wild dog, there wasn't enough of a trail for him to follow. He couldn't even tell if the prints he'd found had been made by one animal, or a pack. So he mounted Talise once more, and they were on their way. After a while, Lian found a cluster of withered bushes. He saw a few berries growing among the brown, withered leaves. Lian gestured for Talise to stop, and dismounted so he could get a better look. Most of the berries were dried, and withered as well. But he saw a couple of red ones. They were small, no bigger than the first segment of his pinky finger. The berries looked like little clusters of tiny spheres. They were a different color than the ones he loved. Those were black. But Lian remembered seeing red ones growing on the same bushes as the black ones. There had been green ones, too. It just meant that the berries weren't ripe yet. <OOC Note><These are blackberries> Lian picked the berries he saw. He tried to be careful of the thorns, but hunger made him less cautious than he should be, and he felt several sharp pricks anyway. The berries didn't taste good. They were very sour. But Lian didn't care. Several chimes of careful searching produced a total of fifteen small berries. It wasn't nearly enough to satisfy Lian's hunger. The berries he'd found barely even took the edge off. But it was better than nothing. Lian felt a pang of guilt for not sharing his find with Talise. She loved berries as much as he did. But the strider could eat grass. He couldn't. And with food as scarce as it was, there was none to spare for a treat.

[Lian Windrunner]

By now, the sun was high in the sky, and the heat beat down on Lian mercilessly. He allowed his mind to slip into the Web as much to escape the heat for a short time as to check to see if any dangerous predators were close. There were none, much to his relief. The closest was a pair of glassbeaks. They were moving in his direction, but they were a good three days' hard ride to the north of him. He would be long gone before they got here...assuming that they didn't change direction and head elsewhere entirely. They were no threat. What troubled Lian more was the fact that the Web seemed almost...diminished somehow. Not faded, exactly, but...dimmer. It wasn't a big difference. Someone who didn't spend much time in the Web might not notice it at all. But to Lian, who tried to spend at least an hour or two a day exploring the Web, it was painfully obvious. Lian looked around to see if he could find any sign of damage that might be causing the change, but there was none that he could see. Lian wasn't sure if that was due to his lack of experience, or simply that he didn't dare stay in the Web long enough to conduct a through search while his body was vulunerable out in the Sea of Grass. Then a thought occurred to him. Could the drought be affecting the Web slightly? The Web was made of djed...something that all living things possessed. But the drought was killing off a lot of the creatures that made the Sea of Grass their home. The grass and other plant life that made up the Sea of Grass was slowly withering and dying as well. Could that reduce the amount of djed in the area enough to make a noticible difference in the appearance of the Web? And if that were true, would the renewed life that the rains would bring when they came...if they came...bring new life to the Web as well? It was a thought Lian hadn't really considered before. It did make sense, though. New lives tied into the Web as children and foals were born replaced the ones that died of old age, or other means. So if more lives were ended than created during a space of time, that might produce an effect that could be seen in the Web. Lian vowed to see if he could see a difference in the Web when the rains finally did come. Shaking himself out of his thoughts, Lian mounted his strider once more. Frustration ate at his patience. Although he had seen a few signs that animals still existed in the area, he had yet to actually see so much as a mouse. But despite the part of him that wanted to give up and go home, much like a small child might give up playing a game if they were losing, he persevered. "Come on, Talise, let's get going." he muttered as he squeezed her sides with his knees, asking for a walk. Three bells passed as they rode. Three bells of futile searching without so much of a glimpse of an animal. Lian had seen the occasional faint hoof print, and the rare tuft of fur here and there. But nothing he could follow. Just as he was starting to wonder if he should give up and call it a day, Lian found a small stream that hadn't dried up yet. Feeling parched, Lian dismounted, and drank his fill. The water was quite refreshing on his painfully dry throat even if it wasn't as cool as it could have been.

[Lian Windrunner]

When he was finished drinking, he took the opportunity to refill his canteen. As he did so, he saw several prints from a number of different types of animals. He saw what had to be bird prints. They were similar in some ways. The prints that hadn't been disturbed had three "toes" or talons in the front spreading out from the base. If you were to draw lines connecting to them, a triangle would be formed. Some of the talons were closer together than others. Lian realized that this was one difference between different types of birds. Some had a fourth talon behind the three in the front. Some prints were larger than others. OOC NoteThese prints were made by sparrows, pheasants, and a hawk. That makes sense. A pheasant is larger than a sparrow, so of course its feet would be larger, too. And some of the birds of prey are bigger than both. Lian mused. Lian saw some prints that looked like rabbit prints, and others that looked like squirrel prints. He also saw some that looked like they might belong to a rodent, but were smaller than both. These he thought might have been made by mice. It was easier to see the differences between the prints here near the stream, because the ground wasn't as dry, so the prints made more of an indentation in the ground. He also saw some prints that looked a little like they might have been made by a wild dog...but these were much smaller. They were similar in that they had a indentation with four smaller ones spread in a half circle above it. And the smaller indentations had tiny marks above them that looked as though they had been made by the creature's claws. But the larger indentation on the bottom looked more more like a triangle than a circle. The difference in appearance made him think that the prints had been left by something other than a wild dog rather than simply a young pup. They looked similar enough to have been made by a canine of some kind, though. OOC NoteThe prints that weren't named were made by mice and a fox. For a few moments, Lian considered trying to set up a snare here. Judging by the number of prints he could see, a lot of animals came to this stream. But he didn't really want to leave it overnight, and it was getting late in the day. There wouldn't be many hours of daylight left. Besides...even if he did manage to catch something, it was unlikely to still be there when he got back to check on it. Hungry predators would make short work of anything they could find. And there was little chance that a snared animal wouldn't be seen at the stream. So he decided that the snares would have to wait for another day. Lian really wanted to see if he could find someone willing to teach him how to use them properly before trying to do too much with them, anyway. A shadow passed overhead, and Lian reacted instantly. He grabbed the bow that had been slung over his back as he stood. Almost without thought, he gripped his bow firmly in his left hand. Then he pointed it at the ground while he used his right hand to place the shaft of his arrow on the arrow rest. After that, he attached the back of the arrow to the bow string, fitting the string carefully into the notch at the end of the arrow. His hours of practice at the Hunters' Allegiance had paid off because his movements were practiced and didn't require the intense focus they once did. He did not fumble with the bow, or drop it as he positioned his arrow. He might have taken more time than he should have to prepare to unleash an arrow, but his time was better than it had been in the past. It didn't help, though. Even as he scanned the skies looking for the source of the shadow, he realized that it was gone. It's just as well, I guess...I had no luck at all with flying targets the last time I tried to hit them. Aiming at a bird wouldn't have been any easier than that. he grumbled to himself. Still grumbling at the missed opportunity, Lian put his arrow back in his quiver, and slung his bow over his back once more. It was getting late, so Lian decided it was time to head back. He mounted, and turned her towards home. After they'd been riding for a while, he asked her for a brisk trot. Talise complied willingly. The faster pace was a more jolting ride, but Lian moved with Talise's movements, shifting his weight as needed so he wouldn't risk falling off. After several chimes of this, Lian urged his strider to even greater speeds, gesturing with his legs to ask for a canter. The ride was much smoother, but Lian quickly found that it required a whole other skill set to move in tune with Talise's movements at this considerably faster speed. It was difficult to stay on, but to Lian's surprise, he managed for longer than he thought he would. When he felt himself start to slip, he grabbed for the handles on his yvas in the hopes of catching himself. Talise responded to his sudden fear by slowing, then coming to a gradual stop. Her ears flickered back and forth as she stood alert for danger. Lian stroked her neck soothingly, and spoke quietly to her until she calmed down once more. "Sorry Talise. I guess I'm not quite ready for that after all." he said ruefully. Still, Lian was rather proud that he hadn't fallen when he started to lose his balance. Proud, and relieved. A fall from his strider at that speed would be very painful. And potentially dangerous as well. If he broke something, or got himself injured in some way that prevented him from riding, he might well be killed by a hungry predator before help could arrive. Talise snorted, as if agreeing with him. Then they started towards home once more...this time at a leisurely walk.

[Khida]

Lian Windrunner

Skill	Points
Foraging	+1
Hunting	+2
Intimidation	+1
Observation	+4
Riding	+3
Tracking	+2
Weapon: Short Bow	+1

• Blackberries: leaf, bush, and unripe fruit
• Bow: nocking an arrow without looking
• Riding: keeping balance at a trot
• Riding: properly tightening the yvas girth
• Tracking: bird prints come in different types
• Tracking: common features of canid prints
• Tracking: common features of rodent prints

Consequence: As he rides back towards Endrykas, Lian will notice his stomach feels a bit queasy. Unless he takes something for it, it'll feel that way until late during the night. Fortunately, he didn't eat enough berries to face any worse effects.

Notes

I really enjoyed reading this -- not only Lian's attempts at finding game during a tough period, but the fact that he went back empty-handed. Granted, that's what the title suggested would happen, but it's not something often portrayed!

A couple of notes on the award: I did not give you specific lores for the bird prints because these are going to be just about impossible to narrow to species level. They could just as easily have been lark, grouse, and falcon for all he knew; print types tend to be shared by groups of birds. Similarly with the mouse tracks -- they could have been shrew or vole or something else of that sort.

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns regarding your grade. Also, please edit your request to show this thread has been graded.