Solo BIG game

[Ssenislin]

14th of Summer, early morning To hunt a granidile was a delicate task. Their enormity and heavy musculature made them a nourishing prize, but those same qualities put behind enormous jaws and an impenetrable hide made them extremely dangerous as well. Ssenislin’s usual tactic of latching onto his prey with his jaws then wrapping around them would not work here; his teeth, while strong and sturdy, could not pierce the rocky scales of the beasts. Still, they were one of the few creatures that met the demands of Ssenislin’s gigantic body, and so he was determined to feed. The anaconda’s nose briefly popped out of the water, sending gentle ripples across the surface. His tongue flicked out. There was a scent of blood on the air. His prey was injured. He was getting close. He dipped back beneath the river and sped up his pace. The scent grew stronger as Ssenislin’s coils cut through the water, sliding past jutting tree roots and reeds as he followed the flashes of taste from his flicking tongue. Suddenly, he paused. While the river was normally quiet as the life inside shrunk away from him, now it went completely silent. Even the birds above, normally content to sing their songs and chirp indignantly at rivals had hushed. Something else was here. Even as he thought this, the Dhani felt something rushing through the water. He turned his head just in time to see an immense granidile surging toward him, cavernous yellow maw opening to clamp down on his neck. Immediately the anaconda shot forward and flexed his body. He could survive a bite, but not a shattered spine. The beast’s snaggle teeth sunk into Ssenislin’s flesh near his midsection, cracking through scales and sending thin ropes of blood drifting through the water like fluttering scarves. The Dhani sniffed once before his pupils dilated. Blood. The sharp pain of the bite subsided to a vague pressure as the remaining twenty feet of his coils spun around the granidile’s neck and torso. Meat. Ssenislin’s higher functions faded as the adrenaline haze took him. Crush. The granidile spun in an effort to tear a piece of flesh but he gave it no mind as he turned with it, churning the river into pink foam as the two gargantuan predators wrestled and Ssenislin’s enormous coils expanded and tightened around his foe’s body. The granidile held on for a few more ticks, but its enemy’s grip was so powerful it was cutting off the flow of blood to its jaws. The beast snapped its head to the side as it let go, ripping a hunk of flesh the width and depth of a dessert plate from Ssenislin’s side and thrashed its gigantic tail in an attempt to lunge through its opponent’s grip and bite again. The Dhani’s blood flowed freely now, but he barely noticed as his upper body and the Granidile’s head broke the surface before slamming back down with a crack like thunder. The river rocked from the combined bulk of the two monsters, the snake now winding itself around his foe’s jaws, suffering a deep score across his hide from its teeth as the price. Conquer. Ssenislin slid towards the granidile’s tail now, the tip of his own moving up to the crocodilian’s jawline as he repositioned. It beat itself to the riverbank with its tail, slamming its serpentine adversary against the earth and sending a spray of mud over both of them. Ssenislin felt a vague tingle on his back, but cared not as he wrapped his coils fully around the granidile’s torso. It was only a matter of time now. Both predators’ chests heaved deeply from the stress of the fight, but for the granidile each breath grew harder. With every exhale, Ssenislin’s muscular coils tightened just a little more around his prey, his serpent’s flexibility allowing him to follow every thrash of his beached enemy. Blood spurted from his wounds with each flex, but the granidile was weakening. After two chimes, its thrashing slowed to twitches. Two chimes after that, all movement ceased. Ssenislin fell away from his slain adversary, body widening, twisting and splitting into that of a Dhani. Clumsily, he drew himself up, threw his arms to either side, turned his head to the skies and let out a long, guttural roar of triumph. Sparrows and fowlers took off in fright and deer meters away bolted as the Dhani demanded the whole swamp know his dominance. My river! After eight ticks, Ssenislin slumped onto his back with a wet thud and looked over at his prize. The granidile was even longer and fatter than he was in this form; a full twenty-seven feet. The Dhani chuckled wearily, patting the dead beast’s stomach. “Well fought, brother.” He muttered hoarsely. It was now that he saw the bleeding gash on his arm. Glancing down, he beheld his mangled side fully. The wound exposed exposed his lowest rib along with the musculature around his waist, and already stained the ground red. With an effort, he pulled himself upright, grabbed the granidile by the tail with his good arm, and dragged himself and his prize towards town. The battle was a well-fought one, but he paid for his victory with what could very well be a literal pound of flesh.

[Tribal]

G R A D E S

Ssenislin

Experience

• Tactics: 1
• Hunting: 1
• Observation: 1
• Wrestling: 1
• Endurance: 1
• Bodybuilding: 1
• Wilderness Saurvival, Swamp: 1

Lore

• Observation: The scent of blood
• Observation: Quiet birds usually means danger
• Granidile: A strong bite
• Wrestling: Fighting in water
• Ssenislin: King of the swamp

Penalties

Ssenislin's wounds will scar if not treated properly. They will take at least a season to heal of their own accord.

Rewards

1 x Granidile [food]

Notes

"cracking through scales and sending thin ropes of blood drifting through the water like fluttering scarves." I loved that line, it was beautiful.

Please pay your seasonal living expenses before accepting these rewards. Common 135 gm for Summer 515 should be deducted from your ledger.