Be a Man (Darren)

[Growl]

Azendil nodded, "it is a shame when we have already come so far, but if that is what you think it best to do, we can turn around," Azendil said, as a shiver shot up his spine. "It is rather cold down here isn't it? We probably could not have gone much further," the man added with a shrug, trying to make himself feel a little better about turning back. After that, Azendil fell silent. He walked slowly, steadily, in the way that they had come, back towards the entrance of the cave. Gradually, the temperature rose the closer they got to the entrance, before dropping a bit again. Perhaps the temperature had dropped outside; perhaps, it was once again snowing. "Do you think much time has passed Darren?" Azendil asked, "and that we will find ourselves in a blizzard? Or the dead of night?" There was a slight pause as the sound of footsteps reached Azendil's ears. Steps that could not have been his or Darren's, they were simply too far away. "Hey, did you hear that?" Azendil whispered, as he stopped dead in his tracks, and moved his arms out to the side, as though he were telling Darren to stop, and shut up. OOCSorry this post isn't so great... I am simply not feeling quite like my usual self, but don't want to hold you up.

[Darren]

Darren nodded as he heard Azendil while they left, "Like I said. It's so cold I doubt that a wolve would even bother living here" he grinned. Slowly walking to the entrance of the cave the taller boy took Azendil's silence as his agreement to his last statement. Heh, glad we can finally come to an agreement he thought as he welcomed the changes in temperature while they left. Azendil's sudden questions took Darren off guard as he finally noticed the chill in the air once more. "I have no idea. I remember we left around the middle of the evening and it didn't take too long to get here. I think that maybe a blizzard started outside since we entered" he said, shrugging. It was his best educated guess but he could be wrong. Darren noticed Azendil's sudden pause as they stopped, on reflex stopping to listen himself. He stopped besides Azendil, shaking his head as he also stopped besides them. Though slightly not buying into Azendil's little act, he nevertheless kept himself on guard. Of course I didn't hear it. Only sounds I can be bothered to notice is the incessant howling of the wind and that plopping sound that- wait where did that plopping sound go? oocNo problem! Don't be so hard on yourself. This is going fine as is. And btw I lost my 1st post so I had to remake some of this.

[Growl]

Azendil returned his hands to his sides, before he continued walking towards the exit. "Maybe it was nothing," he whispered as he walked, "but we should be on out guard, just in case." Azendil began to walk a little faster, "do your best to keep up Darren," he said, as they rounded a bend, and the entrance of the cave came into view. From where Azendil stood, he could see several wisps of snow falling at an angle, into a bed of white. Well, it looks like we ran into another blizzard, the man thought, as he debated as to whether or not they should turn around and wait it out before going home. At least the cave sheltered them from the wind. As Azendil continued forward, he began to hear more and more- the whistling of the wind, his footsteps along the cave floor, and a low, guttural snarling sound. "Do you hear that?" Azendil asked, as a large wolf with white fur that sparkled with melted snow came into view. It stood in the entrance of the cave, filling it out completely. The creature stood 15 feet in length, and approximately 8 feet and three inches from paws to shoulder. Its long bushy tail was swishing back and forth, somewhat playfully. It's large eyes were black as night, and seemed to stare through Azendil and his companion. His lips were parted ever so slightly, exposing a row of elongated canine teeth, that were as white as milk, and sharp as a dagger. They were glistening with saliva. Well that can't be good, Azendil thought, as he stared at the wolf, whose muscles seemed to tense and ripple beneath its fur. Whose nose seemed to have been upturned from the amount of snarling it was doing, its shape misshapen into something far more ugly than truly frightening. Azendil tightened his grip on his spear, and brought it to a place in the center of his body. His eyes seemed fearful, yet filled with anger; the will to fight. His muscles kept rippling, tensing, as he flexed the fingers that surrounded the length of his spear. Slowly, he inched his free hand towards the spear, and wrapped it around the wooden portion as well, about five inches below his other hand. He stood, rigid, simply staring down the wolf, waiting for it to make a move. When the creature did nothing for what seemed like an eternity, Azendil shot forward, "be gone you foul beast!" he shouted, as he pushed his spear outwards, tilting it forward, and towards the beast. The beast growled as it moved its head out of the way, and snapped at the spear. He had grabbed hold of it in an instant, Azendil's skill, apparently no match for its ferocity, its hunger. The dire wolf sank its teeth into the wood, and began to tug the spear towards itself. Azendil braced himself, digging his feet into the ground, trying to pull the spear back towards him. But it was no use, Azendil's strength was no match for the wolf, and soon, his spear had been taken away. The creature stepped back and angrily hurled the spear outside. It landed with a muffled thud in the snow, sinking into it... There was no way the Vantha could get it now, their only hope was that the wolf would give up, or perhaps, Darren's torch. The wolf seemed to inch closer and closer to the ground, as though it were getting ready to pounce. Azendil gulped, petch, he thought, may Morwen save us. Just as the wolf sprang at him. With no where to run, the wolf was easily upon Azendil, ripping at his throat, causing the man to scream before he lost too much. And fell just as his weapon had... As fresh red blood dripped from the creature's teeth, and clung to his snout, he looked up at Darren. He was standing over his kill, hungrily, seemingly angry that he was being watched. Darren took a half step back... there was no where to run... The creature snarled as a droplet of blood and saliva fell onto the floor. Its eyes were flashing threateningly. Perhaps it wanted more. OOCSorry for such a blah post... have fun with the wolf...

[Darren]

Yea, Yea. Sure thing Darren chuckled as he changed pace in response to Azendil's. He frowned alongside with Azendil as they watched the snow fall at an accelerated pace near the entrance. "Hey... Who woulda thought I might have been right?" he joked as he weighed the options of staying in the cave or continuing. The silent contemplation of the two was interrupted by a low guttural sound and an inquiry from Azendil in response. "Yep, and I'm seeing it" he replied as he stared at the miraculous white wolf that appeared before them. He looked at the beast when a world of statements popped up into his head. Whoa, this thing is almost as big as a small house! Wait how the heck did IceWatch miss this one? It's so close to the village. Hmm... does that mean there really is a kid wolf inside? Is there any more of them or is it just this one? ...I wonder if I can manage to ride it he thought as he involuntarily took a pace back. "Wonder what Morwen's been feeding you. Cute little pet she has here" he mutter as he took a his place in front of Azendil. Under a bit of scrutiny he noticed the upturned ugly nose, misshapen. Obviously this brute relies more on it's size then it's skill or finesse he thought, trying to ready himself against. That means if it comes down to it, if I keep a cool head I SHOULD be able to not get hurt he thought unconfinced, but I probably can't with such a ferocious animal... He watched, surprised as Azendil pushed forward for the first move. Moving with less then ideal dedication then Darren would have wanted and a verbal warning to boot the wolf did it's work admirably. As the wolf gripped it's teeth into Darren quickly knew any hopes of keeping the spear was over. He doubt that even with their combined strength that it would be hard to wretch the damaged spear free. "Azendil let go!" he shouted as he moved to pull Azendil way from the creature. However the wolf was faster as it pulled Azendil's spear away from him, the followup quickly ended his companion's life before he had time to react. He took an involuntary step back in response to the carnage he just witnessed, hiding his neck in fear. Quickly realizing his position, his less then ideal position with the wolf blocking his escape a chill went up his spine as he gulped in uncertainty. He couldn't leave Azendil like that to get eaten so ferociously but he needed to get out of there pronto. He gripped the torch with his left hand as his right formed went forward to ward any attacks that the wolf may attempt. A cautious step forward, he tried circling around the wolf to get out of the entrance of the cave. All thoughts of getting the baby wolf and not harming the "spirit of the wolf" were lost with him. He had one thing left in mind, to get out and fast. He made no sudden movements like Azendil did before, he wouldn't repeat his former comrade's mistake. Instead he kept a continuous threatening presence at the directed at the wolf's face. He put it out in front of him, threatening the wolf's face with a deadly burn as he tried to circle around the beast. His right still stood steady in reserve, accumulating the djed in his body. Flowing slowly at first then steadily out of control and focus. Darren feared he might faint if he kept up the complex cycles and networks he was directing his djed in, excess energies splashed around his right arm as it veered off course and collided with other pathways and networks, his arm growing red and fatigued from the excess work. Unable to keep a the correct max amount of djed in his arm it started to sap other areas from his body, straining his body's equilibrium as it was greedily sapped by the forces in his right arm. He focused on keeping the correct amount of force in his hands with minimal success. Too little and the wolf might shrug it off, too much and he would dislocate part of his forearm and injury his wrist in the hit. In any case he leaned on the power heavy side, better to be injured then dead. Still the process of holding it took most of his concentration as he steadily made his way around into the entrance of the cave. He was unsure he would be able to mount a correct hit if the time came. This amount life threatening situation was new to him, one that he actually was worried about. Icewatch. If he could escape he could probably alert Icewatch of the danger so close to Avanthal. He could probably come with them and possible convince them to give him the wolf pup if there was one there. Possibly smuggle it from them and hand it over to his father if the situation demanded it. "I don't suppose you'd give up your pup without a fight" he mused softly as he made the last steps towards the entrance. He took one last look at Azendil's body, guarded ferociously by the dire wolf. The thought of possibly lighting him on fire came into mind, but it was much to late for that now. Sadly there was only one thing to do left. Run, and put up one hell of a fight if the wolf decided to follow. A last gulp in preparation, his right shaking in anticipation, strained red and not getting any better. It was as if the decision had to be made by the wolf rather then him. Darren looked straight at the foreboding eyes of the wolf before averting his gaze. Now was the time to move, a noncommittal flighty step followed by a steady strafe he made his way for his exit.

[Growl]

The wolf snarled at Darren, its eyes blazing, filled with hunger. It seemed to be watching his every step, waiting for him to inch closer and closer to his jaws, the inevitable. But there was a flame, a flickering flame that kept the creature at bay. If only the wind would let it die out. The fire cast everything in an eerie orange glow; so close to the color of blood, the scent that filled both the wolf's nostrils and Darren's. The wolf's tail swished back and forth as the wind howled and the snow fell, everything simply kept getting worse and worse... so much darker. When Darren began to run, the wolf realized that now was its chance to add him to the menu. Slowly, the creature lurked forward, licking its chops as it outstretched its massive front right paw, claws unsheathed. As the paw inched closer and closer to the frightened Vantha, the wolf was certain that he had him. Yet, his claws merely raked over the boy's right leg, shredding his clothes, and parting his skin to make way for fresh, red blood. The blood fell from Darren's leg, dotting the snow, making it turn a light shade of pink. The wolf growled, it had been so close to having its prey. Growing frustrated, it darted after Darren, who was now having trouble walking; there being a sharp shooting pain in his leg. A trail of blood behind him in the snow. The vantha was growing nauseous, scared, it could only be a matter of moments before the wolf overcame him. Surely he was praying to Morwen by now. ---------------------- There was a sudden howl from the wolf, and a muffled thud. A clash of white fur, of teeth, and claws, only to be met with more blood. The wolf fell into the snow, just as Darren did, from blood loss, from the cold. His torch flew away from him, and sizzled to a state of non-existence in the snow. As Darren's eyes closed, he noticed a blob of white, coming closer. Was he dying? Was he dead? The Kelvic polar bear reached down with his massive front left paw, and gingerly plucked Darren out of the snow. He gently lifted him onto his back, better take him to Whitevine, he thought, as he began to walk towards the Holds. He definitely needs to be looked at, or he won't last the night. ---------------------- There were bright lights, people buzzing around. People tending to his wounds... so many voices just making his head hurt. Perhaps it was easier to keep his eyes closed, to shut the world out. As soon as Silfer had heard about the state of his son, he came to see him. Watch over him as he recovered. "You are not yet a man, my son," he whispered, over Darren's body, unsure as to whether or not the boy had heard him. And then Darren's eyes closed, and there was only darkness.

[Growl]

Appreciation Time! Name: Darren Experience: +4 Interrogation, +4 Rhetoric, +2 Wilderness Survival, +4 Spelunking, +5 Socializing, +2 Tactics, +1 Flux, +1 Running Lore: Paying a Visit to Your Father, Asking Your Father to Give You a Task, Asking For Help, Enlisting Someone's Help, We Should Smoke Them Out, Did You Just Step on a Dead Guy?, The Inside of a Cave (Poor), Looking For Wolf Pups, Lighting the Way, Follow the Leader, Watching Azendil Die, Facing a Dire Wolf, Being Saved by a Bear Ledger: Remember to subtract the cost of the torch from your ledger (2 CM) Additional Notes: The experience should be pretty self-explanatory. You got interrogation for asking all those questions, especially in the beginning of the thread when you were out looking for advice. The rhetoric was for all the talking/critical thinking your pc did. The wilderness survival was for being out with Azendil for so long, and thinking ahead enough to purchase a torch. The spelunking was for exploring the cave with him, you would have maxed out on points had you been more detailed with your posts, (describing your surroundings), while you were in the cave. Socializing was for spending so much time with Azendil, the tactics points were for making the decisions about what to do, the flux was for the bit in your last post. The same with the running. The lores are even more straight-forward. As for the results of this thread: you will be spending the next few days, 5-7 on bed rest. After which time you will be allowed up, but will have trouble walking. It will take a long time for Darren to regain his full strength, although he will be able to walk. However, the wounds will ache from time to time, and will leave a scar. (Now he has something BA to show off to the ladies! Haha!) Just a side note... the thread would have made more sense had you gone down one of the two tunnels. They were essentially a giant loop, (meaning they met up at the end and were a giant circle), that would have led to a series of bones and the wolf pups. I would have let you take one of the wolf pups back, at the cost of your injuries increasing when the wolf found you. Since no wolf wants their kids taken away. Now, obviously you didn't go down there, which decreased the wolf's anger, since you were simply trespassing... but it cost the thread a lot of meaning. (You ruined my set-up Dar! But it's ok!) Anyway, the point is, Dar simply over-estimates his skills, and until he learns how not to do that, he can never truly be a man in his father's eyes. Nor can he keep himself entirely out of trouble. Lastly, thank you for the thread! Hopefully, we can see Darren continue to grow in the future. =) P.S. The wound is three long claw marks that wind around Darren's leg, just below the knee. They will leave a scar, which will fade over time.