[Flashback]The start of a Journey(solo)[Near Bronze Woods]

[Kaja]

I Season of Spring, Day 54, 509 AV It was time for the young Kelvic to leave her pack, family, and homeland. She stood outside of Syliras gates with the majority of her pack as they were sending her off on her journey. She was just a little over a year old, and it was her time to make it on her own as a female in her family. All Dynakuva Painted Desert Dogs while the males stayed at home to protect help raise the pups, and such the females went off to make their own new families, or packs. It was why their had been such an amass of them in the Sylaris area. They had formed their own pack from individual families that had migrated to the area. Not all of them were Kelvic, of course, however the ones that were born the same from the odd Kelvic bonding and mating that became this breed of colorful desert dog seemed to come to this pack of herding dogs with the farmers. That or they were from the farmers breed stock that they tried to breed. Not all breeding were successful in bringing about what they desired since it was all due to Djed that they were created in the first place. Nonetheless, somehow her parents were fairly strong in throwing off this type of species so the farmers of Syliras to continue their pack of herding dogs mostly used them. Mala, and Firenze whom were Kaja’s parents had ten children including her. Born third from last in a big family of males as more males were born in Dynakuva Painted Desert Dogs then females she was babied to a point, but also taught to be brave, not complain, and do what she was told of her masters always. Kaja’s brothers treated her like they did any of the others, they play fought with her, showed her bits and pieces of the training they wanted to study, but mostly the protected, cuddled, and loved her greatly. Some of her brothers of course weren’t all of the same species as their mother father and her. About half were dogs, while the other were other species who because of their specific species wonder off when they were come of age to do such things. The ones that were Dynakuva Painted Desert Dogs stayed with the pack where they were born, those were the ones that stayed near her and their parents. Kaja only really knew the names of those older then her that stayed, and of course the three under her that were born to Mala that weren’t quite weaned yet. In her family that she knew of there were three sets of twins born to her mother and father. That was one reason why their family had grown so large. However two of those sets of twins were other species of Kelvic, so one set had already wondered off to do their own thing when she was very little. Mala rubbed against her daughters lean side with her head, and said, “My daughter it is your turn now to find your own way. Find a good master, or mate, make us proud with whatever you do.” Firenze then came up to her and gave her a playful paw to her head as he always did with her. “Make yourself always useful to those that you serve. Be helpful when needed to whomever you meet in your travels, you never know if that person will become your master or mate. Above all else never forget where you came from, who you are, and what your purpose is. You are a Kelvic born to serve, be useful, and fit in with those around your.” His broad nosed face lazed into a doggy smile as he looked at one of his youngest, and only daughter. Kaja listened to her mother and father as she always did, and looked around her at the many others that were friends and family that had come to send her off on her journey. She was both afraid and excited. She was unsure of what this next part in her life would bring her, but she would not show anything but a brave, happy, and excited face to those she loved and cared about. “I will make you proud.” She said softly to them. This was when the four remaining brothers she was close to came running in all pouncing on her at the same time in a puppy pile licking, nuzzling, and yipping at her. She smiled up at her with them on top of her and responding in kind back to them. They could not give any words of wisdom to her except to tell her they loved her, and wished her well, to be safe, and find some kind master and bond mate if she could. She laughed and said, “Oh yes, I plan on finding the meanest master ever.” She rolled her eyes at them, and they all laughed and nipped at her playfully to signify that they didn’t like her sarcasm. She wondered what she would do without her loyal, protective, and loving brothers around her. Who would she talk to? Play with? Or even confide in when she needed some advice or someone to just listen to her? She got up after a fashion and smiled at them all, even though she wanted to cry too because she would miss them so. “I suppose it is time for me to be off,” she said in a hesitant yipping bark. She turned to go but then turned back, coming back to nuzzle everyone’s face she loved and knew well. Then she really did take off running she had to or she knew she would not have the guts to go. She was afraid to be away from that which she knew best the smells, sights, and sounds of Syliras. This was the way of it though it was her turn now to go off and be her own pack, her own being, maybe at some point she would come back but it wouldn’t be until she had her own life aside from her family. Maybe even her own masters that would travel and settle in Syliras bringing her back to her homeland. That however, was only to be discerned by what she encountered outside the walls of Syliras. She ran, and ran and ran the walls, and her family getting smaller and smaller behind her. This was her life, her adventure to live the way it was going to be lived. She just hoped that it would lead her to fulfilling what she and all the generations before her of Kelvics were created for that was serving and being the best servant she could be. She kept on running until she was well into the Bronze Woods before she stopped. She sat down realizing she didn’t even know what direction she was going. She cocked her head thinking of what her father had said. Without a map she would have to use her head. Follow the sun, stars, and her own natural ability to know what direction she was going in order to get to where she wanted to go. Which as of yet she was unsure where she wanted to go. She thought that maybe one of the dessert or sea of grass areas would be nice, but she was unsure where yet. However at the moment she was realizing that hunger was becoming the most prominent issue. She looked around thinking all that running had made her hungry. She wanted to hunt. She let her eyes lead her to where there might be some prey around. When eventually her light hazel eyes caught unto a sight of a rabbit, which because of her lone status at the moment was all she could more then likely catch. However, in her larger pack form when they went out hunting they would take down deer, sometimes moose, and other such larger animal. However, because it was just she really didn’t need that much for herself. She trotted up to the furry brown animal that at first hadn’t seen or smelled her. However once it did it took off running knowing that it was more then likely doomed. The young pup took off after it chasing it in its different directions loving the chase of it. She yipped, and pounced on it once trying to get her mouth around it, but it slipped away angling into another direction however she had managed to claw up the rabbits back a bit. The rabbit was tiring after about a ten minute run especially with its wounds on its back. Kaja caught up to it and eventually pounced on it again managing to get her strong jaws around its neck and snap down on it. The poor rabbits neck was snapped in two by the force of it. She then started eating her well-won lunch with a satisfied look on her face. After grooming herself after finishing the rabbit she had caught she decided that it was time to move on at the moment she was in the forest and tree blocked where the sun was from her view. She had to get to an area where she could see the sun to see where she was going. The map that her father had shown her was in her head. She had to take the South Kabrin road that followed the Suvan Sea to get to Riverfall, which was in Cyphrus. Either way whether she stayed in Cyphrus or decided to move forward into the desart areas of Eyktol she knew she had to go through Cyphrus to do so. She trotted along unsure where she was going for now, but hoping that eventually she would run into some type of land mark in her head that would show her where she might be, and in what direction she might go to get to where she wanted to be. Eventually she ran into the swift moving water of a river. In her mind she saw the map, and she could only think that it was the Avitar River. She followed down figuring that she knew that the road she needed was down from the river a bit. It was a start at least to hopefully getting to where she needed to be.

[Kaja]

I Season of Spring, Day 60, 509 AV It had almost been a week now of walking and running during the day, finding a place to sleep at night, and then getting up and doing it all over again the next day. Kaja was still following the river that she knew would lead her close to the South Kabrin Road and it was late in the afternoon. She stopped to hunt a young fawn that seemed to either have had its mother killed, or she was off doing something else leaving it alone. The fawn being young was a bit to slow in realizing that the scent she smelled was danger. She jumped up but a little to late as the young Kelvic dog hunter pounced bit on her rear end and had her dinner. Easy catch this time, most the other things she had found foxes, mice, rabbits, and other small game around she had, had to chase down, but would always get her meal. Her mother and father had trained her well in hunting, and running, or at least as much as they could in the year they had, had with the young pup. She dragged her catch which was bigger then most of her other kills as of yet into some underbrush and hide herself there while she ate it. She did this so if any other bigger creatures that were carnivores wouldn’t steal her meal. She ate quickly and with a full belly made her way toward her destination again. By that time it was nightfall it was then that tragedy hit the poor young Dynakuva Painted Desert Dog ran straight into a patrolling troop of knights from the Green Company of the 4th Regiment that guarded the farmers that resided in the Mithryn Outpost. They mistook her for a beast that was going to attack those that dwelled inside and with raised swords started to chase her in the other direction she had come from. They chased her for many miles back toward the Avitar River that she had been following. She had been careful to follow it by keeping it in sight, but she had not got too close to it. Dynakuva Painted Desert Dogs don’t really like deep waters much, and try to avoid them. The only way prey can really escape a pack of these dogs when they are on the hunt is to run toward deep water. If the prey they are after is actually fast enough to get into that water they are good as safe. She heard the rushing water, knew it was close before she saw it however she was running so fast away from the screaming knights that she couldn’t stop fast enough and slid right into the rushing stream that ran into the larger portion of the Avitar River. When she fell she floundered in the water, and the swift moving water swept her away. The Knights stopped at the bank, and let her go going back to their area to continue their patrol satisfied they had chased off the beast. However they didn’t know that in doing so they might have just condemned the young Kelvic woman to death. She didn’t know how to swim in dog form or human form. She went under the water a few times flailing and managing to get up above the water with her head. Several rocks on the way down hitting her side, back, and rear end, she was now in the larger part of the river, and the water was running even swifter. She was pull under in a swirling current swirled around under water and hit several times on the bottom of the rivers rocky bank rendered unconscious. She floated a little longer until she was brought back toward where she had almost started even a little past that. She was eventually somehow pushed onto the shower by a more slow moving current near the Aylasa Caves. The sun rose the next day, the light bright the start of another day, beautiful and bright. The young woman lay in the mud naked on the bank of the Avitar River not far from the caves called Aylasa Caves. She took a deep breath coughed and spit out water blinking. Her body hurt everywhere, and her head most of all. She went to blink her eyes to shut out the bright light and even that hurt. She moaned lightly and tried to sit up. That was not something her body was ready to do as her stomach roiled and she retched next to her on the bank. She rubbed her pounded head, trying to remember what had happened, how she got here, and why she was out in the forest. Nothing was coming to her, and she was frustrated she let out a light growl, and even that sound hurt her head. She lay there for the better part of the morning spending most the time drifting into light sleeps, and trying to move. She needed to move toward the caves she could see not too far off. She knew she couldn’t sleep but she would find herself drifting into light almost twilight sleeps before she would jolt herself awake. When she finally made it to the shelter of the caves she sat herself up against a rock, and kept herself awake by humming mindlessly to herself. She didn’t know what happened to her, why she was hurting so bad, or who had hit her on the head and left her on the bank of the river. Nor did she know why she was out in the woods and not in some shelter with her family. Did she have a family? Maybe she didn’t have a family? She tried to think of who she was, what she was, and why she had been away from civilization. Was she supposed to be out here? Did she live someone around here? Why couldn’t she remember anything? It wasn’t until the next day that she finally allowed herself to sleep, and she woke up late that night with a jolt. She had been dreaming of running and running and then falling, and rushing in water bobbing up and down, suffocating it had been a terrible dream. Had that been what had happened to her? She had fallen into flowing water? But why, she always stayed away from deep water, what would make her be so careless? She rubbed her head, it still ached, but it didn’t seem to hurt as much as the day before. Her body still felt like she had fallen off a cliff and bounced over many rocks. She felt her body and didn’t think she had any broken bones. She then started to get up a bit shakily, but she managed to get up on her feet. She walked to the front of the caves and heard falls in the distance. She didn’t know where she was, where she was going, or why she was out here in the wilderness. However, she did have something come to her she knew somehow deep in her bones that she was Kelvic, and she could change into an animal. After thinking a bit more one word kept coming to her mind and that was Kaja. Was that her name? What was that word to her? Well she would say it was her name, it sounded like a pretty name. She wondered where her family was; did she have one had she been kicked out of her family? She rubbed her aching head again turned and went back to the cave, lay back down, and slept the rest of the night. She would figure out what she was going to do, and hope that more memories would come to her tomorrow.

[Secret]

Grading

THREAD AWARDS Kaja   Skills Skill Gain Notes Observation 1 Hunting 1 Running 1 Wilderness Survival 1 Swimming 1   Lores Wilderness Survival: Finding Shelter Leaving Your Family   Injury Report Description Heal Time After Effect Moderate Bodily Bruising 7 Days None Moderate Head Injury 10 Days Concussion Amnesia Unknown Loss of Longterm Memory The Bruising and Concussion will heal themselves, the amnesia may or may not heal, impossible to know if the memory will return.   Notes A nice, simple thread that I enjoyed. Thank you.