[The Sea of Grass] The Cycle of Life (Rhy/Serrif)

[Rhy]

It seems that Serrif has the same idea. Their eyes meet for a briefest moment, and he gives her an approving nod. With that they both turn to that strange stretch of forest. The first of the trees are no more then burnt husks. They creak and groan in the breeze like old men, their knotted branches blackened and grating on each other in a symphony of sad sighs. Any one of them look likely to fall, and they tip dangerously. Rhy shoots a look of concern to her tracking partner and enters first. She runs ahead, but is mindful to stay within sight of Hashmere. Waiting at each juncture before jumping ahead once more. But the thrumming vibrates through her like a guitar string, her body as wound as a child's top. She wants to run ahead, and keep running forever. She has come to realize that its not just the situation. Something is wrong with her. She finds her self not just anticipating finding her friend, but expecting something. Like listening for the thunder after the lightning strikes. As they get further in they stumble upon the carcass of a colt. Preceded only by the acrid smell of burnt hair and the sweetness of cooked meat. The Kelvic stops for a closer look, and finds herself hoping the smoke got to the animal before the fire did. The skin is cracked and blackened, glistening with the oil of melted fat, and legs still pop faintly as the heated bones crack and settle in the sudden cold. It couldn't have been more then a few hours old. She sniffs curiously and finds what she expects too, cleansed by fire with the gummy smell of evaporated fluids. But on the back, the least damaged part, their is something else. The faintest trace of rich earth and cinnamon. She's here! She's close! With a deep, booming bark thrown at Serrif she runs ahead. Forgetting about the immobility of horses in the dense forest. The air gets sweeter the closer she gets, and its barley two chimes before she comes across the strange sight. It stops her in her tracks. Its twenty to thirty meters across and almost perfectly circular. Inside the circle the grass is a thick, healthy green. A low pond and a handful of trees and bushes are enclosed in this tiny spot of paradise. Its an inverted scar across the land, like a thumbprint of the gods. She can't help thinking of how cruel a trick this is, saving this one spot while the rest burns. Her eyes travel up to the canopy, full of the reds and oranges of fall. And of fire. She shudders and forces her sight back to the ground. Right near the centre, partially hidden by the thistles and thorns that mark the ponds lip, is a strange, irregular shape. The thrumming hums in recognition, but its not until the wind blows the hair out of its face that she lets herself comprehend. Gianne. In that second the thrumming snaps. The reaction fills her chest, her throat, her eyes. It pours from her mouth like water until she's sure she will drown in it. The expectant feeling snaps shut like a door, no longer wanting, and the ground shifts beneath her. The forest no longer has Gianne, the forest exists around her. And that tiny change of perception changes everything. She's changing, bonding, and it feels as if its exactly how its suppose to be. It seems she made the choice a long time ago, it just took a while for her mind to catch up. Her purpose, reason, and sense of self unravel like an old tapestry, weaving itself together in a new pattern around the woman. Rhy's fading, glowing, falling apart and pieced together. She's tethered. She's drowning. The dog shifts to human. Her gracefulness strangely unsteady on two legs. Licking her lips, she finds she can't make a sound. Instead she runs to her friend, kneeling in the plush grass by her head. "Gianne", she manages to croak. No answer. "Gianne", a second time, stronger now. The woman's eyes are open and dry. Is she breathing? Where is Serrif?! "Oh gods, SERRIF!"

[Serrif Von Chatlyn]

Serrif was fighting to keep himself composed with the anxiety of the current situation as high as it was. Something here was not right…something was going to end horribly. The tall charred trees told him everything he needed to know, the wisps of ashes kicking up and falling around like hellish snowflakes. Every now and then it seemed like the fire itself would peak up from the wounded earth and spit out a flame only to be extinguished again. This was strange alien territory. And the longer they looked the more he realized that Gianne could indeed be seriously wounded; especially given the circumstances they were in right now.

His acute vision caught something in the forest, a lump…but it was not a bush. No, it was a hog that had been caught in the fire. Fallen over and burned alive. There was no saving it’s charred corpse now; it hadn’t been able to evade the onslaught of fire. His heart dropped, it was possible that they would find Gianne in the same circumstance. Burned alive….that would be a very unforgiving way to go. A way in which he would never be able to forgive the gods for. Never.

They came across another victim in the firestorm, a young colt that had much the same fate as the hog he had spotted earlier. It was horrific and as they came across more and more tragedy here he only hoped that when they found Gianne they would be able to dodge this theme and find her in good condition. Although he was mentally preparing himself for the opposite. It was becoming very apparent to him now that they would likely find Gianne dead, another charred corpse among the forest. Then what? Would he bury her on Sanctuary grounds or what? He would have to send a letter to her parents…that would be uncomfortable to say the least.

Rhy let out a deep bark that immediately caught his attention. Had she found something? And then like lightning she shot out through the forest. He urged Hasmere to try and follow, but the horse didn’t stand a chance; Rhy was much more agile. Weaving between the burned out trees and gliding gracefully over the irregular terrain. Yes, he didn’t stand a chance in keeping up with her. And now…now this turned into a hunt for Rhy….

He started looking through the ashes for her paw prints and found them soon enough tracing them little by little. He wished that girl had kept herself level so they could continue to find Gianne. He thought about calling out for her but knew she likely wouldn’t respond. If and when she found Gianne she would likely mark her position with a howl or something. And if he couldn’t find Rhy…Rhy would find him. She was the tracker; which put him in a very tough position especially tracking through an ashen wasteland.

He continued tracing until he heard a voice call out. ‘SERRIF!’ Although here in the forest with all the trees the voice echoed to and fray so it took all his concentration to get a general direction of where the cry for help had come from.

He got a bearing though and then picked up Rhy’s prints in the ash until he came across a little oasis in the distance. A strange little patch of unscorched earth among all the destruction that had swept through here. The patch was nearly perfectly circular as if a god or goddess had preserved it for some reason or another. He saw there among the tall grass was Rhy in her human form kneeling…over or near something that he couldn’t yet see. She had found Gianne?

Hasmere wouldn’t get him there fast enough so he dismounted and ran the leather satchel slapping the side of his hip as he ran through the hellish perverted forest floor. There were still hot little embers like fireflies floating in the air and he didn’t much care at the moment. Sometimes one would stick to his face and burn for a moment, but he shrug that off as he ran as quick as his feet would carry him to that little oasis. There she was…Gianne.

She seemed to be alive so a wave of relief washed over him. However she was heavily burned so he focused himself for a moment brushing the emotions aside so he could focus on what needed to be done. He would pour his emotions out later. But now, right now he had to tend to Gianne if he wanted her to live, if he wanted her to be able to walk again on those scorched legs.

But his façade vanished some and the gravity of the situation came over him. All at once, washing over his body he saw Gianne laying there broken with Rhy at her side. She was hurt; horribly and he alone wasn’t skilled enough to heal her back to new. His skills alone would not be enough. The Goddess hadn’t marked him enough and his skills in medicine, herbalism and philtering wouldn’t out here bring her back on her legs. No, he wouldn’t let this break him. He had tools, healing scrolls that could patch her up most of the way; the rest would have to be done by Kavala back at the Sanctuary.

“ok…..ok….” He said as he started to center himself on the fact that he had a hard bit of labor before him right now. He remembered how Lym had pressed him always to keep composure. Even if the patient looked helpless he was to keep composure…

So he settled himself down again kneeling next to Rhy, for both of these women’s sakes he had to keep himself steady. Rhy needed that now more than ever, and so did Gianne. If he freaked out and did nothing Gianne would suffer; and he couldn’t risk that right now. Not now when Gianne was laying here with all this pain. He pulled his leather satchel off of his shoulder and set it on the ground. Then gently he placed a hand on Gianne’s hip where there was no injury, the other found the side of her face; with his massive span of arms it was easy for him to reach both places.

Emerald eyes closed and he bowed his head reverently. Even with his hand on her cheek he could feel where her tears had streaked down her face leaving little salty paths behind them. She had to be in pain right now, and he was going to remove it. Focusing on the abounding grace Rak’keli had shown him he pulled forward the energy he had from his core and poured it from his body. Focusing it through his hands. He could feel the gnosis mark on his arm pulsate as he continued to work on her. Never removing his hands he focused harder, trying to imagine her lets the way they were before the burning. Maybe this once the Goddess would grant him something extra….something more to heal this wounded woman…He focused wanting to heal Gianne completely. Wishing for this though didn’t make it so.

He knew when he was done and he looked her over, everything was sterilized…but the legs were not brand new. His gnosis had done hardly anything and with this he grew frustrated. But he pushed that aside locking it up because frustration would do him no good right now. None at all; he was here to aid Gianne. And he was sure at the very least that he had sapped her pain. While a good start it was far from where he wanted to be at this moment. He dug through his bag and found a few scrolls that Kavala reserved for emergency use. And this in his mind was the perfect time for them.

He found one for serious injuries, and he believed this classified as such. He laid the scroll gently over one of her legs and it activated healing up her leg nicely leaving behind only smaller much more treatable wounds. He repeated and did this again on the other leg as to help her out some. Now he was getting somewhere. But he needed to move her and get her back to the sanctuary as quickly as possible. And in order to move her he had to stabilize her wounds. He couldn’t and wouldn’t leave them out to the open.

Now, he was glad more than ever than he and Kavala had made burn cremes together. He took some out of his pouch and applied it gently to what burns were left. Applying it liberally to her effected areas so it would seal up the wounds before he wrapped her legs in bandaging. He handed Rhy a roll of bandages and figured it would be good to get her involved.

“Rhy, I need you to soak these in the water.” But at first she wouldn’t respond…no she was still in shock.

“Rhy…please.” He set a hand on her shoulder calming her nerves some as he looked into the girls eyes and handed her the bandaging. “soak these.” He knew the bandaging against the burns would be best if wet and then atop that he would lay another layering of dry bandages. This was the best he could do out here in the field. He gently cut up the side of Gianne’s pantleg with one of his daggers to see how far the burning had gone. So he would know what else he had to do. It was going to be a rough ride back to Sanctuary, hopefully Kavala was ready to receive the injured Gianne into her care.

[Gianne Basete]

A dark shape loomed above her, obscured by the fog layered over her eyes. She blinked against the grey, the effort seeming as hard as it would be to lift a boulder. It didn't help. In fact, it seemed to drain her further. She was so tired. But the dark blur hovering over her seemed very important. It was also comforting. Gianne let out a slow sigh, feeling the corners of her mouth turn up. Another shape slid into view; in her peripheral vision. Her eyes flicked toward it. This one was a lot bigger and she smiled at it as well. Time was passing very slowly for her now. A single breath seemed to take an entire bell. Faintly, she could feel something on her face and hand. It was more the weight than anything. Her skin had lost most of its sensory it seemed, and she couldn't summon the energy to care or be worried. But something started to change as soon as that weight touched her body. Her heart started to beat a little faster; slowly at first, but faster as other things happened inside her. Gianne's skin grew less cold and the feeling started to return. Her vision repaired and she now registered Rhy and Serrif, their faces drawn with fear. Rhy's was more apparent, but only Serrif's eyes betrayed his emotions. Her breathing came easier and finally she felt back to normal, more or less. There was no pain now; not like there should have been. Gianne looked down, and her voice caught in her throat. Her skin was shiny and puckered with scars where the burns were healed, then still raw or bloody where it wasn't. It was horrible, but at least not as bad as before. Before, it was like she had been cooked. She had been cooked, really. Carefully, not trusting her own body, she took Rhy's hand in her own. She squeezed the girl's fingers and felt the burning in her face the normally accompanied tears. None came though, she was all dried up. Literally. Her mouth was parched and her lips were cracked and bloody. It felt as though she'd eaten a desert whole and the sand coated her throat. How had she gotten so lucky, having been found by the two people she was closest to? Gianne looked away from her repulsive legs as Serrif placed the first parchment across her skin, instead looking up at the branches overhead. It felt right to sent a silent, tired thank you to her Goddess, and she did. Her whole heart was behind those two words, swelling the prayer until it was like a full belly about to burst from too much food. Speaking of which, she was starving. She then looked at Rhy, forcing an encouraging smile onto her face. "I'll be okay now." It seemed like more of a question than a statement though. Her voice creaked like the branches of one the burned trees, breaking over the words like an old woman would. Strange how quickly someone could be at the gates of death then be brought back again. And here she thought she would see a white light. It had just been an endless fog. Maybe she should write a book about her experience. Despite the horror of it all, it had been quite interesting. If you looked at it in a nonchalant way like, 'Oh, I almost died? No big deal. It's all good now!' Eventually she looked back down at Serrif, when he spoke up. "Why the long face?" she croaked with some effort, having to retry that sentence once after licking her lips with a dry tongue. She tasted copper and sticky old saliva. "If it's not too much trouble," another lick to her lips, "could I have some water?" The word water came out as more of a sigh, like it was almost too holy for a mere mortal such as herself to utter in this situation. She would give all of her clothes, her room, and her weapons for a petching drink of water. A cracked-lipped smile accompanied her question. It was the opposite of charming. If anything, it was a little creepy. Bloody, dirty and strained.

[Rhy]

"Shhhh!" Air hisses from her teeth when Serrif asks her to soak the cloth a second time. She should be helping him, the healer with her bondmates life in his hands, and looking back she will regret dismissing him like that. But she is sure, so sure, she saw Gianne move. And that is where her attention is. The humans hands give the Kelvic's a gentle squeeze, and her skin feels so thin and dry. Like paper. And her equally thin voice raises to tell her that everything will be fine. Reassuring her friend while she lays dying on the floor, how typical of Gianne. "Hey sweetheart", Rhy whispers, and she would have cried right then. Right in front of Serrif in this tiny spot of paradise in the middle of a burning forrest. If she was the type of woman who cried. Instead she bites her cheek, and the coppery taste brings her back to herself. Serrif needs bandages and water, and Gianne needs to drink. Its a simple, straightforward task. But she really does not want to let her go. She suppresses a sigh and takes the bandages from the healer, still looking scattered and distracted. "Right, ok, I'll be right back." The last part she says more to Gianne than Serrif. Its a good thing she brought the healer with her, as even she has to realize how useless she would be in a crisis. Gently untangling her hands she rises and skips off to the water just a few feet away, carelessly shoving brambles aside and slicing her arms. And when she does return the bandages are heavy with liquid she hasn't wrung out. "Here we go", she whispers, as if speaking to loud will wake the moment. She moves around behind the prone woman and gently raises her head so she rests on her lap like a pillow. Then taps her lips to make her open and wrings out the water into her mouth just drops at a time. Steadily giving her more until the cloth is wrung. She passes the bandages back to Serrif looking expectant and hopeful. As if these soggy bandages will make her well again and they can all limp home. "What else do I do? Tell me. We should get her over Hasmere and move her home. We can get her back to Kavala and the clinic."

[Limey]

Gianne Skill and Lore Rewards Skills Lore Endurance 2 The Will To Move Observation 2 An Unlikely Friend Crawl Before You Can Walk An Hoary Old Boar Waking World Unraveling Coming To Save Me Rhy Skill and Lore Rewards Skills Lore Observation 2 Fire In The Grass Tracking 3 Fear For A Friend Alarm! Alarm! Serrif: Rock In A Storm Finding By Scent The Broken Forest Finally Found Serrif Skill and Lore Rewards Skills Lore Planning 2 Always Something To Do... Observation 3 Passing The Word Medicine 1 Venturing Into The Grass Black Terror For Those You Love Relying On Rhy Fear Stoking The Imagination Healing Scrolls Additional Notes : Nice work with the tracking, and all of you captured quite well the terror of not knowing if your friend is alive or dead, and the breakdown of consciousness pain produces. Shame more didn't come of it, but enjoy what you got! Any questions or queries, please PM me.