[Wind Reach] Off for the long hunt (Closed)

[Renol]

Why wouldn’t the damn thing roar like it had before? Was he really that pathetic in it’s eyes. He’d wounded it in the leg and gotten it’s attention before. But apparently it didn’t feel the need to return Renol’s challenge with an outburst of its own. Simply a snarling grunt issued forth from it’s frothing mouth. Instantly, Renol knew his plan was scrapped. But he had to take the shots. It would give him at least a fighting chance against the bear when it reached him. So he figured to aim for one of the bears eyes. It was only a little further over and the bear had a steady lopping gate to it as it charged onward. It was easy to track it’s path back and forth to know where the eye would be at. He released the first arrow and then the second in quick secession watching as they flew, his breath catching in his throat as time seemed to slow down as he watched the fletching at the end of the arrow, marking its path.

As he saw the arrow impact below the beast’s eye, his mind let out a long, agonizing string of profanity as he felt reality crashing down around him, knowing that he was going to die. And then something horrifying happened. He saw the tent pole spear imbed itself into the bear’s hide. That meant that there was someone else outside the protective shell of the tents. That means that his death would end up being in vain. But even still there was a glimmer of hope. As the tent pole impacted it brought another roar from the bear’s mouth, the gapping maw stretching open, leaving a prime target for the second arrow. His eyes went wide as he saw the arrow impact inside the bear’s mouth, even though he knew it wasn’t the right angle to do what he wanted it to. But there might be the chance that it passed through the bear’s jugular. But that hope was dashed as well as the bear’s mouth clamped shut, snapping his heavy arrow into splinters in the act.

It was all Renol could do to get his blade out in time, dropping his bow to the ground without a second thought as his hand reached for the wicked blade strapped to him. But he wasn’t able to pull the weapon and evade the attack from the animal as its form filled his field of vision. The hot, fetid breath of the bear washing down on him as its colossal claws tore a ragged, bloody trail down his thigh. Renol screamed out in agony and rage the searing hot pain ripped through his lower body. Without even thinking about it, his body reacted taking his blade and burying it into the limb that had been used to attack him, trying to take some revenge for the attack set against it. He watched as the blade sank deep into the bear’s leg. The fat of the bear robbed the attack of some of its power and the blade stuck fast as it bit against the bear’s bone. But even before his hand’s had left the blade’s handle, the bear was returning the favor, swinging the injured limb back against him in a reverse sweep that sent Renol flying through the air. Everything was still slow motion as he traveled, watching the campsite rotate through his vision, watching Sairque standing at a distance from the bear. And as he spun, his eyes caught sight of the bloody ruin of his leg. He instantly started feeling himself going into shock, the entire world starting to numb around him as he fell through the air. He saw the blood flying off of the wound, droplets flipping off through the air as he spiraled and he knew that he was already losing a large amount of blood, and it wasn’t going to stop by any of his own means.

He saw the branches of the tree flash into his view and suddenly, everything went back to normal time. He grunted in another jolt of searing agony as he impacted against the branches and slumped to the ground, rolling onto his back as he fought to catch the breath that had been beaten out of him several times in the last several seconds. Thankfully, the shock was setting in, and Renol wasn’t able to feel just how much his thigh actually hurt, his mind shutting out the pain due to necessity. He looked to the bear as it stood there, starting down Sairque. Damn it, why hadn’t she gone to the tents. She could be safe right now instead of face to face with this wounded monster. But the bear didn’t advance, watching Sai as she stood there. The bear knew that Renol wasn’t a threat anymore, and didn’t seven seem to pay him any attention for the moment. Renol just watched, his mind blank as he lay there, watching everything unfold around him now, without even a weapon to protect himself with.

[Sairque]

The ground was unyielding beneath her heels as she sped across it toward the fight, there was a sort of surreal rhythm to it all. Her heart pounded it's dual beat once to every four or five steps, twice to every three breaths, and fifteen times to every once that Renol was owned. Estimations based on hindsight. The scene unfolding before her desperately sprinting self prevented any self consideration. There hadn't even been an opportunity to rejoice for distracting the bear with that lucky shot as it hit when she had already closed another fifteen feet between them. There was a spurt of blood and Sai was torn between wishing that Renol had another arrow, for surely just one more try would get him some good results, and wishing he would flee like a little lamb from a wolf. The bear was unphased by the wound to it's mouth, which was painfully close yet so far from being effective. His small adversary didn't try to run in the face of his failure, which wasn't surprising at this point, but groped for his sword. The grizzly was the quicker, however, and let loose an impressive spray of sticky blood from the Endal's upper thigh. He had to have hit an artery, which made Sai wish the bear had indeed hit two inches higher. The strapping Endal would have had a better chance of living. The distance between them seemed to lengthen, a veritable plain separated herself from being able to help the struggling man fend off the behemoth, even as the bear helped out a bit by throwing Renol toward her. Here, a plan desperately transfered from brain to body with hardly an analytical aspect taken was put into motion. The bear had dropped it's head to bite at the man writhing in agony and dropping into shock. Another stutter step, this one matching one taken earlier, and her right hand shifted position on the shaft, clenching it in her fist over her shoulder as her left hand flew out for aim. They were the exact same movements from earlier, having had much success with this technique. This time, though, she was aiming for the beast's head where it lifted with the sword in it's mouth. No, no, that wasn't right. Confusion reared it's ugly head and Sai hesitated, brows furrowing further when the weapon was discarded and no further movement made. He just stared at her. This wasn't right. The grizzly knew. Bears were smart, incontestably, but to realize that the blade was a separate tool and that removing it would remove what little damage the man could hope to inflict at this point... Frozen, momentum bled off in the hesitation of earlier, the flight leader's eyes darted between their adversary and her severely wounded companion. How could it understand that the humans would allow a truce? It knew it could dispatch all of them, probably with little additional wounding to itself, and continue on with it's meal and burying the carcasses for later. Why did it figure that they weren't trying to take it's meal and territory? Perhaps she was giving it too much credit, but her fingers peeled open and the shaft rolled down them to plummet to her feet. Make no mistake, it was still in a position to be rolled onto the tow of one boot and kicked up to her hand if necessary, like one of the little bags of rice kids kick around after dinner in the Courtyard of the Sky. The decision was made, however, and accepted. Straightening to her full height, hard yellow eyes pierced the bear's. She was open, appearing vulnerable if she had misinterpreted his actions. Methodical focus shut down emotions, concern for Renol, concern for Aidara, concern that Kovac wasn't doing a good job protecting Aidara. Fear, worry melted away. There was no room if she was mistaken and this facade was about to be dropped and her body consumed for a healthy snack. The moments dragged out, though in reality the time slipping away in this stare down was fewer than fifteen seconds. Breath baited, Sai took deliberate steps toward her fallen companion. If there bear wanted to have a staring contest he would have to find someone else, Renol was in bad shape. The shaft was left behind, and though she wanted to run to the Endal, steps were forced slowly along until she reached him. Worry ignited at the sight of the gnarly gashes, and Sai forgot all about being calm and not startling the grizzly. "Hey buddy, this is going to hurt," she warned, although it was clear he was out of it at this point, before taking an eating knife and shredding off a part of his bryda to bind the wound with. Muttering that the pressure would have to do for now, she reached down to hoist him up. Dead weight. How wonderful. Groaning and clenching her teeth, she man-handled him into a position draped over her shoulders. It seemed as though his legs were as long as she was tall. "Petching giant." The first step veered off to the left, the next was over corrected to the right and the ground was unyielding beneath the jolting stomping of her boots into the ground. Wobbling along, adrenaline still coursing though and helping her with a burden that otherwise would have left her moving at a snails pace, eventually she got used to the way gravity affected her with the limp and rangy sack and she could move quicker. As soon as they were a fair distance away from the bear, he could have all his trophies down at that end of camp, she called out for the two Avora. She liked Renol, but wasn't going to encourage her companions to shed their protective shell and possibly also get killed if the bear changed his mind. "Help," she grunted but realized that they wouldn't be able to hear it. "Help!" called out, the effort requiring her to hesitate in her progress to a place where the male could be tended to.

[Aidara]

Well, as it goes...She was once blind, and now she could see....well, kinda. Out of no where, Addy felt the sensation she related to her sisters emotions creep over her. Instead of being an overwhelming, uncontrolled feeling that drove to the edge of distraction, no matter the situation, the healer actually didn't realize it was happening at first. The feelings slithered up on her like a second skin, and only when she made that observation through her panic was she able to decipher the emotions "Petching hell! Renol's trying to shoot it! ...Well, I think. I don't know why else Sai would be slipping into "Martyr Mode". Shes calculating something, trying to decide....who to go to, or what to do. Ahhhh, Kovac, she's worried. Something is wrong...." Her rambling faded off into a constant mutter as she told the Hunter wrapped around her exactly what was going on, according to the emotions of her twin that was sliding like silk over her skin. In a rustle of movement, Aidara fought against Kovac's hold on her body; only then realizing how tightly he held her. At any other time, she would have been flattered. However, at this moment, she just wanted to roll over. Finessing her way out of his arms and prying his legs from around her waist, she turned over in the tent to face him "Is it just me, or is it getting hot in here?' Literally. The more oxygen they used up in their confined space, the hotter it got. Addy's face was bright red, and she used one of her hands to try and fan herself- to no avail. There was another roar from the bear, and Addy squealed, starting almost out of her skin and jumping back into Kovacs arms. Convenient, right? "NO! Kovac, I think Sai is running at it. I think Renol might be shooting it instead of the both of them running to the tents that are left. Are they STUPID?! Oh my god..no!" The panic was thick in her voice, the last bit coming out in more of a whimper than anything else. She had felt Sai gather all her energy, in reality to throw the spear that basically saves Renols life, but Addy thought that her sister was going to throw herself at the bear to save her fellow Endal. After what seemed like hours, there were screams, bestial and human alike. This awoke the terror that Addy had been trying so hard to suppress. She began to shake madly. Facing Kovac still, she buried her face into his chest and used all of the willpower she had to not cry. "Hes hurt...the bear...It got Renol...I....He's going to need a healer." It was whispered as she looked up, wide eyed and frightened at the cynical Avora that held her. Like he would care, of have any sympathy for her at all. It was her job, after all. "Help!" Came her sisters voice, and Addy could only stare at Kovac, not moving.

[Kovac]

The stifling heat, heavy air and blinding darkness was beginning to aggravate Kovac. The woman in his arms was breathing heavily, like himself, drowning out any sound that might give the two Avora clues as to the fate of the Endal's. It was as if some great beast had swallowed them and now the two Avora just waited to be digested. His pulse raced faster when he realized that a snake was now somewhere in the tent with them. The hunter dared not mention it to Adaira, for fear of panicking her, but he continued to hold her, trying to keep her still. He had no idea what kind of serpent it was, or the danger it posed. The hunter flinched as Adaira suddenly spoke out loud, her voice excited with emotion. She was describing what was going on outside the tent! He marveled, wanting to ask her how she knew what was happening, knowing there was not even a hole for her to peek out of in the tightly wound fabric. No matter the source, Adaira continued to speak, revealing the situation with anxiety, though the archer noted what she knew seemed to come from emotions rather than some physical senses. Suddenly she started to squirm, easily turning in his embrace, both covered with a slick sheen of sweat. He could not see her face, but her comment about the heat, for once, did not elicit a ribald reply from the snarky Avora. The was sitation too dire for even Kovac to turn to some seductive game. "It's petching hot. Now be still!" He simply muttered. Aidara's recitation of the events outside came with an ever increasing panic to in her tone. They both heard the fierce roar and Kovac instinctively put his arms around the girl again as she pressed in against him in fear. The situation was desperate, according to the twin, and the archer grew even more anxious to break free of the smothering cocoon, and the creature they now shared it with. Then, through the panting and rustling of the fabric, the sound of Sairque's voice sunk through. She had cried for help. Kovac had not known her well, but she was certainly the kind who did not ask for help unless the need was great. Addy had said Renol needed a healer, and Kovac then surmised that the avora twin was the healer. He juggled his dilemma for a moment, remain in the tent, protecting Adaira and leaving the Endal to fend for themselves, wounded and endangered, or break free of the protective fabric, risk both he and Addy's life to help the others. Though he could not see the girls frightened face, he could feel her looking at him, waiting for him to make the call. The truth was, they were not safe either way. With resolve, Kovac struggled to run his hand along the fabric of the tent over top of him. Finding a seam, he took hold of it as his other hand found the hilt of his long knife. Carefully, he brought the sharp blade to the seam, trying to force the tip through the heavy textile. With much effort and a loud grunt, the blade tore through the fabric, allowing a sliver of light to enter. Taking the knife in both hands, Kovac frantically worked to cut an opening in the tent to allow them freedom. With a hole large enough to crawl through, Kovac went first, unsure of what awaited them outside. Once he was free he took a breath to glance over the situation, where the bear hovered, finding the Endal. Then the Avora reached in to take Adaira by the hand and help her struggle free of the tent. "Come on!" He uttered in a harsh, hushed tone. Sheathing the knife and stooping to scoop up the talon sword he had dropped with his bow and quiver before entering the tent, Kovac lead Addy by the hand hastily but carefully over to where Sairque waited with the wounded Renol.

[Dreamcatcher]

The bear for a moment tensed as Sairque began to move it readied itself for the fight she was about to bring. His eyes followed the spear as it rolled away from her foot, it took its time looking at her sniffing and snorting. It felt like an eternal stare down as the both of them were afraid to break it and the other attack. As Sairque started moving towards Renol, the bear began to tense, waiting for her to attack or jump. Tension increased in the air, the bear began to growl, like a low rumbling as it slowly began to move back and ready itself to attack Sairque if she made any sudden movements. As Sairque started to cry over her fallen companion, the bear began to back away. Finally it realized that she wasn’t a threat and turned its back on her. Going over to the elk meat they had flung on the ground it began to each several pieces and then pick up the biggest hunch before limping out of the area. It left a trail of blood and damage as its big form made its way back to his cave. As Sairque cried out, Kovac began to cut open the tent at a seam. It was hard work in the tiny enclosure. He ddin’t have the full strength of his arm and the weather proofing was tougher than any hide he had ever dealt with. Still his creativity won, and a tearing sound began filled the close confines of the tent. The hole took time to spread open and as he reached through the hole to leave, the Unforgiven diamondback snake bit the back of his hand. Kovac felt the sharp pain pierce his hand as the snake was flung from his reaction to the bit. The snake soared through the air, before Kovac had any real chance to see it. As he got out of the tent and examined his hand, a small yellow tinted liquid came gushing out with his blood. His hand flared with pain for a moment and then it dulled an went complete numb. He could still use it, and one look over at Renol, he quickly forgot the pain and picking up his sword, bow and arrows, helped Aidara get over to Renol. As they huddled around Renol, Aidara knew that her mark could rid him of most of his injuries, but they needed to stop the bleeding to extend his time. The mark would take several uses over the next candle mark for him to be fully healed and he would bleed out by then. As Kovac stood over Aidara he began to feel his arm go numb were the bite had happened. OOCSorry guys I believe in the thunder dome philosophy, “Two men enter! One man leave!” Overall, I really trust everyone to roleplay the scene, and do justice to it. KovacThe poison coursing through you will slowly paralyze you in the next ten minutes, and kill you in the next hour. No worries Aidara can heal you, but thought I would inject some drama into the scene. AidaraYou are now compelled to help Renol, should Kovac tell you about his poison you can heal him, but its going to be a struggle keeping them both alive. Please feel free to roleplaying your healing skills and gnosis mark. For the few that could do nothing else but take stock, almost all their food rations have been eaten or destroyed. If hunting was good, they had enough for three more days, vegetables sadly would be a luxury, while meat would have to be their biggest part of the meal. There was also the small tin that contained the blue mold food paste. It was increbibly bitter and probably the worst survival food one could ever hope for, but if they just ate that they could get another three days in the wilderness. The tent that Kovac had punctured was Sairque’s and Aidara’s, they were now down to two tents and new sleeping arrangements needed to be made. OOC2Tell me if you want to pursue the bear, or if you want to leave it alone, I will let you guys heal up from Aidara’s administrations and take stock of the camp. If you don’t want to pursue and when your done talking just give me a heads up and I will post the next couple of days for you ending at night time. I want to give you as much time as possible, as well as much creativity in the scene as possible. We will have one more thing to do.

[Renol]

OOCSo long as Renol doesn’t die, I want to kick that bears petching arse. Make up some of the meat that the blasted thing ate. But that’s just me. I hold grudges. If renol can’t do it now, He’s gonna come back later and take care of it then. And it's not a very long post. There isn't a whole lot that Renol can do just yet.

Renol wasn’t out of it, yet. He was slipping into shock, but that just meant he was a bit anxious at this point. He wasn’t far enough into shock to even reach an altered mental state, yet. He hadn’t lost THAT much blood yet. Thank the gods. Renol cried out in pain as she tied the freshly cut piece of fabric around his thigh. It was a makeshift bandage and after everything they’d been through he was pretty sure it’d lead to infections, but at least it would help to stem the bleeding for now. He gritted his teeth, stifling another cry of pain down to an uncomfortable grunt as she picked him up. He didn’t know why she did. With a little help, he’d have been able to walk on one leg alongside her. But that would lead to more blood escaping his leg. He just hated the fact that she had to heft his bulk back over to the camp. He hated being helpless, but he wrapped his arm over her shoulders to help support his weight a little until she set him down. He craned his head to the side to watch as the bear eat their food and then ran from the area. He gritted his teeth once more, in anger this time. The beast would pay for what it had caused on his hunting trip. One way or another, he’d bring that beast’s hide back to Wind Reach to sit on his floor, or maybe Sai’s floor. Maybe they could take turns. Either way… it was going to pay for what it had done. He knew the beast was just doing what its instincts told it to. The gods had just seen fit to turn one of his hunting trips into a titanic catastrophe. But at this point, Renol wanted something to pay for the mess that had been made. And he sure couldn’t take on a god. With a little help and a little luck, he’d be able to take down that bear. Maybe get Fereo in on it as well. He was sure the eagle would like a chance to help bring it down. He’d as Catabasis, but he didn’t want to put Sai’s eagle in danger.

Renol grunted once more, his eyes closing tight as he blocked out the pain. He blocked everything else out of his head other than the others. He just wanted them to be alright. He lay don against the ground, helping to make sure that gravity wasn’t pushing more blood to the wound site. Everything was something when it came to preventing blood loss. He looked to Sai, trying to eek out a smile for a second, “I thought I told you to get somewhere safe, not get yourself in danger trying to save some stupid fool like me.” He shook his head slowly. He knew what he had done was stupid. But all he had wanted was to make sure everyone was safe. He looked to Kovac and Addy, nodding a little bit, “Good work keeping her safe. I wish things could have gone a little more according to plan. But hey, s**t happens, right?” He sighed slightly for a second before picking his head up and looking around for a moment, “But keep an eye out. There might be more. We have to make sure it’s gone. You’re all exposed right now. Too far from the tents if it comes back…” it was the shock talking now as he was slipping further into anxiety from the loss of blood. Slowly, a sweat started to build on his brow as he lay his head back down, his breathing rate growing slightly faster with each passing second. His eyes darted with every sound around him as he tried to figure out where the noise was coming from.

OOCRenol is only now slipping into the second stage of shock. I figure with a wound like the one he has now, he’d be losing enough blood to slip that far into shock. Unless I am overestimating the amount of blood he is losing.

[Sairque]

OOCI don't know why I thought Renol had passed out. I can't tell you how hard I laughed that he just went along with getting carried. Sai will vehemently oppose anyone going after the bear. And will resort to thwacking them in their mauling to get that point across if necessary.

The bear's black eyes never left her's, something that assured the slight woman as she crept cautiously over to Renol. The narrowing of it's eyes, the way it's lips gradually twitched up to display it's teeth and release a rumbling growl in response to any new movement she made; it was all defensive. There was no aggression left it in the beast; from the small wounds it had sustained (thought the broken flesh and pouring blood from it's mouth was gruesome), this apparent change in attitude had little to do with feeling bested. The initial attack must have not been as malicious as it had seemed. Perhaps, and most likely, it was simply defending it's cache. After all, it had come across it fair and square, there had been no other creatures guarding the meat. The last glimpse was it's great big butt moving away from her and toward the remains of the elk. It saw that they had been properly discouraged from seeking revenge on the attempted eating, maybe it even understood their own motivations for attacking it. Either way, it now knew that pasty two leggeds with bright red tops were not the type of prey that engaged in freeze-or-flight responses to it's aggression.

Sai, being pumped up on hormones and everything else that goes along with sympathetic nervous system's response to danger, just thought that Renol would be better off getting carried around like a huge gangly sack of potatoes. Granted, he didn't say anything to suggest he was capable of anything else, so of course she continued on. Infection and the like didn't occur to her when she bound the wound, because Aidara had shown, for some time now, an adeptness in utilizing her Gnosis for sterilization of wounds. But she had winced in sympathy when he cried out as the cloth bit into his exposed flesh, at the same time realizing that no artery had been severed, as it had looked from the initial spray of blood. It just seemed like a good idea to get something staunching the flow while there was this lull, which might or might not be an incorrect remembrance of the few things Addy had tried to teach in relation to medicine. Especially if some further bad luck befell the hunting party and Renol was further kept from medical attention.

Carrying Renol along made it hard to track the progress of the bear, but she was confident that there would be no further aggression from the wounded animal. As the fine point of a knife pressed against the tent cloth, pushing the material out and taut against it, the flight leader slowly helped Renol make the shift from baggage to something more dignified, like being sprawled out on the ground in wait for Kovac and Aidara to make their appearance. His attempt at nonchalant humor brought a crooked smile to the flight leader's otherwise hard countenance.

"Come on now, you've been so good with sharing your hunting spot I thought you wouldn't mind sharing some bear mauling. A little camaraderie building, you know? We could have got matching scars," with a sad shake of her head, as though she lamented her lack of mangled wounds, Sai glanced up at the frantic motion of two people escaping the close confines they had been relegated to while a fearsome battle raged around their capsule. Those two looked like they were unscathed, aside from the wound on Aidara's head that had stopped bleeding but still didn't look pretty. Kovak also didn't look entirely happy, but he wasn't saying anything so she assumed it was just lingering discomfort from being blind to the action.

Turning back to Renol, she shook her head at the "stupid fool" comment. His reasons were understood, at the moment. If there was any lecturing to be done to the man it would be done once he was out of the woods. There were more pressing issues than giving pointing out mistakes or doling out praise. Like the sorry state he and their camp were in.

While the Avora closed the distance between the two groups, Renol calling out, rather gregarious for all the ripped flesh and yellow fat hanging out of his leg wound, the calculating woman surveyed the damage. Sai also felt gratitude for Kovac helping not only her sister but herself; her mental fortitude had been far higher knowing that someone she found capable and trustworthy was there to help the healer. They needed to clean up all the ruined meat, take stock of what was salvageable, just...clean up.

"The bear isn't coming back," she reassured Renol and the group, looking back down to her fellow Endal, forcing the steel out of her voice so as not to sound contradictory with the injured man. The bear was done with them, it had been clear in their short connection. "We'll be okay, you just do everything Aidara tells you to, understand?" Her eyes lifted to the woman in question, sharing a glance, Sai reading exactly what the healer was thinking about this particular wound from just the faint changes in her expression. Both the Endal and the healer were given encouraging squeezes on their shoulders before Sai fixed Kovac with a look. He still looked troubled, but then again, he always looked a bit surly.

"We'll take care of Renol first and then worry about everything else." As far as she could see, there wasn't anything more pressing than the health of the rider, but she was open for suggestions. However, she also knew that Aidara would be snapping out orders to get things taken care of as quickly as possible.

[Aidara]

The awareness of her twin that had closed around her, sheathing her like a second skin in her panic, slowly faded the closer Sai's voice got to the tent. Kovac was moving around behind her, ripping at the canvas with his dagger but Aidara paid it little attention. Her entire concentration was focused on the awareness from outside their confines as it slipped away. Finally, exhausted with the effort of her concentration and her panic, as well as blood loss and just the rigorous routine of their hunt thus far, Addy found that all she could hear was her sisters actual voice. Exhausted beyond the point of even accessing their connection any longer.

Fired by her now complete disconnect from her sister, Addy rolled onto her back and began to tear with a fierce, rabid cry at the thick tent where Kovac had sliced. Shredding a hole big enough to shimmy through, the redheaded woman shot through it first and stood wobbling in the fresh air, holding out her hand for the cynical Avora. She wasn't aware that he would probably be offended by her gesture, which was meant to be kind. However, as distracted as she was she probably didn't care either. Her chest heaved as if she'd run miles, the crisp air cold in comparison to the sauna the two Avora had been trapped in, inside the canvas cocoon. It burned at her lungs, and Addy hunched over with her hands on her knees, her head dropping between her shoulders as she tried to slow her breathing and catch her breath in a way such that it wouldn't tear at the delicate lining of her esophagus. Still panting, Addy found a center of calm within herself. It was enough to get her from the blind state of panic she had entered towards a more productive state of mind. With a deep, shuddering breath she first turned to Kovac to take quick stock of his okay-ed-ness. He had been in the tent with her after all, and she was okay. Thoroughness demanded this of her, however.

"You good, Kovac? Going to pass out? Hyperventilate? Light headed? Sit, if you do feel such things and put your head between your knees. Try to breathe slow. I can smell the blood on Renol here, and we can't have you go into shock while I'm in my....trance." She hadn't meant to be bossy, or treat him like a child. She was in healer mode, and her natural instincts were taking over and covering all the bases before a problem could even think of rearing it's head. Unaware of the snake bite, Aidara thought she had covered all possibilities with the hunter and turned from him, towards the two Endal in their bloody, quivering heaps.

Addy had lost her hyper-sensitive connection during Sai and Renols conversation, not that she would have been able to hear the words anyway. But she knew her sister was concerned and struggling. She had even called for help. This all came crashing down on the small healer at once, and she sprang into action. Completely forgetting the bear, and quite frankly not even noticing if it had run away or if it skulked at the edge of the woods waiting for a tiny Addy sized treat, the woman dashed to where her packs had hung. A curse as she skidded to a halt, seeing her green bag crushed beneath a rather heavy branch. Taking a deep breath, Addy settled her shoulder against the thickest part of the limb, making sure to completely fill her lungs with air before beginning to push as she exhaled through her nose. Centimeter by centimeter the heavy log lifted from the ground, until finally Addy was huffing with exhersion once more. But it was enough, finally, as she was able to hook the toe of her boot around a strap and yank her bag free. With a crash the branch fell and the woman was off again, towards the wounded.

"Who tied this? You might as well have packed dirt in there. No matter no matter. Sai, please take the cook bucket and run to the river. Try and get the clean rushing water, not the stagnant stuff. With as little silt and dirt as you can manage." Throwing herself to her knees,beside the two Endal, Addy carefully took the materials she needed from her sack and held the top half of Renol's form as her twin eased herself out to hopefully follow through on her task without too much offense being taken. The small woman was in healer mode, and didn't have time to spare feelings when life was on the line. She was eying the makeshift bandage that Sai had tied, and while she appreciated the attempt to keep their fellow Inarta alive, she snorted in distaste as she untied the cloth. She did it to help... a familiar bossy voice echoed in her head. Ah, so she really did sound like Sai when she was....passionate. Not the time for this! Not the time!

Shaking her contemplations away, Addy sunk deeper down into the calm center that she always had. It was easy to find now, the murky depths that usually surrounded and hid the peace she thought had been blown away by the severity of her situation. She cut through the darkness like a knife, her body lapping greedily at the calm as it tingled through her veins. Her vision cleared and no longer shook. Her fingers became steady as she picked at the knots in the bandage, carefully pulling the cloth away from his wound. Her heart rate slowed and she was able to feel the little string the connected her sister in her mind. Ah, yes. She was coming back with the water. Excellent.

Green eyes turned down and finally focused on Renol's wounded leg. Breath hissed between her teeth in a gasp. "Bloody...I mean...petching....bear! SERIOUSLY! HOW am I do fix this? Good Rak'keli, Mother above." Whether she noticed the way her eyes rolled to the sky when she said this or not, Addy was moving again almost immediately. Without thinking, the woman grasped at the hem of her shirt, pulling it up and over her head. It wasn't as bad as the motion seemed, as she was still wearing an undergarment. The top was placed on the dirt next to Renol's mauled leg. On top was placed all of her equipment, for dirt would be deadly. But she still needed the water before she could proceed. A quick mental check of the string in her head, a tug telling her that Sai was very close, before Addy took a deep breath and turned to Renol's face for the first time.

"I know you're brave, and strong, but this is going to hurt. Renol. You need to use everything you have to not move. No matter what. That is, if you don't pass out from the pain first. I'm hoping, personally, that you pass out. It'll save us all a lot of trouble, right?" Not nearly as comforting as she normally came across, Addy found herself glad of Sai's presence as she sprinted through the edge of the trees, bucket in hand. The appearance of her sister had forestalled any further awkward rambling on Aidara's part. Without another word, Addy took the water with a grateful smile to her twin and moved to the wound. Kneeling down in the dirt, she first took a clean bandage from her stack of supplies. Unrolling and dipping the fabric in the water, Addy then twisting the sopping material over the Endal's broken flesh, trying to wash away as much dirt as possible, as gently as possible. She could see it was no use, however, and steeled herself. There was a particularly dirty spot where she assumed Renol had originally landed when attacked. It had to be cleaned, there was no if's and's or but's about it.

"Get ready..." And with no other warning but that, Addy plunged the cloth back into the water and pushed herself from a kneel to a squat, leaning over his leg to get a better look. A deep breath in through her nose, and she held it, her lips pressed into a tight line. There was a lot of blood and it wouldn't do for the thick metallic smell of it to make her heady and unfocused. Wrapping a bit of the cloth around her finger, she moved her hand carefully to hover over the spot. In a quick, precise dabbing motion Addy plunged her finger towards the dirt she saw there, picking up as much as she could with the wet cloth, washing the rest away simultaneously. She had held the rest of the cloth in her hand, and squeezed the water from it to flow over the wound in the wake of her finger. It was quite effective, maybe a little over a minute before she sat back on her heels. Brow furrowed in concern, green eyes swung to see if her patient was still conscious.

"Renol? You doing okay? I got the worst of the dirt out. I can deal with the rest another way. But....this is going to be the hardest for you...here..." Glancing around, Addy saw a perfectly sized branch near by. She moved quickly hopping to scoop it up before returning to her spot beside the bucket of water. Nimble fingers peeled the bark away, and she quickly dipped the stick in the water, cleaning off any dirt or debris before snapping off the sharp, unsafe ends. What she was left with was a softened, finger sized stick. Moving back to Renol's head, she eased his mouth open and slipped the stick between his teeth. "I'm sorry sweetheart, we don't want you biting off your tongue, now do we? Who will woo Sai into a complete and mushy lump of Endal goo if you cant whisper sweet nothings in her ear?" A bit of her humor was back, though if anyone thought she was funny was beyond her point of caring. Focused and determined, she didn't want for a response before moving back to her supplies.

"Needle...stitches...where are you....ah! Renol. Be calm." Her tone held no part of suggestion. Taking the needle and the stitching, she tried to thread the one through the other, and found her hand shaking too much to do so. With a ragged sigh, she felt the exhaustion she had been attempting to stave off start to creep back in while she wasn't paying attention. Closing her eyes, Addy reached for that warm, bright white calm that she had connected too, drawing more of it into herself and letting the calm wash through her veins once more. It was her form of meditation, that she'd done since she was a child. The urgency of the situation allowed her to access this calm quickly, when normally it took close to an hour to reach the state she was in now.

Needle was quickly threaded now, knot tied and secured at the end. There was no witty banter from her now as she was completely focused on the delicate task before her. There were three long strips of flesh spaced out between four deep gouges in his skin. Fat and tissue laid bare to the light and air, and if she had not seen such things before the gruesome look of it all would have made her loose her breakfast. Starting on the cut closest to her, Addy started down by his foot, quickly poking the needle through one side of the split flesh into the other and tugging gently until the knot at the end of the thread was flush against his flesh. Gritting her teeth, Addy glanced up at Renol with an apologetic expression and began to pull the two halves of his skin together as far as possible. Holding it there, she went back through the other way, pulling tight each time as she literally knitted his skin back together. The red tissue and the yellow of his leg fat slowly disappeared as a line of black stitching followed in the wake of her hand.

She took a moment to look up as she tied off the knot at the end of the first claw wound, biting off the end of the string to free the needle for another piece of thread. Addy wouldn't have been surprised if Renol had passed out. He was staying wonderfully still and she hadn't heard a peep from him...well, that wasn't fair. He could have been screaming bloody murder and in her concentration she wouldn't have heard a bit of it. Her eyes flicked from Renol to Sai, and from Sai to Kovac. She idly wondered how they were dealing with this as fingers threaded the next bit onto the needle and she began the process again. And again. And again. All four wounds were closed and she was sweating, and very nearly shaking as she lost her grip on her calm. All in all it had taken but a quarter of a chime.

"I...need a second before I can finish this. I need to be able to concentrate..." And she slumped onto the ground, her head in her hands as the situation finally overwhelmed her.

[Kovac]

As Aidara struggled vehemently to escape the tent, Kovac peered down at the oozing puncture wounds on the back of his hand. He did not look to see where the snake landed after his reflexes flung it when it bit him. He curse under his breath, all too aware of what was happening, or what was going to happen to him. A stifled panic set in, but as Adaira emerged from the tent, and his eyes darted to Sairque as she sat with Renol, the Avora kept silent. The Rider looked injured badly, and, logically, he probably needed tended immediately. With a short nod to the healer to acknowledge that he was alright, the two sped over to meet the Endals. With all the madness going on around them, Kovac found his attention was focused on simply remaining upright and coherent. As he watched Aidara work, He was impressed by the change the traumatic situation had rendered in the shy girl. While she had, at least around him, been hesitant and flighty, Aidara now commanded the scene, tending to Renol with confidence and skill. She was a healer. Which was a good thing, because he was going to need one...soon. He wanted to help, felt foolish as Sairque ran to get water while he just stood there. But he could do nothing. His arm was numb and he found himself feeling dizzy. He stumbled back a few steps away from the others, looking down at the swollen red bite marks in his hand. Strength was being sapped from his legs, and he wobbled as he paused to steady himself. His head felt huge and empty, and he swung it around trying to guage where the bear was, the movement adding to the nausea welling in his stomach. This was bad...real bad. He felt an overwhelming sadness. He never really thought about the nature of his actual demise, only hoping it would not be some lingering decaying disease that ate him away to nothing. He supposed this death was as good as any, out in the wilderness and not in some stone room in the middle of the Mount. He felt alone...desperately alone. The others tended to Renol, as they should, he was hurt bad and could bleed out to death. And he was a Rider. Wind Reach needed to protect the Riders, he admitted. Even in the end, he would be screwed by a Rider. That made him giggle a bit, as his internal comment made him think of Shayth. More sadness. They could have been something. He hoped she would miss him. He felt cold, wanted Aidara to hold him. She was warm and soft and sweet. His vision seemed to no longer be fixed on anything in particular. Then he went down. His legs would no longer support him and he fell to his knees. Really? Was this it? "Aidara." he muttered...suddenly he wanted her, needed her, he didnt want to die alone. "Aidara...petching snake." The word was forced and slurred. Then he found that the world turned on end. He lay on his side on the ground, watching the others at the weird angle. They all worked so well together. They would be fine.

[Aidara]

OOCI know we said we wanted shorter posts, but I knew mine was going to be long because I'm healing everyone. They can be short from here on out. Please ignore any inconsistencies, since it was so long since we did this thread and I simply don't have the time to re-read our novel-esque posts. Aidara sat bolt upright from where she previously hunched over Renol's wounded leg. Although all Kovac had said was her name, the healer could hear the slurring that penetrated his voice. By his second repeat of her name, Addy was on her feet and moving towards him. "Petching snake Those two words sent fear thrilling down her spine. There was a snake? Where was it "Why didn't you tell me sooner?!" The second part of her thoughts ended up being spoken aloud. Panic shoved her heart,lungs,stomach and spleen all up into her throat, metaphorically speaking, making it impossible to draw a breath, let alone think straight. She couldn't cure poison! And Renol was only stitched up! She'd rushed that part, in the worry the he would eventually bleed out. Even as his skin began to stitch it's self back together, she could go down into the wound and cleanse it with her power. Drained as she was, faced with snake poison as well.... The ground spun and Addy had to brace her hand against the ground to keep from falling over. Her gaze flickered between Kovac and her sister. "Sai, is there any water left? Pour it on his face and try and wash the wound clean. DON'T LET HIM DRINK! Also keep talking to him. I want him to stay conscious. Nothing good ever comes of someone falling asleep. We don't want him to go into a coma. I didn't see the snake, and he is no state to even tell us his name, let alone what the snake looked like. So, I am going to have to wing it. I'll be right back." Sprinting away towards where their camp lay destroyed beneath the tree, Addy headed straight to where she had hung her pack. Because everything had been thrown all around, it actually took her a few minutes before she was able to locate her bag under a rather large fallen limb. The adrenaline that coursed through her allowed the small woman to move the branch, which was much heavier than she would have been able to move in a normal situation. But panic sometimes allows us to do surprising things. Pack in hand, Addy dashed back over to Sai and Kovac, skidding to a halt and falling to her knees with no regard to whether or not she was going to hurt herself. The top of her bag was ripped away, and Addy's small hands made quick work of the knots that held the contents safe inside. That out of the way, it was only seconds before she drew out a small, wooden box. Her second, emergency healing kit. "I was actually thinking of trying to get a bunch of these together to send out with the Endal on their hunting trips." Talking to keep herself from completely giving in to an uncontrollable panic. If she needed anything, she needed steady hands. Before doing anything else, the healer pulled out flint and a piece of tinder from her box "This is a little more unorthodox than what I had originally intended these to be used for. I was thinking just-in-case they forgot their own, but it'll work for what I need." The flint was struck and the sparks fell down onto the little piece of wood. Soon enough, there was a cheery little flame dancing on the end of the tinder. It was a stark contrast to the grim (and unconscious) faces around it. Taking the hurt arm from Sai, Addy gently examined the entrance wound. there were two little holes, obviously where the teeth had punctured the skin. "This doesn't look too deep, from what I can see. If we are lucky, it means that Kovac was able to react quick enough and the snake didn't have a chance to inject too much venom." There was a pause and Addy looked at the wound again. "I think it was a viper." Placing Kovac's arm back into Sai's gentle care, Addy turned back to the small flame she'd lit; it had licked half way down the wood. Seeing this, the healer took a great breath and gave a hard, fast puff of air against the feeble flame. It went out instantly, leaving a few still-burning embers at the end. Setting her mouth into a tight line, Addy quickly braced Kovac's arm against Sai's leg with her free hand. The Hunter seemed to be mostly out of it, but she wasn't going to take chances. "One...two....three!" And on the final count, Addy pressed the smoking remains of the wood against the twin holes in Kovac's arm. Bracing for a violent reaction to burning flesh, the healer stiffened her entire body while she held the stick there for an entire thirty count. She wanted to make sure the wound was properly cauterized. "I hope that will work for now. We need to get him back, pronto, if we want to save him. If that snake was poisonous, which by his current state I'm sure it was, he needs healing. Badly." From within her pack Addy drew out her fresh shirt. Taking a hold of the seam, she wrenched at the fabric until it began to rip. Tearing the entire thing into a half a dozen strips, the first two went about Kovac's arm. Making sure the knots were tight and secure, the wound well protected but the bandages not too tight to cut of circulation, Addy turned to Renol. "Well, at least he passed out. Less whining to deal with." Her voice was grim, and completely weary. Over the course of her administrations dark circles pooled under her eyes. She didn't have much left in her. "If I clean his leg on the inside, Sai, which also needs to be done immediately before any infection can take hold. I might have enough in me to heal both, but then you're going to have three unconscious people to lug back to the mountain, so it's your call. If neither of them get healed, they're both going to die. One quick and painful, the other slow and painful." While waiting for her twin's responce, Addy stooped and tied the last four strips of her shirt around the freshly stitched skin of Renol's leg. The healer trusted her twin with everything that she had. Not only was Sairque stronger than she, but her job was to make the tough decisions. Perhaps she could make this one for her too, but deep down inside Addy knew there was no way she could let either of these men die. Now all she had to do was gather the courage to do what she had too, and perhaps all she needed was her sister's reassurance.