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 Posted: Mon May 03, 2010 8:44 pm
Cold. It was cold up here, far colder than Kerri would have liked; but that was part of why it was so effective. Bundled in furs and a thick down jacket, Kerri sat on a log that Terr had rolled over for her, and was idly poking a dying fire with a stick. Hiding. It seemed like they were always hiding. But that was the price of the job, the price of assassination. The pay was good. Everything else sucked.
Kerri and Terr had stumbled upon this place by accident. Fleeing through the mountains by air, looking for a place to hide, a chasm had opened up to them, nestled amonst the peaks, and invisible from almost all angles. The perfect hideout. Unfortunately, it was cold as frozen hell. A cave. they would dig out a shelter eventually, but right now all Kerri was concerned with was warming up. She swore violently at the fire that refused to blaze, as if it too were cold and wanted to bundle up. Terr was pressed close next to her, not bothered by the thick, powdery snow at all but eager to warm her elven friend up. <> Terr crooned mentally, pressing her large head into Kerri's lap in a practiced manner.
In an even more practiced movement, Kerri's hand moved down to stroke Terr's eye ridges, unable to actually scratch because of her thick gloves. <> Kerri dismissed, mildly. <>
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Posted: Mon May 03, 2010 8:58 pm
"Damn.. why did I agree to this again?" muttered Blade as he trudged miserably through the snow. His arms were wrapped around himself fairly tightly and even with the extra layers of clothes, he was still freezing. The black dragon ahead of him wasn't feeling much better about the situation.
"Because we needed the gold and this was the only opportunity at the time.." Maelthra huffed. The air was pretty thin in this region, so they couldn't fly for long distances at a time. So for now they went by foot. Pretty soon they would need to try and find some shelter to hopefully warm up.
"Oh right.." mumbled the thief while looking about. He really hoped he wasn't sent on some wild goose chase, trying to find some 'lost luggage' someone had apparently left behind. He refused to steal from Nakadrak or its citizens, so they usually took clients to 'retrieve' things. The pay for this particular job seemed worth it, but he wasn't thinking that so much now that he was in the snow, freezing.
Pausing, Maelthra glanced up at the sky and narrowed his eyes. The clouds were looking rather ominous.
"We best pick up the pace Blade. I don't like the look of the clouds. It'll be bad news if we get stuck in a blizzard without shelter anywhere nearby..."
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Posted: Mon May 03, 2010 9:53 pm
Though both Terri and Kerr were young, and relatively new to their profession; long, anxious nights and the constant fear of discovery and death instilled in one a sense of awareness you couldn't pick up anywhere else. Though the noise was far off, a soft 'Chk chk' in the distance, Terr was instantly on alert, long ears held stiff, trained in on the intrusion. Through their mental connection Kerri was instantly made aware of it too, the two of them acted accordingly.
Instinctively Kerri leapt back, inching towards the rock wall and the cover of shadows. She crouched low, and shoved her fingers into the folds of fabric, slipping a dagger from its sheath, and yanking the glove from her hand. The cold could wait. This couldn't. Terr fanned her wings hard, blowing out the fire and smoothing the snow where the footprints were.
<> Terr communicated, turning on the spot and leaping onto the rock face. Those sickle claws were good for more than killing, and proved incredibly effective in scrambling up the rock face. With the assistance of her wings on occasion, Terr quickly scaled the cliff, long limbs hauling her over the edge and slipping off quietly.
She kept low to the ground, conscious of her dark coloration, and how much she stood out. She kept behind rocks for the most part to combat this. Her ears twitched, and she peered from behind a cluster of boulders. <> Terr shared a mental image with Kerri.
<> Kerri instructed. Terr's lip curled up in anticipation, as she pressed forward, clinging to the rock face as closely as possible. Waiting. She would wait now. Wait until they gave her an opportunity, or until they stumbled upon the camp site where Kerri could take care of them.
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Posted: Mon May 03, 2010 10:04 pm
Neither Maelthra nor Blade were expecting any living soul to be out here. That, along with the fact that the cold weather distracted them, kept their guard lower than it could have been. Still, they kept somewhat of an eye out, if only to try and find shelter at the moment.
The two stuck out like a sore thumb in the snow, between the black dragon and the thief clad in black. Not that they were planning on doing a whole lot of sneaking around for this particular job anyway.
"See anything up ahead, Maelthra?"
"Not yet..." sighed the dragon. They were both tired from from trudging through the terrain. The cold weather seemed to be draining the human a good deal as well. He never did function too well in this sort of weather, "Just hang in there a little longer ok?"
Nodding, Blade let out a frosted sigh.
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Posted: Mon May 03, 2010 10:36 pm
Terr was not about to let a good opportunity go to waste. She slid over the rock surface like water, flowing and winding her way 'tween shadow, sleet and shale, quiet as the plague but far more fast acting. They might not see anything ahead, but it would have paid them to look behind.
The cold numbed the senses. Terr could feel it stinging her sensitive ears, but was entirely numb to everything but the sensation of the chase. Her wings fluttered at her side, adrenaline pounding through her. That dragon was large, he posed a threat. She would have to go for the humankin, and hope she could take him out before the other dragon could react. Terr didn't fancy a straight out fight.
<> Kerri warned. Terr was never the most intelligent creature, and was prone to acts of emotion and forwardness. She was adept at the game of 'sneak up and kill stuff'.
She was close. She was so close. She could taste it on her lips, on her tongue. She loomed behind the pair, jaws parted in violent excitement, antennae quivering with sensory input. Now! She leapt forward, legs extended in front of her, claws poised to snare Blade. Unfortunately, in her excitement, there was one thing she forgot to take into account. The brewing storm. She flared her wings as she leapt; she typically snared and enfolded her victim within them while she attacked, to prevent their escape. When the wind blew, however, her wings caught the breeze far too well, and yanked her backwards, stealing her momentum and throwing her back into the ground.
Sneaky as she was, the noise she made her her body slammed into the snow was far too loud to cover up. She twisted around immediately and scrambled up, lunging forward in a vain effort. It was too late. Her presence was known.
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Posted: Tue May 04, 2010 8:32 am
Had he been in warmer conditions, Blade probably wouldn't have been so easy to sneak up on. Here, he was definitely not in comfortable territory by any means which just messed with him in more ways than one. But for once, perhaps the weather may have saved him. A gust of wind blew past him, chilling him to the bone. And soon after that he heard a loud crunch of snow from behind, causing him to jump and quickly turn around to see what it was.
Maelthra had been alarmed as well and whirled around to see a smaller... dragon-like creature. Someone's Kulgenki. Seeing how neither he or Blade was able to notice it before now was uneased them and both were feeling pretty wary right about now.
<> said Blade mentally as he set a hand near the hilt of his sword. He really did not want to have to fight in these conditions. His fingers were numb and he felt that his mobility in general wasn't that great at the moment.
"Who are you?" growled Maelthra as he took a few steps to try and put himself between the Kulgenki and his humakin. He also glanced around to try and see if he could spot anyone else nearby. It wasn't too likely that this one was a feral, so another humakin was somewhere around here.
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Posted: Tue May 04, 2010 3:50 pm
Terr quickly analyzed the situation, scanning the area with her multiple eyes while simultaneously assessing the competition. The humankin had a sword. That would be a bit tricky, but Maelthra was her real concern. He was the one she had to get past. <> Terr screeched. <>
<> Kerri assured, but felt her stomach twist. It was going to be very difficult to get up the cliffside herself, if not impossible. What was she going to do?
"I am your Death!" Terr Screamed at Maelthra in lieu of an introduction as she feigned a lunge forward, only to draw back before she got too close. She had to figure out how he worked before she went in for the kill now. Playing it safe was important.
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Posted: Tue May 04, 2010 7:32 pm
The reply they received certainly wasn't a pleasant one. Neither had any idea why this Kulgenki was so hostile towards them but that didn't matter so much. Blade was just cursing his luck that they'd run into an aggressor all the way out here.
With a snarl, Maelthra crouched down and snapped his jaws as the smaller being made a move to lunge. Right now he was thinking more defensively. After uttering something under his breath, both he and his humakin began to give off a faint, red aura of sorts. The snow around their feet began to melt away, signifying that it gave off heat.
"I'm sorry if this encounter leaves you with an identity crisis then," he growled.
Not only was it as a means of defense should the other dragon really decide to strike, but hopefully warm them both up some so they could be more mobile.
<> warned Maelthra as he kept his eyes focused on the other.
Nodding grimly, the thief glanced around while drawing out his sword. He'd rely on Maelthra to give feedback on the movements of the kulgenki.
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Posted: Sat May 08, 2010 8:28 am
<> Kerri warned, folding her arms and staring at the rock face, as if she glared hard enough, an answer would suddenly come to her.
Terr snarled and shifted a little in place, and took a few steps back. She wasn't sure what the purpose of that red aura was, but she didn't want to find out. She felt a flash of anger course through her, anger that she was still young and growing, anger that she wasn't yet as big as that other dragon. Stupid growing up. It took too long. Already she was larger than most Kulgenki, just...not as big as Maelthra.
Terr wasn't used to dealing with opponents larger than she. It was an excercise in humiliation, because usually she could just plow through any situation and opponent. This was not the case. And she had already lost the element of surprise. What was she supposed to do? Her mind drew a blank.
"Be careful," she warned. "You can't cheat death," she said solemnly, the corners of her mouth twisting up in a cheeky grin, as her tongue darted out and wiped over scaly lips.
Kerri wasn't having a good time of it. Finally giving in to the inevitable, she was slowly, painfully slowly climbing up the rock face through sheer muscle alone, gripping rocks in her hands and hauling herself up with sweat, blood and a lot of determination. It was awfully harsh on her hands. She had to remove her gloves so she could grip better, but unfortunately the cold was numbing them, and the rocks were awfully sharp. Already her hands were trickling blood froms numerous cuts. She swore profusely to herself, biting her lip as she continued her vertical trek.
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Posted: Sat May 08, 2010 8:44 am
"You'd be surprised," remarked Blade with somewhat of a wry smile. He has had some moments where death had come too close for comfort before. The thief wasn't sure if that was considered cheating death but it was something at least. Soon after he answered the kulgenki he continued to keep an eye out, but he couldn't spot another humakin in the area at all. Whoever it was, they were still out of his line of sight most likely.
When the strange dragon stepped back, Maelthra remained where he was, watching the other carefully. Judging her size and a few bits of body language, she was still rather young and inexperienced. Possibly enough where either he or his humakin could face her one-on-one without too much difficulty. It was hard to say that for certain considering the circumstances. Still, it wasn't time to get arrogant and let his guard down.
Regardless of her inexperience, he had to be careful.
"Having some second thoughts?" he taunted, waiting to see what she would do.
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Posted: Sat May 08, 2010 8:58 am
"Never," Terr snapped back, as if insulted. "Just thinking of the most entertaining way to dismember or disembowel you. Decisions decisions," she explained, with a nod of her head. She tensed, advancing once again by a step or two, when Kerri's voice cut into her mind.
<> Kerri instructed, as she finally hoisted herself over the cliff edge, staring in dismay at her ragged hands. This was going to be painful.
Without a second thought Terr threw open her wings, fanning them lightly. They blanketed the ground beneath them in shadow, impressive and grand as they were. Even if Terr hadn't yet reached the gargantuan size she would eventually, her wings sure looked up to the part. With a great leap Terr threw herself into the sky, and with a great heave of her wings, she overcame gravity's tight grip as it tried once again to slam her back into the earth, and she shot up, spiraling, until she was a good twenty meters above Maelthra and Blade. She let out a shriek, feigned as if she was about to dive, and pulled up again, keeping her eyes on her opponents, waiting for their reactions, and perhaps, an opening.
While Terr held center stage, Kerri was advancing, taking cover behind rocks and any outcroppings she could crouch behind, clutching a dagger in each hand, and flexing her fingers to keep the warmth in them while simultaneously trying to ignore the throbbing pain in her palms.
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Posted: Sat May 08, 2010 9:30 am
Maelthra rolled his eyes at the response, thinking of how lovely a kulgenki they had run into. Shaking his head to himself, he focused his attention on the other, tensing as she spread her wings out. They were rather large for her size, which probably meant she was either good at flying or rather clumsy in the air. It seemed to be the former considering the way she shot up off the earth.
With the dragon in the air, Blade couldn't afford to let his eyes wander away as much. However, the winds were growing strong with the oncoming storm so he had to wonder if that was going to give her any difficulty. In the meantime, he cursed under his breath while trying to think of some way to deal with her. With the other humakin unaccounted for, it wasn't wise to divide. The flame aura helped him some, but he had a feeling that the intense cold here was going to make him somewhat of a liability too.
<> he sent to Maelthra while scooting a little closer towards him.
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Posted: Sat May 08, 2010 11:38 am
Terr wasn't pleased with the weather conditions. It was windy, but that she could cope with thanks to the rather unique shape and mobility of her wings. The problem was that it was, in fact, very cold; and she had to deal with her incredibly sensitive wing skin being exposed to the painfully frigid air. That was the biggest problem, as it made her clumsier, and slower. Already she was questioning her strategy.
She feigned another dive, dropping lower this time before she pulled up. She could see Kerri from her vantage point, and could see her edging closer. She only had to keep their attention for another minute or so. She shrieked loudly circling faster and faking yet another dive. She was now only ten meters or so above the pair, close enough to drop at the slightest inclination, testing just how close she could get before Maelthra lashed out.
Kerri was feeling very pleased with Terr at the moment. Despite the poor turn the situation had taken, Terr was performing admirably. Perched in the shadow of a rock, Kerri could clearly see Maelthra and Blade now, as she scooted to get in a more favorable position behind the two of them. They...didn't look like Imperial guards, or bounty hunters for that matter. It dawned on her that they were probably not after her, and this was all a big, misfortunate understanding. Too bad.
Seeing Blade's sword, Kerri felt less confident in her own dagger, and quickly slid that into is sheath buckled at her waist, instead finger and then drawing out two throwing knives. She hadn't had time to poison coat these yet, and sneered at the fact. She should have been more prepared. Just one more moment. Just another moment and they would be in range.
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Posted: Sat May 08, 2010 12:43 pm
As the kulgenki in the air tried to psyche them out, Blade's eyes kept darting around carefully. There had to be a reason why the dragon was just trying to taunt them like this. They weren't really leaving any openings so he didn't see why her plan wasn't switching up. Maybe she didn't think of it; he wasn't sure.
That last dive of hers was a little too close for Maelthra, who was starting to get tired of these antics. He had no idea why they were being attacked but he wasn't about to let his humakin be harmed if he could help it. So as she descended, he opened his mouth and quickly shot out a swirling ball of wind, aiming for her right wing to try and knock her out of the air. Or at least veer her way off course.
While the black dragon was dealing with that, Blade caught some movement out of the corner of his eyes. It could have been a snowhare for all he knew but he wasn't taking any chances. The thief was cold, and he really wanted to get this over with before they were hit by the blizzard, so his patience was actually wearing thin for once. Without really thinking, his left hand ignited into flames before he thrusted his palm out in the general direction of the movement to hurl a fireball. Seeing how he hadn't quite seen whatever it was that had moved, he likely would miss, but he suppose it'd serve as somewhat of a warning shot.
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Posted: Sun May 09, 2010 11:37 am
Terr shrieked as the concentrated ball of wind whistled past her, snagging her wingtips and forcing her to veer off course and drop farther, until she was so low she could brush the ground with her tail if she so chose. She quickly landed, snapping up a rock in her mouth and clutching one in each foot for a total of five, before she took off again, working hard to regain her previous altitude, and trying to figure out just what angle she should drop the rocks at, factoring in the wind and everything. She flew against the wind a little, and dropped the one from her mouth, watching to see where it fell and how close it came to the pair. She would use that information in figuring out just where to drop the next one.
She nearly had a fit when she saw Blade pitch a fireball at where she knew Kerri to be, but bit back a shriek to avoid giving Kerri's precarious position away. Back to the rock strategy. That was distracting and hopefully helpful.
Kerri felt her skin crawl when the fire ball hurtled past, the tendrils of flame clawing at the rock as it came far too close for comfort. Kerri sneered. Life just wasn't fair, was it?
In retaliation, she leaned around the corner, and lobbed a handful of projectiles in Blade and Maelthra's general direction. Again, not a lot of aim was added to it, but it was a warning shot as well. This was getting tiresome. As an assassin, Kerri was predisposed to quick battles, ambushes, and foul-play. The longer this drew out, the less chance she had of walking away unscathed, and she knew it.
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