Taciturn_zebra
One Time Luck
Tumultuous in their fury, a flourish of crows spilled from the greedy fingertips of barren trees up overhead. Each unsettling screech from their gullets tucking me even further from the safety of my entrusted path as I steadied my breathing and halted just beyond the wilted remnants of neighboring foliage bordering the outskirts of a clearing. Bundled hands nestling just within the confines of my tarnished jacket in search of the blade in which lie undisturbed at the swell of my hip in case of an abrupt crisis yet I knew better. No one dared travel this close to the barrier at this time in the evening, no matter how severe their needs might be.
The worst there could be is a straying hunter or perplexed ravens that gathered around as though you were for their own personal entertainment. Therefore, I retrieved my numbed fingertips from the gathering warmth within the material, having chastised myself internally, before gradually giving rise to my arm to clasp the sleek bow attacked to the elegant line of my spine. My lip pursed in mute trepidation only to steel my gaze upon the lone silhouette gliding along the virgin surface of white littering the forest floor. It's sullen orbs fluttering aimlessly along the horizon before bowing it's delicate skull to hover along the chilled plane for lingering sprouts of resilient grass or lingering plants. Each sound seemed to startle the matured creature, no matter how minor. Yet I remained just out of reach of it's extravagant senses. My bow now steadied as I loosed a lone arrow from the quiver before drawing back the string with bated breathe. This was no longer a sport for jubilant laughter and shared tales. This pursuit has been for the survival of my remaining relatives and little more.
I was not something of perfection nor crafted like that of precise porcelain, I was only a girl in a tarnished world of mortals, shared by that of mystical beasts who never strayed nor crossed the boundaries of their guarded realm. It was something of a treaty to the civilians of my established town and bordering kingdoms which dipped a hand into said agreements. Although it was not for their safety in the least, but rather our own for we had once been enslaved and ruled by these overdeveloped entities before the War broke out between our kind. Some fought for us and others slaughtered for the fun of it. To immortals, our lives were little more than pawns that had fallen under their control and now that we had established this agreement, we had no intentions of sullying it in their favour. Although this established peace treaty did not leave us anymore well off than a beggar, scrambling for scraps on account of the damaged economy. So every arrow I forged by my own hands was remarkably valuable for the task at hand. The slightest inclination in trajectory could very well terminate our food supply severely for this month....
I simply tossed my head in mild distaste at the stray thoughts before shuffling wearily upon my steadying feet amidst the snow. The lone doe having delved a touch closer than expected yet I paid the inconvenience no heed, trailing the swell of her chest as her tail swept back and forth like some flag of anticipated defeat. Each prancing sweep of her cloved hooves guiding her closer and closer to my stilled frame until I could practically feel the steam radiating off of her from my meagre hideout amidst the underbrush. A light tremor clasped my aim upon the slick wood and with that, I sucked in a sharp breathe, feeling out the trajectory with the generous fall of my eyelids and released the arrow. My shuddered view gave way seconds later to my trained orbs as I observed my shot expectantly. The hollow purr of my heart resounding from within the confines of my own skull. Matched only by that of the shrill squeal of the doe and I rose just enough to assess the damage, only to find that she had fled without so much as a scrape. Yet not without cause, in her place now lie a downed wolf of gargantuan size who must have leapt out at the wrong time. I hadn't even thought to assess the underbrush before delving into my hunt and had he not revealed himself, I could have very well joined the doe as his intended meal.
Upon sinking to my knees to retrieve my arrow from the downed monster, I couldn't help but marvel at its size. Some of the superstitious elders had once threaded wistful tales of shapeshifting royal fae, resembling that of dire wolves to gobble up wandering children.... Little did I know that these fables held some truth within them as I peered quietly upon the rest of the wolf. Doubled over upon itself as it stared out, unseeing, to the stilled air beyond. Had I the knowledge, I would have known better than not to question it's size and odd markings.....known that I had just offered up my life to the enemy in return for one of their own.
But.... I was only a girl, a foolish one at that. So I conjured up the hunting blade from before and began to carve away at the mighty beast, chucking as much as I could into my already stained satchel. His pelt tucked halphazardly under my arm as a token for trade and I quickly turned upon my heel without so much as a glimpse back to the inevitable shift of fate that had just befallen me.
The worst there could be is a straying hunter or perplexed ravens that gathered around as though you were for their own personal entertainment. Therefore, I retrieved my numbed fingertips from the gathering warmth within the material, having chastised myself internally, before gradually giving rise to my arm to clasp the sleek bow attacked to the elegant line of my spine. My lip pursed in mute trepidation only to steel my gaze upon the lone silhouette gliding along the virgin surface of white littering the forest floor. It's sullen orbs fluttering aimlessly along the horizon before bowing it's delicate skull to hover along the chilled plane for lingering sprouts of resilient grass or lingering plants. Each sound seemed to startle the matured creature, no matter how minor. Yet I remained just out of reach of it's extravagant senses. My bow now steadied as I loosed a lone arrow from the quiver before drawing back the string with bated breathe. This was no longer a sport for jubilant laughter and shared tales. This pursuit has been for the survival of my remaining relatives and little more.
I was not something of perfection nor crafted like that of precise porcelain, I was only a girl in a tarnished world of mortals, shared by that of mystical beasts who never strayed nor crossed the boundaries of their guarded realm. It was something of a treaty to the civilians of my established town and bordering kingdoms which dipped a hand into said agreements. Although it was not for their safety in the least, but rather our own for we had once been enslaved and ruled by these overdeveloped entities before the War broke out between our kind. Some fought for us and others slaughtered for the fun of it. To immortals, our lives were little more than pawns that had fallen under their control and now that we had established this agreement, we had no intentions of sullying it in their favour. Although this established peace treaty did not leave us anymore well off than a beggar, scrambling for scraps on account of the damaged economy. So every arrow I forged by my own hands was remarkably valuable for the task at hand. The slightest inclination in trajectory could very well terminate our food supply severely for this month....
I simply tossed my head in mild distaste at the stray thoughts before shuffling wearily upon my steadying feet amidst the snow. The lone doe having delved a touch closer than expected yet I paid the inconvenience no heed, trailing the swell of her chest as her tail swept back and forth like some flag of anticipated defeat. Each prancing sweep of her cloved hooves guiding her closer and closer to my stilled frame until I could practically feel the steam radiating off of her from my meagre hideout amidst the underbrush. A light tremor clasped my aim upon the slick wood and with that, I sucked in a sharp breathe, feeling out the trajectory with the generous fall of my eyelids and released the arrow. My shuddered view gave way seconds later to my trained orbs as I observed my shot expectantly. The hollow purr of my heart resounding from within the confines of my own skull. Matched only by that of the shrill squeal of the doe and I rose just enough to assess the damage, only to find that she had fled without so much as a scrape. Yet not without cause, in her place now lie a downed wolf of gargantuan size who must have leapt out at the wrong time. I hadn't even thought to assess the underbrush before delving into my hunt and had he not revealed himself, I could have very well joined the doe as his intended meal.
Upon sinking to my knees to retrieve my arrow from the downed monster, I couldn't help but marvel at its size. Some of the superstitious elders had once threaded wistful tales of shapeshifting royal fae, resembling that of dire wolves to gobble up wandering children.... Little did I know that these fables held some truth within them as I peered quietly upon the rest of the wolf. Doubled over upon itself as it stared out, unseeing, to the stilled air beyond. Had I the knowledge, I would have known better than not to question it's size and odd markings.....known that I had just offered up my life to the enemy in return for one of their own.
But.... I was only a girl, a foolish one at that. So I conjured up the hunting blade from before and began to carve away at the mighty beast, chucking as much as I could into my already stained satchel. His pelt tucked halphazardly under my arm as a token for trade and I quickly turned upon my heel without so much as a glimpse back to the inevitable shift of fate that had just befallen me.
My apologies if you are extremely confused by what has occurred in this thread... Let me alleviate some of your questions with a bit of an explanation. My character is a mortal girl who thrives upon the neighboring forest life just beyond her town, having to skirt the magical shield skirting into the fae territory. Anywho, on the other side of this mentioned mystical barrier lies several kingdoms of well established Elves and such.... The treaty states that no one is allowed to cross over into the mortal realm to hunt nor terrorize and the humans are held to the same expectations. Yet what occurs when trouble arises within the mystical realm and a tear is created within the barrier, releasing one of the royal elves unknowingly onto mortal land? Blah, blah,blah.... My character takes the life of a shapeshifted royal elf(could be a prince or relative of the high court, if you wish for even more "drama") and now an agreement must be struck once the body is found. My life for his within the elven society. Your character must decide upon my fate, either taking me into custody or ending it all upon my family's doorstep. Either way, this misunderstanding might very well lead to bloodshed if not handled with caution.
Feel free to get as creative as you please! I'm always open to suggestions and I appreciate your time! This is my very first post on this website so have mercy!!! Haha
Feel free to get as creative as you please! I'm always open to suggestions and I appreciate your time! This is my very first post on this website so have mercy!!! Haha