You're so cold
but you feel alive
Sunjata was clearly not enjoying this as much as she was. A far cry from his usual confident mood and suave demeanor, the man had all but withdrawn into himself, his smiles few and the conversation kept to a bare minimum. Maea knew why, of course. Halo was the place where Lusea had died, where he'd spent miserable days with a miserable wife, the place where he would soon test his mettle - and the luck of himself and other companions - against a dragon, in the name of Safrin. If he was a bit broody and less than eager, she couldn't blame him for it. Nor did she let his subdued manners bring herself down; she kept smiling and settled into a comfortable silence as they trekked down from the elevated heights of the mountains and into the confierous forest that draped the shoulders of the range like a cold green cloak.
The worst of the wind died down as soon as they were in among the trees. Her eyes began to focus on the ground, on the trees and their bases to check for signs of animal activity. There were plenty, far more than she was accustomed to from her forays into the Woodlands back at home; in comparison this lonely forest was fairly teeming with life. Birds, foxes, the occational sign of hare or ermine... at one point she noticed Luxere tracks, but only pointed them out to Sunjata before moving on. Maea would never try to hunt or kill them, not even in an emergency.
She was not surprised when there was sudden sound of flapping in the trees up above them. Following Sunjata's lead she too pulled her bow and found an arrow, nocked it; but did not draw, as his first shot hit the white bird square in the chest.
"Nice shot!" she whispered to him, eyes bright, appropriately impressed and more than happy to see his grin.
Gazing up to the canopy again, Maea spotted a plump, white mass still perching on a branch; not exactly the same difficulty as his expert shot, but still challenging for her as a beginner.
Drawing her bow, she breathed a long, slow exhale to steady herself, and loosed. But just as the string twanged, the bird took off from its perch and the arrow clipped the bird as it zoomed past, scattering droplets of bright red blood on the snow. The bird was still alive, quite injured, and began to flap off in erratic zig-zags among the trees. Quickly she knocked another arrow, pulled and loosed, but this one missed completely.
Maea swore and began to chase after the Ningo, counting on Sunjata to follow. There was a sickening roil of guilt and pity in her stomach. Injured, not dead. A poor shot. She would have to find the poor thing and put it out of its misery, quickly.
The worst of the wind died down as soon as they were in among the trees. Her eyes began to focus on the ground, on the trees and their bases to check for signs of animal activity. There were plenty, far more than she was accustomed to from her forays into the Woodlands back at home; in comparison this lonely forest was fairly teeming with life. Birds, foxes, the occational sign of hare or ermine... at one point she noticed Luxere tracks, but only pointed them out to Sunjata before moving on. Maea would never try to hunt or kill them, not even in an emergency.
She was not surprised when there was sudden sound of flapping in the trees up above them. Following Sunjata's lead she too pulled her bow and found an arrow, nocked it; but did not draw, as his first shot hit the white bird square in the chest.
"Nice shot!" she whispered to him, eyes bright, appropriately impressed and more than happy to see his grin.
Gazing up to the canopy again, Maea spotted a plump, white mass still perching on a branch; not exactly the same difficulty as his expert shot, but still challenging for her as a beginner.
Drawing her bow, she breathed a long, slow exhale to steady herself, and loosed. But just as the string twanged, the bird took off from its perch and the arrow clipped the bird as it zoomed past, scattering droplets of bright red blood on the snow. The bird was still alive, quite injured, and began to flap off in erratic zig-zags among the trees. Quickly she knocked another arrow, pulled and loosed, but this one missed completely.
Maea swore and began to chase after the Ningo, counting on Sunjata to follow. There was a sickening roil of guilt and pity in her stomach. Injured, not dead. A poor shot. She would have to find the poor thing and put it out of its misery, quickly.
lay your hands on me
one last time
MAEA
