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Post by makyah on Dec 3, 2012 4:57:34 GMT
| [atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=style, width: 400px; background-color: #CFB4AB; padding-left: 20px; padding-right: 20px;][cs=2] time stands still, beauty in all she is; | | [atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=style, width: 300px; background-color: #CFB4AB; border-bottom: 3px solid #967272;][cs=2] i will be brave; i will not let anything take away... | | [atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 400px; background-color: #4C4842; padding-left:20px; padding: 20px;] what's standing in front of me ; words 977 ;;tagged OPEN ;;notes IT'S A SASQUATCH! It wasn't often that the lower citizens of the keep were allowed to leave the protected walls. As a stable boy, Makyah was rarely allowed to leave to even leave the stalls. Mucking out each of the horses private rooms everyday was more than a chore. It was sheer torture. This place was decidedly larger than her home, housing close to two dozen horses that needed to be cleaned and brushed everyday, compared to the five that she was used to taking care of.
Here her muscles hurt long before the day was over, and instead of returning to a warm home and a comfy bed at night, she was forced to sleep in an out-cropping in stables. Being closer to the horses meant she could work longer into the night, and start earlier in the morning. As much as it pained her to continue this way, she couldn't reveal her true identity, not if she wanted to keep her head, or virtue. She would have to deal with the life she'd been given until her brother came to save her. If he came.
The second the crow chirped his good mornings to the keep, Makyah knew it was going to be a bad day. Waking with a pain in her side and sore calves, it took her nearly five minutes to dress and ease her way down the ladder into the stables. She'd been kicked the following day by one of the colts, to a normal stable boy it wouldn't have been a big issue, but to her, it was more than a tiny bruise.
"You there, stable boy." Mak knew that the voice was directed at her, being the newest member to the crew of boys who watched over the stables she had yet earned the right to have a name. Taking a deep breath, she straightened her back and turned to face the man approaching. "Aye, sir?" She deepened her voice a bit, not wanting him to suspect anything.
"Get the horses ready, we're going out for a hunt." He eyed her for a moment, resting his hands on her shoulders before twisting her to the left and right. "Gear up a gelding for yourself, you'll be taking the spot of one of our boys this morning." He let her go with a gruff shove and whistled at another set of boys behind her. Makyah's face visibly paled, her thoughts racing as she tried to figure a way out of this new torment.
Not even an hour later, and she was still trying to come up with a valid reason why she shouldn't be allowed outside the gates, as she rode through them on a pearly white gelding. She felt sorry for the animal, almost as sorry as she was for herself in this moment. A few hours later and the men had dug themselves far enough into the forests that they were ready to tie the horses up and start hunting on foot.
Makyah winced as she dropped herself to the ground, grabbing an empty satchel and pinning the right of her green cloak to her left shoulder. It would keep her warm enough while the men shot arrows and yelled merrily at each other.
She stood behind them by a few yards, watching the arrows they sent flying and making a mental picture of where they landed. She had learned in her youth that you should never run after them, the men would make a sport of trying to shoot you instead. She waited for the men to find something of particular interest to chase after, today it was a wild hog, before she clamored over brush and roots to pick up some of the lost arrows.
As she retrieved the fourth arrow from the trunk of a tree there came a crashing sound to her left. She squeaked in surprise, cutting herself on the edge of the arrow as she fell to her bottom. Looking up, Mak tried to find the source of the sound, but couldn't see much farther into the forest than a few yards. Standing and brushing herself off, she picked up the arrow once more, grumbling about her newest wound as she stuffed it into the brown sack. Then the crashing came again, followed by the rumbling of running feet and a roar that sent fear radiating down her spine.
From the trees emerged a giant form, cloaked in darkness, it's arms reaching far into the air. Makyah felt paralyzed as she stared up at the giant beast, realizing all to soon that she was once again on her bottom. Fear pulsated in time to her racing heart, her eyes growing wide as she tried to scream, or move. "H-Help." The words came out barely above a whisper, useless. In response the beast once again let out a loud roar, charging towards her.
Feeling came back to her legs as she scrambled to stand, running away from the beast an into a thicket of trees that she hoped had been the way the men had stumbled. Merry as they were, they would be able to help her. Hopefully. The thrashing sound of the beast roared in her ears as it followed her, not giving up on it's pursuit even as the pain in her side ached in protest. "H-Help!" The words came out stronger this time, but still useless to bring any help to her.
She jumped over a root, but missed the rock not far behind it and tripped Skidding across leaves and rocks, rolling head over heels for a few feet before she came to a stop against the thick trunk of a tree. The beast loomed over her, it's breathing labored, or was it hers? Death seemed to be inevitable, and with the last bit of energy she had she let out a scream.
-- one step closer ;; | | [atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=style, width: 400px; background-color: #CFB4AB; padding-left: 20px; padding-right: 20px; border-top: 3px solid #967272;][cs=2] every breath, every hour has come to this; |
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Post by scarlett on Dec 3, 2012 6:10:32 GMT
All was not well in the Second Kingdom. Lately rumors had been passing from town to town about people going missing in the woods, or turning up in bloody bits and pieces days later. And unlike the usual gossip and old wives' tales that folk liked to spread, these tales seemed to ring of the truth. Needless to say, by the time word reached the castle, Red was less than pleased. There would always be risks to living in the Second Kingdom, everyone who grew up here knew that, but this kind of mayhem had to be dealt with. And she saw no reason why she shouldn't be the woman for the job. It had been far too long since her last good hunt, and she could use a day or two out in the mountain air.
'A day or two' stretched into several more and then into a week as Red followed the creature's trail through the deep woods. It didn't take her long to recognize the tracks and tactics of a Sasquatch, but it was alarming to note that it was straying outside the forbidden depths of the forest and near the kingdom's villages. Sasquatches were usually reclusive, keeping to the darkest parts of the deep woods and feeding on the other nasty things that lived there, but this one seemed to have developed a taste for human blood, and was actively seeking out it's new favorite food. The idea of her people as prey turned Red's stomach, and if she hadn't already been determined to find and deal with the thing, this discovery would have clinched things.
On her eighth day of tracking, luck finally seemed to be on her side when she came across a pile of fresh droppings, still warm. With a spike of adrenaline, she realized she ought to be close enough to catch the thing, and thought spurred her onward. It had been far too long since she'd slept in a warm bed, and she was sure Bigby was getting twitchy about her absence by now. He knew very well she could look after herself, but it would never stop him from worrying about her, especially when she was off on her own. It would be good to go home, she thought with a brief smile, aware that she was letting herself get spoiled by castle life, but right now the idea of a hot fire all ready and waiting for her was too good not to relish.
She spent the better part of an hour following the sasquatch's tracks, fresh enough that they weren't even masked by the snow, her enthusiasm unwavering as she grew increasingly certain that she was gaining on the bloodthirsty monster. But her blood turned to ice as she heard shouts and yells from up ahead, along with a certain unsettling roar. She cursed under her breath, wondering who was foolish enough to come this deep into the woods when there was a monster on the loose, then rolling her eyes as she dashed ahead. It would figure that her subjects were just as dauntless as their queen.
She freed her bow from her shoulder and stopped as she glimpsed a few men running through the trees, glad they had the sense to get away. She strung her bow and freed an arrow from its sheath, looking up sharply as she heard another blood curdling roar and took off, not away from the creature as the others did, but straight towards the sound. She didn't stop this time until she could see the creature's back, getting close enough to take aim without alerting it to her presence. Slowly, she lifted her bow towards the air, taking aim at its furry back, she loosed an arrow that arched high into the air before plummeting with ferocious velocity towards its target.
The arrow made contact, burying itself into the Sasquatch's shoulder, but it did not bring the massive creature down as she might have hoped, although it did illicit a slightly more pained sound from the thing. She reached for another arrow, but that was when she heard a distinctly feminine scream coming from beyond the creature, her eyes widening with her own alarm. She'd thought everyone had gotten away, but apparently she was wrong. Arrows might not be quick enough to bring the monster down before it claimed another life, and Red was not okay with that. She dropped her bow and pack where she stood, as they would only slow her down, and dashed forward, freeing a hatchet from her belt as she went.
Once she was in range, she threw the hatchet at the thing, if only to draw it's attention away from its intended victim, before she replaced it with a dagger in her hand and launched herself at full speed towards the monster, hoping her momentum would be able to throw the thing off balance even if her weight wasn't enough. |
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Post by makyah on Dec 3, 2012 6:49:57 GMT
| [atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=style, width: 400px; background-color: #CFB4AB; padding-left: 20px; padding-right: 20px;][cs=2] time stands still, beauty in all she is; | | [atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=style, width: 300px; background-color: #CFB4AB; border-bottom: 3px solid #967272;][cs=2] i will be brave; i will not let anything take away... | | [atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 400px; background-color: #4C4842; padding-left:20px; padding: 20px;] what's standing in front of me ; words 444 ;;tagged QUEEN RED ;;notes SHE KINDA FAILS <3 Makyah's life flashed before her eyes. Morning spent brushing the horses and mucking out their stables, afternoons down by the lake, swimming and playing fetch with Jessie, her nights spent staring at the stars as she tried to guess which one was her mother. The only regret she had was missing the life of a Lady that was awarded her from birth. But living as a boy had been an adventure she wouldn't give up for the world. This is it. She closed her eyes, hearing the creature howl in pain. This is how I die. |
[/color] She waited for the blow to come, for a claw to scar her smooth skin, and paw to rip her head clean from her shoulders, but nothing came. Instead she heard what sounded like painful howls from the creature, and upon opening her eyes she saw a women, who appeared not much older than herself, flinging her body at the beast. Makyah gasped in surprise and terror, why was this person risking their life for hers? And then another thought crossed her mind, do they know I'm here? Makyah hesitated as she sat in fear at the base of the tree, nothing in her life had prepared her for this moment, nothing in her life had ever even come close to this. She was unsure what to do, should she try and help? Or run before the stranger figured out what she was? Conflicted, Makyah grabbed the satchel of arrows by her feet and used the tree as support to clamor back to her feet. She was more hurt than she realized, though nothing that was too harsh to keep her from moving. But now that she was on her feet, she didn't know if running for it was the smartest of options. She was dressed like a boy, and being a male, not staying to help this stranger slay the beast or help them make it flee could mean lashings when she returned home. Which could lead to more dangerous things. Deciding that dying was obviously the better choice, she freed one of the arrows from the bag and yelling raced towards the beast. She wasn't sure what she had stabbed, given her short stature and the height of the beast, but there was plenty of blood pouring over her hand. The beast roared again, sending one trunk sized arm towards Mak's head. She ducked, and back tracked. Apparently fighting isn't my strong suit.[/i] She fell to her bottom once more, gripping her side and deciding that she'd just watch from the forest floor as a damsel in distress saved her. With any luck she'd die there. [/div] -- one step closer ;; [/center][/td][/tr] [tr][td][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=style, width: 400px; background-color: #CFB4AB; padding-left: 20px; padding-right: 20px; border-top: 3px solid #967272;][cs=2] every breath, every hour has come to this; [/td][/tr][/table] TEMPLATE MADE BY MAKYAH[/B][/sub][/size][/font] [/center] |
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Post by scarlett on Dec 4, 2012 4:55:13 GMT
Red plunge her dagger into the creature's thick hide even as she collided bodily with it, making it stumble away from the person it had been about to eat with a howl of pain, struggling to remain standing as Red clung to its thick, mangy fur. She remained only long enough to yank her blade out of it's flesh before she let the creatures attempts to heave her off succeed, tumbling into a roll and back onto her feet. She twirled around to face the monster again, and was a little surprised to see that someone else had beat her to the punch.
Her eyes widened and she stared, slightly dumbfounded, as the woman gave a battle cry as she charged the creature, clutching an arrow as her weapon. She was definitely a citizen of the 2nd Kingdom, Red thought to herself, staring longer than she probably should have at her attempts to fight the creature. When the creature swung its hairy arm at her, Red knew she had remained stationary too long, and leapt forward to finish the job.
At least the arrow trick had distracted the sasquatch, just as it had Red, so it was advancing on the woman on the ground instead of looking for the real danger. A yell right before she was on the monster caused it to turn, and Red threw herself at it, dagger plunging deep into it's chest, she kept stabbing even as the momentum of her attack carried the beast down onto it's back, blood spewing all over her red leather as the creature howled in the throes of death.
Panting heavily, Red pulled her dagger back once the Sasquatch's breathing ceased, looking down at it's monstrous face, she stared at it for a moment as though daring it to get up again, before she stood up, brushing the blood from her dagger off on it's fur. She turned towards the woman who had tried to help. "Are you all right?" She asked, raising her eyebrows with concern. |
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Post by makyah on Dec 4, 2012 21:52:22 GMT
| [atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=style, width: 400px; background-color: #CFB4AB; padding-left: 20px; padding-right: 20px;][cs=2] time stands still, beauty in all she is; | | [atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=style, width: 300px; background-color: #CFB4AB; border-bottom: 3px solid #967272;][cs=2] i will be brave; i will not let anything take away... | | [atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 400px; background-color: #4C4842; padding-left:20px; padding: 20px;] what's standing in front of me ; words 287 ;;tagged QUEEN RED ;;notes <3 Makyah sat still on the ground before the body of beast, her eyes glued to it's bloody form in an odd sort of fascination. She had never seen a dead body before, side from the deer and woodland animals that the men would bring back from hunts. But that was somehow different from what laid before her now. It was still, a trail of blood pooling just to the left of her her feet. She followed it, realizing how close it was coming to her and immediately inched back towards the tree.
Her body protested the movement, but her fear of the thing jumping up and attacking her again. After a moment she assessed the damage done to her. The fall she so gracefully awarded herself earlier left her with torn leggings and a small scrap to her knee, she could feel a bruise on her arm and was certain one of her ankles was twisted but couldn't figure out which one.
"Are you all right?"
The words broke Mak out of her stupor, causing her to look up at the woman who had saved her life. She took in the sight of her, wondering how a girl like her could have turned into such a warrior. "A-Aye." Mak's voice came out softly, and she visibly paled. Clearing her throat she scrambled, clumsily, to her feet and offered the women a stiff bow.
"Yes, my lady. |
[/b]" Her voice was deeper now, more manly, as manly as she could get it. " Thank you, for saving me.[/b]" She found she couldn't quite look the woman in the eyes, feeling ashamed for being such a clumsy weakling. " I-I hope you're not hurt, my lady, sorry to have been a bother." [/div] -- one step closer ;; [/center][/td][/tr] [tr][td][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=style, width: 400px; background-color: #CFB4AB; padding-left: 20px; padding-right: 20px; border-top: 3px solid #967272;][cs=2] every breath, every hour has come to this; [/td][/tr][/table] TEMPLATE MADE BY MAKYAH[/B][/sub][/size][/font] [/center] |
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Post by scarlett on Dec 5, 2012 22:18:31 GMT
Red watched the woman until she answered in the positive, then nodded and pulled out a cloth so she could finish cleaning the blood from her dagger, either unaware or simply uncaring about the blood spattered on her clothing and face, at least for the time being. Once the blade was shiny again, she resheathed it, and set about to collecting the rest of her weaponry still embedded in the sasquatch's corpse. But she turned away when the young woman spoke again, her brow furrowing at the change in her voice.
She looked her over carefully this time, really looked at her. From the scream she'd heard and her actions since then, Red had never questioned that the person in front of her was a woman. She didn't now, either, looking at a woman dressed in men's clothing, who could probably pass for an older boy, and wondering to herself why she would want to. She was curious, but she knew there could be many reasons why a woman would pretend to to be a man. When she was much younger, traveling with the Huntsman, people had often mistaken her for a boy, and it was often simply easier not to correct them.
"You're welcome." She replied with a slight smile, then crouched down next to the sasquatch, with a grunt she lifted its shoulder to yank out her hatchet, frowning when she saw her arrow had been snapped. She hated losing weapons. Letting the body fall back down, she turned back towards the woman in men's clothing and repeated the procedure of cleaning the axe. "It's no bother." She brushed it off lightly. "It's my responsibility to look after my people." |
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