Post by Rikez on Jul 24, 2015 19:33:37 GMT -5
Sunlight filtered through the canopy of the Xayar forest in beams, the golden rays lighting every particle of dust in their path. Each leaf overhead was outlined in a yellow, almost translucent glow. The forest looked simply enchanting. Rikez moved like a shadow amongst the light summer foliage, his inky black pelt out of place in the happy landscape. His bright amber eyes stayed trained on the forest floor, blind to the beauty overhead. It was his first morning alone after becoming an official member of Airila, and he had risen with the sun, eager to patrol the outskirts of his new pack’s territory.
Warrior. The new title bounced around in his mind like a loose pebble, constantly resurfacing to the front of his thoughts. He was to protect and serve his pack now, and this new purpose lit a fire under his paws, spurring him forward. He knew no other members of Airila besides his temporary alpha, Arche, but that didn’t matter. As long as he was loyal to his friend, he was protecting them all. Protecting other wolves was something he had not done in the past. For a moment, the image of his siblings burned painfully in his mind before fading once more. He had failed them in every way he could have, leaving them behind while he fled for the sea. I was a coward. His ears twitched with the pain of his past before his eyes hardened in defiance.
He would not do that in Airila.
Suddenly flooded with a burst of energy, Rikez leapt forward. He moved like a spring, his body propelled through the trees from the force of his strong back legs. The wind whistled in his ears, and his dark tail whipped behind him like a banner. Running always made him feel like a true wolf: wild and free. He couldn’t be tied down to anything while his paws were flashing beneath him.
A strange scent hit his nose as he darted through the forest, causing him to slow his pace. It was tart, almost sour. It smells like crowfood, he thought as it grew stronger, overwhelming his senses. And then he remembered… the cougar he had killed nearly one week ago was still here, lying in the small clearing where he had left it. Loud, annoying buzzing filled his ears as he skirted around the edge of the clearing. The decomposing body was almost unrecognizable, and even from a distance, maggots were visible. They twisted and burrowed into the big cat’s flesh in sickening numbers. It made Rikez’s lip curl at the sight of them.
Noise cut through the clearing as a small group of black birds descended from the trees, crying out to one another and bickering as they fell upon the rotting flesh. Mangy birds, the black brute scoffed inwardly. The crows ignored the wolf, too absorbed with their squawking. They hopped atop the grotesque mound, tiny claws picking at the soft decomposing flesh. These birds often scavenged on already dead animals, eager for the free meal. It made Rikez sick just thinking about it.
Filthy scavengers. They can have it. Rikez almost had a thought that the body should be moved out of the territory, but the animal was too far-gone. It would just have to run its course. That was the way of the forest.
He was about to turn away and continue through the woods when the crows scattered, their cries piercing the very tops of the trees. Another bird had swooped down on the scene, its wingspan twice as large as the smaller scavengers. Its plumage was obsidian, shining with healthy feathers. They gave off an array of colors as the animal moved, from an almost luminescent green to deep purple. Its wings were a rainbow of colors, hidden behind a guise of dark plumage, and its beak was equally as dark. It settled down on the body of the big cat as if it owned the rotting flesh. Unlike the other birds, it looked back at Rikez with two beady black eyes, its gaze fixed on him. Its stare was searching, and the black brute felt oddly exposed under its piercing look. As they looked at each other, Rikez realized the bird was a female raven. Which would explain why it was so much bigger than the crows.
”What are you looking at?” Rikez felt foolish speaking to a bird, but at the same time, he felt as if the raven could be listening to him. She was definitely watching as he spoke, and it ruffled its wings in response to his comment. Silently, she tilted its head to peer at him in an even more quizzical position.
Rikez tossed his head and turned away from the rotting feline and the large raven that sat atop it. ”I’m not going to waste my time on some stupid bird,” he huffed.
He was barely under the cover of the trees before he heard a shrill cry from behind him and the prick of talons in his fur. With a snarl, the black brute whirled around, canines flashing. But he was met with the nearly empty clearing. The bird was circling above; her wings cast a shadow on the forest floor. In one swift motion, she dived to Rikez’s feet and stood before him, her head barely higher than the wolf’s knees. She clacked her beak at him and watched him with coal-like eyes, her expression scolding.
”What do you want from me?”
The raven blinked and hopped closer to him, lifting its beak to the dark wolf’s muzzle. Shocked by the bird’s boldness, Rikez stood still as the hard, shiny tip of the bird’s beak touched his soft, wet nose.
A current of what felt like electricity jumped between the two of them, paired with a single thought. Huginn The word passed like a whisper across the black wolf’s mind, completely unwarranted. Startled, he looked down at the raven with amber eyes wide. She calmly peered back at him, silent as ever. She wanted nothing from him. Absolutely and utterly nothing. The revalation was like a slap in the face to the black wolf.
Huginn.
Her name was as unique as she was, and although Rikez had no idea why she had come to him, he knew that she explicitly had. A bond coursed between them, invisible to the naked eye, disrupting the air in an invisible line. They were tied. The black wolf and the even blacker bird looked like a match as they both stood on the dirt of the Xayar forest. A pair as strangely as they come.
Count | 1,121
Tagged | n/a
Muse | Excellent
Notes | This is a one-shot post for Rikez to discover his animal companion. It’s complete!
Warrior. The new title bounced around in his mind like a loose pebble, constantly resurfacing to the front of his thoughts. He was to protect and serve his pack now, and this new purpose lit a fire under his paws, spurring him forward. He knew no other members of Airila besides his temporary alpha, Arche, but that didn’t matter. As long as he was loyal to his friend, he was protecting them all. Protecting other wolves was something he had not done in the past. For a moment, the image of his siblings burned painfully in his mind before fading once more. He had failed them in every way he could have, leaving them behind while he fled for the sea. I was a coward. His ears twitched with the pain of his past before his eyes hardened in defiance.
He would not do that in Airila.
Suddenly flooded with a burst of energy, Rikez leapt forward. He moved like a spring, his body propelled through the trees from the force of his strong back legs. The wind whistled in his ears, and his dark tail whipped behind him like a banner. Running always made him feel like a true wolf: wild and free. He couldn’t be tied down to anything while his paws were flashing beneath him.
A strange scent hit his nose as he darted through the forest, causing him to slow his pace. It was tart, almost sour. It smells like crowfood, he thought as it grew stronger, overwhelming his senses. And then he remembered… the cougar he had killed nearly one week ago was still here, lying in the small clearing where he had left it. Loud, annoying buzzing filled his ears as he skirted around the edge of the clearing. The decomposing body was almost unrecognizable, and even from a distance, maggots were visible. They twisted and burrowed into the big cat’s flesh in sickening numbers. It made Rikez’s lip curl at the sight of them.
Noise cut through the clearing as a small group of black birds descended from the trees, crying out to one another and bickering as they fell upon the rotting flesh. Mangy birds, the black brute scoffed inwardly. The crows ignored the wolf, too absorbed with their squawking. They hopped atop the grotesque mound, tiny claws picking at the soft decomposing flesh. These birds often scavenged on already dead animals, eager for the free meal. It made Rikez sick just thinking about it.
Filthy scavengers. They can have it. Rikez almost had a thought that the body should be moved out of the territory, but the animal was too far-gone. It would just have to run its course. That was the way of the forest.
He was about to turn away and continue through the woods when the crows scattered, their cries piercing the very tops of the trees. Another bird had swooped down on the scene, its wingspan twice as large as the smaller scavengers. Its plumage was obsidian, shining with healthy feathers. They gave off an array of colors as the animal moved, from an almost luminescent green to deep purple. Its wings were a rainbow of colors, hidden behind a guise of dark plumage, and its beak was equally as dark. It settled down on the body of the big cat as if it owned the rotting flesh. Unlike the other birds, it looked back at Rikez with two beady black eyes, its gaze fixed on him. Its stare was searching, and the black brute felt oddly exposed under its piercing look. As they looked at each other, Rikez realized the bird was a female raven. Which would explain why it was so much bigger than the crows.
”What are you looking at?” Rikez felt foolish speaking to a bird, but at the same time, he felt as if the raven could be listening to him. She was definitely watching as he spoke, and it ruffled its wings in response to his comment. Silently, she tilted its head to peer at him in an even more quizzical position.
Rikez tossed his head and turned away from the rotting feline and the large raven that sat atop it. ”I’m not going to waste my time on some stupid bird,” he huffed.
He was barely under the cover of the trees before he heard a shrill cry from behind him and the prick of talons in his fur. With a snarl, the black brute whirled around, canines flashing. But he was met with the nearly empty clearing. The bird was circling above; her wings cast a shadow on the forest floor. In one swift motion, she dived to Rikez’s feet and stood before him, her head barely higher than the wolf’s knees. She clacked her beak at him and watched him with coal-like eyes, her expression scolding.
”What do you want from me?”
The raven blinked and hopped closer to him, lifting its beak to the dark wolf’s muzzle. Shocked by the bird’s boldness, Rikez stood still as the hard, shiny tip of the bird’s beak touched his soft, wet nose.
A current of what felt like electricity jumped between the two of them, paired with a single thought. Huginn The word passed like a whisper across the black wolf’s mind, completely unwarranted. Startled, he looked down at the raven with amber eyes wide. She calmly peered back at him, silent as ever. She wanted nothing from him. Absolutely and utterly nothing. The revalation was like a slap in the face to the black wolf.
Huginn.
Her name was as unique as she was, and although Rikez had no idea why she had come to him, he knew that she explicitly had. A bond coursed between them, invisible to the naked eye, disrupting the air in an invisible line. They were tied. The black wolf and the even blacker bird looked like a match as they both stood on the dirt of the Xayar forest. A pair as strangely as they come.
Count | 1,121
Tagged | n/a
Muse | Excellent
Notes | This is a one-shot post for Rikez to discover his animal companion. It’s complete!
