Lesson Fought, Lesson Learned

[Chiroptera]

Trying to ignore what he'd said about a "trial by fire," Eltarri sighed and dropped her head onto her folded arms. It wasn't fear that bothered her; she was persistently hounded by terror, and it was the kind that crippled her mind and body, that rendered her into a quivering and useless mound of paralyzed meat that could only sit back and wait in horror for its own destruction.

Bear steak, she thought miserably. My fear turns me into a big, bloody chunk of bear steak.

Corvus had killed dragons, and he spoke of facing the huge reptiles as though they were nothing more than unruly housepets. He’d come charging in to save her from the bear that would no doubt have turned seasoned warriors into bawling infants, and he’d willingly agreed to help take care of even more of the monsters when he didn’t have an obligation to do so. What kind of person was so downright eager to put themself into dangerous situations? How could anyone who lived the kind of life that he did know about being scared to death? Her head felt too heavy to lift up, but Eltarri wanted to make sure he answered her question before she fell asleep.

“Tell me the truth, Corvus,” she said, her voice more bitter than she intended. “Have you ever really been afraid?”

[Corvus MacCallum]

At this question Corvus sat up, smiling at the lass and shrugged while his tail flicked about below him.

"Shit-loads a' times lass"

Then there was just silence, he watched her, still with that truly sincere smile on his face, a few spikes of hair dangling in front of his forest green eyes, visible even in this dim flickering light. As the light of the fire weaved around his visage Els eyes were able to pick out the faintest lines of scars and slices normally not shown on his usually chipper face.

"I've barneyed wit' beasts tha' put every bit a' life an' energy into ending me life, course ah've been terrified... still get get scared these days, wouldn't do this anymore if I wasnae scared a' the things I fight"

Taking in a long breath, not for any particulary long speech, but he just felt like doing it, his throat still hurt from all the barking earlier, plus blood had a habit of thickening the throat lining and making it tricky to breathe fully.

"Still keep pressing on though an' its because of the fear, see the reason ah get afraid, is because I want to keep living, a fearless warrior is looking for his death lass... all an issue of using tha' fear an' pushing on regardless of it... now get some rest, I'll keep watch fer a bit... shouldnae be any problems though"

[Chiroptera]

"No problems?" she repeated sleepily. "Didn't you say that before the last bear's attack?"

Corvus' approximation of a "fearless warrior" as a really only a suicidal maniac was depressingly surprising to the half-elf. She’d been pretty certain not too long ago that death wouldn’t be such a bad thing, but considering how stricken with fear she’d been when in a life-threatening situation, all the apathy that she’d felt earlier must have not been as real as she’d imagined. She was still worried about being killed by the bears, and she still wanted Corvus to teach her how to fight. Would she really be concerned with those kinds of things if she didn’t want to live?

Maybe with time and experience, she could reach the level of confidence that Corvus had, the kind of self-confidence that let him embrace the fear as something that was positive. There were few things that she wouldn’t give to be more like him. Eltarri’s gaze settled onto his smiling face, multi-colored hair casting shadows onto his features. When she noticed that he was looking at her she jerked her face down onto her arms, shutting her eyes and trying not to blush.

Don’t flatter yourself. You’ll never be anything like him. The memory of his smile lingered in her mind. He was more dangerous than she could ever hope to be, even if he did look and act like a harmless boy, grinning and wagging his tail as if there weren’t giant and murderous bears within a stone’s throw of their camp. But even if the massive sword did almost look out-of-place with his boyish hair and benign smile, he was coming with her to fight the bears tomorrow, and as she drifted asleep the thought nearly made her smile.

[Corvus MacCallum]

"Sleep well wee lassy... hmm, now wha' tae do..."

Through squinted eyes he watched the flame flicker and twirl, watching how its light caught on Eltarri... on too much of Eltarri. A silent chuckle escaping the wolf-man as he looked at her, so exhausted the little wanderer had conked out while sitting up, his fangs gleaming as his smirk pulled into a full smile, deciding to follow her swaying before seeing the girls balance being outdone by gravity. Giving a shove with his heels the Highlander flung himself past the fire and to her side, just in time to catch the tired form of his pupil, giving a soft rub to her upper arm just for comfort sakes before starting to lay her down. Seeing the hard earth beneath her Corvus had a quick spy about, scrabbling with a foot to nab his clean t-shirt, bundling it up beneath her head.

"If'n I didnae know you could 'andle this lass I wouldnae put you in such danger... you'll do me proud without even realising it heh..."

He offered a soft touch the girl likely hadn't experianced for a long time, running the smooth backs of his claws and the softly furred hands along her cheek. A shiver wracking the hybrids body, no blanketing in the Highlanders equipment but there was... well why not. Smiling down at her his tail swept in to brush against her arms, instinctively her body reaching for warmth and wrapping her form around it, the overly fluffy and soft tail fur grazing against what little skin was exposed.

Bit of a bugger though... ah well, maybe I cin wake up first an' make sure she don't recall holding it

With a soft shuffle of his own body the toned and torn Highlander flopped to the ground beside her, though facing the opposite direction. Stretching his arm for but a moment the warrior brought his blade close to the little scene, when waking up he was a very heavy sleeper, but when trying to snooze it didn't take much to stir him... helped to be cautious.

[Chiroptera]

Consciousness required too much effort for Eltarri's pursuit of it to succeed. She stirred at Corvus’ first touch, the stress and bother of the day making her wary even in sleep, but the caress was far softer, kinder than anything she had felt in all her life, and instead of bringing her closer to wakefulness it eased her deeper into the dark pits of slumber.

Still asleep, Eltarri's fingers twined tightly into the dark fur of Corvus’ tail, her hands unconsciously clenching into tight fists to pull it closer to herself, to make sure he didn’t get taken away. The girl’s future was far from bright, and she was only starting to get an inkling of how dark the world could be, but for now her skin tingled with the warmth of the Highlander's touch, and her dreams held none of the terror they once had. Less than two feet away from her was the wolf-man who'd saved her in more ways than one, and even though the morrow promised danger and bloodshed galore, knowing that he'd be there to face it with her made the impending trial bearable. She would have died of embarrassment if she knew that she was sleeping close enough to the man that her breathing unintentionally synchronized with his, but for the first time in several weeks, Eltarri slept peacefully.

And for what they were preparing to face the next day, they certainly needed it.


((All bunnying approved, quest continued in forthcoming installment.))

[AdventWings]

I'm sorry this took longer than I anticipated. Thank you for your patience, for the quest judgment is done.

Story

Continuity - 6/10

Not much immediate backstory given, though it did not do anything bad to the overall story, either.

Setting - 7/10

Excellent interaction and detail throughout the story. A bit too much sometimes, but fairly well-balanced.

Pacing - 5/10

The earlier posts by Cor sort of killed the opening pacing as the rushed style really clashed with Chiroptera's more fluid, controlled form. It got better as the story progressed. Telling a story this intricate in 75 posts seemed a tad... too long, as this could be effectively separated into two complete quests that tandem with each other. My only complaints here.

Writing Style

Mechanics - 6/10

Pretty OK for the most parts, though Cor should watch for apparent run-ons that pop up from time to time.

Technique - 6/10

Some advanced literary devices used sporatically, some worked. Overall good job in integrating them into the writing style.

Clarity - 6/10

Had some problem reading the battle scenes, but the rest were fairly easy to read and not too many details were unneeded.

Character

Dialogue - 7/10

Great, unique dialogue from both of you.

Action - 7/10

Nothing much to comment here, you two did good.

Persona - 8/10

Strong characters, memorable quirks and each with unique characteristics that made you two stand out from the crowd. Awesome job.

Miscellaneous

Wild Card - 7/10

I would love to see how these two end up in their hunt for the remaining undead bears.

FINAL SCORE – 65!

Chiroptera receives 3,000 EXP and 765 GP

Corvus MacCallum receives 2,000 EXP and 750 GP

[Letho]

EXP/GP added! Welcome to the next level both of you.