Paths of the Forest

[Wulf]

Wulf ran, dodging tree limbs and flattening small plants. The sun was almost down, and the path was treacherous. He ran through a bush and almost screamed as the ground suddenly vanished and he dove feet first into a pile of brush and fallen leaves, throwing his hands and rolling through to lessen the impact on his legs. He came to his feet, picking the sharp thorns from the bushes out of his face. Looking around on the ground, he quickly grabbed his bow and checked it for damage. The bow was fine, and he hadn't lost any arrows from his topped quiver. Thanking the Forest Spirit for small favors, he took off running once again.

It was always so eerie running through the woods without the sounds of the forest. He couldn't hear the birds and animals, the crunch and crack of sticks under his feet, anything that calmed him and made him feel welcome and alive as a child. He saw his goal, a large oak tree just up the forest path. The branches hung low enough that he could jump and grab and start to climb. Before he made it, he felt a galloping rumble through the soles of his feet. He pushed as hard as he could, but a blow that could have came from the spirit of the Forest itself lifted him off his feet and threw him several feet, stopping suddenly when he smashed into the oak, sliding down and landing among the roots.

Sharp and nagging pain ran through his side, and Wulf could feel the blood running down his side. Turning, he saw the instrument of his pain. The giant brown bear stood on its hind legs and roared, or so it looked to Wulf. He couldn't hear it, but he could feel the sheer pressure of the sound on his useless eardrums. The bear dropped to its hind legs and roared again. Wulf popped the leather cap off of the end of his quiver and drew two arrows, nocking one and hold the other in his drawing hand. He quickly drew back on the string, trying to breath slowly and keep his calm. The shot he made here could be one that saved his life. His vision tunneled, and he looked down the arrow and past the point, aiming for the center of the center of the eye of the bear.

The bear charged, and Wulf slowly exhaled, letting go of the string as he did. The arrow flew, and the aim of Wulf was true, directly into the left eye of the bear. It was not enough to stop the crazed animal, and Wulf quickly nocked the second arrow and let it fly. The arrow buried itself deep between the neck and shoulder of the bear, piercing its heart. The momentum was too great to stop though, and the large beast crashed into the base of the tree, shaking its great branches and making leaves, acorns, and small branches fall to the ground.

Wulf felt the hit. Luckily, he was in between the neck and shoulder, where he had just enough space to breathe. There was a new pain in his side however. Looking down, he couldn't help but laugh at the irony. The momentum of the bear had driven the arrow that was in its eye down into the soft meat of Wulfs side. His own arrow and the wounds from the bear might just kill him. When he broke the shaft in half and worked the arrow out, his vision went black for several seconds. When he came to, he placed his hands on the shoulders of the animal, he use handfuls of rank and musky fur to pull himself out. Wulf sobbed in pain as his skin moved, dripping more of his life blood onto the ground. He made sure to grab his bow, and used it as a cane to hobble with.

A clearing.... All I need is a clearing... Spirits let there be enough sun...

Wulf found a clearing and dropped to the ground, trying to use his power to let the sun heal him. When he finally calmed down, he began to feel the familiar warmth, and it started to work. He could feel the knitting of some of the torn muscles in his side and abdomen, but after ten minutes, the sun dipped too far behind the trees for him to use. He would never make it out of the forest in time for the sun to still be up. Wearily climbing to his feet, he hobbled to a tree whose trunk was covered in a spongy moss his father had shown him. Cutting it into strips with his knife, he stuffed it into the long cuts and the shaft hole in his side, using it like a pad of bandages to hold blood and stop the bleeding. He then tied his shirt around his stomach to hold the moss in.

I need to find safety. I can't climb a tree, and there are no telling what horrors await in a cave. I'm so tired.... I need to find a good camp spot...

With those thoughts, he hobbled with as much speed as he could manage, holding his side and searching for a semi-safe place to go.

[Seiran Xar]

Kana Seiran Xar strode along the riverside at an easy pace, pack dangling from the spear balanced across her shoulders, eyes scanning the thickening trees around her. When they became dense enough to unambiguously call a forest, she paused to untie her pack from her spear and sling it across her shoulders instead. She was never comfortable travelling a forest without a weapon. Weapon in hand, of course, the forest was her home, and she wandered away from the river with no concern for getting lost. She cast a curious eye over the plants around her as she walked, looking for unfamiliar varieties.

Broken plants. Big game, angry. She followed it.

Dead animal. She knew this one. Bear. It'd been shot twice. One of the arrows was through the heart. Kana didn't know much about arrows, as they weren't a weapon known to her people, but who had the strength to shoot a bear in the heart?

It didn't take an expert tracker to see that the bear's opponent had been badly injured. They looked to have half-dragged themself away, bleeding quite a lot... she could've followed the trail blind. She wasted no time in following, quickening her pace to the fastest jog she could manage.

There. The bearkiller had tried inexpertly to patch his own wounds. It didn't look like he'd be conscious for much longer. He clearly needed help, but he might be crazed with pain. No matter.

"Yelurdexai? Sir? I'm a healer." She strode toward him opening her pack as she spoke, searching through pouches and bottles.

[Wulf]

Wulf crouched and stared at the creature. She looked like a forest spirit. Baring his teeth he yelled at her.

"LEAVE ME ALONE!"

She would drag him into her lair, and he would never come out. Or he would and it would be a hundred years later, and everyone he knew would be dead and gone. He feebly tried to nock and draw an arrow from his boy, but he felt the muscles that he had managed to heal tear as he did, and fresh blood started to pour down his side in sheets. He dropped to one knee, barely able to keep his hold on his bow. The arrow fell from the string to the ground.

"Stay away..."

He barely managed to whisper before he slipped into the tide of the ocean of quiet unconsciousness.

[Seiran Xar]

Seiran froze. The man needed help, but he was panicked, and he had managed to shoot a bear in the heart. Even in his weakened state, she had no guarantee he was incapable of killing her if he felt threatened.

"I'm here to..."

She didn't think about her reaction as he fell, merely darted forward and caught him, one hand on the base of the spine and one at the base of the skull, as she had many times before. She buckled under his weight, but not as much as she'd expected. Oddly light for a grown man with the strength he'd exhibited.

She carefully lowered him to the ground, mindful of his air passage and wounds, and pulled out her knife. It was the work of moments to cut his shirt away. She chose a scrap of cloth and doused it from one of the bottles in her pack. Blood coagulant mixed with alcohol. Not the best method for treating a wound, but bleeding to death was a more immediate problem than scarring or infection. She pulled out as much of the man's makeshift plug as she dared and pressed the cloth on instead. She bound the wound as tightly as she dared before casting a glance over the man's other injuries. They could wait.

Water. She needed clean, boiled water. But she couldn't leave him on the forest floor, he'd be eaten. And she couldn't move him, he'd bleed to death. Only one thing to do then. She pulled out her tent and pitched it around him. It was a simple canvas and she was very practised at pitching, so it was up in no time at all. She lit a small fire outside the tent to keep wildlife away from her helpless patient, left him a waterskin in case he woke, and headed back towards the river.

[Wulf]

Wulf shook and shivered. He had felt the spirit grab him. He was as good as dead. He swam and floated on the dark ebbs of the black ocean, and he screamed and begged the Dread Ravens to drag him from this place to death. The Hunting Grounds could await him, and he would go there with happiness in his heart.

Waking in a fever, he grabbed the water skin, choking and slurping down the water. His eyes shined with the fever that was the start of the possible infection. Trying to rise, he managed three steps before he fell, his outstretched arm falling into the fire. Screaming in pain as his flesh sizzled, he rolled to the right, knocking one of the tent poles down.

Wulf panted, miserable in his pain. With a howl, black wolves dragged him back to the dark ocean of unconciousness brought on by shock.

[Seiran Xar]

Kana took one look at the campsite and hissed in frustration. She hadn't tied the patient down because she was worried he'd struggle and damage himself further, but perhaps she should have. She checked him for further bleeding (negligible), built up the fire and put her pot of water on to boil before fixing the tent and gently moving him back inside.

Fever? No, nothing serious. Shock. She couldn't help with that while he was unconscious, beyond trying to keep him as stable as possible. Infection was a problem, but one she could deal with. And he'd probably delirious when he woke up, judging by the state of the campsite. Might try to hurt her. She moved all his weapons out of easy reach. It didn't matter if he roughed her up a bit, her capacity for healing was a lot greater than his at that moment.

When the water boiled, she took a cupful to prepare a mild sedative and rather strong painkiller. Then she threw a handful of bandages into the pot, let them boil for a while, and dragged the pot off the fire to cool. Once it was at a tolerable temperature, she bound the man's hands and feet to stop him from struggling and hurting himself in the middle of a delicate treatment, took out her medicines, and got to work.

The wound was tricky to clean without causing dangerous bleeding, but she was an expert. She cleared out as much dirt and moss as she could reach, glad for her patient's sake that he was unconscious. With luck, he might recover fine. A lot of luck. She rebound the wound and moved on to clean and treat the various minor injuries and scrapes on his body, including his newly burned fingers. She cut his hands and feet free (no need to give him yet another reason to panic), moved out of his easy reach, and waited for him to wake.

[Wulf]

Wulf awoke again. Looking through slitted eyes through the tent, he spotted the forest spirit. She was sitting right in front of him, blocking the only exit. She had taken his bow, but other than that he seemed in the same shape he was in when he had last passed out. He waited, breathing as slowly and deeply as someone in a deep state of unconsciousness. Hopefully, she would have to move soon. She couldn't sit there forever, and when she did move, he would make a break for it. He could find a good place to stay the night, all he needed was the sun light in the morning.

[Seiran Xar]

An experienced healer, Kana had no problem identifying the instant that her patient awoke. She sat still but relaxed, cup or painkiller in her hands, waiting to see if he would panic. "How do you feel, Yelurdexai? You are badly injured, but I believe that you will recover if your wounds are carefully treated.

"I am Seiran Kana Xar." Kana introduced herself in the manner that she'd learned, through trial and error, lead to outsiders addressing her properly. She'd never have to call herself 'Seiran' to one of her own people; it would be evident from the tattoos. But simply using her name with foreigners led to them being inappropriately familiar with her. "I'm a healer. I'd like to help you, if you will allow it."

[Wulf]

Wulf tried to read her lips. The way her mouth formed the words was funny. He couldn't read them very well, and only managed to catch was healer.

Sighing, he sat up. Taking his hands, he pointed to his chest and then to both of his ears. After he knew she understood he was talking about his ears, he shook his head no. Trying to modualte his voice without yelling, it came out as a up and down, very soft and loud in turns.

"I AM deaf. can't HEAR ANYTHING."

Nodding, he went to rise. He was getting out of here. She had helped him, and done a better job than he did, but all he needed was to walk out of the woods or find a clearing and wait for sunlight. Then he would be perfectly fine, and he would be able to either go back and salvage what he could from the bear or hunt other game to take home.

[Seiran Xar]

Deaf. That complicated things. Kana had known a few deaf people in her time, mostly people with her breathing disorder who had lost their hearing due to an infection their weakened bodies couldn't fight off, but she doubted that this stranger would recognise her sign language. He probably had one of his own, from his people.

He didn't seem about to attack, so she silently offered him the cup in her hands. It wasn't strong enough to knock him out again, but it should take away his pain for a few hours. As he rose, she moved away from the entrance of the tent. He really shouldn't be moving about with his injuries but she'd attended obstinate hunters before and knew that nothing short of actual lameness would keep him if he wanted to go. She could drug him, but there was no point in wasting her time tending a patient who didn't want her help. Judging by the scars, general demeanor, stubbornness and skill, she decided he was a Child of the Raven. Apparently one who was too stubborn to know how bad his injuries were. If he wanted to go, she'd let him... but she'd be sure to track him in case he pushed himself too hard and collapsed again.

[Wulf]

Wulf shook his head no at the cup. He tried to rise, and had to stop as his knees shook and went weak. Grimacing, he sat back down and resolved to wait. There was nothing else he could do, the sun was many hours from rising in any case.

He looked around and picked up a stick. scratching on the bare earth of the tent floor, he stuck his tongue between his teeth and tried to remember what Old Alar had taught him of writing.

Making big letters, he wrote, I am Wulf. You?

[Seiran Xar]

Kana frowned at the markings in the ground. She recognised the pattern well enough to know that the Yelurdexai was writing, and briefly wished that she could read. She really would need to learn someday. Foreigners seemed to rely on writing rather a lot.

At least he seemed sensible enough not to go anywhere. Perhaps some introductions were in order. She gestured to herself and followed with the hand signal used among the Rakri for serpent. For clarity, she pulled up a sleeve and pointed to one of the snake tattoos along her arms. "I am Seiran," she said, repeating the serpent gesture. She gestured to him. "What are you called?"

Once again, she held out the cup of liquid. Just take your medicine, you stubborn brat.

[Wulf]

Snake? She was called Snake? He thought. I have no room to talk, I'm a Wulf.

Judging by the puzzled look on her face and the fact she wasn't looking at the letters like she could read, she couldn't understand his name. He briefly scratched his scalp, shaking his head no when she offered the cup again. Patting his chest, he pointed to the sky and made a howling motion, then pressed the form of a wolf print in the dirt.

"Wulf." He said. It was barely a whisper, but since he couldn't hear it, he couldn't change or register the volume or pitch of it.

He then stared at her. There wasn't anything else to do.

[Seiran Xar]

Seiran raised an eyebrow. Wolf? He was a Child of the Wolf? No, definitely not. Even if she was wrong about him being a Raven, he couldn't possibly be a Wolf. Perhaps he meant that his given name was Wolf. Non-Rakri were often laid-back with their given names. After all, her parents had named her after the wolf, based on wishful thinking. Was he named for a similar reason? Did deafness run in his family, and they'd hoped to protect him from it with a name?

She shrugged and put the cup down carefully in a corner of the tent where it wouldn't be knocked over. Then she stood. "Rest," she said, making sure he could see her lips and raising one hand for good measure. "I'll be back soon."

She took her pack and spear and left, pausing out of sight of the tent to pull a few supplies out of her pack and string it up a tree. Then she went to find the bear.

The wildlife hadn't got to it quite yet. She skinned it as quickly as she could, lay the skin aside and started to cut the meat into pieces small enough to carry, cursing the breathing affliction that sapped her strength. It would take far too many trips to bring the whole thing back. She strung the chunks of meat into the trees instead, leaving the bones (too heavy and unwieldy to bother with). She'd drag the skin back to the tent, and hope that her patient had stayed put.

[Wulf]

As soon as she stepped out of the tent, Wulf followed. She moved through the forest with a certain grace, but even he could tell that she wasn't worried about being quiet, with how she walked through large bushes and stepped through deadfall areas from trees. Wulf ghosted through the trees, the beautiful full moon giving him all the light he needed to go where he needed to go.

He watched as she walked up to the bear and began to skin it. She did a good job, but she cut meat from bone differently than he did. When she went to pull the skin full of meat, he walked from his shadow hiding place and to the skin, not making a sound. Gently taking the bear skin from her, he threw more of the meat on it before he started dragging it back towards the tent.

As he passed the bear skull, he stopped and reached down, touching the wet bone and closing his eyes, offering his apologies and thanks to the spirit of the bear and the spirit of the Forest. Opening his eyes, he looked to the woman and then continued walking.