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 Posted: Tue Jul 08, 2008 10:40 pm
Trevor sighed as he watched the snake he planned on making his meal slithering along the ground. When the moment came to strike, he jumped off the branch he was perched on and swooped down, striking it in a way that it crushed it's head. It wasn't much of a meal, but it would help sustain him until he could find something more substantial later.
He then set to work at building a fire and cooking the snake before he dug in. After Trevor's snack was done and the area was cleaned with the fire put out, he took back to the air. It definitely wasn't much, but it stopped the rumbling for now. He wouldn't fly very high, but just enough to get off the ground and scout for more food.
As he was flying and scouting for more food a nearby disturbance of a jaguar jumping after it's chosen prey, a monkey, made Trevor pause. He tried to avoid flying into things like that. However, his attention as drawn away from the hunter and prey when he caught movement of something else. A quick closer glimpse conveyed it to be a fellow Jungle Folk. They are out far...I pick this area to live in since it isn't that populated and I therefore have less of a chance of running into my family while out and about...wonder why they are here instead of the more populated area. Trevor thought, going and perching on a branch while he watched them, wondering if they were hunting or doing something else. What surprised Trevor even more was the appearance of another Jungle Folk. He was becoming more and more surprised that this area seemed so populated right now and wondered why it was so.
((Ugh, this is so choppy and bad, but I will post it for now and clean it up a little bit later when I am not doing five different things xP.))
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Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 4:37 am
(( I think it's fine, Xxana. ^-^ ))
Tayo snapped his head as Xavier spoke to him. His eyes widened as his companion recounted the tale.
"You flew that high up?" he asked incredulously, "You actually saw those giant birds?" He ran a hand through his hair, his eyes narrowed. "You are either very brave or very mad, Xavier. Nevertheless, this is interesting..."
He put down his spear and sat next to the other Jungle Folk. No sense in hunting now; this new revelation was a lot more interesting. He could try and spear himself some fish later.
"They didn't have wings?" he repeated, "You didn't see any in them? And they were sitting in that large bird's belly without getting digested?"
This was unfathomable. Tayo's own imagination would never had cooked up something so unbelievable.
"I wonder why they have begun to appear now..." he mused, looking up at a small patch of sky surrounded by thick tree leaves and branches. "We've never seen these things until now..."
Tayo racked his brains, trying to remember if any of the tales his elders had told him included these beings. As far as he could remember, none of the elders had told a story like that before. Perhaps their ancient ancestors knew of them and these tales had been lost long ago. But there was no retrieving them now...
"So... are you going to tell anyone else about this?" he asked Xavier after a moment of pause, "Some might think you foolish for flying that high up."
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Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 6:53 am
Hichiro sighed deeply. His little brothers could be so demanding at times. All they ever wanted was to play and eat. But this particular moment, they wanted as many berries and other fruit as Hichiro could carry. He could still hear his youngest brother, only 8 years old, crying out to him before he left.
"Hichi! Get lots and lots of bananas and starfruit! Oh and as many wild berries as you can find!."
Of course, after that, his other siblings all began to state their orders.
Hichiro had managed to fashion a bag out of a few the large tree leaves, but he still was tring to carry a lot more then he should have had to.
He was planning to have his portion in one of the less populated areas before he went home, but stoped dead at the sight of wo other Jungle Folk. He didn't know how to react at first, but quickly decided to his behind a cluster of trees. Hichiro loathed the idea of being spotted by the others.
He hadn't seen one of the jungle folk's wings, but the other was definately a Harpy Eagle. Hichiro knew that he would be looked down on by this carniverous person. Berries and fruit would be considered trash barely fit for a monkey.
It was then that Hichiro picked up a little of their conversation.
'The giant birds don't have faces.....and there are Jungle Folks without wings! This is astounding! I have to go tell my brothers!'
Hichiro jumped up and headed in the general direction of his family, but his foot cought on a root just before he could even step forward.
There was a loud THUD as Hichiro's head slammed into the trunk of a tree opposite him. His make-shift basket went flying, sending all the items Hichiro had collected scattering in every direction.
Hichiro would never live this down. If he could survive the concussion that was surely coming.
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Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 10:09 am
Xavier chuckled. "I think I'm a little of both." He nodded as Tayo went over it. "Yeah there were lots of them and not a single one had wings. There were a few who saw me who seemed look like they've never seen someone with wings before. Can you believe that?"
He nodded. "Yeah I was. I was going to tell everyone about it. Don't you think they would want to know? It seems everyone has been woundering about those things so I think they would want to hear about what I saw."
He heard the thud. "What was that?" He flew over towards the source of the noise. He saw Hichiro on the ground. He flew down and helped him up. "Are you ok?"
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Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 3:33 pm
Ivalice was not one to be frightened of much but every time one of those things flew over head he sank in the tree he deemed his a little. It was uncomfortable and the bit of noise it made unnatural, much like the things that had claimed his home. Sighing he clutched his spear tighter till it passed only to relax when he could no longer see it.
What if it was a trick to get them to come out so that it may swoop down and eat them? For the first time in a long time he no longer felt to be at the top of the food chain, that he actually had to be cautious. Sure the big cats could be annoying but even they didn't attempt to kill his kind often. Then his stomach growled. Looking down at he he muttered to himself, it had been a couple days since his last successful hunt.
Perhaps he was just losing his edge or confirmed he had lost it. Either way he had to try. Spreading his near black wings he would glide down to the river. Maybe, just maybe he'd have better luck at fishing.
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Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 4:42 pm
Hichiro's eyes widened in fear as the other helped him up. He was never good at interacting with anyone other then his own family. But even they scared him sometimes.
"I'm f..fine. Thanks"
A small blush made its way across Hichiro's face as he looked up. he'd never been this close to anyone before. Not physically anyway.
"I just.....my foot got caught and I triped."
Hichiro saw his "basket" on the ground and felt like he was going to cry. Two hours! He'd spent two hours trying tofind everything his brothers wanted and now it was all ruined. Well, he could probably wass most of it off and it would be perfectly fine, but he'd still have to re-trace his steps to find everything he'd lost.
"Um...could you..maybe...help me collect my fruit please.....only if you want to of course!"
His glance shifted slightly to the person before him, only making him blush darker. He was much too close for his own comfort.
"...I need it for my brothers."
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Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 8:40 pm
Tayo's head spun in the direction of the crash they heard. Xavier flew over while he stayed sitting on the mossy tree trunk. He saw a fellow Jungle Folk being pulled up, his legs stained with crushed berry juice.
The poor Jungle Folk began to stammer and blush, obviously embarrassed. Tayo finally stood up and walked to the two. He had seen this Sulfer Cockatoo somewhere before... Or perhaps he was simply thinking of someone else.
He looked to the crushed basket made of tree leaves and the ruined berries and other fruits scattered on the ground their juices flowing wasted to be licked up by passing hungry animals.
Tayo picked up the basket, and pulled out a large palm leaf hanging above him. He worked quickly, fixing the hole in it and using his fingers to deftly mold it back into the shape it was, albeit a little more frayed.
"This should hold for a bit," he said quietly to the Cockatoo, "There is a clump of wild berries just beyond those trees there and they're ripe."
He grabbed his spear and threw it with all his might. It whizzed into the top of a tree and cut down a bunch of bananas. Tayo flew over to pick them up and dropped them in the basket. His face remained impassive the whole time. Tayo was not one to show his emotions freely to anyone he wasn't close to. But even with his cold demeanor, he still performed acts of kindness. Mostly because he hated seeing a fellow Jungle Folk in trouble, and he liked helping out, but he would never say that out loud. He had taken it into his head after his parents died that he could not show his emotions to anyone he wasn't close to.
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Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 9:30 pm
He smiled to him. "Of course. I don't mind helping." He flew up and found some nice star fruits. He came back down and put them in the basket.
"Did you see that strange bird over head earlier? I went up to it. It's even stranger up close. There where jungle Folks without wings in it. Actully in the thing."
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Posted: Thu Jul 10, 2008 6:27 am
Patiently he waited, peering into the water as if it would magically turn clear and allow him to see all it held. Fishing was a waiting game when it came to the use of a spear but one he use to excel at. Now he was just hoping he wouldn't miss his chance like he had with all of his other pray. When he felt the churning of water he thrust his spear down feeling it connect with something.
Licking his lips a bit he reached down to pull up the weapon and what it was attached to. The sight of the fish on the end made him sigh in relief. Finally he'd have something to munch on. Leaving the shallows of the water he moved closer to 'his' tree to set about cleaning the fish and getting things ready to cook it.
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Posted: Thu Jul 10, 2008 7:42 am
Hichiro looked between the two Jungle Folk. Not entirely knowing what to say. But he knew that a simple "Thank-You" wouldn't even come close to expressing his gratitude. Unfortunately, it was all he could think of.
"Thank-you both.....so much. It would have taken me at least half an hour to re-trace my steps and find everything. My brothers would have be furious."
He looked down at his juice-stained feet and blushed a little more as he realized that he'd seen this Harpy Eagle before, but he couldn't tell where.
"Neither of you had to help me me, you know.........but I'm very greatful that you did. Oh, and yes. i did see the bird. It hade jungle folk with out wings? INSIDE of it? Wow"
Hichiro couldn't tell that he was rambling on and on, it was a sort of defence mechanism for when he was around anyone he wasn't farmiliar with.
"Oh, here."
Hichiro extended one of his beautiful white wings and flapped it slightly till two feathers fell out. he caught them quickly, but one more fell. He decided he could use it.
"I owe both of you so much. If you need anything just use this feather like a grass whistle. The sound is very high pitched and strange. I think I'm the first to try whistling with a reather so I'll recognize the sound right away."
Hichiro blew across his own feather lightly to demonstrate. A soft, lullaby-like melody began to play as he closed his eyes and focused. This was the song he always played for his youngest brother.
Suddenly remembering why he was playing, Hichiro opened his eyes and blushed darker.
"Sorry.....that was my littlest brother's lullaby.....I guess I got carried away"
((sorry, I know I'm rambling a lot. I didn't entirely do that on purpose XP ))
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Posted: Thu Jul 10, 2008 10:19 am
Time's had changed, he decided. The jungle was different and his part so much darker and dismal. A few times he'd witness his kind, but that was rare nowadays. Before there would be children all over this time of year, but the nesting grounds were ruined and their berry trees with it. It was hard to find the fruit now, while there were some scattered... there still weren't as many. Not many trees or his kind left. They had become a tragic loss for the jungle that had started to be invaded. Yes he also decided that this was an invasion, this wasn't just visiting. These people... things... were destroying his home. Don't think that he wouldn't be malicious enough to try and stop it either. He'd caught a few in snares, and traps. But damn them and their numbers, and surprisingly they knew some cures for poisons.... which wasn't fair at all he soon also decided.
To put it simply Mei wasn't a warm welcomer to these folk, he wasn't warm to anyone anymore... because they were just simply gone. They'd disapear or die. There just weren't enough resources for their kind anymore and they were still slowly declining. It was a sad and aching feeling that he was left with. Simply despondent. This feeling left him empty and lazy, unlike his usually energetically inclined self.
He heard the whistling sound... tht was probably the only thing that motivated him to move at he moment. He was lacking of energy, little food to eat. They specialized with only one fruit from one tree, and sometimes some other fruits. But most were never tried by his kind, because they were never ripe enough to eat and feed so many. But now... there were only a few and Mei had experimented with quite a few.... not that any could replace his destined diet. He was a soaring bird, made for flittering distances against the canopy, made for simple flight and with deft percision to out maneuver enemies. But he wasn't a diving or a hunter, he wasn't built for languid speeds, or for simply hovering. Flying for him exerted a mass amount of energy. For his matabalism to keep up with him.
He didn't need to g far thankfully to perch upon a branch near the whistling dsound. Curiosity was a trait for his kind, btu it didn't mean they weren't cautious. at the same time he smelled fruit, and he immediently remembered his current personal condition. He spotted the tarfruit and plucked one before happily refollowing that whistle. Alas he wasn't alone, he was with three others. A Harpy Eagle, A Yellow bird(As his kind called them), and some other species. He really didn't care too much, but he felt jittery around the Harpy Eagle... he'd heard stories of little ones snatched away by violent ones. He just watched them and nibbled joyously on his small piece of fruit. Of course it wouldn't tide him over. His orange hair shimmered somewhat in the dense light that reached them. The cooling rainforest feel nice against his skin, light and pale. As for his black rimmed green eyes, they watched the trio. While his bright orang, yellow, and blackish brown wings ruffled to keep a warmth surrounding him. He was slightly tall for his kind, who were normally short. But he didn't mind, he liked being a little taller, it felt good.
The yellow bird... he loved his family so much... And here Mei had grown to a family whom bickered and yet missed them when all but one of his flock, usually twenty or so... was left.
It wasn't his nature to simply watch, his kind were infamous for their mouths, twittering songs or such, it was hardly ever when they were quiet, and lately they had been very quiet. Something was wrong.
"Those people aren't people, they are things who kill others." Hespoke softly to the three, giving away his position. "Eventually they will harm us all." He softly landed with an extreme caution in the clearing with them. Keeping a distance but watching his shoulders for the predators that so chose to feed uponhis kind.
"They destroyed our nests. Don't trust such creatures." This was his advise which for him was enough to say to these three, btu at the same time he wanted to speak with them. He hadn't had someone to talk to in so long. Sure there were other jungle folk but.... not many would talk to those who suffered at the edges of the jungle. It was odd for one of the Finches to be this far into the jungle anyhow.
He was wary of the eagle, he was even wary of the nervous yellow one. He should leave before he got appraoched but he didn't move. He couldn't. So instead he brought himself to nibble on his fruit,an oddity for him to eat, and felt a sinking feeling in his stomache. Even if his outside portrayed a strong will filled species.
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Posted: Thu Jul 10, 2008 4:23 pm
Lifting his head he turned it slightly in the direction of the odd noise. It wasn't like those things that came and destroyed his home but it was still unfamiliar. Silently he listened to the tune finding it somewhat pleasant even if it kind of irritated his ears. But that irritation was drawn away to the sizzling popping sound and then the smelling of something burning. With an eek he turned to his fish and quickly tried save it. When it was all said and done he huffed only saving about half.
Oh well he pulled it off the spit and started to eat what he could of it being too hungry to care all that much. Perhaps when he was done he'd go look for the source of the sound, if it was still around. If not it really was no sweat off his back. Perhaps it was just one of the other folk he had seen lingering around doing something. Souls he never really had contact with but stayed nearby just to not feel so alone.
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Posted: Thu Jul 10, 2008 10:11 pm
The three looked over at the newcomer who had spoken. He approached them slightly and Tayo recognized those wings as a Finch's. He was eating a fruit and his whole outward appearance was guarded.
"What do you mean?" he asked calmly, "What have you seen that gives you this idea?"
Tayo wasn't one who liked to live in the edges of the jungle. He didn't know what lay beyond there and preferred to be in the dense foliage where his younger siblings could be safe. Or as safe as he knew. With a foreign threat looming ever closer, he wasn't sure if they were safe anymore.
He looked to his two companions briefly to gauge their reactions. The young Cockatoo whose fruit they'd help retrieve looked very nervous. He wasn't a hunter, that much was certain.
He reminded Tayo of his three younger siblings and their need for protecting. He simply took a few steps and stood in front of him in order to slightly shield him from the newcomer. Again, Tayo's underlying kindness only surfaced in the smallest of gestures. He was too proud to show how caring he could actually be unless he knew the other person well.
But now, his attention was focused again on the Finch. He waited patiently for his answer, perhaps after that fruit in his mouth had been thoroughly chewed and swallowed he would speak again. If he did not, Tayo would have to find his answers elsewhere, and... dare he think, even explore the edges of the jungle to see whether he should think of moving to a deeper part of the jungle for safety measures.
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Posted: Thu Jul 10, 2008 11:19 pm
((Hey guys. Sorry I haven't posted again, yet. I will get to it tomorrow morning, I promise. I just got home and I really need to go to bed. Oh, and yesterday I was gone from 7 A.M. to 11 P.M. -similar to today. Again, sorry. I will definitely post in the morning.))
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Posted: Fri Jul 11, 2008 4:01 am
"What have I seen?... I've seen them steal my brethren, and cut down our nesting trees. I've seen them burning the outskirts and leaving nmost of us without food r shelter. If that's what your asking! Twenty of us... and now ther's one. How am I supposed to feel towards those hideous things!" It was a sudden outburst, an angered one... but that just hid the underlying sorrow that had crated such a long silence in him. It hid the way he wanted to just cry, but crying got people no where.
"Around this time of year... there would be others, but there are only a few of us left. Hundreds of us, and now only a few. The beries would be in bloom... but they aren't because there are no trees to produce the berries to bloom. They cut them down and they take them away. We never see them again." Mei answered with less anger, no time's had changed... he wasn't as strong as the rest who probably would have chirped off to an Eagle before. Now it was just... really sad. But he didn't come here to yell, he really didn't even know why he came, but he might as well warn other's right. They had families somewhere.
"So stay away from them... they'll hurt you."He became eerily silent finnishing his fruit with a hesitant ease. His guarded person remaing tense and alert. He couldn't affor to trust people right now. But he didn't want them to suffer either. See he was a warm person, he just acted tough even if he really was a very small species. "Even the lemurs ran away." There weren't even any lemurs to poke fun at. Not that it was a pasttime but Finches and Femurs got along and often joked and now... they too were disapearing... leaving the edges.Once they had been safe, but then again once he had a mother and father, and brothers. For a moment that sadness reflected in his odd eyes. Fnches were brightly colorful birds, streamlind with dark feathers to accentuate their person. They ate poisonous berries, and this kept predators from harming them. Now that the poisonous berries weren't there, what would happen should the predators find that out? Instant hunt. these things had stripped his kind of almost everything. For the first time... he really felt outcasted.
That saddness hardened hough and he sheilded it from veiw. It was always better to hide it. Because then it couldn't hurt you more then what you let it. Right? Right! He quickly flitted up to get another starfruit to nibble on. One piece would not sustain his flittering body. It was also clear he should keep his distance, from the way the Eagle was so abracive.Which also kind of hurt a bit. Not that he'd admit it. Proud Finch genes.
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