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 Posted: Fri Jun 20, 2008 12:28 pm
"Our hero thought this over quietly and fearfully. he had to retrieve the feather that Thunderbird had told him of, but he would have to do it during the time of Helios, instead of the time of Noctus. Such a thing was almost unheard of!
He and the mus watched, squinting as the massive eagle flew away, leaving the tall tree behind as she went to hunt, leaving the two to plot as she disappeared into the bright distance..."
"Go up?" Crow asked anxiously as she rubbed her paws over her face.
"Yes... But you must come with me, in case we need a distraction, so the Thunderbird will bless our home with his grace and presence..."
"So the two ascended high into the bright, with Fatewynd's eyes hurting and the heat of the sun warming his feathers. It was far different from the soft preening of the moon's light on our feathers. Fatewynd felt a fear that he had not previously known, even when facing the crafty Banethorn... Here, he was exposed below and above and the bright was so brilliant that he had difficulty in navigating. The top of the tree seemed so far away and it took an exuberant amount of effort to reach the nest. And once there, he heard the most appalling peeping and keening. Before him were two large and hungry hatchlings. They were the ugliest hatchlings he had ever seen and their beaks were hooked and their young feathers were black and white, like their mother's."
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Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 9:03 am
"Look for the feather! Remember, it's red like blood and brown like bark!" Fjord whispered loudly to Crow, who nodded her head sharply and began searching around the limb like she was trying to find the fabled feather.
"I'll keep the hatchlings distracted!" "He added as he fluffed his feathers and spread his wings in an aggressive stance. The hungry creatures peered up at fat, hungry eagle chicks. They were, like their mother, larger than any chick he had seen before and were squalling loudly with hunger. Fatewynd contributed to our clan greatly, but up until now he had yet to sire offspring, although he had a mate. He did not know how to care for chicks! Especially eagle chicks! He fussed over them and tried to calm them down, but they continued to keen and peep, while Small Ear scampered between them and searched through the lining of the nest. Fatewynd became increasingly afraid that the hunting mother would return with food for her crying thicks and silently urged the mus to look harder. Just when he was about to give up and flee as fast as he could from the high, open nest, Small ear squeaked soundly and pulled he familiar, barred sentinel feather from the lining. The light brown feather had been painted at one time, i seemed, though the pain was flecked and the feather old."
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Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2008 10:05 am
"Fatewynd swiped the feather from the mus and held the old thing triumphantly in his beak! They had found it! His attention was only snapped backby the cries and nips of the fluffy balls of feathers. They would grow to be frightening creatures that would obviously prey on our kind, as he could certainly see other familiar barred feathers mixed in the lining of the nest.
Of course, the mother would only be more dangerous if she would return to see the hatchlings dead. If he could not escape in time, he would surely die at her talons, for she was much larger than he and he was tired. She would also have the added boost of the death of her fledglings. After debating for a moment, he opted to leave the squalling fluffs as they were. Hopefully the eagle would not notice a single feather amiss.
He waited until the mus clung tight to his feathers again and shot off from the edge of the nest like the Thunderbird's own flashes of light.
As he made his way closer and closer to the Thunderbird's hovel, he was relieved to notice that no shrieks or howls followed him and his luck was holding out.
His next task, however, would require a little more... Ground time." Fjord grinned as his eyes panned over the frightened and awed fledglings before him.
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Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2008 10:13 am
"The wildtype presented the feather proudly to the Thunderbird, whose expression was impossible to read behind the stormy clouds that surrounded his imposing tree."
"You bring the feather of blood and bark, which leaves only the final task!" Fjord mimicked the powerful voice as he loomed over Crow and the fledglings.
"You are to head north, into the cold, and east for a time spanning five days. The snow will fall and the land will be bleak and white. Here is a cavern, near the fangs that slice the sky. A mighty warrior slumbers in said cavern, and he has a stolen an item of great importance! From the base of my tree, he took a plant of green and violet. Return this to me, as a sign of good faith, and your forest shall have rain again."
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Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2008 11:47 am
The small fledgling had been quiet for a long time, but since the bard had actually answered him the last time he opened his beak once more.
"Not s'posed to be on the ground," he peeped, shifting nervously from foot to foot, "Mudbeak gets eated there. Ma says..."
Another round of angry hushing and a n** from one of the older fledglings silenced him before he could enlighten everyone about what his "Ma" had said.
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Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2008 6:11 pm
"And your Ma is absolutely correct." Fjord replied in a grave tone. "Mudbeak met a sad fate there and many sentinels do, that is why you are not supposed to go down... Or up for that matter, too. You see, Fatewynd knew this, so when he arrived t his new destination, he was shaking with fear everyone should have. The ground is not o be taken lightly at all. Our gatherers face this unknown every night that they serve the clan."
Fjord fluffed his feathers and hunched down after sleeking them tight in mock fear.
"So as he watched the entrance of the cavern, he counted his blessings and thought of his mate, for surely his life would end with this."
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Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2008 11:10 pm
"So our dear Fatewynd huddled in the tall, bare trees and watched, just as he had done with Banethorn's hovel. One can never be too careful and he wanted to be sure of all of the inhabitants of the cavern. It was cold, but he persevered." Fjord hunched over and narrowed his eyes, searching over each and every fledgling.
"Nothing came for the first several hours... Not a soul moved, no mouse scampered about, but Small Ear was frightened and squeaked something about horrible smells coming from inside of the cavern. It was the stench of death and decay, or so Fatewynd came to understand.
Whatever was inside would certainly cause them great harm!"
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Posted: Fri Jun 27, 2008 9:45 pm
"After a few cold, hungry hours he saw something move in the mouth of the cavern! A large, lumbering beast moved out into the open, but only after scenting the air The frightening beast was dark with pale streaks on the side and his eyes were pools of black! He snarled and scraped his claws against he earth before moving on from his home.
Now, as before, Fatewynd kept his cool and planned what he would do next. No sentinel should ever rush into a situation without thinking clearly!"
Fjord leaned nearer to the fledglings and narrowed his eyes.
"This predator would take lots of thought. Emberstripe was not as cunning as the clever Banethorn, but he was much, much stronger."
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Posted: Sun Jun 29, 2008 9:30 am
Fjord crouched down and pretended to whisper to Crow again as he and he mus "plotted" their next actions, yet his eyes wandered to the young audience and twinkled mischievously.
"Now, Fatewynd was glad he brought the tail of Banethorn with him, for he considered tricking Emberstripe with it. Not to shabby, don't you think? He untied the tail from his paw the next night and waited for Emberstripe to wake up. He tied the tail to a long, wispy stick and laid it on the ground with his Will, though a good distance from the entrance of the cave. He remained in the safety of a few trees away and Small Ear was left in another tree, where he would distract the large, frightening beast.
When Emberstripe emerged from his cave, he yawned and exposed fierce, sharp fangs. As he closed his maw, Fatewynd moved he tail a little, peaking the lumbering creature's interest.
"Banethorn!?" He called, as he recognized the large, bright orange tail.
"Banethorn!? Wh' you doin' so far from y' hovel?" He lumbered closer and closer to the false tail, which shot into the bushes. The large creature did not notice the silent sentinel flying over and towards his cave.
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Posted: Sun Jun 29, 2008 9:46 am
"It was the most frightening experience Fatewynd ever had or ever will have in the course of his lifetime... No sentinel is meant for the Below. That is a place for things like mus, mice, rabbits... You know, ground dwellers." Fjord explained as his feathers sleeked with mock fear.
"No sentinel is meant for the Ground. No living sentinel is meant for the Below. Yet there was Fatewynd, serving his clan with all his heart and his life. It was darker, without the light of the moon, but he could still see. It reeked of death and bones scattered the floor. Why would something like Emberstripe want a plant to keep in here? It would surely die without the light of the sun! While he sentinel flew slowly in what space was available, he searched with determination and tried to forget and ignore the chills tracing up and down his body. While he was inside, he had no idea just what the mus as up too and how much he owed his life to the little companion.
Emberstripe charged the bushes where he had seen Banethorn disappear. He was growing angry because the fox would not answer him and he grabbed the tail in a furious attempt to bring the fox to him, only to find a stick attached to the other end. He gave an angry snarl of confusion and suddenly felt a sharp sting on his rump."
Crow mimicked throwing a nut at the audience, before shouting a string of mushed together words. "Oi! Y'ydum' silly down! Silly down beast!"
"Emberstripe let out another furious, feral growl and charged at the tree, only to be struck with another nut and have insult after insult hurled after him! He couldn't reach the high up mus and became further enraged as he jumped and snapped, only to recieve another sharp nut between the eyes!"
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Posted: Sun Jun 29, 2008 9:54 am
"While all of this went on, Fatewynd continued his search, which seemed to go on forever... Finally... He found it! The plant looked sad and it's little limbs drooped. The leaves were crinkled and it was in desperate need of water and light. The wildtype grabbed it with his talons and scooped it up before making his way back out of the cavern, just in time to see the massive creature turning from the mus. He was already in the air as Emberstripe came charging and snarling. A clawed paw swiped at him and just barely missed his rear.
The panicked sentinel flew higher and higher until he was safely perched on a middle limb and next to Small Ear...
Fatewynd had the last item!
All that remained was the final journey to the Thunderbird and to his home in Noctua. Both of these took many, many nights, but Fatewynd had never felt more relieved!
When he arrived home to his mate, she hooted with joy and almost immediately after the clan had found he and Small Ear, the rain began to fall...
The End..."
Fjord grinned and bowed low, as did his faithful mus.
"Have fun at the rest of the festival, dears, and to those of you who are about to graduate: congratulations! You are the future of the clan and you are all promising! I look forward to seeing you all in the future! You all were a splendid audience!"
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Posted: Sun Jun 29, 2008 9:56 am
NOTE: Fjord's tale is over, as is the fledgling festival. If anyone would like to further the roleplay with Q&A or just a chat between the little ones and the bard, you are welcome to, but keep in mind that the event is over.
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