|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Fri Dec 12, 2008 6:33 pm
 A lone figure slipped through the bamboo forest, wings tucked close to his body and paws silent on the soft earth. Flauros was lost in his thoughts, and every once in a while, he varied between a soft, muttered growl and a plotting sort of smirk. It could have been more like a grimace.
Either way, he shook himself out of his darker thoughts that were spiraling uselessly at the moment. His senses returned to his surroundings and he checked to make sure that no one had heard him. Good.
Now, for the business of today. There had to be something productive he could do.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Dec 12, 2008 6:49 pm
 Rare for a creature of her calibur, Hunter was at peace today. That was because she was asleep in the shade of a bamboo tree. She looked so innocnet when she slept..her maw in a small smile, her ears gently folded down, wings tenting over her back, tail curled about her. Her ear flicked as she heard paw-pads on the dirt nearby. Her eye peeled open, its red glare flashing in the light. She growled as she stood up, her spiked collar glinting brightly as she stared at the adolescent. She seemed to be sizing him up, wings ruffling. She licked her long teeth, as if considering his worth to her. She sniffed and lowered her head slightly, eyes staring up at him as she showed off her fangs. She decided he was worth a good fight.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2008 2:25 am
Flauros tensed almost unnoticeably, narrowed eyes flicking over towards the source of sudden movement. He showed no fear, but his mind was swiftly calculating all the possible risks and results of connection with this stranger. Her appearance was threatening by nature, and her posture seemed not to suggest otherwise.
The winged male wasn't looking for a fight today...or any day if he could help it. He preferred to win arguments with the skill of his mind, not of his claws. Not that he was helpless either. He'd just prefer not to get his paws dirty if he could talk someone else into doing it for him.
First step was to cautiously find out just what sort of Helix this was. Who knew? Perhaps she could be a useful ally for his cause.
'Greetings,' he offered with a smooth, confident voice and a polite smile. His wings were folded and tucked close to his back in the appearance of relaxation. 'I pray the fates fair as well for a fellow winged Helix as they have for myself.'
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2008 2:54 am
When he did not react to her imposing threats, Hunter paused. She seemed confused...no helix had ever ignored her menacing stares and tried to strike idle conversation. She snorted and parted her maw slightly, standing up.
"The fates never fare well for Hunter. Nor do they fair well for anyone who meets Hunter." She took a step forwards, towards him, and snarled. But she was curious about him...he was like her in a way. He had wings and he was all alone too. She dropped her snarl for a moment to smell him, walking close and flattening her ears.
She gave a loud bark and flared her wings. She wasn't hungry and if he left her alone, she wouldn't fight. "GO!" she shouted. "Get away!"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2008 3:33 am
Wonderful. By the way she spoke and acted, the female was either stupid or crazy. Not exactly the best candidate for a plotting partner. Not unless he wanted to discuss the best way to eviscerate small animals.
Definitely not a topic high on his list of priorities.
Still, perhaps the female could be used for something afterall. Never throw away resources, even if you have no use for them at the current moment. Never knew when you might need a particular tool in the future.
Of course, none of his musings showed on his face as usual and he kept his expression pleasant without looking like a fool. He also held his ground, knowing that to back down now would only invite attack. He merely held his position while remaining non-threatening.
'How unfortunate. I'm sorry to hear that. However, the fates and I have never exactly been the closest of friends.' He allowed himself a slight smile at this. 'Too bad there isn't anything we can do to change that, isn't there? Wouldn't that be something?'
'Then again,' he continued, 'the fates are much like the gods and goddesses, right? And they walk here among us, little different than any other Helix. Simply flesh and blood like the rest, right? Perhaps there's more we can do about our situations than we're led to believe. Interesting, no?' He tilted his head at the odd female for a moment, his long pendant swaying a bit at the movement.
'But, if you're not interested, I won't bother you. You don't seem like the type to worry about musings about the deities and their meddling. I'm sure things will just...turn out alright on their own. My apologies for disturbing you today.' With a slow nod, he prepared to leave, taking his time in doing so.
He'd set out the bait...now, just to wait and see if she went for it.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2008 3:46 am
She'd listened intently but his speech baffled her clockwork mind. She stepped a little closer, still sniffing. She had no idea what he was saying, but he made her feel incredibly stupid. She was smart, but she was absolutly unpredicatble. No-one had held her from attacking this long.
She took another step and relaxed her joints a little bit. "Hunter hates the gods." she said, holding her stare..but it was a stare simply because she couldn't remove her eyes from him. He was too interesting. She blinked at him and tilted her head again. "You want rid of the gods?" she asked.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2008 4:19 am
Jackpot.
Normally, Flauros wouldn't have been even this blunt, but he sensed he needed to be straight and to the point with this one. He needed to drop all of his normal dancing around the bush if he was going to get through to her.
So, with a smile, he faced her and nodded. 'That's the basic gist of things. They act like they're so much better than the rest of us...telling us all what to do...ask if they don't even have to follow their own stupid rules.'
Still smiling, he nodded slightly to the female. 'What if we could change that? Who says that we're not just as good as they are? Maybe it's their fault...all the bad things that happen to us. If they're as powerful as they pretend to be, then who says that they're not the ones tormenting us just for their own fun?'
Play to your audience's interests...
And Hunter's interests? Likely violence and killing things.
Frowning now, Flauros turned a glare towards the bamboo forest. 'I don't intend to just let them get away with that. I say, we make them pay. Tear them down from their high places and take them for ourselves!'
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2008 4:35 am
Hunter's wings snapped open and her tail began to wag halfway through that speech. She licked her maw again. This helix would not be her dinner though.
"Hunter know goddess stupid. Hunter eated one pup and mummy said the goddess would punish hunter." she crowded him, pushing her vile smelling maw into his neck and snorting into his ear, licking his cheek. Her tail wagged, kicking up snow dust.
Her tongue lawled from her maw and she sat, flapping her wings once and then. "Thye is all weak. The afriad of Hunter." she boasted. He tummy suddenly rumbled. "Time to kill gods? Hunter hungry."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2008 5:13 am
Making a private, mental note to bathe at least a dozen times in the next river he came across, Flauros chuckled quietly. 'Indeed, they are fools and cowards. We shall take care of them soon, but not just yet. We'll have to satiate our hunger with other prey for now.'
He glanced around, then lowered his voice as if others might be around listening. 'We know of the goddess here...but I believe there are more...a lot more. And we need to know how many and where they are first. Otherwise, we may fail.'
He needed to make sure she wouldn't let word out about his plan either, what little she knew. True, few would probably take the word of this Helix seriously at all...but why risk it? He had to make sure that she'd keep this a secret. 'They are cowards and if they know what we're planning, then they'll use their nasty god tricks to stop us. They can't know. When the time is right, we'll take them by surprise! They'll never have time to fight back or use their dirty tricks! We'll tear them down and take the glory for ourselves!'
He sensed he was losing focus now, leaning more towards his own goals that wouldn't interest Hunter as much. So he turned back to her with a smile. 'We wait a while and plan...then when the time is right...we strike. Just like taking down a delicious deer.'
With an evil grin, he tilted his head at the other. 'Have you ever wondered what the gods taste like?'
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2008 4:25 pm
Hunter snorted once more and nodded. "Hunter no tell anyone because no-one sticks around to listen to Hunter." She yawned as he spoke, her head bobbing when he began to ramble. She pouted until he spoke of the deer. her maw dripped and she nuzzled him once more. "Me Hunter." she muttered. "And no, hunter thinks of sweeter meats. Like pups."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2008 7:54 pm
Disgusting.
Ah well, she wasn't after Flauros in any case, so what did he care?
Chuckling softly, he gave a Helix version of a shrug. 'To each their own. Everyone has different tastes. Personally, it's been a while since I've tasted the sweet venison of a springling...but that's another matter.' With a smile, he nodded to Hunter for their official introduction. 'I'm Flauros, for future reference. I have a feeling we'll work well together for our goals.'
For Flauros, there were only three categories for other Helixes: allies, tools, and enemies. He held no belief in the concept of friends and he saw no need for them. The best one could hope for with Flauros was to be considered an ally.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2008 8:02 pm
She sat and began to itch the collar on her neck with her hind foot, smiling and licking her maw. "Flauros...Hunter remember." she nodded. "You come to Hunter's cave!?" she smiled widely, looking awfully feral. She chuckled. "No-one bug us there!"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2008 8:18 pm
'You have a cave? Nearby?' Flauros pondered this new information, seemingly unwaived by Hunter's wild look. A private meeting place would be quite useful. 'Sure, why not? Sounds like a good place to discuss things,' he nodded finally. 'Did you want to go now, or did you just mean any other time?'
He paused to stretch a bit, shaking out the stiffness in his wings before folding them quietly once more against his back. His wings weren't the normal feathery type that appeared on most Helixes in the East, or seemed to. Which they had feathers, they had a bony, rigid outlining structure as well; similar in fact to Hunter's. He was quite proud of his wings...they were beautiful, but set him apart from the other feathery winged Helixes. He wasn't 'different' though...he was 'special.'
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2008 8:25 pm
Hunter streched her own wings as well and gave a wide yawn. She shook herself off and nodded. "Now good. You know where it is that way." She headed into the bushes, the sun dappling her fur.
She opened her wing and snapped them a few times before taking off. She rose over the tree tops, turning to wait for him a few times, as she lead the way. Her cave was in the face of a cliff on the edge of the bamboo forest. She landed gracefully. It smelt like death and had a dripping ceiling. A pile of helix and other animal fur was in the corner and a stack of bones was at the entrance. She walked in and went to a small pool where a stalagtite dripped into. She drank from it a moment, then picked up the body of a dead rabbit, dropping it at his feet. "Eat." she said, sitting on her bed of furs.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2008 9:14 pm
'Makes sense,' Flauros agreed, padding after her into the forest. He waited while she took off, then flared his own wings. Taking a running start, he leapt, rebounded off a couple strong stalks of bamboo, then used the cushion of air under his wings to soar up to meet Hunter in the sky.
The flight was short and it shouldn't be hard to find the cave again in the future. Even if Hunter really could use a few tips on decorating...
He nodded politely at the 'gift', replying, 'Thank you.' The meat, like most everything else in here, carried with it a near-rotted smell...but as far as he could tell, it was merely a transferred scent. The meat itself should still be alright and at least wouldn't make him sick. Still...he'd only have a bit to be polite.
He took a few small bites, then began cleaning his muzzle and pushed the remaining rabbit towards Hunter. 'Thank you for sharing. I'm sure you're hungry as well?'
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
