#ofdeathandfear

“Again,” Kotallo instructed. He watched the boy incorporate the moves he’d shown him on the eastern cliffs just outside The Base and nodded with satisfaction. Valrún was a quick study and took to direct commands well. While he wasn’t as comfortable with asking for clarification on things he didn’t quite grasp, he excelled at problem solving in a way he’d not observed in those even twice his age. “Good. Now, this time, use your entire body when you thrust your spear forward. It shouldn’t just be your arms moving. That will strain your back and you’ll tire more quickly.”

This time, when the boy ran through the set, Kotallo grunted with a hint of a smile. “Yes, like that.” Seeing the sweat coating the boy’s brow despite the flakes of snow falling, the Marshal strode over to a nearby boulder. “Rest. You’re doing well, but if you overdo it, you’ll lose momentum.”

“That’s a lot of fancy footwork you got going on there, pal. You teachin’ him to dance or fight?” Erend asked, drawing the attention of both Tenakth warriors. 

Kotallo smirked. “We can’t all rely on swinging a hammer and hoping for the best.”

“‘Ey!” the Oseram complained, but he was quick to smile, too. Trying to play off his reason for coming out here, he rubbed at the back of his neck. “Say, uh, you weren’t thinking of going hunting later, were you, bud?” Erend asked of Kotallo’s pupil. The big man made a face. “Zo’s got some feast going on in there. No meat,” he whined. “I don’t know how she expects us to survive on no meat.”

Rather than answering for him, Kotallo also turned to look to the redheaded boy seated at his side.

@ofdeathandfear​ said: bloody

[Meme]

Nyk shook despite his clothes, hands and hair caked with blood. His own, another’s, who could say? He sat at the water’s edge, steadied a moment only for a shiver to overtake him. 

        ¨   do not be rude to my  faeries  &&                 i assure you  they  will return the grace  .  ¨

Val: "That guy behind you isn't just sleeping, is he?"

Michelle rested a hand on the shoulder of the wolf next to her, humming softly as she kept her eyes on the creature before them. As far as dragons went, it was neither of the intelligent nor particularly large variants. If she was counting the signs correctly, it was one of Fafnir’s get, many generations removed from the first of the line. Still, the line was something worthy of respect, and the pup next to her was wise to be wary.

“We’re just watching for now, Valrun.” She explained, rocking back onto her heels and bracing against her staff as she crouched down. The dragon shuffled along the opposite riverbank, nosing at the mud and occasionally crunching on the mollusks it found there. Valrun’s change was preceded by a strange change in the air and the stretching of nearby shadows. The fur beneath her hands changed to a homespun shirt.

“Is this something V’mer and you are going to hunt later?” Valrun asked. He was no doubt remembering the last time he had been at her house. She had been pulling out all of her materials and supplies and taking stock of her personal and professional inventory. The list she had made up of items to restock ended up being as long as Valrun was tall, something the boy had been amused at, as had her children.

“Perhaps. I haven’t decided if it’s worth the risk to fight or not.”

“What would make it worth the fight?”

“Well,” she said, “ You could always use the scales and sinews in a variety of potions. THey’d be potent but not what I would ideally want. My hope is that it has a specific type of blood. The first of the line, Fafnir, had blood which, if you ingested it, would allow you to understand the language of birds. Now, most of the line no longer grant permanent understanding of birds, but it is still useful, even as temporary as it is.”

Valrun made a soft noise of understanding, eyes still locked on the dragon, which had ambled more fully into the river. Michelle grinned and pulled her hat off, setting it beside her as she fully sat down.

“Settle down, pup. We’ve got a few hours yet to go. Here- this is what you want to watch for.”

“Well, aren’t you an interesting little creature?“