It takes little skill to attack a stunned opponent but Awenasa has no compunctions. In the wild struggle of nature, the weak suffer and the strong survivie, here is no room for niceties. This beast chose to attack and she chose to defend herself, nothing could be more natural. What wolf would pass up the young or the old? And what deer, chased by a lion, would not avail itself of any trick to escape?
Awenasa's fists rain down on he beast, an unrelenting torrent of force. She can feel the body break under her attack, bones snapping, muscles tearing. Soon she feels like a child beating a gourd into paste. It squeals in pain, soon reduced to a unhealthy wheezing, smashed to the ground.
"And leave you alone? Not likely!" Thak shouts over the tumult. He steps around the heavily injured monster and lays a hand on Awenasa's shoulder. She feels a pulse of soothing magic enter her, healing some of the bloody ruin of her chest.
Then the creature does something Awenasa did not expect. Battered, pummeled and bleeding it suddenly spun, the teeth facing downward. It started to spin, much as it had on her chest. In the blink of an eye it started sinking into the loose gravel and sand of the riverside, vanishing underground as quick as a gopher.
Then it is gone, somewhere underground.
Thak looks very nervous at the soil. "Um, now what?" The cleric starts to scramble toward one of the boulders near at hand.
Awenasa is surprisingly touched by Thak's response to her trying to get him to safety. Then he channels healing energy into her body and her gaping wound stops bleeding profusely.
She prepares to finish off the creature but is thwarted when it burrows into the ground where she cannot follow. She sags a bit while trying to keep her feet now that the adrenaline will begin to wear off.
Um, now what?"
"You get book and gear. I get Perey. Then we leave its hunting ground. Will rest when get further away." She sees Thak's doubt and adds, "We hurt it lots. It nurse wounds and hunt another day. We probably safe unless stay."
The Shoanti moves towards the water's edge and calls out, "Perey!"
Awenasa finds Perey walking out of the stream, soaked to the bone including his boots. Unsurprisingly the bard looks quite displeased with things as he struggles to the bank. To Awenasa’s surprise however, his countenance doesn’t change when she relates the battle and their victory. Instead, his frown seems to deepen.
”Oh, so you and Thak did all the brave, heroic things while I had to hide in the water like a child.” he finally says, struggling onto dry land, water sluicing off of him. He shivers in the thin mountain air. ”Just the usual, I guess. Perey can’t be trusted with anything too dangerous. You are just like the quah, it’s never enough, no matter what I do. Even heading to…wherever this is!” He shouts, waving a hand at the trees, the river, the surrounding snow-clad peaks. ’You should have just left me at the Halls. Or better yes, back at the Mordant Spire. Maybe then I wouldn’t be holding you back.”
Without waiting for a reply he stomps off, leaving very wet footprints as he goes.
In one sense he is correct. Only being half-Shoanti Perey never became a full adult in the quah, as Awenasa did. Never underwent a ritualistic adulthood ceremony, always left out of the true quah membership. Very different then Awenasa whose life always stood at the center of social and religious life (not always to her benefit).
Still, he did grow up among the Shonati and their ways. How would Awenasa have viewed being told to run and hide in danger? To cower in a stream while others did the fighting and bleeding?
Awenasa's mouth drops as Perey rants at her. Her mind spins, many different thoughts spinning around in turmoil. On one hand, she totally gets it because she would be upset too if the tables were turned. But at the same time, fighting monsters was not why Perey had been sent with her as help.
She follows Perey like she would have followed Makayda during a disagreement. "How are you holding me back?", she demands in Shoanti. "Dawnlight sent you with me to help me in the world of lowlanders and that is exactly what you've done!"
Even injured, she quickly catches up to her friend. She grabs his shoulder and spins him. "Look at my chest. Look at what that thing did to me. I couldn't contemplate that happening to you. It shouldn't happen to you. That's why I said what I said. The only thing that terrifies me is losing those I care about. You are a brother whether you think you are or not and I don't want you to wind up like Makayda!" By the time she finished her sentence she was practically shouting.
She rakes a hand over her face as if trying to calm herself. "But that being said, if I was in your shoes then I would also be upset. So...what can I do to show you that you have my trust and that I can't do this without you?"
Awenasa puts her hands on Perey's shoulders to make him look her in the eye. "This is something else to think about. You don't have to do what I say. You know what you are capable of, not me. I told Thak to run too but he ignored me." She frowns slightly, "I'll probably still get after him for not doing what I said...but I also need to thank him for helping to keep my insides on the inside."
"Do or say whatever you need to but we need to keep moving. I don't want that thing deciding it's healthy enough to try again."
Perey seems surprised when Awenasa refused to let him walk away. His face, still angry, does soften a bit when he sees Awenasa hobbling over with her injuries. The smaller man at least pauses and lets Awenasa say her piece.
”I am not Makayda. Besides, she died a hero and will be honored forever among the quah. They will be writing stories about both of you for generations. That…” The anger seemed to drain from him, leaving something cool and unpleasant behind.
”What I want, you cannot give me, Awenasa. I would love to be your brother, to be a full Shoanti warrior. But that can never be, and we both know that. It is as it is. Now, like you said, let’s get moving. Nothing can change that either.” Perey shrugs off her hand and goes over to the packs.
Thak carefully tries to draw him out, but the bard pointedly ignores him, silently getting his luggage ready/
"You are right, Makayda will be honoured." Awenasa snorts derisively, "But me? I'm a failure, a coward, and a deserter. There will be no honour for me and if there are any stories they will be cautionary ones to scare youngsters."
She sighs sadly when Perey says she can't give him what he needs. "I wish you saw yourself the way I see you, Perey. We may not have started seeing eye to eye but my opinion has definitely changed during our travels."
When Perey physically throws off her hands, she doesn't push it further even though she wants to grab him again and shake sense into him. "I'm sorry if you feel like I've been coddling you. I saw it as protecting but I guess I was wrong."
Awenasa digs in her pack for her extra clothes and changes out her shirt that has been shredded. "Once everyone is ready, we'll go."
They head higher up into the mountains, following what Awenasa hopes is the way Asny’s student went, instead of the stranger’s trail. She has still seen no sign of her quarry but there is only one real way to his last known location, and so she leads them. It is not a pleasant climb. It is only partially the terrain. The way is steep and full of loose gravel, threading between isolated pine trees, rock fields and boulder strewn slopes. Worse though, are her companions. Thank says little, and Perey even less, her friend seeming to prefer to march on in icy silence. It is quite at odds with their usual camaraderie and it is with some relief that Awenasa watches the sun dip below the peaks.
Night comes fast in the high places, and the thin air chills even quicker. From long experience Awenasa knows they will need some sort of shelter tonight, even if it is just a well placed stone or two to keep out the alpine breezes. Before the Shoanti can choose though, she sees something...unexpected.
Awenasa and her friends on the edge of a steep slope, a peak to one side and a deep mountain valley on the other. Far down in the gorge, past hundreds of feet of cliff and rock winds a small stream, a dark ribbon in the twilight. But Awenasa only has eyes for something on the next rise ahead.
A number of campfires burning bright and what seems to be a small collection of tents circled around them. Awenasa surveys the scene and can instantly tell one thing. These strangers, whoever they are, are not people of the high places. For one thing their fires are too large, too hungry and too exposed. It is as if they want to be seen, burning like a festival. Second, their tents are white, far too obvious even in the gloom.
Lastly, and most damningly, they have chosen a horrible spot to make camp. To the novice, it may have seemed good. A semi-isolated outcrop on the trail, flat and hard, with a few trees. It was however, in a natural wind corridor, and would funnel a chilly breeze all night long. Worse, unless her eyes cheated her, there were ways to approach up the slope, where no watcher could see.
No Shoanti would even consider such a location.
Still, whoever they were, they were here in numbers. Awenasa guessed at least forty people ahead, maybe fifty. Clearly they were not alone in these mountains.
The physical exertion is comforting to Awenasa which doesn't surprise her. What does surprise her is how much it bothers her that Perey insists on remaining in icy silence. She never thought she would miss the conversation.
As soon as the sun disappears from view, Awenasa shivers and she begins to look for a good place to spend the night.
It takes a lot to shock or surprise the Shoanti but the moment the camp comes into view, that is precisely what she feels. Where did they come from? She knows she hadn't been following anyone's trail. In fact, she had purposefully not followed the strangers' trail. And who were they? Why would such a company be out here when they were obviously inexperienced in nature? Did they not realize that they could actually die out here if they didn't know what they were doing?
If alone, Awenasa knows exactly what she would do. She would avoid the camp and find an appropriate place to camp. However, even though they were traveling in silence, she is not alone. Keeping her voice low, she relays her findings to Thak and Perey. Then she asks, "Do we avoid or see who they are?"
All three are hunched slightly behind a boulder, hiding at least somewhat from whoever may or may not be watching from the camp. Awenasa knows from experience though that campfires often blind the users more then outsiders.
Whatever the personal issues going on, they are held in truce for the moment as both Perey and Thak speak.
"I don't think we can ignore them." Thak says, stating the obvious, 'For one thing, they are sitting directly on our path. Second, what if they have something to do with our mission?"
"What if they already have this student?" Perey says flatly, "Dead or alive, both would be a problem."
Awenasa knows that both Thak and Perey speak truth and that as much as she would like to, they can't ignore the obstacle in their way.
"So we need to approach. Maybe I take closer look first? Or you two go, I take closer look, then join? I want to know more before join camp.". The Shoanti states the obvious, "You better with strangers than me."
Perey and Thak both look surprised as Awensa's words and Thak says, "I didn't think of talking to them, at least not right away. I assume we would spy on them a bit."
Perey nods but adds, "Although I suppose Awenasa is right. For all we know, these are the proper authorities and Asny is the one acting out of line. They might be after the student but maybe for good reasons?"
Both seem to think it would be best if Awenasa gathered some information first. Perey nods at this and then says, "This should help." He mutters some magical sing-song word under his breath, barely audible over the night breeze off the peaks. Awenasa feels a strangely wet sensation creep over her body, like someone pouring a thick liquid over her skin.
When it finishes she is astonished to find her skin and clothes are...transformed. Somehow they magically take on the color of the landscape itself. Reddish rocks, dark green bushes, even the twinkling of the stars themselves.
Thak grins and says, "Just like a Vudran change-lizard!" Awenasa has no idea what this is but the smaller man goes on, 'While you are gone, I have a spell that will tell us the weather tomorrow. I thought that might be useful."
As Awenasa is transformed by Perey's unique abilities, she turns her arms this way and that before saying, "Amazing." How was it that the quah never knew that Perey could do such things? Raids would go so much smoother. "Thanks. This definitely help."
Between Perey's magic, the dark, and Awenasa's agility she practically disappears as she moves towards the camp. Not that he could see but Awenasa nods at Thak's plan. She adds, "Good."
Awenasa moves through the landscape as if she is one with nature. Her own light footsteps along with Perey making her nearly invisible allows her to get close to the camp and find out who was so inexperienced with making camp. She purposefully stayed away from the too-large campfires as to not wreck her night vision as she crept close to gather information.
Aweansa was a shadow, less than a shadow. She melded with the surroundings, vanishing entirely among the stones and brush. Only her heartbeat would have given her away. She carefully left the simple game trail her friends had been following and moved into the more wild terrain. Awenasa was so stealthy twice she startled night animals that froze at this unseen intrusion. The only flaw the Shoanti noticed was that if she moved too quickly, the spell seemed to blur and her magical camouflage flattered slightly. Still, it was amazing how hidden she was.
Keeping her eyes averted from the biggest fires, she circled close, doing her best to see and overhear.
The camp was rowdy and unkempt, at least by Awenasa’s standards. The tents were laid out in slip-shod random fashion, with clearly no attempt to standardize things or achieve a regular pattern. Men and women sat near fires, playing cards and dice. They made no attempt to lower their voices, clearly not interested in stealth. A few were still eating and Awenasa caught the scent of roasted meat and vegetables in the air. Her own stomach grumbled. Weapons and gear were stacked close at hand, looking poorly kept but functional.
Awenasa counted forty people, all dressed like the mangled corpse she found by the river. All natives of this planet, roughly the same age. They seemed known to each other and on fairly friendly terms. Despite clearly not being the best, they did have the presence of mind to have pairs patrolling the perimeter, past the fires.
Awenasa snuck in to hear them talk.
”I hate the mountains.” One of them groused, wrapping a long coat around him. ’It’s so cold.”
”Could be worse.” The other said, a slightly older woman with a scar, ”Could be snowing. Still can this time of year, up this high.” She sniffed the air.
The other man spit on the ground, ”If the Captain has his way, we’ll be up until next winter. Maybe I should build a house. Oh wait, I can’t since we are just marching in circles.”
The woman shrugged, ’Who knows?”
Awenasa moves like a ghost around the camp. Since they were all dressed alike they were probably some sort of military group but their training was almost non-existent. Plus they had left a fallen comrade by the water. They didn't even try to bury him. If there is no discipline or consideration for each other, what were they doing? Just playing dress-up and pretending? Shoanti warriors would be ashamed of such behaviour.
Captain? There was someone actually in charge? Awenasa takes another look around the camp to try to figure out where the Captain's tent is.
Awenasa wants to hear from the Captain themself. The leader often has the best information. Annoyingly though, no tent seems bigger then the others and their location in the center of the camp makes them difficult targets. The Shoanti decides to not risk discovery on a chance. Instead she circle the camp once, listening to more chatter.
She hears plenty.
It appears that the group are from some town in neighboring lowlands and this is what passes for the local militia (although Awenasa also got the sense that many acted as little more then bandits sometimes. Clearly the law was not held very sacred). What was more interesting is, no one in the group seemed to know what they were doing. They had been roaming the mountains for over a week with no clear goal, at least that these people knew. Only the still-unseen Captain seemed to have reason and they had not shared them with the group.
The more Awenasa learns as she stalks the camp, the more she is convinced that they won't gain anything from making their presence known. She did find it curious that none of the recruits knew why they were wandering in the mountains but she wasn't curious enough to chance them being detained by over-eager militia.
She makes her way back to Perey and Thak to share what she had learned. She nearly gives them both a heart attack as she seemingly appears out of nowhere. She actually grins at Perey, "Whatever you did to me works amazingly well. You should share that with the quah when we get back."
"Joining camp not benefit us. About forty inexperienced soldiers and not know why they out here. No sign of Captain. They one who would know. But they dressed like dead body by water. They not seem to care one of them dead or try to kill what killed him." She paused before adding, "But do have hot food. If you think good reason to approach." She shrugs, "I prefer make own camp but you share thoughts."
Awenasa is pleased to see that her joke about hot food makes Thak laugh and even Perey smiles.
Thak adds, "I won't pretend I'm not tempted. I tried one of Asnsy's 'rations',The little man holds up one of the wrapped cakes that filled the box Awenasa was given this morning. It is partially open, showing a small brick of compressed...something. Thak makes a face, "IT tastes like someone preserved uncooked oatmeal in candlewax. It's food...but only barely."
Still both of Awenasa's friends grow more serious when she relays all she has learned. Perey speaks first, "So we have no idea what they are doing out here. It could be for something entirely unrelated. Still, it seems that they aren't the law, or whatever passes for it."
Thak agrees adding, "Probably best to avoid them for now, assuming we can. I say we keep our own camp and keep ourselves hidden for now. "
Awenasa is glad that they are all on the same page. Her nose wrinkles a bit in disgust with Thak's assessment of their food supply. "If we not so close to that camp, I make fire and maybe find better food. But not want to risk our fire be seen."
Even with the restrictions of protecting against detection by the others, Awenasa is able to find a good place to camp where she is fairly certain they will remain undetected.
Awenasa and her two friends hunker down int he lee of some large boulders. A few stunted trees and some brush provide a suitable windbreak against night chills, as well as any prying eyes. even better, with only a bit of leaning, they can keep an eye on the distant firelight camp of the others. They should, hopefully, not be surprised tonight.
It is a cold camp however, they cannot risk fire or smoke. Still, Awenasa is hardened to the travails of wild and some blankets wrapped tightly keeps out the worst of the cold and there is, at least, no dampness. The night air is cool and dry. This is confirmed when Thank mentions his weather spell predicts fine weather tomorrow.
While Perey dozes near a rock, Awenasa finally questions Thak about the book. Her friend is excited and quickly opens the book and shows Awenasa. It is just random symbols to the Shoanti, as it was before.
"They made a mistake, in assuming it was a language." T hak says quickly, "It isn't. It is a code. I have seen something like it before, among the Peerless Watchers of Orsion." This means nothing to Awenasa but Thak hurries on, "It is a sort of mathematical code, messages hidden in the numbers and symbols. It's very complex, far more then anything I have seen before, but I have deciphered some of it."
For the first time he frowns however, "Most of it in nonsense however. Just ramblings of poetry and random insults tot he reader. Almost deliberate nonsense, if that makes sense? Chaff to hide any grain. But a few parts make sense."
He flips to a page and points at a paragraph, seemingly like all the others. "This part here makes promises of great power to whoever uses the book correctly, and 'bargains with the spirit within'. Not sure what that means but the theme of the book being very powerful, if dangerous, is said throughout."
Awenasa tries to follow Thak's train of thought. "Mathematical code. Like one you know but different. Numbers and symbols used to write things?" Her brow furrows, "Deliberate nonsense? Mean to confuse or distract who translates code."
At his last revelation Awenasa practically rolls her eyes. "Power. That why Asny wants book. That why they want translate. And spirit. That why Asny says no open real book. If book contain spirit and open book releases it, she no want us to bargain with it and gain power she wants."
"If study book more, can you know more? Like what kind of spirit or what kind of power?" If it was her world, Awenasa would want to know so she could decide whether to actually give the book back to Asny. However it is not her world and what she needs for her world is the information that Asny has for finding Eivind. Regardless of what Thak can decipher, she knows she has to find the book and return it to Asny unopened.
She gives Thak a sobering look. "What you find in book, you can't tell Asny. If she knows you can translate, she may keep you. Force you to stay until you tell her how to get power."
"Now you sleep. I keep watch. I wake Perey in while then I get sleep."
Thak shrugs, 'I'll do my best. There is a lot of insults and gobbledygook to wade through. Will need some time."
The night passes slowly but peacefully enough. All is quiet and calm through Awenasa's watch and she finds herself relaxing more then she expected. It just feels so much like home, event he same stars arcing gracefully overhead. A few times she hears a scuffling animal or two but nothing more serious then a curious fox, investigating these strange trespassers.
During her rest however, she has a strange dream. Awenasa is looking desperately for something in a shadowy place. What it is, the Shoanti can't quite recall but it is important, very important. It is somewhere ahead, just out of sight. She tries to run but the harder she tries, the slower she goes, legs sinking into the earth. Awenasa strains but she just sinks deeper until she is doing little more then crawling, her destination sliding ever more out of reach. She needs it so badly....
Then there is a light around her, a comforting light. It seems to suggest power and aid, a way to escape the clinging mud. All she needed to do was ask, and her wishes might be granted.
She wakes to the morning sun, feeling a lingering sense of loss. Strange dreams, indeed.
Beyond the stranger's camp is still visible, with only a bit of movement around the tents. Clearly they are in no hurry to seize the day.
Her strange dream causes Awenasa to feel a bit disoriented when she wakes. She looks around to remind herself of where she is before contemplating her dream.
She wonders what the something was that she was searching for. Throughout her whole journey she had been tracking someone, not something. And even though she has traveled further than everyone back home, she feels she hasn't gotten closer to Eivind. He always seemed just out of reach. Or was he the power and aid? Not that she would ever consider him comforting.
What she did find challenging is the thought that she needs to ask for help to make her wishes come true. Although this whole journey is to find Eivind to ask him for help to save her people which is all she wishes for. But again, she can't think of him as a comforting light. Powerful thunderstorm maybe but not a comforting light.
She recognizes that trying to figure out her dream is distracting and she doesn't like the feeling of loss that she's left with. So she begins to pack up camp.
Once Thak and Perey are also packed and ready to go she says, "It should be easy to avoid them. They not breaking camp soon."
It is tedious work to go around the encampment, which (of course) lays on the easiest track. Awenasa and her friends can go through rough country easier then a large group but it is still difficult. They are forced to descend deep into the steep gorge, taking care to avoid sliding down to meet the river below. Being below the outsiders means they have little chance of being spotted, but it means struggling among rough boulders, gravel slopes and thickets of tough bushes.
Worse, when they finally manage to get around the outsiders, the camp is starting to break up and move. Right along the same trail Awenasa hopes to take. This leaves Awenasa three options.
First, keep directly on the student's probably trail at a fast enough pace to outrun the militia group directly behind.
Second, try to parallel the trail and stay in rougher country.
Third, Give up and try something else entirely.
Awenasa feels like the spirits are not with her, or at least distant on this far away world. Their path is made more difficult because of a group of directionless militia and now, just as they are about to make their way around them, they finally get their act together to travel in the same direction. If she can't get ahead of them, they'll decimate any trail that she may find. Again, making her work that more difficult.
She quickly contemplates their options as she considers their route. Giving up is never really an option for the Shoanti, no matter how difficult things appear. If it was just her then she would attempt the more difficult terrain, but she is not alone. She looks at Perey and Thak, noting the ragged breathing and rubbing of skin to ease discomfort. She is not convinced that they would survive hiking off-trail.
Keeping her voice low she says, "We need to hurry. They break camp. We need to stay ahead. They slow, we fast. Can you go faster? Just for small time?"
Whatever problems Perey or Thak might have with Awenasa, it isn't about working hard. Both of her friends looked daunted but nod firmly when she proposes her plan of staying ahead. The cinch their packs, tighten their boots and grit their teeth.
It is a stressful day. While the militia group is not particularly fast, it's constant presence behind them is a never ending source of danger and concern for all three. It is bad enough that the path grows steeper and rockier as they go, sometimes resorting to nearly crawling up gravel scree slopes. They pass the tree line sometimes around noon, and the air becomes noticeably thinner even by this place's standards. But knowing they cannot slow too much or risk being seen adds tension that wears on all of them, even hardy Awenasa.
A long day.
Still when dusk is nearly falling, Awenasa realizes they are in the valley where the student was last spotted. Asny's directions are, at least, easy to follow. It's a fairly flat meadow nestled among the towering peaks on all sides. A number of small narrow slot canyons run away from it, snaking up to the truly alpine regions. The air smells fresh and clean, yet Aweansa smells moisture in it. Rain is coming, or snow if they are unlikely.
Awenasa is exhausted by the time they reach the meadow. More than that, she is extremely proud of Perey and Thak. They bent but they did not break. Strength and grit are definitely not just found in warriors.
As had been her habit for the day, Awenasa looks over her shoulder looking for the militia. She is fairly certain that they had been far enough ahead that they wouldn't make it to their location to make camp. Their inexperience meant it would be extremely dangerous for them to continue to hike in the dark. If their captain had any sense, they would need to set up camp elsewhere.
"We need make camp. Dangerous to keep moving in dark. Think far enough before militia they not get here." Awenasa begins looking for a sheltered, safe, and hopefully hidden place for them to set up their camp.
Finding what she thinks is an excellent place to camp, she leaves Perey and Thak to set up their camp while she begins to look for any sign of the student. She plans to search again in the morning when the light is better but just in case she's wrong and the militia does make it this far, she needs to find what she can in case they destroy any sign she may have found.
Perey and Thak make camp on the edge of the meadow, piling grass to make softer places to rest. They rub their feet and sigh from weariness. Awenasa would give much to join them but she can't. The risk is too high that sign might be found, sign that could be lost if the militia blundered in. With so many possible canyons leading out, it could take days to find the student. Days she did not have, doubly so with these strangers blundering around. She had to assume the worst, that they would follow up the trail.
So in the twilight, Awenasa left her friends and looked for sign. She moved quickly over the grassy meadow, threading between the many towering rocks. A few small springs and streams bubbled here, providing somthing like a upland bog. Here the Shoanti looked hardest for surely water would draw the student. Even he needed to drink?
Just as the stars were starting to come out, she found it. Clear signs of a hasty, one man camp. It was worn by wind and weather, but that only confirmed it. It matched up with Asnsy's guesses. Her student had stopped here. Her feeling of triumph lasted only a moment because then she saw movement.
Among the high stones, some taller then her, shapes were moving. Not humanoid shapes but long, low...canine ones. They moved easily through the growing shadows, soundless over the thin grass. It was hard to tell how many, but at least four.
At first she was not overly afraid. Wolves did not hunt humans unless utterly desperate and even a whole pack would have trouble taking her down. More then most animals, wolves knew when to retreat. But something about these beasts bothered her. How they moved....
Eyes glinted int he dark. Not eyes reflecting light but glowing eyes. These were no normal wolves....
One loped out of the shadow, directly into the dim dusk. It was of wolf-shape, but no wolf. It was made out of metal, with gears and wheels. Sharp teeth made of razored iron shone in a spring-loaded mouth. Red eyes glowed like embers, and there was a deep ticking noise echoing from the strong chest.
A machine wolf. It turned toward her and let out a mechanical howl that made her hair stand on end. From the unseen shadows other howls joined it.
Never in Awenasa's wildest dreams did she ever think she would be faced with what she saw. A machine?!? How is it accomplished? Magic? Mechanical? Was it sentient or being controlled?
One thing is certain, this creature was not birthed. It had to be created which means there is a creator. Was this creator watching her now?
When numerous howls surround her, she knows that she could be in real trouble. She takes a chance and speaks to the wolf in hopes that either it understands her or it's listening master does.
She keeps her voice low and steady, "I look for one called Harrod. He camp here. I not know land your territory. I sorry for trespassing and ask for mercy."
To many lowlanders the Shoanti are the image of brutish warriors who prefer to kill over talking. It would have surprised them to see Awenasa resort to words with a mechanical beast but to her, it made sense. Why fight if one could avoid it? In this strange land, could one be sure of anything?
Alas, it seemed diplomacy was not with her today.
The machine-wolf's howl died at her words, cutting off like a lowlander music box. Then it tilted it's head toward her...and charged directly.
Awenasa is quick but the machine beast is even faster, metal claws digging into the ground with a odd metallic sound. It bounds through the shadows with blurring speed, eyes fixed on her.
Out of the corner of her eye, she sees others moving in among the stone.
So much for finding any type of logic in this place. Awenasa's stomach plummets as the mechanical wolf with the big, pointy teeth charges her.
Her skill is not good enough to avoid her flesh being ripped open. As she catches movement out of the corner of her eye, her brain screams, MOVE!
Ignoring the weariness she feels, she contracts her muscles like a coiled snake. But instead of shooting outwards towards the wolf, she shoots upwards seeking purchase on top of the rock at her back.
Awenasa quickly runs through her options. The problem with these wolves being metallic rather than flesh was that they probably wouldn't tire. Which means she is unsure as to how she will outrun them. Her other question was could they track by scent like normal wolves or was it just by sight? She has to figure out a way to evade these creatures because she cannot lead them back to the others.
Awenasa vaults up the side of the rock like a acrobat, her feet barely touching the rough red surface. Behind her the mechanical wolf snaps at her heels but misses. The Shoanti finds the top of the rock to be wider then she feared, and she has plenty of space to stand.
It seems the constructs are unable to climb for it does no attempt to do so. Out of the shadows come three others and they begin circling the stone, like sharks around a drowning man. For the moment Awenasa is safe enough, as her foes circle in the shadows below her feet. Occasionally they look up, eyes red in the darkness.
To her dismay she notes them seeming to sniff the ground at points, clearly they have some scent capability.
Awenasa knows she needs to get back to the others but she options are pretty limited. She has escaped certain injury for the time being but she finds it nearly impossible to figure out how to evade these machines. Normal animals you can hurt or show dominance over and they will retreat. The Shoanti doubts that these things feel pain or tire of evasive prey.
She scans her surroundings to find the best route back to their camp.
Awenasa focuses on the next rock about 15 feet away and launches herself.
She lands quietly and allows herself the thought that her quah would be satisfied. But she can't stop now, she looks for the next place to land and jumps again and again.
Awenasa moves with the grace of a highland deer, shifting from stone to stone with barely a noise. To her relief she leaves the mechanical wolves behind, slipping away like a thief in the night. Hopping stone to stone across the broad meadow she soon reaches Perey and Thak's camp, nestled among some larger boulders.
Awenasa can tell her friends are relieved. With low voices they call up to her platform, "Oh good, you are safe. We heard the wolves...are they about? Do we need to move?"
When she gets back to the camp, Awenasa takes a few moments to listen to see if she had been followed before rejoining her friends.
Awenasa looks down at Thak and Perey, concern on her face. "They not wolves, they machines. I not know what want. If wolves, not move. But machines, not know. Maybe?"
"Machines?" Perey says totally confused. Thak though looks thoughtful, face hard to read by the weak moons of this place. "Constructs...but built by whom? The militia group?"
Perey looks more concerned and says, " Should we climb up on the rock? Not a very good place to spend the night."
Awenasa ponders the strange wolves and their actions. They did seem to have been slowly following her scent trail but not quickly. Still, the meadow was not that large. Even if they didn't find the trail if they merely circled outward....
She is distracted by something else.
The Shoanti, in her musing, glances up the mouth of the meadow where they came. To her surprise, in the darkness, she spots shapes moving. Quite a few of them, marching up the path. The militia was coming into the meadow.