From the Sea to the Sky (Open)

[Tempest]

Two creatures lay victim to the ebb and flow of the tide.

The torrent of wind and rain had subsided, leaving everything in it's wake torn apart and drenched. Weeds that had earlier been growing stoutly in the sand were flattened; rocks and driftwood covered the beach, thrown there by the raging sea. Though the storm had passed, the waves were still a savage beast. They flushed the two unconscious creatures onto the sand, then pulled them back, devouring them with wet wild tongues. Though they were being tossed onto the beach and pulled back constantly by the ebb of the tide, still they did not wake.
The two hung limply on a piece of driftwood. The mousemaid had one arm draped over the smooth, dark wood, her other paw grasped tightly to the hedgehog's ear, showing her determination not to loose him even in her senseless state. Her eyes were shut tight, as if she had been squeezing them closed to keep the rain and seawater out before she lost consciousness. Her lids were crusted over with dried seasalt.
Both of them had chains clamped around their wrists. The iron links were battered and even broken; they had once connected the two escaped oarslaves to each other and the oar they were chained to.

The mousemaid slowly because aware of her surroundings. She could hear the ocean sloshing in her ears, and the sunlight caused an orange glow through her eyelids. A wave crashed over her head and dragged her away from the shore again; she opened her mouth and gasped, taking in air and seawater at the same time. Shaking the blackness away from her, she opened her eyes with some difficulty, rubbing the crusted salt away. Her muscles felt heavy and useless. The chains dragged at her paws and the waves pulled at her fur, making her feel three times as heavy as she was. Her weak body didn't want to move, but she knew she had to.
The tide washed the pair onto the beach again, and the mousemaid scrambled to get a footing in the wet sand. Picking her spent body off of the wood smoothed by thousands of salty waves, she stood. Grabbing her friend under the arms, she dragged him out of the reach of the tide.
"No creature could fight that tempest," She muttered to herself. Rolling the hedgehog onto his back, she flopped down beside him from the effort. The storm had taken away every bit of spirit in her. She remembered how the sea was calm at first before it nearly devoured them in a vicious gale. She stared up at the sky. It was a gorgeous cloudless blue, which didn't seem fair after their struggle with the black storm.
The mousemaid absently wrung the water out of her red-orange tunic. Pulling herself together and summoning all the energy she had, she sat up. Unstrapping the two leather shoulder pieces she wore, she tossed them into the sand beside her, glad to shed the extra weight. Glancing at her unconscious friend, she bent over him. Rubbing the crusted salt off his eyes, she found herself gazing into the soft features of her closest companion. His eyelids flickered.

Rohlwing could hear noises around him; waves crashing on a beach, seagulls calling to each other. The air smelled strongly of salt water - but amazingly, there was no trace of the storm. He could feel soft sand under his back, and the air was fresh, not metallic smelling like it had when they were fighting the wind and rain. The presence of his best friend near him was unmistakable; he opened his eyes. His own earthy green-brown ones stared straight into the mousemaid's sharp grey ones. She punched him on the nose.
"Ow! What was that for, Bells?"
"Glad you're alive," Irisbell said, grinning.
"Glad I am too," Rohlwing mumbled, rubbing his snout remorsefully as he sat up.
"What, really?" Irisbell said, a hint of incredulity in her voice. "I tell you I'm glad you're alive, and all you have to offer is "I am too"!? What about me?" She mock-demanded of him.
"You punched me on the nose!" Rohlwing exclaimed.
"So?"
Rohlwing glared at her for half a moment before his expression melted. He lept up, his face glowing. He grabbed Irisbell and swung her around, shouting,
"We're alive! Can you believe it? Free."
Irisbell laughed along with him, but laughed even harder when he set her down and fell into the sand, groaning.
"I ache all over."
"Me too," She said, throwing herself down beside him. "How's your head?"
Rohlwing touched the gash on his forehead. The ocean had scrubbed it clean, but it still looked terrible. He grimaced. "It's all right."
"Liar."
"How's your arm?"
Irisbell held her arm out to the sky, inspecting it. It had a raw, red scrape down it that stung when the sea air hit it. "Not bad," She said.
"Liar."
Irisbell grinned, then held out her other arm. It looked like she was trying to grasp the sky with her paws. "We still have these chains," She said, distracted from their injuries. Broken chains hung from her wrists. The links dangled halfway down each arm, battered but still attached firmly to her.
Rohlwing stretched his paws up to the sky like Bells had. "Yeah." His own chains weighed on his arms. "...We'll get them off somehow. We're free now."
"But we're chained to our vow."
"I wonder if any creature is ever truly free. As free as the sky," Rohlwing said wistfully.
"I don't know."

[Vikenti Whitedeath]

(I apologize is Vikenti is a bit different then his profile, he has been further improved on other sites. My posting hasn't really imporve since I started RPing. My post really can't measure up to yours.)

The violent storm had only just subsided when the mercenary known as Merce Whitedeath came out of the trees and onto the beach. Merce was not his real name, but a shortened form of mercenary he had used when he came to Mossflower. His real name and title was Prince Vikenti Whitedeath of the Kingdom of Syrea. However, those who knew this were usually no where near Mossflower.

Unfortunately for the runaway prince, he had recently run into a group of beasts who knew who he really was. And they weren't just any ordinary group of beasts either, they were led by his sister, Princess Verusha. Knowing that if his sister's lackeys were to catch him that he would promptly be returned to his unwanted position as successor to his father, Vikenti made for the opposite direction of them with all haste possible.

Vikenti was relatively sure that he had lost his pursuers now that he had reached the seashore. His sister and her soldiers were much less experienced in Mossflower than he. But he could not be certain they wouldn't show up sooner or later. Vikenti was surprised by the presence of two strange beasts on the normally empty shore. Vikenti could tell by the chains hanging from the wrists pf the hedgehog and the mouse that they had at one point been enslaved. But now they were seemly celebrating their new found freedom. Vikenti approached them slowly and quietly, watching them from a dune above.

He suddenly straightened himself out and walked straight towards the former slaves. He smiled a crooked smile that could be taken as a bit sadistic. "Congratulations, you are now free," Vikenti said sarcastically as he clapped his paws, "but how long do you think you can survive alone and injured?"

[Tempest]

(Hey, don't sweat it! It's a great post - I'm just an over-achiever for first character posts ^~^ I like Merce's attitude, heh heh.)

"I don't know..." Irisbell repeated, her voice trailing off. She tucked her arms behind her head. Quieted by the calm atmosphere from after the storm, she lay on her back breathing slowly and watching the sky with bright, alert eyes. Rohlwing turned his head to look at the companion he had made from being slaves together for so long. He looked over every inch of her face, from her torn ear to the thistledown color of fur under her chin. This was the first time he had actually seen her in clear light. In her soft temperance of the moment, she almost seemed like a normal, subdued mousemaid. Rohlwing smiled to himself.

"Watchu smiling about?" Bells asked, catching Rohlwing's expression and jabbing him under the eye. Rohlwing slapped a paw to his eye, rolling away from her with a yelp.
Ouch... she is definitely not an ordinary mousemaid, Rohlwing thought lividly.

Irisbell breathed in the clean air, her eyes closed. She couldn't get enough of it - it was thousands of times more pure than the foul, putrid air of the hull of the ship where they were the sole power of it's movement. Her eyes snapped open at the sound of clapping behind her. Half springing up, she spun around on all fours, spraying sand in her movement. Her eyes flashed as she tried to find the speaker - it took her a moment to realize that he had stark white fur that disguised him almost perfectly with the sand sparkling under the sun.

"Congratulations, you are now free. But how long do you think you can survive alone and injured?"

Rohlwing had also lept up, but his stance was slightly more lax than Irisbell's. His hands clenched at his sides, he flicked a glance at Bells and realized that she had been more tense than what she had been letting on. He looked back at the weasel who was clapping sarcastically. A vermin. He could see the anger boiling in Irisbell's eyes; he felt the fire in his own chest.
But he took a deep breath. They had no weapons. They were wearied and battered from the storm. They were, as the weasel said, alone and injured. Rohlwing clenched and unclenched his paws, trying to answer the question he knew needed to be answered, despite the fact that the weasel had asked it first.
"...We - "
"We'll find a way!" Irisbell said, her voice full of fervent confidence. Rohlwing looked at her, his eyes searching hers. He walked closer to her, pulling her up from her crouch and holding her by her upper arms.
"But there isn't any easy answer!" He told her, his face only a few inches from her. Irisbell's sharp grey eyes bit into his softer ones.
"Doesn't matter! You're strong, Rohlwing, but we'll need confidence to survive, too!" Her burning desire to live showed all over her. Rohlwing faltered, forgetting the weasel in the moment between him and Irisbell. Of course they had to survive. Of course they would make it. They weren't going to lie wasted on a beach and sing ballads until they wasted away. Rohlwing shook thoughts off his head - freedom would also require work.

[Vikenti Whitedeath]

Merce watched the emotional moment between the former slaves with the same half smile as before. The confidence and spirit of the mousemaid certainly would have been inspiring to beast less cynical than Merce. But, the albino weasel found it hard to take others seriously.

"That is very nice and all, but nobeast ever lived off of confidence," Merce replied, "and if I'm not mistaken you don't even know where you are."

No sooner had Merce finished speaking than the distant sound of a snapping twig sounded in the trees along the shore. Merce jumped at the sound and looked over his shoulder into the brush. He scanned it attentively for a few moments before turning back to Irisbell and Rohlwing.

"Must have been nothing..." he muttered to himself.

[Tempest]

"That is very nice and all, but nobeast ever lived off of confidence."
Irisbell turned to the weasel and crossed her arms, frowning. "Nobeast ever lived off of confidence, huh..." She muttered to herself. She wasn't sure what to make of the creature in front of her. She had never seen anybeast with such white fur and blood red eyes and it made her nervous. Not nervous, She told herself. Just wary.
"And if I'm not mistaken you don't even know where you are."
Rohlwing grimaced at this comment. It was true, and it was apparent that the beast in front of them knew where he was. This could be dangerous. Very potentially dangerous. Information they don't have held my a vermin creature... that's bad. He glanced at Irisbell, hoping to get some kind of eye contact, but she wasn't looking. She stared intently at the white weasel in front of them.

Suddenly the vermin jumped at a noise and turned his head sharply; Irisbell narrowed her eyes. Whoever he was, he was nervous.
"Nobeast ever lived off confidence, huh? Looks like you could use some now," Irisbell threw at him, shifting her weight, her arms still crossed. "Lissen up now. You can kindly tell us where we are, and we'll kindly not announce your whereabouts to whatever is making ye afraid," She said.
Rohlwing's eyes flashed as he met Irisbell's. His thoughts were clear: This is dangerous. Trying to make deals with vermin is bad news.

[Vikenti Whitedeath]

Merce gave a bit a smirk at Irisbell's deal. "You know, if you were to alert the beasts after me, you wouldn't be in any better shape than me," Merce said in a low voice, "because to them you are expendable. But, I'd rather not be found out so I agree." The white weasel looked around him again as if to get a better grip on his surroundings.

"Currently, we are about a mile and a half north of where the River Moss meets the sea," Merce explained, "there really aren't any landmarks to describe this location in itself though." While he had been talking the weasel had been slowly moving closer to the woodland beasts, though he wasn't going straight towards them. It was rather more of a circling motion.

"Seeing as I am a mercenary, I would offer to protect you on your way to wherever you are going," Merce continued, "but I doubt you have the means to pay me, you seem rather down in your luck."

[Tempest]

Irisbell and Rohlwing took in the information, Bells still obviously on the alert, her eyes watching the white vermin with a stinging untrust.
"Not far north from the river Moss," Rohlwing murmured to himself. Looking, he couldn't make out the river, but he guessed the distance where it must run out of the woodland and into the ocean. He brushed the back of Irisbell's paw to get her attention. She half turned toward him to hear what he had to say.
"Going inland is probably our best bet," He murmured to her. Irisbell nodded.
"Agreed. But what about whatever's makin' the vermin jumpy? Something inland and near by, from the sounds of things," She replied. It wasn't easy to pick up under the sounds of the waves, but there was definately the presence of somebeast or somebeasts nearby.
"Hm. We could follow up river then. Hopfully slightly away from any trouble," Rohlwing said quietly. Both of them still had their eyes on the potential foebeast as they talked in muttered tones. Irisbell's eyes narrowed as the white weasel started walking in a vague circular motion closer to them, leaving soft impressions of his paw print in the sand. Her paws itched as she clenched and unclenched them, longing for a weapon to clutch. She was unsure how to act besides being wary; she was much more accustomed to running right into the fray than waiting, watching. On the south shores of her home, the enemy always came rushing at them. The weasel hadn't attacked them, but did that mean he wasn't bad?

"...you seem rather down on your luck," The weasel said. Irisbell frowned, not sure if the white vermin was making a proposition or not. Rohlwing matched his companion's frown, thinking. A beast could say they were down on their luck, yes. They were weaponless, lost, had nothing to count toward being their own. He glanced at Irisbell, comunicating with his eyes. But we're alive and free.
Bells blinked at him. Yes, they were alive and free, but this fact felt irrelevant to her at the moment. They were having a problem.
She avoided what the weasel had said about his mercenary protection for the time being, instead shooting at him,
"D'you know of anything inland of here?"

[Vikenti Whitedeath]

(Sorry I am late in responding, I was gone on a retreat where no technology was allowed. I should have given notice. Also, I know the siblings met for the first time in a while in another thread, but that one died so I'm considering that they have not met in years.)

"I know a great deal about the inland, I've crisscrossed Mossflower time after time on my missions," Merce said confidently, "but I'm afraid I can't be hanging around." He looked off into the tree line yet again. He too was aware of the approaching noises.

"There is a certain weaselmaid who I haven't seen in a while and who I would rather not meet again," Merce explained with a grin, "she caught a glimpse of me while back and she isn't likely to let me leave without a talk." The white weasel stopped his circling motion and started to walk south down the beach. He had the same plan as the former slaves; following the river away from trouble.

Merce turned around to face the other two beasts again, but continued walk backwards away from them. Luckily for him the beach was relatively free of debris. "You two seem awfully jumpy. You've got eyes like a hawk there, miss," Merce nodded to Rohlwing with another one of his odd half smiles, "I'd keep and eye on the trees if I were you." The white weasel gave a small snicker and turned once again to face the direction he was walking.

[Warfang]

The ferret sat on an old oak branch, his legs dangling over the edge and his forepaws planted firmly around the bark. His green eyes were peeled for prey whether it be fruit or fish, staring intently at the ocean. He slipped the blade out of his belt as he noticed some figures moving by the shore. One seemed particularly lean and lanky; the vermin identified it as a weasel, not food. He slipped the dagger back in his ivy-crested belt.

Curious, though, the antisocial creature cupped his paws over his eyes, peering out to identify the two, smaller creatures. One had a very prickly back, and it was an infant's guess that the beast must have been a headgehog. The otherbeast beside it was small with rounded ears and a long tail. Judging by its height, he determind it as a mouse.

His long tail draped over the branch as the critter stood up, his forepaw grasping on a branch above his head. He wanted to get a closer look; it'd been a long time since he'd seen any other creatures, but they were so close to the water... The ferret visibly shuddered, a shiver crawling down his spine. Instead, the eggwhite-colored creature quickly sat back down, his legs crisscrossed and his paws on his knees, balancing easily on the thick bark.

[Tempest]

(It's fine - I'm also going to be gone for about a week and a half after this. Welcome, by the way, Warfang :D)


"I know a great deal about the inland, I've crisscrossed Mossflower time after time on my missions," The weasel said confidently, "but I'm afraid I can't be hanging around."
Irisbell paused, waiting for further elaboration, before scuffing her footpaw irately in the sand.
"Well, that answered our question," She said, her voice strained with frustration. Her paws hurt from being clenched so hard and she could feel her wariness - her lack of knowledge of the area - prickling all along her fur.
"Hm... this journeyer of Mossflower... sounds like somebeast who would know of homelands," Rohlwing said thoughtfully. Irisbell stomped on his footpaw.
"Stop being all thoughtful and poetic! He's a vermin, not a journeyer. He looks like somebeast who probably raided our homelands! That's what vermin do best!" Irisbell's voice was cracked and hoarse and her every frustration sounded in it. Rohlwing looked down at her eyes, resting a hand on her arm before looking up again.
"Calm down. We aren't defenders of our families anymore. We can't smash every vermin we see."
"Why not? We're defenders of our [/i]vow[/i]," Bells hissed before the weasel broke into their private conversation again.

She glanced at the trees in the mention of a "weaselmaid". Two, maybe more vermin against two wearied creatures who probably counted as less, weaponless, hungry, and wasted. Bells shook her head; she was jumping to conclusions she didn't want to happen and hopefully wouldn't.
"You two seem awfully jumpy. You've got eyes like a hawk there, miss, I'd keep and eye on the trees if I were you," The weasel said, walking off down the shore.
Irisbell's frustrations snapped. "Jumpy! I'm not jumpy! I'm tense," She said loudly, throwing her paws into the air. "I happen to be trained as someone to crack vermin heads with a heavy stick and anything sharp! I don't know anything about Mossflower - I only know the shores of deep Southsward! Rohlwing doesn't even know where he's from, an' we need to be prepared to fight for our lives! We didn't escape with what fur we have just ta die!" Irisbell yelled to the afternoon sky. Her arms fell limply at her sides and when Rohlwing murmured to her, she suddenly wanted to be a little babe again - all her energy sapped, she wanted to curl up and go to sleep, listening to the waves the sounded so much like the ones she used to fight for.
"Calm down," he said, his voice soft. He felt like she did - He felt venerable, but almost needlessly wary, two lone creatures in a long stretch of sand lit gold by the sun. There was only one other beast, a white weasel yards away from them -
No. There was somebeast other. Something pricked the corner's of Rohlwing's vision. A ferret, perched on a piece of an oak branch, eyes set in cream-colored fur watching them. Rohlwing touched Irisbell's arm to bring her eyes where he was looking.

[Warfang]

(Thanks! I'm happy to be here! Sorry if my posts are short, I'm multitasking. I'm packing for a 2 week long trip. I'll post about it more in whatever Absense thread you guys have.)

August watched the three, perplexed. The mouse was shouting needlessly while the hedgehog attempted to comfort her. The white weasel stood a few yards away from them. The ferret rose a curious brow. Somebeasts were just unusual. Speak for yourself, you mutt, he grunted inwardly. He probably didn't look too much like what the rodents and the vermin over there usually saw, with his ivy-ladened strap-and-belt, his dagger firmly strapped to his waist.

Zar's eyes widened and he growled to himself as a pricklybeast gestured towards him with his paw to another rodent. I've been spotted, he determind, quickly straightening his legs and jumping higher into the tree with ease. He didn't need a quarrel right now; infact, the more he thought about it, a fight was the very last thing he needed. He tucked away in the leaves, peering through the gaps. Had their gazed followed him or was he safe for now?