The Lone Gruitin [Open]

[Treijim]

The young man with long hair gave Mhkaia an 'oh look it talks' sort of look, and looked at Esmond as though trying to figure out whether he was being kidded.

"Okay," said the young man. There was a great deal of silence. Esmond was staring at nothing, silent and thoughtful. "He's Esmond. I am Eyron," said the young man. "Are you..." he paused and narrowed his eyes. "Are you an outcast?"

[SirRob]

The two men had introduced themselves. They actually gave Mhkaia their names! Feeling a bit relieved, the Gruitin relaxed a bit. He felt that he was one step closer to reaching his goal. Maybe, just maybe there was hope for him after all.
He looked at Eyron. The young man seemed very cautious and suspcious of the Gruitin. It was common for people to act like that towards Mhkaia, so he paid little attention to it. "I suppose you could say that. I've been alone for quite a while now."

[Treijim]

Eyron listened and then looked at Esmond, and they both gave each other a strange sort of baffled look, now that Esmond was mentally present. The young man yanked a flask from his belt and unplugged it, took a swig, and then shook it upside-down to find it was empty. He looked to Esmond, and visually checked the man's supplies before speaking.

"Run out of water yet?" Eyron asked. "You don't need your sword out anymore." He motioned to two sheaths of his own, one at either side of his belt.

Esmond shook his head. "You are wrong."

Eyron frowned back. The young man seemed to like pulling faces. "Why?" he finally asked. Esmond didn't reply. He looked at Mhkaia quite suddenly, as though only just hearing the gruitin's reply. "The pup is no threat," he said to Esmond. "Right?"

[SirRob]

Mhkaia stared at Esmond in disbelief. Just when things were finally going the Gruitin’s way, the man just had to ruin all of it. What was wrong with that man? Why couldn’t he trust him? Mhkaia had tried to keep himself reserved the best he could, but he just couldn’t anymore. Speaking louder and more distressed than before, Mhkaia said to Esmond, “What have I done to make you so hostile towards me? I’m weak, tired and hungry; I’m no match against you, you said so yourself! Why can’t you just put away your sword!?”

[Treijim]

"Because..." began Esmond.

Something exploded from the foliage. Slivers of glistening black flashed past them. Metal rang and leaves swirled into the air. There was a scream and the thing rolled lifelessly into a shrub, leaving a trail of dark blood. Eyron hadn't reached the creature. He had managed to draw a sword, but he had stopped mid-swing. Esmond wiped his sword on his cape and went to the bush. He kicked whatever it was that lay there. It was furry and dark.

"Because I still need it," Esmond muttered. He turned to look at Mhkaia. "That Folang had been following something for some time now. It was probably on your trail."

Eyron smirked coolly and sheathed his sword. "Well then. Are there more?"

Esmond closed his eyes. "Not close enough to bother us."

[SirRob]

Mhkaia looked at the monster in horror. It looked a bit like himself, but Mhkaia knew that the thing was definately not a Gruitin. Had this thing really been following him all this time? He never even detected its scent. Mhkaia looked at Esmond, his eyes softening. He couldn't believe it; the man had actually saved his life. "Esmond... I'm sorry. I had misjudged you. Please forgive me for my ignorance."

[Treijim]

Esmond made a sort of gruff 'hmph' as he finished wiping his sword on the tattered ends of his cloak. He cut some things off the Folang and put them in pouches on his belt. He then worked on clipping the creature's claws, right into the quick.

"They have no scent," Eyron said to Mhkaia. "They have a presence. If you've never encountered one, you can never tell." He walked to Esmond's side and knelt with his companion. "Come over here, pup, and kneel with us. You can still feel it..."

Eyron held his hands over the corpse as though warming his hands over a fire, but there was no warmth. There was only a cold sort of shuddering feeling in the air. Esmond seemed to ignore Mhkaia's apology.

[SirRob]

The Gruitin gazed at Esmond with a perplexed look on his face. How could something not have a scent? Listening to Eyron's words, Mhkaia slowly walked up to the Folang and knelt. He studied the monster curiously, and then put his hands close to its body. His hands began to shiver as he felt the presence that Eyron had talked about. The feeling he got from it was horrible; it felt almost as if it were evil. Mhkaia soon stood up again; he could hardly stand being so close to the Folang. These monsters were certainly something that he would have to watch out for in the future. Suddenly, the Gruitin's stomach rumbled angrily. He had almost forgotten about how hungry he was! He looked at the monster, and then at Eyron. Scratching his head with embarassment, Mhkaia asked, "Say... These Folangs, you can't eat them, can you? I'm... really hungry."

[Treijim]

Esmond swung out an arm, offering a bite-sized piece of preserved meat. It was small, but it seemed done in such a way that it could be chewed on for some time.

"If you want more, you can catch us more," Esmond said, as they both stood.

They had both noticed how susceptible Mhkaia was to the Folang's aura, and they both seemed to think on it for a moment. Esmond went back into the centre of the clearing, peered up towards the sun, and then around himself slowly.

"You don't eat anything of The Enemy," Eyron said quietly to the gruitin. "You'll probably die. Or worse." He shrugged and addressed Esmond, "Which way now, boss?"

Esmond cocked a brow. "Depends on whether the wolf wants to come with us. If he does, we need to take a different route."

Eyron gave Mhkaia a questioning look, but neither of them gave any indication as to where they were going.

[SirRob]

Mhkaia stared at the piece of meat, his mouth practically drooling. Finally, after all that had happened, he would finally get his meal. His mind focusing on nothing but food, Mhkaia quickly swiped the meat from Esmond and shoved it into his mouth. With his tail wagging slowly, he chewed the meat, savoring its salty and savory taste for as long as he could. It was a small piece of meat, but it would be enough to give him the energy to hunt. After chewing the it for a while, he swallowed the meat and smiled at the two men. "Thanks a lot for the food!" said the Gruitin. "I definately want to accompany you guys. I haven't traveled with other people in a while, plus I have to repay you two somehow."

[Treijim]

Eyron tilted his head. "He talks proper for a wolfman," he said. "And... no offense, but dragging you along isn't exactly repayment. It's more of a punishment." He wore a sly grin, watching the Gruitin's face carefully to see if his jokes would penetrate the fur and bone.

Esmond motioned for them to follow him, and they began to walk. They walked through the dim and winding paths of the woods, heading generally deeper into the trees, climbing small mounds now and then. The air got colder and a mist began to roll in, but the sun still tried to shoot through the canopy to light their way. To say the least, the woods were as eerie as they get, but neither Eyron nor Esmond seemed uneasy. They both seemed quite comfortable where they were, and they hadn't seen or heard any other sign of life for quite some time, save the occasional tree-dwelling rodent.

Through the trees on their right a cliff appeared. The two men headed to it and Eyron took his pack off his shoulder and tossed it to the ground. Resting against the sheer stone, he closed his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief.

Esmond addressed Mhkaia; "We'll rest here for a while. Perhaps until the morning, depending on what this fog does." And he began to patrol the small clearing in a masterful fashion.

[SirRob]

The Gruitin's tail wagged slowly as he walked with Esmond and Eyron. He was happy to be in their company, even if they were a little offensive at times. As they entered a particularly gloomy section of the forest, Mhkaia noticed that his companions did not seem to have an ounce of fear or anxiety in them. Most humans would have been frigtened half to death by being in these foggy woods; at least that was what Mhkaia had inferred through his few encounters with them. What sort of hardships did these men have to endure to become so fearless?

Eventually the party reached a cliff. It was a nice break from the monotony of the trees, and a relief, as this was the place where they were to rest. As Esmond was patrolling the area, Mhkaia asked, "Should I go out and hunt for something for us to eat?" After all, the Gruitin was still a little hungry, and he was sure his companions were feeling a bit famished as well.

[Treijim]

"If you want," Eyron said, settling himself against a sloping stone and letting his eyes fall shut. For a short while he appeared to be deep in slumber, but then he spoke again. "We'll be eating soon, though. Depends how much longer you think you can go without food."

Esmond was almost out of sight. His cloaked form moved slowly between the trees around the clearing, and he was looking high and low, as though he'd lost a ring that had the ability to float into the sky if not secured to the ground.

"It'll be another uneventful half-day of trekking, at best," Eyron added. "So yeah, it's your call."

[Love the new avatar btw]

[SirRob]

Mhkaia nodded. His appetite was ravenous, so it would be best to go hunt for some food now. "Alright, I'm going to go then. I'll see you later."

Once again submersed in a sea of trees, the Gruitin was sure that he would catch himself something good to eat. He walked slowly through the woods, straining his ears to hear any signs of an animal. Luckily for Mhkaia, it was not too long until he heard a rustling in some of the nearby vegetation. Silently, he crept up to where he had heard the sound. He could smell it; it was the same type of creature as before. Suddenly, the animal darted off, trying to flee from Mhkaia. However, its escape attempt would do it no good, as the Gruitin was too quick for it. In a matter of seconds, Mhkaia's powerful fangs sunk deep into the creature's skin. It was an incredible feeling, being able to crunch through the creature's puny bones and muscles. It had been so long since he last captured his prey; it was almost like a dream. Life slowly drained from the animal, as Mhkaia's strength began to return to him. After the Gruitin's meal was finished, he turned around to go back to where his companions were resting.

Mhkaia had not walked too far before he felt the air get colder around him. It was a subtle change in temperature, but it made Mhkaia tense. Could it be another Folang? No, of course not. Esmond had said before that there were no Folangs close enough to bother them. However, the Gruitin had traveled pretty far from where he was attacked... Mhkaia continued his walk with caution, prepared for the worst.

[Treijim]

"Oi there's one!" something whistled past Mhkaia's neck and drilled into a tree, sending shards of wood flying. "You bumped me, you idiot!"

"I didn't! You just missed!"

The roudy yelling was coming from two men now visible, standing to Mhkaia's left between some trees. They were dressed quite ruggedly, with leather and rough cloth outfits and messy hair, but they were well armed and -- despite their tomfoolery speech -- proceeded to draw large knifes and approach the Gruitin in an arc.

"It's a soft one," said the one with the crossbow. "Here puppy, come get the meat from uncle Ferho." He held out a small piece of meat and wiggled it some distance from the Gruitin. The other man began to circle around the back.