Stavanger Bay sunpu castle
100 Posts
Ooc — JB
Offline
#1
His return was characterized by the lurching steps of a half-dead body, a pelt crusted with autumn debris, and the stale copper of blood on the wind. It was much like his initial entrance to the wilds in that way. Somehow, Tetsubo remained a bloody mess. This time it had not been a spectral beast which had knocked him across a cliff — this time, he couldn't remember anything about the incident. Only that he had been on a quest. That the quest had led him away from his lord Skellige, and that he was determined to return.

With the curl of his tongue across his bared and bloody fangs, the beast collected the mix of mud and blood, balled it, and spat. He was covered from cheek to throat in the mixture of old blood and fresh mud, likely an attempt to cover the hole in his neck; he hoped it would be enough to keep him from bleeding out by the time he met the shore. Yet Tetsubo was wandering in a fugue state, or something of the sorts. As soon as he touched the sand he felt a strange peace befall his mind and nearly gave up on the spot. The crashing of the waves kept him awake; the calling of gulls and the shriek of an errant raven overhead prompted him to keep going. He would not become a meal to these things. He would return to Skellige.
the dragon of the sea
302 Posts
Ooc — Mary
Offline
#2
[table width=80%][tr][td]

Some time had passed since the slate warrior had trudged off into the distance with promises of information and recruits. Skellige had waited patiently for his trusted comrade to return, but the silent man had remained absent, and it was not long before the wraith had lost faith and hope.
 
The day the gulls cried to him with words of war and glory, he had lifted his head and searched the skies for their incessant flapping. The brute had taken to remaining near his den; he knew that it would not have been long before his young was presented to the world. Still, the cry of the gulls had roused him and set a burning in his mind that he did not dare to ignore. Independent as he was, there was no doubting his true devotion to the water and the will of his ancients.
 
Slipping out of his den and into the crisp air, the inky titan cast his gaze toward the stretch of sand that he had claimed for his own. His children would soon find their tiny paws marking the terrain of the bay and the salt of the water would beat against their bodies. The promise of sea children would be fulfilled and he would be allowed to focus on further tasks – expanding the empire of the Blackrock.
 
A familiar scent was carried through his nostrils. For a moment, the silver-ribbed dredge thought himself mad. There was no shaking it, though… Tetsubo had returned. With a jolt, he darted across the beach in the direction of the bloodied scent. Dark eyes scoured the earth for signs of the warrior.  
[/td][/tr][/table]
what would an ocean be without a monster lurking in the dark?
it would be like sleep without dreams
100 Posts
Ooc — JB
Offline
#3
Though he wandered across sand bar after sand bar, there was no sign that the beast knew where he was, or why. His head slouched more than it had previously; where once he had been low and subservient, now he was focusing on keeping his feet moving. He was weathered and tired. His breathing was ragged. Each breath sounded wet, as if he had been guzzling sea water and it had filled his lungs — no doubt it was the hole in his throat opening up which caused this. 

The only constant within the weapon's mind was a simple thought: Skellige. The word had long since lost its meaning to him, yet the boy clung to the syllables of it, used it as a raft while he drowned in his uncertainty and pain. There did come a sound beyond the sand and the surf — the stomping of feet — but as Tetsubo was lifting his head to bare witness to whoever approached, his eyes rolled in his head, and he abruptly came crashing to the earth atop a bed of tangled ocean weeds.

It took a moment, but he did try to get up. The connection of his body to the ground seemed to have roused something within him — maybe jostled his spirit, woke it up properly — and he regained his footing, although his throat had begun to leak with a dangerous mixture of fluids. His eyes were then half-lidded, and he stared at the sand like some sort of monument.
the dragon of the sea
302 Posts
Ooc — Mary
Offline
#4
[table width=80%][tr][td]

The taste of the dredge was thick on the air. The winds carried it toward the leviathan as though they intended for him to seek out the figure. His dark eyes were wild on the stretch of beach until he caught sight of the figure – just in time to see him slump forward. With a savage beat to his heart, Skellige darted forward and motioned with his skull so that he could cut against the chilling winds that ravaged against him. He kicked sands behind him and nearly lost his footing in his adrenaline-rushed movements. The familiarity of the beach and the ocean beside him had faded against the thought of war upon them. His eyes were trained on the figure of Tetsubo.
 
A soft bark was emitted from his throat as he closed the distance between them. When there was nothing more than a few yards, he noticed the rousing of the slate warrior’s body. Tetsubo had attempted to rectify his position so that he was upright and invulnerable. The scent of him was rancid and Skellige was quickly reminded of the stench of war and chaos. In this, he did not hesitate to bring himself closer to the dredge. His eyes roamed over the familiar figure and noted the savagery that had taken hold. Using his shoulder, the shadowy titan moved to brace the brute against the gravity that demanded to take his body. “Tetsubo,” he growled softly, flattening his ears to his head. “I will call for help.”
 
With that, he threw his crown upward and cried for the two healers that he trusted most. @Doe and @Deirdre were so careful with their craft that he did not dare to think of another in this time. The gurgling noise met his ears, and he feared that the stoic warrior did not have much time in the conscious realm. If only he knew enough of the healer’s touch, but Skellige knew his place in that world and it was not with the magic of a witch doctor or the soothing breath of a druid. In desperation, he cast his gaze to the heavens and he wondered what he must have done to find himself in the company of such terrible fortune.
[/td][/tr][/table]
what would an ocean be without a monster lurking in the dark?
it would be like sleep without dreams
slowly drifting, wave after wave
826 Posts
Ooc —
Medic
Offline
#5
deirdre had been near the borders of donnelaith when the call came, and it took her little time to arrive after she had been called. the woman had been busy healing a stranger from the wilds and ensuring that their caches were full. winter had come, and though its arrival had not been violent the creatures of her wood had warned her of its way. heavy snowfall had not yet come, and so close to the coast where the world was warmest deirdre had not seen snow at all this winter--she was not anxious for its arrival, and the cutting winds told her it was imminent.

the queen took the scene in, her heart warming at the sight of skellige before it seized at the sight of the damaged man. the throat oozed and looked grotesque, though this did nothing to keep her away. deirdre looked to tetsubo, who stared reverently at the sands, and came closer. mud filled the crevices, which was surely what kept him alive. it dripped, and the edges of the angry looking wound would show those that were noseblind of the infection that had set in. it reeked, this mark, and it caused her stomach to turn, but it was fresh--the seepage that came was new, and so tetsubo was not beyond saving.

i know what i must retrieve, deirdre informed skellige, her eyes now falling upon him, i will return. the distance was not so far that it would take her very long at all, though before that deirdre was certain he would fall into doe's capable doctoring. she went to fetch goldenseal, an antiseptic, and something else she thought would surely aid him.
[Image: BCay9TG.png]
in oceans deep. my faith will stand
la llorona
Health - 0% (0/100)
483 Posts
Ooc — Moosebrawn
Offline
#6
Doe arrived just as Deirdre called out her own intents. Feeling confident that the younger woman would know what to fetch, she allowed her to dash away without comment, her approach probably missed in the other's hurry.

The red woman slunk respectfully toward her brother and the other wolf, pressing kisses of affirmation upon the King's chin as she passed him by. Her attention, however, was focused on Testubo. His scent, though muddled with many strange things, was familiar enough to her. He'd been just another part of the scenery to her, but he was pack - family - and for that, she would give him her best.

A queer sense of deja vu gripped the dusky shewolf as she nosed over the ailing wolf, her tongue seeking to clean his wounds while they waited for Deirdre to return.

"You'll be alright," Doe murmured, because whether he lived or died, he was back in the selfish embrace of the sea. "Everything will be okay."
100 Posts
Ooc — JB
Offline
#7
They came to him one by one, but to Tetsubo they were each suddenly there, and then some were not. They drifted. He drifted, and nearly came back to the earth were it not for Skellige's presence. The support he offered was just enough to keep the burly creature standing. His limbs shook regardless, and he panted openly, his tongue dry and throat rumbling with vague, incoherent sounds.

There was a ghost. She was there, she wasn't — and then there was a shadow, and she made motion as if to reach for his throat. Tetsubo, having lost a lot of blood and having not eaten in some time, saw this as the nether come to reclaim him. Perhaps to strip him down to pieces and rebuild? He did not want that. He felt Doe's tongue begin to administer the tender care upon his wound and he pulled away violently, baring his fangs at the air, his eyes wild as he recoiled and then, like a turtle retreating to its own husk of a shell, he covered his throat and filled the air with a whistling, wet warning.
the dragon of the sea
302 Posts
Ooc — Mary
Offline
#8
[table width=80%][tr][td]
 
The quivering of the body next to him did little to settle the inky titan down. He glanced from Tetsubo to the swiftly approaching figure of Deirdre, who cast him a loving glance before noting the state of the warrior. She moved over him and then swiftly muttered beneath her breath before darting away from the struggling brute and the leviathan of the sea. He watched her as she departed and felt his heart thrum quickly once more, at least until the figure of Doe appeared. A grateful expression fell against his shadowed features. She moved forward to offer a tongue of healing against his injuries, but his reaction was wild and vicious. Skellige watched as the dredge reared his head back and snapped into the air before he lowered his crown to protect the wound against his neck.  
 
A low growl was emitted from the back of his throat, rumbling within his chest. He clicked his fangs together to suggest that Tetsubo settle himself down. "Let them dress the wound," he snapped quietly to the brute. He knew the pride and the pain that flowed from a wound of that kind, but Skellige would not allow for Tetsubo to risk his life based on these matters. He had just gotten his dredge back... he would not lose him so swiftly.  
[/td][/tr][/table]
what would an ocean be without a monster lurking in the dark?
it would be like sleep without dreams