Moonspear Zero gravity

Re-post to bring it up to present date. :)

Wildfire just couldn't land a kill today. After her fourth failed attempt to capture her intended prey, she decided enough was enough and called it quits. Licking her lips, she left the forest and began to climb. You're just having a bad day. Everyone has bad days, her inner voice said helpfully, though outwardly Wildfire muttered a bit. She had never struck out so badly. Oh, well. Sighing lightly, she slumped to her haunches on an overhang perhaps a hundred feet above the naked treetops, affording her a pretty decent view of the surrounding area.

The winter landscape was quite pretty and effectively distracted her... until she saw a distant rabbit running across the snow. Wildfire squinted her amber eyes, ears splaying to the side as she huffed quietly and forcefully turned away. Nonetheless, the sight made her heart beat faster. Already she was raring to go again. Perhaps she should see if there were any scents around the mountain. Small woodland creatures made up the majority of her typical prey base, yet surely there must be something worthwhile to sniff out up here among the rocks and ledges...

He wasn't sure when was the best time to take on the bears. He couldn't just rush everyone into battle. At least the bears were keeping quiet for now. But as time passes the risk felt like it was growing. Someone could end up attacked if nothing is done during the winter. He wanted to attack them now but it wasn't his call. The best he could do right now was just to patrol the surrounding territory. So far there hasn't been any signs of threats.

It wasn't easy to detect animals around the mountains. There are clearly many places to hide. Small game wouldn't be as easy to catch, winter would seem to make it more difficult. He climbed on top of a ledge to get a great view of what was below. He spotted Wildfire facing a rabbit at the distant. He was a little surprise that she didn't try to go after it. Instead it looked like she was searching for something better to hunt. He wanted to let her be but he couldn't help but keep an eye on her. There was just something about watching younger wolves that made it entertaining. Perhaps it was the struggles they faced or maybe he was just curious on how they would handle at situation.

Nishu looked around at his surroundings and noticed a mountain goat climbing upwards. He didn't like goats because of how well they could climb mountains. Nevertheless, It remains to a great challenge for any wolves who wish to catch it. He wondered if Wildfire would notice it and then go after it. He watched and waited but remained silent. He didn't want to disrupt her hunt.

There were many smells up here, though far fewer scents of prey than in the forests below. Wildfire did manage to track a small mouse to its home beneath the crevice of a rock and thrust her paw inside just to get bitten on the toe. She hissed lightly under her breath and withdrew her leg to inspect the small wound. She licked at it, then shot the hole a bemused look before deciding to move on from it.

She began to wind further upward, following a familiar footpath, when suddenly the ground gave way beneath her. Wildfire didn't even have time to cry out as she went tumbling down the slope. It wasn't a long fall, though she landed hard on her side on a rock shelf about six feet below. Fortunately, she didn't hit her head but it definitely knocked the wind out of her. Between that and the initial shock, Wildfire didn't move right away, lying motionless as she waited to catch her breath.

So far she had yet to notice the goat but it was already out of sight. He shrugged and continued to watch. Seems like Wildfire had found something else. It was hard to see small details from where he was. He could assume that she was still hunting for something. She was heading upward. Soon enough she would end up as the same level as Nishu but what happend next made his heart skip a beat.

Wildfire was tumbling down the slope. All he could do was watch and regret not joining her before that happend. Luckily her fall didn't last long but what kept Nishu on edge was the fact that she wasn't moving. He wasn't going to wait anymore and quickly rushed his way to her. He nearly fell down himself as he rushed. This was a harsh reminder that the mountains will always be dangerous.

"Wildfire, say something! Are you alright?!" He said as he approached her. He searched for anything that would appear broken but he was no expert at that. Still he was worried, If there was damage he felt responsible for it. He could have likely prevented it if he simply joined her instead.

It wasn't her first nor her worst fall. It definitely wouldn't be the last, either. As soon as the stitch in her chest began to loosen, Wildfire rolled onto her belly with a slight groan. Simultaneously, someone came skittering down the slope to assist her. She blinked up at Nishu. He wasn't her favorite pack mate, though she didn't actively dislike him. The look of concern on his face was entirely genuine, which she appreciated. Wildfire gave him a tight smile.

"I meant to do that," she joked as she slowly pushed herself upright into a seated position. She rolled her shoulders. Everything seemed to work and nothing felt like it was broken. Her side smarted from the impact and Wildfire knew she would be a bit sore tomorrow. "I'm all right," she let Nishu know, giving her body a little shake, resulting in a puff of dust. "Just clumsy as all get-out."

In appearance all was fine and Wildfire reassured that nothing was wrong. Nishu let out a sigh of relief. "You had me worried there for a moment." He said as he sat down and tried to relax a little. Then he began remembering his first experiences in the mountain. Living in the mountains is a sure way to get wolves to grow tough. Of course it was on that thought that he remembered that wolves were tough, not just him.

He got up again and looked around at his surroundings. "I suppose you are a tough wolf too. Built to last. It reminds me of my falls back at the Sunspire. Mountain life was quite rough at first for me as I began to take part of the pack." He was trying to spot the goat again in hopes that it was sticking around but he didn't see any signs of it.

Then he looked at Wildfire and grinned. "How's your hunting? Already looking for something big?" He said assuming that it was her goal. He knows of the trade she was aiming for. Right now he just wanted to know if he was right about her slowing wanting something more and more challenging after each hunt.

Nishu expressed relief, then settled down beside her and explained that she must have been tough to weather a fall like that. "Born tough," she agreed with a little smile. "Had to be. I've been a klutz since day one." She had tripped, stumbled and fallen down more times than she could count. And she didn't need a mountain to complicate matters; she was perfectly capable of wrecking on perfectly flat, even ground.

He inquired about her hunting and she drew in a breath, then sighed as she replied truthfully, "It was going well up until today. I've had four misses this morning." Wildfire shook her head lightly. "I'm focusing on small prey and perfecting my craft, I guess you could say. I'm not opposed to larger prey, if I have a partner or two." It then occurred to her why he would ask that particular question. "But even if the prey isn't getting better, I promise I'm getting better," she said with understated vehemence, amber eyes dancing as she laughed.

Nishu wasn't going to admit that he also had a clumsy side. He was usually able to catch himself before really falling. One way to say it is that he was either lucky or just developed reflexes. He wondered if it was the same for Wildfire. In any case he and her were tough, it was going to take lot to get an injury.

At least he was right about the fact that she was hunting but it didn't seem like she was done with small prey. Not a lot of time has passed so that should be expected. Wildfire talked about having team to hunt larger prey. Nishu thought about it for a moment. On her own she could only do so much. Hunting isn't all about catching the target. Part of it is also being able to work as a team.

"I take it that today you learned a lot. It's kind of difficult to ignore mistakes when you failed." He said with a small smile. Talking about this subject would make Nishu think about all his failures. It lead him to ask a question that doesn't have a clear answer. "How many mistakes do you think It will take to become perfect?" He asked her and to himself.

On the more current matter. "A pair is stronger than two but it is different than hunting alone. Do you believe to be ready to work as a team? It is where others really depend on you." He asked wanting to know what she thought. Hunting larger prey is better as a team but mistakes can be much heavier than just going solo.

In hindsight, she supposed it was only a matter of time before Nishu's concern became patronizing. Wildfire sighed inwardly, though she remained positive even as he pointed out she would learn from all her mistakes. He was right, of course. Her lips pursed at his question.

"That's a trick question," she replied in a chipper tone. "Nobody's perfect." And she certainly wouldn't waste her time aspiring to be something so absurdly unattainable. "But I'll definitely keep improving, learning from my successes and my failures," she added. Wildfire knew they were equally important when it came to progress.

"I've hunted with a team several times," she patiently pointed out to him. "Floki and I often partner up, for instance, and then I've participated in a couple of pack hunts now." Wolves were built to hunt in packs, after all. "I've gotten pretty good at working with others in that department. I just prefer hunting small prey because I can do it literally any time, whether or not anyone else is available. You know?"

Wildfire shifted and, in doing so, realized her side was tweaking worse than she had previously thought. "Oof, maybe I should go ask Thistle if she has something for pain," she mumbled aloud. She was the only healer in the pack, as far as she knew, though her eyes flicked to Nishu's face—she abruptly realized she now outranked him—and said hopefully, "Unless you happen to know something about medicine...?"

So nobody was perfect. Nishu didn't really believe that for several reasons but that wasn't what suddenly bothered him. He realized that he's only been guessing what everyone was doing and always expect everyone to be doing their own thing. It appeared like that at the Sunspire or perhaps it was because he was completely focused on serving Rain as her Knight. The only wolf he really knows was Rain and after all this time being here she was still the only one he knows.

It made him question all his interactions with the other members. All he has really done was judge by appearances and said everything based on that. He underestimated everyone's abilities only because it was safer that way as long as they were allies. So Wildfire, Floki, Charon and the others were likely more experience than he expected. Again He's making mistakes but it was more than he could process. What was worse was the feeling of uselessness. It made it easy for him to believe that his place wasn't here in this pack, not even at Rain's side. The pack itself would be able to take care of her better than he ever could.

His feelings of anger and frustration were slowly breaking free but it wasn't enough to cause him to vent against Wildfire but enough to show that he was bothered by it. "Seems like you've already grown into it. Then that means you are already useful to the pack." She was actually doing better than him so there was nothing he could do to help her improve more. If he did help he would probably make it worse.

He decide to start leaving. He didn't want to show how he was feeling right now. He headed downwards. "Only use medicine if you really need it, but that's just an opinion of someone who doesn't know much about them." He said with a voice colder and darker than his usual proud confident tone. "You seem fine so I'll be going now."

Perhaps his job here was done long ago now that he lost his touch. But he still had the goal of showing the world here how great Knights are, which seems like some impossible dream now. If only there was something he could do to make everyone believe in Knights.

She was a fairly modest wolf, yet Wildfire knew she was useful to the pack. Otherwise, she wouldn't even be here. She said nothing in reply to his statement, though her brows began to knit ever so slightly. Something about Nishu's demeanor had shifted abruptly, though it was so subtle, she couldn't put a finger on it.

Then he rose to leave, his words sounding suddenly cold. Wildfire made no move to stop him, only blinking dumbly after Nishu as he slunk away. She idly wondered why anyone would use medicine if they didn't need it, though she was much more troubled by his abrupt departure. Had she done something to offend him?

The young she-wolf sat there a moment, thinking back over the conversation. She did have a way of accidentally offending others sometimes; her brain and mouth could be as clumsy as her feet. But she couldn't think of a single thing she'd said wrong. Eventually, her only option was to shrug and let it go.

She decided to resume her earlier tracking. Nearly the same moment she began moving again—mindful of her sore flank—she detected the scent of the mountain goats Nishu had discovered earlier. It was tempting to track them, for observational purposes only. But then Wildfire spotted a mouse scurrying across the scree at her feet. She flashed briefly to the earlier bite, then pounced. The tiny rodent squashed beneath her petite paw and the huntress finally savored the taste of success.