Lakeside Escapades
Bold = Seasonal
Italics = Biorhythm
Underlined = Background
The land was bare. The few scattered blades of grass trying to survive in the heat were wilting in the ever oppressive heat of summer. Cracks splintered their way through what had been a lush field during spring.
An abnormal heat wave seemed to be persisting through both mountains and plains this year. Reports of fires were frequent, more frequent than usual despite the scarcity of thunderstorms. Almost two frequent.
Unlike most Stryx when Void heard of unusual feats of nature she started looking around for a perpetrator. In her eyes it was far more likely that some uppity Stryx was lighting fires somewhere. She was going to make the most of the longer summer days to try and track down whatever idiot was messing around in her territory.
Depending on what they were like she would simply move them on. Where they moved on to was a different matter. She had recently found a gorgeous little cave that would be perfect for a new Corva friend to move into. Just the right amount of space.
Willingness was optional, as always. They always learnt that she knew what was best for them.
Eventually.
That however was a problem for later. Right now Void had a slightly different priority. Before she could dedicate herself to hunting down the trouble maker she had two short term things she needed to deal with. First she needed to go on a short hunt. Then she needed to figure out where that young Harpia had disappeared to. It was mildly concerning that Void had expected to see her again.
Still, hunting first, she’d be able to think better once her stomach wasn’t demanding attention. It wasn’t exactly her fault that the harshness of the summer had driven her usual prey further and further from her lair in search of food. As always when prey was scarce she had to travel a fair distance to find something to hunt.
This evening was turning out to be a glorious time for a long flight. The sun radiating enough heat to warm the feathers on her wings pleasantly even as it sunk below the horizon. Lacking the harshness that it brought with it during the day.
Void kept a sharp eye on the ground below, tracking the change from mountain to foothills and then again on to the open plain. The plain was where she was aiming to hunt tonight. The grass, normally long and green, had died off in the heat of the summer. It left the usually lush plain closer to a barren wasteland. As she flew overhead Void watched the dirt rise and scatter through the air. Borne aloft by a mild breeze that sent it blowing across the field.
Still it seemed as if her prey wasn’t this close to home tonight. No, she would have to go on. There was a small lake not too much further. It was a pretty little spot even in all this heat. The water providing relief from the heat. Especially as the coolness of the water was complemented by the plants that flourished near the water’s edge. It was one of the few places were there was any plants that would tempt prey to remain in the area.
Adding to its appeal was the fact that Void had never encountered another Stryx in the area. With one exception. She had seen that odd little Harpia hatchling somewhere near here. By one of the mountain rivers that fed into the lake. Still that was a thought for another time. It was best she paid attention to where she was now.
Turning her gaze downward Void spotted the point at which the brown grass gave way to a greener tinge; beyond the grassy border the shining silver, the last of the suns light, reflected back to her by the water. Peering through the glare she spied exactly what she had been hoping to find here. A small herd of deer were grazing by the water.
None of them had seen her so far so Void changed her angle of approach. Moving so that she would be hidden by the uncertain light rather than standing out as the last light of the sun shone on her feathers. It was one of the few disadvantages that she had found that came with possessing gorgeous white plumage.
Still, she knew she needed to focus so she put thoughts of her feathers out of her mind for now. It was time to focus on the hunt. Deer were one of her preferred prey, they frequented the twilight hours just as she did. However the fading light often worked in her advantage, to the downfall of her prey.
Void closed the distance between her and her prey swiftly. Keen eyes picked out a deer a shade darker than the rest. It appealed to her, choosing out the darker things in life from time to time. Unfortunately this deer had caught her eye and she very rarely let such things escape her talons.
Judging the distance as being close enough Void dropped from the sky, plummeting towards the ground and the deer awaiting her there. Some saw either her or her shadow and darted away, scattering the rest of the herd. The peacefulness of the grazing herd ruined as their instinctive reaction to flee from predators took hold.
As swift as the deer were they were no match for a hunting Royal. Twisting in the air Void brought her talons to bear. Stretching them out to ensure she had the best possible opportunity to take firm grasp of her prey. She gave herself just a moment to brace, then:
Impact.
Flesh parted beneath her talons as they pierced the hide of her prey. The momentum of her flight driving the deer into the ground below her. Knowing that she had the deer securely gripped in her talons Void moved to end its suffering. She knew others who played with their food but it had never been something that she had taken pleasure in personally.
A quick snap of her beak was all it took to put an end to the deer. Retracting her talons Void made sure to give them a quick shake. Wiping them in the grass she decided her talons were as clean as they were going to get in a hurry. It wasn’t as if she had company and now that she had successfully brought down her prey she was eager to sate her hunger.
It was a messier business than she really preferred to engage in but Void was realistic enough to know that she needed to eat. It wasn’t as if she had a rider to pretty up the meat for her so Void made do as best she could.
Eating a single deer never took that long and it was the matter of only a few moments to preen her herself afterwards. Hunger sated for the moment Void turned her attention to the problem that had led her to venture out into this particular part of the wider world. That curious little Harpia she had encountered the other day had gone missing.
Not that Void had been looking for her. Rather she had noticed that the youngling had a certain pattern of behaviour. A routine, if you will, that made it very easy to keep an eye on her. It was slightly erratic if others interacted with her but there was consistency of a sort within the chaos.
It would never do to admit that she missed a little bit of that chaos infecting her life from time to time. It wouldn’t do for others to think that she might ever care for teaching hatchlings to hunt. It wasn’t even as if Void would ever admit that much after all. Not even to herself.
Perhaps especially not to herself.
Still, even though she was planning on looking for the hatchling, Void never expected her to drop out of the sky into the lake beside her. It was something she could never have predicted. Neither was the company that she suddenly had. Another Harpia had landed nearby and was chuckling at the hatchlings misfortune.
Obviously they weren’t going to be of help so Void decided to take matters into her own claws. A quick fly over the lake and some quick thinking netted her one soggy hatchling. Still a wet hatchling on the shore was far better than a floundering hatchling in the water.
With the smug grin and overbearing attitude the second Harpia was giving off it was very clear both that they were male and that they thought they had just pulled off some sort of grand plan. Void found herself narrowing her eyes at him. Whoever this interloper was they would learn to leave hers alone.
One way or another; preferably the solution would be decisively permanent.
Turning on him aggressively she took a rather decisive snap at him, gaining a mouthful of feathers but missing the skin underneath. He went from amused o aggressive in the blink of an eye and screeched a challenge back at her. Honestly, the nerve of this pest. Before Void could make up her mind whether to really go after him for the insult she was interrupted by a squelchy wing.
Scota had gotten up and some point and thrown herself between the two of them. Either that or she was trying to give Void a hug. It was difficult to tell exactly what the hatchling was trying to do. Scota was smaller than Void so it wasn’t as if she was able to reach to wrap her wings around the larger Royal.
Still it was kind of endearing, Void was contemplating calling it cute when a harsh voice cut the though in half.
“She’s your friend? With that odd little thing in the middle of her face? I mean sure she’s Royal but she’s just a Tyto and that kind of ruins the whole image she seems to be trying for.”
Arrogant and condescending then, just the sort of Stryx Void preferred to help relocate. Narrowing her eyes she fixed the male with a glare. Daring him to comment again. Instead of speaking up some more he just matched her glare with his own.
“What are you two staring at each other for?”
The unexpected query came from Scota. Turning Void saw that she had moved slightly and was now looking backwards and forwards between the two of them. The hatchling stepped away, moving so that she could see them both easily. Then she waited, determination etched on her features.
Resisting the urge to sigh Void replied.
“Nothing.”
Void was not expecting to hear the same comment come from the male at the same time. Judging by the sneer he gave her he wasn’t exactly appreciative about that coincidence either. That said apparently the hatchling was very interested. In fact she almost looked pleased.
“…well clearly its something because you both said that at the same time in the same tone of voice. Although if you are that in sync…wait – are you two secretly best friends?!! That is so cool! Next time you can take me hunting together, I’m sure I can learn heaps from both of you.”
Void looked away from Scota, her gaze meeting that of the male. This time when their eyes met she turned away in disgust. Nothing would be worth being friends with that one. That was an idea that she had to nip in the bud as soon as she could. Before it took root and grew in the fertile ground of Scota’s imagination.
“That sounds like a fantastic idea.”
WHAT. No, he didn’t just do that. He couldn’t possibly have any idea of what that meant. Head turning almost against her will she snuck a glance at him.
That rotten bird.
He knew exactly what he was doing if that smirk was any indication. He had set it up so that she either had to go along with this insanity or damage Scota’s opinion of her. If she had realised he was this sly she would have been more cautious.
At some point she was going to have to look into how and when she had gotten quite that attached to the hatchling. That was a thought for another time though. Right now she had to figure out exactly how to deal with this male upstart.
Whatever this male was called he was quickly proving to be the sort that she really would prefer not pollute the general population of Stryx in the area. If she knew where he made his nest she would be sorely tempted to help him relocate.
Now there was an idea.
Perhaps this wasn’t a complete waste of time. If she agreed to this, considering he wanted to keep close to Scota, there was a good chance for her to learn where he lived. Then Void could pay him a visit and deal with him, one way… or another.
A permanent solution was always best in her books.
Suppressing a smile of her own Void answered, sweet and simple.
“Fantastic is precisely the right word.”
That statement gained her two very different responses. The male looked as if he would be perfectly willing to fight her right then and there. Clearly he hadn’t expected her to call his bluff. Scota on the other hand threw herself at Void to give her yet another slightly damp hug.
It was difficult to say which reaction pleased her more. At the very least there promised to be something very interesting in her future.
Even if it was a slight dash of torment for a soon-to-be exile.
Payment for Toffee-Tama
Wordcount: 2,285
Featured Stryx:
Void-Destiny-12185
AP Count:
+1 Seasonal
+2 Background
+1 Biorhythm
+2 Hunting
+2 Other Stryx
+11 Word Count
Total = 19 AP
Scota-8486 & Stalker-11582
AP Count:
+1 Seasonal
+2 Background
+2 Other Stryx
+11 Word Count
Total = 16 AP