[ Original on Gaia here ]

In your first post, please roll 1d8 (one eight-sided die) to see what animal your kin will be facing today.

Jun D rolled 1 8-sided dice: 8 Total: 8 (1-8)

8. the swan - Oh, how lovely! Look at...how wide that wingspan i - oh shit. -1 to your roll.

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Shroud loved these festive fairs: the hustle and bustle, the wheeling and dealing, the oohs and the aahs – all that life! That was what was in the crisp winter air, sheer life. He couldn't see a whit of what was going on, of course, but sounds and scents there were a plenty, and he bounded eagerly between the booths with the brightest fragrances, the loudest noise.

And there was a lot of noise coming from this spot.

He could hear it, the beautiful fluttering of great wings.

"What bird is that?" he cheerfully asked, stepping forward – somebody answered.

"A swan!" he cried with delight, "oh, I can scarcely think of anything more delightful!"

To fight, make another post and roll 2d10 (two ten-sided dice). The first die represents how well the animal did. Tremble in fear, puny mortal kin! The second die represents how well you did - but wait! Remember to add your modifier from the table above. Next, compare the two numbers. If the second number (yours!) is greater than the familiar's, well, you win a token! If your number is lower...well. Maybe you can try again tomorrow!

Jun D rolled 2 10-sided dice: 8, 3 Total: 11 (2-20) [-1 modifier = 8, 2]

The advantage of being blind was that he couldn't be intimidated by this creature he...hadn't actually yet realised he was supposed to fight (so it wasn't really an advantage but that's hardly the point). He could not be terrified by the ridiculously massive wingspan – the feathers so strong and shiny they might as well have been made of steel. He could not be petrified by the savage beak, snapping and snarling and viciously stabbing, declaring its intent better than any words could do – although the wild honking was doing a pretty good job of that too, just not to the genteelly smiling Shroud. He could not be practically paralysed by the sheer bulk and menace of the bird, murder flashing in its beady eyes, as it barrelled mercilessly towards him...

The disadvantage was that he didn't see it coming. And, since he was just standing there without a clue, it was pretty much the same outcome as being practically paralysed.

"Wh – OOF!"

The air was knocked out of his lungs all at once as the bird crashed him to the ground. He flailed, wheezing and gasping for breath – but, oh no, the swan was having none of that: "HONK, HONK!!" it screamed, stamping all over his body, "HONK, HONK," it screamed, stomping up and down on his head, grinding his face into the dirt.

THAT WOULD TEACH THE KIN. THAT WOULD TEACH THE BLOODY KIN.

"O-ow" he gasped, barely audible, "ow – ow!"

He kicked a desperate leg – oh no, the swan was having none of that!! A brutal peck elicited a heartfelt scream, except quite softly because he didn't have much in him. Was it broken? The only thing he could feel from it was unending pain and – oh, he could still move it...sort of...a bit...at least it wasn't broken.

"Ow," he wheezed, eking out, faintly, between bouts of getting his muzzle stamped back into the dirt, "t-this is really...o-ow...really h- ow...hurting quite...a...lot...!"

"HOOOOONK!!!!!" the swan screamed.

THE KIN WOULD KNOW HIS PLACE.

It was quite a long few moments before he could finally gasp again, with a considerable amount of panic in his increasingly feeble voice, "I – I say...what's actually going on?!"

Someone was telling him something...he strained – it was actually pretty hard to hear the words, although he wasn't sure whether it was because of the swan stomping his head into mush or the ever more insistent ringing in his ears...what? What was that?

"F...f...fight...?!" he wheezed, "I thought...it was...a...petting zoo..."

K.O. perfect.

Amorpheous wrote:Last Night watch Zikwa flail for a few moments before it became clear that there was no recovery. Pity wasn't something that she felt--that required one to feel that the Swamp was meant to be fair--but she was not cruel. She stepped into the circle and herded the swan off the Zikwa with a firm, but gentle hoof. Most of these animals could be subdued with the right touch--kin hardly needed to use the amount of force that they were using in the circle.

The swan was agitated and honked to let all kin in the area know, but it still returned to its holding pen without so much as a jab in Last Night's direction. Last Night left the swan to settle its feathers and returned to the ring.

END