Fable - Ask The Ranging

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Fynaurie

Sky Dragoon
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Fynaurie woke with a start. She was blinking away the sleep for a full five seconds before she remembered why she felt such excitement. Today would be her first ranging.

She slid her pale legs out of her cot. The trainees slept in rooms of eight. Four pairs of cots cut into the stone walls. Jilleth was close to becoming a full Dragoon and had the cot above hers. Higher was always better. Fynaurie stuck out her head carefully and made sure she wasn't going to get kicked accidentally again. The others were not yet awake.

She quickly dressed into her leathers and tried to sneak out of the room as silently as possible. The door caught on the latch. She heard a groan of complaint from inside. Fynaurie had never quite mastered making herself quiet.

For all her excitement the stairs managed to sap some of the spring from her step. Higher was better, so the trainees were well below the eyrie itself. The full dragoons were able to sleep just below it. Barely two floors from their eagles. She couldn't imagine such a luxury. Not arriving in the eyrie with her leathers already soaked with sweat.

Everyone who lived in Kearth rode. It was their way of life. The dragoons were the best riders of course, or so Fyn would happily announce to anyone who asked. They protected Kearth and of course each of the other three cities inhabited by Sky Elves and their eagles had their own dragoons.

Not that there was much to defend against. Each tower was built high in the rocks where no one would both them. A feat they probably could not replicate today. Each was thousands of years old. There was no settlement within a hundred miles in any direction. They had not gone to war for three centuries, though they enjoyed the tale of chasing off a dragon a few decades ago when it had looked to settle in the mountains nearby.

It was an argument she had with her trainers when they chided her for not taking her job seriously. Those arguments usually fell on deaf ears and led to additional chores. Old elves took themselves far too seriously.

She was too excited to feel truly hungry, but she stopped at their kitchens. Weary dragoons who had returned from their sorties were talking over bowls of hit soup. She grabbed some bread and some jerky for her bag and continued on her way. They all wore their full leathers, coloured to match the blues and reds of their eagles. Her own leathers were drab shades of grey with just a touch of blue trim to mark her as a trainee.

She was still chewing when she made her way into the eyrie. She could see a few tired dragoons had just fallen asleep near their mounts. Some eagles were said to tolerate as much. She suspected that if she tried to curl up in Vaxor's nest that he would nip at her until she left.

There was a row of ether-glaives on the wall. Dormant, but their blades still gave off a gentle glow. Despite having trained with a regular lance she would not be allowed to even hold one until the next stage of her trainint. A dragoon could dive with an ether-glaive in hand, when they approached the ground a beam of pure light would eviscerate the ground beneath them. If Fyn thought she could get away with it she would have tried one out. Knowing her nature the senior dragoons watched her carefully whenever she was near them.

She grinned as she heard Vaxor's greeting call. She was glad he was here. The eagles came and went as they pleased and although she had asked him to be here for their ranging she was early and the eagles did not always consider time in the same way.

"Morning you," she said softly. He bowed his head in greeting, turning an amber eye the size of a saucer towards her.

The great eagles were intelligent creatures. Perhaps as much as the elves they lived with. They could certainly understand the elvish spoken here, though they could not communicate it back to their riders.

Vaxor turned his head to preen at his feathers before stopping and looking down at her. A clear sign that he was in a lazy mood and wanted her to do some grooming. They never let their brilliant feathers fall into dissaray and would preen all the time, but grooming together was part of how they bonded.
 
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Fynaurie slowly worked her way back through his feathers. Small hands could easily part the fronds, clean them, and then smooth them out again. It was about the only time when Fyn was quiet and focused on a task.

"Ouch!" She went, rounding on Vaxor. "Enough of that!"

Vaxor had picked up a particular way of letting her know that he didn't want her to groom where she was. A simple peck to the rump seemed to get the point across.

Honnay's rohk Fath'n had copied the habit, much to her chagrin. He was usually such a sweet bird and had even taken the time to make a nest of fluff next to his own for when Honnay was too exhausted after a long ride. Vaxor felt a sense of guilt that the practise had started with her bird.

"Look, we've got to keep things...calm today. It's important."

Vaxor tilted his head towards her, rattling his feathers.

"No, I know it's boring like this. And I know that because they don't trust me to go beyond the watchtowers alone it means you can't go far alone when I'm riding. Just think. We'll be Sky Dragoons soon, like them..."

She pointed to two of them over by the rack of ether-glaives. Those with professions wore the colours of their factions on their livery. The rohk had their wing tips dyed and wore coloured equipment to match their riders. The birds wore their colours with as much pride as the riders. The dragoons wore bright shades of turquoise with scarlet trim. They always stood out.

Vaxor gave a slow nod. He reared up and stretched his wings. Fynaurie could have lived in a house beneath his wingspan, it was so great.

"Want to get out there already huh? Come on then."
 
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Daethel was not one to rise early and move quickly. She slowly moved out of the bunk, slipping into respectable clothing and boots for the day. Dark hair was combed out, her face scrubbed clean of any sleep, pale skin now flushed from the cold water. Daethel moved quietly, slipping into the passageways and into the busier portions of large,stone building.

Reaching the kitchens, Daethel ate quietly and at a leisurely pace. There was little that rattled her - including the possibility of being late. Spoon scraped the last of the bowl shortly later before rising, finding her way higher up the stairs and out into the brilliant morning sunshine. Daethel was one of the last stragglers to arrive, besides the eagles of course - they came and went on their own time clock.

Hanging off at the edge of the groups, dark eyes watched those gathered, most focused on the tasks at hand. Buzzing around with an incredible amount of too much energy was Fynauria , Daethel wasn't sure how to take the other. A little too energetic and questioning for her tastes.

Moving her gaze away from the group, Daethel moved to an empty space, waiting for her bird to arrive in order to begin the day.
 
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"Morning!" Fynaurie chirped nervously towards Daethel. The girl was entirely too quiet for Fynaurie. It made her feel like she was busy plotting something. How could anyone not be full of excitement as their first ranging?

Today they would be taken far beyond the watchtowers. Off to the wilds of the east. They would perhaps see creatures they had never even seen in a picture before.

Most importantly they would be allowed to fly much further from Kearth on their own.

"They're out hunting still?" She asked of Daethel 's Eagle. Vaxor pushed his enormous beak against the side of Fynaurie's hip. Checking if she had a bag of dead rabbits for snacks. He voiced his disappointment at a lack of such treats.
 
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"Good Morning."

Daethel was quieter in tone compared to Fynauria , the others eagle had already arrived and seemed to be waiting somewhat impatiently. Seemed similar to the rider if one was to ask her. Eagle followed Fynauria, claws gripping the ledge firmly.

"Yes. I imagine Sidh will return shortly."

Keen brown eyes watched the exchange between rider and mount.

"Your eagle seems eager to reach the skies. Disappointed by lack of treats as well."
 
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"Oh Vaxor's alright really," she said.

Vaxor made a grumpy squark that suggested otherwise.

"Well, silly, you should have gone out hunting with Sidh and the others shouldn't you?" Fynaurie said, rounding on her rohk.

Vaxor lifted his beak in a regal manner that suggested he wasn't going to dignify that with a response.

"Are you coming with us on the ranging? Is this your first time too?" Fynaurie asked. She was normally one of the noisiest elves around, but now she was powered by nervous excitement too.
 
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Daethel patted the side of Vaxor's neck carefully, a small comfort at the mention of he should have went out to hunt with the others in the early morning. She was unsure how far they were indeed riding today, somewhere beyond the watchtowers. To Daethel, the watchtowers were far flung in the distance, father than she had ever been.

"Yes, it will be the furthest I have ever been."

Points in the distance were growing larger. The eagles.

"Looks as if they are returning."
 
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"And that's exciting isn't it?" Fynaurie replied enthusiastically. As if of one mind the group meandered out of the way of the entrance. A rohk had a wing span as wide as five men were tall. An elf did not want to get caught up in the landing of a great eagle.

Their existence was slightly isolated from the rest of the world. Their great tower far from the world of men, a long way from the last elven cities on the ground and even the closest dwarven mines were empty.

They had a bustling community, but from the heights of an Eagle in flight Fynaurie could see so far. Lands that looked so close she could reach out and touch them. She wanted to experience it all.
 
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"Yes, it is exciting."

Daethel stepped back as the eagles drew closer, letting the giants perch with ease. Sidh clicked his beak at her before preening his feathers, as if his presentation in front of the others assembled was paramount. Daethel often wondered what the eagles had seen that she hadn't - the girl had never left the lands owned by elves. Her only view of outsiders had come from travelers and in volumes of books.

Hand reached up to pat the regal postured Sidh, gaze leaving the horizon to look back at Fynaurie .If anyone was vibrating with excitement it was the girl.

"Ready to mount?"
 
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"Yeah! We should get out and find some altitude early and..."

"You'll all wait until the group is assembled," a deep voice cut across the eyrie.

Fynaurie rolled her eyes at Daethel. She took a step forwards and turned around. Daethel probably wouldn't appreciate the movement which made it seem like the two were allies against Brynthas.

Deep lines of age were etched into the face of the commander of the Sky Dragoons. As a stern and serious elf. He did not appreciate Fynaurie. Beside him was Hindrath, the effortlessly handsome young elf whose beauty could not be appreciated because - as Fynaurie liked to boldly declared his head was always wedged up Brynthas' backside. He was pure lacky material.
 
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While Daethel could appreciate Brynthas to a point - he was a wizened old elf with ages of experience. He had seen more than she could ever dream of. Hindrath on the other hand, irritated the young elf to no end. Having no special skills or abilities to set himself apart he had firmly attached himself to Brynathas' hindquarters like a parasite.

"Perhaps the group should be on time then."

A bold move but Daethel wasn't well liked amongst her peers either way. There was no reason to worry about her reputation now.
 
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"She we head outside and check the sundial to see if I was late?" Brynthas offered. He immediately moved on from the idea, having made his point.

"Today is not a joy ride. Whether you intend to join the dragoons or not, you must be here because you want to sortie beyond our watchtowers alone. That means this is a test. I want to see how you fly, how you signal, how you watch for danger.

" Is that understood?" he asked, just as he walked past Fynaurie. He looked down at her with one slender eyebrow arched high.

"Yes sir," she replied meekly. Vaxor gave a soft chitter of acknowledgement from behind her too.
 
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Daethel resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Sundial. Of course she couldn't quite voice her opinion on how it wouldn't be a bad idea to check such a thing once in awhile - probably would come off as sarcastic. Instead she stared off into the horizon next to Sidh, listening to what would be expected of them. Daethel hadn't thought the experience as one to relax on. At least not for her - she had been sheltered in the area her entire life. To expand beyond the watch towers was incredibly exciting but also extremely frightening to think about.

"Understood."

Eyes glanced over to Fynauria ,wondering if the commander thought the young elf was going to abscond and not return, not follow protocol. Brows narrowed, wondering if there was a history of such a thing from Fynauria .
 
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She would see Fynaurie briefly poke out her tongue at the man's back. However, across the room his Eagle let out a soft squark.

"Really Fynaurie?" he asked without turning to look at her over his shoulder.

She went cherry red.

"We take to the sky," Brynthas declared. "Find a thermal, we reach altitude then I want a clean vee formation. We go to the Eastern watchtower and then into the wilds. We will hunt and set up camp on the ground. We will perform group maneuvers on the way back. Is that clear?"

Fynaurie's expression changed to one of unbridled enthusiasm. She had never been on the ground so far from home.
 
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Daethel paled slightly at the mention of camping on the ground. The idea of being on the ground so far away from the familiar sights of home was a bit frightening. Having limited experience she worried about what types of creatures and beings they would encounter. Hunting? Daethel was used to hunting but trying to track down and kill an unknown and unpredictable animal could prove very dangerous.

Yet she was probably getting ahead of herself.

Instead she mounted Sidh after her moment of self-doubt. Being on the bottom of the rungs in the class, Daethel's formation spot in the vee was towards the back, following those leading. She preferred not to be in the spotlight so the position worked for her - it gave her more opportunities to observe and take in various unknown sights.
 
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Fynaurie didn't like being at the back of the group. She didn't like following. She was headstrong and liked to be in charge of her own destiny. For all the freedom they had, she couldn't see the point of wasting it on something as constricting as a formation.

On Vaxor's saddle was her spear and her bow, but she couldn't help casting a jealous look at the ether glaives carried by real dragoons. One day she would earn her own and it would make this whole tedious business worth it.

The Eastern watchtower was visible now. A single Eagle could be seen circling high above. They were tiny structures compared to Kearth. They had smooth walls and no doors, built only as a sage landing space for their guards to watch the borders of their territory.

Fynaurie tried signing at Daethel

Bored yet?
 
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Fingers curled tight on the saddle as she peered off to the one side of Sidh, looking at the greenery below them. She was unworried about falling, time spent on her mount and perfecting her balance had seen to being confident. Unlike Fynauria there was an excitement headed out into the air. She personally had never travelled this far so any sight - even just green treetops, was something to behold. Perhaps in a few trips the excitement would wear down for her.

Eyes caught the sign and she shrugged, coming to sit ram-rod straight on Sidh once again. No need to get a talking to about 'not paying attention' to their surroundings. She was perfectly aware of what was happening.
 
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"Why does no one else find this boring?" she asked Vaxor.

He offered nothing more than a curt chirp in response. Flying in formation just came naturally to the rohk and Vaxor was quite content to sail along. He was probably scanning the landscape below with his incredible eyesight.

The Eagle from the watchtower rose up to meet them, doing a single fly by before returning to his post.

The ranging continued on. The jagged mountainscape slowly changing to fertile deep greens.

Eventually the signal came from the front. They started descending. This was going to be the furthest from home she had set feet on the ground by a very, very long way.
 
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