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Aria let out a laugh when Jack said carrying her down could be done "easily enough". "Perfect," she commented in amusement. She now was starting to realize truly how versatile Jack had become from living in the mountains. It would probably even be quicker, she thought, if he carried her, and her scraped skin would be able to heal quicker. If her weight put a strain on Jack she would gladly climb herself, but she had a feeling he was so strong that it wouldn't matter. She turned to face him, stepping closer. "Ready or not," she warned and suddenly hopped onto Jack piggyback style. She snuggled her body securely against his. "How does this feel?"
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Jack staggered as Aria lept on his back, her legs wrapping around his torso and her arms clutched his shoulders. He looked over his shoulder at her, grinning as she snuggled close to his back. ”Not as large as Sylv, nor as painful if you lose your balance, I think,” he answered, ”since you won’t be digging claws in.” Careful to maintain his balance, he undid the rope around his waist and began to carefully tie it around the pair of them so she wouldn’t fall off if her grip weakened while still keeping his hands free. Then he tugged at his pack strap, shifting it as best he could so her weight wasn’t forcing it against his back.
Satisfied he’d secured her as well he could, he began scaling the mountain side. Some areas he could simply walk, although carefully due to their steep angle, other areas he had to climb. Sylvannas kept pace with him, of course. So much more agile than he, she could balance on the smallest of ledges. At one point, she even lay down on the ledge while he negotiated his way down one of the cliff faces. “If you had changed, you could have just flown down,” she commented.
"Little harder… to carry her… with the… glacinox…” he panted, looking down the crags for the next lower foothold.
“Easy enough to carry me,” she laughed.
"Think you're... a bit heavier... than she is..." he responded, grunting as he reached down for a new handhold.Last edited by HyrulianBlackcat; 03-29-2016, 12:26 AM.Phillipians 4:13 - I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
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Aria clung to Jack tight as they made their way down the mountain. She only took one glance down the steep slope to decide it would be better if she avoided looking that way. Most of the time she found herself admiring Jack's ability to do what he was doing. As she held on she could feel all his muscles working under her and she kind of liked it. "You must be the strongest man I've ever met," she praised warmly. "I don't know if any cityfolk could climb like this." The more agile soldiers probably could, but not so effortlessly.Comment
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He grunted in response, having reached a particularly difficult area on the cliff face. He didn't respond until he reached a more level spot and was able to sit for a few minutes. He untied Aria so she could move around the small ledge while he rested a few minutes to catch his breath. Only then did he say, "I don't know about the strongest. I just know these mountains. I know what handholds are safe and which ones are slick. Sylvanas is better than I am." He gestured to the lynx, who was laying on another ledge, so steep itself that she almost appeared to be laying vertically and yet still appeared to be completely at ease.Phillipians 4:13 - I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
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As she held on, Aria's heartbeat pounded and she was too anxious to listen to the second half of what Jack said. She could only find comfort in little remarks, or flirts in his ear. "So humble too," she beamed. She had been avoiding looking down for most of the climb, but couldn't help a glance back once they were moving along. The view was getting clearer and to her surprise, Aria didn't feel sick from looking. It wasn't that they had already descended that much, but she was starting to feel more at ease. Before they had been climbing for an hour she felt much less jittery. The experience quickly wore down any fear she had of heights.Comment
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Jack continued to negotiate his way down the mountain until nearly nightfall. While the added weight of Aria ensured that he remain cautious with his scaling, he was so comfortable with the mountainous terrain that he moved more rapidly than any who had not trained in the heights. As it started growing dark, he found a path to a larger, more level area of the mountain for a camp. It was still somewhat chilly down here, but there was no snow, only pine needles that released their fragrant scent when crushed. He then undid the rope that kept Aria to his back and set her down. He rolled his shoulders, grinning at her. "Give me just a minute and I'll light a fire." He wasn't panting, exactly, but his breathing was definitely heavier than before starting down the trail. His muscles ached more than had since he had first started exploring the mountains on his own. He always enjoyed the exertion, but he knew he'd have to be careful when he settled down for the night so those muscles didn't seize.Last edited by HyrulianBlackcat; 11-30-2017, 02:42 PM.Phillipians 4:13 - I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
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Aria's legs wobbled when she landed on her feet. She had been squeezing Jack more tightly than she'd realized the whole way down, so her muscles were quite tired as well. "Take a rest, Jack," she said as she sat on a boulder herself. "I'm surprised you're not going limp after all that." A few seconds later Jack's rest was over because she realized how hungry she had gotten. "You brought food?"Comment
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Jack nodded as he began building a small fire. His hands were beginning to shake, a small punishment for the day's exertion, and he took several tries to successfully strike steel against flint to spark the fire. When the small blaze finally started, he sat back and watched to make sure it didn't go out, using the moment to gather himself and force the shaking under control. "You never know what happens up here. Sometimes you can't get home and you have to spend days on your own. So it's a good habit to always keep plenty of food and water around, just in case." He shifted the pack from his back and began pulling out dried strips of meat and nutbread. He handed Aria some, then offered some to Sylvanas. The lynx sniffed it, turned away, and slinked into the gathering darkness. He watched her go with an amused smile and turned back to Aria. "She never did like anything older than a few minutes," he commented, biting into some of his portion.Phillipians 4:13 - I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
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Aria munched on the bread, hesitant to try the meat as she had never seen it dried out like that. She still could barely imagine life here. She thanked the goddesses they were almost off the mountain. "Ew," she laughed at Jack's last comment. She simply was not used to wild animals. "So how did you learn to speak lynx?"Comment
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He shrugged. "Stari teach their children to speak the languages of birds, predators, and prey. But I've never been as fluent as my parents. My ma could spend hours listening to the passing birds when we came this far down. She could sing as well as any canary. Pa preferred to keep to himself, though. He was always scared he'd hurt someone." He paused, thoughtfully chewing his food. "Come to think of it, most animals avoided our cave. I wonder if he warned them off somehow?"Phillipians 4:13 - I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
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Thinking about what Jack said, Aria realized that the world must be experienced way differently by Stari if they could truly understand animal speak. "That's amazing," she said. "Wonder if people who aren't Stari could learn that." At that moment, a small bird swooped down in front of where she sat and stared. It didn't look familiar, certainly not like the dull grey birds that could be found in the city. This one had a pretty greenish black color. She couldn't help laughing at the expression in the bird's eyes. It wouldn't move, just kept staring. When she tossed the bird a crumb, it nibbled it up quick but wouldn't leave. "How do I say hi?" she asked, assuming Jack knew.Comment
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Jack started to answer that he wasn't sure when a little bird appeared. He frowned at the chirri, surprised to see one so close. He glanced over his shoulder, making sure Sylvannas was still catching her own dinner. He didn't want the lynx to start teasing him. Bird was one language he understood, but only because he had spent so much time listening to his mother speak to birds. Speaking it, on the other hand, was rather difficult. With his deep voice, he tended to sound like a strangled crow. Still, he could try. Hello, friend," he told the little chirri, then turned to Aria with a shrug. "Something like that, I think."Phillipians 4:13 - I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
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Aria frowned when Jack looked at her. He sounded good but she wouldn't have mistaken him for a bird. She just went with what she thought it was supposed to sound like, and made her voice sound as birdlike as she could. "Hey little guy!" she said in a friendly chirp. What she wasn't expecting was for the bird to respond in a very similar voice. Not only an audible response but the bird raised it's wing in greeting. Now Aria felt crazy so her eyes looked back to Jack for an answer.Comment
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His mouth dropped as she trilled a greeting to the bird. Not even his mother sounded so similarly to the chirping of a songbird. And when the little chirri chirped back and raised its wing, it could have knocked him over with a feather. He didn't think anyone could get a response to immediately with an animal who was not previously accustomed to ground-bound furless two-legs speaking their language. When she turned to him, he could see she was just as confused as he, maybe even more so. He forced down his surprise and smiled. "That was-"
"Better than anything you could manage," Sylvannas said, returning with blood stained jaws.
Jack scowled at her. "I do my best," he told her, this time sounding like a growl as he dropped into the speech of the land bound predators. The languages were similar, as near all animals could understand one another, but the actual vocabulary tended to be different.Last edited by HyrulianBlackcat; 11-30-2017, 09:35 PM.Phillipians 4:13 - I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
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"Kinda freaky," Aria finished. From Jack's reaction she could assume she wasn't seeing things. She never thought she would be literally listening to what a bird has to say. Then again, she had seen even wilder things long ago with her brother. If it wasn't for that fact maybe she would have thought she was losing her mind. The chirri tweeted once again, and she heard it as a little beg. She tossed a few more crumbs and he chirped in thanks before chowing down. When it was done, the bird looked back up at Aria. "No more," she said once she felt a little less weird about trying her chirri voice. She couldn't help feeling like she was quickly pinning the sound down. She wasn't sure if the bird would understand her exactly but she tried to put in her intent. The bird seemed to cheep in protest and stared at the bread Aria was holding. It didn't seem like he was going to leave. Perhaps she would let him stay in case Jack really just taught her bird speak, as strange as it seemed. "Is this what it feels like when you do it?" she asked, looking for further confirmation that she was communicating like Jack did with Sylvanas.Last edited by Peeps; 11-30-2017, 09:55 PM.Comment
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