The Riddles of Life (Hyrulian Hero)

The Riddles of Life

Mountain sides, canyons, forests. They were all present. The countryside was riddled with huge snow peaked mountains, the mountains were riddled with deep canyons, the canyons were riddled with thick forests, the forests were riddled with slim rivers. Crécasta sat by the side of one of these slim rivers.

The narrow stream washed across Créa’s soft tanned feet. It felt heavenly on her travel worn toes, cleansing them of all the past few days’ filth. A small clearing encircled the slow flowing brook. Thin trees formed the edges of the glade, their skinny branches coated in small light green leaves that reached desperately towards the blue sky.

Créa rose from her seat on the river bank. She placed her thick elven boots back on her slender feet. They felt horrid after the pleasant fresh water. The Dúileach took one glance around the dell and then began to set off on her quest once more.

OoC:Ok I've left this completely open for you to just about anything with.

Originally Posted by Mr.Man

eleven boots

OoC: Eleven boots? How on earth does she get them all on only two feet? 0_o lol, j/k

BiC: Skif pushed back a lowhanging branch and ducked under it as he trekked along the base of the mountain. He dropped to his knees and ran his fingers over the leaf-strone ground, searching for any sign of his prey. His fingers and eyes roamed the ground fruitlessly for several more minutes before the Minish gave up and fell back against a tree.

Damn it, where is he? The warrior fummed. He had been searching for Aristo again, but he had appearently lost his trail awhile ago. At first, Aristo was simply a means for Skif to get his food, but now it had escalated into something more personal. Twice now, the wanted man had escaped from the elementalist's grasp. As the Minish got back to his feet, he promised himself that there would not be a third.

Looking around, Skif pondered what to do next. The forest continued before and behind him, and rose up into an ice-peaked mountain to the left, and dropped off into a canyon on the right. The ground here was hard, so it was possible that Aristo had gone this way, but hadn't left any tracks. Or, he could have gone off up the mountain, or down into the canyon.

Growling with frustration, Skif turned to his left and hiked up the jagged slope. He would find or make a cave to use as a base of operations, and continue his search from there in the morning. The traveler grabbed a jagged outcroping as the slope steepened, digging his boot into the rock. Suddenly, Skif was pressed against the shelf of rock as it cracked and broke off of the mountain, falling back down towards the ground.

Quickly, the elementalist carved a man-sized hole in the chunk of rock. the traveler managed to fit inside it just as it slammed into the mountain side. With a jarring shock, the boulder bounced off the mountain side, flipping over in mid air. After many more teeth-rattling bounces and dizzingly flashes of sky-earth-sky-earth, the boulder stopped bouncing.

Wearily, Skif sat up and looked around. With a yelp and heart-stopping shock, the Minish quickly layed abck down as the canyon walls sped past him. With a resonding thud, the rock harboring the minish fell through the trees and collided with the ground.

OoC: Ok I wasn't sure if it was just one rock that broke off or a full blown avalanche. I decided to go with the latter, it has made an interesting change of scenery.

One step, two step; the earth began to shake. Créa could sense it before she saw it. Gathering herself she began to spirit away from the tall mountain to her left and towards a large low hanging willow tree. The earth shook again, this time the tremors were worse than before.

The light woman continued to race towards the tree. Suddenly the air was filled with the sound of rock against rock, stone against stone. The entire mountainside seemed to be coming apart, piece by piece. Massive boulders began cascading down the steep gradient of the mountain.

Finally Créa made it to the base of the tree, she ran around to the other side of it and lent against the thick soft bark, gasping for breath. At least she had some projection now, all she could was hope; hope luck was with her.

A rock crashed down the mountainside, followed by a boulder, followed by pebbles, followed by foliage, followed by a sea of rocks, followed by a sea of boulders. This was a truly gigantic avalanche, she would be lucky to survive.

The current of stone was flowing towards her place by the base of the tree. The entire scene around her was vibrating uncontrollably. It shook harder and harder. A horrible sound filled the woman’s ears, it sounded like horrid shower of rain only it was not rain it was stone. Quite suddenly boulders began crashing past her sanctuary. For minutes she waited, waited for her final minute. It never came.

Slowly the shaking began to lessen; the sounds of nature began to return. Carefully Créa lifted her body from its resting place against the tree. The sight that greeted her was horrific. Where there had once been a beautiful lush green forest now stood a plain. A plain covered in stone, rock, broken branches, dwarfed tree stumps and a carpet of battered green leaves. A single solemn tree stood the tree that had saved her, the willow tree. It rose majestically into the sky, seeming like a king within this plain of destruction.

Coughing and groaning as he sat up, Skif waved the dust out of his face. As the dust settled, the Minish looked around, surveying the transformed landscape. A layer of gravel and rocks covered everything and everywhere, with just a few broken tree trunks and foliage poking through the gray blanket of dirt and rock.

Skif stood up and stepped out of the crevice in the rock that had sheltered him during the avalanche, sending more rocks and gravel to the ground. Directly in front of the warrior, was a lone tree; probably the only one unharmed. Automatically, the traveler began to walk towards it. As he did so, a thin, lithe form stepped out from behind it.

"H-hey," a feminine voice called, the figure hidden in the still unsettled cloud of dust. "Did you do that?"

"Uhhh......well, yeah." Skif answered, taken back by the question. Who was this person, and what did she want? Suddenly, the confusion of the avalanche lifted, and an idea occurred to the Minish. What if she was with Aristo? "Hey! What are you doing here? And are you alone, or is there anyone here with you?" Skif called, the dust finally dropping to the ground, leaving the two unveiled to the other.

The woman was quite thin, and her tanned body was covered with black tattoos. Her dark hair flowed behind her, carried on a warm breeze. She was, by most people's standards, scantily clad, with only select parts of her body covered. Skif had to admit, she was quite attractive, but he wasn't going to trust her just because of that.

"What business is it of yours? Are trying to hit on me or something?" The woman replied, arching an eyebrow.

“What? No!” Skif answered, shocked. “But answer my questions! Why are you here, and are you here alone?”

The tattooed woman huffed and turned on her heel. “Next time, be more careful! I almost got crushed because of your clumsiness!”

Slightly angered, Skif drew his trident and ran at the woman. The Duleach turned her head as he approached and leap to the side, landing on top of a large boulder.

“Hey! So now you’re attacking me?” She yelled, holding up her own weapons in front of her.

“No! I’ll leave you be if you just answer my queries!” Skif replied, holding up his double-ended trident. “But if you don’t, I’ll have to make you tell me!”

Créa stood flawlessly balancing apon the large boulder. Her eyes lay fixed on the unusual creature that stood below her, weapon in hand. To be honest she didn’t really think it looked capable of much harm, still she had better watch her back.

“Well now how do you plan on doing that? You don’t exactly look very agile and I’m the quickest woman you’ll ever come across.”

Créa’s taunts were taking effect on the Minish. With a deep grunt he plunged at her again, his trident leading. Effortlessly the nimble Crécasta leapt out of reach, landing with ease softly behind the Minish.

“So what were you saying? Something about making me tell you something? If ask me again, nicely this time, I might tell you.”

With a playful wink Créa lowered herself into a defensive position.

“Quiet, woman! I’ll skewer you apon my trident if you keep up with these insults! Now tell me, why are you here!”

“I didn’t hear please.”

Créa was jeering at the Minish waving her finger and shaking her head at him, scolding him. With that the Minish charged at her once more

Dexterously, the woman spun around his attack and swiped at his arm with curious claw-like weapon. The weapon slid across the Minish’s armor harmlessly as he turned back to the Duileach, reversing his thrust. Again, Creacasta dodged the attack, and retaliated with her own. As before, the knife-like weapon merely scraped shallowly against the Minish warrior’s armor.

“You’ll have to do better than that!” Skif yelled, swinging his duel-sided weapon across at chest height.

“So will you!” Creacasta replied, bending over backwards to avoid the attack.

“Fine!”

Suddenly, two long vines shot through the newly acquired layer of gravel and wrapped around the Duileach’s legs. The woman yelped with shock and pain as Skif continued his spin, completing a full 360 and cutting shallowly across Creacasta’s navel. Before the warrior could continue his assault, the tattooed woman quickly snapped the vines anchoring her to the spot with her curious weapons and leap away.

“Hey! Where are you running off to? Suddenly not so confident, are we?” Skif yelled, sending four more vines up from beneath the rubble to wrap around Creacasta’s arms and legs. The Minish grinned and charged at the woman as she struggled with her bonds, her face suddenly fearful.

As he approached, Skif turned the trident over, swinging with the flat side. The weapon connected solidly for the first time against Creacasta, bruising her right shoulder.

“Now, could you possibly be more cooperative now?” Skif asked, pulling the trident back and turning it back over to the sharp side. “Or shall I have to beat you more? You know, I really don’t like fighting woman, especially ones as helpless as you, but you’re not giving me much choice!”

A soft breeze began to blow across the now open plain. The cool breeze reminded Créa of something. Quickly she began to pull the air around her in, into her tattoos.

She could feel the magical energy beginning to grow within her; she could feel the surge of power as Iolar’s spirit feed off the winds. Slowly at first two dense balls of pure wind energy began to form, one in either hand. Then at an immense pace more began to form, all no large then a big marble. The woman’s hands were overflowing with these tiny balls of energy. The Dúileach turned her attention back to the Minish.

“Sorry, love, but I think it’s too late for that.”

With that Créa began to let loose. Tiny projectiles began firing rapidly at her unfortunate target, Skif. A downpour of wind blasts were hailing against the Minish’s tough armour. The force of the blasts was creating dents all over the thick chain mail. With every strike the armour’s condition worsened. The Minish was beginning to feel the worse end of things.

With a hair-raising crack the armour split, it split right down the centre. The pellets of air began to target the split. The hail of air continued to rain down on the Minish only now it was his unprotected chest they were smacking against. With each assault the Minish felt a sharp jolt of pain. Slowly the barrage began to stop.

Créa stood confidently smiling and laughing at the bruised and battered Minish.

“Helpless am I?

OoC: Sorry about your armour. I'll pay for a new one

OoC: I don't understand how an attack like that could crack chainmail, given the nature of both the armor and the attack, but oh well.

BiC: "Helpless, am I?"

Skif stood with his head bowed, his arms hanging limply at his sides. Then, gradually, a low, quiet noise reached Creacasta's ears. It was laughter. Suddenly, Skif threw his head back, his laughter ringing and echoing off the canyon walls. The warrior brushed back his bangs with his left hand, looking at his opponent from under the shade of his hand.

"Is that it? Please, you cracked my armor, but thats all you did!" He laughed at her. The elementalist waved his hand upwards, towards his own face. The rock under and around the Minish suddenly changed, going from rough and solid, to a more liquid-like form. The gray liquid-rock slowly crawled up Skif's legs, covering them completely. As the liquid-rock made it's way up the Minish's body, it began to harden, yet somehow stayed flexible. Finally, the protective covering slid over Skif's face last, leaving only his eyes, nose, and mouth uncovered.

"Alright, lets see you crack this!" Skif yelled, confident in his magic. Her eyes narrowing in determination, Creacasta gathered two more handfuls of the pellets of wind. As before, the pellets shot at Skif, slamming into his new armor. Where the little balls of wind hit, the covering cracked slightly, creating a thin hairline fracture.

But immediately after it cracked, the stone-like skin smoothed over, completely mending itself. Skif's mouth streched in an uncharistically wicked grin as he held out his hand. The ground under the Duileach erupted in an explosion of jagged spikes. Instinctively, the woman backflipped away, dodging the spikes.

Throwing his other hand foreward, the Minish formed a large rock wall behind Creacasta that wrapped around to form a half circle.

"You're not running away anymore!" Skif yelled, ranning at the Duileach.

Shards if gravel and rock tumbled down on top of Créa as the massive wall of rock lifted from the earth to form an impenetrable seal on her chances of escape. Drops of sweat slipped off her tanned foreword falling silently to the stony ground and breaking into millions of tiny particles. The Dúileach held her ground; she didn’t have many other choices. The Minish ran at her full tilt, his trident bouncing up and down in his thick hands as he ran.

The side of the trident swung heavily towards the edge of Créa’s neck. Speedily the woman ducked beneath the swipe, as she lifted her head back up she grabbed the handle of the passing weapon and carrying the follow-through towards the rock wall that circled her embedding the points shallowly into the thick stone. As Skif attempted the pull his weapon from the wall Créa slid through his open legs gripping his ankles as she slid. When through she gave a firm pull on the Minish’s feet causing him to fall flat on his face releasing the trident in the process. Slowly Skif began to lever himself from the ground.

“Ha ha ha!! Look at the state of you! You know I think it’s a good place for you, you know having your face down in the ground.”

Angrily Skif jumped onto his two feet swiping with his right fist as he rose. The stony knuckles crashed into the side of the Dúileach’s delicate jaw. In quick retaliation Créa smashed her knee into the bottom of Skif’s rock solid ribs. Her knee stung with pain as it connected while the Minish’s rock armour remained undamaged. In a swift motion Skif grabbed Créa’s leg and flung her back into the walled enclosure, her back cracking off the wall on the way in.

“I’ve got to think of something or I’m a dead woman.”

The Dúileach glanced around at her surroundings looking for anything to help her out of this situation. The trident caught her eye; it was still embedded in the rock wall. Quickly, she grabbed the handle and in a graceful movement pulled it from the wall, skilfully she held the weapon before her spinning it around and around with the utmost dexterity. At least now she had something to keep the Minish at bay with.

OoC:Sorry I took so long with this reply; busy week. Oh keep in mind that your trident has a long reach and therefore Créa should be able to keep Skif at a distance while she has it in her grasp.

OoC: Heh, sorry to spoil your fun.

BiC: Smirking, Skif waved his hands upward. As he did so, multiple vines shot out of the rubble and wrapped around Crea, pulling her to her knees and spreading her arms out wide. Stepping foreward, the Minish pulled the trident out of the Duileach's grasp. Smirking smuggly, the warrior crossed his arms and looked down at the woman.

"Are you going to answer my questions now?" He asked, crouching down in front of her. In responce, she spat at his feet and waved her hands. Suddenly, a stong blast of air shot up from under the Minish, launching him into the air with a startled yell. As Skif flew through the air, his control on the plants holding Crea disappeared, and the woman quickly cut her bonds as they slackened.

Skif fell back down to the earth with a loud thud, as Crea ran at his falling body. Quickly leaping back up to his feet, the Minish pulled out his knife and hurled it at the approaching Duileach. Startled, she quickly raised her weapons, blocking the missile. But her eyes widened as the second knife flew under her raised arms and slammed into her stomach.

"W-what? There was a second one?"

Grunting in reply, Skif raised his trident and ran at the woman.

OoC: This should even things out a bit

BiC:

Blood slowly oozed forward out of Créa’s stomach where the blade still remained embedded. Her eyes were glued to her bare bleeding skin; a single crimson drop fell to the hard rocky ground. A horrible crack sounded through the entire region as the flat of Skif’s trident smacked against the dúileach’s tender face. Créa’s shocked body slide across the shattered rocks coming to a halt several metres from where it started. A cloud dust rose into the air behind the dúileach.

“How? How did I miss it? I should never have toyed with this fighter.”

Skif stood above Créa’s motionless body her eyes stared blankly at the trident he had pointed at her neck.

“Are you going to talk now?” Skif gazed down apon her. She looked empty devoid of anything.

Créa didn’t reply. She had nothing to say; for once in her life she was speechless.

Slowly a soft sound entered the back of her mind. Water, running water flowing silently below her. She must have been lying above the rock-covered river. She felt the light of hope rekindle within her soul.

Raising his trident Skif gave Créa one final questioning look.

“Fine then if that’s your choice.” Skif brought weapon crashing down towards Créa’s exposed neck.




The minish felt his weapon smash against something as hard as rock. As the dust cleared he saw Créa lying below him her arms crossed over her neck. A pair of small round rock shield like things had formed over her wrists. The tip of Skif’s trident lay embedded in the shields.

In one quick and precise motion Créa pushed up with her forearms knocking the minish off balance, spun her legs off the ground knocking Skif’s from under him in the process and flipped herself off her back landing dexterously in a crouched position her weapon digging into the ground before her.

The ground began to shake. Two thin but deep cracks began to appear, they started travelling towards the minish. Turning off from each other they circled Skif; the ground beneath his feet was beginning to crumble. Créa pulled her weapons from the earth and rose her hands straight up into the air. A sudden blast of air erupted from beneath the ground that Skif stood on. The air launched him and the rubble into the air. A large hole appeared where the earth had been; running water was visible through the hole.

Skif tumbled back down through the air passing straight through the hole that had formed in the ground his shoulder clipped off the edge as he fell through. The already murky water began to grow darker as it washed away the minish’s rock armour.

Créa lowered herself into a fighting stance waiting for her opponent to reappear.

OoC: Sorry for the large blank space in the middle, I felt a dramatic pause was required.

Spitting out the murky water, Skif pulled himself up over the edge and back up level with Crea. Growling in frustration, the Minish thrust both hands forward, sending two pillars of rock up from the ground at the woman. Crea dodged them, weaving and cartwheeling out of the way. But Skif didn't stop there. Criss-crossing his arms back and forth, the elementalist sent waves of stone overlapping each other, attempting to smother Crea.

The woman leapt under, through, and over the stone waves, gradually ascending as the waves piled on top of each other. Finally, Skif lifted his hands in a great heaving motion, raising a large stone wall behind Crea. Perched on top of the steep hill of rock, Crea turned around just as the wall tilted over, crashing down on the woman.

OoC: Sorry for the wait and shortness.