Thereza de Soigneux
Military
First Lieutenant
Second in Command to Captain de Etalon
Posts: 233
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Post by Thereza de Soigneux on Dec 16, 2010 11:41:20 GMT -5
While most of the army's supplies were carted to us very regularly and were of decent quality there were always a few things that were lacking, or were expected to come across on our own. Salted meat and fish were staples of our diets, but there was still the craving for fresh game from time to time and we all took turns setting snares or bow-hunting for birds and deer, and some of the men with free time would even occasionally spear-hunt for wild boar. This supplied us with meat as well as hides to tan into leather and even tusks, horns and bones which some of the other soldiers whittled or could be given to the camp dogs.
I considered hunting to be a practical use of the time available to me and as the other soldiers in the division where occupied with their own duties I took the task onto myself. I was in one of my regular uniforms- it was generally better to go out in that than be accused of poaching- and my sword and knife were at my sides, with my bow slung across my back. While I was a capable fighter with my blades I'd taken to archery easily, especially the short bow with its direct line of fire. Now all that had to be done was finding the prey.
The ground was without snow by this point, even in the thickly forested land I was walking through, and the chill in the air was almost a pleasant one. Being raised in mountainous Siovale I was less bothered with cold than some of the others stationed with me. There were deer tracks thick through this portion of the forest and signs of other animals as well- all likely to be gaining their spring weight after a winter of hunger. Choosing a spot where three deer paths intersected I ducked behind one of the trees and waited for the sound of one drawing closer, calmly still and patiently silent. With any luck a young buck would come by on his way to water and we would have fresh venison that evening.
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Post by Faolan mab Ceallach on Dec 20, 2010 12:24:55 GMT -5
Being far from home was getting harder and harder to bear. Fetes were lovely, of course, and so were friends and companionship, but I longed to be home, to feel the chill, clear air, underbush oon the soles of my feet, branches and leaves scraping against my skin as I cut through the woods. It had been so long, or so it felt. And it felt even longer since I communed with nature, and hunted. After asking a few friends, and finding none of them up for teh challenge, I venture off alone from teh City to l'Agnace's forests on horseback. Artemis was weighted down mostly with his own fodder, a sack of dried meats for myself, the tools I would need to skin whatever I found adn chop the meat, and sacks to carry it back in. The ride to the outskirts of teh forest had been quiet, no bustle of carriages, people darting in and out of cobbled lanes. THe silence was good, it cleared my head, gave me a chance to just... be.
Dressed in traditional hunting garb and a pair of boots, I had made camp, tying Artemis to a tree before removing my footwear and heading into the brush, and deeper into the woods. Armed with my long bow, a sharp knife and a length of rope, I moved through the trees, following first rabbit tracks, then the tracks of deer. Judging by the size of the hoof print, and the depth in the mud, I was tracking a decent sized buck. Silently and with alert eyes, I followed the tracks.
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Thereza de Soigneux
Military
First Lieutenant
Second in Command to Captain de Etalon
Posts: 233
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Post by Thereza de Soigneux on Dec 21, 2010 11:21:41 GMT -5
I was normally a quiet and patient person, always watching and listening with very little input unless it was a matter I felt strongly about. Out here there weren't the distractions of other soldiers or even the captain needing things to be done- just myself and the muted sounds of the forest, more active now that most of the snow was gone but still a peaceful place. The area was rural enough that any other hunters I ran into were likely to be working alone, like myself, rather than with hounds or horns blaring to scare the game out from the underbrush, which was a blessing. It was a bit too early in the spring for that to be worthwhile anyway.
The sound of rustling underbrush was a distinct one, especially since it's what I was listening for in the first place, and my eyes slid toward the spot where the sound seemed to be originating as I watched for any indications of what could be approaching. Too large for a boar or rabbit, that was certain, but hidden as I was my vision, by far my strongest sense, was limited. I'd just have to check, but carefully- after all, I didn't want to take a doe or foal this early in the season.
With another deep, calm breath I stepped out from behind the tree I'd been ducked behind, an arrow nocked in my bow but the weapon itself pointed slightly down just in case it wasn't a deer I'd see. I was used to moving quietly through the brush so my footsteps were nearly silent and my bow was already drawn- all I had to do was raise it and take the shot that was offered to me. What I saw was not a deer though, but another person- a woman probably close to my age, dressed practically but in clothing that seemed far more Alban than d'Angeline. Another hunter? My calm, brown eyes took her in, waiting for her to make the first move and assess whether or not she was a threat.
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Post by Faolan mab Ceallach on Dec 21, 2010 11:40:44 GMT -5
Crouched silently I had my eyes closed, taking long draws of the air in through my nostrils and letting it out slowly and soundlessly through my mouth. With eyes closed, the sense of sound and smell became heightened. I could smell the rotting old foileage, the smell of new growth beneath it, the scent of soil, of trees, of course, and minutely, the scent of fresh fecal matter. Something had passed through here recently. And then I heard a slight rustle, very slight, but not scampering. The steps were more deliberate tthan an animal would take. To the left. I cocked my head slightly to the right before my eyes flew open and my head snapped to the left, taking in a woman. Blonde locks, dressed in military garb. My eyes narrowed as I assessed th situation. She was d'Angeline, and so I doubt that she was looking to kill an ally. My eyes opened wider and I nodded to my bow, held in my hands, and nodded away from her to signify that I was not out hunting humans, but animals. Then I nodded back to her, indicating that I wanted to know if she was here doing the same. Conversation was a luxury I would not be taking at the moment, not with prey potentially closeby.
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Thereza de Soigneux
Military
First Lieutenant
Second in Command to Captain de Etalon
Posts: 233
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Post by Thereza de Soigneux on Dec 22, 2010 15:34:58 GMT -5
The woman I saw didn't bear the features of a d'Angeline, but instead one of our more northern neighbors- perhaps Alba or Eire, though determining which would take far more than a glance to pin down considering those nationality's similarities. It was enough to know that she didn't seem alarmed or angry enough to fire her bow at me instead of the game we were probably both after. There weren't so few deer in the woods that I'd have to go back empty-handed and the other woman didn't seem so competitive she'd do something drastic so as far as I was concerned there was nothing to worry about.
As the foreign women looked me over I watched her calmly but silently, my deep brown eyes steady as I read her posture and expression for any changes. Her gestures were easy enough to read and I gave one simple nod before I looked back up the trail, then looked at her again with a raised brow- my own simple question of whether or not this deer trail was the one she was stalking. Even though there was no reason to care one way or the other it did make things easier most of the time if two people on a trail were working together. It also helped to make sure that you didn't take an inadvertent arrow from the other person, which would probably have the Captain ordering me to rest for an entire day more than I needed. There was too much to do around the camp to chance it.
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Post by Faolan mab Ceallach on Dec 29, 2010 10:20:54 GMT -5
I watched her, her eyes keen, though not alarmed, or alarming. She was calm, collected, and I could see that we would have no problems if we decided to team up to take down game together, instead of potentially getting in each others' way. When she pointed up the trail and then looked at me, I shook my head, motioning that the trail from her side and the trail i had been tracking seemed to have converged... meaning that there were probably two deer travelling together, or that one had come and then the other had come afterwards. I pointed at her, then at myself, and then pointed down the trail, asking if shed like to continue on with me. If not for stregnth in numbers, then to have safety, not so much from the animals, but from each other's arrows.
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Thereza de Soigneux
Military
First Lieutenant
Second in Command to Captain de Etalon
Posts: 233
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Post by Thereza de Soigneux on Dec 30, 2010 13:28:20 GMT -5
The arrangement seemed to be a simple enough one- we would work together on actually getting the kill we were both after instead of competing and risking the possibility that neither of us would get it. It was also fair to guess that the kill would be split between us afterward but even half of a buck was a lot of meat, more than enough to feed the company in a stew, which was how almost everything in camp was cooked anyway. Other methods simply too too much labor or watching and everyone had other duties they needed to see about, even cooks.
With a half-smile and a nod I showed my understanding for the woman's gestures and turned toward the trail behind us, then raised a brow. It was obvious that these two had intersected, and that the path they joined was far older than the other two. Generally when that happened it meant that there was something of importance to the creatures in that direction that caused many to flock that way. IN the direction of the convergence there could well be a water source or salt lick, or even just a patch of berries that these deer had marked in their memories. What it was didn't matter so much, but it did mean that there may be another spot to move onto if these paths yielded nothing.
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Post by Faolan mab Ceallach on Dec 31, 2010 10:35:11 GMT -5
I moved silently through the brush, moving just slightly closer towards the woman, looking at teh tracks she looked upon. I looked to her, nodding, and the with bow lowered but arrow knotted, I started to move in the direction of the tracks. I did not stay too close to them as I did not want to muddle them, nor did I want to make it so that other animals knew this was a track humans had detected. I started to move forward, keeping the tracks and the woman in sight.
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Thereza de Soigneux
Military
First Lieutenant
Second in Command to Captain de Etalon
Posts: 233
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Post by Thereza de Soigneux on Jan 1, 2011 11:34:44 GMT -5
The woman I'd met here in the woods seemed more than capable of the task we were undertaking and while she moved closer and looked at the trail I only watched and waited to see how she was going to respond. It seemed that she was thinking close enough to the same thing that I was and I nodded very slightly in understanding as she started to walk, taking my place on the other side of the trail. Most likely she was actually better at stalking prey than I was, she had that silent and lithe look to her, but I knew I could at least keep up and stay quiet, and when it came to the bow I was an excellent shot.
The path continued on for a good distance but that didn't concern me overly much; it was easy enough to find my way back to my horse and I was used to the exercise. The only question was what would actually be at the end of the trail. I kept the corner of one eye on this other woman and the rest on my surroundings just in case something unexpected did come along.
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Post by Faolan mab Ceallach on Jan 5, 2011 14:18:43 GMT -5
We creeped along slowly, soundlessly. Hunting is not for the person who wishes to charge ahead adn make a lot of noise and miss a lot of targets. Hunting is for the patient, the type who will sit and stalk their pray for as long as it takes to get them, the strong willed. Though I doubted that it would be as difficult or intense as it normally was in Alba. So we continued to move at a snails pace. i stopped for a moment to sniff the air, the scent of defecation stronger now. I looked about me, quietly, until I found a pile of it. Taking my fingers, I touched it to see its warmth and consisteny. Not warm, but not hard either, somethin left within the past few hours to a day, and judging from the consistency, closer to the past four hours. It was a fresh trail, fresh enough anyways. I stopped and peered over at the blonde woman, holding up my sullied fingers to show that we were indeed on a good trail before wiping them quietly on the dewy grass.
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Thereza de Soigneux
Military
First Lieutenant
Second in Command to Captain de Etalon
Posts: 233
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Post by Thereza de Soigneux on Jan 6, 2011 10:21:11 GMT -5
The forest was as quiet as could be expected, but not so still that there was cause for alarm, so I continued to follow the path with the other woman, my keen eyes taking in the surroundings. When my impromptu hunting companion stopped to check some of the leavings I waited for her to do so, then nodded at the sign she held up- if it wasn't good then she would have had a much less pleased look on her face. With a half-smile I looked down the path again and noticed some movement between the leaves, and my eyes narrowed as I gestured toward it with my chin, a simple and silent expression. Something was down there, and even if it was a deer or stag it was better to be watchful than injured. If not, better to know what else could be walking this trail.
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Post by Faolan mab Ceallach on Jan 9, 2011 22:27:11 GMT -5
My eyes remained on her as I saw her tense, just slightly, and her eyes and attention dart forward, though she barely moved. She looked over at me after, nodding in the direction. I had heard it to, a slight rustling a little further up. I nodded my understanding to her. We could move forward, or we could wait and see if whatever it was ventured back up the trail. I motioned to her that I thought it would be wise to stay, pointing to the ground where I crouched. The rustling had come again, and the sound of a probably small twig breaking under the pressure of footfall alerted me that whatever it might be was coming closer, and was probably not very small prey.
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Thereza de Soigneux
Military
First Lieutenant
Second in Command to Captain de Etalon
Posts: 233
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Post by Thereza de Soigneux on Jan 15, 2011 10:34:35 GMT -5
The signal was simple enough- hold this position- and I nodded in reply, taking a silent step back to duck partially behind one of the trees and crouch. Animals didn't tend to see as well as people, but they were still very perceptive to their surroundings. Anything that was out of place from the view they were habitually related to could startle them, especially if they were older creatures that had survived the many threats the wild could offer. My bow was at its usual drawn, down and ready position and I watched my fellow hunter and the trail to see what would come out.
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Post by Faolan mab Ceallach on Feb 12, 2011 14:34:05 GMT -5
I barely shifted, soundlessly behind some brush, one knee down on the ground, my bow ready and an arrow in place. I breathed slowly, steadily, my position affording me the ability to see my companion as well as the trail. Nothing came into view as yet, but the noises became more pronounced, and closer together. Whatever was coming was not expecting us. It was not moving with a great deal of caution, so we were at the advantage.
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