In which Istans go hunting and wherries are afraid!
Who: Sunniva, C'len, X'lar, Jakkal, Nolee, Edani
Where: Ista Jungle
When: It is winter, day 14, month 1, turn 18 of Interval 10.

Jungles, Ista Weyr(#730RJ)
The jungles of Ista Island seem to stretch on forever: wrapping around the Weyr's ground, bordering the beaches and sprawling out across the rough, hilly terrain. The undergrowth is thick with ferns and shrubs that encroach greedily on the narrow footpaths and the wheel-gouged alleys of wagon roads. Beyond the relatively open space of tree trunks and snaking vines, the jungle canopy obscures nearly all of the sky. Intermittently, the forest gives way to open clearings where the path nearly disappears beneath the lush plant-life.

Worn channels cut through the undergrowth to head up to the plateau and down to the main beach of Ista Weyr while other paths meander off toward more secluded stretches of shoreline.

X'lar, Sunniva, Jakkal, C'len

Porcine Hunting!
[entry mid-event]

She doesn't pause so much as fall into step a conversational distance from C'len, green eyes sliding sidelong to him before fixing ahead again. "Oh, I see," Sunniva murmurs absently, her voice low-pitched. More bugs are swatted away with her free hand, ineffectually. Thankfully, she's not being eaten alive. Yet. An uncertain glance down is given to the crossbow in her hand, then ahead again.

The second line of hunters seems less concerned with the tunnel snakes. "See anything?" One of them whispers to the one next to him, both shaking their heads. Another rustle of leaves, this time up above, causes them both to look up but there's nothing there to be seen. Moments later, a medium-sized seabird, far from it's usual perch, flies through with a loud squawk.

Allowed to select her own weapon, Nolee's chosen a spear. Whoever allowed the ditzy blonde access to pointy things might want to think twice, but the way she's brandishing it at every little buzzing bug that comes along leads to a wide berth between her and anyone nearby, which is most fortunate. "Here piggy piggy," she calls in an extra loud whisper, staring at the ground and utterly missing the airborne squawker.

Jakkal gives the bird but a quick glances. The rustling was at the wrong level to be a porcine and he's not armed to hunt avians, even if that was on the menu. He keeps his eyes peeled to signs of the proper animal. He sends a glance at the whispering pair behind him, but doesn't comment, shaking his head slightly to cause his tail of hair to scatter the bugs which have been drawn to the sweat on his neck. He hears the whispered call but as he realises its source he diverts his gaze from the Weyrwoman's failed attempts at hunting.

X'lar grins despite himself as he hears Nolee ahead of him in the hunting party. He shakes his head in amusement and hefts the gear on his shoulders. For the time being, he's silent, looking to the bird before moving onward. "You'd think if there were an over-population of the wild pigs, you'd see at least one, right?" he asks no one in particular. The hunters just keep giving him looks.

Oh, great. Squawking. Sunni's head jerks skyward, eyes narrowing as she seeks out and spots the seabird. Lips pressed in a line, she forces herself to look back down, where the real danger might well lie. Nolee is soon glanced at as well, though the look is a fleeting one as she attempts to keep her focus where it belongs -- on not becoming porcine-food or, in fact, food for any other denizens of the jungle, bugs included. Not that X'lar's helping, but she's far enough away that she can't pick out the words.

Perhaps the boars are on holiday. The birds certainly aren't, though: a group of them flies overhead, these some of the brightly colored ones that inhabit the jungle. C'len lets out a soft ooh at the bird's lovely wings, before clearing his throat and straightening up a bit, continuing to follow the group. "No luck so far," he mutters under his breath, quiet enough that he doesn't get another look. Hearing X'lar he asks, "There's supposed to be an over-population?" Brows lift, "Maybe we're scaring 'em off."

Here's what she's good at: hollering directions. Nolee takes advantage of the flight of feathers passing by to do just that, hefting her spear like a battle flag and calling disruptively but encouragingly, "Shoot at it, shoot at it!"

"That's what I kept hearing," X'lar replies quietly back to C'len. "I mean, that's why we're hunting in the first place. Candidates need to eat. And if there's an over-population of the bloody buggers, then why not kill one for the sake of candidates not starving?" He grins once at Jakkal and Sunniva, asking the hunting party, "Won't /someone/ think of the candidates?" He pauses once and looks toward Nolee as she calls out those encouraging words, making him grin again. He's not hunting, but instead simply carrying gear, much like C'len.

Jakkal winces at the loud exclamation from Nolee. He presses his lips together more tightly as X'lar and C'len add their comments. Here he'd thought the children would be the problem with this hunt... Nevertheless, he keeps his head moving, his gaze searching for signs of a porcine dumb or territorial enough to come _towards_ the loud noises in its home area.

Sunniva is not going to do the shooting, that's for sure. She blinks owlishly at Nolee and her spear-brandishing, then to C'len and a quick look back to X'lar as well. "Perhaps," she begins, though she keeps her voice low and with a rare glint of sardonic humour, "the goal is actually to see how many of us starve on the way and then get away with what is in the stores to feed the rest." This more for her fellow candidate, of course.

No dumb boars, but dumb wherries? Certainly. A flock of them suddenly swoops down on the front of the group with a rush of teeth, claws, and loud noises alike, four or five in the group. A hunter at the front who already had his bow prepared--having missed an opportunity at something else earlier--quickly lets fly, but the other wherries are fair game for those who are prepared.

Nolee's brandishing at the suddenly-arrived flock only manages to slice a few leaves from the low-hanging canopy, and shortly after, she's relieved of her spear and is encouraged by a helpful hunter to walk silently and lightly so they can have a chance of getting -something- during the hunt. As clumsy as her treads may be as she crashes through the brush, it's an improvement at least.

X'lar grins back at Sunniva wryly, telling her quietly: "Oh please. You should be thankful we're honouring our candidates by having such a feast to begin with, Sunniva." He pauses, looking toward Jakkal curiously before asking the male candidate, "So what's your opinion? We going in the right direction?" He blinks at the sudden flurry of wherries, calling out sharply to Sunniva and Jakkal, "Aim at, candidates!"

Jakkal glances over his shoulder at Sunniva's comment, his lips persing into a big grin. He offers her a quick wink before returning his attention to the hunt with a jerk at a sound he's heard in the feeding grounds on more than one occasion: angry wherries. Not wanting to let go of his spear in an attempt to knock one of the avians from the sky, he does brandish is before him expertly in case one comes near enough for him to knock one out of the air. X'lar's comment is ignored as he knows well enough from working near the male herdbeasts not to divert his attention when dealing with angry beasts.

"I am not complaining about the fact that there /will/ be a dinner, just that-" oh, right wherries! It does take Sunniva a moment to remember that she's armed and, in more than one sense of the word, dangerous. The pack is hastily handed off with an apology to Borley, who's been trudging along in her wake this entire time, and the crossbow is lifted. And ... once her hands stop shaking utterly, she'll fire at one of them -- and likely overshoot horribly (better than aiming too low!), but it's an attempt?

One of the wherries is caught by the waving of Jakkal's spear as it flies low to make it under one of the thick tree branches, and it flounders, allowing another hunter to follow up and catch it with a quick arrow shot. The man gives a quick nod to Jakkal so that the pair of them can finish dispersing with the thrashing wherry. Sunniva's arrow lands with a thunk in a large skybroom tree.

"Aim at candidates?!" Nolee's expression is horrified, and she peers through the crowd, the wherry flapping, and the jungle brush to try to get a better idea of just who it might be that is encouraging such heresy, correcting, "Aim at the wherries!"

Jakkal returns the other hunter's nod and steps to the side, allowing the other man to finish off the creature with his knife. Meanwhile, Jakkal defends his fellow hunter from any other possible attacks from the wherry flock. If the danger is past, his attention returns to the foliage which surrounds them.

C'len lets out a quiet cheer as at least two of the wherries are successfully taken out, "Good job!" The rest of the wherry flock seem to have been abused enough that they've taken cover somewhere else in the jungle away from the loud, spear-waving hunting group. C'len hears Nolee's protests and then looks first at X'lar, then the weyrwoman, with a look of complete confusion. "Aim at the candidates? I don't think anyone meant--" he breaks off as a tunnelsnake slithers rather close to him, taking a long step forward to get away from the thing.

"I meant," X'lar begins as he hears Nolee before shaking his head, realizing it was a lost cause to explain himself in such a situation. "Never mind!" He grins once before adding his own praises to C'len's, commenting: "A couple wherries though! Good work!"

Mighty tree-hunter that she is, Sunniva's forced to all but stop after firing. Time to reload, which is a fumbling process that ends successfully. Unfortunately, this leaves a too-pale Borley with two packs and he slows further, joining the others at the back. "Oh! Oh, well done," is exclaimed when the threat is over, her gaze darting from the downed wherries to the men who brought them down, Jakkal included.

One of the many colorful jungle birds alights on the new-found perch: Sunniva's arrow.

"Ooh," Nolee exclaims, clapping her spear-free hands together in a cheer, "We got some! Jays, we got some!" Her enthusiasm isn't dampened by C'len's words, but rather heightened to amusement as he shies away from the tunnelsnake. "Ugh, don't get that. Those taste terrible."

Jakkal grins at Sunniva. See? He might be making a fool of himself with the children, and the mending, and keeping his cot in order, but _this_ he can do just fine. Spotting the jungle resident who has taken a liking to Sunniva's arrow, he lifts a hand from the spear's shaft to his mouth, stiffling his first exclamation since the hunt's begun: a curt cough.

Theroni halts everyone to take the time to clean up the wherries enough that they can be transported back to the weyr in the large nets, usually used for fishing. The man also makes a cursory examination of those in the group to make sure none of them require the assistance of a healer.

That avian is given an askance look, Sunni's lips pressing into a flat line as she does so. When the entire procession is halted, she takes a moment to double-check her bow, then glance back at Jakkal at his coughing. "Mm?" is an idle not-quite-question that's paired with a lifting of brows. No need for a healer for her, though she still looks a wee bit shaken by the suddenness of the wherry assault.

X'lar doesn't need the assistance of a healer. A mindhealer, perhaps, one of these days, but not today. He instead hefts the gear again, ready for their departure with the successful attack of wherries. But, at the bird alighting on Sunni's arrow, X'lar suddenly laughs. "The bird likes your crossbow bolt, Sunniva!" He grins briefly to the female candidate before shouldering his pack of gear again, ready to leave, apparently, should this be the end.

Jakkal gives Sunniva a tight-lipped smile, not quite trusting himself to his usual wide grin. Thankfully, his shoulders stop their mild shaking before the wherries have been properly settled into the net. His grip once more firmly on the spear's shaft, he shakes his head to scatter the bugs before glancing at Theroni for the signal to continue the hunt.

C'len willingly steps forward with his net to join Jakkal and the other hunter, congratulating the candidate on his work. "Good job with the spear," he says as he spreads the net out, so that the wherry can be hefted onto it and, later, carried by a group of a few weyrfolk back to the caverns. "Do you regularly go out with the hunters?" The hunter that's been working with Jakkal gives the signal to move the creature, and C'len helps with that as well.

Somehow Nolee has managed not to need the assistance of a healer, or to require anyone else to have that need. However, she has gathered a series of insect bites along her arm, and she scratches at them intently as she collects a few stray wherry feathers that have scattered across the jungle floor.

A look is shot to X'lar, but she manages a slightly exasperated -- though amusedly so! -- "It is good to see that it is useful for something, I suppose." Sunniva catches that smile of Jakkal's offering a polite one of her own, and then she waits, patiently, for when they're called to move again -- whether that be onward or back towards the Weyr.

As it becomes clear that the hunt is over for the Candidates as least, Jakkal allows himself to relax. "At times, Sir. I went with my father and uncle when I was younger, though I wasn't able to actively take part until I came to the Weyr," he offers, managing to keep his reply to a dull roar in difference to any hunters who might be set to try their luck with the smaller group which will remain.

X'lar gives Sunniva another grin before wiping his brows with the back of his hand, sweating. "Shells, forgot how muggy it got in the jungles this time of the turn," Xie comments before continuing to follow the rest of the hunting party.

Two of the men have stepped to one side and are considering the jungle canopy and the isolation and privacy it provides, especially as the darkening sky casts shadows down between the trees. "Not a real guarded path toward the coast," one of them comments, leading to a shifty-eyed expression from the other. "But could provide a solid location, if that's what we're looking for. Maybe up, in the canopy." There's merely a grunt and an elbowing in response before the two men rejoin the main party, smoothly blending in.

"It's gettin' too dark to stay out much longer, so we oughta take these wherries and get back," Theroni declares, once the two winged creatures have been properly situated to be carried back to the weyr. One of the young men in the back whines about not wanting to go back, but receives a sharp look from his mother and quickly quiets. The lead hunter casts a quick glance toward the two men with lifted brows, but then quickly turns his attention back to organizing the group and getting them back to the weyr.

Nolee carries the feathers and, like the bellwether, prances about in front of the band of hunters as they start their return trip. At least, she prances until she trips and scrapes her hand on a particularly sharp-barked jungle tree, and then her pace is more sedate, even falling back around the middle of the group as the terrain progresses.

X'lar follows after Theroni, grunting as he shifts the pack of gear still on his back. "Well, at least we managed to get /something/," Xie notes simply. "That's a good thing." And after that said, he moves on, making his way quickly, perhaps desiring to get out of the jungle faster than some, putting him closer to the front after a while instead of the back where he'd been.

===

The hunting group eventually makes it back to the Southeast bowl, where the tables from earlier remain for gear to be returned. Buckets of water and soapsand have been added, to allow for weapons to be cleaned, and more healers stand by just in case. They look largely relieved, as the group returning seems to have all major limbs still attached, and few extra holes.

Once the group that C'len is in makes it back, he's quick to relinquish the net to those who know much more about cleaning a wherry carcass than he does. "Well, a somewhat successful trip, huh?" He asks of the lead hunter, receiving a nod in reply as the man supervises the cleaning of weapons. C'len simply needs to return his gear. He relinquishes the orange hat and arm band, as well, tossing them into a basket of them which will be washed later.

Nolee's one of the healthy parties returning from hunting, though she's still scratching at her arm with a wherry feather's pointy base, aggravating the bumps from the insect bites gained in the jungle. There's a whining tone in her voice as she sheds the safety band and hat and approaches the soapsand stations, misguidedly using that to scrub at her arm in a vain effort to ease the itching.

Edani grunts as he steps out of the cavern, a large bucket in either hand. A bit of soapy water slops out of one. He whispers something under his breath - a glance shoots round the area. No one saw that, hopefully. He sidles over to be out of the way of traffic and heads over to where the pile of dirty weapons are accumulating.

Jakkal drops off the netted wherry with the others before striding quickly towards the furthest basing for cleaning the weapons. He takes a handful of the still clean water and tosses it across the back of his neck, moving sweat and insects from their perch. He knows that he'll be itching in the morning, but also from painful experience that scratching just makes it worse, so he turns his attention to cleaning the spear of the bits of feather and blood before returning it, the knife and both bands of orange cloth to the proper tables. Once free of that, he shucks off his jacket, wraping the arms losely around his waist as he looks around for his fellow Candidate(s). Spotting Sunniva, he makes his way over with a grin, "Not a bad shot. First time on a hunt?" He's asking her, honestly, even though his booming voice can most likely be heard by members of the Weyr which were not even part or the hunting expedition.

Edani
There's really nothing special about Edani to set him apart from the many lads that grew up in Holds, Halls and Weyrs of Pern. Medium of height and slight of build, he's just beginning that rapid-growth spurt that all young teens dread. A thick cap of short, somewhat tangled and rough-cut dark-brown hair tumbles across his forehead. Of somber grey eyes, surrounded by thick black lashes, and a straight nose with a faint dusting of freckles sprinkled thereon, only firm lips give hint to the temperament yet to be.

Edani is wearing loose-fitting khaki-colored trous of finely-woven linen to (hopefully) stay cool despite the humid warmth of Ista. He's wearing a white shirt of the same material, ties left dangling so it's open at the neck, and he's rolled the loose sleeves up to his forearms. He's wearing sandals of woven grass on his feet.

Edani is 15 turns, 0 months, 3 days old.


One of the young boys--the one who whined earlier--emerges from the living caverns carrying a tray of drinks, and brings it around to the returning hunting parties, probably his punishment for earlier misbehavior.

C'len pauses to clap Jakkal on the shoulder, offering congratulations again to the candidate and thanking him for his work, before continuing on toward the buckets. "Don't they have a cream to help with that?" C'len asks of Nolee as he spots her scrubbing furiously at her arm, and he beckons over a healer to ask about it. The man produces something from his pouch and offers it to the weyrwoman, even as C'len reaches up to scratch at a red spot on his face that could likely use the same treatment.

Jakkal grins and nods his thanks for the complement from the Weyrleader, but he doesn't actually voice a comment as he stands near Sunniva, taking a drink from the young boy's tray as he comes by.

Corrected by one of the women tending the washing trays, Nolee turns to C'len as he speaks, managing somehow not to slip on the wet slosh left by Edani. "They do - I thought it might help to get rid of the sting on my skin before using it, but maybe - ooh." That last accompanies the arrival of the salve, bringing a smile to her face and a gesture to C'len's own red spot. "Want a drink? Jays, I'm thirsty, too. Hard work, tromping through that jungle. Did you get anything? I almost did but they were too fast for me."

Edani is in the process of setting his burden down when the booming question of Jakkal's, albeit intended for Sunniva, startles him into another slopping. Oops! Conveniently stepping on top of that small puddle, he sets the buckets down and reaches for a rag with one hand and a bloody knife with the other. He sets to swishing it in the soapy water. He appears attentive to the task at hand, seemingly intent on cleaning, but out of the corner of his eye he watches the others. His mouth twitches, perhaps struggling with a smile that wants out, but he masters that. "What did you bag?" The question is asked in a sotto voice to one of the workers, but could probably be overheard.

The slop of Edani's bucket catches C'len's boot and the rider's attention as he lifts his foot to shake some of the water off. "I didn't get anything," he offers for Edani and Nolee alike, "but they--" a wave that indicates Jakkal and two of the hunters "--took down two wherries." Seeing the man's work, he grins, "Most of the weapons probably just need a rinse. Not many of them got used today."

Jakkal crouches down to set his mug on the ground for a moment as he unties his hair, letting the locks hang loose while he runs his fingers through them, deftly plucking three insects from their places burrowed within the base of his runner's tail. Once he's sure he's gotten them all, the young man ties it back once more with a shake of his head. He picks up his mug and takes a deep drink of the water. He can't stand anything else after warm work.

"I had a spear," Nolee adds as C'len mentions weapons that need cleaning, her eyes glancing among those returned to see where it might've ended up, suddenly aware she'd not tended it herself. "Oh, but looks like someone else got it. Two, you say? Jays, pity we're not faring better, but -" her expression trails downward, her head tilting. "You appear to be standing in a puddle," she tells the two males.

An abashed look flits across Edani's face, but he quickly recovers. "I...see. Ah, Sir." Best to be safe, as his eyes note the C'len's knot. Gray eyes, slide over towards Jakkal and he mouths a 'congratulations'. Most likely he wouldn't be heard above all the activity right now anyway. A nudge from the supervisor points him to the puddle he's left, so now he's heading towards it with a dry rag.

Jakkal grins lifting his mug and offering a wink to the young lad with the bucket of puddle making. "Thanks," he offers, having no problem being heard, "but if someone hadn't been handy with a bow all the spear-waving in Pern wouldn't have gotten that bird." He grins at the man who'd shot down the one he's managed to stun and moves closer to the gathering, leaving Sunniva and the other Candidates to their own things. He glances about, "Anything that needs help with? I do badly with feathered beasts, but I can help with the equipment?" He's not even bothering to direct his gaze to anyone in particular for that one as he is asking around generally, so his gaze happens to settle upon the puddle as if his new task were to count the bubbles.

"Oops," C'len says and takes a step to the side to get out of the puddle, before shrugging. "Yeah, perhaps they'll have more luck with the hunt tomorrow. X'lar said there're a lot of porcine out there--but shells, we didn't see any of 'em." The man reaches out and catches Nolee's hand, "I'm thirsty and hungry. Dinner? Make sure you bring that cream too," C'len requests, as he reaches up to scratch at the growing red spot on his cheek. The healer seems to've become distracted by someone with a scratch; C'len looks over his shoulder to where the man is and grins, "He won't notice it's gone. I'll take it back later, I promise!"

Edani is cleaning up those spills and the bubbles along with them. Wipewipe. He defers to the boss regarding Jakkal's question...

Theroni continues to monitor the goings-on, making sure the weapons get cleaned and all of the laundry sent off to the lower caverns to be taken care of. "Tomorrow," he can be heard saying to someone, "we'll just take the regulars, I think."

Jakkal nods in agreement with Theroni despite the fact that means he can't go. He doesn't actually _say_ anything though. The Weryleaders (the Weyrwoman in particular) will be in hearing range for a while yet.

"Ooh, that's a good backup plan," Nolee agrees, carting the cream along with them on their way toward the promise of dinner, her hand locked into C'len's though her fingers stretch sideways to try to keep up the ability to scratch her reddened arm, and with that, they're off.