10th of Searing, 120
There she stood at the river's bank, staring into the clear waters as they flowed. Her companion had disappeared right here. That, or he'd managed to cross the river ahead of her and make it to the opposite shore. Her silver eyes squinted hard at the scene as if she were trying to discern whether or not his hoof-prints were present in the opposite bank. Alas, her eyes couldn't focus that far. She saw the general shape of the shore, the crag beside it, and the proceeding slope, but not much else. She'd have to cross this obstacle if she were to find Pacheco, but good ideas struck her about as often as lightning.
All in all, she'd thought of three possible solutions: One, build a raft and cross with that. Two, walk along the shore until the river looked shallow enough to cross. Three, find a bridge, and cross that way. All had their downsides, but she was running out of time. Pacheco was bleeding, as she knew. He needed her help, she needed to find him.
Sighing, she lifted the strenuous gaze of her pensive glare and drew a deep breath. Now was the time to commit to a plan and proceed, but all she could think about was the weight of her bag on her shoulders. Grumbling, she took hold of its straps and lifted it off before lowering it to the ground. A low growl followed as she rolled her shoulders, then gripped her empty, twisting stomach. Being as hungry as she was sure to hinder her thought process, but she hadn't time to hunt.
Her eyes fell to the dirt-sand in despair, where she stared at Pacheco's tracks. The idle gears of her mind began to whir as she noticed something she'd missed before. The hoof prints weren't running; they were walking in an orderly fashion toward the river's edge, where they cut off suddenly. The giantess stared for a moment, then knelt to inspect them closer. The bleeding appeared to be something of a slow drip, as though Pacheco wasn't strained while he traveled. This was good, the wound wasn't as bad as she'd initially thought. But... Why had it pooled at her tree? That implied that Pacheco stood around after initially receiving the wound... Or...
A hard swallow followed the thought. Pacheco was dying, that's why the bleeding had slowed! her lip began to tremble and the burn of her throat returned. Her poor companion, bleeding out in the middle of nowhere, lost and alone. A hard sniffle and a rub of her eyes buried her misery. She had to work. NOW. With a grunt, she pushed to her feet, then turned on a dime to run at the nearest tree. She didn't have her trusty ax, she left it behind before she embarked on her travels. Still, she'd chopped down dozens, hundreds of trees even. She could surely manage without her ax just this once, right?
The giantess skidded to a stop before her target; a rather thick oak tree. Immediately, she wrapped her arms around its body, widened her stance, and began to press. She felt the sand pack below her heels, and the muscles of her back strain as the bones popped their loose air in an audible series of cracks. The tree didn't budge.. yet. Determined to either snap the trunk or rip it out by the roots, she continued to pull and press with all her might. Her teeth bared in a sharp snarl as her body began to shake with strain. Above her, the branches trembled in a similar fashion; it was working, she just needed to pull a little harder! Despite her determination and raw strength, however, the tree didn't budge. When the burn in her back and legs became too much, she dropped the tension and leaned against the trunk as her head swam, 'darkness creeping in the corners of her vision.
Magna rested against the tree for a moment or two, catching her breath as her head cleared. The hunger was getting to her. That, and she hadn't drank anything all morning. A meaty hand lifts to her head and holds her steady while she pushes away from the tree. A single-eyed squint looks over her good work before drawing a low, defeated sigh; the tree hadn't moved an inch. She took deep breaths and stretched her weary muscles, then stumbled back to her dropped backpack before she took a knee beside it. She took a moment to steady herself again before she removed her hand from her lightened head, then searched her bag's compartments for her waterskin. Once she'd found it, it's contents were poured into her mouth with haste, downing the much-needed hydration before exhaling in a deep, soothing euphoria.
Her eyes returned to the water, where they settled in thought. Even if she did manage to break the tree off without her ax, how would she craft a raft? Her rope was left on Pacheco's saddlebag. Perhaps rafting wasn't the most realistic method? The giantess turns to the forested slope again, spying the trees that stood in lines. She'd already wasted enough time trying to gather the lumber for the raft, but maybe if she broke a smaller tree, she could use it as a float and swim across? Immediately, her silver eyes scanned the slope in search of a worthy tree before settling on one such arbor. The trunk was far skinnier than the last, but still had a decent thickness to it. A sharp exhale flared her nostrils before she stood and brushed herself off then trudged toward the smaller tree. It was about as tall as she was with comparatively small branches that formed an almost paintbrush shape with its lush green leaves.
Once she'd reached the tree, she wrapped her hands around its trunk and pushed forward with both her raw strength and bodyweight. As she'd hoped, the trunk of the tree flexed and curved to her force. She gently released the press of her arms, then rolled her shoulders, turned her head upward, and popped some trapped air in her neck. She was going to break this tree, ax or no.
Deliberate steps position her before the trunk, where she wrapped her thick arms around its body in a firm bear hug. A deep breath filled her lungs before she steadily released her hold of her own weight. The tree began to bend in an arch some, but not nearly enough. A quiet series of snaps sounded below her at the sharpest part of the trunk's curve, which relayed the damage to the trunk. Once the tree was supporting the entirety of her weight, she dug in her heels and pulled backward hard. The result was a sudden hard dip in her angle, followed by an even louder snapping sound, shortly before being pulled back up by the flexibility of the tree, as though she'd bounced.
She nigh-dangled there, with naught but the trunk of the bent tree to support her weight. Another hard yank on the trunk saw a smaller series of snaps than the last, but its ability to hold her weight failed and her back met the floor of the slope. She grunted a little, though her head was safely tucked against the tree. When she let go of the trunk, it stayed in place, crippled by the damage to its base. A push of her arms scooted her from under it, and she lifted to her feet before dusting herself off. The tree was bent down at an extreme angle and most of the fresh white and green of the flesh beneath the bark showed. There was no time to waste, so she returned to the river and walked knee-deep into the waters while scanning the riverbed for rocks. Most were smooth, but she managed to catch a glimpse of one with a sharp edge. After collecting the rock, she returned to the tree and began to hammer away at the crease.
At first, her strikes yielded no results, the bark appeared too versatile to break to the edge of a pointed rock, nor the weight of her blows. She was not the most accurate, either. Granted, the strikes landed with about an inch of grouping, but the task was still slow going. Even as her digits began to hurt, she continued her barrage of heavy, rocky strikes. Eventually, the bark gave way to expose the softer white tree flesh beneath. Every proceeding strike chipped away at the wood, eventually breaking through the plant about half-way before stopping. Her arm burned, her fingers were raw and she needed a moment to gather her breath. The same hand that held the rock turned over where she could see it; she was shaking, mostly from the strain. With a deep exhale, she swapped hands and returned to hammering the tree with the rock.
The entire feat had taken her perhaps an hour of constant manual labor, but in the end, she'd broken the tree with naught but her hands and a sharp rock. Catching her breath still, the giantess dropped the wood-pulp-covered rock and looked to her hands, which were red around her callouses, even bleeding in parts. A flex of her digits yielded a hiss of pain, but she hadn't the time to stop. She'd done this for a reason, after all. Pacheco. He was waiting for her somewhere on the other side of that river, and now she had her means of crossing.
With a deep draw of breath, the giant stood and gripped the base of the tree with a bend of her knees, lifting it to waist height to make for an easier drag. Step by step, she guided the broken arbor down the slope and brought it to the edge of the water before she dropped it in place. The air had started to heat up, which meant she'd be fighting with hydration while she searched for her companion. A low sigh flowed from her lips as she soaked her raw hands in the water, and washed the muck of tree pulp and dirt from her scrapes. All that was left now was to swim across the river, and thanks to the heat of the recent days, it appeared to be quite shallow. On the other side waited Pacheco's tracks, and hopefully, something to eat.
There she stood at the river's bank, staring into the clear waters as they flowed. Her companion had disappeared right here. That, or he'd managed to cross the river ahead of her and make it to the opposite shore. Her silver eyes squinted hard at the scene as if she were trying to discern whether or not his hoof-prints were present in the opposite bank. Alas, her eyes couldn't focus that far. She saw the general shape of the shore, the crag beside it, and the proceeding slope, but not much else. She'd have to cross this obstacle if she were to find Pacheco, but good ideas struck her about as often as lightning.
All in all, she'd thought of three possible solutions: One, build a raft and cross with that. Two, walk along the shore until the river looked shallow enough to cross. Three, find a bridge, and cross that way. All had their downsides, but she was running out of time. Pacheco was bleeding, as she knew. He needed her help, she needed to find him.
Sighing, she lifted the strenuous gaze of her pensive glare and drew a deep breath. Now was the time to commit to a plan and proceed, but all she could think about was the weight of her bag on her shoulders. Grumbling, she took hold of its straps and lifted it off before lowering it to the ground. A low growl followed as she rolled her shoulders, then gripped her empty, twisting stomach. Being as hungry as she was sure to hinder her thought process, but she hadn't time to hunt.
Her eyes fell to the dirt-sand in despair, where she stared at Pacheco's tracks. The idle gears of her mind began to whir as she noticed something she'd missed before. The hoof prints weren't running; they were walking in an orderly fashion toward the river's edge, where they cut off suddenly. The giantess stared for a moment, then knelt to inspect them closer. The bleeding appeared to be something of a slow drip, as though Pacheco wasn't strained while he traveled. This was good, the wound wasn't as bad as she'd initially thought. But... Why had it pooled at her tree? That implied that Pacheco stood around after initially receiving the wound... Or...
A hard swallow followed the thought. Pacheco was dying, that's why the bleeding had slowed! her lip began to tremble and the burn of her throat returned. Her poor companion, bleeding out in the middle of nowhere, lost and alone. A hard sniffle and a rub of her eyes buried her misery. She had to work. NOW. With a grunt, she pushed to her feet, then turned on a dime to run at the nearest tree. She didn't have her trusty ax, she left it behind before she embarked on her travels. Still, she'd chopped down dozens, hundreds of trees even. She could surely manage without her ax just this once, right?
The giantess skidded to a stop before her target; a rather thick oak tree. Immediately, she wrapped her arms around its body, widened her stance, and began to press. She felt the sand pack below her heels, and the muscles of her back strain as the bones popped their loose air in an audible series of cracks. The tree didn't budge.. yet. Determined to either snap the trunk or rip it out by the roots, she continued to pull and press with all her might. Her teeth bared in a sharp snarl as her body began to shake with strain. Above her, the branches trembled in a similar fashion; it was working, she just needed to pull a little harder! Despite her determination and raw strength, however, the tree didn't budge. When the burn in her back and legs became too much, she dropped the tension and leaned against the trunk as her head swam, 'darkness creeping in the corners of her vision.
Magna rested against the tree for a moment or two, catching her breath as her head cleared. The hunger was getting to her. That, and she hadn't drank anything all morning. A meaty hand lifts to her head and holds her steady while she pushes away from the tree. A single-eyed squint looks over her good work before drawing a low, defeated sigh; the tree hadn't moved an inch. She took deep breaths and stretched her weary muscles, then stumbled back to her dropped backpack before she took a knee beside it. She took a moment to steady herself again before she removed her hand from her lightened head, then searched her bag's compartments for her waterskin. Once she'd found it, it's contents were poured into her mouth with haste, downing the much-needed hydration before exhaling in a deep, soothing euphoria.
Her eyes returned to the water, where they settled in thought. Even if she did manage to break the tree off without her ax, how would she craft a raft? Her rope was left on Pacheco's saddlebag. Perhaps rafting wasn't the most realistic method? The giantess turns to the forested slope again, spying the trees that stood in lines. She'd already wasted enough time trying to gather the lumber for the raft, but maybe if she broke a smaller tree, she could use it as a float and swim across? Immediately, her silver eyes scanned the slope in search of a worthy tree before settling on one such arbor. The trunk was far skinnier than the last, but still had a decent thickness to it. A sharp exhale flared her nostrils before she stood and brushed herself off then trudged toward the smaller tree. It was about as tall as she was with comparatively small branches that formed an almost paintbrush shape with its lush green leaves.
Once she'd reached the tree, she wrapped her hands around its trunk and pushed forward with both her raw strength and bodyweight. As she'd hoped, the trunk of the tree flexed and curved to her force. She gently released the press of her arms, then rolled her shoulders, turned her head upward, and popped some trapped air in her neck. She was going to break this tree, ax or no.
Deliberate steps position her before the trunk, where she wrapped her thick arms around its body in a firm bear hug. A deep breath filled her lungs before she steadily released her hold of her own weight. The tree began to bend in an arch some, but not nearly enough. A quiet series of snaps sounded below her at the sharpest part of the trunk's curve, which relayed the damage to the trunk. Once the tree was supporting the entirety of her weight, she dug in her heels and pulled backward hard. The result was a sudden hard dip in her angle, followed by an even louder snapping sound, shortly before being pulled back up by the flexibility of the tree, as though she'd bounced.
She nigh-dangled there, with naught but the trunk of the bent tree to support her weight. Another hard yank on the trunk saw a smaller series of snaps than the last, but its ability to hold her weight failed and her back met the floor of the slope. She grunted a little, though her head was safely tucked against the tree. When she let go of the trunk, it stayed in place, crippled by the damage to its base. A push of her arms scooted her from under it, and she lifted to her feet before dusting herself off. The tree was bent down at an extreme angle and most of the fresh white and green of the flesh beneath the bark showed. There was no time to waste, so she returned to the river and walked knee-deep into the waters while scanning the riverbed for rocks. Most were smooth, but she managed to catch a glimpse of one with a sharp edge. After collecting the rock, she returned to the tree and began to hammer away at the crease.
At first, her strikes yielded no results, the bark appeared too versatile to break to the edge of a pointed rock, nor the weight of her blows. She was not the most accurate, either. Granted, the strikes landed with about an inch of grouping, but the task was still slow going. Even as her digits began to hurt, she continued her barrage of heavy, rocky strikes. Eventually, the bark gave way to expose the softer white tree flesh beneath. Every proceeding strike chipped away at the wood, eventually breaking through the plant about half-way before stopping. Her arm burned, her fingers were raw and she needed a moment to gather her breath. The same hand that held the rock turned over where she could see it; she was shaking, mostly from the strain. With a deep exhale, she swapped hands and returned to hammering the tree with the rock.
The entire feat had taken her perhaps an hour of constant manual labor, but in the end, she'd broken the tree with naught but her hands and a sharp rock. Catching her breath still, the giantess dropped the wood-pulp-covered rock and looked to her hands, which were red around her callouses, even bleeding in parts. A flex of her digits yielded a hiss of pain, but she hadn't the time to stop. She'd done this for a reason, after all. Pacheco. He was waiting for her somewhere on the other side of that river, and now she had her means of crossing.
With a deep draw of breath, the giant stood and gripped the base of the tree with a bend of her knees, lifting it to waist height to make for an easier drag. Step by step, she guided the broken arbor down the slope and brought it to the edge of the water before she dropped it in place. The air had started to heat up, which meant she'd be fighting with hydration while she searched for her companion. A low sigh flowed from her lips as she soaked her raw hands in the water, and washed the muck of tree pulp and dirt from her scrapes. All that was left now was to swim across the river, and thanks to the heat of the recent days, it appeared to be quite shallow. On the other side waited Pacheco's tracks, and hopefully, something to eat.
