Searing 26th, Year 66, Age of Steel
20 days. 20 days of a complete total reprieve from anything weird and Isra related. All good things must come to an end though, and Isra made sure of that. The Rathari was currently shifting nervously under her caretaker's gaze as Isra looked down her nose at Alyssum, occasionally pacing back and forth as she inspected the young Rathari. "Okay. So my attempt to teach you stealth didn't go quite as expected. My bad really, I made a miscalculation," Isra said. Ever harsh but fair, she could at least admit the mistake in her decision. An adult would have been held to a much higher standard and left for monster food if they couldn't survive, but a child is a child.
"With that in mind, today we're going to try something a little bit different. We're going to start from step one. Then we're going to get into the actual meat and potatoes of getting you prepared enough to help me hunt as well as hide yourself incase something dangerous comes along. This is an important life skill you're going to learn, Alyssum." It was rare that Isra actually used Alyssum's name. The name itself had been Isra's choice since when Isra found her Alyssum had been too young to have, remember, or speak a name.
The name was chosen on the ground Alyssum was a Rathari, and Isra wanted to keep with the theme that most Rathari shared regarding their names. Isra ended up choosing Sweet Alyssum for a number of reasons, and on occasion, Isra still added the sweet to Alyssum's name as a term of endearment. Besides that, she was either 'pup' or 'child'. She was never just Alyssum unless the situation was important or Alyssum had done something wrong. She assumed she hadn't done anything wrong since Isra spent the next couple hours after that whole mess trying pathetically to console her. Or maybe that was just because Alyssum's crying was getting annoying and she wouldn't stop clinging to Isra. It was hard to say.
"What I want you to do right now is think about your breathing. How are you breathing? Do you know how loud it is that you're breathing?" Isra asked. Alyssum became uncomfortably aware of her own breathing, to the point she started to do the thing where you consciously breathe that literally every person ever hated. She was aware of her breathing all right... It didn't seem like it would be too terribly loud, few people ever noticed the noise of their own breathing, but she could see how it might be pretty loud if you were standing alone in the dead silence of the forest like she and Isra were now.
As Isra's voice fell away and only the silence of the world around her was left, Alyssum realized just how loud her breathing was. Something... something could find her. A shot of icy panic went through her lungs and her breathing hitched, getting a little faster and by extension a little louder.
"Calm down," Isra's demand sliced through that panic like a flaming knife. Alyssum swallowed and quickly tried to even own her breathing. It was hard not to think about monsters crawling around just outside her field of view though. Every time she tried to be quiet she remembered roaring and the glinting of scales, the color of which she could hardly bring to mind. Terrifying, it was terrifying, and her body wanted to draw more air into her lungs as quickly as possible so she could flee. But this wasn't the kind of situation where she could... where she should flee.
This was the kind of situation where she needed to learn how to be quiet. Or, at least that's what Isra was trying to teach her. She was safe right now though, right? Isra was so strong, she'd kill anything that tried to hurt them! Right? Alyssum wasn't entirely sure, but she needed to reassure herself so she could get her breathing to actually even out. Even then, it was still so noticeably loud now that she was fully aware of it.
"If you're having trouble, try breathing through your mouth instead of your nose. It increases the area through which the air can leave your body, making sure that the pressure doesn't cause the whistling of air that is the noise your breathing makes. In addition, be conscious of where you're breathing. Deep and slow always works best for this kind of thing. Don't be afraid of looking like an idiot with your mouth half-opened if it keeps you quiet." Isra gentle pressed down on Alyssum's diaphragm and Alyssum tried to breathe from where Isra was pressing.
She probably did look like an idiot, but the parting of her jaws and the shifting in her breathing was enough to completely bring silence to the bodily function. "Good," Isra said, the small bit of praise causing Alyssum's little heart to soar and her mind to actually push away thoughts of monsters and terrifying beasts lurking around in the words just out of her mental reach. "From now on you're going to practice this for ten minutes every day until you're comfortable enough with it that it's second nature. Understood?" Alyssum nodded as Isra spoke and the woman seemed satisfied.
"Now, sometimes even when you're trying your best you're still gonna make enough noise that something can hear you. Especially if you're trying to hunt. Animals have sharper senses than humans. This is something that as a Rathari, you probably already know. Even then, your senses are probably weakened compared to the average animal. This means that sometimes even your quietest breathing becomes noticeable to beasts and creatures. In order to avoid getting caught, what you want to do is turn your head away from your target. That way the sound of your breathing isn't traveling directly towards them, but in a different direction."
"Then how am I going to see them."
Isra smiled, tapping a finger near the corner of her eye. "We have this wonderful this can peripheral vision. Not only is it always good to check your peripherals to make sure no one's trying to sneak up on you, but by mastering the ability to gaze through them you can use them to keep an eye on your target while breathing in a different direction. Go ahead, try."
Alyssum tilted her head away from Isra, flattening out her breathing once more and breathing in the way Isra had instructed her. Through the corner of her eye, she looked at the older woman who tilted her head. "Yes, perfect, exactly like that, can you still see me?"
"Yeah."
Isra smiled, seemingly content. Alyssum relaxed, facing back towards her teacher. The satisfied expression on Isra's face once again blocked out the slithering sensation that every time she tried to be quiet, something was trying to find her. That being said, the knowledge was still there. Burning away at the back of her mind like a hot knife.
"Now, another super important thing to remember when you're talking about stealth is the fact that the eye is designed to catch movement. A lot of creatures in Ransera don't have very good color vision. They aren't designed to differentiate that easy since they're designed to have marginally better night vision. Even mortals have an easier time catching movement than they do colors. The eyes are drawn to it. So even if you think you've been caught, don't jump the gun and flee. Instead, freeze in place. This leads pretty well into what I'm going to tell you next. Being mindful of lighting, skin tone, and camouflage," Isra picked up a bag which had been sitting next to her the whole time and pulled out a couple of items, sitting crisscross on the ground.
Alyssum took that as an invitation and did the same while Isra pulled out items like makeups and cloth.
"Let's start with lighting. A lot of creatures have pretty good night vision and will easily catch movement. However, darkness is still one of your best friends. If it's dark enough you can slip around without being noticed as long as you aren't wearing anything that's bright enough to pierce it. The darkness is our friend, our mother, our caretaker. Always remember that, little pup. Whenever the sky turns blinding and the world turns fierce, the unknown darkness is always there to hide you with all the other secrets we aren't meant to know," Isra said.
"But I like learning secrets..." Alyssum trailed off, almost feeling bad for her curiosity.
Isra took a had left when Alyssum started to sag, quickly trying to amend her statement. "And there's nothing wrong with that. In fact, you might take an interest in Thiovan, the knower of all secrets. If you want to charge through the darkness hunting down secrets for your own amusement, there's no problem in reveling in that. Just don't bring a light." Isra paused, looking down at the assortment of items in her lap.
"Next, skin tone. You and I, in particular, have very pale skin. Especially you. You need to be mindful of that since in the dark a brighter skin tone stands out. Especially somewhere like a forest. Of course, there are places where a skin tone like this can benefit you. Places like snowy fields, as long as you hide your hair properly, should be easy to disappear into. There is no perfect skin color for stealth, it's all about working with what you've got. And adjusting as necessary," Isra opened up the small container of makeup in her hands. Alyssum was honestly expecting a black tarry substance, but it was actually a deep shade of blue.
"A lot of people will tell you black is the best for nighttime stealth. They don't know what they're saying. Ninjas, the true masters of stealth, wear dark blues because it actually blends in better during the nighttime. This makeup smears on pretty easily and doesn't stain. It's a quick and easy way to mask yourself, and the fact it washes off easily with a little bit of oil keeps you from getting caught the next day." Isra's lecture was already starting to bleed from hunting to the insinuation that Alyssum would one day be doing illegal activities. Honestly, given the way Isra herself was raising the child she probably wasn't wrong.
Alyssum took the offered container and dabbed a little on a finger, pressing it into the skin of her hand. She shivered at the chill. it was slimy, but it seemed to dry fast and cling to her skin in a way that reminded her of dried mud.
"Remember, there are two types of camouflage. The kind you're born with and the kind you're able to create. Master both and then you have the basics down-" The sound of some type of animal interrupted Isra just as she was finishing the lecture. It wasn't a roar, pre se. Nothing close if Alyssum was being honest. But her heart jumped into her throat at the sound up whatever it was and she threw herself to her feet, spreading her wings in a desperate frenzy and flinging herself into the air.
"Alyssum! Alyssum wait! Alyssum, get down here," Isra shouted after the spooked Rathari. Alyssum didn't answer though. It was likely going to be hours before Isra actually managed to track her down. It was probably going to be seasons if not years because Alyssum was actually able to put this knowledge into use.
