Wyvern Hunters with Heart
Posted on 28 Jun 2023 @ 7:46pm by Warrior Kylandro (Kyle) de Arzo & Rogue Nazri Arisant
1,516 words; about a 8 minute read
Mission:
Once Upon a Codex
Location: Rivain, Dairsmuid
Timeline: Ten Years Ago
Kyle woke slowly from a perfectly contented and dreamless sleep, entwined in the arms of the most amazing young man he had ever known. The previous afternoon and evening was a delicious haze of pleasure and experimentation. Though initially shy and self-conscious of his inexperience, Nazri was a quick learner and enthusiastic lover, observant of the most subtle details of touch and response. With only a little encouragement, Nazri had taken the dominant position to their mutual carnal delight. Kyle pressed his lips to a love bite on Nazri's neck and stretched luxuriantly.
Sometimes Nazri's dreams were a reproduction of what had happened earlier in his life, be that a minute or more than a year. Sometimes that was a blessing, in some cases a curse. That morning it was a blessing. He'd been reliving everything, or at least the vast majority of what had transpired between them in the previous few hours.
He hadn't noticed the nibble at first. It had seemed part of the dream until Kyle gave him a hickey. He sat bolt upright in bed. It took him a few seconds to orient himself.
"Still teaching me new things, I love that Kyle. Do we have to get out of bed now?"
Kyle chuckled softly as he sat up also and nuzzled Nazri's neck. "We don't have to do anything. What do you want to do?"
"Nothing, well not nothing exactly, but let's just say spend the day in bed. But we do have an obligation to fulfill. So, maybe just the morning? And, I'd kind of like to see what it's like to have you inside me."
Hearing those words from Nazri's lips elicited an immediate hard response from Kyle's body, and he pulled Nazri into an embrace and kissed him with slow, deliberate passion, then drew back to look into his lover's eyes. "If you're sure. We can spend all morning doing whatever you want."
"I'm sure," came the almost immediate response. "Just you know, slowly.."
The sun had reached its zenith when Kyle and Nazri exited the city gates. They'd stopped in the market to buy more bread and cheese to add to their supplies. Kyle's shield was clipped over his rucksack, and his sword sheathed and hung from his belt. They walked along the main road for the first part of the journey in comfortable silence. Kyle simply enjoyed his lover's company, the firm touch of their linked hands, and the warm sun on his head. Gesturing with his free hand to Nazri's bow, he said, "What other creatures have you hunted?
"Well, mostly elk, deer, those kinds of things. For food. About the most dangerous things I've hunted were wolves, and a mountain lion."
"When it comes to hunting game, you have much more experience than I do," admitted Kyle. He patted the sword at his side. "My weapon is more suited to close range. Though if you want rabbit for breakfast, I'm good at setting traps."
"I did kill a bear once, but I really wasn't hunting it. My Commander, I think he may have been suspicious of me. I was thirteen at the time and had started to manifest some magical abilities. I was trying to keep that secret. I think he sent me out there to test me."
"The most dangerous creature I ever killed was a human," said Kyle, his demeanor thoughtful and serious, but not quite remorseful. "Your Commander was suspicious? That must have been dangerous for you, and not just because you faced a bear. I've heard the treatment of mages under the Qun is horrific, far worse even than the Chantry in Orlais, or Ferelden."
"They treat anyone who doesn't conform, or fit in badly. Just being different was enough to be deemed unfit and worthy of punishment."
"They wouldn't have cared that we fucked around. They'd just consider it a release. Nothing more. Nothing Less."
"But holding hands, connecting to someone emotionally, and I am connecting to you that way, that would be criminal."
"But, I digress. You're right. The worst punishment, the worst treatment is reserved for those who cast magic. I never asked to be that way, but it's just how I was born."
"Now, I'm just hoping to be able to control it."
"You will," said Kyle confidently, then he sighed. "I can think of nothing adequately consoling to offer for what you've been through. I can say only that away from the qun, your future is probably brighter. My own future certainly feels bright, with you in it."
Kyle's last remark brought a smile to Nazri's face, "Thank you for that," he said, "I've never had anyone say that to me before. I feel the same about you. I think I'm starting to fa... really care about you."
Kyle squeezed Nazri's hand, pulling him closer, and planted a kiss on his mouth. The kind of kiss that was both casual and affectionate, a brief between-passion interlude.
"Up ahead is a trail we can follow to a ridge." Kyle gestured just ahead. "It's a bit out of our way, but if we climb it we can get a good view of the entire valley before we begin scouting."
Nazri gave a brief nod of his head, then disengaged his hand from the other man's. He pulled the bow from his shoulder. "Lead the way," he suggested, I'll cover your back in case there is anything up there."
Kyle headed up the narrow trail a few paces in front of Nazri. He'd done this before but knew that the valley changed, and Nazri hadn't seen the view of the whole valley before. The trail sloped up sharply, and Kyle was soon scrambling up rocks, then climbing the side of a boulder to reach the top. He made the final mantel-shelf move, checked that it was safe on the ridge, then knelt on the edge to help Nazri if needed.
Nazri had watched Kyle climb up the face of the ridge. Half of his attention was on his lover, the other half watching for any danger. Only when he was almost at the top, did he lower his bow, then put it back on his back and start the ascent himself. He almost slipped once, but was able to scramble his way back up. Once he'd reached the top he reached out his hand for Kyle's. It wasn't so much that he actually needed the help at that time, it was more he just wanted to feel the other's hand in his.
Once they were safely standing on top of the hill, he asked. "What now?"
Kyle did not stand on top of the hill, but pulled Nazri down into a crouch next to him. "A wyvern might not be able to catch your scent up here on the hill, but if there are any people around, your outline against the sky will be visible for miles." Perhaps, thought Kyle, that awareness was the difference between someone who had killed a person and someone who had only killed beasts.
"Like I said, from here we can see the whole valley, and map it out in our heads. Between us, you are the skilled hunter, Nazri. What would you do next?"
"I'd start looking for places, or types of places it was known to inhabit. Do they build nests? Do they live in caves? Then when I found one of those places I'd look for signs of them."
Kyle raised an eyebrow at Nazri's general hunting lesson. "Well, I don't know what the typical habitat for wyverns is, but at least a couple of them live in the wet, swampy area surrounded by this ridge. They look like wingless dragons to me, about the size of a large horse, so we can probably see one from here."
"At least they can't fly," Nazri muttered half under his breath. "And we have a good idea of where they are." He eyed the path that led down into the valley "Okay, let's keep low at least until we move below the ridgeline. Let's try to stay downwind."
It took Kyle a few moments to catch the movement of the wyvern Nazri had spotted, then he followed Nazri down the path. About halfway down the ridge, they passed a flat area recessed from the path and backed by an overhanging rock wall. The remains of a campfire were at least a weak old. "Hunters use this campsite, though it's been a while since I stayed in the area overnight."
"A nice place to retreat to, if we have to," came the reply, "and I wouldn't mind spending another night under the stars with you, but I'd rather get this over and done with. I think we're getting close."
"The sooner we finish the hunt, the sooner we can collect our reward and proceed to a night of celebration." Kyle grinned. "As you wish."
"I like the way you think. I guess whoever spots it first gets to choose the fun?"
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