The Hunt

[Razor-D-Belphe]

@DragonSong

Grizzly Rockrieg stalked well despite his size. He pressed his form against a tree, thirty or so feet from his query - a hardy wolf. As far as Grizzly knew, it had no clue of his presence. He readied a javelin.

[DragonSong]

Asta might not have noticed the hunter, were it not for a sudden shift in the wind. Her nose, sharper than ever in this particular form, caught the scent of a stranger and her head snapped up.

The sleek, white wolf scented the air again, flicking her ears forward, and then back to press tight against her skull. Her eyes searched the trees, but she couldn't quite make out the origin of that scent.

Best not risk it. With a low huff, she turned and bounded away into the forest.

[Razor-D-Belphe]

Grizzly chuckled. "On to me, are you? Ok then."

He sprinted after her.

"You wouldn't be the first beast I ran down!"

His powerful legs pistoned, his tree trunk arms swinging, the javelin clutched in his powerful right fist. Leaping over the brush, he saw the wolf once more.

"You're mine!"

[DragonSong]

The Ghost had been hunted before; she'd assumed by now the blind panic would begin to fade.

It didn't.

Panting lightly, the wolf zig-zagged quickly through the trees, turning sharper than such a large animal had any right to do so.

[Razor-D-Belphe]

A javelin spiked into the ground inches behind her as she turned.

*Never seen a wolf move like that before.* Grizzly noted. *but it isn't thinking straight. I know this area like the back of my hand. It's heading straight for a cliff.*

[DragonSong]

Asta knew these forests, and if she hadn't been so panicked she might have had some sort of a plan in mind.

As it was, she nearly tumbled from the cliff side before she just barely managed to catch herself, backpedaling desperately and looking around with a fearful whine.

Had she been thinking clearly, she might have taken her human form then and there. But animal instinct was all too easy to fall prey to in this form, and instead she took a hard left and began racing along the edge of the cliff, lungs heaving as she desperately sought escape.

[Razor-D-Belphe]

Grizzly came to a stop at the cliff. He had lost sight of the wolf. He peered over the edge, looking for a corpse.

"Damn. You're a wily one."

He looked along the edge. "Where oh where could you be?"

He began stalking along the edge, another javelin in hand.

[DragonSong]

The ghostly white wolf continued to run, trying to keep herself hidden in the foliage as much as possible.

But there was reason her people considered albinism a curse. Her white fur stood out too starkly against the dark browns and greens of the forest, too easy a target.

[Razor-D-Belphe]

A javelin impaled the tree behind her.

"Dammit, sloppy!" Grizzly cursed.

He slammed his fist into a tree, denting the trunk.

"You don't move like any wolf I've ever hunted. What are you, really?"

[DragonSong]

What are you, really?

The words jolted her. Asta skittered to a stop, whirling to face the hunter as she panted. What am I...?

The wolf melted away, revealing a waify, pale young woman crouched on the ground, unclothed, pale blue eyes wide as she stared up at him.

"St-stay away from me!"

[Razor-D-Belphe]

Grizzly's eyes widened.

"Now that's an interesting development." he smirked, scratching his chin. "I'd heard rumors of shapeshifters, but never seen any evidence of them before today. You're more interesting alive than dead."

[DragonSong]

The shapeshifter in question crawled back several paces, struggling to get her feet under her. "I-I'm warning you, stay back!"

There was a growl in her last word, a flash of teeth that was closer to a feral snarl than any human expression.

[Razor-D-Belphe]

Grizzly chuckled.

"Don't give warnings you can't back up. Now calm down, I've got no interest in human pelts. I just want to ask a few questions. You never did tell me exactly what you are. Are you a wolf or a person? Something else? How did you come by this ability? Tell me a good story!"

[DragonSong]

Asta paused, still panting lightly. "A...story?"

She stared at him, looked down at herself, glanced around at the trees, then back to him. "I...I am Ghost," she told him, bewildered. "That's-- that's it."

[Razor-D-Belphe]

"Your storytelling could use some improvement." he chuckled again. "Ghost." he said as if tasting the word. "Well, my apologies for trying to stick you. But, as it just so happens, this is my neck of the woods. I have a vacation cabin around here." he explained.

[DragonSong]

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Not your woods," she muttered petulantly. "This part of the forest is my territory. I belong here!"

She glowered balefully at the javelin he held. "Why do you always do that?" she hissed, struggling to her feet and backing up along the forest floor. "Why do you people keep trying to hurt me? I just want to be left alone!"

[Razor-D-Belphe]

"Primarily because as a wolf, you looked delicious and your pelt would fetch a good price. And the woods belong to the alpha predator. If you can't protect yourself, you can't claim territory." Grizzly explained.

[DragonSong]

Asta snarled at him. "You're wrong," she hissed. "The woods belong to us all. Bird and beast and spirit alike. This is our home. And you-- you humans just want to hack and kill and bleed and burn and claw it all away!"

She shivered, and for a moment her form seemed to shimmer, going blurry at the edges. Only her eyes were solid, burning with an icy fire.

"You do not be long here, two-legger," she spat.

[Razor-D-Belphe]

"Are you going to remove me?" Grizzly asked.

[DragonSong]

The shapeshifter curled her lip. "If I have to," she responded softly, eyes glinting dangerously.