• Solo • Ashes to Ash-Flaw (Graded)

[Rakvald]

19th of Saun 721

All fled—all done, so lift me on the pyre; The feast is over, and the lamps expire.

~ Robert E. Howard

Continued from here.

Ash-Flaw's body was light in Rakvald's arms. Owing to the strength lent from the Swine King's buckle that rested on his girdle, every ounce of hunger and deprivation he felt bolstered his strength and power. A hunger he would slake, in time, but he only had one prey in mind for that purpose. All in good time. For now, he had his respects to pay to Ash-Flaw's memory, preparations to see that his soul departed in peace, and did not linger in his body. The temptation to drain his soul was still strong in Rakvald, but he was able to resist, by nothing but the force of will.

He laid the body down on one of the bedrolls they'd taken with them, at the campsite. Then he set about preparing the pyre. He gathered small and moderately sized rocks. Little bugs scurried about as he uncovered their hiding places, but he bothered them not. He would not slake his hunger until he found the quarry that had brought Ash-Flaw to this state. There were so many of them, it would have been easy to reclaim a bit of ether one bit by bit, but he would not.

The stones were made into a bed for Ash-Flaw, by the riverside. In times of heavy rain, the pyre would be washed away, ashes and all. And that seemed to Rakvald a poetic end to the noble creature he'd called brother for an arc. So the stone bed was set on the river's bank. There, once he had a layer of stones, wide enough that it would hold the logs and kindling, he went to work breaking up bits of branches and wood with a wood ax. The task went easily, though he tired halfway through it, grief gave him a second wind. His friend's soul would not wait for rest, while Rakvald had all the time in the world to give his body respite.

So the kindling was gathered and placed upon the bed of stones. Then he moved onto larger wood bits, pieces that had long ago fallen on the forest floor. He didn't dare try to fell an entire tree, but rather played it safe gathering logs and larger branches that had split off from the trunks of various pines and oaks. And then, finally, he moved onto the greater pieces of wood. Entire logs that would take a mountain of a man to lift. Thankfully, the power of the Swine King's buckle gave him strength just enough to do just that. And so he carried several smaller, fallen trunks over toward the woodpile, and placed them evenly as he could. Finally, he went to Ash-Flaw, though he could scarcely bear to look at the mangled corpse that was his friend.

He knelt by him and cradled him in his arms one last time. Then he moved him over toward the pyre and placed him there. Once on it, he began arranging kindling that had fallen by the wayside as he piled on the wood and kindling atop each other. He placed them on top of Ash-Flaw, and made sure to bury him well so that the flames would take him away.

Then, he bowed his head in remembrance and knelt by the unlit pyre.

[Rakvald]

As he bowed his head, his hand gripped the talon that he'd recovered from the rest of Ash-Flaw's body. It was an empty receptacle, a vessel to receive a portion of Rakvald's soul, thus binding the unaltered and uncorrupted totem of Ash-Flaw, quite to the winged version that he'd crafted over the past season. He let the totem fall around his clavicle, where it hung from his neck by a strap of leather. Then he set about the work of lighting the pyre. Thankfully, they had brought camping equipment with them, which included bits of flint and steel with which to make sparks for a fire. He took these implements and started striking them against the kindling at the base of the pyre. He did this at several points until the somewhat moist kindling began smoking and eventually caught fire all along the base.

Was at this point that Rakvald returned to the front of the pyre, to watch as his friend's soul was honored and given proper disposal at a pyre. His soul and mind would not linger, mourned properly as it was, and disposed of in as appropriate a way as Rakvald knew how.

As the fires lapped upward, toward the Ithecal's body, Rakvald bowed his head, and returned his attention to the sovereign substances of Ash-Flaw. The claw, the scale, and the blood bound them together with a strap. Sure enough, as he channeled the ether into the totem, he felt part of his soul fill that void of severed flesh, bone, and blood. He remembered the wonder with which Ash-Flaw regarded so much of the world. Though when he found him, the Ithecal was suspicious and cynical, as you'd expect of a beaten slave from Quacia, he'd come to see the wonders of the world. The comforts of good drink and food, and in Rakvald's company, he knew kinship.

Bit by bit, the wood crackled beneath Ash-Flaw's body, until the flames and heat overtook him. Rakvald turned his head upward, watching the spectacle as he could feel his ether being absorbed by the totem, dedicating itself to creating a perfect copy of his friend to remain with him, until he lived out his natural life span.

Tears formed at the corners of the mage's eyes, as he watched Ash-Flaw's body consumed by the cracking fire. After about six breaks of meditating in this way, Rakvald had his totem in hand. Dedicated it to Ash-Flaw's form, and now he would remain by his side.

Even as he dedicated the totem, he delved deeper into the nature of the creature he was joining with. The Ithecal of Paltharnum varieties had an uncanny ability to tolerate temperature extremes. As the flames washed over Rakvad's face, and the heat of the two suns was getting to be oppressive, he almost unwittingly, but then intentionally when he realized what was happening, echoed the ability of the Ithecal to resist temperature extremes. He sought to make it a permanent part of his soul. It seemed appropriate to Rakvald, given that he wished to form that bond by creating an unaltered version of Ash-Claw to remain with him.

So as the heat of the embers wafted in Rakvald's direction, it didn't bother him. Rather, he felt refreshed by the dry heat that washed over his body, as he paid his respects to the brother he'd always wanted.

Another few breaks of silently keeping vigil over the pyre, and it was reduced to whitened embers and ash. Ash-Flaw was no more than a pile of Ashes himself. In time, the river would rise from flood waters. And the signs of Ash-Flaw's passing would flow down the river to Lowgarden, or to the sea to the east.

Rakvald stood from his kneeling position in front of the fire. Then he held the totem in his hand, assimilating it into himself.

It would soon be time to prepare his path of vengeance against the Crocodile that had harmed Ash-Flaw. But for now, he would let it lie.



20th of Saun 721

In the morning, after resting off his exertions, he felt refreshed. No longer consuming energy at a great pace, but still hungry. Rakvald crept up on the bank of the river, and there looked at his reflection. He seemed more gaunt, less plump than he had in all his incarnations. Perhaps he had slimmed down too much. But he thought he was still the sexiest mage alive. At that thought, he allowed himself to pop a grin. Ash-Flaw would've rolled his eyes.

His work done there, he decided he'd need tools in order to exact revenge against the King Crocodile that'd taken his friend. He'd need weapons, axes, blades, and other things to facilitate its end. He thought briefly he could wrestle the creature, but no. Such a foe was beyond his own natural capabilities as a fighter.

He needed to use guile.

So he made his way over toward Lowgarden, to see what he could find, what he could use, and what they had to offer to his efforts. He might even press a few people into the efforts of finding his wayward pet.

He dismantled his campsite and gathered up what belongings he'd brought with him. Then he threw over a burlap cloak over his shoulders, as a concession to modesty, and was on his way, over toward the nearest town.

[Balthazar Black]

Review Rewards

Name: Rakvald

Points Awarded: 10
Magic Experience: Yes
Knowledge: [*] Becoming: Totem: Paltharnum Ithecal, the unaltered form of Ash-Flaw
[*] Becoming: Permanent Echo: Extreme Hot/Very Cold Temperature/Climate tolerance (Paltharnum Ithecal)
[*] Combat: Axes & Bludgeons: Practice cutting on spare bits of branches and wood around the campsite.
[*] Fieldcraft: Constructing a primitive funeral pyre.
[*] Strength: Carrying smaller logs toward the funeral pyre, for burning.

Renown:
Loot - Totem of Ash-Flaw
- Permanent Echo: Extreme Hot/Very Cold Temperature/Climate tolerance (Paltharnum Ithecal)
Injuries/Overstepping: Apart from the emotional toll of a lost friend, and a little migraine for a few breaks from magic use, none.
Wealth Points: None.
Skill Review: All Skills used appropriate to level.
Consequence: None.

Notes: Well I enjoyed this thread for a lot of reasons, the very least of which is that it helped me understand Becoming a lot more than I had prior. It is always fun to read a Rakvald thread and this one was more emotionally charged than I expected it was going to be. I really enjoyed the description of the setting and the pyre Rakvald was building for Ash-Flaw and Rakvald's reflections as he worked on it. I think you paced this story perfectly in terms of the posts. Dedicating the first post to bringing the body to the spot and building the pyre and the second post to building the totem felt like an excellent way to balance two different tones. I enjoyed how Rakvald made the totem while Ash-Flaw's body burned because it made the creation of the totem itself feel more important. I couldn't help but laugh when Rakvald was admiring himself and thought he was the sexiest mage alive. It happened so suddenly and juxtaposed with the tone of the rest of the thread I thought it was a wonderful example of his character.

As a small note, after Ash-Flaw is dead I don't think its possible to flay him. According to the Flaying write up, flaying can occur when someone is severely wounded or near death so I think once they're gone the urge to flay them would pass as well.

I did not award the knowledge below because Rakvald has a very similar knowledge in his CS already. I think I might be misunderstanding it so please PM me with a clarification if these knowledges are not for the same act, but otherwise please PM me with a replacement knowledge if you'd like the another.

Knowledge Requested

[*] Becoming: Assimilate: Assimilated the Paltharnum Ithecal form into himself.

Knowledge on Profile

[*] Becoming: Assimilate: Ithecal (Paltharnum) totem is assimilated into Rakvald.