Training Time (Open)

[Zirin]

Korvisk no want friends. Korvisk want servants. The bronzed hissed back, not at all pleased that she would even suggest something as silly as 'friends'. Kosk was much happier at being accepted by the girl, but she shook her head at the offer of food. Hers had let her hunt earlier that night, both she and Korvisk had eaten well already.

Korvin hadn't failed to notice the changing lightness. The bright sun that would hurt his partners' eyes was not far off, but they would still be alright for a short while longer. He whistled for both to come to him, scratching each below the chin as he spoke quietly to them, ordering them both back to the den. He wasn't supposed to let the whers wander free without supervision, but Korvin had never been one to follow rules; he wanted his whers to be able to follow his orders, including the order to go home. Kosk understand, take Korvisk home.[/b] She spoke soley to her handler first before stepping back towards Linda. Kosk happy to meet Linda. Kosk say have good day.[/b][/color] She dipped her head politely before nipping at Korvisk's flank and heading back to their den. Korvisk took a moment to stare back at Linda unhappily, but with a grumble and hiss at the lightening sky began following his 'sister'.

"Where you were?" He asked before he could stop himself. "I s'pose the oceans can get migh'y dangerous sometimes. But th'benefits outweigh th'dangers." Of course, Korvin's experience with water was mostly lakes and rivers, his only real experiences with the ocean had been when he travelled to Trelis, and the occaisonal night spent fishing in the salty waters. "Aye..." he agreed, scratching at his chin again as she continued speaking, "Th'wilds ain't safe, but I wouldn't give it up fer the world." Korvin knew he had long overstayed his welcome, especially now that he had sent his whers off. In fact, he was surprised the girl had answered him at all. Well, he hadn't gotten himself attacked yet, so he figured he'd be safe to stay a short while longer... he still had some energy to burn before sleeping.

"Dolphins?" He didn't keep the confusion out of his voice. To Korvin, who had been raised far inland and never really introduced to anything aside from the occasional fish from the ocean, Korvin knew very little of the salty depths. In fact, he had never even heard of a dolphin! Well, no matter what it was she was talking about, she had mentioned surviving on her own. "On yer own huh. I guess you ain't half bad then. I s'pose I underestimated ya."

[jovia]

Linda couldn't help but flinch a little bit and gave a little sheepish grin towards Korvisk. But she couldn't really speak up about an apology or anything because soon Korvin called them both to head home. Gently she waved a farewell to Kosk and tried to give an apologetic smile towards Korvisk. Maybe one day he would grow up and out of such a silly notion and become a great bronze Wher, he was still so much a child it was silly. Even though she was now searched and a candidate, part of her really wondered if she would ever impress on a Dragon or Wher. The thought almost made her tear up but she quickly pushed away those thoughts and feelings as Korvin spoke up.

A mere nod, and her eyes were placed on him now, no option or way to really ignore him without seeming impossibly rude and cruel. Seemed he was too sheltered in his upbringing if he didn't think the waters held too much in the way of dangers or just how dangerous the ocean was. Probably inland then? It seemed like it... then not really in the situation she was since inland was where the big ones lived and she didn't want to fight every second of every day. "... Yeah, even though I was forced into the wilds... After awhile you become accustom to it and it becomes home... nobody there to stab you in the back, nobody there to try to kill you... It can be called safe with no sharding humans."

Linda couldn't help but grin though, see he didn't even know about Dolphins. But she listened to him even compliment her, her face instantly showing shock and surprise at what he said. "Same here.... though I can't help but feel you had a more sheltered wilderness living. And Dolphins are big smart fish, they taught me how to survive a little bit. I didn't know anything beforehand."

[Zirin]

He was surprised she didn't just leave, to be perfectly honest. He had pegged her as the type to just waltz off when she didn't want to deal with something, yet here she was, actually listening to him.. and responding! It almost seemed strange to hear her talk at him, instead of his whers, and for a moment he almost went to answer through Kosk. Kosk home safe. Korvisk too. We sleep, stay safe.[/b][/color]. He smiled warmly at the voice in his head before looking back at Linda.

"Don't I know it," He mumbled as she mentioned backstabbing. It had been that very thing that had forced Korvin out into the wilds at eighteen. Sure, being forced into the wilderness hadn't been entirely traumatic to Korvin since he had spent his entire life learning many of the necessary skills, but the events leading up to it had been devastating. He reached down to scratch at his male canine's ear, giving Boar a sad look. The old dog had been his brother's canine, and now it was his only remaining momento of his family.

"You... learned t'survive from.. a fish...?" The look on his face obviously showed he thought she was pulling his leg. She learned to hunt and build shelters and stay alive from a fish in the ocean? Maybe he WAS giving her too much credit. Perhaps it would be best to just ignore her joke?

"Ah, I guess I was luckier than you then. I only had a bit t'learn after my family-" He choked up for a moment. He couldn't believe he had been about to just tell the stranger about his past like that... "Only had Boar really... Gray was jus' a pup I found in th'wreckage..." There was that sad look again. He'd never admit it out loud, but he missed his family, missed the carefree way of life he had once had.

[jovia]

Linda wondered what would happen now, his Whers were gone there was no need for him to continue speaking to her. Or was he just trying to help with Kosk's wish to have her as a friend, and being nice as to not make the white sad? Linda didn't know but that is what she stuck with in theory for now. When would she have a bond though such as that? well actually she kind of did with Hana and the rest of them... now with Felli as well too. But they weren't able to speak with her, have conversations with... something she did miss a lot even with her hatred of most humans. Part of her wondered what her siblings were up to, and if they might visit one day.

Her ears caught his mumbling, but Linda didn't speak up... It would be best not to pry into his past, then he wouldn't need to pry into hers. Win win situation and all that for them, just hoping that he wasn't the type to open up to random people since she didn't want to open right back up. And from the look on his face, it didn't sound like a good past either. Part of her could sympathize with him, maybe he was a lot like her then either of them realized. Wilderness, painful pasts, and possibly hating other humans as well... would explain his past behavior perfectly actually. But his reaction to hearing about the dolphins was priceless, she couldn't help but grin... Maybe if she could find the pod again she could show him and make his brain hurt at trying to comprehend it.

Linda gave a little nod though as he started to speak a little bit, oh dear he was opening up about his past.... Yes a topic change, but nothing too out of the way might be in order. "I see.... I am curious though how do you fight off the wild felines? Bare handed, blades, teeth?" A little grin tugged at the corner of her lip when she said teeth.. The image in her head of him biting one of her large felines was just too funny. Sure it would have ended rather poorly, but before the maiming it was pretty funny.

[Zirin]

the last thing Korvin wanted to do was make a friend. That said, he was interested in the girl, curious to have met someone who seemed to share something in common with him. It was curiosity that kept him here, nothing more, nothing less. He quirked an eyebrow as she grinned, surprised she even had the ability to do so, and felt a slight shiver run up his spine. Perhaps she was plotting up some nasty way to get rid of him?

Except for the slight slip up, Korvin had no intentions of sharing that particular part of his past. His canines though... he loved the dogs more than any person alive, and he wouldn't hesitate to tell the world about them if he had to. They were his partners, his friends, his family and for almost six Turns they had been his entire world... and now one was slowly dying. He reached out and scratched Boar's chin again, receiving a pleased growl from the once aggressive male.

"Teeth? What kinda idiot d'ya think I am?" She must have had a screw loose somewhere. Learning from fish and fending off felines with nothing but your teeth? Preposterous! "The mutts usually knew when they were around. A good bolt to th'head o'course!" Where Linda seemed to excel at close combat, Korvin was well versed in the techniques used for ranged combat; his strength being in his crossbow. He wasn't too shabby with a knife.. he could hold his own against feral beasts and many humans, but he knew he had nothing on this girl. "Th'less damage to th'hide th'better."

[jovia]

Linda couldn't help but chuckle a little bit when he freaked out about her teeth comment. "The teeth comment was more sarcasm or joke then actually thinking that." This guy was slightly idiotic but not as much as most humans. Maybe he wasn't that bad of a person but still not someone she would probably be close to anyways. Her eyes went towards his dogs that had stayed with him, and she just kind of gave a little smile. She hadn't really had canines, or felines before...

The young girl crouched down to look at the Canines, one seemed older then the other... but then again she didn't really know much about them. They probably were similar in training to her fair though so maybe getting one in the future might be good. "Interesting, and yeah making sure you don't damage the hide too much is tough in close combat. Maybe I should learn how to use something like that..." The last sentence was more to herself then anything but she just shook her head. She probably wouldn't do well with that because she liked the way she fought and was too busy training others to retrain herself into something so new.

"How are Canines? I have never had one myself or seen one for most of my life. How long do they live usually? Talents? how easy or hard are they to train?" It wouldn't hurt for her to at least know about it, might help her if she ever had to go back to get a canine with her. They were larger then her Fire Lizards, thus stronger and more able bodied to do stuff like fight or deliver larger items. Maybe could even figure out how to rig up a pack for them to carry for stuff, who knows.

[Zirin]

Korvin rolled his eyes but didn’t respond, well aware that his outburst had been unnecessary. Of course she hadn’t been serious… even if she had seemed so serious when she said it. He watched her crouch down, or rather, he watched the canines. Boar, always the loyal guard dog even in his failing health, eyed the girl warily, ready to growl if she got too close, but Gray had always been calmer. The shy female looked torn. She liked making friends, but it was always such a nerve-wracking process! With a quick scratch of thought she huddled behind her human.

“Wha’? Th’skill y’have at close combat ain’t enough for ya?” He replied. It had taken him years of training to get his aim right, and though he wished he could be better at close combat, it wasn’t worth his time to train in a new style. He could hold his own in most fights in the Weyr, and his crossbow was all he needed in the wilds. Besides, he had had his fair share of run-ins with the local felines and wild whers… he was more than happy to keep his distance.

“Y’ain’t never really seen em? I couldn’t live without these mutts.” He gave a fond look down at them, his partners through so much. “They ain’t got the lifespan o’ those snakes o’ yours. Ten, fifteen Turns dependin’ on lifestyle and health an’ all that. I had t’retrain Boar, so he was pretty tough, but Gray was just a pup when she started. Ain’t never seen a canine with her knack for trackin’ before. If y’have the patience y’can train these guys t’do whatever y’want.” He used them for a variety of tasks; Boar was his guard dog and his hunting companion, chasing down the prey they came upon. Gray was a pointer of sorts, with a nose for tracking and natural silence about her movements. Before impressing Kosk, he had even used the canines to carry gear and pull makeshift sleds of gear.

“So, not that I care, but why d’ya have so many o’ those darn snakes? What d’ya do with ‘em?”

[jovia]

Linda didn't get closer after she crouched down, merely she just wanted to be on the same level as them. Also it helped for her to get a lock on and observe them better this way anyways. They had their own personalities though it was obvious as one went to hide. A little smile tweaked on her face as she slowly started to stand back up. "Well problem with close combat is to keep most of the hide intact. It is very hard to fight a feline larger then yourself and keep your attacks in one area." It was a curious way that she never thought about attacking actually... Or had the means to really but it was still a good way for helping with hides.

"Not really, I was on the southern continent most of my life." Come to think of it, she might have seen one briefly while being moved around... But she just thought it was a child in a fur suit or something. "Ah... Interesting... maybe I will get one some day for more hauling around emergency supplies or something. My snakes as you put it can't carry anything but messages."

Then came the usual question, about why she had so many... She couldn't help but chuckle a little bit at the familiarity of such a thing. "Well the beaches down south are well, full of them and eventually you will come across them if you live down there. Come across a clutch and you can claim it or anything really, but I impressed them while trying to help keep the clutch safe. Snakes and the like love the eggs, and only so much the mother can do. Easier to find Gold's clutches intact then greens, greens aren't as protective."

[Zirin]

“Aye ya. With the crossbow it’s just one good bolt through th’head. If yer aim is true th’beast’ll go down with jus’ one hole in th’hide.” Korvin crossed reached behind him and grabbed Gray by the makeship collar she wore, dragging the female out and pushing her towards Linda. “Firs’ time fer everythin’. Here, meet Gray.” He knew how the canine worked; she liked to run and hide, but once she was forced into meeting someone she was quick to warm up to them. True to his thoughts, Gray whimpered as she was yanked out, but as soon as she was pushed towards Linda she continued moving, dropping to her belly and trying to sniff the strange woman.

“Seems to me them snakes o’ yers are darn useless. Rather, can’t see ya needin more than one or two.” He shook his head, completely taken aback by why she would need so many if their only use was carrying messages. After all, she certainly didn’t seem like the type to send messages everywhere… did she even know how to write? Korvin didn’t; it was something he was rather ashamed of admitting. He had been raised in a place that used bartering for trade and never required more than crude maps… writing had simply never been useful. Even after he had been forced from his home, he had never found the time or motivation to learn. Now that he was at the Weyr permanently though, writing seemed to be something that everyone used.

“Ugh. I would’a left the damn things fer the wild. Aint no use to me. Th’mutts and th’whers are much better t’have around.” He shuddered, eying the firelizards. Really, they were like flying tunnelsnakes; he hated tunnelsnakes. Why would anyone want one as a pet. Snakes of any kind should just be killed on sight!

[jovia]

Korvin seemed good enough with his long range attacks to be able to just put a hole in the animals head and keep the rest of the hide good. She probably would never be able to get that good, her time would be better spent trying to just slit their throats or something as fast as possible without too much damage. But Linda couldn't really think much more about it as he seemed to drag out one of his canines by the name of Gray. Linda stayed still and didn't even reach out to touch her, letting the animal do what it wanted first. "I guess I'll just stick with my blades, don't think I could use a long range effectively enough.... and hello Gray." Linda's attention stuck at the canine though, she seemed rather skittish though would they really be useful?

But a laugh did escape her mouth as Korvin called her fire lizards snakes and useless. Rorce started to hiss and fly over, but a quick whistle made him land on Linda's shoulder only to glare at him. "Actually they are more useful then any other animal from what I know. Scouters, they help me fight... Rorce here has plenty of trophy scars he loves to show off from our scuffles. Voice commands, whistle commands, they know your emotions, they send and receive images... Only other things I know that can do that are Dragons and Whers and they can talk." Hana chittered softly as she came over and landed on Linda's other shoulder, staring curiously at Gray as she chirped out a greeting.

Linda couldn't actually write much, only maybe a few sentences worth, the bare minimum for what she needed to keep in contact... Maybe she should learn more now she was at the Weyr and possibly expected to write more... Especially as a healer. But Korvin's opinion of his canine and whers being better then them just made her grin a bit more... Now she was very tempted to find an egg and just give it to him and force one on him to show him just how good they are. "They can also go between like Dragons, I doubt your Canines can do that huh? Also catch tons of fish for a good meal too if I am too busy working on other stuff."

[Zirin]

When Linda remained still, not reaching out to her, Gray seemed to relax a little, and after a few moments she took a tentative step closer, reaching to sniff the girl and, eventually, resting her chin on the girl’s leg. “Silly mutt. She’ll be fine with ya now. Jus’ a scaredy cat when it come t’people.” He jumped back a bit as one of Linda’s little demons came whizzing over, all tooth, claw, and angry hissing.

“Shardin’ beast! Tunnelsnakes with wings if y’ask me!” He glared at the flit, his dislike of the creatures very clear. “I have m’dogs an’ m’whers an’ m’own eyes fer scoutin’. Th’mutts can’t send pictures, but they know ‘ow to tell me wha’ they’ve seen anyways.” No, he would take his dogs and his whers over her tunnelsnakes any day. Gray was much more accepting of the creatures than her owner was. The female looked up at the two flits with a curious tilt of her head. Of course, they simply looked like a strange meal to her.

“M’dogs never need t’be far from me. Why would I want’em doin’ that fancy poppin’ thing anyway. We like t’hunt bigger thing than fish y’know. We can take down them runaway herdbeast and th’like. More fillin’ than a couple’o fish.” He took his eyes off of Rorce for a moment to give his canines a loving pat, wearing the love he had for them on his sleeves. They were his family and, to him, his family was the strongest out there. Before he could stop himself, a yawn ripped from his throat. Was it really that late already? He would really need to head to sleep soon if he planned on waking for his rounds once the sun set again.

“Ah suppose I can’t enjoy the sun much longer. Nice t’feel th’warmth now n’again though.” He rose and it was clear he was waiting to see if she had any last words before he backed off. Normally he would just up and leave, but he rather enjoyed talking to this one. She shared similarities with him and she had an interesting insight on things. “Y’ever want a lesson on th’bow y’come find me. Least I can do t’pay ya back for keepin’ me entertained.”

[jovia]

Linda merely smiled down at Gray and watched as the canine slowly relaxed, heck she even moved foward and put a chin on her leg. Slowly she reached out to gently pat Gray on top of the head before she looked up at Korvin... just in time to see him jump and grins a little bit. "Don't mind Rorce, he just loves to fight and frankly is my only trouble maker... but he knows better then to go against my orders when I am right there."

Hana however crooned softly up at Korvin, trying to apologize for Rorce and chittered at him. Trying to be as non aggressive as possible. Linda however just grinned as he spoke more and more of how he just hated them but liked the others. Seriously she couldn't see just why he was so afraid of them but she merely shrugged. But his unguarded love for his Canines did show up clear as day as he went to give them some attention. Yes... he was alot like her in some ways, maybe one day she would show him just how useful and wonderful they were just like he was showing her how useful canines were too.

But apparently she was keeping him up, a frown spread across her face as she listened that he never enjoyed the sun all the time? Was that something to do with his training or the Whers? But he was trying to leave, and she didn't try to stop him only giving a nod with his words. "Will do, also if I find any Canines I will be finding you and needing help then."