Isla Sorna Stories RPG

[C S]

"You know those things Ive always wanted to forget?" The raptor began with a snarl. "Well...looks like I couldnt. Despite my efforts, I still remember...and they're getting to me"

[Hopeflower]

"Not for lack of trying," Rose growled, shuddering at the memories. "I've lost count of the number of times something tried to eat me." She took another mouthful of water before she went on more brightly, "But I can smell and hear better than I could when I could see, so it's not like I'm completely helpless. Comes in handy. i can hear the big predators coming from a long way off, and I can hear the less noticeable sounds that the smaller ones make when they're stalking something. I can smell the bark of a tree in time to avoid painful collisions, or the musty scent of a cave that might be a good hiding place. And I can kind of hunt...though I don't often catch something bigger than a small herbivore."

[The Kingpin]

Hellfire nodded, realising the reason Aircrest ran off earlier and why he and Rose had picked up on something being wrong. "Want to tell me?"...

[C S]

"Ive got to admit it, I would be scared if I couldnt see the world around me...how do you handle it?" Hazel growled. She could easilly look into the water and see how she, the tree branches that arced over head, and the sky looked. When Rose did it...she saw nothing but blackness? It sent shudders down her body...

"Of course, thats why Im up here" Aircrest growled. He starting thinking about where to start...

[Hopeflower]

"I was scared at first," Rose admitted. "When I realized I was going to be blind for the rest of my life, part of me didn't want to so much as try to get used to it. But when the pack I'd been born into scattered and my parents found a new one, I learned to work with my new world instead of trying to fight it." She paused, cocking her head. "In a way, I suppose, I still can see...just not with my eyes. I can try and build a picture of what's around me in my mind, based on what I can hear and smell."

[The Kingpin]

Hellfire nodded, falling silent, listening intently...

[C S]

"I see-" Hazel growled, catching the irony of the statement, but didnt think much of it.

Aircrest growled, deciding on a spot to start. "I met her by the coast. The trees started thinning out, so I couldnt stay up in the branches...so I dropped down, at the place where the dirt transitions to sand.." He sighed at the memory. "And thats where I met her, my first love..."

[Hopeflower]

Rose nodded, resuming her drink.

[The Kingpin]

"Hm" was Hellfire's only reaction to it, listening intently, picturing the events in his head, considering what Aircrest said carefully...

[C S]

"I spent weeks with her... at first just talking to her when she needed someone, then, helping her around her home, which happened to be a cave etched in the rock faces out there. We built a nest and she allowed me to stay with her...eventually we were in love..you know the feeling" Aircrest growled, gaze dropping as he recalled the warm feeling he'd get being around her. "Then she said she was thinking of hatchlings... and I panicked. After weeks of attachment...I ran away while she was sleeping...and ever since then her memory has been shadowing me...what ever I do, hear, smell, see...I tried staying away from others..so that they wouldnt have to see the deserter I was...trying to find forgiveness... forgiveness I know will never come"

Hazel turned away from Rose, sensing the conversation had ended. She moved over to the tree, wondering what her brother and friend were talking about...

[The Kingpin]

Hellfire eyed Aircrest, carefully considering his words, but not speaking yet, letting him carry on. he'd say whatever he had to say when Aircrest was done...

[C S]

"Ever since then Ive wandered the island... running into wayward faces, making friends who I eventually left to disappear into obscurity... meeting creatures who needed me for one reason or another, who I either helped because I thought it'd be fun, or simply left them to fend for themselves...creatures stuck in quicksand, caught up in dense thicket...hell, sometimes I laughed..." Aircrest growled, shaking his head. "What kind of monster am I...being alone for so long..." He hissed, thinking part of a thought out loud.

Hazel kept quiet for now, suspended in shock. This wasnt the raptor she grew up with...

[The Kingpin]

Hellfire listened silently, considering what Aircrest said. "Even the best of us are capable of terrible things under the right influences. Before the loss of my family i was a peaceful pack predator, surrounded by friends. i hadbeen one of the most favoured in the pack, had a reputation for voluntarily sticking my neck out for others in need. and yet...after my family was cut down and i lost control, my pack left me. i became the very thing that had cost my family their lives...and it took until i looked into his eyes right there, inches away from him, for me to realise just how much of a monster i was...tormenting those more fortunate than myself. you saw the aftermath of the realisation...i was even worse before that...but i do not consider myself such as a rule. It took you and Ripper beating the sense back into me to realise that" hissed the Deinonychus. "A few bad actions do not define you as a bad Raptor. you have hurt others in the past. you've outwardly shown some that you can be cold hearted. but does that mean that you are such all the time? you may think so, but i assure you you are not" growled Hellfire firmly...

[C S]

"I feel so guilty...for some reason I feel like I just cant move on, that I'd always be anchored to my past. I just...want to be different... become something....else. Have something to look back on in the future...a story Im proud telling... deeds to my name..." Aircrest snarled, teeth bared. A part of him was calling for Selena, wanting to hear her voice, wanting to see that she was ok... but why? He was sure his connection to her was a selfish foot note in his quest for redemption...unless there really was something more...?

[The Kingpin]

Hellfire sighed, giving the Raptor a sharp look before replying. "Before you can even hope to find peace...to find forgiveness....you need to learn to forgive yourself" hissed the Deinonychus. "All i see in your words is a torrent of self hatred. How can you hope for forgiveness when you don't forgive yourself for your actions?" he added...

[C S]

Aircrest's eyes widened at those words. Forgive...himself? Being alone, always expected himself to do everything. Hunt for himself, find shelter for himself, find water for himself and so on. But he never expected finding forgiveness could mean needing to accept the past he tried to eliminate from his memory. Could he forgive himself? He didnt have the answers now, but he was sure he would in time. It reminded him of one time with Selena, when he had a thought but didnt understand what it meant. He said he'd "Find the answers in time" and sure enough, he did. Hellfire gave him the answer thats been eluding him for years now. And with it, came a new resolve. The past wouldnt repeat itself. He was willing to risk his life for Selena many times over, nearing death twice. Somewhere, be it back on the island or in this new land, she needed him. And unlike before, he'd be there. With that, Aircrest growled "Thanks...Hellfire...." He paused for a moment, before barking softly "Hey...can you do me a favor...?"

[The Kingpin]

"Hm?" growled Hellfire, cocking his head at the Raptor...

[C S]

"Dont tell Hazel" He growled, looking back up at his friend. He was afraid his sister wouldnt so willing to sympathize with him. That she might lose everything between them if she knew. His head perked up at the sound of a light thump. He turned around to look down at the ground. His sister had curled up at the base of the tree, taking slow breaths. "I guess she was tired and thirsty...explains why she would be around here" He growled to Hellfire, assuming that the female just left the river...

[The Kingpin]

Hellfire shrugged, deciding not to tell Aircrest that she had been there and had heard a bit of the conversation. he didn't want to worry him over something he couldn't control...

[C S]

"Looks like its gonna rain soon" Aircrest growled, looking up to the sky. "With Hazel sleeping and the weather looking bad, you wanna stay here for a bit?" He barked. Hazel wasnt sleeping at all though. She was just thinking. For one, the raptor had lied to her... but she quickly realized he was trying not to upset her, so she forgave him for that, even if she was somewhat hurt he didnt ask her for help. Despite how long they've been apart, she'd atleast try to do something. Second, he was trying to move on with his life... trying to better himself. Despite the fact he tried to keep the problem a secret, she'd try to help...discretely...