The Beginning
Perhaps the rude awakening was not what they were expecting. Perhaps by “meeting” they had all expected to go to one location, which had happened, and then be led to where each group would start next. They did not expect to go to the meeting grounds only to have a sharp pain at the back of their heads and then a pounding headache as they each woke up in the grass of Bovidae's most remote hills and meadows.
Drust was up first out of the rest of them, carefully moving his teammates around so he could keep an eye on them and survey the land. They were clearly in what was a common herding ground for cattle ranchers. In the distance he could see a large herd of cattle moving along the dry grass towards greener pastures being led by their respective protector and their many Callaghan cattle dogs. Chasing the rain, as the term was.
“My head hurts so bad,” Nura mumbled as she lifted herself up, rubbing the back of her head. She looked over at Drust with a confused gaze before turning it towards Hel. The coatl was awake but staring at the sky, eyes narrowed up at the fluffy white clouds.
“They knocked us unconscious!” she exclaimed, sitting up suddenly with a pout. “Rude.”
“Yeah, I didn't expect that, really,” Nura sighed. She stood then offered her hand to help Hel up. “I'm Nura, pleasure to meet you both. You are Hel, right? And your Drust? I remember you two asking questions during the meeting.”
Drust nodded and gave a smile, old eyes seeming to turn it into something more gentle than probably intended. “Correct. Nice ta meet ya both. Hope I don't slow either of you down too much.”
“Don't worry about it,” Nura looked over at the cattle moving in the distance. “Alright, anyone know what we do next? We're here. The trials have begun. So...” she trailed off, looking around the grassy hills. It was a little drier than it should have been for the time of year, but rain was coming if the scent in the air said anything.
Hel looked to Drust. “You were awake first, right? Did you find anything?”
“Oh! Yea, they left us a letter.” He took it out of his shirt pocket and handed it to Hel. Nura leaned over her shoulder to read along.
Hello Trial-goers,
Welcome to the first trial: Survival. This should be a good warm-up for you lot. Expect to find other trial-goers in the area as we dropped each of you within a few miles of each other. Remember that seeking out help from your fellow family is encouraged and there is no shame in fleeing from danger. Try to stay alive.
You might be wondering why your group is the way it is. That's on a need-to-know basis, but understand that we chose your group based on many factors including experience and personality. Hopefully this will help you all survive. You're a family now. Act like it.
To complete this trial and move to the next make your way towards Craig Falls. It's towards the east this time of year.
Good luck,
General Alynn Callaghan
P.S. It's the wet season. Food and water shouldn't be too scarce.
“Craig Falls,” Hel said after a few moments, “that's dangerous around this time of year and often closed to the public. Even the maren avoid it during the wet season. Flash floods, strong winds and slippery rocks. All make dangerous conditions. Flying out wouldn't be a problem for a skydancer or a wind dragon, but–” she looked at her party members “–we're in a bad situation if that's the case. Plus, I'm not too fond of water myself.”
“Neither am I,” grumbled Nura, her lightning eyes looking up to Drust, “but you're an ice dragon, right?”
“Sure am, yea.” Drust shrugged. “Freezing water in Bovidae's temperature though? Not even my ice magic could do that easily. Maybe Craig Falls will be cooler than I expect, but still.”
“First thing is first, we need to focus on the task at hand. Food and water. Then figuring out which way is east.” Hel lifted her fingers to her lips and began to pick, eyes studying the note. “Any ideas?”
Nura looked back at the moving cattle as they made their way across the hills, then turned to stare at the mountains. She took a few moments before nodding and pointing in the distance, towards the side of the visible mountain range. “East is that way. I bring my cattle through here sometimes. The area is pretty well-known.”
Drust gave a nod and started to walk towards the mountains, looking behind him to make sure the smaller bipedals were following. “Better go ahead and get started. We'll scavenge on the way.”
