K'nahli studied the tia with intent as he began placing himself in position. His posture, stance and style seemed oddly.. familiar as he silently took form beneath the oppressing glare of the morning sun. It took the girl a few moments to understand why.
("K'iara!") the sudden revelation that had dawned upon her was made silently obvious through the sudden perking of her ears and her lightened expression. K'nahli had adapted some traits that she had witnessed K'iara demonstrate in her own style of archery but even if that was quite some time ago, the subtly different yet unique style was immediately recogniseable to the young girl. Curious eyes rolled upward toward the sky as though it held the answers to her next questions her mind would nosily inquire about as it found itself wandering once again.
("They're sibings.... aren't they? I think so... perhaps.... maybe not..")
Her momentary state of day dreaming almost stole her attention completely. If not for the tia's sharp exhale she might not have returned her glance toward him in time to witness the shot as it was released. The vibrations that resonated from the string created a soft sound that K'nahli had long since grown to find soothing. Her perceptive gaze followed the thin, black silhouette as it challenged the blazing, fiery orb in the sky and traveled a significant distance before eventually succumbing to the eternal embrace of the world and was drawn slowly back to the saffron sands below where it landed silently into the gold-tinted distance.
K'nahli withdrew herself with a single, involuntary step. Her expression had lost its carefree appearance and instead revealed something more anxious as a bead of sweat slowly formed and rolled down from her temple.
(".....")
It was a good shot. Sure, she could argue that such distance was meaningless if the arrow was incapable of finding its target, but that was not the challenge she had recklessly agreed to. Could she match that attempt? Could she really? She never tried maximum-range shooting before. It seemed to be a pointless curiosity to her, but now she could feel the regret rising from the pit of her stomach.
"That..... was a g-" she hesitated briefly in her sudden statement, swallowing the words she was about to speak before they could escape her throat, unfiltered.
"...not bad...." she adjusted her words appropriately, satisfied in the knowledge that she would at least appear less impressed with his result. The last thing she needed was for him to become cocky over something so meaningless. Even in its adjusted form, however, she couldn't help but reveal genuity in her words.
K'nahli stepped forward again, positioning herself accordingly and lightly tensing the muscles in her drawing arm before arming her bow. She shouldn't have been so arrogant and reckless. Accepting such a challenge without consideration for the potential consequences was a major mistake and one she was no longer sure she could avoid. Her fingers gently clasped the butt end of the arrow carefully and slowly, with an almost mechanical and ritualistic movement of her arm, it was steadily drawn back a moderate distance. She raised her weapon upward, positioning it so that her dominant eye trained along the length of the arrow's shaft as it pointed an inconsiderable height into the sky. Her eyes slid to a gentle close in the moment she drew in a warm breath of desert air. Unconsciously, she adjusted her bow to a greater height and made small changes to the angle. As though the air she had drawn in to fill her lungs held the secrets of the elements, she silently took great care and precision with every subtle movement. The gentle sensation of the of the soft breeze that channeled itself across her body tickled the fine hair that lined the tips of ears which further provoked even more subtle changes until finally, she was ready.
Her maroon eyes were unveiled once more to meet with the deep, cerulean that stretched above her as she drew the arrow, slowly, back against the tensing string further and further. Her fingers that still remained free gently stroked against the twine, studying it's potential power analytically before she was finally content with everything. She subtly puckered her lips to bleed out the lingering, remnants of breath that had continued to dwell within her, and with a gentle blink of her eyes that would seemingly give her nimble fingers that restrained the arrow the final all-clear, she released it into the wind.
The arrow soared free from the bow, embracing the thermals it quietly rose upon like a wild, bird of prey that scanned the vast and desolate landscape below. Its height did not match that of K'rahtos, though the speed appeared at least similar as it sliced through the air majestically, quickly chasing across the sands toward the same direction K'rahto's arrow had traveled moments before. After a short while, it's gentle glide too came to an end, allowing it to begin its final descent and mark K'nahli's fate dangerously into the golden sands.
A short moment of deafening silence followed after the arrow had struck ground. Had it gone further? At that distance she couldn't tell. The uncertainty grated on her nerves painfully, causing a slight but visually unnoticeable tremble throughout her hands. The girl reacted quickly by grabbing them firmly to cease the irritating sensation, though there was nothing she could do about the crushing, hammering feeling that her heart released relentlessly against her fragile chest.
("K'iara!") the sudden revelation that had dawned upon her was made silently obvious through the sudden perking of her ears and her lightened expression. K'nahli had adapted some traits that she had witnessed K'iara demonstrate in her own style of archery but even if that was quite some time ago, the subtly different yet unique style was immediately recogniseable to the young girl. Curious eyes rolled upward toward the sky as though it held the answers to her next questions her mind would nosily inquire about as it found itself wandering once again.
("They're sibings.... aren't they? I think so... perhaps.... maybe not..")
Her momentary state of day dreaming almost stole her attention completely. If not for the tia's sharp exhale she might not have returned her glance toward him in time to witness the shot as it was released. The vibrations that resonated from the string created a soft sound that K'nahli had long since grown to find soothing. Her perceptive gaze followed the thin, black silhouette as it challenged the blazing, fiery orb in the sky and traveled a significant distance before eventually succumbing to the eternal embrace of the world and was drawn slowly back to the saffron sands below where it landed silently into the gold-tinted distance.
K'nahli withdrew herself with a single, involuntary step. Her expression had lost its carefree appearance and instead revealed something more anxious as a bead of sweat slowly formed and rolled down from her temple.
(".....")
It was a good shot. Sure, she could argue that such distance was meaningless if the arrow was incapable of finding its target, but that was not the challenge she had recklessly agreed to. Could she match that attempt? Could she really? She never tried maximum-range shooting before. It seemed to be a pointless curiosity to her, but now she could feel the regret rising from the pit of her stomach.
"That..... was a g-" she hesitated briefly in her sudden statement, swallowing the words she was about to speak before they could escape her throat, unfiltered.
"...not bad...." she adjusted her words appropriately, satisfied in the knowledge that she would at least appear less impressed with his result. The last thing she needed was for him to become cocky over something so meaningless. Even in its adjusted form, however, she couldn't help but reveal genuity in her words.
K'nahli stepped forward again, positioning herself accordingly and lightly tensing the muscles in her drawing arm before arming her bow. She shouldn't have been so arrogant and reckless. Accepting such a challenge without consideration for the potential consequences was a major mistake and one she was no longer sure she could avoid. Her fingers gently clasped the butt end of the arrow carefully and slowly, with an almost mechanical and ritualistic movement of her arm, it was steadily drawn back a moderate distance. She raised her weapon upward, positioning it so that her dominant eye trained along the length of the arrow's shaft as it pointed an inconsiderable height into the sky. Her eyes slid to a gentle close in the moment she drew in a warm breath of desert air. Unconsciously, she adjusted her bow to a greater height and made small changes to the angle. As though the air she had drawn in to fill her lungs held the secrets of the elements, she silently took great care and precision with every subtle movement. The gentle sensation of the of the soft breeze that channeled itself across her body tickled the fine hair that lined the tips of ears which further provoked even more subtle changes until finally, she was ready.
Her maroon eyes were unveiled once more to meet with the deep, cerulean that stretched above her as she drew the arrow, slowly, back against the tensing string further and further. Her fingers that still remained free gently stroked against the twine, studying it's potential power analytically before she was finally content with everything. She subtly puckered her lips to bleed out the lingering, remnants of breath that had continued to dwell within her, and with a gentle blink of her eyes that would seemingly give her nimble fingers that restrained the arrow the final all-clear, she released it into the wind.
The arrow soared free from the bow, embracing the thermals it quietly rose upon like a wild, bird of prey that scanned the vast and desolate landscape below. Its height did not match that of K'rahtos, though the speed appeared at least similar as it sliced through the air majestically, quickly chasing across the sands toward the same direction K'rahto's arrow had traveled moments before. After a short while, it's gentle glide too came to an end, allowing it to begin its final descent and mark K'nahli's fate dangerously into the golden sands.
A short moment of deafening silence followed after the arrow had struck ground. Had it gone further? At that distance she couldn't tell. The uncertainty grated on her nerves painfully, causing a slight but visually unnoticeable tremble throughout her hands. The girl reacted quickly by grabbing them firmly to cease the irritating sensation, though there was nothing she could do about the crushing, hammering feeling that her heart released relentlessly against her fragile chest.
![[Image: ecec20e41f.png]](https://puu.sh/xvMxb/ecec20e41f.png)
Characters: Andre Winter (Hy'ur) / K'nahli Yohko (Miqo'te)
