Don't let Floofy die! [Tracker, retrieval. SOLO.]

[Tessia]

"Please!  It is a harmless Frenmic!  Please find him!"  The words echoed around her ears as the shrill voiced Noblewoman spoke to her.  Taking jobs like this is what became of her allowing her social ties to wane a bit.  Tessia couldn't help but feel aggravated at the painted and primed lady before her, a Frenmic Rabbit "tamer" that was losing her mind over her beasts whereabouts.  "He ran off into the Greatwood! ohh my!  You must find him and I will pay, ohh my!" she said, as Tessia gritted her teeth seconds from just punching this NPC right in the face.

If it was one thing that always got her about RPG's, it was the excessive use of pomp and lavish clothes on a shrill voiced woman.  It made her sick to see such a thing.  Women could be fighters too, and she was walking proof one need not be "ladylike" to get things done.  After the rather lengthy chatter of "how precious." he was to her, Tessia poked her menu and started her Tracker at Windsor's Gate, hoping to use what little light remained to track down this creature.  Keeping her ax put away, she recalled that the only saving grace that marked the Rabbit was a simple yellow scarf.

Tessia mentally cursed to herself, it was likely that this stupid woman had flailed about a good while before calling her or even putting out the quest.  For A.I in the new world she had to admit that was quite foolish.  A animal of that size and nature was surely almost long gone, among its fellows and maybe even without the marking scarf.  She had till midnight, best to move quickly and let her anger subside, no matter how rightly placed it was.  Keeping her ax put away, she crouches low, oblivious to some of the looks she gets as she bolts with the wind into the brush.

[Tessia]

Slowing her dash, she allows Tracker to take over as she takes in the surrounding smells and noises.  Two of the biggest disadvantages of tracking small targets was what little scent they had, and their prints they left.  She recalled the owner stating something about it leaving just north of the manor and into the surrounding brush.  Watching some wolves trot nearby, Tessia scooted along silent and steadily, searching for any Frenmic Rabbit prints.  Having already hunted them, she had her Fathers habit of remembering almost each and every print of a creature so she could identify it easily.  

Luck was with her as she noticed the small pattered marks of some Frenmic Rabbits just off the trail and leading northward in the usual hop gait of spacing.  She halted, just ahead three Wolves prowled about looking for a easy meal.  Instead of trying to avoid them she watched, wondering if they too had picked up on the Rabbit she was tracking, if so it would be much easier.  One ambled towards some of the prints and sniffed, then growled to the others and Tessia almost nodded in unison, they knew and they would indeed lead her right too it.

The plan now was to remain out of the wolves sight and smell, hopefully long enough for her to find the Rabbit and end this quest.  The wolves began to trot along the brush, sniffling here and there, adjusting their path now and again, stopping to paw at the ground and grumble about.  Tessia, using the various tree trunks, followed with silence, glad that they didn't seem in too much of a hurry to find this quarry.  It must still be nearby.  Patiently Tessia watched the wolves make their way northward from the mansion, she followed as close as she dared.

[Tessia]

And all for nothing.  Tessia almost cursed aloud as the wolves suddenly veered off towards the west, running at full sprint as they chased some Rabbits down.  She watched from a distance through the brush, assured that those were not her target.  Thankfully, she had been told that the Rabbit the noble was after was well groomed and even still smelled a bit like strawberry shampoo.  Taking a knee, Tessia lowers her face almost to the dirt and allows the soft blowing wind to flow past her nose, she breathes so slowly, taking in any hint of that scent and its direction of origin.  

After a few moments, she could smell a faint tangy scent of strawberries just off towards the right of her path leading slightly east of the manor.  Sneaking and slipping along quietly, Tessia spots a few more prints, these a bit more fresh leading down the brush and onto a narrow path.  Following along, she nodded as she rounded a corner of a large boulder, spotting the yellow scarf hanging on a broken shrub branch.  Slipping close she takes it and pockets it, masking the scent from herself and others.

Quieting her thoughts and focusing on her smell and hearing, she lowers to the ground again and inhales softly.  There.  Smelling a faint scent of the shampoo, Tessia focuses on moving while staying so low to the ground she almost crawls along.  It was close she could feel it.  Just ahead in a small clearing it ambled about, a Frenmic Rabbit well groomed and smelling of faint strawberries.  Sighing silently, Tessia allows her muscles to relax as she gets ready to leap out and tackle it.  Thanks to her ax being put away, she had full use of her speed to aid her.  

[Tessia]

Reflex was all that saved her from the sudden movement.  Tessia spun about and used Quick Draw to take out her blackened Battle Ax as a level 4 Garden Snake lashed out at her face.  Barely dodging aside, Tessia didn't have to turn to see the Rabbit flee further away.  Responding to such a small target with Quick Draw was smart as it allowed her to dodge and attack.  Spinning in place, as her arms twirled her ax above her head and down into the snakes body.  Nearly cleaving it in two, the snake shatters into colored bits of data.  Turning, she spots the fleeing Rabbit about a good 20 feet from her in full flight for its life.

Shouldering her ax, Tessia bolts after the fleeing Rabbit sighing a little as her ax slows her movement a good bit.  That and making Tracking almost impossible.  The Rabbit darts ahead of her in the low light of the setting sun, she was running out of time here and had to catch up with it.  Hustling along as she followed the things footprints, she stops on a exposed path as she spots it running down it.  A thought occurred, she was still in aggro range, and that she COULD strike the rabbit, just not kill it.  She had to think fast here, her throwing knives would allow her to use Accel Dance to speed up, and possibly catch the thing.

It would require her to actually hit the target she pursued, just hopefully she didn't cause too much damage too it.  The Painted Woman of the Land DID say by any means necessary after all.  The thought of making that woman angry made her grin a little as she drew two throwing knives, slipping her ax away into her inventory.  Darting forward, once again at full speed thanks to her ax being put up, she snaps her throwing knife at the Rabbit, using Accel Dance to help quicken her speed.  Luck was with her as it barely grazed the fleeing thing, as she felt the rush of Accel Dance take over from the strike.  Surely, she would understand if the rabbit was just a LITTLE beaten up.  Just not dead.

[Tessia]

Thankfully, the Accel Dance buff allowed her to keep even pace with the Rabbit even as it fled.  As long as she remained in range for battle, her buff would stick for a short while.  She had to use this chance to get to the Rabbit and catch him.  Lowering her knees just inches from the ground she sped after the fleeing creature.  It hopped furiously to evade her, ducking under temporary brush cover, over low logs and even almost fell into a hole.  Tessia timed it so that as soon as it stumbled into the slightly lower hole she dropped her ax off her back and leaped out at the critter.

It tried to rapidly hop out of the hole but to no avail as she pivoted her shoulder to snap her arm out fast to snatch it.  Grabbing it behind the neck had worked as she curled her arm into her chest and cradled the flailing thing.  She felt the Rabbit stop struggling for a moment as she stood and walked back over to her ax laying on the ground.  Suddenly as she stooped to retrieve it, the rabbit bit her hard.  She expected this and growled at it as her HP bar barely registered the hit even with her low stat.  Resisting the urge to just flog it to death with her fists, she spied the Rabbits HP gauge as well, little close to half as it still had it's teeth in her cloth covered wrist.  Sticking her knife in the ground, she stoops and retrieves her ax.

Putting it away in her inventory, she turned and spotted that it was just now turning dark, and she held the squirming biting Rabbit in her arms.  Bending she retrieves her knife from the dirt and lowers her center of balance for a run.  She dashes down into the cover of the brush, her grip tight atop the Rabbits scruff as she hurries along and the other hand holding the knife.  This was very dangerous, she held in her arms a morsel for the forests denizens, and her making a moving and not so silent target did not help things.  The same applied back home when she went out with Father to hunt some boar, she had carried the meat back in a sack, but didn't take into account that the wolves would follow her back as well.  She kept a firm grip on her other knife as she sped along, hopefully she could gain another stack of Accel Dance if she needed to escape another fight.

[Tessia]

Running along the darkening path, Tessia evens her breathing and is sure to take as open a path as possible.  This was mostly to ensure that even if spotted she had room to move about.  It did no good to dash about in low brush and shrubs when you were carrying a live critter.  One hell-bent on escaping your hold and running away.  About halfway there, she had to divert into a shallow spot with a few low hanging vines and tree trunks.  Thanks to Accel Dances boost and her target still in range, even though she held it, she dashes along easily. 

Ducking and skidding a little to avoid a low hanging branch, she suddenly feels a pair of claws swipe at her exposed arm holding the Rabbit.  Cursing as her HP moves into almost half, she turns about and skids as her other hand snaps around to hurl her other throwing knife at the wolf.  Activating Accel Dance just as it hit, Tessia doesn't wait for it as she uses the second mode of Accel to burst away at high speed.  She could hear it following as she kick flipped off a stump and tumbled, the Rabbit squirming furiously as her grip tightened on it a bit.  Biting again at her arm, Tessia notices her HP go to yellow as she continues her wild sprint into the night, wolf at her trail.  There.  She could see the mansion grounds just ahead as she coiled her legs and timed a dash off a rather large boulder.

Her Father had taught her how to move her legs like a wolves, how they adjusted easily on the fly when running to avoid collisions and to easily move over broken and obscure terrain.  Training from a young age to kick at the right time, to center her hips, and even to roll properly had been grueling but saved her life many times.  Just making it past the Mansion grounds, Tessia did not stop to see if the wolf was behind her, instead she bolted past the grounds guards and into the building.  Slamming the door behind her, she sighs and crouches there on the ornate rug, allowing her legs to rest a little as the Rabbit still bit at her to let hir go.  This lady had better be appreciative of her efforts.