Ask The Snow Devil

[Kraud]

Kraud's gaze shifted through the group, studying the various unique looking figures that had gathered in the village its center. All of them were hunters, that much he could tell. Some were clearly recreational hunters, while others did it for a living. None of that mattered though. That wasn't why they had gathered here. It wasn't why he was here.

The inhabitants of the village on the planet Carlac had been at the mercy of a creature they called "The Snow Devil" for months now. One by one, the members of their community disappeared, leaving nothing but ravaged homes and the terrible stench of death. Something out there, a predator most likely, was picking them off one by one. Normally, Kraud wouldn't concern himself with a job like this. Hunting animals was child's play after all. But this was no mere animal.

Three weeks ago, the village had enlisted the local hunters, who had the task of hunting down the predator that attacked their villages. First, five hunters went out into the wild to kill the monster. None of them returned. Another six took it upon themselves to take the creature down. Like the first five, they also went missing. And now, the fearful Ming Po society had invited capable hunters from all over the Galaxy to slay the mythical beast. Seeing this as an opportunity to show the goodwill of the Jedi, Kraud had volunteered to help them out. So here he stood, wearing his simple Jedi robes and iconic straw hat. All that was left, was to wait for the head of the village to give them the details.

All the hunters whom had gathered here seemed experienced. Ready to slay the beast and take the prize for themselves. All, except one. Kraud's gaze rested on a short, red-haired girl. His first instinct was to ask her if she had lost her mother, but the Whiphid decided against it. Intrigued by the presence of such a young huntress, Kraud took a few steps forward, until he stood next to the girl. "Didn't expect someone of your age to participate." he began, his remark clearly directed to the red-haired huntress. It was by no means meant as an insult, however, as the old Knight could tell in an instant that she was skilled and experienced. "Think any of these pushovers stand a chance?" he muttered, wanting to know what the girl thought of their 'allies'.

@Raven_41

 

[Nova Ragna]

This was quite an exciting trip for Nova and also a very important trip for her. One day, when the red-haired girl was minding her own business, tinkering with a few smaller droids in her room, her dad approached her with a proposition. "Little Fang," said Grimnir, calling Nova by his nickname for her, as he sat down beside his daughter.

"Hm?" Asked Nova, half paying attention while having her whole hand inside of a droid's torso, attempting to remove some wiring. "I'm going on a hunt off-planet" began her father, knowing it would get his daughter's full attention, which he absolutely did. "What? You're leaving? For how long?! You can't leave now, you promised me we would go hunting this afternoon!" Outbursted the young teenager in a mix of disbelief and surprise.

How could her dad do that to her?! He never missed their hunting time together... Just as the mind of teenager was starting to go wonder in the uncharted territory of betrayal, yeah, Nova could exaggerate quite a bit, her dad just placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled warmly. "Little Fang, you needed not outbursting, at least wait till you've heard the rest" explained the chief of the clan with an amusing look. So quick to jump to action, maybe Firefly would have been a better nickname for her.

Showing Nova his hand, the red-haired girl looked at saw a small datapad with the screen flashing a message. Letting the curiosity get the better of her, she takes the pad and started reading. "Signed Grimnir Ragna and~ Nova Ragna" Read Nova out loud, reading the last bit of the contract. Realizing what it meant, her face lit up like the sun in the morning, "does that mean~?", "Yes", "and you and I get to...?", "of course".

"AHHHHH! YOU'RE THE BEST, DAD!" Squealed the red-haired girl and threw her arms around her dad's neck, tackling him to the ground. Grimnir just released a deep hearty laugher, hugging his daughter back just as excited.

Funnily enough, one wouldn't think Grimnir to be the hugging type or even having a softer side if you didn't know him personally. But then again, leading a clan, which mostly lived on hunting and trading, it took a strong chief to rule the clan in the right direction.

And before Nova knew it, they were on their way, flying through hyperspace, towards Carlac. However, they weren't alone, as a few of their younger hunters who still hadn't proved themself as a hunter, had signed on as well. Then, of course, Nova's uncle as he was the pilot, flying the VCX-350 Light Freighter as it was his ship.

Nova looked to her dad, "so, when are we there?" Asked the young teenager with a mix of excitement and curiosity, "aaaaround~ now" replied the bearded dad. Just as he had said it, they exited hyperspace and headed for the village that was to be the meeting point.

It didn't take long before they were landed and along with her dad and the three other young hunters-to-be, walked over to where an already large group stood. "Little Fang, go ahead with the others, I forgot to tell your uncle something" explained Grimnir and with a short nod, headed Nova over to the large group with the three other men from her clan.

Nova was surprised at how many people had taken up the offer, however, some also acted way too cocky, as if this was just a game and a joke to them. Nova gave them a day. Standing a bit by herself, as the three other young men fell into conversation with a couple of veterans hunters, a sudden voice behind her made Nova turn her attention to a very large alien.

Giving the newly approached alien a closer look she snorted by his comment, "somebody gotta make you old people feel young again" replied the fithteen-year-old girl with a smirk.

Without a second thought, Nova started to point out people, tree people out of the ten sized-group of people, "they act like this is a game and they have never known what a true hunt feels like" explained the red-haired girl and looked back up at the very large Whiphid.

The young girl had painted warpaint across her face and wore her winter outfit, being able to wrap her pelt cloak around herself in need be.

@Powerfullhorus

 

[Kraud]

Kraud chuckled at the girl's remark. She was right about that. The younger generation had to take over the reins at some point. She was smarter than she looked, as became clear when she mentioned the three people in the back, who weren't taking this seriously at all. "Agreed. Doesn't seem like they realize that this is, in fact, a true hunt." Kraud glanced over the members of their little group again. "See the two men over there? They're very experienced trackers, but not in a climate like this. They won't be much of a help either." he added. It wasn't difficult to spot that they were experienced, but it took a little more skill to see that they weren't used to this climate. And that could prove to be dangerous, deadly, even.

"My name is Kraud. What's yours?" he asked, studying the warpaint across her face. He didn't recognize it at all. What were the symbols supposed to imply? He tilted his head slightly, as his mind wandered off, thinking about the possibilities. The old Knight almost didn't sense the head of the village arriving, as he searched for a meaning behind the symbols.

The head of the village looked worn out, tired, a little emaciated but most importantly of all; fearful. The Whiphid could sense it. The man before them knew better than anyone what the hunters had signed up for.

"Greetings, noble hunters. I am honored that all of you came to our aid in such difficult times. As you may have heard, some creature has attacked our village. It killed not just the men, but the women and the children too. Every hunter we've sent after it died a horrible death. We haven't be able to piece their bodies back together..." the head of the village exclaimed, flanked by the village Elder, who looked just as worn down as the man beside him. The village Elder continued where the head left off. "We call it the Snow Devil. It comes out of it's liar when there's dense fog, when it's snowing or storming. We haven't found it's liar yet, neither do we know what it is. But it's an intelligent creature, that I can tell you." his warning was sincere. It was best to take it seriously.

"Well then..." Kraud mumbled. "Seems like we'll be chasing a mythical creature.."

@Raven_41

 

[Raven_41]

There was quite the height difference, even if Nova hadn't been a teenager. Now while Nova hadn't experienced a true hunt before either, she at least has had training and been taught be a hunter who did, her father. The so-called hunters looked the part, but their whole way of speaking and moving did not give them any credit for showing the hunter side. Besides, unlike the fakers, Nova was still young, some would even say too young for going on such a dangerous hunt.

Standing a bit in her own thoughts, she snapped back, when the Whiphid introduced himself. "Kraud?" Asked Nova, repeating what Kraud had said, rolling the name over a bit. Looking back up at the large alien, he received a sweet smile, "I'm Nova" introduced the redhaired girl back.

But before Nova got to say anything else, she felt a large heavy hand on her shoulder and when looking up behind, she saw her dad. Grimnir gave Kraud a look over, having a stern and protective aura to him as he stood by his daughter. It was clear that he was seeing if the Whiphid was a danger to his daughter.

Nova's father looked rather intimidating, with his full thick beard, with some of the hair pulled back, going into a smaller ponytail, running down along the free hair. He looked in his fifties but was hard to determine in what range of fifty. His hair has a dark grey tint to it and a weathered face, something Krauds knew all too well as a veteran hunter and warrior.

"This is Kraud, dad. He's pretty cool and is going on the hunt as well" introduced Nova Kraud, before the large alien could do it. The way the teenager introduced Kraud, seemed to get the protective father to relax and not get ready for a bloody fight as Nova smiled.

Given Kraud one last look of reading, determining if he was going to like this one or not, but in the end, he stretched out his hand for Kraud. "In that case, good to have another experienced hunter along for the hunt," he said, while he wasn't smiling, his whole aura came off as much more friendly.

It didn't take long before the head of the village and elder arrived and introduced themself, giving out the details about the supposedly mythologically devil. Nova looked up at her dad, with a surprised look, "Snow Devil? As the stories you've told me about when I was little?" Asked Nova now really curious about this hunt. Up until now, she knew nothing about the hunt or the target, being an actual Snow Monster seemed to excite the girl even more.

The head of the village held the silent for a bit, maybe a bit for dramatic effect? But then continued after a few minutes of letting the new group of hunters get a sense of the scope.

A few others seemed to think the same as Kraud, "We are not going to hunt some mythical creature, so we're out" stated three men and left the village to their ships. With only seven left of the hunters, the head continued, "You must all understand that you might not get back alive from this hunt" explained the Head of the village, just to see if anymore would leave, not willing to risk their lift. Nova even turned her gaze towards the pretenders, to see if they jumped, but no, they didn't move at all.

Before long the group of seven hunters received directions of where the village thought the Snow Devil might live, which match with the general area of where the last hunters got maimed and slaughtered.

~~~5 hours later~~~​

The group of hunters were of high moral, and plenty of things to talk about as they marched through the freshly fallen snow. Actually, the weather couldn't have picked a better condition for the hunting part. Bright clear sky, not much to no wind and not a single cloud in sight.

Grimnir was upfront, along with the other young men from Nova's tribe, all dressed similarly to Nova and her dad and of course different kinds of warpaint painted across the face.

Nova, on the other hand, walked a bit behind her dad just enjoying the journey, not seeking to impress her dad just yet as the three other young men from her clan.

@Powerfullhorus

 

[Kraud]

The bone-chilling wind started to pick up, as the group of hunters marched deeper into the snow-covered wilds of Carlac. Kraud, undoubtedly being the oldest of the group, closed the line, calmly strolling after the group. Thanks to his height, the Whiphid still had an excellent view of the path ahead of them. But that wasn't the only reason why he had chosen to stay in the rear of the pack. The younger hunters obviously wanted to lead the expedition, and he would let them. If anything came up, they would be eager to handle it, while the Whiphid would preserve his energy until they found the real danger. The creature called the "Snow Devil".

The Force felt unresponsive, every time Kraud scanned his surroundings for surrounding wildlife. It was odd. They had been walking for 5 hours straight now, using the navigational equipment they were given. So why wasn't there a single creature out there in the middle of nowhere? The Knight had a couple of theories. The most plausible one was that this apex predator had run out of prey. It would explain why it took such risk attacking the village and why there were no animals around here.

Kraud snapped back to reality when one of the men in front of him laughed hard. At least they seemed to be having fun. Unlike him. This was not just a random hunt for him. No, he had something to prove to himself. That he was still the fierce hunter he had once been, albeit a lot wiser.

One of the hunters, a Shistavanen, spoke up. "It's slowly gettin' dark. We should set up camp soon." It was something Kraud agreed with. They needed patience if they were going to catch this creature. Get to know the area and set traps. They weren't going to find it by just wandering around. All in all, making camp seemed like a good plan.

@Raven_41

 

[Nova Ragna]

Feeling the bone-chilling wind graze Nova's face, made her close her eyes with a smile, there was just something almost tranquil about the cold to Nova. But, it seemed not everyone seemed to agree with her mindset as the two experienced trackers Nova and Kraud talked about earlier showed signs of being annoyed with how cold it was. However, everybody was in an agreement to set up camp soon as nobody really knew the surrounding area.

"I suggest we head for the treelines up ahead for the protection of the elements" added a human, one of the more veteran and older hunters in the party, pointing in the direction of a beginning treeline. Everyone was in agreement, even the glory hunters, which came a bit as a surprise for Nova.

"How are you doing Little Fang?" As Grimnir as he walked a bit slower until he was walking beside his daughter.
"Dad, I'm fine, I won't do anything stupid" assured Nova her dad before he could continue.
"Yes, I know, just promise me you won't do anything stupid that could get you killed" asked Grimnir and looked down to his daughter.
"I promise dad," said Nova with a smile.
"Good," said Grimnir determind and ruffled Nova's fiery red mane, which earned him a few giggles and then being slapped by Nova, to get him to stop.

The closer they got to the forest, the deeper the snow got, some the snow even hit their tighs, people like Nova and other smaller hunters in the party. The time was now very late noon, soon hitting the early evening. Looking up at the sky, it was very clear that daylights quickly disappeared doing the winter times on the planet, surrounding the party in a twilight.

While there wasn't any chosen leader of the group, but the moment they started to unpack and set up camp, stepped the leader forth in Grimnir. Not that Nova's dad was commanding or "swinging the whip" so to say, but he did start to give roles out and help wherever anyone needed it.

Nova was on clearing snow duty with another from the group so that it would be possible to actually set up camp. Other went out to gather timber and wood for a fire, while others stood guard, making sure they little part couldn't be jumped.

@Powerfullhorus

 

[Kraud]

Kraud stared at the broken twigs and branches. He was on timber gathering duty, along with one of the hunters that accompanied Nova. While the hunter was complaining, annoyed that he had to gather the timber, Kraud actually took it as an opportunity to explore the forest. Just 10 minutes away from where they had decided to pitch their tents, however, he found something notable. Large, faint footprints and broken treebranches. He couldn't tell if it matched the description of the snow devil, but the fact that there were nearly no other animals of this size left, meant that it had to be it.

The Whiphid knelt down to analyze the clawed footprints when the other hunter returned. He released a faint gasp, when the man stumbled upon the scene. The hunter walked over to the half-eaten carcass of some animal Kraud didn't know. He had ignored the carcass for now, since the case of death was obvious. The sharp claws had torn straight through the animal its calves, and a bite to the neck was what finished it. A conclusion his companion seemed to arrive at as well. "The creature is cunning, do the footprints confirm that it walks on two legs?" The hunter caught on fast. "Mhm. It isn't the kind of predator that chases its prey. It hides and waits." he explained. "Let's return to the camp, and report what we've found." the Whiphid added, rising from his position. Perhaps the hunters back at the camp had found something similar. Something that indicated that they were far from safe here.

@Raven_41

 

[Nova Ragna]

The camp was busy with preparing for the nightly hours as Kraud along with the hunter returned. Nova was nowhere to be found in the camp, along with her dad and one other hunter, however, the set up of the camp done, there wasn't much to do. The tall snow walls gave the camp a rather trench look to it as if they were in a battle and waited any moment for the enemy to shoot. "Oi, bring the wood to the fire, before it goes out" called one of the hunters who saw Kraud returning along with the hunter.

The tends had been set up, surrounding the campfire with a medium-sized space between each tent. It was quite a big trench the group had managed to dig out. A couple was sitting or standing by the bonfire in the middle, warming their hands as the weather has picked up, delivering a light fresh falling snow. The now falling snow made the surroundings look rather magical in a mythological sort of way, giving the forest a sense of zen.

"Bloody hell, I do miss the warm weather on my home planet" commented one of the men by the bonfire, where another looked at him with a raised eyebrow, "why the blazes have you joined a hunt for a snow monster on snow planet in the middle of winter?" Asked the alien to the left of the first man.

"I love to hunt, I despise cold. Felt like a good challenge" explained the man wrapping a blanket around him. "You're crazy. Anyways, it's your turn to be the lookout" stated a third man, just joining the two others talking. With a bit of a heavy sigh, he left the warming fire, checked his rifle, swung it over his shoulder and headed for the outskirts to patrol around the camp.

Further away and deeper into the forest, kneeled Grimnir and Nova in the snow, by some thick shrubs, listening and watching. They had for no more than two to 3 minutes ago, heard animal noises. However, the change thing was, nothing showed itself and when Nova reached out with the force, feeling the surroundings, she felt nothing. "I feel nothing, but the faint aura something around us, dad" explained Nova. "Do we check it out or follow?" Asked the cautious red-haired girl. Nova did not like this, she felt as if they were being watched by something.

"No, better to return, where we have numbers on our side" replied Grimnir with a whisper and slowly Nova along with her dad, returned to the camp's vicinity. As they were greeted by whoever was on patrol, descended they down the snow formed ramp to the trench, to join the rest of the party.

"Did you have any luck?" Asked one of the people around the fire. "No, we found no trace of animals deeper into the forest" explained Grimnir, warming himself up a bit. While Nova was standing beside her dad, she didn't show any indication of freezing, "I think we're being watched. When we were watching for animals, we did hear an unnatural sound from... something, that kept on moving flanking us. But with the falling of the snow, it could maybe just have been the wind" added Nova. After a bit by the fire, she moved away, to stand on the outside of the camp, leaning by a large tree and watching for anything.

@Powerfullhorus

 

[Kraud]

When Kraud and the hunter returned, they only found two men in their camp. Kraud's questioning look quickly lead to an explanation. "The girl and her dad are checking out some noise they heard. They'll be back soon. Oh, and Jacen just took his shift as lookout." the man on the left side of the fire explained. Kraud exchanged a glance with the hunter beside him, as he placed some of the gathered tree branches on the bonfire. Both he and the hunter seemed to agree that it was better to wait for Grimnir and Nova to return, before the reported what they had found.

The wind picked up a little, just as Nova and her father returned to the encampment. Kraud listened to their story. There were no traces of animals, and the young girl felt like she was being watched. The Whiphid took that warning to heart; closing his eyes as he delved deeply into the Living Force. If the snow devil was close, he would be able to track it through the Force.

The voices of his companions faded away as his conscious wandered off, searching for traces of the Dark side. While his and the hunters visions would be obstructed by the almost blizzard like snow-fall that had picked up in mere minutes, his Force sense would not.

Kraud felt the energy of those around him. He felt the tension, the excitement and the boredom of his fellow hunters. But there was something else out there. It was nearby and as he reached out to sense what it was, a feeling of dread washed over him. The Dark side enveloped what he had tried to touch through the Force. And it seemed to be driven by only one thought. One primal feeling that plagued every living thing. Hunger.

Kraud's eyes shot open the minute he realized what was about to happen. ".... traces we found likely belonged to th-" Kraud cut his partner off mid-sentence. "Where did our lookout go?!" he abruptly exclaimed, jumping up from his position. The Whiphid cursed under his breath as he looked over the snow-walls, only to realize that the storm completely obstructed his vision.

Turning back to face the other hunters, Kraud explained his strange behaviour. "It's out there. And it's coming for our lookout.."

@Raven_41

 

[Raven_41]

The erupt warning Kraud made Grimnir snap his attention first to where to lookout would have stationed and then in the direction of where his daughter went. "Nova!" Hollowed Grimnir and dashed away from the roaring fire of the camp and ran through the dugout tranches. Every alarm clocks went off as he stormed to the edge of the encampment to get to his daughter. It didn't help the situation that the outlook at this end was where the other hunter from his camp was supposed to be, was gone.

The blizzard had turned pretty bad once he went to the exit of the snow trench, where he found his daughter just sitting in a meditative position with closed eyes. "Nova!" Yelled Grimnir, due to the blizzard's intensitive and grabbed his daughter by the wrist, leading her back into the snow trench. "What's wrong father?" Asked Nova a bit surprised by the sudden grab and pull from her dad.

"Our lookouts are gone and the Whiphid and Bill found a gutted animal" explain Grimnir as he guided his daughter back to the campfire. The moment Grimnir returned, the sound of something that sounded like a scream filled the blizzard, followed by a terrifying chilling roar of something primal.

@Powerfullhorus

 

[Kraud]

Kraud rushed out of the camp behind Grimnir, letting the Force guide him to the source of hunger and death. With a snap-hiss his lightsaber ignited, the mint green blade becoming a beacon of light in the snowstorm. The snow combination of snow and ice made the terrain treacherous, and forced him to move slower than he wanted.

Knowing exactly where the beast was going, Kraud summoned the Force to his aid. He wouldn't reach the lookout in time, but perhaps he could warn him well before it happened. The harsh wind blew snow in his face, which meant that he would never catch the lookout's attention by yelling. But as a Jedi, he had some tricks up his sleeve.

It took him some effort to focus in the snow storm, but the Whiphid managed to locate the hunter's mind. He swiftly probed it, establishing a telepathic link between him and the hunter. But before he could convey his thoughts, the swirling mass of darkness made itself known. A fear-inducing scream was carried to the camp by the wind, a scream not that far away from the Whiphid. Kraud was too late, and had made a major mistake.

With a roar of pain, the Whiphid faltered. His telepathic link conveyed more than thoughts; he felt how the hunter's life was snuffed out as the beast plunged its cold claws in the lookout's neck. It felt as if a hot knife tore his skull open, which not only made him falter, but nearly made him pass out as well.

Through the lookout's mind, the Whiphid had received a glimpse of the beast. It was the last image that flashed through the lookout's mind, before his unfortunate death. It was a terrible beast, a slender creature, probably starved. But Kraud recognized it's size, shape and form. He was certain of it, although it didn't look like any other members of its species. There was no other explanation. They were dealing with a starved Wampa.

@Raven_41

 

[Nova Ragna]

When his daughter was safely back at the camp where another one from the hunting party had returned, due to the chilling roar, Grimnir turned to look at his daughter "the Snow Devil has killed most of our group, while the blizzard is active you are not to leave this campfire, you understand?" Explained, keeping his eyes on Nova's. Knowing her dad all to well from when they went hunting together back home, when he was serious, you listened to him. Nodding, made Grimnir breathe a small sigh of relief and turned to Kraud.

"Well? I know what you are Kraud, what did you see?" Asked Grimnir the Whiphid with a deadly serious face. Nova blink by her dad's question. He knew what Kraud was? What was that supposed to mean?

They were about five left out of seven people and out of the five and the chilling roars that could either be the Snow Devil or blizzard didn't help the situation. The two other surviving members, had their blasters loaded and turned their back to the fire, flanking from side to side with their eyes for any kind of movements.

But as the group was on high alert, nothing happened. No attack, no roars, and no ambushing. It seemed the beast has had its fill for the night and left the camp... for now. The blizzard went on for the rest of the night, not seeming to end any time soon over the course of the night and very early morning.

Not wanting to take any chances, Grimnir suggested that minimal of two people would stand guard and for all that was holy, keep the fire going. Naturally, Nova wanted to be one of those that stood guard by the fire but was forbidden from doing it by her dad, much to Nova's disappointment.

In the early morning, the blizzard had finally settled, leaving only light falling snow behind and a fresh covered layer of snow all around them. "Well, we can kiss goodbye any trace of the Snow Devil" commented one of the surviving members of the hunting party as he looked at the surroundings.

@Powerfullhorus