Trial Of Urser

[Arachnia of the Hour]

Resplendent Fire 1,

*just as with Dargo Arachnia knocked on Urser's door just before dawn, already made up and luxurious in her breezy white gown with little red crystals sparkling like droplets of blood in a web*

* Urser opened the door, clad in a kilt made from bear hide and a shirt to match. He smiled when he saw the spider empress, giving her a nod* " Hello, Elder Arachnia. What brings you to my home? Do you have work for me?"

*her smile perked as he opened the door, and she tilted her head to look up at him through her lashes* Yes, in a sense I do. Today we will start our journey for your Trials

"Trials huh?" * Urser tilted his head from side to side, cracking his neck as he did, then cracked his knuckles* " I like the sound of that, there is nothing I cant handle"

*Arachnia smirked at Urser's confidence, having thought of his trials with amusement. He had a different personality than the rest, who had recently finished all of theirs and thus the last pup out of the nest should have equal trials to the rest* We may be away for a few days so I will give you a moment to say goodbye to your sister if you like. After that we depart

" Goodbye? we say that to each other every day. we never know when one of us will die... the life of a warrior after all" * he folded his arms across his chest then gave a nod, flexing slightly as he pondered what the trials might be*

Then we leave immediately, follow me *the Empress took Urser out to her Manse, where it transported them halfway across the empire to an area he'd never been before. When they stepped out of the Manse she shifted into a giant Northern spider and took off across the landscape until they reached a large crater with an enormous mound taking up most of it. On one side of the mound was a river that had flooded the surrounding area with the block and on the other side the crater had raised too high and what had been a river had stopped moving and grown stagnant*


* Urser followed Arachnia, transforming into a bear and running at full speed until they had arrived at the crater with the stagnant river. He turned back into a human and puzzled at the unhealthy looking water* " This doesn't look good... something like this can ruin the hunting... animals need good water, otherwise they will migrate away to better lands"

*once they had stopped, Arachnia also took back her human skin and nodded at Urser* The method is up to you, but your first Trial is to fix the balance of this area

" Fix the Balance?.. not exactly my specialty, but I can do that easy!" * Urser pondered a moment as to fix the problem... but it quickly came to him! He had seen beavers do something like this before... nothing this big, but it was worth a shot. he walked over to the giant boulder and put both hands on it, gripping it tightly so that he might try to lift it out*

*the mound itself was hot to the touch, and Urser would find that though it was colored just like a boulder it was definitely more pliable than one. As he gripped it the mound shifted and the ground rumbled under his feet until a face appeared from somewhere underneath it. The inhuman thing's face had no visible eyes and a short and round protrusion extending from it much like a mouth. All along the mound little protrusions popped up as the mouth cracked open to suck in a gulp of hair right in Urser's face. Similar activity was happening around his hands and he would feel the bumps popping in and out underneath his fingers*

* He leaped back, looking at this large thing and noticing it was not initially hostile. with a sigh, he looked it over, seeing that it was a wyld behemoth. He rubbed the back of his neck as he watched it, thinking something like this must have a owner around* " Hello?.. do you understand me, behemoth?"

*the behemoth's bumps rippled wildly all over its body and the ground rumbled as it seemed to expand, sealing the hole it had created in the crater. The water sloshed on either side of it when it moved and the mouth at his face huffed, grunting sounds coming from inside*

* Urser sighed, then gritted his teeth, realizing what he now had to do.. this thing was unnatural and needed to be done away with for the betterment of the environment. Urser's body swelled as hair rapidly covered his body. his nails extended into claws as did his teeth, until he was a bear warbeast. his hide began glowing softly as the hair began to thicken on him. he then reared back and let out a lour roar, hoping to scare the critter off*

*a dust puffed off of the creature as every bump rose on its hide, much like goosebumps and a group of fissures opened up in its hide and a bellow thats sound was reminiscent of a buffalo was let out. The earth shook and rumbled as the beast started to bounce in place, trying to get out of the hole it had made. Water rushed in to create a pond underneath the beast whenever it bounced upward, trying to roll out, but then its weight would catch up with it and the beast would fall backwards back into its crater. The bellowing started up again, and the behemoth shot spikes out of its body to try and grip, but found itself spinning slowly in place as the muddy water was being torn asunder and sloshing muck all over*

* Urser saw that the beast was now stuck, but was trying to leave. Knowing a true warrior needed to put his own body in harms way for glory. He shook his wrists, then using his claws, he reached out for the beast, trying to grab its horns/spikes to haul it out of the hole. His muscles swelled as his temporary tattoos began to glow*

*the behemoth continued its thrashing, now thinking that it was under attack, it tried rotating to skewer Urser with one of its spikes and rid itself of the pain he was causing. The rumbling in the ground began again and a chorus of bellows rang out as fissures opened up in different places along its hide to ring out its dismay. With the help of Urser, however, it managed to get a good grip and together the monster rolled onto dry land. Some of the spikes disappeared while others faced Urser as the circular ball-beast "lunged" at him, spines staying between the two of them. With another shrieking bellow it backed off and rolled back and forth in indecision, seeming to be stuck between fight or flight. With its presence gone the water cascaded back into the crater. making a pond that filled up and with the current from one side finally connected to the other side, effectively making a pool in the middle of the revived river*

* Slashed up, Urser gritted his teeth, remembering the glory and pushed the thing out of the hole. when he saw that the thing was unsure weather to fight or rn away, he decided to give it a helping hand. he began thrashing around, breaking rocks and stomping the ground, all the while letting out the most blood curdling roars he could muster*

*it rolled around rapidly, the spikes positioned so that they launched the ball spinning and it started its bouncing again, launching itself into the sky at incredible speed, especially for its size. It had gone so high that even though Urser could see that it had launched at an angle he never saw the peak of its arch , a loud crashing sound accompanied the takeoff and the wind from it settled down to leave Urser and the water. The sun was hot and the flooded grounds would soon dry now that the river had somewhere to flow*

* Urser powered down, returning to his human form. he sighed, wiped the dirt off his hands and gave a nod, looking to where Arachnia was* " There you are... the water is flowing, but balance restored?... only time will tell"

*Arachnia stepped towards the injured man a few feet* Yes, well, you completed the task and I will check on its course. You did well, rest assured that this will even out in one direction or the other. Now, let us go to the next trial. This one is outside of the empire so we will be traveling a little bit. Do you have a flying shape to follow me in?

" Flying shape?.. No, I don't think so... actually, I only have this.. the bear and the monster form" * He nodded, then gave a chuckle* " I didn't know that I could become other things.... though I did have a feeling. So, now then, where to?"

I see, well, we can make do with one of the Warbirds to the next place, then *she turned back into a giant spider and crawled back to her Manse, which transported the two to the unknown plateau. She snagged one of the Warbirds and set up a servitor to fly it for them*

[Arachnia of the Hour]

Resplendent Fire 1-2,

*It wasn't too long until they were over Imperveress walls and flying high through the sky. The sky began to darken and Arachnia set down for the night, using the cover of trees to partially conceal the Warbird. She went out and settled down for the night in one of the surrounding trees, becoming a ghostly observer with her gauzy white attire*

*Urser hopped outside and climbed on top of the warbird, then curled up to go to sleep, much like snoopy might. Being a Barbarian, he felt that if he were to be sleeping on the floor, he would do it under the stars where it was comfortable. All the while, Urser wondered what the next trial could possibly be*

* the next morning Arachnia woke at dawn, the sun brushing her face as it rose slowly into the sky. Without moving to look, her gaze went to Urser on his spot on the aircraft. Shifting for the jump, Arachnia stood and leaped up and arced into the air gracefully, landing quietly and smoothly on the roof of the Warbird, just out of arm's reach of Urser's prone shape *

*Through the night, Urser shifted into a bear and was not asleep in this form. It was sad how Urser did not pick up that someone was near him, but that was just how he was*

*tilting her head, the Empress shrugged at the still bear. She had thought he might notice but this new information was definitely interesting* The morning calls, Urser. If we leave now the time should be prime for our next excursion

*Urser stretched as he woke up, then got to his feet, transforming back into his human form. He brushed the long ponytail from his topknot out of his face, then gave a yawn* “ Well, whats next on the agenda then?”

We will walk the next few miles to our destination. I will then let you off with your mission and you choose your path to the goal *Arachnia hopped off of the Warbird and began walking, knowing that Urser would follow. As they came closer a settlement would come into view. It was obviously barbarian in make, the rough-hewn fences that kept in small livestock linked by rope with a thin man sleeping nearby at a post that suggested he was supposed to be watching for trouble. It was here that Arachnia stopped and spoke quietly, so as not to wake the man* I want the allegiance of this tribe, that is your goal. If you have no questions then I will be waiting back at the Warbird when you're done

*Urser nodded as he listened to what was to happen here. Alliances? These were not his strong suit either, but if that is what to do, then that is what he is going to do. Like arachnia, he whispered as well* “ So, I am supposed to assure this village's loyalty? That doesn't sound too hard”

The method is up to you, Urser. I await your success *soon she was the dark raven she used during the day, and Arachnia flew out of sight past the trees to leave Urser to his job*

*Urser shrugged, then shifted into a bear. He remembered how Luna had appeared to him and the awe he felt from it. Trying to capture that feeling in the sleeping man, Urser walked over to the man and began making bear noises, none threatening, but loud enough to wake him*

*the man awoke with a start, and upon seeing the bear his eyes got huge and he shrunk into his chair. He bit his lip when the beast didn't immediately attack him and looked around wildly, obviously with someone or something in mind. When he spoke it was a whisper* Shoo! Go away bear! If you value your life, leave!

* Urser then shifted back into his human form, spending a mote of essence to make his bear skin and teeth tell glow with lunar power. he gave a toothy grin to the sentry, then spoke* " Hello villager. I am here to speak with your leader. I represent the Nation to the west of here, Imperveress. We seek an alliance with your village"

*the man cringed at the grin, but forced himself to look at the bear-man. Standing up, he patted his clothes to smooth them before answering* Okay... Our leader is called The Bear King Vikr and he lives in the hut draped with many pelts

" Bear king Vikr? Sounds like my kind of leader." *Urser laughed as he waved goodbye to the guard and went into the village, looking for a chief's hut with many trophy pelts. Having come from a similar village, he was familiar with what it was he was looking for*

*the man muttered something that sounded like "maybe not..." as he walked off, but stayed where he was, now more alert. It was pretty easy to find the hut through the smattering of smaller houses and something that looked a lot like a barracks. There were people about doing their jobs, and a large group of people who milled about outside and surrounded the hut of their leader. There were the skins of many animals, all of them different types of bears, on the outside of the man's home. One of the men stopped Urser with a stern expression* What do we have here? A lone stranger in our land

* Urser stopped when he heard this mans words. slowly he turned around, baring his teeth at him* " Perhaps it would be wiser of you to keep your mouth shut if you can not speak with more respect to a chosen of Luna... i'll forgive you for now, but tread softly... I may not be so generous next time"

*the guys who had been watching nearby drew in closer, surrounding Urser in a loose circle, waiting for the man to reply* What did you say? Do you think that a bear-man could walk into the King Of Bears' territory and be welcome? You are as delusional as you come across, then, and we should do the world a favor and rid it of one more crazy *some of the guys gave jeering laughs at this, a few setting hands on sheathed weapons*

" I came to talk... but I guess it couldn't hurt to teach you all a lesson." * He let out a loud roar as he transformed into a huge bear monster as he reared back, readying himself for a fight*

*the group all stepped back, definitely intimidated and fearful of the biggest bear they'd ever seen. Before they could decide whether to run or fight, a huge man stepped out from the pelt-covered home. He wore a bear-skull cap and had a pelt of the same animal as a kilt-like garment and had converted bear-paws into gloves and boots. His chest was bear and chiseled, exposed almost as a taunt to his enemies. In his hands was a huge spiked club, the wood stained with blood. He roared out his words, causing all of the once-fearful men to go back to smirking and looking nothing like the scared boys who had just stood there* What is all this racket?! Can't a man fuck in peace?!

* Urser turned his gaze from groups and to the bear clad man. his form melted down into his human form, his markings still glowing silver. He walked over to the man and addressed him* " Are you The Bear King? I am Urser, chosen of Luna. I am here to form an alliance between the empire of Imperveress and your village. you seem busy, so all I need is a favorable answer, then I will be on my way"

Why would I do that? Some outsider comes into my camp and tries to attack my men, then wants an alliance? I think not, the only thing you're good for is another trophy on my wall. In fact, I might make you a nice large bear rug if your skin is quality *Vikr snubbed his nose in his confidence, completely writing off the loony*

* Urser's eyes became wide as anger filled him. He bared his teeth, getting closer to the giant bear king. he poked the king's chest with his index finger as he spoke, growling all the while* " I have been very patient here. Your men tried to ambush me for no reason and you threaten me, a bear child of luna? And now you think you will get away with no retribution?..... I am giving you such a deal now... you take the alliance, you clean up your act... and I would bet you are a poacher as well, so stop that immediately. If all those come to pass, you will live a good long life without me having to maim you"

*Vikr's expression darkened as he listened to Urser's threats. As he was poked, the Bear King stood taller and began growling back, just a little. His voice deepened and he took a step forward, the grip on his club tightening* I see that as a challenge, and I don't take it lightly. I didn't become the Bear King just for a strong title, I own this name. Now leave or fight me! I will give no smart mouth weakling a thought without a duel! *the men around him opened their circle some, but created a wall of bodies to be the arena. Their eyes screamed for blood and their faces were wrenched into a leer that yearned for death*

* Urser leaped backwards, creating some distance between the two of them. He raised his hand as he smiled a large crazed grin at the bear king, having not been a part of a good tribal fight in a long time* " Then duel me! winner keeps the title of Bear King!"

*Vikr laughed, the sound cruel and hollow* Bring it on! *he raised his club as though he were going to attack, and twitched his head to the side. The men surrounding the two of them descended on Urser, intending to take him out for their leader*

* Urser, seeing that he was under ambush, began attacking in all directions, keeping himself mobile the whole while as to not get harmed.*

*four men went down in the scuffle, unconscious on the ground from the Lunar's blows. The remaining fighters continued to launch attacks at Urser, a few taking a moment to look at their leader who stood back and watched with a smug look on his face. He seemed unphased by his treachery on the rules of a duel and felt no shame at sending his own men to their deaths, or at least extreme discomfort*

* Urser then flew into an insane rage, roaring out a yell of primal fury as his movements became swifter and more brutal. he tossed one over his shoulder who tried to strike him with a club from behind. He then brought his elbow back into the face of yet another barbarian who believed himself tough. This man was tossed at a sword wielder, knocking him off his footing, before being punched square in his face. Whipping around, Urser swung his fist like a hammer, catching another attacker in his jaw*

*the remaining seven fighters attempted to coordinate an attack, but as they were not used to doing as such they ended up attacking each other and another two fighters accidentally clubbed each other over the head when they swung too hard and missed their intended target altogether. Now five, they started to wonder if giving up was an option and two of them ran in different directions, aborting the fight with the insane berserker in favor of their lives*

* Urser then lashed out, kicking one of the guards who was foolish enough to stay behind, right in his chest. He then lunged himself at a charging barbarian, slamming his forehead into his, sending the fool flying. The last warrior standing had the honor of being picked up and thrown down onto the ground, skidding a bit like a stone across the water*

*when they were all down, Vikr took the moment of hesitation to launch an attack when he thought Urser would be his weakest. There was no doubt that he feared this man of Luna, and it was this fear that drove him to such acts of cowardice*

* Still driven by the anger, Urser tore for Vikr, erupting into his monster bear warform. He grabbed Vikr around the waist and flung him at the wall of his hut, chasing after him the whole while, then slammed into him immediately after impact and within a split second, he stepped back and punched the former bear king across his face* "You coward! you claim to be a brave leader, but in reality, you cower behind your people, throwing them against your problems and hoping you will not have to dirty your hands!!"

*the force of Urser's rage left Vikr with no time to counter, forced to try and dodge and failing. The first impact had him trying to catch his breath, and the second one caused him to crumple against the wall, incapable of getting up*

* the final hit, his claws were used on vikr's face causing merely cosmetic damage... but that was the idea. this vain ruler needed to be punished in a way that fit. he then tossed the disfigured man on the ground* there, you have been stripped of your rule and your title. You are a worthless worm with no spine... you are now sent to exile. Keep wandering, Worm King... and see where your hideous face will take you... and never let me see you again, or this beating will look like a tickle compared to what i will do to you!" * Urser breathed heavily, the adrenaline pumping through his veins. his body began melting down into his human form. with that, Urser turned around and claimed his spoils from the former arena, yelling at the top of his lungs* " I am Urser, and I am now your Bear King!!"

*beaten and disfigured, Vikr lay where he was. The other citizens materialized from their hiding places and the fallen barbarian fighters began to wake up. One of the skinny gatherers came up tentatively to look at Urser and a girl's tear-streaked face peeked from inside the former Bear King's hut, everyone trying to get a glimpse of their new leader. It was the brazen gatherer that spoke up first* We will follow you, then *most looked fearful, not sure if they should be happy that this man took out their former ruler so easily or if this made it worse for them*

[Arachnia of the Hour]

Resplendent Fire 2,

*Arachnia stood at the edge of a large forest, hands resting gently on her hips as she stared at it for a moment. Coal-black eyes finally twitched to look over at her traveling companion*

Urser, this is your last trial. That forest is the last place where a Chimera was spotted. This one is odd in that it hides in plain sight, so to find it you'll have to look for odd behavior in the local wildlife. Since Chimera like this one are out of their minds they need to be put down, and that will be your job

* Urser nodded, grinning a great bear toothy grin as he looked out into the forest, wondering how large and muscular this chimera was and how it was he would go and take down this chimera. Urser slammed his knuckles together and gave a nod, stepping forward to the forest*

" Hides in plain sight huh? Well then, I will have to seem threatening so it will betray itself... Its how I used to weed out Gorilla fighters back when I was mortal! Just point me in the right direction"


Alright, I'd recommend just walking through and seeing what you can find. The Chimera could be anywhere but I assure you it hasn't left the tree line

*Arachnia's obsidian eyes flashed with a predatory glint*

Otherwise I'd have to find you a new challenge. Come back to me with its head and you've passed. The catch is that you have to complete this before an hour and a half has gone by. Start whenever you're ready. The moment you step into the forest is when time starts


" Ready? I was ready a half hour ago, I'll be back with that head in no time! See you soon!"

* Urser shifted into a grizzley bear and bounded off into the forrest, searching the air for any scents of strangeness... something that should not exist. At the sae time, he opened up his other senses to find the elusive chimera beast*


*the forest itself was beautiful, the songs of birds scattering when he got too close. Smaller animals that saw a bear as a predator ran and hid, a few of the more curious animals still dashing away but only to a safer place to watch as Urser lumbered past. As he followed the tracks of animals he would find a stream where they frequented. A deer on the edge of the clearing lifted its head and flicked its ears as Urser entered the area, but otherwise ignored him and put its head back down, leaving the Lunar with a view of its white-tailed rump. The sounds of bees buzzing seemed to originate from somewhere near the deer*


* He continued to bound through the area, trying to stirr up as many animals as he could, ruling out anything that ran away as just a regular animal. When he saw the white tail, he ran for it, wondering if there was a bee hive around here, and if there would be time for him to harvest some honey before bringing this things head back to arachnia. After all, Kumako loved honey*


*the buzzing intensified as he ran closer, and the deer turned to look at the bear gaining speed that headed in its direction. It grunted and opened its eyes, letting out a huge swarm of pissed off bees*

* Being a bear, Urser was well used to being stung by bees... but not so much bees that came from deers. He darted forward to the deer, leaping upon it as he shapeshifted into his war form and began swinging, his huge claws swiping through the air in an attempt to flay the meat from the deer's body*

*The deer took the brunt of Urser's attack, apparently not expecting a bear to dive through a swarm of bees just to come at it. Wounds opened up on its hide and a sickly green-red blood spilled out to slide down its body to drip on the grass as the deer bucked upward and launched itself at Urser. Where the blood dropped the grass started to smoke, though it didn't seem to affect the chimera. Lowering its head, the deer tossed its skull to the side and unhooked what looked like hair that glinted in the light. In the same strange head-rotating motion the deer dove for Urser again, opening its mouth and doing its damndest to take a bite out of the Lunar with its three rows of razor-sharp shark teeth*

* Urser's skin sizzled where the acidic blood fell, but Urser 'beared' through it. He smirked as the chimera's shark like teeth sank into his flesh, doing minimal damage to his person*

" So you want to play like that? Then where you take it back to the basics, I am going to improvise!"

* He reached forward with his huge, man bear arms, attempting to wrap them around the deer and squeeze the life out of the thing as he ran off in the direction of the waiting Empress*

*the deer struggled in vain as Urser grabbed it and took off. As its ribs were being crushed and it was being shaken by the rumbling of running the blood from its captor's wounds was a heady aroma so close to its face. The deer rubbed the shiney hairs in his blood, coating them in crimson while kicking and bucking in a furious attempt at escape*

* The acid continued to burn Urser's hide, but this was little concern to him, all that mattered now was getting this trial done in ample time. As he ran through the forest, Urser squeezed the chimera into his chest, hoping to choak the life out of it, even though it was this squeezing that pressed more acid blood onto him*


*the deer started to flail more recklessly, the bees that had continued to attempt to sting the bear-monster started to slow down and sway through the air. Panic started to take over and as its heart started racing in an attempt to pump adrenaline through its system those now-crimson locks stood up straight and hardened. Tossing its head back and forth, the deer continued to flail and kick and twist to no avail*

* Urser was now in a bad way, having been punctured deep by the quills of the chimera. His huge bear teeth now clenched as to take the focus off the pain and push through it. The acid did not help eather. Urser squeezed yet again, hoping this would be the time that would end the chimera*


*with a grunt the deer-thing gave a last weak attempt at resisting before slumping forward unconscious. The bees around all fell to the ground as the chimera had tried to use them literally to their death. Now dead-weight, the chimera's legs dangled and the spikes fell limp again*


* he dropped the dead body of the chimera on the ground, taking a moment to shake the acid off his person. he then heaved a sigh and put his claws through the neck of the monster, being careful not to let the stuff touch his skin. when it was done, he carefully grabbed the severed head of the beast and ran off for Arachnia*


*Arachnia was waiting for him in the clearing, standing almost exactly where she had left him fifty-five minutes ago. She didn't seem surprised at his appearance, almost as though she had seen what had happened, which she had. Of course she'd never tell any of her underlings that she followed them around unless they needed real help, it ruined the experience in her opinion. She looked down from the sky and smirked in amusement*

And with thirty-five minutes to spare

*she looked over the head in his hands and nodded, pleased with the progress. That should have been a more difficult task, but he took to it like, well, a bear to the woods*

Would you like to keep that as a trophy or just dispose of it?


"He nodded, setting the severed headon the ground and shifted back into his human form. His body was still bruised, battered, cut and burnt*

" You know.. I will keep it... Last day of Calibration is when I will offer up my trophys to Luna. fifty five munites huh? I was hoping that I would have been quicker.. Does that mean I passed?"

* Urser stood up straight again, smirking his signature toothy grin*


Then by all means, keep it. I'm sure Luna will be happy that you put that creature out of its misery. Fifty-five minutes is a great time, the full hour and a half I gave you should have been just enough for a normal new Moon-Touched. So yes, of course you passed. Now we return and prepare for your tattoing process that will happen on the fifteenth of this month. That's thirteen days from now. Was there anything else you'd like to get done as we head home?

*Arachnia stood in wait for Urser's reply while planning the event of the full moon in her mind*


"Get done? not that I can think of... Alright! Lets get back to the empire then!" * Urser snickered a bit, then winced in pain... those injuries were more serious than he had origionally thought*


When we return, then, you should see a healer about those wounds. No need to suffer more than necessary, and I don't believe Miss Kumako would enjoy seeing you in a state of disrepair

*she started their journey back, trying not to be too eager to get back to Ress and Miakoda and forsake her newest champion*