Shooting Practice (Self-mod, Open for other recruits)

[Zultar Clan-Saver]

Eighth Brightening of the first cycle of the month of Immanis in the Season of Spring, Era II of the Celestine Mandate, Era XIV Post Fractum, the Second Era of the Regency of Milo L'Evienne.
Time of day ~dusk.

As usual, Zultar preferred dusk as his time for personal matters and introspection. This brightening, however, he decided to go and practice with his bow at the shooting ranges that he Imperial Legion has set up. He wanders out to the range just as the second sun is half-way set, to where it's light shoots rays of wonderful color in the sky, blue fading to pink then yellow. This was the time of day that Zultar enjoyed because the colors in the sky filled him with a distinct calmness, almost like that of laying in his mother's arms when he was young. He had never practiced on an actual shooting range.. he had taught himself to shoot by practicing shooting trees.

The range is empty when Zultar arrives, and he takes his longbow off his arm. He pulls an arrow from his quiver, knocks it, and draws the bow. He feels the the strain of the bow, and his heart stops, waiting to beat with the firing of the arrow. With a sharp twang, followed by the vibration that he had come to love, the longbow launched it's the arrow, and with a short woosh it crossed the 30 yards to the target and struck into it quite solidly with a "thwoop" sound. It had hit an inch or so outside the ring that marked the "bullseye". Zultar sighs, takes a few steps back, and takes another arrow out, knocks it, and lets it fly. He misses the center area again. Practice is definitely what he needs. Perhaps the sound of arrows would attract other archers? Who knows what the coming darkening will bring.

[Zultar Clan-Saver]

After a few more shots, Zultar noticed that most of his arrows were all missing just to the left. He noted that the wind was blowing from his right, and so he adjusted his bow just a little bit to the right. With luck and some more thoughtful shooting, an arrow of his actually struck in the bullseye. In his mind that bullseye was the heart of his enemy, and hopefully one day his enemy will be the murderer Fidelis Meridius.

Zultar had trained himself in the longbow because it was the first weapon he had used. When he was younger, him, his father, and his mother all traveled together, usually under the cover of darkness, but one day they were ambushed by a group of human robbers. His dad fought, and downed one man. Zultar scooped and picked up the bow of the man, and used it to shoot another robber that was fighting with Zul. He kept that very longbow for a while, using it whenever else they were skirmished, but eventually it broke, having been rather shoddily made, so when him and his mother parted after his father died, he bought a nice new one, and had kept it in good shape. That is the one he is using now.

Sure enough, someone else comes to the shooting range tonight. A male katta, cheetari-jaguara mix, seems to materialize out of the shadows and walks up near Zultar. He is wearing some light leather armor with the symbol of the Imperial Legion on it. When he nears he looks at Zultar briefly, sizing up this odd creature, then turns to the targets and pulls out a longbow of his own. Quietly and swiftly, he begins to shoot, and his shots all seem to have hit in the general area marked as the bullseye. This katta was a skilled shot, and little did Zultar know that this time of day was usually when the katta practiced because his eyes could see in the dark quite well. Zultar notes the katta's stance and drawing technique, and tries to mimick it on his next shot, but his hands fumble and drop the bow. The katta sees this, sighs, and stops shooting and faces Zultar. He speaks in a silky voice "Your hands don't work like mine, you have to wrap your fingers around the bow more. Also, look at my legs more carefully." Zultar looks up at him and smiles. "Oh, thanks." He picks up his bow, tries again to mimick the katta's stance, and this time makes to get a firmer grip. He knocks an arrow and shoots again. The arrow hits the target pretty straight, almost a direct bullseye.