Citizen 475 Lyrby

Lyrby fidgeted anxiously with the long fur along his arms, he had so much he wanted to do but the list had piled up so high he didn’t even know quite where to start. There was cleaning, he had to water his small farm plot, the neighbor had also asked for help repairing their fence. But it was early, surely they wouldn’t be awake yet. He could cross that one off the list for now. He just had to do something though, he was a ball of anxious energy and he needed to move. Perhaps he could gather some clay and straw to make some patches and fixes around his home.

He stood up, scouting around his home for a bucket, basket, anything that could get the job done. Finally he found a grass woven bucket, lined with soft birch bark. Smiling, he grabbed it and made his way out, heading into the forest to find the river where he knew clay was abundant. The straw would be a different story, perhaps he could trade his neighbor for helping with the fence. If not, he was sure he could pick some up at the market.

His gait was a bit slower than normal, due to him having to walk on his hind legs to carry the bucket. While it wasn’t uncomfortable, it did take some getting used to. He made it to the forest edge and crossed into the cool shadows cast by the trees. Somehow the forests always managed to calm his nerves a little, unsure if it was the sights or the smells.. Or maybe a mixture of both. He walked softly along, the forest was carpeted in a plush moss in most of these cool areas due to the acidity of the soil in the area. Aside from the slight rustling of his makeshift bucket, this rendered his footsteps nearly silent.

He breathed in deeply, as he finally heard the faint sounds of water up ahead. Luckily this would be a short journey, he thought, as he made his way forward and brushed branches out of his face. In front of him lay the river, it was wide but slow moving, perfect for the soft silty buildup of clay along its banks. He grumbled as he looked upon the water, suddenly cursing himself for not bringing his fishing pole. The water sadly wasn’t deep enough for him to swim well, so catching fish was probably out of the question. He rolled his eyes and knelt down upon the bank, digging his large paws and taking heaping scoops of the clay from the bank.

As he looked about he could see where other rexal had done the same somewhat recently, seems he may have to find another river soon or there would be no more clay for everyone. Of course, just another thing his busy mind had to take into account. Lyr had just about finished when he heard a blood curdling scream from back in the woods. The sound made his shore blue hair stand on and and he dropped his bucket. 

It most certainly wasn’t any animal he had ever heard, in fact the closest thing he had heard to this sound was the playful screams of.. Rexalian children? He began to panic, completely forgetting about his task he took off on all fours towards the sound. He heard another, and then the telltale squeal of a wild boar. As he broke through the brush he saw a small rexal child, way too young to be out in the woods alone. The child was desperately holding onto a thin branch, but was panicking and moving, and it looked like it was about to snap. Below him were 2 wild boar, wild with anger and trying to gore and bite anything that dipped into their range. 

Lyr burst through the brush with bared teeth, not even able to give it a second thought. The large blue rexal was acting purely on instinct to defend the young one. He took one swipe at the distracted boar, hitting its flank and sending the animal toppling sideways. The second boar now turned to face him, attempting to target his soft furred flesh with its tusks. Lyrby bared his teeth once again, exhaling so hard a hiss erupted from his mouth as the air escaped past his clenched teeth. He was able to rear back, deflecting the attack with his armored neck before knocking the boar sideways.

The two ran away with nothing more than a hurt ego, and the child was safe. He looked up finally, breathing heavily as he returned to his senses. He stood up and reached for the child, letting him know it was safe to come down. He brushed the little one off checking for injuries, but remarkably the small rexal was unscathed, just shaken. It seemed like the child wanted to prove himself too early, before their neck plates were fully hardened and still too small in size. He would leave the chastising for the parents- Lyr was just happy he was able to arrive before anything terrible had taken place.

Author: Atrocias