Hector gets up there with more confidence than last month's Talesinger had gotten up there but the mood is different and the audience is smaller and so much more has happened. If the Uktena's nerves jangle then at least his body feeds off of the jangling. His voice is strong and does not quaver.
"Coyote was out walking one day when he met Old Woman. She lifted a hand to greet him and asked him where he thought he was off to even though everybody knew even back then not to pay too much mind to anything Coyote said.
"Oh you know, Coyote said, just out for a stroll.
"Well that way's no good, Old Woman said. You should turn back, there's a giant out there, he's killing everybody.
"Psh! said Coyote, who had never met a giant before. Giants don't frighten me! I always kill them. I'll fight this one too, and leave his head for the others to find.
"Alright... but he's bigger and closer than you think.
"Whatever. Coyote figured the giant would be about as big as a bull moose and wouldn't give him any trouble. I don't care. I'm going to fight him.
"So Coyote said goodbye to Old Woman and went on ahead, whistling a tune. After a while he saw a fallen branch big enough to serve as a club for something as big as a bull moose, so he picked it up and said to himself, Oh, man, this is big enough and heavy enough to kill him, I can just hit the giant over the head with this. Kept on walking. Whistling. Eventually he came to a huge cave right in the middle of the path and, thinking nothing of it, he went in."
Hector whistles a jaunty oh-isn't-it-a-beautiful-day tune and moseys along to the other side of the circle. Gestures to the space in front of him.
"Coyote met a woman crawling along on the ground.
"What are you doing down there? he asked.
"I'm starving, she said, and too weak to walk. What are you doing with that stick?
"I'm going to kill the giant with it! he said. Where's he at? I'm ready.
"Weak as she was, the woman laughed. You're already in the giant's belly.
"How can I be in his belly? I haven't even met him yet.
"You probably thought it was a cave when you walked into his mouth. It's easy to walk in, but nobody ever walks out. This giant is so big you can't take him in with your eyes. His belly fills the whole valley.
"Coyote tossed aside his stick and kept on walking. What else could he do? Soon he came across more people lying on the ground, too weak to move.
"Are you sick? he asked them.
"No, they said, we're starving to death. We're trapped inside this giant.
"That's ridiculous! Coyote said. If we're really inside this giant, then the cave walls must be the inside of his stomach. We can just cut some meat from him and you can eat that.
"Hey, we never thought of that...
"Yeah, well, you're not as smart as I am."
The pantomiming of the readying of a hunting knife. Held like a club but lighter in the hand. Dark eyes cast around the sky like the space was about as big as the one in the story before going back to the dwindled audience.
"So Coyote took his hunting knife and started cutting chunks out of the cave walls. Like he guessed, the walls were the giant's stomach, and he used the chunks of meat to feed the starving people. He even went back and gave some meat to the woman he first met. Then all the people trapped in the giant's belly started feeling stronger and happier, but not completely happy.
"You've fed us, they said, and we thank you, but how are we going to get out of here?
"Oh, don't worry, said Coyote, I'll kill the giant by stabbing him in the heart. Where's his heart? It's got to be around here somewhere."
He points to the east.
"Look at the volcano puffing over there, someone said. Maybe that's it.
"So it is, friend! said Coyote, and started cutting at the mountain.
"Then the giant spoke up.
"Is that you, Coyote? I've heard of you. You're bothering me. Stop this stabbing and cutting and let me be. You can leave through my mouth. I'll open it for you.
"Oh, I'll leave, said Coyote, but not quite yet.
"So Coyote kept hacking at the heart. The others stood behind him, not quite sure what was going to happen next.
"Get ready, Coyote said, as soon as I have him in his death throes, there's going to be an earthquake. He'll open his jaws to take a last breath, and then his mouth will close forever. So be ready to run fast!
"Coyote cut a deep hole in the giant's heart, and lava flowed out. It was the giant's blood. The giant groaned, and the ground under the people's feet started to tremble.
"Quick! Coyote said. Now! Go!
"The giant's mouth opened and all the people in the giant's belly started running, and then all the animals. All the people and all the animals made it out, but the wood tick was straggling. He was the last one to the giant's mouth. The giant's teeth were closing on him, but Coyote managed to pull him through at the last moment.
"Look at me! cried the wood tick. I'm all flat!
"Eh. So you're going to be flat from now on. Be glad you're still alive.
"I guess I'll get used to it, said the wood tick.
"He did."
A moment's pause to let the story settle and then Hector is all elbows as he hauls ass out of the circle to make room for the next Galliard. Or Erich. Or whoever.
More stories!
---
IDK if I'm supposed to roll stuff for Tales and Song opening-ing but here are some dice.
jamie @ 7:46AM
[char + perf: DON'T FUCK THIS UP HECTOR.]
Roll: 5 d10 TN6 (1, 3, 3, 5, 6) ( success x 1 ) VALID
jamie @ 7:47AM
WHAT THE FUCK KIND OF A ROLL IS THAT redoing it.
Roll: 5 d10 TN7 (5, 8, 8, 10, 10) ( success x 4 ) VALID
CourtCat @ 7:47AM
Witnessed!
jamie @ 7:47AM
<3
"Coyote was out walking one day when he met Old Woman. She lifted a hand to greet him and asked him where he thought he was off to even though everybody knew even back then not to pay too much mind to anything Coyote said.
"Oh you know, Coyote said, just out for a stroll.
"Well that way's no good, Old Woman said. You should turn back, there's a giant out there, he's killing everybody.
"Psh! said Coyote, who had never met a giant before. Giants don't frighten me! I always kill them. I'll fight this one too, and leave his head for the others to find.
"Alright... but he's bigger and closer than you think.
"Whatever. Coyote figured the giant would be about as big as a bull moose and wouldn't give him any trouble. I don't care. I'm going to fight him.
"So Coyote said goodbye to Old Woman and went on ahead, whistling a tune. After a while he saw a fallen branch big enough to serve as a club for something as big as a bull moose, so he picked it up and said to himself, Oh, man, this is big enough and heavy enough to kill him, I can just hit the giant over the head with this. Kept on walking. Whistling. Eventually he came to a huge cave right in the middle of the path and, thinking nothing of it, he went in."
Hector whistles a jaunty oh-isn't-it-a-beautiful-day tune and moseys along to the other side of the circle. Gestures to the space in front of him.
"Coyote met a woman crawling along on the ground.
"What are you doing down there? he asked.
"I'm starving, she said, and too weak to walk. What are you doing with that stick?
"I'm going to kill the giant with it! he said. Where's he at? I'm ready.
"Weak as she was, the woman laughed. You're already in the giant's belly.
"How can I be in his belly? I haven't even met him yet.
"You probably thought it was a cave when you walked into his mouth. It's easy to walk in, but nobody ever walks out. This giant is so big you can't take him in with your eyes. His belly fills the whole valley.
"Coyote tossed aside his stick and kept on walking. What else could he do? Soon he came across more people lying on the ground, too weak to move.
"Are you sick? he asked them.
"No, they said, we're starving to death. We're trapped inside this giant.
"That's ridiculous! Coyote said. If we're really inside this giant, then the cave walls must be the inside of his stomach. We can just cut some meat from him and you can eat that.
"Hey, we never thought of that...
"Yeah, well, you're not as smart as I am."
The pantomiming of the readying of a hunting knife. Held like a club but lighter in the hand. Dark eyes cast around the sky like the space was about as big as the one in the story before going back to the dwindled audience.
"So Coyote took his hunting knife and started cutting chunks out of the cave walls. Like he guessed, the walls were the giant's stomach, and he used the chunks of meat to feed the starving people. He even went back and gave some meat to the woman he first met. Then all the people trapped in the giant's belly started feeling stronger and happier, but not completely happy.
"You've fed us, they said, and we thank you, but how are we going to get out of here?
"Oh, don't worry, said Coyote, I'll kill the giant by stabbing him in the heart. Where's his heart? It's got to be around here somewhere."
He points to the east.
"Look at the volcano puffing over there, someone said. Maybe that's it.
"So it is, friend! said Coyote, and started cutting at the mountain.
"Then the giant spoke up.
"Is that you, Coyote? I've heard of you. You're bothering me. Stop this stabbing and cutting and let me be. You can leave through my mouth. I'll open it for you.
"Oh, I'll leave, said Coyote, but not quite yet.
"So Coyote kept hacking at the heart. The others stood behind him, not quite sure what was going to happen next.
"Get ready, Coyote said, as soon as I have him in his death throes, there's going to be an earthquake. He'll open his jaws to take a last breath, and then his mouth will close forever. So be ready to run fast!
"Coyote cut a deep hole in the giant's heart, and lava flowed out. It was the giant's blood. The giant groaned, and the ground under the people's feet started to tremble.
"Quick! Coyote said. Now! Go!
"The giant's mouth opened and all the people in the giant's belly started running, and then all the animals. All the people and all the animals made it out, but the wood tick was straggling. He was the last one to the giant's mouth. The giant's teeth were closing on him, but Coyote managed to pull him through at the last moment.
"Look at me! cried the wood tick. I'm all flat!
"Eh. So you're going to be flat from now on. Be glad you're still alive.
"I guess I'll get used to it, said the wood tick.
"He did."
A moment's pause to let the story settle and then Hector is all elbows as he hauls ass out of the circle to make room for the next Galliard. Or Erich. Or whoever.
More stories!
---
IDK if I'm supposed to roll stuff for Tales and Song opening-ing but here are some dice.
jamie @ 7:46AM
[char + perf: DON'T FUCK THIS UP HECTOR.]
Roll: 5 d10 TN6 (1, 3, 3, 5, 6) ( success x 1 ) VALID
jamie @ 7:47AM
WHAT THE FUCK KIND OF A ROLL IS THAT redoing it.
Roll: 5 d10 TN7 (5, 8, 8, 10, 10) ( success x 4 ) VALID
CourtCat @ 7:47AM
Witnessed!
jamie @ 7:47AM
<3