The first rays of dawn were just settling into the forest on the outskirts of Jastrey. Katri had just barely left the main road before first light. She moved among the trees with as much ease as if she had been born there, though her unmasked, unhooded face betrayed a bit of distraction. Still, in spite of the thoughts that warred in her mind, she kept herself focused enough that her footfalls were silent to prevent any disturbance of the waking wildlife. She knew that, no matter where her internal argument lead, she would follow the advice and do the task that had brought her out to the wood in the first place.
Katri's mind wandered over the events of the last while, time had completely lost itself to her recently. Her days blurred as she contemplated everything that had lead her to this point. Her suspicions had led her to the actions she had made in the events prior, actions that had caused problems for herself. She had come out to follow advice she found to be relatively sound from a teacher she had all but disclaimed and abandoned. As far as underhanded Uordeq go, she was raised to be one of the best. Still, it was becoming painfully obvious to even her that she was childish and tactless. She was realizing that she had left home to early. She knew she was no idiot, but she was lacking experience and lessons that would have helped her greatly. She had dug herself a hole which she found she could be sitting in for quite a while.
"Katri Adria Cassitran, you have more of a spine than this," She scolded herself silently. Out loud, though it was little more than a mutter, she continued, "If advice is logical and makes sense, what does it matter where it came from?"
"Particularly when it involves my sanity," She added to herself, the low chuckle of her mother's broken spirit echoing a bit too loudly in the back of her head, causing her to wince. She shook her head, as if to clear it, making up her mind to get it over with and she would repeat her task until she succeeded. Her musings and suspicions could wait for more contemplation later. She pulled the bow from around her shoulders, pulling up her hood and mask. She nocked an arrow and pulled herself into a tree to wait.
The young Cassitran heir did not have to wait long. Less than a half an hour after settling in a mother wolf and her four pups wandered into the space near her tree. With little more than a flicker of her eyes, her arrow pierced the smallest pup's hindquarters, her deliberate aim pinning him to the ground. She cursed herself for showing the tiny hint of emotion as she nocked another arrow and fired at the next pup nearest to her with the same purposeful aim as the last. A small pang of guilt shook the pit of her stomach and she gave a low hiss. Neither pup was dead yet and she felt the sliver of guilt. She watched the mother snarling running in circles about her litter, jumping at the base of her tree fruitlessly. Katri's mind then turned to her father and the madness she faced. Her eyes and heart hardened. The next two arrows pinned the last of the litter to the ground in the same manner as the first pair, all four pups now bleeding out slowly and whimpering to their mother. The mother wolf had stopped snarling and jumping uselessly at Katri's tree. Katri was unmoved as she watched the adult female nuzzle and lick her dying young, whining lightly. The Uordeq drew one last arrow from her quiver, leveling it at the mother's neck. She fired, the arrow slicing into the small space between jugular and spinal column and pinning the mother into the dirt of the forest floor as well.
Katri jumped down from her perch, restoring her bow to it's place around her shoulders. She stood over the five dying animals and watched callously as the first pup took it's last breath. The mother let out a gurgling sound that surely was meant to be something menacing like a snarl. Katri pulled her arrow out of the first dead pup, as the second died with a whimper. She retrieved her next arrow, cleaning both on the hem of her cloak before restoring them to her quiver. The third and fourth pups were close enough to twitch their little paws to touch each other. They whined and scrabbled their feet trying to get closer for comfort. She watched coldly as the third died and fell limp and then as the fourth whined and did the same. She retrieved her next two arrows and cleaned them in the same manner. The mother passed silently with a flash of her gleaming fangs. Katri retrieved and cleaned her final arrow. She felt nothing any longer. Piling the carcasses, she knelt next to them, "Hope is a desert running dry" [10 fire][10 fire].
Katri left the ashes and what was left of the bones and such of the wolves where she had burned them. Time would take care of them, or someone would find them so it mattered little to her. Like flipping a switch in her brain she allowed the guilt and pity to return to her senses. With a quick bow of respect for the souls of the dead animals, she turned back toward the road and started her walk back into town.