In Twilight (Open)

[corana]

She stretched her wings, ruffling her feathers back into position. Folding them again, she sighed and picked up the quill she had set down in the brief motion. The soft glow of the center fire illuminated her face as she wrote.

Glancing outside she saw that the reign of the night was drawing to a close as daytime was waiting on the border. But before that was twilight, a time of change as Corana saw it. It was the constant between the two extremes, one that kept the sky balanced.

The snowy sighed again. She would miss Tweener if this planning took any longer. However she churred as she reflected. It was always like this before a good storm. Once she had detested them; now she enjoyed riding the masses of difference in air temperature. Shrugging she went back to labling the diagrams over the map.

(OOC: Yay! First Appearence!
This is an open thread if anyone wants to reply. Hopefully I'll get a table soon. )

[Gabjas]

(OOC: Not quite sure where your owl is right at the moment, I assume in some secluded place like her hollow or something where my owl wouldn't just happen to be wandering around, so I am just going to start off somewhere else.

Ankha
Ankha ruffled her feathers slightly as she stepped from the Parliament hollow, surrounded by her fellow rybs whom were whispering amongst themselves about the recent meeting. The monarchs strolled past the group, arising many a nod of respect or greeting from the owls around her. A timid smile crossed the Burrowing owl's beak as well.

Ankha was shy and had always found it hard to fit in and strike up a conversation, always the one who stood alone and had never dreamed of one day becoming a ryb. And yes, she had certainly grown more used to socialization after all the moons she had spent surrounded by her fellow parliament members and students; but she still found the need every once in a while to take a moment alone and escape the crowd.

This need now washed over her like a wave of the sea and consumed her thoughts. So as the many owls of the Tree flooded into the dining hollow and gathered for their nightly feast, Ankha stepped quietly away and made her way to the library to take refuge among the heaps of books. The Burrowing owl positioned herself comfortably against the smooth wooden wall and began to pour over a particularly interesting omnibus of Ga'Hoolian history; the fables and facts that made up the esteemed Great Ga'Hoole tree.

As the chapter explaining the many singers of the Great Tree came to a close, Ankha found her mind wandering to other things and it seemed that she kept reading the same sentence over and over again despite her growing frustrations.

With an exasperated sigh, Ankha heaved herself from where she perched and left the library, tales of brave warriors and valiant battles still fresh in her mind.

[xxxskyfalconxxx]

(OOC: haha, with corana being Niamh's Ryb, i just had to send her in this role-play ;D)

Niamh perched comfortably in her hollow, her head buried in a book that her Ryb, Corana, had suggested she study. Associated with a thermal is a downward flow surrounding the thermal column. The downward moving exterior is caused by colder air being displaced at the top of the thermal... She starred up from her book to gaze out her hollow to see the light orange haze start to develop on the horizion. Suddenly she felt a slight urge of hunger twinge in her gizzard. Niamh closed her book, walked up to the ledge of her hollow and spread her wings to take off to the dining hollow for tweener.

[corana]

(Sorry guys for the delay. It's exam week, but I still managed to get on Ga'hoolian Decree.

Yeah, sorry for not specifying where Cora was, Gabjas. XD)

Corana stretched again, cracking her spine which had begun to stiffen up. She dropped her quill into its inkwell and scooted those aside, then rolled up the diagram. It was made of mouseskin, rubbed with oil to make it waterproof. However it was still fragile and the ryb placed it in one of the many cubbies on her wall carefully.

She hopped to the center fire, plucking the poker next to it and stirred the embers. The coals cracked cheerfully, much like how her own spine had. The snowy churred lightly and flew out of her hollow.

Passing by the library which was only a few corridors away, Corana almost bumped into Ankha. By then she had been walking, so she was able to avoid a collision.

"Oh, hello," she said to the burrowing owl. "Are you coming back from the library?"

The rustle of feathers in a hollow near by caught the snowy's attention and she turned her head around. The source had been Niamh, one of her own chaw. "Ah, Niamh," she said to the owl. "Have you been reading?"

(Yeeeaaah. Didn't know how to go on so just threw those in there. I assumed that Niamh's hollow was near the library for ease of RP-ing. If you want me to change anything, I can. I just don't have a muse right now... XD)

[Gabjas]

(OOC: No problem, I personally think you handled that well. ;D)

Ankha
As Ankha emerged from the library she nearly collided with Corana, a fellow ryb and quite a respectable Snowy owl. "Good evening Corana." she smiled with a graceful tilt of her head. "Yes. I wasn't very hungry so I decided to do some light reading."

The Burrowing owl preened a feather into place that had lay in disarray and peered up at Niamh. "Hello." she said quietly and stepped aside to allow the ryb to speak with her student. Her craving for solitude had been satisfied and the ryb could do for a small conversation at the moment. A slight opening pried apart the constant cinnamon hue of the wood and provided a reasonable view of the island beneath.

Darkened clouds began to cluster and had blotted the moon out entirely and she could clearly hear the beginning of rain patter against the tree. A wind stirred some branches that jutted out just beneath. "Hmm... storm tonight." she wondered aloud. The rain began to pick up and now fell in sheets, gusts of wind stirring the sea into a frenzy.

The enchanting voice of the male singer resonated through the tree as the storm formed beyond their shield. Beyond their home. Ankha returned her gaze to Corana and Niamh. She was startled as a Wood owl approached her rapidly.

"Ankha and Corana. All rybs are needed to gather all the owls before the storm hits." he informed them and before turning, cast his glance upon Niamh. "Any owl who would like to lend a talon is certainly welcome." Ankha nodded and thanked the messenger. Turning to the two other owls.

"Shall we?"

[xxxskyfalconxxx]

Niamh glided down and landed on a walkway down near her hollow. As she turned a corner she saw her rib, corana, talking with Ahnka. Niamh walked up to the two rybs and before She could say anything, her ryb already noticed her presence and asked if she had been studing, "yep, I was just reading "thermal drafts and currents" before I stumbled into you on my way to the diner hollow." But before corana or niamh could continue the conversation, a wood owl came up to them and warned them of a storm and told the two rybs to gather up the owls. "This sounds more like a cyclone if they want the rybs to gather up owls." She thought to herself.

As they took wing, Niamh wondered if corana possibly knew something about the storm from being the weather ryb, "corana, is this more than just a storm?"

(OOC: sorry, didn't have much time to make a good post, just a short a snappy one.

[corana]

Corana listened to the other ryb answering her, and almost churred. Of course Ankha would have; that was just her personality.

She listened, interested, as Niamh said that she had been reading Thermal Drafts and Currents, a book that she herself had recommended. "That's good," she said to her chaw student. "We're going to do something on that soon, so you're prepared."

The wind started to whiplash against the tree, rain appearing on the branches. Corana could feel her feathers moving in the breeze that came in through the hole. It doesn't feel like a regular storm, she thought to herself.

The singer started singing, signaling that daybreak was almost here. The ryb decided to go down to the kitchens later and ask for something to gulp down before returning to her hollow.

The wood owl ran up to them, his pace hurried. Before she could ask what was wrong, he addressed them.

Corana's gizzard churned a bit. The king and queen weren't the sort of owls to get worked up over nothing; if they were getting involved, then they must have thought the storm was going to be a problem. She hopped over to the hole where Ankha was. Past the owl she could see the storm on the horizon.

The moon had been blocked out, and it was raining in sheets. The sea was being stirred in a circular motion, one that she hoped she wouldn't see again.

A cyclone's base. And it was beginning to form its funnel.

"That's not just a storm," she said to Ankha as she backed off and prepared to follow the messenger, who had left. "Let's go."

As they started flying up to the hollows where the students lived, she answered Niamh's question. "No," the owl said as she passed a branch that had been jutting out. "It's not a mere storm. The bottom of that," here she nodded and pointed her beak at the sea, "it's the shape of a cyclone's base. And it looks like it's a Level Two."

((OOC: Yeah. Not really sure what happened with this one, either. I kinda guessed what was happening here, so if anything doesn't make sense or if you want it changed, I can change it. I got Ankha being independent from her bio.

I'm going to ask Ayama if I can make a directory of weather words that the Weather Interpretation Chaw will use. A Level Two cyclone is ranked out of five classes, and although it can't kill an owl directly, it can certainly injure one severely. The flying debris can kill, though. Just something I thought up for the RP. If it doesn't work, just tell me and I'll change it too.

Congrats on being an admin, Gabjas! ))

[Gabjas]

Ankha
Ankha watched as Corana peered at the storm; she registered her solemn expression as a sign that this storm would be quite dangerous indeed. Ankha took wing, Corana close at her side, into the churning tempest that formed before them. Ankha was no expert on weather, but she could gather that the funnel-like formation of water that was beginning to form on the ocean was a cyclone.

The burrowing owl had confidence in the Tree that it would withstand against the raging winds and harsh rain, it had many a time before, but any owls that were beyond it's warmth and protection would be doomed. This thing could tear the bravest and most strong into pieces with ease. She shuddered at the thought.

She scanned the grey skies, searching for owls in distress. The ryb's eyes locked on the figure of a young spotted owl that was struggling to evade the waves that surged at him from the sea. She maneuvered between the waves and hovered at his side, calling out to him. "Quickly, come with me! A cyclone is bound to hit." The owl nodded and turned to follow Ankha towards the island.

He thanked her as he flitted into one of the many entrances and joined the ever-growing audience of owls that had gathered to watch this rescue. Ankha and Corana's efforts were soon joined by the other rybs. Ankha continued her vigil.

She tilted her wings and glided between the waves, and to her chagrin, from behind one of the watery walls that crashed before her came the cyclone. The swirling mass of wind and water spat buckets of salty spray in her direction. In a moment of desperation to avoid the cyclone's grasp, Ankha swerved away and with a ungraceful flail, plummeted into the water beneath.

The last thing she saw was the dense blue surrounding her as a group of bubbles escaped her beak in place of a scream. Help.

[corana]

Sprinkin' cyclone. Why did it have to happen now?

Corana silently cursed in her head, even as she guided another group of students into the heart of the Tree, where it was the most fortified. So close to daybreak, all of the owls had been scattered and hard to find. However, the rybs managed to get almost all of them to safety. The nest maids were gathering the stranglers.

Although now would be a good time to test out some theories...

She glanced back at Ankha, who was continuing to fly outside the tree. The ryb had been helping owls outside the tree, and Corana had to give her credit for the gizzard to fly when a cyclone was about to hit.

From Glaumora to Hagsmire... The snowy owl's beak dropped open, and the churning in her gizzard grew worse. The funnel had already formed and was starting to enter the later stages of cyclogenesis. If this kept up, Corana was sure the tempest would become a Level Three.

She swept her wings out and glided down from the hole she had used to observe the cyclone. She needed to reach Ankha before the storm got any worse.

No no no no- As the other ryb went under the water, Corana drew her wings to her sides in order to fly more quickly. Grabbing her wings would not work, as that could break the Burrowing Owl's wings. She would have to aim for the feet and try to lock talons. Opening her own, she tried to grab Ankha's claws.

((OOC: Yeah. Corana swears weirdly because her family was just like that. I didn't want to powerplay, I left it like that. Just tell me if you want anything changed.))

[xxxskyfalconxxx]

Niamh dispersed from the two rybs to cover more ground around the island. She soon came across a creche of newly fledged owls that were being watched over by great-grey that now was trying to save the young owls, but she too was strugling against the strong winds. Niamh flew towards them to lend a talon. Although she was not a fast flier, she was strong enough and knew how to fly in these winds that she would hopefully be able to help them all before.... well, she didnt want to think about that. the several young owls and the grey seemed to be loosing the struggle and soon enough, one of them lost their hold against the sheering winds and tumbled towards the towering waves that crashed against a cliff that lined the island. Niamh went into a stoop and plucked the barred owl before the blue abyss devoured him. She fought the howling winds and asceneted from the reach of the monstrous waves too see members of the coliering ryb flying towards them, help had arrived. She quickly flew down and placed the owl in the dining hollow were a lot of the owls were using for shelter, this was probably the safest hollow in the tree to be in at the moment. The owl she saved stayed shivering on the floor with shock, and soon enough a healer came along and helped the owl as she raced back into the cyclone while the coliers flew in with the rest of the owlets.

The surging rain pelted her like hail; the winds were picking up. Now that most of the owls were inside, she was looking for the two rybs. She flew out into the sea of hoolemere for that is were she saw them flying before she lost sight of them. And before she knew it , she came across corana, but she was hovering right above the water, “is she yoicks! She'll get herself killed!” Niamh thought, but then her eyes focused on her more closely and noticed what she was trying to do, Anhka was drowing. “oh, no!” she quickly gathered her strength and flew towards her ryb that was frantically trying save Anhka.

(OOC: im just a little confused, is this a cyclone or tornado? its just that gabjas with your last post it sounded as if you were talking about a tornado

The swirling mass of wind and water spat buckets of salty spray in her direction. In a moment of desperation to avoid the cyclone's grasp, Ankha swerved away and with a ungraceful flail, plummeted into the water beneath.

[Gabjas]

(OOC: It is indeed a cyclone. I believe a cyclone is simply a water tornado.

Ankha
Ankha could feel her consciousness slip with every moment she spent desperately beating her wings in the watery depths. Her need for air rose with the breath that grew thin in her lungs. Thank Glaux. A glimpse of alabaster feathers renewed her hope, Corana had arrived.

The burrowing owl thrust her talon upwards with the remainder of her strength and clasped on to the outstretched talons of the Snowy. With the remainder of her strength, Ankha attempted to hoist herself upwards. She could only hope for the best. With a final lunge upwards, she broke the surface of the water and felt the cool air caress her wet feathers.

She hung suspended slightly for a moment, wingbeats testing on the air. She rose into the air once more, hovering beside Niamh and Corana. "Thank you, Corana." she said breathlessly. She cast a wary glance in the grey skies that surrounded. "It seems our job is done. I suggest we return." Ankha smiled, thankful to be alive. She veered upwards along a raising wave, swerving to the side to avoid its wake.

She lighted down on a branch protruding just outside the Dining hollow; a few owlets grinned at her and nodded exuberantly. The melodious song of the Singer had prevailed through the storm, sending a calm over the gathering. With a nod as the song came to a close, she took her seat at a nearly empty table. The cook ambled by, balancing a succulent vole on the flat of her wing. Finally. Ankha thought. Food.