Outing on the Beach (OOC Storyline)

• This is a purely OOC storyline! Liam isn't dead, nor is he a thief. Also, just a heads up, the theme of this story is rather dark. :D *

Dusk has fallen over The Singer Mountain Range. Wind whistles hauntingly through the three main peaks, giving ode to how the range got its name. Mist has fallen, caused by the crashing surf on the beach far below. The face of the cliffs are dotted with caves, looking like so many holes in a dead tree trunk.

From one of the caves issues an eerie cry. It's different from the wind. It's more lonely. More haunting. More alive.

With night fast approaching those that lurk in the darkness come to life. Not too far from the shore there is a small village. A fishing village by trade, the residents have gathered in the local tavern. Shouts of laughter and mirth can be heard from even the outside. The ruckus is so great that no one hears the sound of the kitchen window open.

A head appears from inside the kitchen. It is a pine marten, a brown furred one, with a bun held firmly in his mouth. Liam Grey casts his eyes about the area to see if anyone can spot him, then he disappears back into the kitchen. A large burlap sack filled to the brim with various food is shoved out the window followed by Liam. As full as the bag is the marten has even more difficulty pulling himself through.

The pine marten's belly seems to envelop the open window and despite his struggles, the obese creature can not pull himself through. He pauses to catch his breath then sucks in his gut. With a loud pop he comes free and falls face first to the ground. Giggling in mad delight the thief takes his ill gotten gains and dashes out of the village and down the hill, heading for the sea...

The spray of the incoming tide showers the shoreline. The sliver of a moon starts to rise from the water and behind the mountains the sun is saying its last goodbyes. Night is falling. From the cave, two bright eyes catch the movement of the martin on the beach below. A clever tongue slides across parched lips and the hunter starts to move towards the mouth of the cave.

It doesn't take long for Liam to devour his meal. Belly full of breads, meats, sweets and wine, the marten stretches out on the sand with his arms folded behind his head. He licks his own chops free of crumbs and chuckles at his good success. Liam wasn't always such a plump beast. Fueled by a lack of money the young beggar moved away from the Mossflower area, searching for work where ever he went. When work didn't pan out he fell back into old habits. stealing, thievery, and burglary. As it turned out, the marten was rather skilled in the area. As was evident with his fleshy and corpulent form; An unintended side effect of his good thievery, and gluttonous appetite.

The portly pine marten takes in a deep breath and lets out a content sigh. He closes his eyes and listens to the crash of the waves against the sea shore.

The cave creature emerges from its lair, clinging to the cliff face of the mountain like a cockroach; its eyes ever watching the marten on the beach below. It scuttles quickly down the sheer surface of the mountain to the base of the rocky behemoth, its long, gleaming body moving stealthily towards its query. Every few steps it stops and watches the marten with large, unblinking and intelligent eyes, refusing to lose this chance at dinner.

Liam simply rests after his own large dinner, distended stomach rising and falling with each relaxed breath. Not all of the money he stole went to his glut however. He is wearing a fine vest, made of otter hide and left unbuttoned. The coin purse resting on his belt is also thick with copper and even gold coins.

Despite his love of the sea the marten feels it best to find proper shelter for the night. Picking himself up Liam stretches himself until his back pops. He turns from the sea and begins walking. As the marten walks one of his ears twitches. His tail follows suit. He didn't know why his heart suddenly races but a wave of fear over comes him. He feels...he feels as if he was being watched...

The creature's yellowish colored scales blend easily with the sand of the beach and it continues to move towards its prey, its long, snake like body low to the ground; its claw like paws stepping delicately. At the movement of the marten, the creature freezes, its large eyes glued to the plump beasty, waiting like a grape to be plucked. Then, after waiting a few beats, it scuttles towards its would be meal, picking up its pace ever so slightly. Time to close in.

The marten pauses, his ears twitch at the sound of claws on sand. He half turns, twisting his long body around to come face to face with a large yellow lizard coming down upon him! His eyes widen in shock and his tail poofs out. He has to take a double take before letting out a terrified, "oh...snap..." Still in a state of shock his limbs don't work in conjunction with each other. His feet slip and slide on the sand, making him fall upon his rear where he scrambles to get back on his feet and run from this creature. By then he has already costed himself precious moments to flee...

The lizard gives a hiss of surprise, then, as if in delight at the thought of a coming meal, it lets out an unearthly cry, wasting valuable seconds it could be using to leap upon the hapless marten. It scuttles forward, biting at the beasty with it's sharp, spear like teeth, it's eyes shining with a feral glee.

The marten flees as fast as his legs can carry him. Which is not as fast as he remembers being able to go. Tongue hanging out the side of his mouth the marten leans ever forward as he runs, his belly nearly dragging across the ground as he does. All that success seems to have caught up with him.

Liam shouts in pain as the teeth sink firmly into his leg, right below his flank and above the knee. He falls to the ground, trying to crawl away from the beast but can't quite get free of it's terrible grasp, "No! Nooooo!"

The lizard relishes the initial spurt of blood, however, its stomach is not yet full. It rips its teeth from the martens leg, moving forward as it does so. It brings its claws up and rips at the other beasts back, then re-bites with its teeth, sinking his spear like pearly whites into the martens upper arm. It starts to pull backwards with its hind legs, slowly dragging its meal towards the mountain range...

The marten screams bloody murder as the lizard’s teeth sink down into his arm. He flails and kicks wildly, watching helplessly as he is dragged away. The marten is at a loss. All his cunning words, all his witty plans, what good are they against...against a wild beast? "Please! No! It can't end like this! Nooooo!" He shouts as he is dragged back to the mountain, "Someone help! Help me! AIEEEEEEEEEEE!"

The marten's screams slowly fade into the distance, and soon the beach looks placid and safe once again, the only thing left to announce the events that happened being a crimson trail leading off towards the mountains.

Meanwhile, the lizard has drug its prey to one of the lower caves, not bothering to climb with such a treasure. Its large intelligent eyes shine brightly with delight as it digs into its grisly meal, starting by silencing its rather noisy delicacy.

Thrown onto his back, the marten is given a view of the creatures maw full of teeth before they sink into the meat of his tender and swollen stomach. They make short work of years of gluttony and laziness that have accumulated around the very obese marten. His eyes widen as realization of his fate hits him. His terrified shouts echo across cave before quickly being silenced forever…

Later that night....

The creature of the night rests easy, curled delicately around a small pile of bones, which are damp from the dew of the night.

• Again, Liam isn't really dead. :D Thanks for reading!*