Running Island

[The Wild Hunt]

The running island is a massive glacier the size of a regular island that circles around the north pole, as if a planet revolving around the sun. It's rarely ever seen and those who wander onto it by curiosity are often never seen again, because the higher it goes as it revolves around, the more dangerous the weather. It often suffers from impossible conditions to survive within, but there are places to find safety, even here. There is a mythical place known as the Forest that Ran. It's a home to many creatures of the North, and faces almost springtime weather with a utopia of trees and the falling of leaves.

This is the place where Frog Turtles are born, and it's said that this place is watched over by the moon. It was only discovered about twenty years ago. The Buffalo Yak and Dragon Horse also make their presence here.  

[The Town Taunts Hadou]

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Shura reached The Running Island, his Penguin sidekick waddling beside him as well as he walked. He carried a medium-sized gourd against his thigh and was wearing very warm clothing, scarf around his neck and all. This test would prove his survivability and true flow within the earth and such. Ling Ling slid upon his belly while Shura walked and even the boy's attention was caught for only a millisecond. He remained alert though, anything could happen...ANYTHING.

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[The Wild Hunt]

Contrary to Shura's belief, nothing happened. All was just... silent. It was cold, and miserable, but silent. He couldn't just stand around here, waiting. He needed to move on, travel, move on. Constantly. Without rest. Waking up in the morning would equate to not waking up at all. He had to move, before the island became eclipsed in the winter and shifted to his tomb. The best way to go seemed to be forward.

In front of him were many dead trees buried in snow. Maybe if they burned they could've helped more than now. It was kind of mysterious as to how any trees grew here at all, but the mystery was what made this place amazing. Shura could share this experience with himself, and it could lead him to a better understanding of life. If only he survived.

(Demonstrate your survivability skills. I will be mentioning things you can use for your survival as subtle hints in every post, and if you miss them your points will be deducted. Even if you do catch a Buffalo Yak I may not pass you if you didn't do good enough.

Also, demonstrate the practical uses of waterbending, and once you get to the Yak, prove your skill in it. I will also provide little excerpts that will test your grasp on waterbending and if you miss these, your points will be deducted.

Good luck.)  

[The Town Taunts Hadou]

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Shura moved forward, he noticed the trees up ahead and moved over to one of them, he could feel the pain of the dead tree, its cries. He places his hand again the tree and rubbed its trunk, then, he pressed an ear against the tree, wondering if the tree still had a little shred of life left within it...but to no avail, the tree was dead. Shura manipulated the water within his gourd and took the branches down one by one with the water bending that he had learned so far, he'd probably need them later. Ling Ling carried the branches and waddled onward as Shura placed his hands within his pockets, continuing to move onward as he mourned for the loss of the forestry in silence, all life was precious, even the life here.

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[The Wild Hunt]

(Points deducted --
Rather than use the available source eclipsing the trees, he used a less tactical source. Although irrelevant in this current situation, in most situations it is far more intelligent to bend the water that is already surrounding an object than something far away from it; it's like a free hit to bend water already surrounding something, in this case, the snow.

Also, he could've used waterbending to slice the bark of the tree into firewood rather than taking down branches.)

As time went on, Shura would find that it's turning to night. At night, the place was even colder, and soon enough, it'd reach the more northern part of its journey. It was only getting colder and colder, and Shura would find himself freezing. Trying to light a fire would be pointless, since the snow would just snuff it out. His waterbending could protect him from the cold, but he'd run out of energy quickly. He needed to make a choice: use this energy to try and salvage his time and find the Buffalo Yak within the oasis, or use this energy to retreat back to the Water Tribe and try his luck again then the island meets the east, its most ideal location on the cycle of its movements.

He'd have to choose. Risk or safety; assurance or probability?  

[The Town Taunts Hadou]

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Shura continued to walk onward, the night brought the temperature down and it was becoming even more difficult to hold onto the branches, so they were stuck into the ground as a checkpoint, if he got lost, then he knew where to come back to. The cold was getting to Shura and using the branches to light a fire would be completely useless for him. He could always run back to the Water Tribe and try again, but no, that wouldn't be possible, from how far he was from the Water Tribe, he wouldn't be able to make it back in one piece. Ling Ling let out a squack in confusion to why Shura was shivering, he climbed up his master's leg and body and wrapped himself around his shoulders like a second scarf. It was good to see that Shura had someone to depend on within this area. Going back would be a complete waste of time and he had a hunch that he could find the Buffalo Yak within the Oasis. The cold, he would have to bear it, and with extra warmth from Ling Ling, he could continue on for as long as he needed to. Shura noticed how beautiful that night was tonight and also noticed that the chilling cold of the Water Tribe was one of the reasons why he enjoyed being apart of it.

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[The Wild Hunt]

(The nature of waterbending is to observe the planet, and follow the flow of the moon. They follow the flow of all things, and deal with this flow to the best they can. However, at the same time, they strive for patience and tranquility, similar to Airbenders. Like the spiral flow of all life, the Running Island swims around the north pole in a circle. But it is most hospitable for humans when it is in the east, because you will have the most time to travel to the center before it turns harsh again. The listen to the flow, and watch for when the flow is kind to them. Shura failed to do this, so I will deduct points.)

The weather only grew more and more harsh, but the cycle would continue to grow worse and worse until he hit the very peak of the north, at which point it would ladder down back to a mediocre state. Shura didn't have enough time left to simply wait for this change of state, because he'd die before he ever woke up. He needed to keep going, but with more haste than before. To do this, he'd have to preserve his energy, and yet at the same time, keep himself free of the snow that was weighing him down. How could he remove this without wasting energy? What did he have that could free him from the cold?  

[The Town Taunts Hadou]

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Shura continued walking onwards, the cold was getting to him, even with the assistance of Ling Ling. He trudged onward, his eyes growing hazy as his life was slipping away from him with each passing minute, he needed to remove the snow that was on him, even with Ling Ling's warmth, he couldn't protect him from the snow and it had to disappear...fast. Shura walked onward as his vision became hazy but bashed his head against another dead tree, it was odd how they were popping out of nowhere these days. Shura decided not to waste anymore energy by kicking things or using waterbending. He moved in closer to the tree and cut pieces of the bark off with a survival knife that was strapped to his ankle, the bark was easily removed from the tree. Shura then proceeded to start a fire, as he would then create a torch to at least get rid of the snow, since it was becoming a problem now, Ling Ling watched on from a distance as Shura worked diligently to survive. A flame grew large in front of the boy as his eyes widened with joy, he took said flame and moved it around himself, getting rid of the excess snow that was on him. Standing up, he looked down to Ling Ling and smirked, feeling a tad better now that heat was introduced into his life and with that, they continued onward, moving up to the very peak of the north and then he would continue, as the cycle ended and the weather calmed itself.

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[The Wild Hunt]

Finally, he arrived at spiritual center of the island. There were green trees, lush ponds and a great many variant of animals. Frog Turtles -- like Taka's -- were assorted here, implying that Taka had been here before, since this was the only place in the whole world where they lived. There was also a great number of Buffalo Yaks, and one of them simply stepped forward. He could've sworn that he'd hear it say "what's up b***h" as it walked to him, but that was all it spoke, going back to its derpy animal ways. There was, however, no food here. He'd suddenly come upon a final dilemma; he could ride this Buffalo Yak back to the Water Tribe now, hoping to reach there before the island arrived fully North, or he could wait here, and sleep, through all of this time, awaiting starvation. He didn't have much life left in his stomach, and arriving back at the tribe on the back of the Yak would be... that much easier. Right?

It was his decision.  

[The Town Taunts Hadou]

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Shura decided as he walked up to the Buffalo Yak, it was gentle and kind...it didn't attack him and it CAME to him. Easy yo. Shura placed a gentle hand upon the Buffalo Yak's chin and gave it a light scratch to let it know that Shura was of no harm, Shura gave the Buffalo Yak a hoof to fist bump, "yo what it do yak? Wanna come back to my place bro? Kthanxletsgo!" Staying here, sleeping, and starving while dealing with freezing to death would be a rather dumb move, so instead, he'd ride the Buffalo Yak back to the Water Tribe. He gently hopped onto its back, carefully, and made sure that he was secure. He gave it a light tap on the side with his hand to signal going, not having a saddle or anything like that, he had to go with what he had. Ling Ling slid on his belly beside the two as Shura and the Buffalo Yak rode all way home. The End...OR WAS IT?!

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[The Wild Hunt]

HAD0U

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Shura decided as he walked up to the Buffalo Yak, it was gentle and kind...it didn't attack him and it CAME to him. Easy yo. Shura placed a gentle hand upon the Buffalo Yak's chin and gave it a light scratch to let it know that Shura was of no harm, Shura gave the Buffalo Yak a hoof to fist bump, "yo what it do yak? Wanna come back to my place bro? Kthanxletsgo!" Staying here, sleeping, and starving while dealing with freezing to death would be a rather dumb move, so instead, he'd ride the Buffalo Yak back to the Water Tribe. He gently hopped onto its back, carefully, and made sure that he was secure. He gave it a light tap on the side with his hand to signal going, not having a saddle or anything like that, he had to go with what he had. Ling Ling slid on his belly beside the two as Shura and the Buffalo Yak rode all way home. The End...OR WAS IT?!

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ya b***h, leave