Muddy River — The Shape of Dreams

He had managed to grab onto the stub of an antler slamming the buck to the ground. He had hoped that maybe this would be enough to stun the beast, maybe even subdue it. But still the buck's legs were kicking and he was thrashing around, slamming Caedwyn around with him as Caedwyn continued to hold onto the antler in his teeth. He growled and grunted with each blow until he saw Enya appear next to him. "Don't let go, no matter what happens, ok? Trust me." His eyes widened when as he realized she was diving at the deer's neck. Was she going to kill Buck? But she had said earlier not to hurt him, and wouldn't she be hurt as well? Caedwyn felt his stomach twist uncomfortably and he remained almost frozen. She had said to trust her. Surely she knew how to handle her own familiar. Right? Right? Right. He had to trust her. He clenched his teeth down even harder on the antler. He could see her mouth around the deer's neck now and in a moment, somehow the energy had drained from the buck. Was he giving up? Was this some sort of magic? or had they they simply beat him into submission? Caedwyn was mere moments from releasing his grip when suddenly the beast kicked his legs out and pushed up onto the ground, lifting Caedwyn with him. Caedwyn didn't have a chance to counter the movement or he might have tried to jerk the deer's head back down. The buck went jumping forward, slinging Caedwyn along behind him like a ragdoll. They were headed toward the woods, Caedwyn clenching his jaws tighter. Caedwyn couldn't seem to get his feet under him as the buck bounded, heading for narrow gap between two trees. Shit. It was all happening too fast. Only a second or two had passed as Caedwyn tried to kick his legs to get his footing or maybe even trip the deer. Anything before it was too late. The gap was too small. Buck leapt between the trees, sending Caedwyn flinging off to the side - his body slamming hard into the tree. Caedwyn braced himself, his teeth still desperately hanging onto the antler. He had to hang on. THUD. His body hit the trunk with a deep thud, sending waves of pain through his body and knocking the air from him. Maybe... just maybe if he could hang on now, he might be able to keep the buck from going any further as his body caught on the tree.  --- Special Roll: As Caedwyn hits the tree, he tries to grab on tighter to the antler to keep from falling off. Success: Holds on. He's caught on the tree so Buck won't be able to progress further (until next turn) Fail: Caedwyn goes flying off after smacking the tree landing somewhere in the bushes. Speech.