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 Posted: Sat Jul 17, 2010 6:09 pm
It was very rare for the guards of the Mwezi'Johari to find anything requiring immediate attention, and when it did happen it was, more often than not, a passing rogue who ultimately decided to join the pride. But this was not one of those moments, spotted not far outside the borders were some familiar forms- familiar, at least, to Thoth. Three of them, two more familiar than the third but it was all very unsettling and suspicious. They had to find Baba'nyota, Alcmene or Fafnir quickly. Thoth was leading the way down the path, though he refused to actually run. They'd been out with another guard, Badiri's brother Kivuli, and they'd left him there to keep an eye on things. They needed to keep moving but they didn't need to cause any panic.
"Thoth, I'm not sure I understand what's going on," he muttered grumpily, hoping for some answers. "Those lions were from the pride we fought with before we moved here," Thoth explained, not speaking quite as fast as he had when they had first spotted the old Ilanga members and decided to go back around to find Nyota.
"It has been a long time but it can't be an accident that so many of them are here, we aren't a secret to the outside world," he said, "I recognized two of them. Unless I am mistaken, the brown one was their leader- though it might be his son, hard to tell from a distance. The scruffy green one was one I fought with, more than once."
He didn't have particularly fond memories of either of them. "Oh."
There wasn't much else for him to say to that, he knew it meant they might be up to something- which was why they were hurrying along the way they were. You couldn't be too careful, he was sure of that. It would be fishy enough, showing up yourself, but there were a small group of them.. and no way of knowing for sure they were the only ones. It was weird they weren't being more careful, though.
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Posted: Sun Jul 18, 2010 11:01 am
Dusana had overheard them, and when it registered what they were talking about, her stomach hardened. No, this wasn't right. She was nervous about approaching them, but it needed to be done. The guards needed to be warned before they had gotten too close to the pride's lands. She bit her lower lip in worry, pushing herself forward. There was no need to keep doubting like she always had before.
She had rushed in front of them, but the words had escaped her throat. She was only lower-class, how would she start telling them what she knew?
"Oh, guards," she said, lowering her head as she was embarrassed to admit her fault. "I apologize for overhearing you, but it's something that I just can't ignore." She felt the fur rise on the back of her neck as the courage gathered in her chest.
"I fear that they are the ones that attacked Kibetinyota's parents, before we reached these lands to return home..." she paused to let her racing heart calm, scared for the safety of everyone in the pride if they were to join.
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Posted: Sun Jul 18, 2010 11:13 am
Thoth stumbled when the lioness suddenly appeared before them out of the darkness. He blinked, wondering why she had appeared, his heart racing-- but he was just revealing a bit of unhappy history and heading out to find Nyota to warn everybody about it, he was already running on some adrenaline.
"What?" he asked, watching her fur rise-- and then narrowing his eyes when she explained. He looked over to Badiri.
Not feeling the same sense of urgency, Baddie was not moving quite the same way and so had an easier time coming to a stop. He looked at the brown lioness suspiciously, not because he was upset at being overheard but because there was obviously a reason they were being interrupted. He looked back at Thoth when she said her bit, but looked back to her before Thoth moved again.
"Are you sure? They attacked you and the others?" he asked, his voice very serious. This made it more urgent to him, especially since they had left his little brother alone back there to keep an eye on them.
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Posted: Sun Jul 18, 2010 11:28 am
"Y-yes," she answered with a nod. "I was on a hunting trip with them, and they caught us unaware. I'm certain that it had something to do with the fact that we were from the Mwezi'Johari, as we never saw them coming until it was too late. I still...I still don't understand why I didn't die too." The guilt washed over her, as it reminded her of her old group. Why did the others around her have to die, just for her to survive? She hated it, but now wasn't the time to break out and cry. It might make the guards more wary if she let herself get too emotional. She needed to keep it together now, and she could wallow in her returning grief later.
"I'm certain it is them, and I worry what may happen if they get too close." If the guards could gather together and drive them away, the pride may be safe. She worried about wandering alone, but moreso now than ever. She didn't want to be seen by them, for fear that they might regret their mistake in not killing her. Dusana had to bring the terrible news back to Kibetinyota, but it had not hindered their drive to return to the Mwezi'Johari, even if that must have been the Ilanga'Izwe's plans. Dusana would stop them before they did more damage to everyone.
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Posted: Sun Jul 18, 2010 11:49 am
He looked back as Dusana answered Baddie's questions, explaining more about what had happened the day they had been attacked on a hunting trip. The story was known enough around the pride since they had welcomed back the group but the details were not so well known. He frowned.
"Why didn't you tell anybody before?" he asked, it seemed relevant to know they'd suffered another attack by the Ilanga'Izwe, especially so recently. Thoth felt extremely bitter about the whole ordeal with their former friends and neighbours, and he was pretty easygoing.
Badiri was standing straight and tall now, his eyes narrowed now too as he listened and considered what this all meant. It wouldn't be just old worries about having them nearby now, if they were responsible for the deaths of Kibetinyota's parents, they were almost certainly up to no good. Even if it would be stupid to attack the whole pride, they probably considered themselves lucky they had found a small group of Mwezi'Johari lions out in the rogue lands.
"Kivuli shouldn't be out there alone," he said, looking over to Thoth even though he seemed still intent on asking more questions of Dusana.
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Posted: Sun Jul 18, 2010 12:21 pm
She felt her ears flatten against her skull. It was a question she wasn't hoping for, though she knew it would be asked. "I thought that they had gotten their revenge. I didn't think that they would dare follow us to...kill us." She took a long breathe to still the tears that wanted to flow, as they wouldn't help in relaying her explanation to the guard. He was very experienced, as he knew what questions to ask. It comforted her in a way, as more of the information she had been scared to keep to herself would be relayed to everyone.
"They went after Anhur, the male, first. As they turned to Maha, her mother, I was able to make my escape to return to Kibetinyota to tearfully tell her of her parent's fate. Now I wonder if they had let me escape, just to find out where the rest were....and perhaps even followed us here!" It was a terrifying thought, and one she didn't realize until now.
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Posted: Sun Jul 18, 2010 12:56 pm
Thoth looked Dusana up and down, momentarily ignoring what Badiri said about Kivuli being alone back there, obvious in sizing the lioness up. While it might seem foolish to him to keep such a secret, he supposed it was reasonable enough. If she had narrowly escaped death and was hoping that was the end of it, acknowledging it so exactly could be unsettling. And to be fair, she was pretty quick now that it mattered.
Finally, he looked away from Dusana and over to Badiri, "You go back to Kivuli, stay there with him. Both of you keep an eye on things until I've found Nyota and we've decided what to do." Thoth was not technically a superior to Baddie but he was older, more experienced and a friend- all things that made him more comfortable speaking in that way to someone higher up than him, and that made Baddie more accepting of it.
Baddie's frown deepened as she described what happened, momentarily distracted by her story until Thoth turned and addressed him. He nodded at the instructions he was given, not at all bothered by Thoth's doing so. He was eager to get back to Kivuli, it almost seemed ridiculous they had left him alone there in the first place now.
"OK," he nodded to Thoth, and then once to Dusana before he turned around and started back to find his brother.
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Posted: Sun Jul 18, 2010 1:28 pm
Dusana's ears swiveled forward and back, unsure of what she should do now. Perhaps she had done her part, but it would look terrible to try and run off to shed the tears that wanted to come. She kept herself nearby, trying not to shiver as she glanced up at the guard. He was well composed, even if there seemed to be more to him than his calm attitude. She remembered his words, about how he hated them. Perhaps they would all be safe if he let his opinion of the Ilanga'Izwe sway him.
"Should....should I do anything else to help?" she asked, since she had explained her story. It would be easier to be dismissed, but if he wanted to bring her along to relay the story from the source...well, she didn't much have a choice, did she?
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Posted: Sun Jul 18, 2010 1:35 pm
Thoth looked back to Dusana once Baddie was on his way back to stick with Kivuli. He paused thoughtfully as she asked if there was anything else she ought to do to help. He too thought it would be easier to send her on her way but it might not be so easy as telling them himself. They'd want confirmation from Dusana about her story. Everybody trusted Thoth but might think a biased history with the Ilanga, one not everybody in the pride now shared, might influence his perception and understanding of the story.
"You best come with me," he said after a pause, "They'll want to hear your story from you and you're better off away from the border until we've dealt with this."
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Posted: Sun Jul 18, 2010 1:43 pm
Dusana nodded. It was not what she wanted to do, and she worried that she might not be able to compose herself as well as she had this time. Then she remembered how terrible that incident had been, and though she doubted herself, she knew that she had to do it. No time to balk and wonder. There was only time to act.
"Yes," she replied, nodding respectfully since he was above her in class. "I think I would like to stay clear away from the border whenever I can." She didn't want to be seen by them, for that might enrage them that she had warned them of their dangerous plan before they had acted on it.
For now, she would rest easier tonight, knowing that the weight of what had happened to Maha and Anhur was known to all.
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