|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Tue Nov 08, 2011 12:16 pm
Heti was in an unusually glum mood that day. Normally the friendly male could be seen moving amongst the pride lands with a smile on his face and a warm greeting for any that passed him by. Today, however, he didn't bother to even make eye contact with anyone as he tracked across the sands to the shade where he planned to spend the rest of his day - until he was back on patrol later on in the afternoon.
He was often out with his father in the mornings and this one had been no exception. Unfortunately for him, Azar had been in a worse mood than usual and had decided to take it out on him. Heti almost wished that a new apprentice would come along that would distract him again. But with Hraga all grown up, Azar had returned to his normal duties and was once again 'burdened by a less talented guard'. He sighed deeply at the remark still echoing in his mind and dropped onto his stomach, on the cooler bed of rock.
Okay, so what if he wasn't as naturally talented as some other guards? He still worked hard and did what he was told. Just because he lacked some of the fighting skills that he might need if an attack came didn't mean that he was a failure in what he did... did it?
He just had to face facts.
He wasn't good enough for his father and he never would be.
Sometimes Heti wondered what life would have been like if he'd chosen to go a separate path. Chosen a gentler, civilian rank instead of trying to follow in his father's footsteps. Would things have been easier between them or would it have been the same no matter what he had done? All he'd ever really wanted was to make his father proud of him. But no matter what he did it was never enough and there was always some criticism to be had that overshadowed any compliment there could have been.
What was worse was that, before the drought, things had started to get good between them. Then there had been talk of prioritising water - in which he had been bullied into agreeing with. And then had come the promotions - which had only boosted his father's ego even more. Then there was the trouble at home, too. That wasn't particularly new, but it had certainly gotten worse; particularly since his brother had left the lands. His parents were certainly not in a relationship he would consider to be 'healthy' and it saddened him to have to watch as they grew further and further apart and not be able to make any difference at all.
With another deep, withering sigh, he shook his mane to help free it of sand and set his chin down across his forearm. Maybe things would look up this afternoon.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Nov 08, 2011 1:03 pm
Armada was a dangerous sort to those looking for a cheering up. Particularly when she was agitated, which given the state of things, was all but constant. The loss at the council meeting so many weeks ago had stung. Not because she had been defeated, she wasn't that egotistical. But because the pride had chosen wrongly. They might not have felt it yet, but someday, they would regret such naive choices. If not this time, then the next. The firekin could not make compromises based on their hearts.
But she'd taken her loss and had crawled off to lick her wounds. She'd made a promotion for her efforts, something which Armada doubted was a sign of favor. It was at best an attempt to placate her. A title that felt hollow. But the title had come with responsibilities, and they made good distractions. It kept her away from Ea's throat.
One thing Armada couldn't tolerate, however, was laziness. She might not have been a guard, but noticing the large lion resting in the shade, all she saw was another sign that the pride as a whole was weakening under the rations. "I see this is how the guards spend their days," She said bitterly, her tail flicking. "Do all the guards mope around?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Nov 08, 2011 2:42 pm
To say that Heti had not heard of Armada would have been a lie. She was a Corporal now, which set her above most others, and she'd also made herself quite a reputation for speaking out so vehemently against other pride members. She made him nervous, but she was also a superior, so when she addressed him he snapped to attention immediately.
"Corporal Armada!" If he was annoyed by her insinuating that he was lazy, he tried hard not to show it. "No. No. I just got back off of patrol. I'm not due to return to work until later on this afternoon." One good thing about there being an influx in new guards was that the patrols were not as heavy as they once were. Unfortunately...because of rumours of lions in the north, they were still expected to work long shifts so that there was enough overlap. It wouldn't do to leave someone patrolling alone.
And, trying to relax his somewhat startled posture, he added carefully: "Are you in need of something?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Nov 08, 2011 2:56 pm
Armada wasn't sure why the question struck her. It was a simple thing really- did she need something? Maybe people were used to avoiding her and her abrasiveness. In any case, it suddenly felt as though it had been a very long time since anyone had offered to do what she wanted- even if it had only been a knee jerk reaction to her abruptness. It made her slightly less annoyed.
The operative word being slightly. "I don't need anything at the moment." Her tail flicked from side to side like a pendulum. "I'm just used to lions wasting the pride's time and resources. You'll forgive me for assuming you to be one of them, since they seem to outnumber the rest of us these days."
Her voice was sharp, but somewhat strained. Whether he appreciated it or not, she sat down in front of him. Her gaze was strange as always. "I'm not inclined to ask why people do what they do. But you don't seem at rest, either."
Armada wasn't one to be subtle. "Arguing with your father?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Nov 08, 2011 3:03 pm
He cleared his throat somewhat awkwardly, wondering whether maybe it had been the right thing to say. Fortunately, she didn't try and make a swipe at him, so he figured it had been at least better than perhaps other options that might have come to mind.
Ah, yes. The priority thing...
He had voted for priority, though that was mainly down to his father bullying him into it. He had hated himself for it and had secretly rejoiced when the vote had come up as equality. He had not missed the annoyed glances that had been sent his way, however, and he couldn't say he blamed them. Almost - if not all - his closest friends had voted to share the water equally. He must have seemed like a traitor to them. Had it really been worth it, in the end? Voting against what he believed in to please a father who would never be pleased?
His ear flicked towards her, surprised and slightly embarrassed. "Oh, well, yes." Was it so obvious? "He's working too hard and I told him so." He wasn't sure how well Armada knew his father, so he added: "He wasn't happy about that. Thought I was trying to tell him what to do. So, here I am."
And he was out there, still working.
"But, uh, don't worry. It won't affect our work."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Nov 08, 2011 9:22 pm
"Its to be expected," Armada said stiffly. "With the water so low, those of us who are actually committed to the survival of the pride will be the first to break ourselves in exhaustion. And then we'll see who is left to mind all the little kittens." It was clearly still a sore spot to the strange-eyed creature. Her fur practically bunched up thinking about it.
But perhaps she recognized it might not have been the thing Heti had been wanting to hear. She wasn't particularly good at words, or at sympathizing. It made her feel strangely bare. "But... I'm sure he means well. If he wishes to work, there's not much you can do to stop him. For some people, all they have is work."
Her too? She scrunched her brow. "I never knew my father." At least, not before her mother had killed him. "But I'm told he died doing the thing he loved. Not too many people can say that."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Nov 11, 2011 2:29 pm
Heti was not brave enough to challenge a superior on her views, so he gave her a short nod. Perhaps there were some Firekin who didn't pull their weight, but to him they seemed few and far between. Most were risking their lives out looking for water.
"My father is certainly one of those people." He grimaced. "Which is ridiculous, because he could have so much more than that." He thought of his mother. "So much more..."
He flicked an ear towards her, trying not to look too curious about her own ancestry and background. She had not been born in these lands like he had and he wondered from where she hailed and what had driven her here to the desert. "There is some comfort in that, I suppose." His tail swished and he glanced out across the desert.
"But somehow I don't think my father is as happy as he tries to make out. Maybe he never has been. That's sort of the impression I get from my mother." He shrugged. "Either way, I think he would think rather fondly of a noble death in the line of duty. No doubt he would want his sacrifice scripted on a stone so that no one forgot it." He laughed softly. "The Legend of Azar'bijan and the Monsters of the North!" And then he seemed to sober again and drew in a deep breath. "If I may ask, though, Corporal...have you spotted any signs of strange lions on the northern border? I don't wish to suspect the refugees as liars, but I can't help but thing we would have seen some sign by now. The waiting is...unnerving. I think I would rather have them show themselves and be done with battle if that is what they want." He curled a lip. "Perhaps...perhaps they know of the drought. Perhaps they're waiting for us to weaken so that they can secure themselves an easier victory?"
The thought was...worrying.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 7:05 am
Armada squared her jaw, her strange eyes narrowing into thin slits. Truthfully, she didn't exactly trust the Hongshan, even though their ideals had been more than aligned with her own. They were scared, and scared people made foolish choices. But that didn't mean she didn't see value in their trumpting. "The firekin have been quiet for a long while now. We fight, but we fight ourselves. I don't know if there are monsters in the north, or if the Hongshan simply think they can jocky a position in the pride by rallying the huddled masses."
"But whether or not there are monsters, the firekin won't live undisturbed forever. There'll be an enemy in the future, and we should be strong to meet them. The only time an enemy will show is when we are at our weakest- and as far as I can tell, that time is now. We're low on water, and our lands are large. Not many lions from the outside would see this land as something of value, but its a solid location. Almost anyone traveling from the north has to go through us," the red lioness looked out towards the far distant shape of mountains, and even further desert passed that. "All it takes is the right rumors to float. There is plague in the southlands, and drought in the northlands. A strong pride could use that to their advantage."
"And from what I understand, the firekin of old were not exactly ones to keep allies. We have more enemies then we have friends out there, and one of these days they'll show themselves." That was why they needed to make the hard choices now. The hard choices to make sure they survived, survived long enough to worry about what was 'right' or 'just'.
The firekin were not right or just. They survived.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 1:39 pm
He listened to her without a word for there were no words to give when she spoke so wisely and so truthfully. He had been born after the battles and had yet to see one with his own two eyes. Heti had heard the stories, of course, and had imagined the clash of battle with a somewhat heroic and grand mind. But war had destroyed the Hongshan - or so they had said - and torn everything from them. Sometimes he glanced the haunted looks in their eyes, carefully concealed except on the rare occasion when memory became to much to bear. He'd always believed the Firekin invincible but Armada was right. If an enemy was to come they would show themselves when they were at their weakest. It was only the intelligent thing to do when you faced an army such as theirs.
Now they were suffering from drought and a lack of food, quarrelling amongst one another instead of banding together against possible threat. For a moment he could understand the frustrations of the Hongshan who had come here for safety only to be thrown into threat once more. For a moment he could understand his father's wishes to prioritise the water. But his heart still told him it had been a mistake for him to vote that way.
"Some Firekin will want war." He said after a moment, turning an ear towards the female if not his eyes. "They crave it because they believe it makes heroes of lions. We heard the stories growing up of Firekin pitted against Firekin and how courageous a battle it was. The soldiers have trained for war and if it comes...I think they will be glad of it." Heti was not one of those lions. He'd have preferred the war stories to remain stories. But as against it as he was, he also knew he would fight. He was a guard. A protector. It was his job and, if it came to it, every Firekin in the land would have to take arms against the intruders. Every hunter and teacher and cubsitter.
"Would it be foolish of us to seek those allies now?" Too late, most likely. "No." He answered his own question. "I don't think the Firekin would take too kindly to looking for outside help. We're a stubborn race, are we not?"
He gave a wry smile and stood. "Perhaps the Firekin always were supposed to go out this way. Fighting until the very last breath." His tail flicked and he cast a glance at the female with the odd eyes. "I have so many regrets." He added then, so quietly that he was barely audible. "I don't want to die with so many weighing me down."
He paused, looking somewhat annoyed at himself. "I apologise for wasting your time, Corporal, sir. I'm certain you have more important things to do than listening to me wallow in my self pity. In fact, I'm certain I have better things to do than that." He dipped his head very briefly. "I may head back out onto patrol and see if anyone has any news."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat May 19, 2012 8:43 am
Armada nodded her head smoothly, not wishing to push an issue when he was retreating from it. Truthfully, Armada couldn't think of any better end than to go down fighting... but she wasn't exactly ready to do that just yet. This land had sheltered her, transformed her. She might not have had the ancient blood in her, but she had her will. She would not allow the pride to go soft and allow their defeat to happen. Not when they'd fought so hard to win this land.
"They'll come, allies or not," she said. "But as dire as things are, there are no enemies on the horizon. Plenty of time to handle regret."
She left it at that, rising to her feet slowly as she considered her own duties for the afternoon. A long, uphill battle to be certain. "You are a good soldier, Heti. I am sure you will know what to do when the time is right."
The strange-eyed lioness gave him a curt nod of her head, and then departed in the opposite direction.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
