Welcome to Gaia! ::

"We should report our happenings any way," Nalum announced cheerfully. "I hope all our contacts get eaten by the beasts." He laughed, speaking far more freely now that they were so close to their nomadic tribe. But whatever jovial mood Nalum might have been, they were soon to find out that the rest of the tribe was feeling antsy and glum because of the raid that Jack was carrying out. A lot of people would die, and those who didn't might become an insupportable burden to the already stressed tribesmembers. Very few wanted to be in the war (and those that did kept it to themselves) but other matters of how to conduct themselves in relation to victims was a subject of discontent.

((lol Probably... xd ))

Aela cursed softly under her breath. She was in no shape for a fight. After the long crawl, all of her muscles were cramping up. Long scratches scored her face and limbs. She was dirty and felt even filthier. She motioned for Kishi to stay hidden. Hopefully, this man would only notice the woman and not realize that she and the wolves were connected in any way. She stood and placed her hands on her hips. Her eyes were spirited and defiant. "If you knew I was following you, you might have been kind enough to call out before I crawled through the mud and muck for an hour or more." Her tone was affronted. She tossed her tangled hair over her shoulder and waited for his reply. She refused to act like a whipped dog. She had been caught. What of it? She'd probably be caught again before it was all over.

Hips cocked, mouth pursed, Aela countered with, "I wanted to find out what you were doing. I couldn't exactly ask." Her expression was just shy of frustration. "However, it looks I have no other choice now. So what are you doing here?"

Kishi, try and get around behind them. They might get careless since they think there's only me. Aela continued to glare at the elder of the two men. Her eyes purposefully ignored the spot some ten fifteen feet to her left where Kishi edged forward carefully. Not a single waver of the grass betrayed his position. Even for a wolf, he was an uncanny stalker, able to get within a few feet of his prey before they even knew he was there.

If they attack, I'm going for the larger one. The small, friendly one is yours. He inched forward once more. Aela silently thanked the gods for her ability to communicate silently with Kishi. She would have been lost without it more times than she liked to admit.

Aela smiled sweetly at the two. "I hate liars. I'm following you for a reason, you know. I'm not completely braindead, or I wouldn't be out here." Her gaze turned furious though the smile never left her face as she glanced at Nalum. "And you're the inept one that lead me here. So I wouldn't be assuming that it's nothing for little ole me to be worried with."

As she was talking, Kishi had managed to completely circle the two men. Once in his chosen spot, completely hidden by the taller grass, he settled down to wait. If these men offered no harm to his packmate, they would live. But if they attacked...Well, a wolf of his size would have no problem considering a human as prey.

((No problem...I've been pretty busy myself. Softball preseason is about to start up... xp ))

Aela's eyes grew sad with unwanted memories. Her voice softened as to be almost inaudible. "The plains are no longer safe. I followed you because I wanted to see if you offered any harm to my family." She shrugged, the hard look returning to her eyes. "This area of the plains is currently under my guardianship. I followed you to spy. Why else?"

Kishi rolled his eyes -- a gesture he'd picked up from Aela -- and spoke to her. Is it wise to tell the enemy your plans and intentions? Would you like to draw him a map to the tribe while your at it? I'm sure they would appreciate that as well.

Aela responded immediately. I haven't told them anything they wouldn't have guessed on their own. Plus, I really don't think they're enemies per say. I'd still like to know what they're up to, though.

Aela's eyes widened for a split second before she started laughing...hard. She couldn't stop. She laughed until she bent double and tears rolled down her face. When she could finally breath again, she straightened up and wiped away her tears, still giggling. "What a question! Of course I'm not from that hell-hole! Any other questions you might have for me?" Her frank gaze was mischievous and questioning. "Be aware that you are required to return the favor."

Kayu sat on the ground with her legs crossed and a pensive look on her face. She studied a piece of rope that she had clentched in her hands, and after a few moments of silence she sighed. Finally, she meticulously pulled and looped the rope in different directions until a nice looking wad had formed in the center of the rope. Kayu smiled triumphantly and said "See there? I told you I can tie a knot."

She looked up at the young boy sitting on the ground across from her. He looked unimpressed as he leaned over and took the rope from her hands. He stared at the knot for a few seconds before he took both ends of the rope that stuck out of the knot and pulled. Immediately the knot burst into its original untangled form, and the boy let the rope fall to the dirt. He giggled "And I told ya that ya can't tie a knot!" Kayu's expression was priceless. Her cheeks reddened in embarassment, and she adjusted her hat as she replied "Um... well, I guess you're right. Okay, I'll keep working on that!"

The boy stood up and waved farewell as he began to stroll away. "I'll check up on ya soon to see if yer doin' it right! Bye bye!" Kayu smiled and waved back. She had only been at this particular Kiyap Turea camp for a few weeks, but she had managed to make several friends within the camp, especially with the younger residents. She was learning new and useful skills each day, and had become a productive member of the camp. She thought to herself, Oh boy... I need something else to do. Maybe I'll finish mapping out the area by the river. A map of that place would be great for my collection. Kayu rose from her seat on the ground, brushed herself off, and began walking to the edge of the camp.

Sunlight shone through the forest canopy of dark green leaves, and trickled down onto the camp below. This was the main light source, but the area was still dim and shaded most of the time. Animal skin tents were set up all around the camp and were decorated with little trinkets, such as beast fangs and figurines carved out of stone. There were also several wooden shelters that had been built on large tree trunks, or even in the trees themselves. Mushrooms and other forms of vegetation had been growing in a controlled manner in the camp, and decades worth of soft green moss had been growing on the trees and in the soil. The camp always had a subconscious calm to it, even when the residents of the camp were bustling about with their daily routines and assignments. Kayu walked through the camp with a smile on her face, and soon exited into the forest.