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 Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 7:26 am
 Knowing little of the other Jala herd who inhabitied this place, Alkippe was content as she wandered carefully in this warm place. Her dunned coat was clean, though one could see the dust upon her hooves and know that she did not belong to a herd and merely travelled.
Pausing as she thought she heard something, the blue Jala mare shifted her wings and snorted, showing she was not afraid of whatever it was. Tall for a Jala, one could find her intimdating... Just her attitude could keep the bravest away.
It made up for her lack of strength or endurance... She surely needed to be taught how to build up her strength. Flying was an ability that she cherished, however short her flights were cut by her lack of endurance. Her courage surely made up for the shortfalls.
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Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 8:40 am
She snorted to herself, flicking her silky tail. Like her mane, it had several knots and tangles she wished to be rid of, and so was heading towards Ryuten. With Rowan as her guardian, of course. She was kind to him in her own way, lest he misbehave, or worse, refuse to protect her. She had her quick wit and common sense and her flight ability, but he had speed and strength.
But still, all the same, they would never get there with how slow the red Aeri was. "C'mon, Rowan, we'll never get anywhere with you being such a slowpoke."
"Yes, m'lady," he murmured and increased his pace. He, of course, kept his head bowed as he continued, eyes focused on the ground just behind the princess. He was instructed to accompany her to...wherever it was she wished to go, and was told to by not only Valerius, he was commanded to by his master. The tall Aeri was not about to disobey either one of them, and so he followed the dainty little princess without complaint.
He was enjoying himself so far, strangely enough; she was quite kind to him despite his status, and he had a feeling she would be much more lenient than the soldier or the Patriarch, and that was a wonderful feeling. Mares could be such sweet things. Plus, he was getting away from his master and observer, and had been given the chance to leave the red mountain for a while and stretch his legs. With such an enormous opportunity, which would seem small or trivial to anyone else, he was willing to do whatever he could for Princess Lucina. As it stood, that was probably to just accompany her to wherever it was she was heading, and to make sure nothing happened to her.
While the slave was busy enveloped in his musings, the slender mare's pale sapphire eyes had caught onto a bright blue coat. Long mane and tail, feathered wings... A Jala! But... As the brindled Katilenuck squinted her eyes, she couldn't make out any of the markings of the superior race on this Jala's coat. Ah, a non-herd Jala, but a Jala nonetheless. And, from a quick glance that studied the Jala's posture, carriage, among other small features, the slender mare decided that this newcomer to the herdlands was one of her gender.
With a bright smile, Lucina picked up her pace and trotted to the end of a look-out rock that jutted out before dropping off three or four feet to another layer of the red dusty mountain, and peered over at the purple-hooved mare. "Greetings, Jala!" She called with a polite nod of her head. Nothing more; bows and the like we reserved for those of lower rank. "What brings you here, a traveling Jala, to our home, the red mountain?"
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Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 1:42 pm
Hearing heavy hoofbeats from above, Alkippe shifted her position to see the Nequus who approached better. She first saw the brindled Jala, a female by the looks. She knew there was a herd here... But not where, nor why they chose this place to be their home. It was hostile enviroments... But she snorted quietly at seeing the Aeri stallion who accompanied the Jala mare. Possibly her gaurd... Which was a better outcome than what others would think. Crossbreeding was disgusting.
"Greetings." She called back, returning the nod. She was respectful to other Jala, imitating their customs usually to keep herself ou of trouble. "I am merely wandering, a traveller. It has been some time since I have seen other Jala." Shifting slightly on her amethyst hooves, she spread her wings and took a small trot to ride a bit of wind the few feet to face the others. Indeed... The oddly colored Aeri looked of a slave... Some kept them, she had heard.
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Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 2:59 pm
Lucina hadn't any idea why the Katilenuck had originally chosen the red mountain to be their permanent home, and indeed she hadn't even given thought to the idea. It was done, settled generations ago, long before her mother had been born, and as far as she was concerned it didn't matter in the slightest.
At this point, the slender brindled mare allowed her pale eyes to travel over the newcomer, studying her features. No, this Jala-ess didn't carry any of the goddess-given markings the Katilenuck had been given. However, she was a Jala, so the princess offered her a smile. "Well, I won't hesitate to say that you'll find quite a few Jala up on the red mountains. It is our home, home to the mighty Katilenuck, where all Jala are welcome. I daresay if you learn our customs and ideals quickly, you might be allowed to join our herd." Indeed... She could do with a bit more manners, but she was from the outside and harsh attitudes were plentiful. But then again, they were rogues there, and the outside world was harsh and unforgiving, and the Nequus there needed their bad attitudes and lack of manners to survive. At least, that's what she'd been told.
"M'lady," the Aeri murmured, trotting up beside his smaller mistress, trying to look small beside her. It didn't work too well, considering he was about eight inches taller than the slender mare, but he could still try. "You should be careful, she might be hostile." Although, the other mare didn't quite look that bad, but looks could be deceiving. They almost always were, at any rate. He figured she wouldn't heed his warnings, she hardly ever seemed to, but it was his assigned job to do what he could to aid her and protect her, so that was the least he could do.
"Oh hush, Rowan," she said with a roll of her eyes. She wasn't mad, just amused. Such a cute little thing, trying to warn her. This Jala was probably herd material, she didn't need to be careful. Besides, she was a Jala. "She's not a Reya, after all."
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Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 3:29 pm
Alkippe certainly didn't expect an answer to why they had chosen this place. THere must be a reason, but it was alright to not know. Things got lost during generations, such a trivial thing to think of.
Bowing her head once more, she then turned to glance to the Aeri before looking back to the Jala. "I have heard little of the Katilenuck... Though I know that they are all Jala, and a few customs... I did not think that they accepted new members though." Her tail swished at the irritance of a fly, who zoomed off to bother another creature.
The Aeri was once again looked to. He must be a slave... He was respectful to the smaller Jala, protective over her. "I am not hostile to those who know their place." Jala were all of equal footing to her, though of course, there were herd leaders who were above. As far as she knew however, the mare infront of her did not lead her herd.
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Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 4:52 pm
Rowan stared straight at Alkippe, despite his lowered head. She was no Katilenuck yet, and therefore she was not above him. If she tried anything, he wouldn't hesitate to protect the princess. So far, he did not like this mare. Not at all.
"Of course, we do accept new herdmembers now and again," she said off-handedly, tossing her head to get her curly forelock out of her eyes. There, much better. "Some gifted Jala are accepted into our ranks, and we're always looking for more slaves of the Bae, Aeri, and Ichsa races." It was true, they were. She still would like a pretty little Ichsa, of course.. Their wings were so fascinating, but only for decoration.
However, her words and tone of voice made the slender princess rather put off. She flicked an ear, taking a step or two forward, and raised her head a bit higher. "The Katilenuck know their place, and that place is far above any other breed, especially Reya, and as long as you know your place, you will do just fine, Jala." It then occurred to her that she didn't know this one's name.. Oh well. "If you wish to join our herd, you will become one of the regular citizens, and you may have a chance at owning your own slave. Not Rowan, of course; he belongs to my father. And, if you do wish to join, I may put in a good word for you to the Queen. So long as you tell me your name; otherwise such a thing would be impossible." Perhaps this mare might not believe that the brindled princess knew the Queen. Well, she'd just have to set the blue one straight then by informing her of her own rank. The thought made her smile a bit to herself. Talking to outsiders was so much fun.
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Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2008 7:33 am
There was a slight nod from Alkippe. that was new news; It was rather nice to hear that there were Jala who shared her ideas. She hadn't thought of slavery for the other races, but it made sense enough. "I have not seen any other Nequus in my time here." Otherwise she might point them out, if this Jala was looking for another slave.
Hm. She didn't raise her head to meet this Jala, figuring that if she wanted to join this herd she would need to learn to hold her tongue on occation. "Of course; I would not think of having another's slave. My name is Alkippe." She had no reason, nor could thikn of any good way to shorten it for the Jala infront of her. "How does the society work?" She asked, ears perked slightly as she listened to what the other would tell her. "You have a queen. And of her mate?" Females were held higher... This boded well for her.
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Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2008 11:53 am
Lucina offered the other mare a nod, ruffling her wings a bit to rid them of some pent-up stiffness. "As it should be," she said, flicking an ear. "No other breeds are welcome, save precious Jala, unless they are slaves. And the older ones are so hard to enslave, I've heard. Foals are much easier to take and train, much more obedient, too. Rowan here came to us as a foal," she said, motioning to the tall red Aeri with a wing, and he obediently bowed his head. "Belongs to father, as I said... And of course, Jala-Alkippe; I was merely making sure that you understood he was taken. Some Jala don't even understand that, poor souls.." She said sadly, shaking her pretty head.
"Our society?" She mused, shifting her weight onto her forehooves. "Well, to start with. The Queen rules over the entire herd, and has a final decision in all matters. Her mate, the Patriarch, has power over the army only, though all decisions there must go through Mother as well. We have a skilled Illusionist, brilliant tacticians who plan our battles, and I do say Mother has chosen the best possible mares for the positions. Hum.." She paused, thinking carefully to see if she'd forgotten anything. "There are, of course, the Royals; the first-born daughter of the Queen is the heiress, and will someday rule the herd unless for some reason the Queen does not see her first daughter fit for the role. An heir is the Queen's first son who will rule one day if she has no daughter, or if her daughter isn't suitable for the post. All the rest of the Queens children are merely princes and princesses," she said with a nod. Well, she thought she'd summed the rankings up fairly well, although she might have forgotten a few things; she never really did pay attention to herd politics and the like. Such things were always so boring.
Rowan shifted his weight onto his back hooves, glancing in Lucina's direction before studying the newcomer again. He didn't trust her as much as the princess seemed to, but there was nothing he could do, so he merely stood there and waited.
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Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2008 2:13 pm
Nodding slightly, Alkipped listened to all that the brindled Jala had to say. The society sounded interesting... Though she was unsure if she could adjust well to herd life after being on her own for so long.
"What does one have to do to be accepted into the Herd?" She asked quietly, glancing to the antsy Rowan. He obviously was opposed to all of this... But she was still curious.
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Posted: Wed May 21, 2008 11:47 am
The pretty mare clucked her tongue against the roof of her mouth thoughtfully, sapphire eyes rolling skyward for several moments before shifting her gaze back towards the outsider. "It isn't often we get outside Jala wishing to join the herd. Hardly anyone comes near, really, so I'm not sure. You seem like a good sort, though. I think the most you would need to do is go up the mountain," she stated, turning her head to look up at the cliffs and motioning towards them with a slender wing before looking back at Alkippe. "You will have little trouble, as you are one of lovely Jala's children, and you simply ask to speak to the Queen or heiress to join the herd. I think that will do, really..." She murmured, tilting her head to study the newcomer a moment more. "If not," she added after a pause, offering a smile, "simply tell them that you have Princess Lucina's permission to see the Queen. That should be all, Jala-Alkippe. It was lovely meeting you, but I must be going. I told ute I wouldn't be gone too long, just on a trip to Ryuten, you see," she smiled, flicking her silky tail. She dipped her muzzle ever so slightly to be polite, offering the blue Jala-ess a smile before extending her feathered wings. "It was lovely to meet you, and I doubt you will have any trouble with our herd." And with that, she leapt gracefully off the ledge she had been standing on. With a flap of her wings she was off in the air, heading towards Ryuten.
The princess didn't bother to turn around to see if Rowan would follow or not, as she didn't need to. Without hesitation, complaint, or question, the submissive Aeri quickly opened his leathery wings and jumped off the ledge after his temporary Mistress. He wasn't nearly as graceful and it took him several flaps of his wings to pull himself up in the air, but it was only mere seconds until he was behind the princess. Fleeing from her didn't even cross his mind. It would a thousand times over in the presence of her father, but with the small and slender princess, he knew that she did indeed need his help. It was hard for him to explain, he thought with a furrowed brow, but he wanted to aid Lucina not to escape punishment, but because he wanted to. Quite strange, he thought with a slight shake of his head.
Pulling himself out of his thoughtful reverie, the red and white Aeri gave another powerful flap of his wings to pull himself a bit higher in the air.
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Posted: Sun Jul 06, 2008 8:31 am
Alkippe was alert as ever as she watched the Jala infront of her. Hm... So it wouldn't be too hard. Being around others of her own kind for once would be a rather welcome change. "As all meetings should come to an end. I am sure we will meet again." Nodding her head back to the Princess she turned to look to the mountains.
It wouldn't be too long of a journey, and once assured that the brute of an Aeri was indeed following she began to make her way towards the Herdlands.
[And I suppose that would be a wrap-up. ^^ Sorry for the shortness - don't have much of a muse for Alkippe I guess.]
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