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 Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 10:20 am
Places as tall as this in Yisi were rare. That being said, plenty existed in the forests of Casa Tiner behind them, but none were accessable by any save the Mistweavers. Iris, and her rightness on this matter is fairly certain, knew of no magic weavers yet present within the herdlands. If any were to sprout, however, she was certain to give them a nice visit. Ambassador duties, of course. Meet the threat or advantage first and you'll be ahead two steps.
Flicking a tail she mused over the potential comforts of lying down to watch day turn to night. Still, if anyone was about they would be liable to make some sort of 'oh so witty' comment on her laziness that evening. Not that she wouldn't retort, but it would still put a slight tick in her stone. Iris, let the world know it, did not relax even when given the upportunity.
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Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 10:37 am
Having spent the day not so very far away, it had not taken the stallion now nearing the highest point of the rise all that long to make his way up to the same spot. Orange, red, gold; beautiful and fiery and utterly pointless. That was one of his favorite things about sunsets; so little in life, his life at any rate, lacked a purpose that sometimes it was nice to come out and behold something so utterly, flamboyantly frivolous as a sunset.
...But the sunset was not all he beheld.
As his rich blue eyes settled on the slender figure of the First Ambassador, Castor paused. “Quite beautiful, wouldn’t you say?” he commented with a smile before approaching once more, halting a respectful distance from the green-eyed mare. It was odd to be something like her equal now, but doubtless he would adjust soon enough and spending some time speaking with the pearly-coloured mare could only help speed the process up so far as he saw it.
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Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 10:56 am
Iris turned her ears to listen to Castor's light feet. His voice told her who he was, and it didn't take her long to figure out who had come to enjoy the sun. Maybe it was her company Castor had come to enjoy? The phrase he used didn't clear that up, but her best guess would have included the ball of fire that hung steadily near Casa Tiner.
"As sunsets go," Iris responded, "it is quite beautiful." She kept her eyes steady for a moment longer before turning back to look at him for a moment. "Tactician Castor," she started, paused and then smiled at her mistake. "Master Tactician Castor," she corrected, "are you going to join me, or does the height make you queasy?" She took to the air rarely, herself, but heights did not bother her. She enjoyed watching the stretching scenery below. It felt as though she could distance herself just enough that she would be allowed to watch them.
Never mind that, she thought with the turn of her head back towards her surveying location. Beneath her stretched the homes of her family. A gregarious place, but a comforting ones. If she pricked her ears just enough she thought she could hear the playful laughter of retorting children and the parents that scolded them.
"How are you taking this newfound glory?" she answered after a while. It was a simple enough question, and one he was allowed to skirt around if he felt need.
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Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 11:25 am
Castor moved a little closer to the edge and smiled. “The height doesn’t trouble me,” he said with a nod. While he had never been able to fly as such, he could glide passably and that was enough to make standing on the edge of something tall nothing at all. Something small might be a little more troubling, less time to catch the wind with his wings, but that wasn’t what the question had been so he left it there; he had her other words to consider.
Just as Iris had done, the thinly-built stallion turned his eyes out at the view as he considered the question. “It is... different,” he began after a moment. “I am treated very differently, obviously, and that might take me a while to get used to. Still, for the most part I’m enjoying myself, I must say. The challenges ahead of me are a trifle daunting, but I’m sure I’m up to them and I doubt it will take me all that long to settle into my new duties.”
It would be good once he had a routine again, he liked to know more or less what he should be doing at any given time and as yet he hadn’t quite managed to figure all that out. Perhaps, the Master Tactician considered as he turned back to his companion, he would have to get used to blurring the lines between leisure time and work time.
He had a sneaking suspicion that people would be approaching him with questions, concerns and goodness knew what else while he was grazing or otherwise relaxing far more than they used to. Still, once that had become routine he would be fine with it, it was just the persuading his brain that this was the new normal that would be the tricky part.
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Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 11:55 am
Iris ticked off his responses in her head, comparing them to what she had predicted he would say. She was, as usual, very close, but just a slight bit off. It was that slight bit that worried her, and made her feel as though it would someday undermine her position as the First Ambassador. Nothing had come of it yet, but she was waiting.
"Confidence," Iris told him, "is the key to any successful Master Tactician. You have displayed that trait many a time." If there was any uncertainty left in his head, that should have cleared it right up. It was necessary, Iris knew, to tell those that they work well without actually shoving it in their face. It allowed them to feel they had discovered it for themselves, and if they thought that then they may well have done just that.
"You do not have to be perfect," Iris cued him in. "You simply have to know how to make everyone think you are." It was obviously a statement that reflected deep into her own character, as most of Iris' statements were. Part of her wished with every part of her soul that everyone would piece together the puzzle and find the Iris beneath, but the other half quivered in fear under a cloak and told them all that it wasn't safe to be so close. It wasn't safe to 'trust'.
She looked out for her family more than anything else, but sometimes her interests weren't completely along the lines of her family's. That was why it wasn't safe.
"Now, am I blessed and are you really up here to watch the sunset, or has Meleager requested me for some task?" She ignored the name she placed in the sentence. It was just another name of another leader in another time. Her time, and her fate, and that b*****d.
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Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 12:25 pm
Castor chuckled and shook his head. “No ulterior motive,” he said with a smile, “just here to watch, and to relax a bit.” Did he get the feeling that Iris was not entirely fond of their dear fearless leader? Humm, possibly. Well, that was fair enough; he had to admit that the impulsive Reya’s attitude rubbed him the wrong way at times.
“I like that,” the pale-blue stallion commented after a moment with another smile, “the making people think I’m, we’re, perfect that is... Not that I’ve seen any sign as yet that you yourself are anything less than exemplary.”
Complement for complement; it was only fair, and it was true, too. Iris was very, very good at what she did, but then what else could be expected from the First Ambassador? He was among the best of the best now; Meleager with his power, his passion, his undeniable leadership skill and courage, the Commandant who was warrior through and through and through again and then of course Iris, who was everything an ambassador ought to be. Intelligent, he thought to himself as he inspected her, people-smart, quick-witted, silver-tongued... beautiful too, he supposed, but he was no great judge of that in mares...
“So tell me,” the tall stallion tilted his head slightly in question, “is there anything I ought to know about dealing with Meleager hallah? I wouldn’t want to do anything to... annoy him.”
The dapple grey stallion had not got to where he was by being a weak little wimp and, whilst the Hellenic aversion to harming their own ought to keep him safe, he didn’t want to chance sparking the herd-lord’s temper if he could avoid it. When he was angry, as everyone knew, Meleager was far from the most rational of stallions; it was one of the things that made him such a fine warrior.
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Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 11:20 pm
Iris watched Castor chuckle, or rather listened to it. Watching him might be a bit too obvious, and Iris had made sure to keep that in check long ago. She hoped that he was chuckling about the fact she'd blamed him for taking away from her leisure, and not about the fact she'd related him to Meleager. Still, it didn't hurt to be extra cautious. It was best not to mention his name from henceforth, and, if it was mentioned, to show the utmost concern and endearment for the herd leader as she could muster.
She smiled back at him, though did not turn her head. "It is good to know that you have a wise balance of work and simple pleasure." She refrained from several words that she might have otherwise used. Iris loved her work dearly. It made her feel good, superior. Mostly, it made her feel in control. She could adapt to things being chaotic and not in her favor, but it was far more pleasant this way. Her sunsets, and sunrises, however, were a completely different matter entirely. Simple, as denoted formerly, and certainly pleasurable. She had yet to decide whether she liked them better with company or without. Tonight at least, this company was welcome.
"A Nequus will have its secrets," Iris answered his compliment, but gave no hint that she might be anything less than as he assumed. It was better that way. Oh yes, it was far better.
"Hmm?" she responded to the first, turning his attention towards Castor; it had been a question that required her undivided input. She chewed on her lip for a moment, smirking inwardly to herself. It was odd that Castor asked her of Meleager's dealings. Clytaemnestra would be a far better subject. Iris digressed that the Commadante might have been a trite bit intimidating. As First Ambassador, Iris was assumed to get along with everyone. Perhaps his question was not so strange after all. It was then she realized her petty mistake. She had left the honorary end off of Meleager in the prior sentence. Hopefully Castor passed it off as having good relations with the stallion and not anything else. Next time she saw him she'd be sure to add that little ending, and know that the other would likely believe the lack of the word tonight was a misconception. If she changed back now, however, he'd very easily suspect something was up.
"He likes to be right. It serves us well that he respects our positions." Iris assumed that Castor would understand the parallel she left unfinished. 'So respect his.' This was by far the most important. Meleager was perfectly fine with you outwitting him under his nose. He probably couldn't tell the difference, in fact. However, the moment you gave him a simple 'that's wrong' prospect, Meleager was likely to pound you into the ground. His title was 'Herd Leader', and she was sure he did not want anyone else trying to hold it even if it were for a second.
"Mention of his daughters," she added as an afterthought, "can make him emotionally propelled." That should be well enough to get Castor out of trouble. The majority he could figure out for himself, but those two were an obvious that she enjoyed stating. Many did not understand the strength in simplicity. Every word said sets off a trigger, an image, and perhaps a scene in an other's mind. They bring for a feeling, and, in Meleager's case, an action. "Always remember. He is a warrior at heart. A Hellene. He is no Ichsa, or Reya, or Crossbreed. He is Meleager of the Hellenes, and he will always think like one." So present him with the logic of one, Iris added in her head. Even Meleager could understand the logic of the Hellenes.
"Do not fret so much," Iris added, some genuine concern showing for her fellow herd-member. "Meleager gets along fine with wit." A little too well in fact.
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Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 3:45 am
Castor bobbed his head and gave Iris another smile; it was good to hear that the dappled Reya didn't have any worrying quirks. "Thank you for the advice," he said with another nod, "I didn't expect anything major to worry about... but I would like to make a good first impression on him."
If they were in the business of persuading people that they were perfect, at their jobs at any rate, he wanted to include the muscular herd-lord in the group of people led to believe that... Hum, Iris seemed now to be his... confidant? The pale crossbreed wasn't entirely sure that he liked giving her that power over him, but for now there was nothing to be done about it. Perhaps, eventually, she would come to ask things of him in return, that would make him feel rather better about the whole thing.
The mention of the daughters, Castor had to admit, interested him. The pale and the dark, the dead and the gone. Meleager had not had good fortune when it came to children, it seemed. He vaguely recalled the black one, Melantho, though he had never actually spoken to her or to her sister and he hadn't been able to keep himself from noting how very like the black mare was to her sire, in some ways at any rate.
Still, that little observation was far better kept to himself. Saying that Meleager hallah was somewhat akin in temper to a black outcast would probably get him pummeled into the ground until he stopped twitching.
"Another question," Castor said after a moment, taking his attention away from the sunset once more to regard Iris. "All seems very quite, very peaceful with the herd at the moment... Is this really the case?" Becuase, of course, there were some things that could not be told to everyone. Certainly the tacticians might be the first to know of trouble outside of the council but he was now inside the council, and for his part considered it quite possible that the leaders talked of matters brought to their attention by spies and scouts that were not ready to be shared even with battle planners.
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Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 8:39 pm
'As he should,' Iris told herself inwardly. As much as she despised him, there was the factor that many of the herd adored him. Still many more looked up to him, and his status was certainly not questionable. He had the aura of a leader; Iris could at least admit that much. In her thought, she drug her tongue over her teeth in an attempt to make sure they were clear of any foliage. It would be rude to make your guests speak to your lunch as well. Satisfied she took in a heavy breath, stepping back from her fading sunlight for a bit. While she was content to lie in quietness, the Master Tactician was new to his job. It was only reasonable that he would have a multitude of questions for her.
As if she sensed Castor's interest on the daughter's, Iris brought up the subject of the more controversial one. "I vaguely recall Melantho," Iris summed with a double scan to make sure no one of Meleager's delegation were around. "Clytaemnestra has long looked after her, I believe." There was a long pause, as though Iris were concentrating over something no one else could possibly think of. "With the way she hunts her down, it is clear where Clytaemnestra's loyalties lie." With Meleager, Iris finished in her head, and with the Hellenes. Was the last, though, really part of the equation?
"See to it you don't find yourself entrapped, Castor." It was, in any other circumstance, a very known word of warning. In the context previous, as Iris hoped he would pick up, it took on a whole different meaning entirely. If he did not get the whole situation, or simply did not know enough of Melantho's past, it would not hinder him ultimately. He was a smart boy; she really had no need to look out for him so much. Perhaps she should think of it as practice. How to advise, without really stating. It was the key to an Amabassador.
"Oh, there are a few squabbles now and then." Iris let out the breath she'd been holding. "Nothing I couldn't take care of." They had been delegated with quickly and compromises had been set. As of yet, however, there was nothing big enough or powerful enough to take on the Hellenes. Even a large group of fighting Nequus would be helpless before them. No, it would take a truly great force to take on the Hellenes. One that was possibly as dedicated to their military as themselves. Certainly they would need an organized fighting, or they would crush them. "If the capability to bring us down is out there, we haven't given them any reason to strike." She paused and looked at him. "Our hendrakai prospers in the territory we now claim, and we have found no need to threaten this peace with needless bloodshed."
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Posted: Thu Apr 10, 2008 7:18 am
Castor nodded his agreement to and approval of all of Iris’ words. He felt very young and slightly ignorant asking all these questions and having her answer them with such esae, but how was he to learn if he didn’t ask? It was always better to learn from somebody else’s knowledge, or mistakes, rather than having to risk putting your hoof in it by fumbling about in the dark, too proud to ask for assistance.
“I shan’t,” the predominately blue stallion added after a moment with a nod, “I’ll get to grips with the important things before I think too hard on interesting bits of information that don’t affect my work too much.”
Clytemnestra. Another one he was keen to meet. He’d seen her around before her mission had taken her away but never up very close, and of course she hadn’t known of Phaedra’s death and hence hadn’t returned to vote for the new Master Tactician... Or maybe she had found out, somehow, and had simply classed her mission as more important than voting herself. She must trust the one who had voted in her stead greatly.
“I’m glad to hear that everything is as well as it seems,” the crossbreed added after a few moments with a nod, turning his gaze out at the view once more. “I know many of the soldiers are getting restless with this peace, but I welcome it myself. It gives our hendrakai time to flourish, to grow... So long as everyone keeps their skills sharp, I cannot find fault with, as you say, a lack of bloodshed.”
The soldiers had their ways to train, and of course the tacticians did too. So long as everybody kept in mind why they drilled as they did all ought to be well even if a threat did emerge. As Master Tactician, of course, it would be part of his job to make sure that all those beneath him remembered the point of the mind games they played. As to the soldiers... well, it was probably the herdleader who saw to that, and somehow Castor couldn’t see the dappled stallion having any difficulties in that department at all.
Meleager was a warrior through and through and, whilst the tall stallion could see that causing some difficulties and disagreements in days to come, it had its benefits too. Nobody would dare so much as think about slacking off when that mighty brute of a Reya was thundering around with his passion and power. Well. Hopefully they wouldn’t at any rate.
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Posted: Thu Apr 10, 2008 12:33 pm
His ease of intelligence was starting to impress even her. It wasn't rare that she came across the brightest in her field of work, but it was rare if they caught on something new so quickly. He was an extremely adaptable fellow. It was a trait she almost liked better than pure wit itself. In her opinion, anyone could come up with a retort, but it took real wisdom to make it logical.
"Soldiers will be soldiers," Iris said, stifling a yawn. The sun went down, and her brain went with it. It was sort of a mark that said she was allowed to be done with the days duties. During the winter her rest was long, and in the summer time it was greatly shortened. It changed, of course, if there were any pressing matters to be had.
"I think it is about time for me to retire for the evening," she told Castor matter-of-factly. If there were any more pressing quesitons on his mind, she was sure he'd speak up now.
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Posted: Thu Apr 10, 2008 12:49 pm
Castor looked up at the sky again and nodded; his routine dictated that he had places to be pretty soon. “Yes, I agree,” he said as he turned back to Iris and reminded himself that at least a little eye contact was polite.
It was hard to do sometimes, party because it was slightly uncomfortable for him and partly because he didn’t really see the point, but as he’d grown from colt to stallion he’d got a lot better at it. Though he would never admit it to anyone, his passable people skills were one of his proudest achievements.
“Well then,” the white-marked stallion gave Iris another smile, “I bid you good night then, First Ambassador... And thank you. Your advice is greatly appreciated.”
It was.
He liked to know what he was facing, to be able to make plans, backup plans and backup-backup plans as well as the small plan he always kept in the back of his mind to satisfy the part of his mind obsessed with order and routine. That plan, of course, was marked ‘wing it’.
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Posted: Mon Apr 14, 2008 12:08 pm
Iris wasn't one for eye contact herself. She'd gotten so good at avoiding Meleager's gaze that it had become a natural habit to look elsewhere. Perhaps it added to her mystical appearance. Maybe it was the fact that she could stare straight through someone with ease that was the greater strength of her powerful aura. Ten Dierna said it was both.
"Any time you need my advice, Master Tactician, you are welcome to have it." With a small smile in his direction, and the subtle swish of her tail, First Ambassador Iris started down the hard cut pathway. Musings over those who had passed before her stirred in her mind. She always looked at an area for its history, but she had yet to find the person that shared that view.
The only way to find that person, she supposed, was to find one that lived forever. She chuckled at the idiocy of the statement. No one lived forever.
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Posted: Mon Apr 14, 2008 12:27 pm
Castor smiled his thanks at the retreating mare and watched her until she was out of sight. He was fortunate to have come upon her before having to truly meet Meleager, and fortunate too that she was willing to help him when he needed it.
It was possible, of course, that she would call in a favor or ten from him someday, but possible too that she merely wanted him adjusted to his position and serving the herd as soon as possible. Either way, Castor felt, it didn’t matter too much; what mattered was that he did have her aid. Anything he had to pay back to her in the future could be taken care of as and when needed.
Smiling again for a moment and taking a last look at the sinking sun, the Master Tactician turned his back on the view and set off down the rise, but not too swiftly. For one, he didn’t have to be anywhere in a desperate hurry and for another he didn’t want to catch up to Iris. He had said all he had to say to her, and being in her presence any longer would have become... difficult.
He never had been any good at small talk. Given the happenings of a few days ago and his new title, however, so far as Castor was concerned not being able to chatter mindlessly was a wholly unimportant skill. He was the Master Tactician and, with Iris’ guidance and his own exemplary talents, he was going to make a damn fine job of it.
Grinning slightly to himself, Castor walked onward.
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