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 Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2009 7:59 pm
Ironic, that those who would be sacrifices before may find themselves sacrificed again...
It was an odd thought; one that he could hardly avoid. They had been trained, some more so than others, and they had grown in numbers. Those who would have given their lives for one pride were now just as willing to do it for another... Only there seemed to be more confidence now; an edge that they might have lacked before.
Will you let her be a sacrifice to this cause as well?
He just barely managed to bight back a growl at that stray thought, fiery eyes narrowing at himself for a moment before softening as he glanced back over his shoulder to where he'd left his sister sleeping. No... The Dhati meant change and the only way to secure that change was to fight.
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Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2009 8:13 pm
She had been trying not to think much about the past as the numbers had grown and as their cause had finally taken a firm hold. The past is what had brought them to where they were but the future is what needed to be looked toward. IF they held onto their past fears too much they would never win this war.
And war was just what it was. She had tried to delude herself but no matter her brothers care she knew that was what it was. Some of those she had come to think of in a way as family would die. She herself may even face the death that Damu had wanted to save her from.
She would gladly give herself now though if it meant that no more had to die. If only all the bloodshed wasn't needed.
Opening her eyes she looked out toward where her brother was watching the horizon
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Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2009 9:21 pm
His gaze had drifted back to the horizon, eyes ever watchful as a small flock of birds took off into the sky from their roost. Soon others would begin to awaken; those whose habits leaned more towards the daylight hours than those of the nocturnal. Life would rise up from the morning ashes and begin again, leaving him to fall into place once more, muscles tense as he watched... And waited.
He was beginning to grow weary of waiting, though, more so now that they very air seemed to tingle with anticipation. Was it the spirits letting them know that their time to act was almost near? Or was it just the pounding of hearts and the rising of thoughts that seemed to match his own?
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Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2009 9:26 pm
After watching her brother for a bit she picked herself up and headed in his direction. She could tell he was tense and hoped that in some way she could calm him a bit.
She nuzzled his shoulder as she stopped beside him. "You are thinking too much again Damu. What is it this time?" There was so much his mind could be lost on.
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Posted: Tue Aug 11, 2009 6:38 pm
"War is coming, Shwari." He said simply as he turned so that he could return the nuzzle, letting his cheek rest against her head for a moment as he took in her familiar scent. It was a comfort; something that had been a steady staple in his live since they had been born. Even life in amongst the Mizimu had not been able to change that by casting them in different roles.
"It's singing through the air just as it is singing in the souls of those who prepare for it... Certainly even you can feel it, my dear sister." His voice was oddly light, despite the drift towards a darker topic, warm and affectionate towards his pale sibling.
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Posted: Tue Aug 11, 2009 8:03 pm
"Of course i have seen it and felt it. There is no way to ignore the call of war any longer." She closed her eyes as she let her head rest under her brothers. No matter how any wished for it to just end it would not. Things were never that easy.
"We all knew this would come eventually. It was just ... a matter of time and that time has finally come."
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Posted: Wed Aug 12, 2009 5:35 pm
"You know that I would do anything to ensure that you lived to see another day, do you not?" Another gentle nuzzle was given to his sister before he stepped back, looking at her long and hard as if taking everything about her in; from the softness of her coat to the warmth of her eyes as they met his.
"We have already come this far... I will not back down from my post this time, Shwari." His voice remained soft as he spoke again, eyes remaining fixed on those of his sibling. He had done it once before; abandoned everything in order to bring his sister here to where they now were... Now that they had come this far it was time to fight and the bitter part of his soul reveled at the idea.
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Posted: Wed Aug 12, 2009 5:43 pm
"I know you would." She looked at her brother as he stepped back. She had always known that he would protect her. It had been his life in a way. Just as she had always been there as a steady place for him to rest. He had always looked like he would make the prefect fighter too. Bright and strong.
She nodded at his words trying to ignore the thought that she may loose her brother. "We can not run away anymore. This time we must fight for what we wish to have."
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Posted: Wed Aug 12, 2009 6:14 pm
Hearing her words he paused, listening for a moment to see if she would say anything else... Or perhaps waiting to see if the Spirits themselves would have anything to say about one as pure as his sister making herself ready for war.
"I cannot run away, Shwari... But nothing says that you cannot, should it ever seem as if the Spirits are not on our side." With as well as things had been going he could not fathom such a thing being the truth, but just in case... "I have never been able to imagine the stain of blood on your beautiful coat; the scratch of claws and the gnashing of teeth drawing your life from you..."
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Posted: Wed Aug 12, 2009 6:32 pm
"Mwako ...." She sighed softly. "We chose this life. I will not run away from it and you no matter what." She closed her eyes for a moment as she thought about how far the Dhati had come. "I wish to protect the truth as much as you do ... even if i can not do so with my teeth and claws."
She had never been a fighter but she would do whatever she could. "I do not wish to see tears in your eyes should i get hurt but i would gladly do so if it meant that the truth was known"
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Posted: Wed Aug 12, 2009 6:40 pm
He held his breath for a moment, refusing to release it in a sigh of frustration as he stalked several steps past his sister before turning to pace back towards her. Rarely, if ever, did he loose his temper in front of Shwari. If he did it generally didn't involve her at all, but this time...
He continued pacing before coming to a halt just off to the side of his sibling, letting his gaze linger on her long and hard once more. "I am not asking you to run, Shwari. I am telling you that if it begins to look bleak I would fight much harder knowing that I was fighting to keep them from following you than I would were I fighting to avenge you. Think of all of the rogues we have helped lead to the Dhati's cause... Think of how many more truths you could tell if you lived to bring our story to the ears of others. Even if we failed," which he was convinced they simply couldn't do, "our story, our traditions, our very lives could live on."
You could live on...
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Posted: Wed Aug 12, 2009 7:20 pm
She tried not to sigh at the look on her brothers face. "Do you truly think i could run knowing i would be leaving you to your death? You are all i have mwako ..." She had never been able to bear the thought of leaving him and having to live without him by her side.
"I don't know what i would do without you. I don't know if i could go on...."
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Posted: Sat Aug 15, 2009 9:08 am
"If I am to die in your place, then so be it, Shwari." He said with a sense of finality, as if that was the only thing she should need to hear on the subject. While she had once resolved herself to giving her life for those she loved, the pride she had loved, so he had resolved himself to seeing to it that if there was ever a chance that she could live she do so.
His stern, tense stance eased slightly as he glanced at her once more, making his way back towards the lioness so that he could brush his cheek against hers. "We have been training for this moment for many seasons. Soon the sun will rise on a new day; the Dhati's day. We have the strength that we need. We have the spirits on our side... Everything will be alright, Shwari."
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Posted: Sat Aug 15, 2009 9:14 am
She closed her eyes and returned the light nuzzle. She didn't want any to have to die for new day but she knew that some must but she did not want those to have to be her precious brother. Who would be around to protect her if he wasn't there? Who would she talk to when she needed someone to listen? He had always been there whenever she needed him and she didn't want that to change.
"I just wish that this could be done without the death. There has been enough unneeded death already" All the sacrifices that had been killed without need ....
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Posted: Sat Aug 15, 2009 9:27 am
"We will make good for the lives that have been taken needlessly. We are already are, my dear sister... Their spirits have not been lost. They lend us their strength and they feed our numbers by giving their brothers and sisters the courage to join us." He let his own eyes close as he remained close to his sister for a moment, taking great comfort in her tenderness. "Death is a part of life, Shwari..."
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