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 Posted: Fri Nov 05, 2010 2:28 pm
Freshly recovered from his wounds, Ishekhesi had heard about the Shrinekeepers- a pride devoted to serving the gods. Once the grandmother that tended him had declared him fit for travel, he set out to seek them.
It took him several days of traveling to reach the pridal lands - and now he waited to speak to the young lioness that had started it all. He wanted permission to join their ranks, and a chance to explain himself.
Also, he wasn't entirely clear on what he could do to be of service. With his voice nearly gone, and his injuries leaving him a slower then he had been, all that was really left was his strength. Hopefully the leader would be able to find a place for him.
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Posted: Fri Nov 05, 2010 2:36 pm
Having been alerted for a request of her presence, Salma bit her tongue as she slinked through the brush that was the lands. Her lands, some would call, but she would correctly state that these lands were for service to the gods, and nothing more.
The adolescent, normally quite headstrong in all of this, still had not gotten used to the fact that she was leading many who were her senior. Some much more than others. Though she knew that Mana would be there to help her, the wind goddess couldn't be everywhere all the time. Salma had to match these adults mentally, even though she had less experience in the matters of the world.
"Ah," she breathed, finally seeing the lion that had called for her. Thankful that there was just enough members to keep her informed without looking foolish, she bowed to him. She didn't know much, just that he showed interest in serving.
"Welcome," she finally added on. "I'm Salma. What can I help you with?"
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Posted: Fri Nov 05, 2010 2:59 pm
Ishekhesi was a bit startled to see the young lioness. He had been told that the leader was young - but she was very young. Not even fully grown. She must have been very brave to have started this all by herself.
"I'm Ishekhesi, and I would like to serve the gods as part of this pride. I don't really know what I can do though. My voice is damaged."
He debated back and forth on telling the leader why he had come to serve - and decided he would tell her if he was asked. It wasn't something he looked forward to sharing. Not with everyone else in the pride being so devout already.
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Posted: Fri Nov 05, 2010 6:42 pm
"Oh," she instinctively said, pausing to think about it. "A strong voice is not required to serve here," she added on belatedly.
Salma took a moment to eye him up, and she did so obviously. Mainly it was because she didn't want him to think that she was dismissing him. She was judging him by how he looked, but it seemed that only looking wasn't working. How would one be able to tell so obviously that he had a weak voice, unless he spoke?
She felt bad in asking him to speak again, but it needed to be done.
"Is there anything you feel you can offer us?" She was willing to take in those that would not be able to help much. Turning someone away for any reason seemed terrible.
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Posted: Fri Nov 05, 2010 9:40 pm
A bit dismayed, Ishekhesi went quiet and tried to think. He assumed that she would know what they needed and would tell him what he could do.
What could he do? He had been a good fighter - maybe he still was, who knew- but he didn't want to fight anymore. He wasn't quick enough to hunt. Without his voice, he wasn't even a good messenger. And the little tunes he composed weren't good enough to share with the gods.
All he really had left was his strength.
"I'm very, very strong," he said finally. "I've never met a lion stronger then myself - and I have tested myself against many."
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Posted: Fri Nov 05, 2010 10:22 pm
Her ears perked up to listen to him carefully. She felt a flash of worry about the idea of strength. Someone so boastful...could that bring problems in the future? Pride was something very important to some, especially males it seemed.
"Strength," she repeated, murmuring. "That means you would be ideal as a shifter." They didn't have many, and the few that they did have wore out easily. Which would be ok in the future, but as they were still settling in, some of the larger shrines would need their larger stones.
"Could you tell me a little bit about yourself?" she asked carefully. "Incase there might be something that follows you here, something we may not want." If one was a fighter, that meant enemies.
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Posted: Fri Nov 05, 2010 10:35 pm
Oh well, Ishekhesi thought, it was worth a try. She'll never agree to have me join the pride when she finds out.
"I was a wanderer. And a fighter. I don't have a reason for it. I challenged lions I came across to fights. Sometimes they challenged me. I almost always won. Sometimes I killed my opponents. And sometimes I just crippled them. I . . . I was a very bad lion. I don't have an excuse. . . . One day someone finally bested me. That's when I injured my throat. They left me to die. And I would have, except an old female found me and nursed me back to health. She was a believer in the gods, and from what she told me it was only by the gods will that I was saved. So I decided that since they let me live, I would serve them. Most of my opponents are dead, and I challenged mostly lone wanderers like myself, but if trouble ever comes looking for me, I will leave. I don't want to bring trouble to the pride. I just want to serve."
Ishekhesi's eyes were watering a little. He despised his past self, and he was still adjusting to his new self. And speeches that long took a lot out of him. His throat was no longer meant for a lot of talking. But it didn't matter. She would not let him join the pride, and he would go out wandering again. And next time he was challenged, that would be it.
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Posted: Sat Nov 06, 2010 1:00 pm
Salma listened carefully, but she couldn't help a little snort when he had finished.
"No, you won't leave. You stay right here and defend what is part of your duty. We do not ask for fights, but the possibility is always there. Some may come here to start trouble, but that will not be your duty. You will only respond to a possible trouble if it walks up here and asks for you by name."
Whew. She felt her confidence grow back, and was grateful for it.
"You will use your strength for the good of our home. It is tough work, but you can do it if you pace yourself."
She narrowed her eyes for a moment, just to really look at his features. And as soon as she had, she softened herself up again, a young smile creeping up on her face. No matter how old she tried to act, she couldn't keep it up forever.
"Welcome, then, Ishekhesi."
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Posted: Sat Nov 06, 2010 10:03 pm
Shocked into near speechlessness by the young lioness and his admission into the pride, Ishekhesi just nodded.
"Thank you."
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Posted: Sun Nov 07, 2010 7:36 am
Salma nodded, her smile still brightly planted on her face. It seemed that it went over well. Hopefully it would continue that way!
"If you follow me, I'll take you to someone who can get you started right away." Salma chuckled before continuing. "Well, maybe not the hard stuff yet, but get you in the groove of what you'll be doing."
She turned, assuming that he would follow her. She was grateful to have someone else helping with the hard stuff; it would make things easier for everyone.
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Posted: Sun Nov 07, 2010 8:43 am
Relieved, Ishekhesi followed. Hopefully his past would not become public knowledge, as he was more then a bit ashamed of it, but Salma didn't seem the type to spread it around unnecessarily.
He was glad he was going to be put to work soon. He hated having nothing to do; he ended up thinking too much. He also wasn't quite clear on what he would be doing.
"What is the hard stuff?"
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Posted: Mon Nov 08, 2010 4:53 pm
Salma peeked over her shoulder and giggled at him. "Oh, things that no one else really wants to do. If you don't mind too much, you'll be helping move the stones around to designated areas. Some of them aren't too big, but at some shrines we might need bigger ones, or even possibly replacing some in the future, and it takes a lot of work." Something she just couldn't do herself. Maybe a pebble, hah!
"Since we don't quite have much help, you'll either be with a Keeper or a Carver, and they'll let you know what you need to do. You'll probably work a lot now, since there's a lot to do, but you won't always be so busy!" Hopefully that wouldn't chase him away.
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Posted: Tue Nov 09, 2010 10:11 pm
Moving heavy rocks? He could do that. And it shouldn't matter too much that he wasn't as fast - rock moving would take endurance.
"That's ok. I like to keep busy with things. I am ready to move your rocks."
Honest labor seemed to be as good a way to serve the gods as any.
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Posted: Wed Nov 10, 2010 8:28 am
The little brown lioness smiled. "Great. We're almost there, and we'll put you to work right away!" Since she already had a few keepers that weren't quite thrilled to not have something to keep.
Ishekhesi would fix that in no time. One less thing for Salma to worry about.
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