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 Posted: Sat Nov 06, 2010 12:45 pm
Gunnar, as always, had had a very good time adventuring with his comrade Taraxa. He knew that the older reaver appreciated chances to get away from his brood (much as he loved them) and cause some mayhem. The blond lion smiled to himself. They hadn't been on a real viking, perhaps, but they had still enjoyed themselves. Fighting, women, and causing trouble ... yes, they had enjoyed themselves indeed.
The blond lion padded through the stronghold, heading in the general direction of Taraxa's den. He wondered whether the other reaver had heard from the Warlord yet about a possible viking. That would be glorious!
Or perhaps Taraxa was indulging himself in some mint. Although Gunnar tended to avoid large quantities of the stuff, he still appreciated it. And there was no mint quite like the mint you got at home. Good, strong stuff.
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Posted: Sat Nov 06, 2010 12:48 pm
Taraxa was lazing away outside of his den. He'd just sparred with one of his sons. It'd been more playful than anything, but it had been a fun bout of roughhousing. He was exciting about the prospect of the viking the Warlord had proposed to him; it would be a glorious thing, much better than terrorizing the locals that he and Gunnar had just returned from.
A soft snore rose from the large, older lion, and he stretched comfortably. He hadn't been taking part in indulging in mint lately. If the viking came sooner rather than later, Taraxa wanted to be alert.
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Posted: Sat Nov 06, 2010 12:53 pm
Spotting Taraxa, Gunnar slowed, quieting his footsteps. The other reaver appeared to be snoozing. How amusing. Either he'd been enjoying himself with the mint, or Taraxa's brood had worn him out. The blond lion sidled up quietly. If Taraxa had been sleeping outside, Gunnar might have ambushed him for a duel. Pouncing on him outside his den like some jumpy cub seemed foolish, though.
Although he didn't pounce, Gunnar did wait until he was close by the dozing lion to speak. It would still be amusing to startle the other lion. "Taraxa! Sleeping off some herb?" He grinned.
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Posted: Sat Nov 06, 2010 12:57 pm
Taraxa eased one eye open, lazily closing it as he yawned, "No, friend. My cubs are quite active. They wear me out, tire me to my bones." He slowly lifted to a sitting position, shaking the dust from his bright mane. "What brings you about, Gunnar? Not that I'm complaining, 'tis always good to see you about!"
Moving from his seated position to a standing one, Taraxa stretched, a grimace stretching his features. Some days he truly felt his age. "I've not used mint since the Warlord approached me about a viking. I'll not be caught unawares when the time to send off is near."
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Posted: Sat Nov 06, 2010 1:06 pm
"I've stayed away from the mint as well," Gunnar said, smiling toothily in response to Taraxa's grimace. Ah, so Aesir had talked to Taraxa about a viking! Wonderful! Gunnar felt quite smug that the Warlord had taken his suggestion. "I hope to be going on that viking as well. Won't that be grand?" Perhaps Taraxa had been a-viking with a Warlord before, but the honor would be quite new to Gunnar.
"I'm just looking for trouble," the blond lion said, responding to Taraxa's earlier question. He shrugged slightly. "Those cubs of yours are nothing but trouble. I'm glad I don't have such a pack of little monsters." Still ... he was curious. Taraxa seemed attached to the little beasts. Gunnar wasn't sure when they were going to start bringing Taraxa glory. As far as he could tell that hadn't happened yet. "Why did you bring them back, anyways?" Their mother had been just a foreign female, of little importance. Surely Taraxa could have left them.
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Posted: Sat Nov 06, 2010 1:11 pm
"They are my legacy," he groused, shooting Gunnar a slightly irritated glance. "When I am gone to rest with my ancestors, they will carry on without me. They will bring great glory and respect to myself and their mother. My life will continue with theirs." He shrugged, flopping back on his haunches with a sound flop. "My daughters are beautiful, my sons strong. They are Stormborn much like you and I."
Of course Gunnar couldn't understand. He was young, he had no cubs of his own and likely hadn't realized his own mortality yet. Taraxa had taken time to think about it when he'd met Moray, the amazon lioness and mother of his cubs. Though his pride-brothers were considered family, Taraxa enjoyed knowing that his blood ran through the veins of his children. The blood of warriors.
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Posted: Sat Nov 06, 2010 1:17 pm
Gunnar nodded though he didn't quite understand. He hadn't wanted to raise Taraxa's ire. Gunnar knew the value of new Stormborn to carry on their people, but raising cubs by oneself seemed like such a burden. Surely that was for females to do.
But that, of course, was much the attitude that Gunnar's own father had. Remembering struggling for the other lion's attention, Gunnar felt slightly chagrined. Perhaps Taraxa was right to take such a paw in his childrens' upbringing. Being raised by a Stormborn must make them much stronger than cubs raised by a female.
"You are right, my friend," the blond lion said. "I mean no harm calling them monsters." He grinned. "Troublesome cubs will make bold warriors."
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Posted: Sat Nov 06, 2010 1:20 pm
Taraxa laughed, his momentary lapse into sourness gone. "They are quite the little monsters," he agreed. "Especially that little Loki. He's a prankster. Reminds me of myself when I was that age." They would make him proud, and he would be able to sleep with his ancestors knowing that his legacy would be well-protected.
"I left a daughter behind," he grunted, staring at a point behind Gunnar. "She was a beautiful girl, but I felt a bit of regret leaving their mother with nothing. She will do well with the Amazons."
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Posted: Sat Nov 06, 2010 1:27 pm
Gunnar had heard of these 'Amazons' only vaguely. Some pride of lions where the reavers were female. It sounded a little strange to him, but he knew of Taraxa's enduring fascination for ferocious females. It was ... kind of Taraxa to leave the mother with a cub. Knowing that there was some girl-spawn of Taraxa's out there being raised to be a reaver in a pack of female reavers was a bit disconcerting, but it was kind nonetheless.
"These Amazons are female reavers?" Gunnar asked. "I can see a girl of yours doing well with female reavers. I hope I never come up against her."
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Posted: Sat Nov 06, 2010 1:30 pm
Taraxa nodded. "I had never heard of such a thing myself." He shrugged, scratching a spot behind his ear that suddenly itched. "They do not look for males other than to provide them with offspring. The females mate with females there," it was intriguing to Taraxa and that was obvious by the tone of his voice. "I hear they are remarkable fighters."
Tossing a smug look towards Gunnar, Taraxa asked offhandedly, "When will you return with cubs of your own, Gunnar?"
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Posted: Sat Nov 06, 2010 1:38 pm
"The females mate with females?" Gunnar was quite frankly shocked. He wasn't intrigued by such an idea. He was ... appalled, maybe. Severely startled at best. He shook his head. "Not as bad as males mating with males, but it seems very strange. Foreigners have very strange ways." His tone was one of slight distaste now.
Compared to the uncomfortable subject of strange matings, thinking about his own potential cubs was positively delightful. "I don't know. I spent time with a little yellow female out in the roguelands. Maybe I have cubs of my own now." The thought had never actually occurred to Gunnar. It was a bit alarming. "Maybe I should go and check."
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Posted: Sat Nov 06, 2010 4:24 pm
Taraxa gave Gunnar a stern look. "Of course you should go back and look. Bring them back here and raise them as the warriors they are. Do not let some dimwitted female raise them. The only reason I left one of my daughters behind was because her mother was a strong lioness and I didn't want to leave her with nothing." Taraxa frowned. "If you have cubs, you should know. You should raise them here."
That was the "dad" in Taraxa talking, but he firmly believed that all those that carried warrior blood should stay with the Stormborn.
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Posted: Sat Nov 06, 2010 4:34 pm
Despite Taraxa's frown, Gunnar had to laugh. "Dimwitted female is the perfect description," he said drily, recalling the odd little lioness. She was so very ... soft. And bland. Not that he would tell Taraxa that, of course. As far as Taraxa knew she had been a feisty little sex kitteness, overcome by Gunnar's sheer manliness.
Taraxa did have a point. Gunnar had a difficult time imagining warriors raised by that dull little lioness. "I will go and check," he said, nodding affirmatively. "You're right. It wouldn't do to leave Stormborn with weak females." Although the prospect of raising cubs was less than thrilling, Gunnar supposed the thralls and females of the Stormborn could have a hand in their care. There was a bright spot too. "Ha! If I do have little warriors, they can duel with yours." He smiled. "I'll leave tonight. I don't want to miss the viking."
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