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 Posted: Tue Nov 16, 2010 9:22 pm
Zsaria steeled herself as she made her way toward the Warlord's den, limping slightly on one side from her recent bouts. She had washed the blood from her fur but she could still smell it, leaking slowly from the healing lacerations around her face and side. Nothing was deep enough to worry about, merely a stinging nuisance of the time. None of it compared in discomfort to her reason for coming up. As she found herself becoming closer to her fellow reavers she felt a need to clear the air, to find how her leader viewed her. It was petty, perhaps even selfish, but she desired to know that her fighting was not pointless, and that there may be an end to the obligation in sight. Even if was just the hint of one.
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Posted: Thu Nov 18, 2010 7:00 am
 Some Warlords considered their dens inviolate places where they never wanted to see members of their pride without specific invitation. Gunne had been one such, and when he'd been a Captain Aesir had resented it. It made it much more difficult to find the Warlord if a lion couldn't go to their den and either see them or at least leave a message with their Thralls. It had been an unconscious decision on Aesir's part to allow his Stormborn to come to his den whenever they wished to see him, though no one had really taken him up on it, being accustomed still to Gunne's ways.
It didn't matter, he told himself, since he wasn't out to befriend his people anymore. He was there to lead them, and if that meant they were more reluctant to seek him out, that was just a side effect. It shouldn't surprise him, and it certainly shouldn't worry him. It meant that they saw him as an authority figure, and didn't want to bother him with petty concerns. Or something. He had never experienced this sort of self-doubt as a Captain, dammit.
At least he could occupy his thoughts with planning his upcoming viking. So far he had asked Taraxa and Gunnar to accompany him, and Taraxa had recommended one of the new Freeborn, Nymph. He would have to seek her out and ask her if she'd like to come, and point out that it would mean she'd rise from Freeborn status to Reaver, which anyone could see was a desirable thing. He planned this, and then went on to consider other Reavers - or even Freeborn who wished to become Reavers - he might bring.
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Posted: Thu Nov 18, 2010 4:28 pm
"Warlord," Zsaria called out as she approached the mouth of the den, keeping what she considered a respectable distance from the entrance. While she had never made such an approach before she seemed to sense a need for propriety. After all, while she knew of him through battles, they had never truly spoken. For a moment she regretted her decision to come up, but something in her heart closed off the anxiety. She was a Stormborn, she did not back down out of childish fear. Her most recent scar shone bright across her face, pronounced against the mask of those already faded. Unlike many of the others she was not angry about this one, seeing it as a badge of the first of many personal victories in her life. That realization had provoked her visit, she was proud for the first time in a long time and she wished to know that it was not a useless folly.
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Posted: Thu Nov 18, 2010 5:06 pm
Aesir's ears pricked forward with interest as he heard someone call out his title. The feminine voice didn't instantly identify the speaker for him, since there were several female Reavers and many other lionesses in the pride who were Freeborn and might wish to speak with him about something or other. Ordinarily, they might have felt more comfortable speaking to the Warlord's mate about things not martial, but Aesir had no illusions about how approachable Morrigan was. She spooked him half the time, and he was certainly no coward.
"Yes," he replied, taking a few steps out of his den. It wasn't a question exactly, but it implied one.
Looking at the blue and white striped lioness, Aesir realized that he did recognize her, and that she was a Reaver. Zsaria, if he recalled correctly. As a Thrall it had been fairly important for him to know everyone's names as it had not been as a fellow Reaver or Captain. Thralls who didn't know to whom they spoke were not always treated well, and there had been some who took pleasure in finding excuses to be rough with Aesir. Zsaria hadn't been one of them. He just knew who she was.
"Zsaria. How does the other guy look?" he asked, nodding at the wound healing on her face.
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Posted: Thu Nov 18, 2010 8:08 pm
"Missing a bit of himself, should have been watching his face," she said with a proud grin, "It was refreshing." Realizing that it was perhaps not the time to elaborate on the conditions of the fight she cleared her throat, inclining her head toward him. "I came to ask you about my future here," she told him with a softening courage, it might not be the time for that either. Too late though, she was into it, "About the reason I became a Reaver, if we can speak frankly." She had not come seeking sympathy of any kind, just truthful answers. "I've learned to enjoy my position, but lately it's crossed my mind that I might like something else, in the future of course. I've wondered how my brothers' actions might affect that."
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Posted: Fri Nov 19, 2010 8:53 am
Another lion in another pride might have winced at Zsaria's description of the state she'd left her opponent in. Or, had he been someone else, he might have at least asked who it was she'd left so damaged, since there was a good possibility he knew the person and might need them in good condition. Well, what his Stormborn did to one another on their free time was really none of his concern, so long as they were able to obey his commands when he gave them. He only grinned in approval of Zsaria's prowess.
"Ask," Aesir said, settling into a comfortable position and indicating with a motion of his head that she might do the same if she wished. "And by all means speak frankly. It makes it so much easier for me."
When she continued and spoke on he listened carefully and wished that he could pawn this issue off on someone else. But he couldn't do that, of course. He was the Warlord of the Stormborn, and that meant dealing with uncomfortable and unexpected situations. And this one did relate to his position as Warlord, as it dealt with one of his Reavers and her future and position.
"What else would you do?" the Warlord asked, drawing his office around his manner like a cloak. "And would you explain what you mean about your brothers?"
For a moment he had struggled to recall Zsaria's specific history and that of her brothers. The three had gone raiding and two had died with the third going missing. He remembered there had been some small scandal surrounding the matter, as if the third brother had killed the other two, but Aesir couldn't recall the details, nor what his stance had been at the time.
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Posted: Fri Nov 19, 2010 7:22 pm
"I thought perhaps when my family's blood was salvaged, I might retire to raise other Reavers," Zsaria admitted, her eyes drifting away from him for a moment. She was not ready to do so just yet, she didn't even know the whole situation. "Reavers like I'm told Adalstein and Kjell were." It felt strange to her to say their names out loud, she had only done so a handful of times since their deaths and the words still felt tainted somehow. "It's because of them that I fight, I assume you've heard that at some point, for the value of my bloodline. It goes back quite a long way," she said, a hint of pride coming into her voice, "I want to know if there was any hint, anything that might have been seen. Pontus was different after his first viking, I suppose I'm wondering whether it was stupid to not take it seriously."
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Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2010 6:38 am
Aesir wasn't quite sure where Zsaria was going with this, but he nodded. "No one is forced to go viking. Reaver is a rank people choose to hold."
Well, there were a few caveats on that. To be a Reaver a Freeborn had to be chosen to go on a raid by a captain, which sometimes resulted in a lion who was known to be particularly unhelpful or unlucky being left as a Freeborn for a very long time, even if he or she wanted to be a Reaver. But by and large the title was one held only by those who wished to be one. As Aesir had said, no one was forced to go viking.
"Raising cubs is also something Reavers do. Taraxa seems to be doing that." Aesir remembered with a faint grin his last run-in with Taraxa's offspring, specifically the young boy Loki. Those burrs had hurt. He still couldn't see what Zsaria was getting at, though. She obviously didn't need to ask his permission to take a break from reaving to have cubs. That was just something female Reavers did from time to time, and male Reavers, too, if there was no female to look after the cubs in their stead.
"Lots of lions return from their first viking and seem different. You know what it's like to go out on a raid for the first time. It's exciting, and thrilling, and dangerous. Lions learn things about themselves that they didn't know before, and that can change a person." He was trying very hard to think and speak like Morrigan would if she was less scary and Priestess-like.
"If your brother was different after his first viking, I think most people would have assumed that he had experienced some sort of revelation that he was still coming to terms with, and left him to work it out for himself. That's generally how things are done, after all. I don't think anyone was at fault for not taking his difference seriously."
In an effort to lighten the mood, and maybe some of the burden Zsaria seemed to be carrying, Aesir added, "You are doing your ancestors proud, you know. I don't doubt that your name will be in songs after you have died."
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Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2010 7:40 pm
Zsaria nodded, seeming a bit calmer, "I suppose it's my father's words coming back to bother me is all, he never wanted me to be a Reaver." She paused and looked over her shoulder down toward the rest of the fortress. He was right, she didn't need to change to have the future she wanted, she'd simply need to prioritize. When the time came, that is, certainly not any time soon. "Thank you for your words Warlord, they've helped a lot. I'm still not sure what I'm hoping to find out about Pontus, but I know it won't be here," she said with a twinge of sadness, "There are times I dream about it, I have a feeling there's something more we just don't know."
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Posted: Tue Nov 23, 2010 7:31 am
"That's your choice, not his," Aesir reminded her.
Aesir was fairly certain he had not known Zsaria's father, but he could certainly understand the lion's sentiments. It wasn't that being a Reaver was an unacceptable thing for a female cub, but it was a life of danger which put at risk a potential mother of Stormborn. Aesir wasn't sure if he would want his daughters becoming Reavers, either, if he had any. Any sons he had would be more than capable of bringing honor to themselves and thereby to him. A lioness really had no need to go out raiding. Aesir voiced none of these thoughts, fortunately.
He didn't really see how anything he'd said could be helpful, but if it had helped or if she was just trying politely to excuse herself, it was all one to the Warlord. He felt reasonably certain that some of the things he'd said had been useful to her, even if he didn't know which things. He was pleased by this, since Warlords - the good ones, anyway - were also expected to be wise as well as strong and brave. Aesir would not have named himself wise, but if he could evince wisdom in front of his Stormborn, that was all that mattered.
"Where do you think you'll learn more of him?" Aesir asked, now a little curious in spite of himself. It wasn't that he planned to make her quest his own, but he did wonder what was going on in her head. There was no way he was going to admit that he, too, dreamed of things which bothered him, even if it might have gone some way to reassure her that she needn't have worried. Because that would have meant admitting that he worried, and that wasn't appropriate for a Warlord.
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Posted: Tue Nov 23, 2010 11:22 am
Zsaria seemed to think about it for a few moments, looking past him into the distance. "I think I'll start my search where Adalstein and Kjell were discovered, something may have been missed before," she said decisively, remembering with a bit of remorse that she hadn't been present when their bodies had been returned to the pridelands. Though there were many stories about how they were found and what had happened to them she had never truly seen for herself. Seeing where it happened, if nothing else, might give her an insight into the truth. "Someone in the area might have seen him, afterwards," she explained, "Or seen what happened." It was a long shot but it was better than nothing.
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Posted: Fri Nov 26, 2010 9:20 am
Aesir waited while Zsaria thought. He knew he couldn't hurry her thought processes, no matter how much he might want to. He still didn't know what she wanted him to say to her or do for her. As Warlord, it was his responsibility to do what he could for his Stormborn when they came to him, but he wasn't clever enough with people to figure out what it was Zsaria wanted unless she stated it explicitly.
"Are you asking for permission to leave the stronghold and search?" Aesir asked, attempting to clarify what it was his Reaver wanted. His tone made it clear that he was not going to give her that permission.
Ordinarily Reavers weren't supposed to leave the stronghold unless they went out under a Captain, and no matter how important it was to Zsaria he couldn't make an exception to that rule. She had a Captain with whom she regularly went viking. She would have to talk to her Captain about that, as she should know. It wasn't as though she was new to the pride or unfamiliar with the rules. They were there for the good and protection of all.
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Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2010 7:11 pm
"No, of course not," she assured him with a bowed head. She hadn't meant to presume that such a transgression would be allowed, particularly in times when the pride was beginning to thrive. "Only that at some point in the future you might suggest we revisit that area," she suggested, "It was bountiful at the time, perhaps it has become so again." Her eyes shone with a mixture of hope and an unidentifiable sadness. It was a long shot but it might be possible, there had been time since their last attack for the place to have recovered, perhaps it was home to new groups now. No one would need to know the reason. It was not her decision though and it never would be. "If nothing else I should like to mark the place my brothers died," she added, "They were well loved reavers." It was a bold statement, she knew, but it might garner some respect from him. What did she have to lose at this point? The worst he could tell her was no.
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Posted: Wed Dec 08, 2010 10:34 am
Aesir tilted his head to one side and considered his plans for his upcoming viking briefly. There did seem to be a lot of females coming along for this one, proportionately speaking, but one more couldn't really hurt, could it? Though if he didn't watch it people would start to think he was trying to force people to accept female Reavers. Personally, Aesir didn't care as long as they could hold their own, but he knew there was a certain bias against them.
"I'm going on a viking soon. Perhaps you'd like to come with me as one of my Reavers. If we draw near the area, you would be welcome at that point to do some investigating in your free time as long as you met up with the crew at the appointed time."
Never let it be said that Aesir didn't strive to make his people happy. And this way was actually within the rules of the pride, too. He was very grateful that Zsaria was a Reaver. It made things much easier. Reavers could leave the pride more easily than Freeborn, and he really was planning a viking so everything should work out. He was good at this administration thing. The triumph made him grin.
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Posted: Mon Dec 20, 2010 9:23 pm
Zsaria nodded softly, more than satisfied with the idea. She had hoped to get out for a while, not because she disliked her homeland but because sometimes it was difficult. Sometimes she just wanted to be Zsaria, a calm and beautiful lioness. Perhaps she'd have a chance to be that girl for a short time if their raid was successful. Until then, she had to focus. "Thank you sir," she added, beginning to turn away from him, "Your wise words reinforce my trust in you, and I am sure the others feel the same." She had little mind for politics, but she knew as much as anyone else about what had gone on in their change of leadership. She had had no opinion one way or another, but he had proven himself more than worthy.
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