Uxe hadn't really fit in with the demon pride. He knew this the moment he had joined them. He never fit in. He had felt as though he had a demon inside him; but... he just didn't fit in like they did. He had been an outcast among them; never felt in place. Felt restless. So he left. He got up and left. He left them all. He had no ties. No friends. No enemies. Nothing keeping him there.
So he left. He wasn't afraid of being alone again. Sometimes he liked it. Being alone. He had never been like his family. Been a part of a group and felt like he belonged. So he was on his own again. Fine with him.
Nipata Rata. I will achieve bliss. It was fitting, the golden lion thought, lifting a leg to look down at the dark ibex pelt tied to him. He was seeing through new eyes with these ibex eyes. The giant horns almost felt like a natural weight to him now. Yes, To'ir was right. This felt amazing. He was one step closer to achieving that bliss.
He ran swiftly, in leaps and bounds, feeling less like a lion every second. It was beautiful. He ran and he ran, listening to the wind whistling through his mane, the only major reminder left of his physical self. But physical things were nothing to him anymore. So he raced in the open savannah, unaware and unafraid of whatever predators might be lurking nearby.
Uxe was restlessly walking. No idea of where he was going; just plodding onward with no where in mind. Just... well.. he was thirsty but... that was nothing new. He rather liked the feeling of hunger; he had always been one who rather enjoyed the trials of life. Hunger was one. Fear was not one. He felt no fear. He sometimes felt desire, though that had only happened once and those cubs were.. well... long gone now. He was a lion of now. Right now, the sun beat down on his dark pelt. He lifted his paws slowly and calmly, his blood red eyes gazing into the distance.
He could see a creature running. Only, it was a bit... odd... after moment he could see that it was a lion under a pelt. He clicked his tongue against his teeth in reaction to the oddity. He simply stopped to watch.
Rata took a moment to spin in a few circles, laughing in an almost childish excitement over his newfound energy. With a sigh of peaceful content, he fell to the ground, a smile gracing his hybridized face. But then he froze – was this new feeling something given to him by the ibex spirit? He felt foreign eyes on himself. It was a peculiar feeling, this sensitivity. Rata’s heart raced at the thought of this being part of his quest to become attuned with nature. Though that was probably a long way off into his future.
Hesitantly, he looked around, unaware if his new pelt made him look like prey. All of a sudden, there was eye contact – a big black lion with blood red eyes. Rata felt wary, but unafraid. He still felt the rush of spiritual energy.
Uxe watched the... strange antics of the lion with a straight face. He suspected Rabies. Usually animals with rabies rolled around and did strange things before they became frothing insane creatures. He sat down, his nerves on end just in case the creature decided to attack. He sniffed, his red eyes gleaming so starkly, like blood droplets against his dark pelt.
"Are you... alright?" He asked.
“I am,” Rata smiled, bowing his head slightly to be polite while rising to his front paws into a sitting position. It was good that this new lion could tell that he wasn’t prey – or was it? If it meant that the pelt didn’t suit him. Rata was almost troubled, but he would save those ponderings for some other day. He was in too good of a mood.
“How are you on this fine day?” He could see something special in those shining eyes – they disturbed him slightly, but he tried to move past that.
Uxe couldn't hear or sense anything in his voice that would give away weakness or illness. He sat, his tail curling around his front feet. He observed the pelt, how it was hung over the lion like his own skin. He cocked an eyebrow.
"What is with... the pelt?" He asked, looking intruiged.
Rata’s eyes gleamed with delight, his smile widening. “This is the real me,” he answered simply. “I have found my true spirit.”
But he could tell that this wouldn’t be a satisfactory response, so he told his story: “Once there was a lion named Pole’jitu. He went his whole life feeling out of place, like he never fit in with any pride or any family, and he wandered restlessly. He was a gentle lion, and very gracious, but sad. He couldn’t tell why. Then one day he met Tropiki’baa, a stranger clad in pantherskin to camouflage his brightly colored fur. This stranger had spoken peculiarly about how he had killed the panther and taken on not only the fur but also the spirit of the creature, becoming To’ir. He felt fresh and new, and it inspired Pole’jitu, who carried the story of the stranger with himself for a while.
“Hunting one day, Pole’jitu was about to make his kill when he suddenly felt a peculiar connection. Remembering the stranger’s story, Pole’jitu stared into his prey’s eyes. It seemed to speak to him, as if it were within his own mind. As if there was some strange secret. Pole’jitu was never seen again.
“I am Nipata Rata. I bear the soul of that ibex. I have only recently been born into this land. And now I belong here.”
Uxe took in the strangers words for a moment. Not saying anything. Because strange enough he sounded as though he were describing himself. Not sadness though. Emptiness. Nothingness. No sadness. He wrinkled his eyebrows again. "An ibex. Isn't that... strange considering you are a lion... and an ibex is an ibex. You are different... are you refering... to your outside... versus inside?" He asked, looking curious; if not simply emotionles.
"So... his was a panther... why not a lion?"
“It is true that I am a lion on the outside,” Rata shrugged. “Though I wear this pelt to show who I am on the inside.” He still had lingering feelings of being a lion, it was true. But he had been graced with this animal, which had chosen him as his animal spirit. He could feel its soul racing through his veins.
“To’ir is a panther because that is who he truly is,” he answered. “The panther chose him, and now his spirit is filled with its being.”
He wrinkled his brow. "How does one come to know their... other being? You said you say it in the ibex's eyes... is that the only way?" He seemed a bit interested; which was odd for him to even to show any expression at all at these types of things.
He lowered his eyes, thinking a bit deeply. What would his spirit be; he pondered.
“I’m sure there are many ways,” Rata said. “But when the time comes, you just know.”
He watched the other lion, almost unable to discern his feelings. He looked distant, but he looked like he had potential. His curiosity was energizing for Rata, who hoped that his words might have some meaning. “What is your name, black lion?”
"Uxe." He said simply. He rather liked how short his name was, though in his demon pride he had the second name of Jereth. He rather liked that name too. Though Uxe was his birth name, one that was similar to his fathers name; Umo. He shuddered at the thought of his father. He suspected his father and mother were dead now; which was fine by him.... as they had only given him life... for he had no soul inside himself.
"Just Uxe."
“Uxe,” he echoed, feeling the sound of the word in his mouth. It was a very simple name. “And who are you, Uxe?” Rata asked, more to himself than to the other lion. He wanted to share more, so much more, of his energy and spirit with someone. To’ir had taught him a kind of spiritual magic that he desired to learn more about. Nipata Rata. I will achieve bliss. I will achieve harmony with nature. I will be freed. “Come with me, friend. I can show you.”
Uxe felt inclined to go. Something about the way the lion spoke, the way he talked of being... well.. being spiritually there. Uxe didn't have that. He didn't have anything spirital at all. "I am nothing..." He said simply, standing up and stepping beside the lion, intent on learning more. "Show me."
Nipata Rata smiled and stood, looking again into those blood red eyes. There was something in there. He knew it. He turned gracefully, and he ran, with this new friend at his side, off to find out what gifts nature held waiting.
