Kosuke lay on a rock, simply watching lions come and go. The tracker had been rolling the events of the pride since the last meeting, glaring at nothing in particular. His lip curled for a moment, eyes narrowing as he again played No's words in his mind. After a moment, he clawed the rock, wishing for Kenna to do... SOMETHING. ANYTHING. The old ways were fast going to die, and they were going to be considered gentle giants by the time the last of the lions who even remembered what it was LIKE in the old ways were dead and gone. And then they'd let those Hongshan in... The hulking lion let out a frustrated roar, rising and turning to flop and face another direction.
Serkan hadn't been sure what he wanted to do in the pride. While his brother had been swimming in and out of consciousness just enough to eat, drink, and do other basic functions before passing out again, the hulking red, black, and white lion had simply... Been. He'd watched his pridemates fall into positions, while not of power, at least... Positions. They knew what they wanted to do, and they were doing it. So Serkan had shadowed for a while. First he'd followed guards around, learning, then he'd followed soldiers, hunters... Even a water seeker. To say the least, with all the time he'd spent following lions... He'd missed the second group's arrival, as well as the group that had been attacked returning. Dark ears pricked amid a white mane as he spied the massive dusty-red lion. That was one of the trackers... And there weren't terribly many. He let out a puff of air, before padding over. "Good afternoon."
Kosuke lifted his head, eyes narrowed, before he slowly turned toward the other lion. He had to admit, these Hongshan lions were pretty large. Or... Most were. How had the Nergui managed to best THESE lions? "Afternoon..." The Firekin slowly rose to his paws, making sure that he had the higher ground. "I don't think I saw your face at the last meeting..." He'd heard no end of ire from many of the newer lions about his comment about slavery, except for this one. He still stood by his comment, though, and knew the other Safi lions felt the same. Of course, he knew Shula wasn't sure on the matter - She'd grown up in this environment, where rogues and others joined so long as they proved themselves. The pride, Kosuke felt, had grown weak.
Serkan tilted his head, eyebrows up. "No, I am afraid I... Missed it..." He shifted on his paws. "But I did not miss hearing of someone's... Comment..." He paused. "Something about slavery... It made... Whole pride angry." Slowly, he took a seat, keeping an eye on the large lion in front of him. This didn't appear a lion one messed with if they wanted to avoid a fight. "Would you know anything about that, at all...?" His ears shifted back, remembering all too well the way the Nergui had treated them. He and his brother had been incredibly fortunate to find the others in the first group of Hongshan when they'd escaped. How were their mates doing, though? And his own children. He hoped they were okay, all of them. Suli and his mate had had plans before the Nergui had happened, to have their own children, but that plan had been cut very abruptly short.
Kosuke scowled. "Yeah, I mentioned it. What of it?" He took a step forward, hackles up. "The pride's grown SOFT. In forcibly IGNORING and FORGETTING our past, how we once were, the ferocity we were once known for is GONE! The whole FIRE is gone from the pride!" He gestured with a paw, sweeping to include the whole pride's lands. "We were a force to recon with, and what we wanted, we took. Somebody came into our lands? They were ENSLAVED, or if they were lucky... We KILLED them. Now they're just given a smack and sent away!" He took another step, lowering down toward the rock below the one he was on. "Do you know what that's like, to be part of a pride that's lost face? It's nothing but smouldering ASH now!"
Serkan's ears went back fully, vanishing into his mostly pale mane. "You speak foolish words. Slavery is not the answer." Rising to his paws, the Hongshan lion took a step forward. "Do you know what it is like to be a slave? We were slaves, in OWN lands. Nergui came, took our land, took us as slaves... And now we seek help, help in Firekin, mightiest pride in the desert." He swept the horizon with one of his own paws. "Fire is not dead, it is smouldering. Many wild fires in grasslands beyond die... And then come back because fire burns underneath." He gave Kosuke a stern look. "Firekin are like wildfire... Hot, intense, burning much for a long time. But now they smoulder, until conditions are right to come back."
He shifted, hackles lowering, as an eyebrow went up. "You don't say..." He stepped off the rock, padding around the other lion. "You know... You're a rather smart lion..." It was a pity about the trouble with the language, but that could likely be alleviated soon enough. "And what else do you have to say about the Firekin, little Hongshan lion?" Not that he was really little. The Hongshan were rather large lions, so they fit in quite well amid the Firekin.
Serkan's eyebrows went up. "LITTLE?" He was NOT little! Unless he meant it more on the terms of pride sizes. "I think the Firekin are good lions... They helped the Hongshan. But they are still fierce, still have the fire." He looked at Kosuke. "Who are you again, anyway...?" He seemed to have an air about him... Like he felt himself important. "I am Serkan, if it helps."
Kosuke shrugged, then motioned with his paw. "That was more Kidondo's doing than the WHOLE pride... I suppose we've gotten used to your presence and all..." He then inclined his head, shifting so that he stood tall and regal. "And as to who I am... I am Kosuke, son of Sinbad, grandson of Mwali, and great-grandson of Makadari, former KING of the Firekin." He gave a sneer. "Kidondo is a second cousin of ours... And trust me when I say, we're less than happy with what he's done to our pride." Indeed, there was still some animosity amid the Safi lions. He then reached up, pinching Serkan's cheek. "But you... You remind me of why we hold on..." He smiled, then padded off, opting to end the conversation right there.
Serkan reached up, rubbing his cheek as he glared after the other lion. After a moment, he shook his head. A descendant of kings? He had to wonder, how had one side of a family ended up in power, but the other didn't? He let out a sigh, then went back on his way. He'd have to find Suli and simply... Relax with his brother. There was so much to take in about this new pride they were now calling home.
