[Viking] Lost Soul (Tethys x Sima)

[Epine de Rose]

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She had a family, it was somewhere, and they had loved her quite a bit... But somewhere down the line she had gotten misplaced. It wasn't their fault, it had been her own, but while they might have attempted to look for her they would have found it all for naught. You see, the little cub had unfortunately gotten separated quite some time ago and had then subjected herself to a series of accidents as cubs were often want to do.

As such, Sima now found herself far from family and home, with very little food in her belly and only muddy water at her disposal. Unsurprisingly the cub found herself utterly bereft. She was still far too young to be on her own and soon enough the cold nights, hunger and weariness would force her to succumb to exposure. She wasn't skin and bones yet, but the little creature could do nothing more than quiver up against the shrubs she had found nearby the almost dry watering hole.

She had figured out something at least... If she waited long enough a frog might pop up again and she knew she could eat those. Well, she knew she could eat them if she could catch them. So long as she could catch them, she would be ok.

...Right?

The little feline was uncertain at this point as she felt the colder bite of the evening air... But positivity and optimism had been something she had been encouraged to hold on to from birth. It was the best she could do.

Words: 260

 

[Epine de Rose]

This particular viking was drawing to a close and so far, as with his last jaunt into foreign lands, this one seemed to have gone well. The Captain was happy, the band were in fantastic spirits, and the thralls weren't so laden down with treasure that they could scarcely walk. They still had a few more days of exploration, a few more opportunities to source more spoils, but for the time being the white lion had been granted the opportunity to simply wander.

...In a manner of speaking he was catching his breath.

He cracked his neck, and with a small groan, he continued towards the watering hole. It wasn't a pleasant place at the moment, there simply wasn't enough water in it, but something about it had been calling him. Unlike his sister, his dreams had never been vivid and whatever gifts his mother had laced within his blood rarely came forward... but on this occasion his dreams had been peculiar.

He couldn't quite put his paw on it, but everything seemed to indicate that there was something to harvest here, a resource, something important. Truth be told e had no idea what he was looking for, but his mother often worked in rather mysterious ways...

Casting his gaze across the watering hole, he saw nothing of immediate note. However, it was only on his second scan that he caught sight of what almost could have been missed in the undergrowth. Narrowing his eyes he drifted forwards to inspect it, if it was what he thought it was, then it was rather out of place...

Words: 266

 

[Epine de Rose]

The shadow fell over here more quickly than the moon had risen and she gave another shiver. A weak whine escaped from her maw and she attempted to curl herself into a tighter ball, alas, when this didn't work, she had no choice but to open her eyes. Her striking green eyes were met by those of much the same hue and for a moment, she thought she might have been found by her parents... Except that she hadn't.

When she had finally had a chance to look at the lion more closely she had realised she was unlike anything she had seen before. Truth be told, he was much bigger than she had ever seen before, he wasn't like the other lions. Uncertain of how to respond to his presence, Sima found her ears drooping and she pulled closer to her undergrowth... it was the only comfort she had.

Against something his size it would make very little difference, he could eat her if he wanted...

Words: 167

 

[Epine de Rose]

It was exactly what he imagined. "It" came in the form of the smallest cub he had seen, and he surmised by her odd features that she wasn't entirely pureblooded. She was a hybrid, a curiosity if there ever was one, but she was also barely out of the womb. If he were to guess, she had probably only been off her mother's milk for a short period of time. He couldn't help but raise a brow, it seemed entirely implausible she would have been alive now if she hadn't had a caring home... except there was no one here, and there hadn't been for quite some time.

When she whined he took the opportunity to lower himself to the ground, taking in each of her nicks, bumps and bruises. She'd taken a couple of bangs, much like any clumsy cub, but she had not had the parental care to nurse them back to help. Dirty and matted fur also didn't help with this, he surmised that she was rather lost and quite frankly, without immediate help she was probably not going to last for longer than a few more weeks.

"You are lost," he said finally and tilted his head to the side. "Cold, hungry," he listed off each and closed his eyes for a few moments. "You will die if you stay out here little one..."

He paused.

"What's your name, hm?"

Words: 234

 

[Epine de Rose]

Her name...?

Her ears perked up at his rather gravelly voice, it was soft though, and wasn't rough to listen to. Truth be told, it sounded rather kind too. Despite his big stature he didn't seem to want to eat her, and he seemed to know that she was indeed cold and hungry... though he had very little subtlety and held nothing back when telling the much-too-young cub what fate awaited her out here. If 'die' came after not eating for a while and it would make her feel worse than this then she didn't want to.

"Sima," she replied quietly, her head ducked back to her shrubs as a cold breeze brushed against the tip of her tail. She didn't like it at night, it was much too cold, and much too quiet. She could hear her tummy talking to her, and she could hear other things she didn't entirely understand either.

"What's yours...?" she asked.

Words: 158
Total Words (Sima) : 585

 

[Epine de Rose]

Aha, so she did have the capacity to speak and she seemed to be relatively coherent. The little one might have been cold and very hungry, but she hadn't lost her faculties. This could be used to her advantage in later life but for now? Well for now, he would take her with him, he would settle her in Nanabe's care until she was old enough to take on some duties of her own, and then he had no doubt that she would become a useful member of the pride.

"My name is Tethys," he replied and hazarded a small smile.

It was then that he stood up once more and gave her rump a gentle nudge, coaxing her back to her paws. It was gentle, but firm, and eventually the rather confused child came to her feet.

"You will come with me, Sima," he instructed and motioned for her to move forward. "We will find you food, water, and you will be warm," his smile deepened as she padded cautiously forward. "Today is not a good day to die; another time perhaps, but not now..."

And thus another Thrall was to join his haul, though he would have to provide his Captain with his plans given her young age. After all, at this age she was a liability, but in time she would repay the favour and they would have her loyalty for life...

Words: 228
Total Words (Tethys) : 728