[SRP] Noble Demands (Destati x Oa)

[Epine de Rose]

She'd found him.

It had taken a ridiculous amount of time and effort, both of which she really shouldn't have been required to do, and yet here she was. She had spent so much of her time stomping around in this ill bred land that she was, to say the least, in terrible form. The Justicar should have received her messages, and based on their society he should have responded to them, that was how this worked. Yet time and time again she had found herself ignored or dismissed, or at least she assumed she had been given that it had taken so long to find him.

Every time she managed to make headway she found he had moved, when she queried his whereabouts, no one could give her an answer. Those she did push further only gave extremely vague ones and if she didn't know any better, she could surmise that he was covering his tracks. It was an affront and one she would make sure everyone heard about when she returned home... Particularly after the Justicar's very own son had assaulted her.

But first...

She had a responsibility to attend to; she had nobly put herself forward to locate the Justicar and return him to their lands. She simply could not go back empty handed. If she spent this much time away with nothing to show for it then she would be a complete laughing stock. Suffice it to say that her pride couldn't take that beating and thus she carried on, striding in to his camp with an arrogance that would have put even a narcissist to shame. Heh - she'd even had the gall to interrupt what appeared to be a meeting!

"Justicar." She said in a commanding tone.

Words: 292

 

[Epine de Rose]

He had been stopped mid-sentence and disapproval practically seeped from his very paws. It wasn't often that others tended to interrupt him, in the roguelands most gave a gathering of rather large lions a wide berth, yet the owner of this voice appeared to believe that she was entitled to do so. The last time he had checked, Destati had not been on land owned by own particular being or another... Thus he was free to do as he pleased. He hadn't yet looked round but based on the response he was receiving from a number of those gathered with him, it was clearly someone or something they recognised,

Curious...

Given that it was not the mother of his only children, he found himself slowly turning around to face the interloper. What he was greeted with was something that left him even less impressed than he had been before. Not only did he recognise the coat, but he recognised her overall features. He might not have known her name, but he knew what she was and where she came from. Neither of these things were likely to go in her favour, particularly when she had decided that she was perfectly within her rights to treat him with such disrespect.

She might have thought she knew how things worked, but she was about to be educated. Destati was a patient lion, he'd been around for a considerable amount of time, but he certainly wasn't one to suffer fools.

"And you are?" he enquired, deliberately failing to acknowledge whatever rank she held. "Think carefully on your answer or this will end poorly for you," he warned.

Words: 274

 

[Epine de Rose]

Who were they? An array of lions stood nearby, some lazing against rocks while others seemed to be much more alert. Whoever they were, she had never seen them before, or at least if they had been a part of her world then they most certainly weren't a part of the appropriate circles. Yet here they were in the presence of a Justicar, one who seemed to believe that it was appropriate to disrespect her. Clearly he had forgotten his place, too long in these lands had caused him to fall to the influences of the Outlanders. It would have been obvious to them all that she was not amused by his reply.

"I think you are forgetting your place, Justicar," she replied in a surprisingly level tone. She gave herself some silent applause, she'd done well to mask the drawl from her tone and managed to maintain a more diplomatic air despite his behaviour. "You would do well to address me appropriately, I am your superior," she reminded him.

The reaction she got was not one she had expected.

Behind the Justicar the blackest lion she had ever seen began to laugh, his pale red eyes narrowing in to slits. Was he a phantom? Every inch of him fit the bill and yet he was right here with the Justicar. No, he clearly just looked the part and must have been recruited from here...a Justicar would not have been so without taste as to recruit something like that at home.

"What?" she spat, settling her gaze on the black lion who had dismissively waved his paw at her question.

Words: 270

 

[Epine de Rose]

"Malik, settle yourself," Destati's tone remained flat and he didn't bother to turn round to address the lion. He knew who it was, Adar'malik had never been afraid to express himself at the best of times. The fact that the lioness had said something so utterly ridiculous had been bound to cause a response. To say that this little minx had gained the attention of his collective was an understatement. It had been a long time since he had had to deal with his home and it's denizens, evidently quite a lot had happened during that time...

Truthfully, he knew exactly what had happened. It was something that was going to require his attention at a later date, but at the moment he fully believed the rest of his kin would be capable of keeping it at bay. Once again, there were those in his lands that were all too happy to exploit the vulnerable and the overall chaos that had been left in the wake of the scourge. This had happened before and would probably continue to happen for as long as the Justicars were required to put down these insurgencies.

...And just like every other time, this exploitation would end swiftly when the Justicars were ready to act.

However the sudden superiority complex was a fascinating turn of events.

"My, my, your elders have been very busy haven't they?" Destati mused and raised a scathing brow. "What could you possibly want with your superior, princess?" he enquired darkly.

Words: 250

 

[Epine de Rose]

Her nose twitched, a sign of her irritation as she fought back a snarl. He had the audacity to continue to try her patience? According to her circles he was supposed to be the most reasonable. The other Justicars had been distasteful when approached, some even lashing out and reports had even come in that they had responded with worse. She had therefore hoped that retrieving the most diplomatic one would have ensured that this ridiculous disagreement would end and normalcy would be restored.

...What did they have against tradition?

Her circle were the superior and it had been a revolutionary tradition that had put the Justicars in their place. According to the circle's sources they had been put there at the height of the first scourge, some even went so far as to claim they had orchestrated it to take such a position. Was it not therefore appropriate to restore things to the way they should have been? After all the Justicars didn't exactly rule on a day to day basis, they had given that away to 'democracy' and look where that had gotten them.

"You are being recalled," she finally recovered her composure and lifted her chin. "Your services are required at home, we have concluded that the severity of the disturbance requires the full attention of all Justicars. The outlands will have to be dealt with at a later date."

...Unsurprisingly, it was the black lion who began to laugh again. Tearing her eyes away from him she soon found that those around her looked more amused than they should have. There was something disconcerting about that; did none of them take her seriously...?

Words: 277
Total Words (Oa): 839

 

[Epine de Rose]

Destati turned away in what could only be described as a cut-direct. It was clear that he had not intention of addressing her as she thought she should be addressed. Worse, it seemed he disagreed with her priorities and it wasn't long before the lion had motioned towards the bright green lioness and cleared his throat. She stood in response, acknowledging the silent cue. He'd worked with this collective long enough for them to know how to act when it was important and on this occasion the lioness was to take the first step on this brief mission.

"Suu'marle," he addressed her with a warmth to his voice that Oa had not been graced with. "Escort her," he ordered and shook his head. "Point her in the direction of the homelands," he added and then lowered his voice so that only she could hear him. "And make sure she walks in that direction," he finished. Suu'marle gave a curt nod of understanding and strode towards the darker lioness. Before Oa could even protest she was being pushed away by the much larger (and quieter) lioness.

...It was only when both were out of earshot that Destati flicked his gaze to Adar, a dark flicker in his eyes.

"You know what to do," he ordered coolly. "But keep her alive," he stipulated. Unsurprisingly the black lion didn't look terribly impressed, but he would come around when he realised Oa would be useful later. While Adar made no immediate moves to leave, Destati was aware he would depart when he knew ample distance was between himself and the dark lioness. If he moved too soon she would simply bolt.

In the meantime, the Justicar had real work to do...

Words: 287
Total Words (Destati): 811