The Gang of Five
Role Play => Random Role Play => Topic started by: Petrie. on August 18, 2010, 06:53:52 PM
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Arvens was near collapse. The humans had come to find him....to kill him....to remove him from their presence. He was unsure of where he was, or even where he was going. His warren was far behind him now. He wasn't sure if he could return to Thornbush.
Ambling along, quite dizzy and quite lost, he weaved in and out of the hedges to hide himself mostly in fear that he was being chased. He had smelled the dogs. Foxes were one thing, behing somewhat related to dogs, but human care and pampering made them a different type of creature, one that could not be fought down. Breathing heavily, he looked around, twitched his ears, and soon realized he wasn't being followed. He started to nibble on those greens that were hiding him to calm his tense body.
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Rankin had been around enough to know that being secluded was a quick way to die. Perhaps he could have kept away from that possibility if he didn't get himself kicked out of his own warren. However, he wouldn't have to worry about elil very much, being the killer that he is. Where he would go next is a mystery, but he would have to find a good warren to settle at sooner or later.
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While chewing, and trying to calm his nerves, the rapid running of feet on the earth could be heard, and felt. The drumming indicated it was no human, but something running on all fours. It was small....and coming closer with every passing second.
Arvens was too tired to try and run again, lest he might collapse again from hunger and lack of nutrition. He peeked out from the weeds, and saw another rabbit hopping around without a care in the world. Out in the open nonetheless with dogs possibly nearby.
"Get in here before any dogs come and get you!" he hissed to the rabbit. "Its safe over here."
OOC: If it appears we're replying fast, the first eight or so posts were worked out in a chat before bringing them here.
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Rankin looked around when he heard the voice, then looked in the direction where it came from and saw a rabbit peeking out at him through some weeds. Normally, he wouldn't let himself get close to a stranger (or a hlessi no less) but given what it said and why it's hiding, he ran over to join the rabbit in the weeds
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The other rabbit quickly ducked in and joined Arvens. He was grateful he didn't have to forcefully get this rabbit to hide. Some rabbits could be so naive and unassuming of things. Giving the newcomer an easy nose rub, he looked him over. About his size, young, and full of energy. Arvens' former warren, Thornbrush would've adored this rabbit....Owsla material for sure.
"Who are you and where do you come from?" asked Arvens, matter-of-factly. Being a former captain in the warren, and wearing the mark of Owsla, a red-yellow feather on the right ear, he was not one to play games and meant business. "I'm Arvens, captain of the former warren, Thornbrush. Humans have caved it in and I've been running for two days now. You're the first rabbit I've come across."
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It wasn't too hard to notice that this rabbit was indeed once a captain. "Oh damn it," Rankin thought. "My name is rankin, and I come from a doomed warren as well." Rankin said to the rabbit.
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Arvens looked the rabbit over some more, getting a feeling the rabbit was uncomfortable around a former captain. Maybe the warren he came from had bad captains. Even Thornbrush had its bad apples, which Arvens had been happy to help overthrow for the sake of the warren.
"Well, if the dogs stay away, we might stand a chance at digging out a shallow scrape or two," said Arvens, more calmly than before. "Maybe we'll chance on an abandoned burrow or something. You seem awfully scared. What's troubling you?" asked the captain, curious to know more about the newcomer before pressing onward.
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Rankin felt uneasy. He would have to bluff his way out of this.
"Well, there were some other surivors, and they're quite pissed with me. For some reason they thought I killed off one of their captains during an elil attack. I think they were really stressed about that, and acted very hostile towards me, so I was forced to leave."
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Arvens peered at the rabbit some more. A fighter he thought, well if need be, I know how to handle fighters should they be a problem. Rankin sure didn't appear to be in any mood for fighting at the moment that was for certain, though his voice told Arvens this was a rabbit with a lot of anger inside, still bubbling from a past he had run from.
"Well, I would say you've done a fine job on your own out in the open like you have," said Arvens cooly, trying to push the negative feelings aside for the moment. "However, we need to find someplace to rest. This won't do out here in the open. I've been coming over that way past the lilacs, and I haven't seen any sight of a burrow. If you haven't seen anything from your direction, then we'll just have to go another way and hope Frith sends us a blessing. Even a small burrow would be nice." Arvens scratched his ear with a hind paw, awaiting a response from Rankin.
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"I wouldn't count on 'Frith' for anything, if I were you. But you have a nice plan." Rankin responded.
Rankin was getting aggravated with the commanding nature of this buck, as it struck him memories of being harassed and abused by his former "authority." But, he could tell this "Arvens" was determined on getting somewhere.
Rankin sat up a little, and looked at arvens curiously, but with a serious look on his face.
"You strike me more as a chief than an captain. I don't tend to like those kinds very well, regardless of what rank they are."
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Arvens was awestruck at the sudden ferocity in Rankin as he made his last point quite clear. Arvens could cuff him if he wanted to, being larger and having experience with handling wild bucks and does but being out in the open, with nowhere to go, this was no place to bicker about leadership or qualifications of the sort.
"As it stands, I am captain nor chief of nothing," said Arvens, firmly. "I don't know what sort of trouble you have been through with authority in the past but we are in no position to discuss that now. Presently we need a place safe to rest, and talking about my past isn't going to find us a resting place any sooner. I suggest we put topics of authority aside and find a home."
Arvens did not wait for a reply. He sniffed the air around, checking for elil nearby. Not sensing any, he hopped out of the bushes, ears twitching. It made no sense to go back the way he came. With the sun getting lower and lower, they would not get far before darkness fell and it would be nearly impossible to find anything. He started hopping along the treeline, going east. Looking back to Rankin, he said rather urgently, "Well, are you coming?"
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While the rabbit scouted ahead after his response, Rankin thought.
I wonder if this guy has ever made any friends.
"Well, are you coming?" the other rabbit asked, who was heading out.
"For now, I wouldn't see why not." Rankin jumped out of the weeds to join Arvens.
"We'll need to find a place to stay overnight that will keep us safe from elil. Have any ideas?" Rankin asked the rabbit.
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Arvens, glad to see Rankin decided to join up rather than straggle about, twitched his ears left and right, the feather shaking about, before responding.
"Rabbits were never permitted to leave Thornbrush, however there were many travelers from other warrens that would come by," murmered Arvens quietly, now that they were in the open. "We'd have spare burrows for these visitors, and they would tell the captains, the chief and all how they would sometimes have to dig scrapes in the dirt, if only for one evening to get out of the open."
Arvens hopped briskly along the treeline, peering here and there, hoping for signs of a burrow or anything that might do as for shelter for one night. He was not seeing anything. "I've had to dig scrapes for myself before while traveling. I've never had to dig for two. If we have to dig a scrape, you'll need to help me do it so we both survive." Arvens was not positive this is what Rankin wanted to hear, but it was the way of the world out in the open, far from any warren, from a good story, and warm bodies to snuggle against in cold nights.
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"Let's do this then." Rankin acknowledged.
Rankin picked a strategic place to make the scrape and started to dig, although not waiting for Arvens to join him.
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Arvens noted at the speed at which Rankin took to digging. He hadn't expected it to be so simple to convince him to dig anything, much less being ok with the notion that he was being forced to help out for the survival of both. Perhaps he can be reasonable thought Arvens.
He continued to watch as the scrape got wider near the base of the oak tree. The worst thing that could happen is to dig straight into a root and then they'd have to go around it or start all over again. He had it happen before and it was not safe to be digging past sundown. Noting daylight growing weaker by the moment, after a sizable hole had been dug, he pushed Rankin aside. "My turn, you keep watch now and make sure its safe." Arvens went into the soft, flaky soil at great speed, much faster than Rankin's pace. He knew the elil would be out soon and this scrape needed to be finished---soon. His claws scraped at pebbles as he flung them out of the way. What Arvens feared most came true--roots were indeed going to prevent a large hole. Moving to the right, Arvens continued to dig to the side of the root, thankfully finding no others there. After a while you could barely see his backside out of the hole.
In less than two shakes of an ear, he was back outside and shook himself, spraying dirt and dust everywhere. "Its finished," he said to Rankin. Its going to be tight, but it'll have to do for one night. You go in first." He got out of the way to allow his companion entrance to the small scrape barely large enough for both of them together.
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It was until this point when Rankin was thinking about "What if" scenarios that he actually considered arven's ability to defend himself. Now he could do much better with a shield or distraction for elil, but for some reason he thought arvens could stand as a pretty good ally when in a tight situation. Anyone could be strong, but it takes guts and brains to defeat an enemy. As he glanced at Arvens now, he did have at least a little doubt with a feather hung on his ear.
"Some questions before we rest... What shall we do if we're attacked overnight? I'm not sure if you're in fighting condition. One last thing. I remember you mentioning dogs and man. Were you chased by them around here...? Because they may or may not come around again to take care of business. I suspect that they would be here around Ni - Frith tomorrow, so we'll have to leave pretty early to avoid them. Wouldn't you agree?" Rankin asked, and waited for Arven's response.
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Arvens replied quickly, "Man and dogs won't be out at night. We will be fine." He could tell Rankin had not been out alone for very long and did not understand the tricks of living solo.
"Watch me." Arvens backed into the scrape, and his body filled up the whole opening. There was practically no room on either side. Arvens had planned it this way, and it would be very uncomfortable for the night, even more so for the rabbit who had to squeeze in behind him. With dirt walls on either side, all you could see was his head and forepaws. Looking out to Rankin he simply offered this one challenge, "Try and attack me."
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Rankin observed with an amused look on his face.
"And just how would you escape, when your only way out is blocked by a Homba?" Rankin asked "It's hypothetical question, but not unlikely to happen. That doesn't look like a lot of space to move."
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Arvens smiled. "To be fair, its not. But a homba would certainly give up once he realized it would be so easy to attack a rabbit underground and got a faceful of clawing. Most would leave and seek an easier target. They won't go after a determined rabbit." This Rankin sure thinks things over, thought Arvens, but I think he'll find for one night he's overassessing the situation. "We will be more than safe. Now, if you don't intend on attacking me," he said moving out of the scrape, "I suggest you get in so we can rest."
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"Whatever you say." Replied Rankin.
So Rankin moved in with Arvens, relaxed himself, and dozed off to sleep, confident that he had at least some protection in front of him.
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Rankin had moved into the small scrape and fell asleep rather quickly. Arvens did not enter immediately, as the sun went behind the hills, and dusk had approached. He would not get much rest that night being on watch at the front of the scrape. With scrapes no rabbit ever entirely went into deep sleep, needing to be ready at a moment's notice for intruders being exposed.
Assured that the area was calm and quiet, Arvens backed into the scrape, but it didn't take long for him to bump into the tree roots and Rankin's furry body. "Tighter than I thought it would be," mumbled Arvens to himself. He barely fit inside the scrape when all was said and done. He would simply doze. That's all captains did....they never slept for any length of time. He confided Rankin that he would protect him and you just don't do much protecting when you're snoozing. Head on paws, lying very still, Arvens dozed uncomfortably, one eye partially open, as he always did.
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Suddenly there was some motion between the trees. A small shadow appeared from somewhere between the brushwood, quietly scurrying from tree-shade to tree-shade. The shape suddenly froze in motion in a spot which from Arven's point of view clearly revealed the outlines to be that of a rabbit who was now sniffing the air casting fleeting looks in every direction.
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A rabbit in the brush did not escape Arvens' notice. He heard it moving about before he could see it. Still, he waited to see if the rabbit would do anything. Sometimes rabbits were sick, hungry, or just passing through. No reason to interrupt. However, this one appeared to be tense, looking every which way in case there was something about. Arvens sniffed the air. No hombas or lendris about. This hlessi had nothing to fear, yet still appeared worried. He wondered if he should call out to the rabbit. Any sort of noise would definitely startle it and Arvens didn't want to wake Rankin behind him either. Figuring it was better the rabbit was closer to the scrape and less fidgety in the weeds, Arvens decided to call his attention to him. "Hey, what are you doing here?" he whispered softly.
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The rabbit did a caper as if somebody had deliberately scared him. He yanked his head in the direction of Arven's whisper while the rest of his body was turned in another direction, squatted low as if to crawl right into the ground, yet clearly ready to rush away at the slightest sight of any danger. It would have looked comical but for the implications of real danger that this attitude might imply. Several moments passed in which the rabbit kept his look fixed in the direction of Arven's voice. Perhaps it was difficult to to spot him clearly between the roots of the oak for after a while the rabbit asked with a kind of shouted whisper that was still quieter than Arven's earlier call: "Rabbit?"
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"Of course, under the tree," said Arvens a little more loudly this time. If the rabbit was this skittish maybe it wasn't such a good idea to have him so close to their whereabouts. Elil would easily spot the nervousness and somewhat comical reactions to noises and fears. "Come on....get over here quickly and close to the tree, you'll be harder to spot that way," urged Arvens.
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The rabbit hissed shaking his head frantically.
"No good place!" he breathed just loud enough to be heard. "Embleer in the air at the stream nearby and tracks of weasels. This is no place to stay or talk."
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Arvens looked back at the frantic rabbit. Weasels? He checked the air again for scents. He smelled nothing except for the terrified rabbit, and had not noticed any sight or smell of elil before retreating into the scrape. Weasels could certainly be out, but they certainly were not nearby. However, with this rabbits frantic panting, it would attract every weasel in miles.
"You need to calm down or you'll attract all sorts of Elil" said Arvens, more firmly this time. "Come over here, shush down and you won't be found."
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"I won't be found because I won't be here when elil will and you'd be well advised to do the same." The rabbit seemed to be about to rush on when he turned his head one more time. "Or are you a whole warren down there?"
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"We are but two rabbits. One on the run from a tyrannical warren. I myself am a former captain of Thornbrush, recently destroyed by humans and have been on the run since. We are plenty safe here for the night, I assure you and like yourself, don't plan to stay long," explained Arvens. "We're actually seeking a new warren to join up with or hope to come across something that would be suitable for a couple of rabbits. This scrape was simply made in haste for the night. Come, stay with us, and in the morning we will move on towards Frith in the sky."
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The rabbit hissed again shaking his head frantically and breathed almost inaudibly: "If you stay you may no longer be the one to decide for how long to stay and if you keep shouting every elil in the forest will be here faster than..." In this moment there was a a rustling sound from the direction from where the rabbit had come. The rabbit uttered something that might have been a "Goodluck" (though this was hard to tell). And darted away as if the black rabbit of inleh had just appeared from the brushwood.
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Before Arvens could say anything else, the rabbit was gone in a flash. Rustling came from the direction opposite. Arvens sniffed the air once again. Nothing but the scent of the rabbit. If there are any elil out there, the damned rabbit led them right here! he thought, angrily. But there still remained no signs of elil. Rustling yes, but anything could cause that. Wind, other creatures of the night.
Arvens laid perfectly still once again, watching the brush to his right, seeing if anything was indeed there. Then a paw poked out, then another, and finally a head. What Arvens saw was shocking. Damn it all to Inle! he cursed to himself, there really was a weasel about. How had he missed it?
Moving out of the burrow would offer a chance for him to drive it away, but would also leave him very exposed. Then again, if he tried to fight it off here, he might scratch up Rankin, still snoozing behind him. He didn't feel like hurting an ally so decided to go after the weasel. Element of surprise ought to scare it off for no predator wanted to put up a fight with a healthy rabbit. Arvens tensed momentarily, and bolted out of the scrape, back legs pushed against Rankin for a quick burst of speed. The weasel suddenly saw a blur and it to ran off, unsure of what was hunting it. Arvens had not needed to even law a paw on the predator having spooked the animal away, but it would return, that was for certain now. He quickly hurried back to the scrape.
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Rankin awoke when he felt a force pushed up against him very a brief period of time. He knew that could have only been from arvens, who from what he seen ran off almost as if to chase something. Rankin stumbled out of the hole, then stretched, then whispered angrily to arvens who had stopped what he was doing and was coming back to the scrape.
"I told you something would have happened, and what did you tell me? You told me that we would stick in that hole if any danger were to arrive, and when it did you worked against your own plan, and didn't even wake me as to what was going on. You're a real genius." Rankin angrily said. "Do me a favor next time something like this happens... PRACTICE COMMUNICATION." He emphasized in a small voice
Rankin was expecting some sort of angry response or command.
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Arvens was not interested in hearing how he'd changed things on a moment's notice for now they really had to move or otherwise be prepared to fight elil, which he was not looking forward to.
"Look Rankin," he said airily, "save this discussion for another time. Unless you want to fight elil we need to move now. There was another rabbit that just breezed by here and I want to catch up with him. There is safety in numbers and one more would certainly help now that we have to travel by night and stay on our feet. I'm sorry this didn't work as planned but you have no choice but for that to happen when you're alone without a warren to live with. Now come and follow me or we will be fighting a weasel in no time."
Arvens took off in the direction he had seen the skittish rabbit go earlier, hoping he had not gone far and could be found again. If he made as much noise as he did when approaching before, he should not be too hard to find, thought Arvens momentarily, looking around as he hopped in and out of cover, seeking the rabbit.
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The chase however was not to be a long one. Already after a short distance the wood came to a rather sudden end bordered by fenced in fields where the humans apparently kept their cattle though none of them was to be seen anywhere at this time.
The skittish rabbit had crossed a field and now seemed to be waiting at the other end below a pole of a barbed wire fence with a shallow drainage ditch behind it. It was a rather open spot offering little cover (while the rabbit stayed out of the ditch), but at the same time it was so surrounded by open ground that it would be impossible to approach without being seen and every direction was open for an escape rush while the fence offered some cover from any bird of prey diving out of the dark night sky.
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Great, just great. Rankin thought.. Another idiot to add to the group. This is gonna make things even more complicated.
Rankin did mean to catch up with Arvens, but at a lagged pace on purpose. He knew that Arvens couldn't yell at him to hurry up without being loud, and the slower he was the less likely he would be able to help arvens with finding or rescuing this unnamed rabbit. If he was really lucky, they would find the rabbit prey to elil, but that was just a hope. He would also have to look out for arvens as well, because as far as he knows he may not have gotten much sleep at all. However, for the time being, rankin did not spot any elil yet...
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Arvens looked this way and that for the strange rabbit but couldn't find him. He couldn't go much further for a large fence blocked the way, apparently the edge of some farmer's pasture. Well, the other rabbit couldn't have gotten far with this fence here, thought Arvens. He took a look back the way they came and saw that Rankin was nowhere to be found. Where had he gone? He was behind me, wasn't he? Did he decide to just bail and go his own way?
Arvens didn't feel like calling for Rankin, any extra noise could draw attention. Hopefully Rankin would be able to smell him and catch up. Focusing on the fence again, he tried to see if a rabbit could go through it but the metal wiring quickly caught the fur on his head and chin. Clearly no rabbit went through here. Sniffing the ground, he could faintly smell rabbit, so there was a chance he had passed this way recently. He didn't want to remain in the open either, and moved to the side near an oak. Here he would be reasonably hidden but yet would still be able to catch sight of Rankin should he wander by again.
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"Here rabbit" a voice said suddenly. And while it was not exactly careless shouting the rabbit Arvens had seen in the wood didn't seem to be overly concerned about suppressing his voice anymore. Compared to his previous appearance he was looking oddly relaxed now standing at a fence pole just a few poles away from Arvens. But perhaps the appearance was deceiving for the rabbit still seemed to be ready to continue his flight if he should spot any danger. For the moment however his look was fixed on Arvens and he was looking a bit surprised.
"Er... what's with your ear?" he asked in a tone as if he and Arvens were old acquaintances somewhere deep in the safest tunnel of a burrow.
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Arvens looked behind him and he saw the rabbit he had been chasing a few fence posts away. He hopped closer and this time the other rabbit did not bolt or leave him, but instead asked about the feather. Arvens responded quietly, "I came from another warren, and I was a captain in its Owsla. The feathers are a way of telling who is in charge from a distance. Its the only thing that still connects me with the warren and my position within it."
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The other rabbit just nodded and there seemed to be a smile passing over his face, but it was difficult to tell if it was friendly or taunting.
While the rabbit did not bolt he did inconspicuously back away as Arvens approached seemingly intent to keep at least one fence pol distance. "How did you get birds to give their feathers?" He asked before Arvens could say anything else.
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Rankin feared he had been too slow and may have lost track of arvens, but he saw a big fence ahead on an open field which would indicate that arvens would have to had stopped there. And, as clear as frith on a beautiful day, he saw that arvens had found the rabbit.
Darn. Rankin thought, with a defeated look on his face. Rankin went to go meet with the two, but didn't hurry in case of accidentally giving the impression of being chased.
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Arvens had an answer for that. "Birds molt their feathers rather frequently, so we gathered them." His ears twitched at the sound of rustling. Turning around, he saw Rankin approaching rather slowly. "Well, now you get to meet Rankin, the other rabbit in that small scrape I spoke of. Nice enough guy but can't stand authority for some reason or another."
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"I see", said the rabbit and again his mouth was curled with what was difficult to pinpoint as friendly or taunting.
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"Don't summarize me, Arvens." Rankin said. "I think I can introduce myself just fine."
Rankin looked the newer rabbit over, and smirked a smile. What a joke.
"Hi, my name is Rankin. And yours is?"
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"Ah yes, I know you well" said the rabbit with a broad grin. "Nice enough a guy you are, but one who can't stand authority for one reason or another... May it have anything to do with the fact that, for all I have been told, your former warren was a tyrannical one? And from you I know now that the feathered rah is named Avens; though to be fair I will admit that I had asked him about his feather rather than his name so his being introduced to me by you is not altogether to be blamed on him."
All the while he was talking the rabbit was waving about with his forelegs and it was impossible to tell if the series of gestures he made was a serious but miserably failing attempt at cutting a grand figure or if this rabbit was mocking... whom exactly?
With a flamboyant but bumbling bow the rabbit finished: "As for myself I lack somebody else to introduce me to you, but you can call me Cinankhen if you want to."
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Mayberry had been running for several days, and having had no time to rest, silflay or drink any water had now taken it's toll on her body. The only reason she hadn't fallen asleep yet was her sheer stubborn iron will, she continued to hop across the landscape hoping to find some form of warren that would allow her to rest for a short bit before moving on once more. But after so many days spent running, her senses were starting to become dull and play tricks on her. Why even now she was certain she could hear the sounds of other rabbits around. She knew by now, she'd be considered a hlessi... but that wasn't going to be a problem, if anyone gave her trouble, she'd deal with the same way she dealt with all her problems... by force.
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Rankin had noticed an undeniable charm in this fellow that he had never seen in his life. Not only was the humor natural, but it wasn't in sarcasm and followed by spit in the face or random assault. It was all in good fun, and part of his personality. Rankin had taken an immediate liking to this buck
"Ha ha heh-hey! Cinankhen! Cin - an - khen! Now say that five times fast!" Rankin joked, laughing. "It's very nice to meet you cinankhen... Uh, yes, I come from a.. Rough bunch. Although I'm not sure how Arvens guessed that so well." Rankin looked at arvens, with a suspicious look on his face, but still sporting a small smile... A smile. A REAL one. He would have never thought.
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Arvens merely stayed out the way, watching the two rabbits get to know each other a little better. There was lots of smiling and joking. What they were truly thinking, Arvens couldn't put a paw on it. They could be trying to show each other up or trying to see how the other reacted to certain items about their routine. Arvens was certain about one thing, these two certainly were going to have a hard time in a strict warren should they come across one. He'd already seen on the short journey so far that neither appreciated being told much of what to do or how things should be done. Arvens put his judgments and thoughts aside momentarily.
"Cinankhen, Rankin, while I'm pleased and honored to have met some companions on this journey, we cannot stay out here in the open in view of all. Elil clearly are out tonight and we need to be under cover. I suggest we move poste haste to someplace more secluded." With that, he turned back to the tree cover and hopped closer to it. "We'll travel within here and might chance on someplace decent to rest."
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Rankin hopped behind arvens, almost following, and said something
"Arvens, wait." Rankin said "I know you're really edgy on leading us along, but I think you would need the most sleep among us. If we found a good place, would you trust me if I offered to watch over you two for the night while you rest?"
Rankin stopped talking for a moment, thought, than spoke again.
"I ask because I know you didn't catch any sort of sleep when we were at the scrape. That's not healthy, especially after being chased by man. I haven't had that problem."
Rankin stopped talking when he remembered who he was talking to. This imbecile wouldn't trust me worth hraka.
Rankin looked back while he was moving "Ohhh cinankhen? Are you coming with us?"
He then looked back at Arvens and waited for response
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Cinankhen didn't respond right away he held his head a little inclined and seemed to chew on something. During all the time he had still maintained the distance of one fence pole from to Arvens and Rankin.
"Where is with you?" he finally asked. And suddenly there seemed to be a trace of that fidgetiness about him which Arvens had seen before in the forest. When he continued he spoke in a way as if he was reciting a poem.
"What is your way? Or is it ways?
Do both of you what you want to?
Does one of you or both
strive to do the doing for the other
will this soon be cause strife
just as has been so many times?"
Again Cinankhen stopped for a moment and looked like he was desperately trying to think of more doggerels, but failing that he just asked in prose but clearly trying to put a lot of emphasis and weight on his words: "What are your plans and intentions?"
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Arvens smiled at Rankin but it didn't last long. "Captains didn't sleep much unfortunately where I came from," he sighed. "I'm kind of used to working on little sleep. But if we do find a good place, I will sleep a little."
He had no sooner finished than Cinankhen had begun rambling what seemed to be a bunch of nonsense to Arvens. Rabbits often did this when ill and just said anything that came to mind. Cinankhen didn't appear ill, but being out in the open you never knew what might happen. Only when he finally made a coherent sentence did Arvens even attempt to say anything to him. "We intend to find a place to rest, just as I told you before. We cannot expect to remain in the open and will surely be spotted if we do. If nothing else, we can use the cover of the greenery to hide ourselves and take turns resting if we must do so. If we chance upon an empty burrow, I intend to use it as a home if it is suitable as such. A warren would be a nice find but given that none of us has had any luck finding another rabbit until now, I don't think any warrens are close by." He frowned, realizing how depressing that sounded. "Are you joining us Cinankhen?"
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Mayberry crested a hill and despite her eyes being worn out from days of running she had the need to check this out, she bounded over and stopped taking a moment to stop. She looked around the group of rabbits and struggled to keep herself upright. She silently waited to be acknowledged by the others around her, still doing well to keep her guard up.
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"Join..." said Cinankhen and he sounded as if he had to chew on that word. "I am a hlessi. And I am a hlessi because I want to. I have been a hlessi for a long time and fared a lot better that way than..." he stopped in mid sentence and made a gesture as if he meant to brush something aside.
"But if you are looking for a place to spend the night you're better off here than in those woods. I've gone a long way and really there is no saver place than these ditches between the human fields. The water at the bottom washes away your scent, at the bottom of the ditch you are out of sight for anyone while you have a clear view in every direction if you peek over the edge, if you find a tube where the humans built a way over the ditch not even an owl can spot you in there and few elil will look for you there anyway because just like you they think it smarter for us to take cover where they are taking cover as well. Good reason not to take that cover isn't it? So no, I'm not going to get back into that wood. IF you do, then good luck to you. If you don't, the ditch is long enough for more than one rabbit and it's easier to keep one or two out of six eyes open for a night than one out of two and..." Ciankhen's broke of suddenly turned his head slightly and stared across the field.
"Or maybe eight eyes? By Frith and Inleh, this must be the night of hlessil! There comes another one."
-
Upon hearing what Cinankhen had said, he had looked where cinankhen did. There, across the field, he could see a white rabbit. He knew it was only a matter of time before Arvens would see it too. Come to think of it, ANYTHING could see that rabbit from anywhere. Rankin sighed
I'm growing tired of this. Rankin thought, but he made no attempt to try and greet or invite the rabbit.
-
Mayberry wandered over to the group of rabbits that seemed to have taken notice of her arrival, but even as she came within speaking distance of them all she kept her maw shut and her face rather stoic. If they had any intentions of trying to fight her, she figured it would be best to be better safe than sorry. She stopped right in front of Cainkhen and looked at the others arrayed around him with a critical glare. She then spoke aloud to them all, "As long as you give me shelter for the night, I promise in return not to get in your way."
-
For some reason Ciankhen seemed to be amused suddenly. "I don't know yet where the ways of these two fellow rabbits who are going to introduce each other to you, my name is Ciankhen by the way, are going to lead them or where their shelter will be. But the ditch where my shelter will be..." he nodded towards the ditch "...is certainly long enough for one more rabbit."
He grinned.
"My way is long but not so broad that anyone is likely to stand in my way."
-
Arvens frowned at Ciankhen's stubbornness. "Why may I ask would you put such confidence in a man-made item to protect you? Man is our biggest enemy. I want to know why you would rather remain here than follow Rankin and myself." His gaze quickly averted to the rabbit who called out in the night. White-colored, this one definitely needed shelter, being so exposed, and so unlucky to be snow white. "Over here, quickly," said Arvens hurriedly. "We were just deciding where to go next. The woods and fields are not exactly safe this evening."
-
Quickly picking up Arvens last statement Ciankhen asked: "And why, permit me the question, are you putting such confidence in the woods when at the same time you declare them not to be safe this evening?
I have been on the walk in the open for long. Longer I dare say than you Captain of the Owsla." Again Ciankhen made a little bow that but it had no air of any true respect to it.
"Anyway you can go wherever you want to but I will go where I have fared well and where I at least see the danger before it sees me. And with Frith's blessing a danger spotted is none that will catch a rabbit."
Once again a smile curled Ciankhen's mouth when he added: "And also, unless I'm very mistaken I am not sure if Rankin is quite so convinced about your... what was the phrase? Edginess on leading him along? I think you really need to figure out some things there. As for me I do not mean to lead anyone anywhere, but I know what has worked out well enough for me in the past and if you want to benefit from that that's alright, if you don't that's alright. But while you are working out all this and before you are giving Owsla orders to our new arrival as well I would be interested to know your name as well." Ciankhen nodded at the white rabbit and had spoken loud enough for her to hear every word.
-
To Rankin, the does face didn't look true to how she really felt. He could remember back in a day when many does he knew would try to keep their dignity when there was no such thing, and when some of his once-then friends had witnessed and been involved in unspeakable brutality. The faces they gave were unforgettable. Here, he could see a rabbit who appeared to be fatigued and near desperate to trust total strangers. With memories at bay, Rankin lowered his ears and looked down at the ground. But that was in the past.
As Cinankhen responded to arvens, Rankin thought. We've been in the open this entire time, and have not been bothered by elil.
After cinankhen was done and decided to ask the new rabbit a question, Rankin looked at arvens and reasoned "On second thought arvens, I think we should rest here with cinankhen for the night. Every predator around is going to think we're suicidal, and we could be being watched right now as we speak. This new rabbit looks very exhausted and I'm not sure if she could go on. If we end up getting attacked on our way, she's as good as dead. Also, it doesn't look like cinankhen is compelled to leave right now." Rankin looked back at cinankhen and the new rabbit, but listened for arvens.
-
Arvens looked at all three rabbits as if they were suddenly judging him for what he used to be. Most unusual he thought, you would feel they think they're daring me to hit them or smack them or scream at them because I once was in the Owsla, and none of them were. Well rabbits fighting rabbits in the open is plenty stupid, and besides they're all as smart as any other captain in Thornbrush's warren would have been. I like their style.
Arvens responded curtly to Cinankhen as if he were an equal and said, "Point taken," and added, "to answer your question, my name is Arvens, one of many captains in the Thornbrush warren, now destroyed. You and Rankin both have sense and would've made fine individuals in our warren. I want to know more about this ditch setup if it can adequately hide us all for the time being."
-
Cinankhen was looking a little surprised for a moment as if he hadn't expected a response or not this kind of response. Then he shrugged and said: "Like I said it has always worked for me. From here you have have a clear view in every direction and not an elil will be able to sneak upon you. Wading from here a bit in the water at the bottom will make it impossible for anyone following our scent to tell which way we went and if we find a tube or something like that even birds won't be diving down upon us. As for everything else we are runners the thousand can't keep up with us in the open when we see them coming long before they're there."
-
Mayberry had indeed heard all that was said, and upon hearing the other rabbits responses, she decided it was in her best interests to speak. "My name is Mayberry, former Captain of Owsla, to the Warren of Bloodsbain." She then gave a death glare towards Rankin as she continued. "And as tired, and weak as I may appear.. I promise you, any Elil or rabbit, stupid enough to stand in my way... will dealt with by extreme force." She then took a ragged breath and stated with a voice seeming to border near death, "But please... just let me rest... t-that is all I ask of you..."
-
Rankin was not impressed, and only responded with a mere "Ok."
-
Cinankhen's reply made sense to Arvens. Logical, to the point, and it did offer a sense of security for all the rabbits, and they wouldn't need to travel any further that night. "I like the idea," said Arvens, "besides Mayberry here cannot travel any more, and I'd rather like to talk more with a captain of Owsla if she's up to it."
Arvens sniffed at the ditch area and dived in. The ground was a tad mushy, and it was not going to be totally comfortable, but beggars can't be choosers. "Well, let's go and rest," he said, looking on towards the metal drainage shaft.
-
Mayberry who by now was far too tired and weak to hop into the ditch, simply slumped by the edge of the depression in the earth, and sighed. "I would like nothing more... than to tell my tales... of being an Owsla captain...." she said with a tired intake of breath. She then asked Arvens, "What... would you like... to know?"
-
OOC: Arvens asked, not Cinankhen ;)
-
"I think we should talk about this tomorrow." Rankin stated. He then hopped into the ditch with Arvens.
-
Cinankhen seemed to have listened up at the words of Mayberry and had already opened his mouth to say something when Rankin's words seemed to make him change his mind. As he closed his mouth again with a regretting but accepting look at Mayberry.
Turning his look to Rankin and Arvens he said: "Maybe you two can tell your tales when we reach a saver spot."
Turning to Mayberry before one of the others could respond he said: "But I think you must take a last effort before you can rest. At the edge of the ditch you are in view from everywhere. And even at the bottom of the ditch you will be visible to owls unless we move to one of these tubes the humans put in where they are crossing their ditches."
Finally giving up the distance from everyone he had kept up carefully until now Cinankhen approached Mayberry.
"Can I help you?" He asked. "You are not injured, are you?"
-
Mayberry turned her head to face Cinankhen and replied, "No... not injured, j-just tired." Then realizing what Cinankhen said was true about where she lay right now. With a forced sigh of compliance Mayberry raised herself up and jumped down into the ditch. She happened to hobble over to one of the few open spaces left in the ditch. She then sat silently taking many deep breaths, and trying to will herself to stay awake in case any of the other rabbits asked her a question.
-
One paw after the next, Arvens led the way down the ditch looking for the man tunnel thing where nothing could see them from above. Luckily it wasn't far away and for the better. Stopping at the entrance, he leaned his head forward, smelling around within the drainage pipe. Rainwater, soil, and dampness was all that he could detect--no other animals. He couldn't see far but hopefully it was large enough for all. He stepped in to see what really was there, and found he barely fit. It'll be more than a hiding place if I can't get back out he thought and sighed. Water was everywhere and you couldn't go far either way in either direction, only straight ahead. This was going to be a long night, if any truly slept at all.
"Come on over, its safe," he called out, "its not far now."
-
Rankin hopped right up next to arvens, and looked at the manhole. It looked too small to fit into.
"Yeah, forget it. That's just too small." Rankin sighed. "I'd rather sleep where I am... I wonder if the doe could fit in here, though...?" Rankin laughed.
-
Cinankhen had stayed behind with Mayberry but he cast a nervous look up to the sky. And a few signs of the nervousness he had shown earlier in the wood came back to him. "You sure look like you have had a long day, but just to make sure that the long day is not followed by the last of nights you really want to get up and get to the tube."
Cinankhen was wondering if he could help Mayberry to get up or carry her, but even though Mayberry was relatively small she still was a bit larger than him and even if this had not been the case he was astutely aware that he was not able to carry much.
Looking for Arvens and Rankin for help he became aware of another problem. The two were at the nearest tube in the ditch but even in the pale moonlight it was easy enough to see why the two of them were standing before the tube rather than getting into it and it was not for any intention to wait for him or Mayberry.
On all his journey's Cinankhen had come across many tubes and pipes that would have been comfortable enough for rabbits of Rankin's and Arvens' size and he had yet to come across a tube too narrow for someone as lanky as him, but this tube was definitely not the size of a more average sized buck or doe than he was.
-
Cinankhen was getting a little angry with himself. Why in Frith's name didn't he just get on? Here was a doe apparently too tired to care about getting to a saver spot very close by, there were too bucks who wouldn't fit into this particular pipe so if indeed they were to stay as a group for this night they all would head on to a larger pipe in this ditch or look for some brushwood near the pipe, perhaps the fence might also offer enough protection from a diving owl, or maybe they would head for some totally different place altogether... in which case Cinankhen decided he would definitely not come along but stay at the kind of spot which on all his journeys had proven to be the safest one could find so long the weather remained dry.
Cinankhen felt how rather than being angry just with himself for caring to hang around with these rabbits he was also getting angry at everyone of them for showing little care in return. "Do you care enough to get to a place where you can sleep without being killed in your sleep by some owl or would you rather have it that way?" he asked Mayberry trying to hide his frustration with her sleepiness with an exaggeratedly kind sound of his voice. In case of the two rabbits who were clearly too far away to punish him right away he felt less need for sounding gently when he called in a a rather acid tone: "Oh ye stronger members of rabbit kind, does either of you care to help this doe or will ye rather just leave her here in the mud if so is her decision?"
And to himself inaudible to any of the others he muttered: "And some rabbits wonder how I could possibly prefer being a lone hlessil over the company of other rabbits!"
[Excuse the broad hints, but I feel this RPG is falling silent at a time when each of us has plenty of options on what to do rather than waiting for somebody else to do something :lol]
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Arvens was about to return inside the pipe to see if there was a way to manage any sort of comfortable sleeping grounds when Cinankhen's voice was loud and clear. Arvens barely could contain a choked gasp and laugh at the same time.
Arvens hopped over quickly to Cinankhen. "You never tell a Captain of Owsla what to do or to suggest she cannot handle things," he hissed quietly, but not so quietly that Mayberry couldn't hear him. "They aren't the leaders of the guards for nothing. She may look tired, but she's captain for a reason. Now come. She can take care of herself. If she wants us to help she'll say it."
-
As Arvens approached Cinankhen backed away again to maintain the distance between two fence pols that would give him a start in case this was necessary.
"Owsla is the leader of the guards", said Cinankhen as if he had never ever heard that definition before. "What is the task of the guards and the Owsla?" he asked Arvens.
-
"Outside of the chief of the warren, they are the most powerful rabbit there, usually one of the largest and strongest," Arvens spelled out rather quickly and plainly. "In most warrens, if you demote a captain's ability to lead or manage the situation, you get scratched. That would show a thing or two about who's in charge and why." He looked at Mayberry again. "You won't get scratched, but the Owsla captains are very good at surviving in the open. She will be fine. Now, are you interested at all in trying to help me make the drain more comfortable? It would be nice as well for a decent place for the captain to rest. That wouldn't take long."
-
Ignoring what else had been said Cinankhen asked: "So it is the task of the Owsla and the guards to be powerful? Being powerful is their function?"
-
"Oh for Frith's sake!" Arvens practically yelled at the rabbit, "let's just do something for her instead of standing here. You can ask me questions later. Now I need help with the damp dirt in your tunnel. The whole place isn't bad, so maybe some soil can be dug out near the top and moved so its drier. Now come on," he huffed, turning away and off towards the entrance to the pipe.
-
The tone of Cinankhen's voice did not change one bit while he kept his eyes fixed on Arvens and said totally failing to acknowledge that Arvens had turned away: "Just a moment ago you told me I was never to suggest to a Captain of the Owsla that she could not handle things. How dare I suggest her or you to be unable to handle things with a tunnel that is no more mine than yours?
And how dare I suggest a Captain of the Owsla to be unable to tell me what the use of the Owsla and the guards is... on second thought unless you tell me that now I will have to suggest it and suggest it aloud whether you like it or not."
-
When arvens had left the pipe to speak to cinankhen, Rankin just sat where he was and relaxed. He gave a small yawn, and thought You know what? I'm OK with this. I think I could just sleep right here. Rankin could ignore the moist surface under him for now, he just wanted some sleep now that he could consider himself safe. He was about to take his chance seriously and act upon it until he heard arvens raise his voice rather loudly. Rankin's heart pulsed within a seconds time. He's yelling at someone.
When Rankin had looked at the three rabbits, it looked to him like arvens was pointing off his way and cinankhen had just finished saying something. Cinankhen.
-
Mayberry had sat rather still and listened to the other rabbits debate and discuss what to do, even where it concerned her own safety and finally after hearing all she wanted to hear she stood up on her paws and shouted, "ENOUGH! For Friths sake, you boys fight as if the next decision will cost you your lives! If my safety is that important to you all... then I will try to sleep where ever you three think is best."
-
"I don't fight!" said Cinankhen and for the first time his voice sounded a bit sharper.
"I asked a question. What are the functions of Owsla and the guards Arvens?"
-
Mayberry narrowed her eyes for just a moment before she spoke again. "It would be a better choice to direct your question to an ACTUAL Owsla Captain, however..." she stated with a pause before continuing "Since you asked Arvens... he should answer you."
-
Cinankhen rolled his eyes slightly but was clearly intent to maintain a save distance from both Arvens and Maybery. "He too is an Owsla captain your highness", he said. "So with such an assembly or Owsla captains it ought not to be too hard to answer that simple question. What is the use of Owsla and the guards? What are they guarding? This is my question to Arvens and I hope not to cause a conflict of authority when one Owsla captain presumes the right to answer for the other."
-
Rankin had heard what Cinankhen had questioned and he knew it was troubling the former owsla guards. He hopped up to the group and had a little space between he and arvens, and tried to answer cinankhen
"Cinankhen," Rankin spoke in a rather confirmed voice, as if everyone already knew "Their job is to bully everyone into submission to keep their power. If they don't get what they want then they will get rather aggressive about it. If that answers your question, can you go with arvens now? I think I'm just going to sleep here." Rankin was getting annoyed at the quarrel.
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Cinankhen shook his head as if to get rid of a fly that would crawl into his ears. "What is the use of an Owsla Arvens?" he repeated.
-
Arvens snorted at Rankin's brash response to the question. "Not all Owsla's are power hungry, though some certainly are, I've seen them, but I didn't come from one, if that's your concern." Turning his attention back to Cinankhen he said rather pointedly, " The job of the Owsla is to protect the warren. You're free to interpret that as you will. Some will say its to protect all who live there. Others will tell you that's an excuse to do what you want for your own ego. Depends on which rabbit you ask, in which warren, and at what time."
He nodded to Mayberry and added, "And I'm not an Owsla captain, I was an Owsla member and coordinator within my warren. I did all sorts of stuff, but I never made the final call. Do not assume I am a power hungry individual like all those rabbits you've heard of in stories. I just happen to know what needs to be done and when since I did a lot of that in my time in the Owsla."
-
"And you are the only one left of your former warren Arvens?" Cinankhen asked.
-
"As far as I'm fully aware, I may very well be the only one left," said Arvens. "Its not something you do, look back on man to see what's going on. You run and hope you get away and survive. It is likely others are alive, but I never found them."
-
Cinankhen nodded. His voice sounded perfectly calm and factually rather than snidely when he continued: "And never bothered to look either. At the sight of man run as fast as you can.
But the fact remains that in the face of danger guardians and Owsla members run just as fast as those who they are supposed to protect and who are termed cowards for it. I do not blame Owsla members for running in the face of danger. What I do blame the likes of you for is the assumption that others may not talk to you or another Owsla member..." he nodded at Mayberry, "...the way you might talk to them. Your hraka or that of any Owsla member or chief rabbit doesn't smell any better than that of anyone. I don't know what you were like as an Owsla member, I don't know where you think tyranny begins or by what right you think you can assume a higher authority than others. But what I do see is that if, as you say, it is the job of the Owsla to protect a warren you must have failed that job if you are the only survivor and didn't even bother to look back in your flight to see if any one of those you were supposed to protect survived. Again I do not blame you for running, but I see nothing about you to tell me how you dare to expect a hlessi in the open to follow your orders or take any cocky tone from you. And if it is your intention to ever find anyone less devoted to hlessi life to join or to follow you to found a new warren you may have to show more than the mere word Owsla to impress anybody who wouldn't submit to just anyone.
That being said what's the decision of the high Owsla members on what they will do? Accept this stand of things and continue as we did before. Part ways with anyone who won't submit to an authority from a past and different place. Or..." at this Cinankhen subtly took a position from which he could dash away at the wink of an eye, "...something else?"
-
Arvens could feel the rage building inside of him. Damn it all to Frith, he thought angrily, as he turned from Cinankhen once again and began pacing. This cheeky whelp thinks he knows all. Has he ever even seen a man, or dog attack a warren? Some young rabbits have no respect for those who earn their position or those who clearly know why it is things are done the way they are. It gave Arvens an idea, one that would certainly change how the whole situation was going down, right out in the open nonetheless, which he wasn't all too pleased with in the first place.
Arvens quit pacing and moved as close to Cinankhen as he felt he could get without the rabbit bolting away. "You've been doing a lot of big talk for a small rabbit. So you want to dance with the Black Rabbit in the pale moonlight do you? What I want to know is what have you done in life to be such a critical source of all beings? If you think its so simple to stand and face a human intent on killing all rabbits in sight, I would like to see you turn and stop and watch your friends, your family, your life, torn, slashed, and gassed into oblivion and say 'I'm more magnificent than thou because I have stayed and protected when its a suicidal mission' and still be ok with that. You wouldn't be ok...you'd be dead like the rest in that unfortunate plight. Its worth more being alive than dead so don't you dare say I have failed rabbits. I can still be of use to other rabbits, provided they have the sense to recognize when luck and opportunity come their way," he snarled menacingly. "I don't know what warren you came from, but they didn't teach you a shred of dignity and respect for those who have been through a lot in their lives."
-
Rankin just sat where he was. He thought things were getting dumb at this point.
"I don't think anyone here should feel sorry then, Arvens." Rankin said "You trained a bunch of morons if they couldn't have survived when you could. You prepared them to die. I hope you feel proud, captain of owsla... But then again, I know what it's like to feel helpless in an terrible position."
OOC: No offense to previous players and/or chars XD
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Cinankhen hurried to speak before something more could be said but kept his voice at the unnerving calmness of someone talking about the weather.
"I pity you for the lot you have been through.
But it is you, not I who told me what to say or what not to without any right to do so. It is you not I who shows no respect for the other one. And as for that former rank of yours I don't have any reason to respect that or obey you for it. Whether or not you could have looked for other survivors or be of any help to those you were to protect and of whom you are the only one left may be left to doubt. It certainly does not put you in the position to demand particular respect, obedience, or submission to you or any Owsla member from me.
I don't know or care why you would think that I had not had my own lot to go through."
Cinankhen stopped for a moment as if he had said more than he had wanted to, but he he quickly continued.
"What you do I don't care. I have been been a hlessi for quite a while and don't need your or anybody's company. I did not ask to join you, nor did I tell you to join me. It might even be a risk to attract more elil in a large group.
There is nothing to gain for me but what stories you might tell or listen to. But you, who you have lived in the doubtful safety of a warren until recently with some of you being used to others doing your every bidding may benefit more from my tales than I would of yours."
There was a sudden change about Cinankhen's posture. For a moment his eyes seemed to go out of focus and he looked as if he was trying to remember something. When he continued he all of a sudden sounded like he was talking to himself rather than to anybody else: "...dance with the Black Rabbit in the pale moonlight?" He repeated the words Arvens had used earlier as if he had just remembered them. "Is it not odd that we think of death coming in the shape of a rabbit rather than any elil? No! No maybe it is altogether fitting. You don't dance with the greatest of the elil. A race it is. Racing every day... cunning and full of tricks Frith said... runner... Runner! Not what they say... not what they try to make you, make them, make us.
The race we all loose one day, but not yet Inleh!" Cinankhen rose his head in a jerky motion to look at the moon and called: "Not yet Inleh!"
He twitched a bit and let himself drop to the ground. As he looked towards the others his eyes seemed to get back into focus gradually. He looked a bit confused but seemed to struggle not to show it if indeed he was.
-
Arvens largely ignored Cinankhen's rant about the way things are according to Cinankhen. This rabbit severely had issues with anyone telling him what to do. Perhaps that's why he was alone all the time. He took notice when the young buck went into a peculiar seizure of sorts and started mumblings things left and right about death and replaying what Arvens had mentioned earlier. He had stopped eventually and looked as if nothing had occurred. Arvens only asked one thing, "What in Frith's name are you?"
-
Cinankhen looked puzzled: "A... rabbit?" he said in a tone as if Arvens had asked him for the own name.
-
Mayberry's tired and gruff face seemed to lighten up for a moment as she heard Cinankhen's post rant talk of death. She stepped forward and looked Cinankhen in the eyes as she spoke. "We had one who spoke just like that... in my old warren... are you... a seer?" she asked as politely as she could despite her fatigue making her irritable.
-
Cinankhen abandoned any attempts at hiding his confusion. "Seer...? Err... I can see, but so can you." Looking nervously at everyone he asked: "Why are you looking at me like that?"
-
Mayberry sighed as she got set to explain.
"A seer back in my warren was a rabbit who had the ability to see things before they happened. When one talks about Frith and Inle as you just have... it is usually the sign of a seer... are you certain you aren't hiding any secrets from us?" she asked sternly, but truthfully.
-
Cinankhen's face was a manifestation of confusion now. "What are you talking about? When did I talk of Frith and Inleh?"
As if seeking for help Cinankhen looked at each of the others in turn and finally at Rankin: "Is this some kind of joke?"
-
Rankin laid down and answered "Well, if it's a joke then you're the joker." with a snicker. "Weren't you just talking to them a minute ago? What have they told you before? Can you remember?"
Rankin didn't know if this was a joke or not himself.
-
Nostradamus and his friend Winston were sore stump and tired. they had stopped for a minute to rest in a bush. "See Nostradamus, I told you we'd lose that hawk."the skunk said with a worn out smirk. Nostradamus looked at him. " so that was a different Winston who I heard crying we're dead, we're dead, we're going to die." he said with a smirk. Winston chuckled. "I only did that so you wouldn't feel like a ninny." Winston defended as he poked his head out a bush and saw some rabbits. "Hey Nostradamus, check this out." He motioned as the black rabbit poked his head out to seen to see the rabbits. "I wonder what they're talking about?" Winston said as they listened.
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Arvens looked back and forth at Cinankhen and Mayberry. A seer would make sense to Arvens. He'd heard of them but never had there been one in Thornbrush, and he'd never come across one either. Cinankhen wasn't saying he was one, but he sure wasn't trying to dismiss it as a possibility either.
"Joke, smoke," snorted Arvens, "its no joke to us. Are you a seer or aren't you? Just answer the question."
-
"What on earth makes you all think this all of a sudden? What is this? Talk of Frith and Inleh? What are you talking about?" Cinankhen still looked genuinely confused.
-
Arvens moved very closely to Mayberry, knowing that she would probably understand where he was going with this. He whispered quietly to her, "Do you feel he's doing this because he's scared of Owsla? Unless the warren he's from never told an Elahrairah tale or nothing about the great Frith, however likely that is. I'm not altogether certain he's being truthful with us."
-
(One important note of clarification. When I let Cinankhen say: " What is this? Talk of Frith and Inleh? What are you talking about?" I didn't mean for this to be interpreted as him having no clue who Frith and Inleh are (he certainly does) but was referring only to the matter of him mentioning either of them. Sorry for sounding ambiguous on that one).
-
OT: I still like what I wrote regardless of that clarification.
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"Yes, that's exactly what we mean." Rankin replied to Cinankhen. He was still laying on the ground, lazily, without a care in the world. "We're wondering if you can talk to Frith and forsee the future."
-
Cinankhen shook his head vividly. "No I can't. And why in Frith's name would you think that I could?"
-
Not far from the four rabbits there was a small brown doe hopping through the woods. She stopped for a moment, looked around and sniffed to detect any elils that could be nearby, hunting. Luckily, the woods were quiet, excluding the chirping of the crickets. Suddenly, she heard a slight rustle in bushes behind her. As she turned around, doe saw a gray rabbit coming out of shrub, who was gasping.
"Cou... Could you slow down a bit, Neltita? Not everybody can run as fast as you do." the gray buck complained, before collapsing to the ground.
"Well... Sorry for that, but I am eager to find some safe place to hide in." Neltita responded "Aren't you, Thyme?"
"I am eager, but exhaustion can beat eagerness every time." Thyme muttered "And I am exhausted, so I say we should take a break and..."
"Hush! I hear someone..." Neltita whispered. Both rabbits stood up and started to listen to the sounds coming from nearby opening. Now they could hear clearly voices of some creatures. They had followed them till Neltita and Thyme saw a smal group of rabbits, sitting by some ditch. They seemed to preoccupied with their conversation to pay attention to anything else...
"Should we approach them?" Thyme asked his friend, whispering.
"I think we should. After all, it's safer to travel in group."
"But what if they turn out to be hostile?"
"Since when the rabbits are one of the Enemies?" Neltita asked rhetorically "Don't worry. I believe they won't be a threat to us."
"If you say so." Thyme sighed. On many occasions Neltita had had feelings on many things and so far they had proved to be right. He hoped that this time was no different, as he doubt they could survive long just on their own. Thyme followed Neltita, who was hopping silently towards the group. They kept quiet not to surprise those rabbits, but not to attract attention of predators. When Thyme and Neltita were close enough to talking rabbits, the doe greeted with them:
"Hello there."
-
Mayberry had finally gotten a chance to lay down on the ground beneath her, and said aloud, "Well... usually when one talks of Frith and Inle like that... is either usually near death himself.. or a seer." After speaking, she was moments away from letting sleep claim her weary body when she heard two more voices speak up, and she knew two things right away, one: they were more hlessil and two: she knew at least one of them wasn't hostile. Mayberry wanted more than anything to stand up and confront these newcomers, but her body's cry for rest was greater than she realized and she continued to lay on the ground awake but tired.
-
Arvens just sighed and moved away from Cinankhen. This was getting ridiculous in his opinion, and all this talk was just wearing him out. What a bunch of nonsense, and a lot of things would just be easier if they could just get to the point of things. Yes, sir, no sir, you want me to stand on my hind legs, sir? Time is of essence in the open, of which turning back to their present situation, he realized all the blabbering had attracted more animals.
A doe had peeked over the ridge of the ditch and greeted them. A buck was by her side and didn't say anything. "Hello," replied Arvens in a friendly tone. "I don't know if its a blessing or a hint that our blabbering is carrying all over the place and we've been found. I'm Arvens, formerly of Thornbrush, and former Owsla member. Who might you two be? If any of you are seers let me know beforehand so I can find out what that darn Cinankhen will say next," he grumbled and flung his ears in every direction. "I've quite had enough of him."
-
Neltita looked at buck, that had spoken to them. He acted very friendly and it seemed he was honest about it. That's a good start.
"I am Neltita and my friend here is called..."
"...Thyme." gray rabbit finished with tired smile "It's nice to meet you, even though I would have prefered to meet you in our old warren instead here, in the open, where every elil can get us..."
Doe sighed. Thyme was always able to find bad side to all things. Well... Maybe it was a slight exaggeration, but only slight. What Arvens said got her thinking for a moment. Should he tell them about her feelings? In her old warren they caused her to be seen as bringer of bad luck, especially when she said there will be a disease and it turned out to be true. Those who escaped from the warren forced her to leave their group, stating she was cursed and they didn't want to be affected by her curse anymore. Only Thyme went with her... And right now he was answering Arven's question for her!
"Well... If by the seer you mean someone, who can tell you what will happen, then Neltita is one. She has these feelings very often and sometimes they can get very creepy, but she is good and nice rabbit, I assure you."
"Thank you for summing me up this way, Thyme." doe said, not knowing if she should be upset by him revealing the truth about her abilities or reliefed by it.
-
Cinankhen who had given a nervous twitch at the sudden appearance of the two newcomers now gave a greeting nod to both of them. "Hello. Welcome here Neltita! Welcome Thyme! And I thought that four lonely hlessi were enough to name this the night of the hlessi. This seems to be a migration of warrens indeed.
As the rabbit Arvens, who will never fail to mention his having been in the Owsla, already said my name is Cinankhen. I'm a hlessi, apparently an annoyance to him, and for reasons totally unknown to me these fellow rabbits here think that I was a seer and claim that I was talking to Frith.
Whatever their reasons before this rather odd debate was started we were out to take shelter in one of the tubes men put into this ditch wherever they are crossing it. Welcome as you are, we are turning ever more into a crowd which no elil could possibly overlook, so I suggest that we head for the nearest of the pipes to either rest or continue this debate or some of us continuing this debate thereby keeping the rest of us from resting. In any case it is not certain if we will all fit into the tube, but we won't know until we get there. So I suggest that we go there."
Turning to Arvens again he said: "Maybe you want to give the order to go there? I will head there either way and recommend everyone looking for some shelter from the owls to do the same, but if it makes you any less irritable if you can say the words before everyone does what everyone would do I do not suppose that anyone would have a major problem with the former Owsla member saying some words, if it makes him feel better. So long he does not misinterpret it as an agreement for anyone to generally submit himself to any orders he would give that anyone else might not do anyway?"
-
As the duo listened, Winston turned to Nostradamus. "Hey Noesy, what is Frith?" Winston's question was met with a scowl. "How should I Know!" He shouted towards the skunk and caused him to spray behind them. The two ran out with disgusted looks on their faces. "Winston!" Nostradamus shouted. "Sorry." He said sheepishly as they looked at the rabbits in front of them. " Hi, I'm Nostradamus, and this is my friend Winston. " He said, motioning to the skunk.
-
Mayberry kicked at the ground for a moment and finding strength in her newfound anger she stood up on her hind legs and decided it best to introduce herself the best way she knew how. "My name is Mayberry, former Captain of Owsla, to the Warren of Bloodsbain. I have been running for a great many days.... and any hlessil to anger me further... well, let's just say they won't have to worry about it much longer." With her 'introduction' out of the way, Mayberry slid back down to the dirt and attempted to rest once more.
-
Arvens was practically ready to give Cinankhen the cuffing of his life for his smartass mockery of him, but a sound behind him gave him a pause. The stench that followed nearly caused him to pass out and want to move as far away as possible. Behind him stood a rabbit and a skunk...not an animal rabbits particularly had any business with given their differences, but not a mortal enemy either.
"You startled me," Arvens said rather quickly. "I'm Arvens, former Owsla member of Thornbrush. Why did you sneak up on us like that?"
-
"What did I say?" Cinankhen said more to himself than to anyone else at Arven's pointing out of his Owsla past.
All the while he was inconspicuously moving away so as to maintain what was his apparently preferred safety distance not just from Arvens but from each of the newcomers as well. In doing so he also made sure to be on the luvward side of the newly arrived skunk though there was but only a slight breeze at this time.
Turned to Nostradamus and Winston he said: "My name is Cinankhen and it is nice to meet you. However, by now we are so many here that we will attract owls or the like in no time unless we take some cover. There may be the safety in numbers of not being just the one to be picked out of a crowd such as this one, but I reckon there is more safety in having some solid cover above ones head when it comes to birds of prey. I don't know if there is enough room for everyone in the pipe over there..." he pointed towards the nearest pipe which they had been considering for shelter before "...but there will be more of them in this ditch and I'm also not sure if..." he squinted at Mayberry "...everyone feels like staying close to such annoying hlessils as myself or awake enough to take the final steps to security though I would surely recommend it to your highness."
Cinankhen cast a look over his shoulder taking a deep breath. Before he finished: "I'm sure that all of us, apart from a need to rest, have interesting stories to tell and hopefully also the will to listen to the stories of others. But to avoid any of our stories to be cut untimely short we really ought to take some cover!"
With that he set in motion towards the pipe.
-
Even for such small amount of time, Thyme was getting to like Cinankhen. Maybe sometimes he spent a bit too much time on saying something, that could be said in fewer words, but he seemed to be quite reasonable fellow. In addition, he didn't take Owsla's titles very seriously, so he was probably a good sort - not looking down on others and not bullying outskirters.
"I think Cinankhen is right. It's good idea to go into cover now, before any of us becomes a meal for a fox or owl." Thyme said aloud and then he followed earthly-colored rabbit. Then he stopped, remembering that he had almost forgotten to introduce himself to new rabbit and his skunk friend.
"My name is Thyme and since everybody here is boasting about being in Owsla I'll let you know, that I am former almost-accepted member of Greenweed's Owsla" he said with a smile, that could look cheeky to particular Owsla Captain. He would probably be right to think so. Thyme didn't wait for a response, as he hopped into the ditch...
-
Despite everything she'd been through in the last few days, Mayberry knew that if she planned on living long enough to be of any use to anyone including herself, she had to put her safety before her pride and slowly but surly followed Cinankhen towards the drainage ditch knowing it would offer her the protection she sought for the night. She reached the drainage ditch and looked inside. She the commented by saying, "This, does not look very wide... or stable. Are you certain it can hold any of us?" she asked Cinankhen.
-
Cinankhen eyed the tube critically. Before he responded: "As for stability there is no need to worry. These tubes are rather stable. As for wideness I guess it would be comfortable enough for anyone of your size or mine and tolerable for the somewhat larger ones. As for the largest of us...", Chinankhen cast a look back to the others, "...I guess they need to try. But since our group has grown quite a bit by now I do not think this one tube will do for all of us."
-
Rankin once again hopped back to the hole where cinankhen and mayberry had been at and made a comment
"I'll just stick out here. I'm not going in there."
-
Mayberry scoffed at the metallic tube and slowly climbed in. She managed to turn around with little difficulty and sighed as she sat in the pipe. "It would seem your idea isn't as crazy as I thought it would be." she commented to Cinankhen. "There may be room for one more if you'd like to try." she said with a bored, and tired tone of voice.
-
Arvens just watched as everyone approached the tube thing he had checked out earlier. Now there was definitely no way he'd fit with so many other creatures going in. Not that he minded. The night air would be fine. Rankin didn't want to go in either, so if nothing else they could swap guard duty what remained of the night.
"Well, if you're not going in," said Arvens to Rankin, quietly, "what guard shift do you want....early or later? We can't both be resting at the same time."
-
Cinankhen nodded saying: "There's room for more than one though not enough for everyone of the group. We might have to take turns with some of us staying outside the tube." Looking at Mayberry he hastened to say: "Those who are not too tired that is."
Looking up at the sky he said more to himself than to anyone else: "Mostly clear sky. That's good. A ditch does not remain a save place when the rain is falling."
Cinankhen then looked back where they had come from to see if others from the group had also decided to give the tube a try or what else they might be up to.
-
Overhearing what Arvens asked Cinankhen said: "I don't mind staying out of the tube for a while either. More than one will not fit in and I..." he seemed a bit at a loss for words for a moment plucking one of his ears, "...am not too fond of crowded spaces. I had some rest during the day and don't think I would get any soon either."
Suddenly his face seemed to brighten up distinctly when he said: "There may be time for storytelling for those who won't get any rest soon."
-
"I can help you with guard duty" Neltita proposed, looking at Arvens. Despite travelling through woods for a long time she didn't fell too tired. "It won't hurt to have one more pair of eyes and ears to watch for Elils"
Thyme had been inspecting the tube Mayberry was in, when he overheard disscusion about sentry duty. He was really tired and he dreamed of nothing but sleeping through the rest of the night. On the other hand, he felt he should do something useful for the group and so he said:
"I will help too, but could I take later shift? I could really use some sleep before doing guard duty."
-
A little smile curled Cinankhen's mouth for a moment. "It seems like many are not too eager for rest. The ground is open on both sides of the ditch. Elil will be easy to spot on the ground while we won't be seen so long we stay in the ditch. It's the owls we need to worry about. Of them you are save only in the tube. But there is rarely safety anyway so I guess we can only take our chance and keep our heads down."
-
"What are Elil?" Nostradamus and Winston both asked as they stayed low. "And who or what are Frith and El-ahrairah?" Nostradamus asked the group as he flinched from the rain. " On second thought that pipe sounds good as he and Winston headed towards it. "So anyone else coming?" He asked as he and Winston crawled into the drain.
-
Rankin kept his head low and answered Arvens
"I'll take the early shift, as I had said a while ago."
-
Arvens nodded, "I figured you might, and you'll be here until sunrise, which isn't as far off as anyone thinks. We've talked a good portion of the night away. You slept when you could sometimes at Thornbrush so daytime drowsing won't be so bad."
He turned to the group that seemed to suddenly not be so tired. "We don't need everyone on guard duty," he announced, "have one other stay up with Rankin here and the rest sleep and then we change shifts." He followed the odd couple into the drain, "There is enough room in here, despite it being a bit tight. I checked earlier. Come on or none of us will sleep at all."
-
Mayberry had waited moments after crawling into the drainage pipe to see if any of the other bucks needed her help or advice, and upon realizing they were busy talking about guard duty her body finally forced her mind to shut down and she almost immediately fell into a deep, soundless sleep with her heartbeat echoing off the large metal tube.
-
"Alright. Wake me up when it's my turn" Thyme said, before lying down in a drain and trying to make himself comfortable in there. After a short moment he was sleeping deeply.
Neltita joined Rankin outside of the drain, "I will help Rankin watch for predators. You go rest." she said with a smile and tone of voice, that quite resembled that of mother sending her kittens to sleep. She stood up and looked around to see, if anything is moving near the drain. Neltita then lowered herself back to the ground.
-
Cinankhen cast a look at the tube and then at the clear sky. At last he approached Rankin and Neltita but same as before he maintained a certain distance.
He sounded almost a little embarrassed when he said: "Well, perhaps it is time to get to know each other a little better. It sure looks like quite a few rabbits have left their warrens of lately..." Cinankhen gave a sound that was probably supposed to be a little laugh or chuckle but sounded strangely out of tone. "What got you on your ways?" he asked looking alternately at Rankin and Neltita while cocking his head.
-
Neltita looked at Cinankhen with curiosity. He always kept his distance from other rabbits. Was it caused by simple caution, was he afraid of them? Or maybe he didn't want to become attached to any of them in any way, so he wouldn't have trouble with leaving them behind if it was necessary? She will have to ask him about it, but first...
"Well... Me and Thyme come from a warren that was struck by disease..." she said, then added reassuringly "Don't worry, we are not sick, even though many others were infected. We managed to survive with few other rabbits, but we... split up and then we've found you."
-
Cinankhen cowered low laying his ears close to his body.
"The white blindness (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myxomatosis)?" he asked.
-
"Yes. It was white blindness" Neltita answered with a nod. She didn't want to talk more about it, so she asked "What about you, Cinankhen? Where do you come from?"
-
Rankin was sitting by closely and listening. I didn't think Arvens would let it happen. He's a nice buck then, I guess.
"That's a good question, Cinankhen." Rankin acknowledged curiously "What's the story on you? I guess you'll be helping with guard duty?"
-
"Mind the sky in particular", said Cinankhen. "Elil on the ground will be easy to spot on the open fields. The owls are what we need to worry about most. I'll stay out here."
Cinankhen did not continue, but the silence became embarrassing after a few moments so he responded to the other question:
"I've been a hlessi for a long time. One sees more of Frith's world if one goes see it. One also may be spared some of what comes with life or... in the warrens."
For a moment Cinankhen's eyes seemed to get out of focus, but the next moment he shook his head fiercely and brushed over his face with a paw as if to wipe something away.
"Nothing!" he said looking a little embarrassed. He chuckled and grinned as if a joke had been made on his expense.
"What about you?" he asked looking at Rankin. "You don't look like the kind that was given a hard time in a warren easily. Why are you here?"
-
Rankin hesitated. He didn't want to have to lie to more people, but it was necessary for survival.
"An... Elil attack confused my home warren that I killed an owsla member. They kicked me out." Rankin hoped he didn't get choked up delivering that statement.
-
Cinankhen looked at Rankin wide eyed. He opened his mouth to say something but then seemed to have second thoughts and closed his mouth again.
-
Rankin looked at cinankhen with a curious look on his face.
"What? Have a question or something?" Rankin asked
-
Cinankhen looked nervous and inconspicuously backed away a little further before he seemed to pull himself together.
He looked straight into Rankin's eyes saying. "Not sure if I do. You tell me if you want to. You said what you wanted to say and that's that. If you had wanted to tell what would have made any further question unnecessary then you probably would have. It's alright anyway... I guess."
-
"I know how it feels to be accused of causing something to happen, even if in truth it wasn't your fault." Neltita said calmly with the hints of compassion in her voice. However, she had got a feeling that what Rankin said wasn't entirely true to say the least. Asking him about it now would not accomplish anything, as he apparently didn't trust them enough at the moment to reveal his secret to them. He needed more time perhaps...
-
"Well," Rankin continued after Neltita "To... Answer Cinankhen's other question, my previous warren was a terrible place to stay. Let's just say that I'm happy where I am now."
-
"Where you are now...", mused Cinankhin. "You're on the move. Nowhere for a longer time. Do you plan to become a hlessi or are you looking for one place where you are happy enough to stay?"
-
Rankin padded at the ground with his right paw, and looked at the hole where some of the other rabbits were resting
"In the meantime, I guess I'll be tagging along with Arvens.. You're not going to come with us, are you?" Rankin asked Cinankhen with a hurtful expression on his face. "I enjoy your company."
-
"Why thank you" said Cinankhen with a smile and a slight bow.
"I don't think I'm going to stay in any warren for more time than it takes for those warren's stories to be told and for the rabbits of the warren to hear what tales they would or should hear. But this is not a warren..." Cinankhen made a gesture to include everyone down by the pipe as well as Rankin and Neltita "...you are not a warren."
Cinankhen corrected himself hastily blushing slightly at the realization that "this" as a reference to the group could be understood as patronizing.
"Though chances are you may become one which may be all the better for most. But till then I see no reason not to tag along as well. What can there be better for a gatherer and a spreader of stories... uhm a storyteller I mean ...than such a group? Everyone here would have something to tell. Even if everyone was determined not to tell whatever will become or not become of this group in the days to come would be a tale in itself. A new journey so to speak [ ;) ] and I see no reason not to journey along for the time being, being observer, listener and..." Cinankhen cut a pose so striving for dignity that it was hard to tell if he was serious about it or mocking by exaggeration, "...babbler of the group; or so I have been referred to by some who did not appreciate some tales but were not out to do worse than calling me so."
-
Arvens was a light sleeper--heavy sleepers didn't make good Owsla members. He dozed in and out in the drain, hearing bits a pieces of the conversations as the echoed within the confines of the pipe. Arvens didn't mind the company of Rankin if he eventually wanted to tag with him. He could see a decent relationship budding. Cinankhen didn't seem too interested in joining for any length of time....all the better, if he didn't want to be part of the group, why hang around? If this group did bond and stay together, it would certainly be an odd warren of characters for sure.
He dozed out again.
OOC: All, please read my comments in the discussion section in this rp's topic. Its something you need to be aware of and consider as the story goes on. Thanks.
-
Not far from rabbit's group, in the woods, a single shrew was looking around in search for food. It run here and there, stopping from time to time for a second or two to check it's surroundings for any predators. One of those times the shrew thought it heard something behind and it turned around. Luckily, it was just a wind moving some bushes. Shrew turned around again and it was then that attack came. Not from behind but from front. The shrew never had the chance to run away and was swiftly killed by big brown weasel, which after this event observed his surroundings warily. Although this weasel, Whitetail, was quite sure he was the only predator around, but one can never be too careful. After making sure it was safe, Whitetail begun it's small feast...
-
Rankin's face brighten up.
"That's good to hear," Rankin said with sign of happiness in his voice "We would definitely need someone like you around. Have anymore questions? I never really small talked before."
-
Cinankhen looked a little bemused and cast short glimpses in all directions as if the degree of cheerful welcoming was more than he could accept. "Small talked..." he mumbled quietly more to himself then to anyone sounding as if the word either confused or fascinated him or maybe both.
"What was your warren?" he then asked.
"What tales did you tell there?
What things did you do?
Who was your chief rabbit?
And which role was there for you?"
-
Neltita chuckled quietly at how many questions Cinankhen had. For a moment she wasn't sure which question she should answer first
"Well... In Greenweed Warren, where Thyme and I come from, we usually told the stories of El-ahrera and of our warren's past." she said "Sometimes, when we had a newcomers there, we also listened to their stories as well."
-
Mayberry was in a deep peaceful sleep, so when her ears perked up she couldn't begin to think what or who had woken her up. Despite her semi-awakened state Mayberry kept her eyes closed and was barely listening to the conversations outside. 'Remembering the past is pointless unless we can learn from it... and I have nothing left to learn.' she said mentally as she tried in vain to get back to sleep.
-
"A typical warren." Rankin said in a patronizing voice. He was envious of her, but not spiteful. He personally noted how fast his mood could change. "Our warren never did anything like that," Rankin continued "Our role was focused on expansion more than anything else. Our chief didn't really have any influence, it was all run by the owsla."
-
"A Typical warren?" asked Cinankhen pricking up his ears and cocking his head. "You have seen many warrens then? And..." he kind of interrupted himself "...no, I shouldn't ask another question ere one is answered."
-
"Well... Answering your other question Cinankhen: our warren wasn't run by Owsla, as Rankin's was, even though they had some privileges. Our Chief Rabbit kept them in check, so none of them thought seriously of taking over." Neltita said to Cinankhen, before once again checking the vicinity of ditch. Then she continued:
"She liked to know what is happening in lands next to our warren, so she sent wide patrols in every direction to scout the surroundings and also to give the Owsla some training."
-
Rankin was surprised. "... She?" He asked, curiously.
-
Mayberry was still phasing in and out of the conversations outside the pipe... but at the mention of female Chief Rabbit... that certainly caught the does' attention. Her ears were now fully alert, however to keep up appearances she kept her eyes closed and pretended to sleep as she listened to Neltita speak of her old warren.
-
Cinankhen too looked surprised but he seemed determined to have his earlier question answered, fixed his look on Rankin and asking again: "What do you think IS a typical warren? And have you been to many?"
-
"Yes." Neltita answered Rankin's question "She was called Meadow and she was very strong and most of the time she knew how to run a warren." the doe fell silent, letting Rankin give an answer to Cinankhen's query.
-
Seeing that both were paying attention to him now, he answered nervously
"Our owsla... Would go out on those wide patrols, and assimilate other warrens they found.. I don't want to talk about it anymore." He left the conversation at that.
-
Chinankhen nodded slowly he had his ears laid flat to his back. His eyes once again seemed to loose some clarity as he seemed to look absent-minded at nothing specific. When suddenly he spoke up his voice sounded deeper than it had so far:
Many times has Frith passed by
since first time he did see
how rabbits are rabbits' elil
and scream in agony
The black rabbit of Inleh
would not trust his blazing eyes
his ears believed not what they heard
the screams and battle cries
The digger did not dig the ground
the runner did not run from dread
Unlistened too was the swift warning
and the landscape was turned red
Of all U hrair (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lapine_language)
these were by Frith not blessed
and in sorrow he hid away his face
beyond the hills far in the west
-
Cinankhen remained motionless for some moments. He then shook his head fiercely and wiped over his face with a paw. He was looking slightly embarrassed, but his eyes were clear again and his voice was back to its slightly squeaky sound when he said: "Anyway..." and chuckled slightly as if to override the embarrassment though the chuckle seemed oddly out of place.
-
Arvens awoke from his snooze. Everyone was plainly where they had been when he had laid down so nothing immense or crazy had gone on while he was resting. Not much would have escaped his notice, being a light sleeper.
Stretching hind and forepaws, he came out of the drain and looked at those on guard. "Well, who am I relieving? Cinankhen you look tired, go rest," he said rather quickly. "I'll take your watch."
-
After hearing what Cinankhen said, Neltita was going to ask him, if he was a poet, but then Arwens woke up and relieved Cinanhken from guard duty. It was time to wake Thyme and get herself some needed sleep. She entered the drain and nudged gray buck gently, who slowly opened his eyes and yawned.
"Is it already my shift?" he asked "This was a really short rest for me."
"Well... If you are too tired to do guard duty, then I can..." Neltita begun, but she was swiftly interrupted by Thyme:
"No, Nel. I won't let anybody do my duty for me. Especially not after I said I will do it." He stretched his body and limbs and jumped out of the drain. He joined the rabbits that were on guard, while Neltita lay down and fell asleep.
-
Cinankhen nodded looking indeed somewhat more worn out than he had before.
He again he seemed slightly embarrassed and it seemed to take him a little effort to get himself to say: "Uhm... in case I am not awake by myself when I should. Please don't shake me up or nudge me or anything. I will wake up at a call."
And before anyone could say anything in response he went down to the tube settling down at one of its end as far from any of the other sleepers as he could as if he tried to maintain the distance which he kept from everyone while awake during his sleeping time as well.
-
Thyme looked at Cinankhen and after the latter had left, he turned to Arwens:
"I guess that he has been a hlessi for so long, that if anyone would touch him, while he was asleep, he would think he is attacked by an elil." he said quietly, before shaking his head slightly. He could not imagine himself living alone in the open. Not for life anyway. After all, he was a rabbit, not a hare. Then again, Cinankhen didn't have to put up with some of bad sides of living in warren, like... being pushed around by self-important members of Owsla.
"Well, Arvens.... Should I stand on guard at some particular position or is here good enough?" he asked former captain of Owsla. Thyme looked around, watching for owls or any predators that could be sneaking on them right now.
-
Arvens couldn't help but laugh at the comment. "There is no said position to stand at, provided you can see what is going on around you. Right now, I'm most interested in finding some suitable place to make a permanent residence. I have no clue on how it'll run in the end."
He looked back at Thyme. "I haven't really spoken with you much, so what do you think of our group here? Think we could make it as a warren?"
-
"What do I think? To be honest, I don't know what to think." Thyme answered "I haven't spoken much with anybody here, you see. Maybe I will be able to make an opinion after we survive coming day. Hardships and dangers of travel will show who is who here." he stopped talking and looked around again. Still nothing. He turned to Arvens and asked with simple curiosity:
"May I ask you why and how you had become an Owsla captain in your warren?"
-
Rankin just sat by and listened to the conversation.
ooc: Given the situation with arvens, I'll have have my character stay up. I'm sorry I was not around to post today.
-
Arvens twitched a bit at the thought of explaining how he had gotten his position within the Owsla of Thornbrush two years back. It wasn't the most popular move in the warren, but he had seen it through and made a decent Owsla member in the end.
"I would say that I got my position in the Owsla for being snippy. You either were with me or against me as a young buck. I was not one to hear of complaints, whining, or anything like that. It was what it was. If you couldn't perform, then try something else. Needless to say I wasn't popular among others my age, but it gained notice through the Owsla ranks that I was very no-nonsense and very curt with everyone, including the Owsla. They had their own curtness for me too--isolation chambers as consequence for being too snippy at them, but they didn't forget when it came time to promote rabbits within the warren to replace retiring individuals. My name apparently came up somewhere and I was asked to meet with our Captain of Owsla, Thistle. He was a big rabbit, easily towering over me. You think I'm tough to get along with, you should've seen this rabbit...say yes sir, no sir, and that was all he wanted to hear. Anything else was too much of an answer. Apparently they didn't care much for the answers, but I heard later on they wanted me because of the way I responded, not how. They liked my brashness as much as Thistle's and apparently, that's what Thistle wanted...someone who was much like him. That's how I got in and I served for the years until the warren was run through by man. Now I know what you're thinking, will I still act the way I did as an Owsla member now that I'm no longer around Thistle and all the rest of Thornbrush? I've been no other way, so I'm unlikely to change, even out of my element. I may not be the most enjoyable rabbit to be around, but you certainly know I'm honest and truthful, and will stand behind whatever I say."
-
"So it seems." Thyme said with a slight smile on his face "Anyway... If I ever have something against your behaviour, you can be sure I won't hesitate to tell you about it. Perhaps, that was the reason why some of Owsla members back in my home warren didn't like me much, to say the least. They couldn't stand being told, that their hraka hadn't become carrots after they had joined the Owsla." he added with evident hints of disdain and sarcasm in his voice.
-
Arvens shrugged at the comment. "Most Owsla members get in based on who supports you rather than what you know. Anyone who got in basically has the same skills anyway, so its about who has support from those in and can put in a good word." He smirked at the thought. "I never did find out who wanted me in the Owsla. I didn't really know anyone, but everyone knew me. Odd how some things work. I only hope, wherever we go, or whatever warren we find, the Owsla has more sense, but I wouldn't hold out hope."
-
"I'm wondering if we find a warren at all," Rankin questioned looking at the ground. "I think for the meantime it'll just be us. Who would be part of the owsla?"
-
Arvens twitched his ears, ruffling the colored feather still worn there. "If we are all that there is, the warren ought to have an Owsla based on their skills, and how useful these skills are in keeping a warren safe. Things like tracking for elil, guardsman-ship, and practicality and rationality for thinking things through would make a fine Owsla. As for the Chief Rabbit, well, only one of us has been in that position before. We'll have to see if she's still up for that sort of job. It takes a lot out of you to be the boss."
Arvens looked at the night sky, seemingly less dark than it was not too long ago. The sun would rise in due time, and the group would have to move on again. "No point in arguing about who should be in what job until we find something. If we find a warren with rabbits, they probably will have their own hierarchy anyway so there's no point in wasting breath on how we should set up a warren when its unlikely we would find an abandoned one. They're usually abandoned for a reason." He scratched at his fur with his hind legs and claws. "You wouldn't get me to stay at an abandoned warren," he added with haste. "Give them another hour, and get yourself some sleep. You'll need it."
-
"Alright then..." Rankin said in a small voice. He stumbled over to the hole where everyone else sleeping, and went to join them.
-
"Well... Let's just hope that wherever we are going, we will all get there alive and we won't regret staying there..." Thyme said with a weary sigh "Talking of which... Do you have any plan where are we going?"
***
Meanwhile, Whitetail finished eating his prey, feeding most of his hunger. Now he needed to find some safe place to rest. He sniffed the air and then he caught an interesting scent.
Longears! weasel thought, smelling lapine scent. It was coming from a great clearing nearby. That was somethin Whitetail had to investigate, so he crawled slowly to the edge of clearing and looked out from the bush. He saw two rabbits sitting by something, that looked like a ditch. Whitetail wondered what those rabbits were doing here, in the open. He knew that Digging Longears usually stayed close to their burrows, so perhaps there was an entrance to a warren in that ditch? Whitetail had been too shortly in this area and therefore he couldn't know that those rabbits were hlessils without any real hideout to run to. He decided to just observe them for the time being.
-
Quite contrary to his fidgety wake-time attitude Cinankhen seemed to sleep sound and profound at the entrance of the tube. Only occasionally his ears twitched slightly as the night drew on and the very first rays of the still invisible sun began to redden the eastern horizon.
-
Arvens shook his head in response to other buck question "No. Last night was too eventfull to plan anything. Maybe others will have some preference in direction they would like to take, but from my point of view any is as good as other." he sniffed the air and listened warily. He had an impression that something was watching them, but he couldn't spot anything. As member of Thornbush Owsla, he had come to learn a long time ago to trust his senses and feelings, so he didn't ignore them now. He decided it was a time to wake everyone up, before whatever was watching them would attack. Besides... The morning was near, so they had to move out anyway.
"Get into the ditch and wake up everyone, Thyme, while I stay and watch" he said to gray buck "There is something in those bushes over there."
"Elil?" Thyme asked, following Arven's gaze.
"Maybe." Arvens answered shortly "Go now" he added with a hint of authority.
Thyme jumped softly into the ditch and the first rabbit he had come across was Cinankhen, who was sleeping in the entrance of the tube. Thyme was going to nudge him to wake him, but then he remembered Cinankhen's request and called out to him instead (but without raising his voice too much):
"Hey! Cinankhen! Wake up."
-
Fast asleep as he had appeared Cinankhen sprung to life immediately, not fidgety, but almost as if he had been waiting for the signal. He cast a quick look around and walking backwards he maneuvered himself away from the tube and increased the distance to Thyme at the same time. He did not say anything but looked at Thyme questioning as if expecting him to say something.
-
Unfortunately, by walking backwards Cinankhen accidentally bumped into sleeping Neltita...
"Ouch! Watch where are you going." she snarled at whoever was stepping on her. This surely wasn't the nicest way she was woken up.
"Shh!" Thyme hushed them "Arvens thinks there is a predator about. Could you help me with getting everybody else on their feets?"
-
The moment Cinankhen made contact with Neltita something strange happened to him. His eyes got out of focus, he seemed to shrink and was trembling slightly and his head was jerking several times as if Cinankhen was trying to pull it in between his shoulders. He then uttered a series of small noises somewhere between chocking, gulping and gasping as if he was suffocating and while his eyes remained unfocused he several times closed and opened them in a convulsive manner.
-
For the last few moments, Rankin was waking from his sleep at the sounds of conversation next to him. He rotated his head a little to his left and perked his ears and eyes up a little as his vision adjusted to see his companions in and out of the manhole. When his view sharpened, it looked to him like cinankhen was having another of his episodes and the other rabbit was particularly alert about something. He opened his maw to yawn and blinked, but did not make a comment.
-
"It is not your burrow!" said Cinankhen. His voice sounded not like his usual voice, but a lot more raspy. "Black doe. I had seen the blindness. You're Owsla. Why wouldn't they listen to me? But I dug it. The young storyteller is promising. See ahead of things..."
There seemed to be no sense and no coherence at all in what Cinankhen was saying. He continued to speak, but his words lost intelligibility and faded ever more into a mumbling. His eyelids fluttered, then gradually his eyes cleared and became more focused. Cinankhen was panting and seemed exhausted and yet like he had just woken up. He coughed slightly, quickly backed away from Neltita, cast a look around and made sure he was nowhere near any of the others.
-
Neltita looked at Cinankhen with wide eyes. His behaviour, all this mumbling and trembling was so unexpected, that at first she thought what any rabbit would think: Cinankhen was showing signs of some disease. Yet, as she kept listening to buck's words, she realized what Cinankhen was talking about, but how could he know about those things? After he had seemingly become normal again, she asked with concern:
"Are you alright, Cinankhen?"
-
Cinankhen nodded wearily but trying to put on a smile.
-
"I wouldn't say he is quite alright, after all this mumbling and shaking he made" Thyme said, backing away from Cinankhen a bit.
"What is this commotion all about? You can be heard from far away." Arvens asked from the edge of ditch. He kept his voice low, even though others had made so much noise already, that there was little point in being quiet now.
-
Mayberry was asleep, and before she realized it her ears were pointed forward, her eyes were open, and she had crawled to the opening of the edge of the drainage pipe and she was shouting, her infamous anger taking hold. "By the fury of Bloodsbain!!! You bucks make more noise than any predator could ever hope to make!!!"
-
"Mayberry," Rankin said in a hushed voice "You are not helping. Arvens, why are we up?"
-
Arvens just shook his head at Mayberry's outburst. Did everybody lose any common sense all of sudden?
"There is a predator about. For a second there, I've caught it's scent and I think it is a weasel. In addition, the morning is starting, so it's time to move out," he explained, looking briefly in direction of place weasel was hiding in "Is everyone awake now?"
"I am," Nelita replied, gazing at Cinankhen.
"Even if I was asleep, I would wake up after all this shouting," Thyme said with snort "I'm ready to march."
-
Cinankhen merely nodded.
-
Rankin rose his body from the ground and stretched his legs once again.
"Yeah, let's go."
He hopped over to Arvens but stopped and looked at Mayberry with an annoyed expression, and proposed his view
"And Mayberry, if you're as tough as you say you are, maybe you should help with taking care of the weasel if the time comes. "
-
"A weasel?" Cinankhen asked surprised looking at Rankin. "How do you know there is a weasel? Unless I missed something we don't know what kind of Elil there may or may not be?"
-
"Uhm... Cinankhen?" Thyme said hesitantly "Didn't you hear Arvens saying he caught the scent of this Elil?"
-
"Of Elil alright, not of weasel in particular. Anyway..." Cinankhen shrugged.
-
"Well... I heard him saying that he caught the scent of predator and he thinks it is a weasel," Thyme said shrugging in the same way as Cinankhen.
-
Rankin grew aggravated and spoke
"Are we gonna analyze what Arvens said, or leave?"
-
Cinankhen looked slightly sneeringly, but then he apparently he decided to swallow whatever remark there might have been on his mind. Instead he he just watched everyone with a look of mild interest as if he was viewing a scene from afar that was of no concern whatsoever to him while at the same time he kept a somewhat more concerned watch on the open fields on both sides of the ditch.
-
Mayberry never being one to flee from a fight turned to Cinankhen "If we attack them now... what do you honestly believe our chances of survival are? Because honestly, I just want to start a fight!" she said with an almost sinister laugh.
-
"Attack...?" Cinankhen visibly struggled to suppress a fit of laughter. "We are rabbits without so much as a warren to defend. We are blessed by frith to outrun, to hide, to trick elil, not to fight them. What do you hope to achieve that would be worth a single scratch on a single rabbits fur? Elil won't stop being elil to you even if you did chase one of them away. We are currently in the most advantageous position available to avoid a fight. If we stay in this ditch we are out of any elil's view, if we peek out we have a clear view over the flat ground on either side of the ditch and can gain a formidable lead from any elil by just fleeing to the other side making the ditch an obstacle for any pursuer to cross. And so long no pursuer is within view we can move unseen at the bottom of the ditch having the water at the bottom of the ditch wash away our scent. Why in frith's and inleh's name should we waste away all those advantages and seek a fight in which we have nothing to gain unless...", Cinankhen cut a grimace, "...anyone here got a taste for blood or meat of elil."
Again he cast a look over the open fields on both sides of the ditch where no elil had so far appeared. "Whatever you do is your business, but I shall not seek a fight of high risk and no benefit!"
-
Hearing mayberrie's challenge, Rankin hops toward and near Arvens giving him a look of suspicion over her comment, and turns around at his side with his body ready for whatever she meant.
-
"Your plan is bold, Mayberry, but not very practical I'm afraid," Arvens said diplomatically to white doe "If this weasel sees us going to attack it, it will probably run away a bit, but can return later to follow us. If it will fight us, we may kill it, but at the same time we would become injured and the blood will attract other elils. I have to agree with Cinankhen on this: avoiding fight is a better solution."
"I think we should go away," Neltita spoke. She seemed to gaze into nothing, as if her vision was blurred "Go to the east, towards the rising sun, towards the dangers and towards the promised land," she said slowly, almost monotonously. After a second her eyes looked normally around. Arvens raised his head to pinpoint the position of sun at the sky and then looked back at other rabbits.
"It seems we have our heading,' he stated. East was opposite to place weasel's hiding in, so it was a good direction "Maybe when weasel sees us all in the open, it will look for mpre easy prey. If not, we can march and run faster than it, so we will leave it behind eventually."
-
"Promised land?" Rankin thought "What would that mean...?"
Rankin pointed towards their east than started to hop in that direction
"Alright then, let's go!" Rankin said encouragingly
-
Cinankhen cast a look after Rankin but didn't set in motion himself while nobody else did. Instead he approached Neltita and asked very quietly: "He called you a seer. Is that what just happened? Did you actually see something? Do you know what I mean?"
-
Neltita looked at Cinankhen and nodded "I suppose you could say that I am. I saw a way we should go to reach a place where we can live safely or at least I saw part of it. Most of it was... not clear."
"Alright, we are moving out," Arvens said "Rankin and Thyme, you take point. Me and Mayberry will guard the rear, in case this weasel decides to follow us. Just remember, you all: stay close to each other and be vigilant."
Thyme left the ditch and joined Rankin.
-
Cinankhen cast a rather unhappy look at the edge of the ditch muttering something to himself that nobody else could understand before ascending the bank of the ditch. "Could you tell the direction the weasel scent was coming from?" he asked Arvens. "We should rather be on the side of the ditch on which that weasel is not."
He rose his head slightly trying to make out if there was any breeze which would indicate from which direction a scent would have been carried, but there wasn't even a slight movement of the air around.
-
Rankin was already ahead of them as he jumped over the ditch, and scented ahead. He kept his ears down
I don't smell anything he thought. He continued, knowing Thyme would be close in a matter of moments
-
"I smelled that weasel's scent coming from over there," Arvens pointed to bushes in opposite direction to one they were going towards "Now, lets go."
Neltita got out of the ditch and followed Rankin and Thyme.
-
Cinankhen kept up with the group staying close to Neltita but always maintaining some distance between himself and every other member of the group. While running his eyes seemed to be in nearly constant motion scanning the surroundings in every direction his eyes could capture without him having to turn his head.
-
Rankin continued his lead and looked behind to Thyme to speak
"I don't think we have much of a destination.." He said, huffing softly as he they traveled cautiously
ooc: sorry for the delay. Holiday rush
-
Cinankhen who walked close enough beside Thyme to have heard the remark made an odd motion that looked like he was shrugging while not changing his pace. "What is it that you expect from your destination? Knowing about the what will help to decide about the where unless..." he put on a musing face "...different rabbits come up with different expectations for their destinations."
-
Whitetail watched intently as the rabbits left the ditch and started hopping towards rising sun. There were quite a few of them, which meant more prey for him to eat, but it also meant that he will have a hard time trying to stalk them without them noticing. It will be difficult, but not impossible. Weasel followed rabbits, using trees and bushes as cover.
-
Mayberry kept her place in the group, and she could just feel that their group was indeed being followed, but as much as he wanted to turn around and face this threat head on, she knew that getting to safety was higher on the others agenda so she simply kept pace with the others and kept quiet.
-
Rankin slowed down his pacing, making sure to stay with the group, Listening to Cinankhen
"Well in that case, we'll have to dig our own warren or something..."
-
"In which case?" asked Cinankhen without slowing down.
-
Mayberry sighed aloud as she replied, "In which case means, we'll have to get our paws dirty! That's what. Now can we please keep focused so I don't have to protect all of us."
-
In a rather un-rabitlike expression Cinankhen raised one eyebrow turned his head to Mayberry who was running a few paces behind. "Focu..."
But whatever he had meant to say he never finished. One of his forelegs suddenly sunk into the soft soil having broken through the ceiling of some kind of underground hollowing.
With a little yelp and an all but comical looking leap Cinankhen avoided breaking into the newly created hollow. But he flipped over completely and came to rest a few steps on all covered with wet soil.
-
Thyme turned back quickly to see what caused all this commotion he had heard just a moment before. He saw Cinankhen, lying on the ground, with his fur full of wet soil. Thyme tried not to show any signs of amusement, but it was very difficult not to smile at that sight and he eventually failed at keeping straight face:
"Well... What happened there, Cinankhen? Did you suddenly decide to become a rabbit-of-the-earth-and-dirt?" grey buck asked in jocking manner.
-
Little seemed Cinankhen to care about his dignity. He made some random waving gesture that could mean just about anything but otherwise didn't respond.
"The ground..." he muttered half to himself half to the others while turning his head to the spot where his leg had sunken in, "...it is not solid."
-
Neltita glanced at that spot then around. She had a feeling that the ground was not solid in more places about them than just one.
"We should be more careful. I anyone of stesp into another hollow like that, then he may drown in it," Neltita said. Thyme groaned in frustration.
"That's just wonderful!" he said "It's barely a morning and we already may be killed by that weasel Arvens smelled earlier or by drowning in the swamp. Do you get the feeling that Black Rabbit of Inle is following us?"
-
Cinankhen shook his head. "That is not a swamp. I think I may have broken somebody's ceiling."
-
"You think so...?" Rankin whispered, and inched up a little closer near Cinankhen. He peered slightly over the hole. "Well, if that's one, then there's many more. So much for a rush.."
-
Mayberry grinned at the prospect of getting to fight again. She slowly hopped forward and asked, "So if the black rabbit of Inle really is following, then I say we give him and whatever else he decides to show us a proper beating!"
-
Whitetail observed the rabbits intently. It looked like one of them tripped on something, Whitetail didn't see it clearly, but it didn't matter. What mattered was that longears' attention wasn't focused on watching out for predators and weasel was going to use that occasion for an attack. He started crawling swiftly towards one od the rabbits, brown buck, while at the same time he kept a wary eye on others, especially those two that formed a back of the group and who seemed like quite a fighters...
Once Whitetail was very close to his intended prey, he stopped for a second or two, tensing all his body. He had to get this one right. He had to at least injure that one, so the rest would have to slow down or leave one of their own behind...
It was time.
Weasel lunged at Rankin, plunging his claws into rabbit's fur and trying to bite him in the neck...
-
All at once, Rankin felt himself being violently pounced and forced to the ground, something jumping onto his back and letting its sharp claws cut into his sides and teeth latch almost around his neck. He let out a cry of pain, but this time because it was more fierce and determined then the abuse he received before. He turned his head quickly to see that is was the rumored weasel. Rankin was not tharn however, and, despite his new injuries, had adrenaline pumping through his body in this familiar circumstance, feeling stronger then he did hrair seconds ago, and he attempted to jump the weighty weasel off him, trying to stave off the adversaries grip, and counter attack by rolling on his back ripping at its white underbelly with his hindclaws
-
Cinankhen uttered a loud scream but it was impossible to tell if it was a warning cry, a sound of fright or some kind of shrill battle cry. His eyes flickered to both sides and he cowered low as if ready to pounce, but he remained where he was eyeing the fight between Rankin and his attacker.
-
That rabbit was clearly a fighter, Whitetail had to admit it, but this buck would have to do better than just jumping to make him release his grip... Ouch! His prey was more creative that he thought, as it rolled on its back forcing Whitetail to the ground. The impact was quite painful and the rabbit used Whitetail's shock to attack him! However, that weasel wouldn't had survived so long, if he hadn't been able to fight back against tougher preys. He scratched his adversary with his claws and then he bit strongly one of rabbit's paws. Whitetail was sure that after that this rabbit won't be moving so fast in near future...
-
"Hraka!" Rankin exclaimed hatefully out loud at his enemy. The weasel scratched at Rankin, but clearly more power from it was put into biting Rankin's hindpaws with it's sharp teeth, which with the pain he was feeling now he could tell was used to kill before. At this point he knew he had no other choice but to fight as fleeing was out of the question now that his feet were damaged. Feeling no other alternative, Rankin tried to shake his paw out of the weasel's maw, and deliver a forceful kick, hopefully hitting directly at it's skull or it's muzzle. If any of that worked to his advantage and knocked the weasel away, he thought, he would get back up and hold his ground. It wasn't until a fellow rabbit caught his vision again that he remembered he had help nearby.
"Cinankhen!!"
-
The little rabbit cut a grimace as if he physically feeling the the claws of the weasel. He twitched in a way that looked as if part of him wanted to run one way and another part another way. But when the two fighters suddenly appeared right in front of him he squezed his eyes shut, lowered his head and pounced forward hitting the thin body of the weasel draging it away from Rankin with the unexpected impact. However, when after the pounce Cinankhen hit the ground he didn't leap up or do anything that one would expect anyone in a fight to do. He remained lying there, twitching and shouting words nobody could really hear in the heat of the fight.
-
Whitetail hissed in pain from that impact. It was obvious that he had already lost the element of surprise and without it he was just endangering his own life by staying and fighting. Therefore, he took the best course of action: he run away. He run until he felt he was a safe distance away from rabbits. Then he stopped to rest and inspect his injuries. They weren't serious, but they were bleeding and the scent of blood could always bring some other predator, so Whitetail started licking his wounds to stop blood flowing. At the same time he was thinking about his fight with rabbits. He had managed to bite one of them in a paw, so it should slow them all, but he realized that if they won't leave that one behind, it will be very hard to hunt him down. Just two of these rabbits was enough to drive him off and now they will be extra alert. It would take all Whitetail's cleverness and skill at hunting to kill one of this grass-eating hopping-about long-eared creatures. It will be very difficult, but in the end it will be worthy of all the efforts. He remembered the time when he last had the taste of rabbit's meat: it was a long time ago, when he was a youngster. One day, mother brought the struggling Longear to den, so he Whitetail and his siblings could accustom to it's scent. Then she ripped it's throat, ending it's struggle, and letting her children eat it. What a feast that was! - Whitetail thought dreamily, then sighed. It will be very hard for him to catch one of them only by himself...
For the first time in his rather long life Whitetail wished there was some other weasel with him, who could help him in this hunting.
-
Rankin witnessed Cinankhen's banzai rescue, and was relieved and proud to see that it had worked when the weasel ran off back into the woods. Rankin was hurting on both his neck and sides, but the area of concern for him was his left hindpaw that was badly bit up all over. He wanted to get up, but any motion pained his leg. He figured now that with that attack, he would be the primary target for the weasel, and he knew he wouldn't be able to go along with the group.
He moved his head over and began to lick the wounds on the paw, and paid attention to his battle partner who saved him from the weasel.
"Cinankhen, are you OK?"
-
Cinankhen was lying on the side. He was clearly not injured. No claw or tooth of the weasel had even scratched him, but he was twitching and uttering some rather un-rabbitlike snarls and sounds that grew quieter only gradually as his twitching too ceased slowly.
-
Arvens was surprised by the attack and it lasted so short that he and other rabbits didn't have the time to react. Now he was cursing himself in mind for not being more watchful. He hopped to Rankin and Cinankhen.
"Are you alright?" he asked brown buck, looking at his wounded paw. That might be a serious problem for all of them, Arvens thought, if Rankin won't be able to march as quickly as others. Maybe they will have to... No! They will stay together no matter what. Arvens had already started feeling responsible for this little group of strangers who met each other just last night and was determined to keep them all alive... Former captain looked at Cinankhem, who aside from twitching seemed to be quite alright.
"You did a brave thing there, Cinankhen, pouncing weasel like that" Arvens gave him a well-deserved praise.
-
Rankin felt a bit more comfortable now within the company of Arvens, but uncertain of what will happen
"I owe him my life... I'm not sure it's worth fighting for now though. Are you going to leave me?" He asked arvens "Because I think that weasel is after me specifically now. I don't know for sure... Just a gut feeling."
-
"Rankin. Nobody is going to leave anyone behind. Not now, not ever," Arvens said calmly but firmly, looking into other's rabbit eyes. He really meant what he said. He felt like it was his fault that Rankin got injured in the first place and leaving him for the weasel to eat was not an option.
"Now... Clean this wound and try to get some rest before we march again," Arvens spoke.
-
Rankin couldn't believe a fellow buck was caring for him. Not only had one showed courage to save him from death, but another would stay with him in his time of need. It was unheard of for him, and something they would never practice in his previous warren.. unless it was absolutely necessary for the group.
"Arvens... Thank you."
He got back to tending his wound
-
Arvens didn't say anything to that, wondering what their next move should be. After a few moment, his thinking was interrupted by Thyme:
"So what's the plan, Arvens?" gray buck asked "Do we wait here, so Rankin's paw can heal or we move on?"
"I would like to set out soon, to put as much of a distance between us and that weasel as possible," Arvens answered, then he looked at Rankin "How do you think? Will you be able to march?"
-
Rankin felt a little guilt as they talked about their actions just based off of his injuries. He listened to Arvens question, and tried to stand up. It didn't hurt him as much as it did moments ago, and he would be able to come out ok from the other scratches and slashes that the weasel gave him, but his leg still hurt. He fixed most of his balence on his other three paws, and one them showed a little pain from the violence as well. he gave one limped hop, and thought...
"I agree with you arvens, I just don't think I'll be able to move as fast... Once we steer clear of the weasel though, I'd like to nurse this leg of mine." He sighed and continued "I would think that after this last attack, he might return with backup... We need to leave."
-
"Alright. Let's go th..." Arvens said, before he noticed that Cinankhen was still lying on his side "We are moving, Cinakhen... Cinankhen? Are you okay?"
-
Cinankhen was still twitching a little, and looked at Arvens with wide unfocused eyes, but his look gradually cleared as if he was weaking up from a deep sleep.
-
"Of course he's OK. It would take more than a spasm and a vision to hurt him." Rankin joked. He took a few limped hops very slowly. His hindpaw was really hurting, but he knew he had to leave..
"May we leave now? The sooner the better"
-
Cinankhen got to his feet glancing around nervoulsy almost as if he had been caught at some mischief he didn's say anything.
-
"Good," Arvens said, seeing that everybody was ready to go again "Let's move. Cinankhen, Thyme - you lead the way. I and Mayberry will guard the rear." That way Rankin would be in the middle and if the weasel attacks him again, all rabbits will be able to jump to his help immediately. Thyme nodded and started moving in direction they had been hopping before the attack.
-
Cinankhen just did as Arvens had told without having acknowledged his words by any response, or nod or any gesture whatsoever. As he hopped along he was conspicuously silent keeping a headstart of everyone but sometimes casting a look back and it was difficult to decide whether it was the look of one trying to ensure that the others were keeping up or the look of a chased one looking for pursuers.
-
"Damn it, I can tell they want to leave" Rankin thought
However, he could only trek slowly. He made sure to never put any pressure on his wounded paw as they slowly moved, attempting to keep his balance on the other three, but this was very difficult since it was his hind leg. Every once in a while he would accidentally trip and and fill it with pain, but it would only last for a few seconds. "This time..." he thought, "That weasel isn't going to have the element of surprise.."
but the thought their stalker bringing back up still loomed in his mind... and if that happened, there would be a good chance that Arvens group would be forced to flee. It all depended on the number however, he thought... if he only brought one friend, then he would aim for that weasel, this time strike to kill... Or maim.
-
Arvens looked after Rankin, before moving. He hoped that the weasel had given up on trying to hunt them or that they will find some safe place soon. Rankin's leg looked like it could use some rest and healing...
---
Weasel decided he had enough rest and it was time to return to following that group of rabbits. Maybe they will be more alert this time, but he needed only one chance while they needed to keep caution all the time...
---
Thyme was running slowly, watching around in case the predator decided to attack them again. For now everything seemed perfectly fine. Birds were singing and one could hear all normal sounds of the forest. However, that could change every moment...
"You've been travelling for long time now, right?" Thyme asked Cinankhen, as he needed to talk somebody or his nerves would start getting to him "Do you have much experience with weasels?"
-
Cinankhen looked at Thyme and nodded while shaking his head at the same time so that for a moment it looked as if he was about to enter another of that strange moments he had shown before.
"I have been travelling for long now. About as long as I remember I think. But as for weasles I have seen few and from afar. Never tried to get any closer. But I heard many talk of them who have been in the... position of taking closer looks."
Cinankhen cast a hasty look in every direction without slowing down. All the while he maintained some distance between himself and Thyme but he didn't seem to wish to avoid any talk. His voice was one of genuine interest when he asked: "What about you?" He hesitated for a moment before he continued with some compassion in his voice: "Neltita told what befell your warren. Had it been your home all your life till now?"
-
Thyme winced at the memory that question brought. The memory of disease and death. It wasn't pleasant topic to talk about, to say the least, but he didn't refrain from answering Cinankhen's question.
"Yes. I was born there and I had never left the warren till the White Blindness broke out. Since Neltita told you about it, you know that she had seen that happening before it actually happened. Aside from me and her, there were a few other survivors and after escaping from the warren..." at that moment he lowered his voice "...they all started blaming her for bringing the disease. They called her 'bad luck', 'doombringer', 'cursed' and other names. What a band of fools! Before that tragedy none of them listened to her warnings and after that they accused her of causing it. They wanted her to leave the group and so we did."
-
Cinankhen nodded looking not like any of this was new to him. "Yes, they sure didn't treat her well back there."
After a few moments had passed he hastilly added: "I mean they wouldn't. Most don't like warners, least of all those who could do something about it."
-
Thyme looked at other buck curiously. What a strange choice of words that was, as if he had seen it happening. Cinankhen corrected himself too hastilly for Thyme to believe that that was what he originally meant. Then gray buck remembered the incident in the ditch.
"When you bumped into Neltita earlier, you've said a few strange things. Something about burrows, black doe and blindness," Thyme said Cinankhen "What exactly did you see back then?"
-
"Huh?" Cinankhen said. "You were there. You have eyes. You saw what I saw, wouldn't you?"
-
"What I meant by that question was, what made you act like that? Most rabbits I know, when they bump into someone else, they usually say: sorry, I didn't see you there. You, however, started trembling and behaving like you were sick and then you screamed: It's not your burrow. And then you said a few other words that didn't seem connected to each other." Thyme described the events from the ditch "I saw Neltita behaving in similar manner once or twice when she had one of those 'Seer times', so to speak."
-
"Nothing", said Cinankhen. He suddenly seemed to pay a lot of attention to screening the surrounding landscape for any sign of possible danger.
-
Thyme glanced at Cinankhen doubtfully, but didn't say anything and instead started watching around as the other buck did. If Cinankhen really hadn't seen anything before, then ther was no point in asking him about it. If he had seen something, but didn't want to talk about it, then it was better to let him be.
---
Whitetail was following the trail rabbits had left. Now, that he had injured one of them, he didn't have to hurry up.
-
As Rankin continued his stressful hopping, the the pain grew worse as time went on... He looked back to Arvens and asked
"I don't think I'll be able to keep on doing this... I'll have to rest soon. Where are we gonna stop, Arvens?" Rankin looked around
-
Arvens looked at Rankin with concern. It seemed that his paw-injury was worse than they thought earlier. The weather was getting worse, in addition, as rabbits could hear the sounds of coming rain. They obviously need to find some shelter, but where? All they could see was trees, trees... And a single mouse searching for something on the ground. Having no other idea, Arvens walked slowly to mouse, as to not scare it and asked:
"Excuse me. We need a hiding place. Could you tell us where to find one?"
The mouse stared at him for a moment or two, like she was deciding if she should answer to that question. Finally, she said pointing with her little paw the direction they should take:
"There. You can find a safe place there. In the ruins." she explained, then added "I live there."
-
After the mouse had spoke, the rain began to pad the grass softly and wet the group's fur.
"Let us get there quickly, then..." Rankin muttered, turning to where the mouse pointed...
-
One drop of cold rain fell on mouse's muzzle. She trembled. She wished that she had knew as much about the weather as her mother. Maybe then she wouldn't had caught in the rain so far from hiding place.
"Come with me, if you don't want to get wet!" mouse cried before she run towards her home.
"Alright. Let's go!" Arvens said and the group followed the mouse...
-
Cinankhen run forward to the head of the line, but it was apparently not so much any intention to keep up the previous order but rather an apparent interest in their new found leader. Running on the side of the mouse on which his body offered the greatest possible shield from the rain for the mouse (which wasn't much since for lack of wind the rain fell mostly vertically) he seemed to engage in conversation with the mouse though both the mouse's and Cinankhen's voice were too quiet to be overheard by the others over the splashing of the ever increasing downpour of rain.
-
"It's an old stone building," mouse answered one of Cinankhen's questions "Men built it long before my mother's mother was born."
She spoke no more, as she was running as fast as she could to get out of the rain. After a minute of running, they saw ruins amongst the trees. It was an old chapel.
"There it is! Home" mouse exclaimed joyfully.
-
Cinankhen looked fascinated at the building with the tower that had caved in on one side. For some moments he seemed to forget even the rain dazzled at the prospect of being able to explore this building from the inside. At this moment the flash of a lightning and the roling thunder just a few seconds later brought him back to reality. He cast a short look to see if everyone was there and made a movement with his head that was probably meant to ask whether everyone was okay with entering this building while at the same time he wasn't even trying to dissemble his own eagerness to go there perhaps even in case anyone else did not.
-
Arvens glanced shortly at Cinankhen and nodded his head in somewhat impatient manner. The rain was getting thicker and thicker, so he wanted to get inside as much as everybody else. The mouse the guided them was already in the chapel. Arvens followed her. Luckily, most part of the roof of the chapel was still intact, so they would have some shelter. Arvens shook his wet fur and looked around to see if everybody else had got into this place.
At that moment Neltita and Thyme just run in, "What a weather out there! I wouldn't like to stay in the open now" doe said "Thank you for leading us here," she addressed the mouse.
Thyme sneezed strongly, "I wish this place was a bit closer. Then I wouldn't catch this cold...", he sneezed again.
-
Rankin limped in and let himself ease unto the floor, finally out of the rain. "Finally..." He thought. The strain he was putting himself through to hold himself up was let go after what seemed for Frith knows how much time. His paw had looked scabbed up now, blood mixed with soaked water.
"Hope I don't get an infection from this.." He mumbled, and tried to shake some of the water off his paw
-
Neltita looked at Rankin's wound with concern. She noticed that a fresh blood was flowing out it and Rankin seemed to tired from running to do something about it. Neltita hopped closer to brown rabbit.
"Let's clean this wound, before you got some infection, Rankin" she started licking buck's injured paw to stop bleeding. She tried to be gentle, as not to cause him too much pain.
"What happened to him?" mouse asked, a bit worried that the scent of blood could attract some predator into the chapel.
"Weasel attacked him, but we menaged to drive it off," Arvens explained "I'm Arvens. The injured rabbit is called Rankin. Neltita is the one who is helping him. The sneezing fellow over there is called Thyme. Others are Cinankhen and Mayberry. What's your name?"
"I am Meadrah," mouse answered.
-
Rankin was surprised...
"Ah! No, it's OK.." Rankin protested, but he didn't move.. He was a little embarrassed at the situation.
-
Thyme observed the scene intently. There was a fleeting feeling of jealousy in his mind, but he shook his head to get rid off it. Rankin needed help with his injury and Neltita was giving it. Surely, there was nothing more to it or at least he hoped there wasn't.
"There. It shouldn't bleed so much now, but you should let this paw rest," Neltita said to Rankin after finishing cleaning his wound.
-
Upon entering the chappel Cinankhen had wandered off taking as much of a look around as the dim light, and the ocassionaly flash of a lightning outside allowed. Debris was lying around and some charred beams suggested that fire had played a role in the damaging of this human burrow. The fire couldn't have spread far however as much of the other human stuff standing and lying around seemed to have remained untouched by any flames. It did not look like the humans had made any attempts to repair any of this place and maybe none had even been there by the time it was damaged. In any case the debris was lying around randomly and in some cases they seemed to be piled in a rather shaky manner causing Cinankhen to ignore any curiousity and stay away from these spots lest he be squished by some heavy beams loosing ballance or shifting around at the slightest touch. At one spot he found something that he believed he had once heard about, but never ever seen. Nor had he any clue how it was called it was a kind of block made of a pile of sheets of a strange and very thin wide material that the humans had addorned with countless tiny images that didn't make any sense to him at all. Cinankhen sighed and shoved it aside after some futile attempts to make any sense out of it.
"Come the day that a rabbit can make sense of humans that rabbit is probably crazy." he muttered to himself and dared to get closer to a kind of pedestal at the one end of the room. Located near the spot where the roof of the building had collapsed there was quite a lot of debris lying around and remembering his intention not to end up squished under some kind of manmade debris Cinankhen was already in the motion of turning back when in a flash of lightning another human item caught his attention.
Reflecting the light of the lightning falling through the hole in the roof there was a... thing made out of a transparent greenish material. It looked like a kind of tube that was narrowing quite a bit to one end. Taking a step closer he noticed that it seemed to contain something and giving it a slight touch which made the thing roll a short distance he recognized that it was a small amount of some kind of dark liquid.
-
Rankin looked at it... Less blood, wound looks dry and revovering. "Looks much better now.."
He made his comment quietly, but didn't make eye contact with Neltita... "Thanks..."
-
Neltita smiled, "You welcome," she hopped away to dry her fur and she noticed Thyme's look. There was something strange in a way he glanced at Rankin, then at her again.
"What?" she asked him, but he just averted his gaze and said nothing. She didn't have a chance for futher inquiry as someone else spoke up:
"Meadrah! What did you brought to our home?"
They turned around to see a female mouse, with hreir mice by her side. She seemed to be bigger than the mouse, who guided them to this place.
"Hello, mom," Meadrah said, looking a bit abashed "These rabbits were looking for some shelter, so I lead them here..."
-
Cinankhen who had caught the angry tone in the voice of the elder mouse immediately abandoned the strange artifact he had found and hurried to the side of Meadrah, though always keeping some distance. Putting on the most disarming smile he could possibly manage he bowed his head to her and with the most charming voice he could muster he said: "You must be the landlady of this place, the mother of Meadrah, and matriarch of your family. It is a great honor to make your aquaintance. Think not that it was our intention to tresspass your home. Far had we travelled while Frith shows his rage and conceals his face with one of our group wounded by the claws of a weasel when in the woods we met your kind and benevolent daughter who offered us shelter for our friend to recover and for us to rest till Frith's face will shine down upon us again. If by doing so she did not act in your own best interest I beg you to lay the blame on us rather than your daughter's pity with four wretched wanderers."
-
Meadrah's mother was clearly impressed by Cinankhen's little speech and noble manners. Her face softened.
"The honor is all mine, rabbit. I can see now that you are one noble creature" mice leader said with wide smile "I wish some of us would behave like you just have. It will be a pleasure for us to host you and your friends here. I am Dara. What are you called, if may I ask?"
"He is called Cinankhen, mother" Meadrah said, before introducing other rabbits.
-
"Mice..." Rankin thought.. The only kind of mice or rats he encountered until now were the ones that ate dead flesh. He didn't know the difference, so he didn't comment...
-
"May I ask...", Cinankhen said looking alternately at Dara and Meadrah, "...if you were here already at a time when humans still came here or know anyone who did? May I ask if you know what damaged this place to the point that humans no longer come here..." suddenly he appeared a bit startled "...they don't come here anymore, do they?"
-
"There was a fire then, but I wasn't even born at that time, so I couldn't tell you much more than that," Dara responded "There is one among us, who had seen the whole thing. We could bring him to you. Old Marvin likes to talk about past. As for humans, they rarely come here, the last I saw came here a season ago, looked around a bit and left."
-
The light of another lightning was flashing through the hole in the roof and the rolling thunder followed almost instantly. Chinankhen cast a worried look upwards.
"I would love to hear the tales of Old Marvin gatherer and spreader of tales that I am. But what is of the most immediate interest for me now is if the fire back then might have had something to do with a..." another flash and thunder interrupted him, "...with a thunderstorm?" Cinankhen concluded the sentence.
-
Dara tried to remember what Old Malvin had said about the fire. Of all things he had seen in his life, that one event was the only one he didn't like to talk about, so Dara knew no more than a couple details of it. After a few moments of thinking she answered Cinankhen's question:
"The fire was caused by a human. That's what Malvin told us, who were born after fire. Many mice died in it."
-
Cinankhen nooded with a face combining rather oddly the apparent relief that the current thunderstorm might not pose an immediate danger to the place where they were right now and uneasiness about the realization that this had been a place of a rather grizzly history.
-
After figuring that he wasn't in clear danger, Rankin laid down his head and tried to let himself get some rest. He knew it would be best for he and his paw after the confrontation with the Weasel.. after about a minute, he drifted off.
-
Arvens checked if Rankin was alright. The injury seemed tobe already healing, as no fresh blood was flowing. He turned to mice leader and even though he wasn't as good with words as Cinankhen, he tried to make his best impression.
"Thank you for letting us stay here, Dara. It is very kind of you."
"Hmm... Yes. I suppose it is.," Dara replied "At this time we usually gather to tell and listen to stories. Maybe you could tell some? It would be very interesting to hear what happened in some other places."
-
A broad smile was comming over Cinankhen's face as he heard this and he was nodding eagerly almost as if he had been waiting for this for a long time already.
"Most happy would I be
to tell tales old and new
to share with you our lore
and hear some from you"
-
"Bring Old Malvin here, Meadrah," Dara said to her daughter "He would hate to miss good storytelling."
Meadrah just nodded and run towards the place, where mice had made their nests. Meanwhile, Arvens sat in such a way that he could observe the entrance to the chapel. The weasel could still be following them and even if it did not, it was better not to take chances.
-
When all the mice of the chappel were gathered Cinankhen took a look at all of them gave a respectful bow to the mouse whom by his age he thought to be old Malvin. As he began to tell Cinankhen seemed to be a lot more relaxed than he had ever appeared so far and not even the noise of the thunders or the flash of the lightnings seemed to worry him at all anymore. Quite the contrary he seemed to enjoy this setting all of a sudden when he leaped on top of a large chunk of debris which he used as a pedestal and spoke up.
"Listen up my lapine friends and you our kind mousen hosts and since Frith provides tonight a loud and light and dark reminder of events long past I shall tell you the tale of how thunderstorms first came to this world. A tale of foolish conceit of some of our kind, a tale of Frith's wrath, and of of the evked in him by a prince who ever since stands as a sign of hope in Frith's skys when his wrath is fading away.
As all of my lapine friends will know and as many of you mice might have heard as well it was the lack of care for others and for the will of Frith shown by our prince El-ahrairah that had brought each kind their own strenghts and qualities. When El-ahrairah disregarded Frith's wish that he kept his people in check keeping them from eating up so much that none was left for the other animals he gave fox and weasel and owl claws and the desire to hunt our people and yours too", Cinankhen nodded to the assembled mice. "Us he gave swift legs and the advise to be cunning and full of tricks. To you he gave the small size allowing you to find protection where others won't find any, the ability to find food wherever others others won't find any, and the ability to dig your own homes and shelters much like our own kind. We both are kinds of a thousand enemies who must be cunning and full of tricks for our people to survive. We are in fact so similar that I sometimes wonder if not part of the old lore has been lost. Lore which may tell more about the relationship between mouse and rabbit kind."
Cinankhen gave a slightly embarassed smile. Apparently he had sort of wandered off his original topic.
"Anyway, the tale I want to tell you happened long after the days of El-ahrairah. In spite of all that had happened again rabbits had grown again in numbers. They formed many warrens, in the warrens they formed owslas and among the warrens they fought and disregarding all the advise and admonishments Frith had given them they even fought against other kinds which Frith had meant to be the hunter rather than the prey of rabbits. But hundreds of rabbits would bring down even a fox and the rabbits did not come by the hundreds but by the thousands and hundred thousands and numbers for which lapine language holds no word. But since they grew so powerful they grew also ever more arrogant and one day up came a leader whose name is forgotten because Frith wanted his name to be forgotten. As rabbits were overcomming every foe they had in this world and were starting to fight ever more viciously amongs each other this leader united the rabbits and put all of them under the strictest command of his owsla that would not tollerate anyone from saying, doing, thinking, or being anything that did not satisfy their nameless leader. And that leader then gave the order for rabbits to assail the one enemy they had not yet overcome to force him to bestow on them the blessings of claws and teeth he had not given them back in the days of El-ahrairah. The nameless leader wanted the rabbits to attack Frith himself in his heavens.
The nameless leader ordered the rabbit to pile up stones and wood and anything they could find on the top of a mountain to build a way up to the heavens so Frith would no longer be out of the reach of the rabbits. For the honor of our kind...", Cinankhen added this with another embarassed look, "...I must stress that by no means all of the rabbits supported this madness. Many were scared of the owsla that would kill anyone who did not follow their bidding. Some resisted anyway and many of them were killed. Some also joined other kinds and many of those who did not were just too terrified of rabbits who sometimes seem to be the worst enemies of rabbitkind.
Frith had been very patient. He had not intervened for a long time. But as he saw the pile of stones on the mountain grow ever higher, higher than the mountain itself and higher even then the clouds a great fury overcame him at this. He hid his face and sent a rain that was pouring down to cover all the land in water. He sometimes glimpsed through the clouds and the look of his bright eyes burned anything they touched and soon as he looked away his thounderous growl of anger could be heard rolling all over the sky. His looks burned away the outrageous pile of stone and wood, they burned away the nameless leader and all who remembered his name, it burned away the dreaded Owsla and many who had not been burned by Frith's look, that always fell upon that which stretched up the closest to him, were drowned in the rainfall that covered all the land except for some high mountain tops where everyone who was on them was exposed to Frith's flashing looks. So great was Frith's anger that he might have destroyed all there was on this world making no difference at all anymore.
But all this saw a prince and son of Frith and he begged for his father to stop and this prince cried over the fate of so much that had been destroyed. There suddenly Frith was ashamed of the destruction he had caused he showed his face to the earth again and what rain still fell from the sky where but the tears of Frith and his son. Frith then sent the prince to the earth carrying his tears as well as his light to show all the colors of Frith in the sky as a sign of hope and reconciliation to all those who were huddled on the mountaintops that had become islands in the now decreasing flood. The prince drew the colors of Frith all over the sky in a huge arch giving back hope to all those who had lost hope and showing them that Frith's wrath was over. Ever since the merciful prince has been the friend of all who live on the earth and has always mitigated the anger of his father. And ever since this prince has been known by the name Prince Rainbow."
-
Neltita listened intently to Cinankhen's story. He was a good storyteller, probably one of the best she had ever met. On the other hand, she had never heard that one particular story, even though storytellers back in Greenweed Warren had known many. It was a disturbing story, especially since Neltita knew deep in her heart that most of what Cinankhen was telling, had really happened. This nameless leader's lust for power and will to dominate all living creatures was greatly unsetting, but what really terrified Neltita was Frith's wrath. When he couldn't make El-ahrairah to control his people, Frith found a simple, yet brilliant solution to bring balance to the world. He had not tried to destroy everything, even though he had been angered greatly by Prince Rabbit defiance. In this story, however, he had killed so many, innocent and guilty alike. Neltita had never presumed she was better or wiser than Frith, but right now she couldn't help but think that what he had done was absolutely wrong.
-
Cinankhen was looking at the assembled listeners and as if to confirm that the story was over and at the same time end it on a positive note he added:
"And never since I heard this story for the first time have I seen a rainbow without feeling that there is something good in this world and that even after the harshest time there will always be a better time to come."
-
The mouse called Old Malvin cleared his throat and spoke, "Well said, Mister Rabbit. Never a truer words were spoken here. We had our own hardships and great tragedies, but no matter how hopeless our situation was, we still managed to survive. It gives me comfort to see how many children is being born in these days, to know that long, long after my time there will still be life in this place."
-
"So it is", confirmed Chinankhen with a slight bow towards the old mouse.
"But speaking of tragedies, Dana told that you were here to see what befell this human place. Can you share what you heard and saw with us?"
-
Old mouse shook his head with apologetic look on his muzzle, "Forgive me, Mister Rabbit, but it is one dreadful tale. For us, mice, at least. Maybe you would like to listen to something less tragic?"
-
"To me was left the choice of which tale I would tell to you. It is only fair if you master Malvin enjoy the same freedom" Chinankhen responded courteously.
-
Old Malvin thought for a moment and spoke, "I could tell you about a time when I first met one of your kind, Mister Ra..." he stopped, realizing that calling Cinankhen 'Mister Rabbit' might be rude. However, Malvin hadn't been around when rabbits had been introduced, so he didn't know their names. Now he was quite embarrassed, that he hadn't asked earlier. Seeing his uneasiness, Meadra whispered to him quickly the names of rabbits. After that, Old Malvin continued as if nothing had happened:
"So, dear friends. Would you like to hear that story?"
-
Cinankhen nodded eagerly. He didn't seem to have noticed the incomplete address or found anything impolite about it.
-
Arvens nudged Rankin gently to wake him up. He reckoned that his friend wouldn't want to be completly left out of listening to stories.
-
Rankin felt Arvens nudges and slowly woke up. He didn't know what they were doing, but he didn't question.
-
Seeing that he had their all attention, Old Malvin begun his tale. His voice was hoarse and after speaking longer sentences, he needed to rest for a second or two. This clearly showed how old he was and yet one could see that, despite his age and tiredness, he was happy to have a honour to tell the story to this audience. Dara had been right: Malvin did like talking about past.
“Friends. I will tell you about the event that happened before the great fire, when humans still used to visit this building. I was a young mouse back then, even though some of you may find it hard to imagine me as anything but old. It was a summer day. I and two other mice, Marta and Rick, was exploring the woods near this chapel, enjoying the morning. After some time, we came across a cage. It surprised us greatly, as we hadn’t seen something like that in midlle of woods before, but we were even more surprised by what was inside the cage. A living creature. It looked very much like you and your friends, Cinankhen, but at the time we had only a vague idea what it could be. It was Rick, who remembered what his mother had told him about animals different from our own kind and he stated that creature in cage was a rabbit. But what was it doing inside the cage in this place, we wondered. Cage was a man’s thing, so maybe it belonged to some human? Eventually, we got our courage up and we approached the rabbit. We talked and it turned out that the cage had fallen on her (as it was female rabbit), trapping her inside. We decided to help her get out, as woodland’s creature should help each other, shouldn’t they? However, it was easier said than done, as we couldn’t bite through grating. Lifting this cage was out of the question too, as it was simply too heavy for us all.”
Old Malvin stopped to rest a bit and gather his memories of that day.
“For some time we were thinking how to get that rabbit out of the cage, but all methods required more strength than three mice and a rabbit could possess. Then, I got one idea and I said to my others: maybe we could get our human to help us? At that time, there was a man, who was visiting this place almost daily. What a good fellow he was! He understood how hard it is for us sometimes to simply survive and he always left something in chapel for us to eat. Always. Well… Maybe he didn’t know best what our preferences are, but it is a thought that counts, right? Anyway, we had run back quickly and we saw that our human was just leaving the chapel. The problem was, as you’ve surely gathered, how to make him follow us to the cage? The time was running out, as man closed the door and as was in habit he took out some small metal, shining thing with a string attached to it and he begun whispering something incomprehensible. We were all thinking how to get his attention, when suddenly Marta darted towards the human and run between his feet. That surprised our human greatly, which was a bit silly if you think of it. How in the world, a small mouse could scare a human so much, that he jumped up and dropped this metal thing he had been holding? Yet he did and as soon as that thing touched the ground, Marta grabbed it with her muzzle and run towards tree line. Everybody was absolutely taken aback by this action, not excluding our human, but he quickly snapped out of the shock and began pursuit. Some unusual chase, that was. What a shame you couldn’t see it!” Malvin said with sparkles of amusement in his eyes “I guess that our human was past his prime, as he became quite tired by the end of the chase, which stopped right next to the trapped rabbit. Marta dropped stolen thing then and there and leapt to nearby bush. As soon as he saw a cage, our human lifted it up and our new friend could regain her freedom. A happy ending.”
-
Cinankhen was goggling at Malvin. He opened and closed his mouth a few times before finding back to his composure. "That was a great tale and one to..." he seemed to have forgotten how he had intended to finish his sentence.
"Marta... actually took something from a human. Before that very human's eyes?" his voice was one of incredulous awe.
-
Old Malvin chuckled at disbelief "She did. Even before that she had been quite daring, but she excelled herself by stealing human's thing. I have to admit it was very reckless, but in the end it turned out to be a splendid idea."
-
"And this thing she took from the human, do you have any idea what it was? Why was he talking to it? You said that she stole other human things? Would that be things which the humans don't leave lying around all the time? Do you have any idea about what some of the things are for? And did the human never do anything about the thing Marta stole? And the rabbit what happened to her? And..." Cinankhen broke off realizing that already these had been quite a few questions.
-
"I am not sure, Cinankhen. Our human often talked to himself while holding this thing. Sometimes he spoke to other thing, which was as big as his hand and it made it's own sound, it's own voice, I think. As for rabbit, she run away deeper into the woods and since that event me and other mice saw her and we talked with her a few times. Not recently though. As for... er... What were your other questions?" Malvin asked. Cinankhen had asked so many questions at once, while Malvin's mind wasn't as fit as when he was young, so the mouse had simply forgotten some of rabbit's queries.
-
"Did you see more from humans? More things from them? What they do and how they act?" Cinankhen forced himself to leave the questions at that until aftere these were answered.
-
"Before the fire there had been many things in here, but they were destroyed by flames or taken away by humans afterwards. Most of them didn't seem to have any use, other than to be here and look pretty," Malvin answered "On the other hand, there were items that apparently were held in high esteem by humans, as they took great care of picking them up after big fire."
Arvens had listened intently to both stories, which had been quite interesting, but now he was again concerned for Rankin's health.
"Thyme, could you replace me on guard duty? Thank you," he said to gray buck, hopping towards Rankin, to inspect his injured paw. "How are you, Rankin. Still holding up?" he asked.
Thyme assumed right position to observe the entrance to chapel. It was still raining outside and he thought with satisfaction, that the weasel must be getting pretty soaked.
---
"Damn this rain!" Whitetail thought, observing the ruined bulding from under the bush, which was a poor protection against the thousands drops of water falling from the sky. He could just hope that rabbits won't use the cover of the storm to slip away unnoticed, since it would be very difficult to find them in all this rain.
-
Rankin looked at arvens then back at his leg. He flexed it, and stood up a little. The pain wasn't there like it was before.
"I'm feeling a lot better Arvens. I'm just worried about the weasel. I don't want him holding us off in this place, because knowing him, he's probably nearby. Just an assumption."
Rankin's obsession with the weasel was starting to build.
-
Dara's brows furrowed, as she she heard the talk about weasel, "Wait. Are you saying that this predator could have followed you here? I thought you drove it off."
-
Though Cinankhen had been with the mice he had overheard Rankin's word and looking at him surprisedly he asked: "Knowing him? What do you mean? Did you meat this weasel before? I didn't see..." A rolling thunder cut of Cinankhen and when again there was only the splashing sound of the rain drumming against the remaints of the old chappel he didn't pick it up again but just looked at Ranking inquiringly slanting his head.
-
Mayberry since stepping into the shelter provided by the mice, had not taken her eyes off the entrance in which their group had traveled through. Her eyes transfixed on that sole spot as her body continued to shake with pure almost uncontrollable rage. To know that a weasel had gotten past her and wounded another rabbit brought her hatred to a level she didn't know was possible. She continued to dig her paws into the ground scratching up the dirt underneath just waiting, hoping, praying to Frith for a reason to let her anger go and attack. Her fur bristled with each strike of thunder and lightning that streaked across the sky.
-
Rankin stood up, and replied to both Cinankhen and the mouse
"I have not met the weasel outside of that attack, but I have a bad feeling that he's tracking us. You mice shouldn't be worried... We'll be able to handle it."
-
"I certainly hope so," Dara said "But we will retire to our lairs now. Just in case."
"Oh, do we have to already, Dara? I was enjoying the conversation with our long-eared friends," Old Malvin groaned like a young mouse, who had had his fun interrupted.
"Yes, we have to. Now, go and stop moaning. A mouse your age should set an example to the young, not follow their example."
All the mice were slowly going to their hiding places, wishing rabbits goodnight.
-
After the mice had receded, Rankin hunched down a little, still alert.
"I'm feeling better now guys. What do we do now?"
-
Cinankhen took a look in the round. "Who wants to be the next to tell a story?"
-
Whitetaol decided to take a peek into the ruined chapel. He run silently towards the entrance, by which he stopped. He sniffed, he listened. The rabbits were there, he was sure about it. He could smell their sweet scent, which made his mouth water. He could hear their quiet voices. Weasel felt his stomach, which was reminding him that it was empty now.
Let's try to catch a rabbit again Whitetail thought to himself, entering the chapel. He used all his skill and the darkness and the sound of rain, to come as close to the rabbits as possible without alerting them. It wasn't easy, as there was one rabbit standing on guard and watching the entrance, but eventually weasel was able to do what he intended. When he was one leap from nearest rabbit, he halted once again, to choose his prey. He could see the one longear he had attacked earlier, but that one was in the centre of the group right now, so it wouldn't be wise to strike it. Whitetail observed other rabbits for a moment and he finally came to decision. He will attack the sentry. He prepared to leap and when the longear looked the other way, Whitetail jumped at him, trying to get his teeth on rabbit's throat.
Thyme was attacked.
-
Mayberry was still seething with anger from the last attack, and despite having her back to the opening she could feel something wasn't right. She held her ears high and kept her eyes open scanning their groups surroundings. Her fur bristled and stood on end as she saw a swift movement out of the corner of her eyes. She braced herself for an attack, but was shocked when the attacker, not only reveled himself, but attacked Thyme instead.
Mayberry charged forward and using her paws pulled Whitetail off of Thyme and faced the weasel. "You coward! I won't let you hurt any other rabbits! Now fight me if you want to feast!" She cried challengingly.
-
Whitetail had sunk his teeth into rabbit's throat and tried to strangle it, when he was pulled off of it by another longear. Once again, those rabbits proved that they had fighting spirit. Weasel was quite frustrated for being interrupted, when he was about to kill his prey, but then frustration turned to satisfaction. He saw how the longear, he had attacked, staggered weakly and fell to the ground. It was still alive, but hopefully blood flowing from that throat wound will do Whitetail's job for him.
Weasel slashed with his claw against female rabbit, aiming for its eyes, but he didn't put much strenght to it. He knew that there was not much point for him to fight with this other rabbit, but he couldn't resist the urge to punish it a bit for that insult.
-
Within seconds of the attack, Rankin had already been ready, snapping from his position and charging straightforward toward the weasel, claws scraping on the floor as he ran quickly, and jumping at the weasel, eager to rip apart as much flesh a he could, let all of them sink into it with violent force, and threw his mouth at it's body, hoping to bite it as well
-
Cinankhen uttered a yelp that could have been anything beetween a battlecry and a scream of terror, but he stood fixed at his spot gesturing frantically to the mice around apparently to tell them to go for cover.
-
Weasel hissed in pain, as he felt claws and teeth sinking in his body. What a fool he was! He should had run away immediately after he had lost the element of surprise, instead of allowing himself to be provoked and defending his injured pride. He tried to throw rabbit off of him and after a few seconds of struggle he was able to do so. He didn't have much time to recover though, as another longear headbutted him with great force. It was Arvens, who at the moment was at the moment taken over by anger. Whitetail could see a wild determination in Arven's eyes. The determination to fight and to kill.
Whitetail was tough, but even he felt like a prey facing three angry rabbits simultaneously. His actions now were driven by simple instinct of survival. He turned around and he run towards the exit from the chapel. He run and run, leaving the ruins and rabbits far behind him.
OCC: I don't think there are any mice there at the moment, Malte. They are all in their nests, I think.
-
"Oh no you don't!" Rankin called out. He wanted desperately to kill the weasel this time, and pursued it with all his energy outside of the ruins. If he didn't catch up with him now, he would turn back
-
Weasel clearly didn't expect to be pursued, but he knew what to do. He reached the tree line and simply climbed up the nearest trunk as quickly as possible. He didn't want to fight any time soon. After he climbed on one of tree's branches, he looked down at rabbit, who had been chasing him. Whitetail doubted that longear will be able to climb after him and even if it try, it will be vulnerable to attack while doing so.
-
Rankin ran up and put a paw on the tree, looking up at the weasel...
"Come near us again and we'll kill you!" Rankin roared, not being mindful of the environment around him. He really wanted more blood from the weasel, but he would have to settle with what he had, and turned back and trekked back to the ruined place
-
"Kill me? Well... Good luck with that, longear!" Whitetail shouted after rabbit mockingly. Then he started cleaning all wounds he had got from fight.
---
After weasel had escaped, Arvens' rage was replaced by concern for Thyme. The gray rabbit was lying down on the ground, with blood flowing from his throat. He was still breathing, but one could see he was doing it with great pain. Arvens started walking towards him, to help injured buck as much as he could, but somebody else beat him to it.
"Thyme! Are you alright? Speak to me," Neltita spoke to her friend. She licked his throat, trying to stop the bleeding. It was hard to tell in the darkness how much successful she was in doing so.
Thyme looked up at Neltita and said with evident difficulty, "I'm... sorry. I should had seen that weasel... I... am a bad... guard."
-
Cinankhen stepped closer ignoring the others his attention was entirely focused on Thyme. Although, hlessi that he was, he had not spend as much time with as many of his own kind as everyone else he had seen rabbits die before and he had no doubt at all that the black rabbit of Inleh was already circling Thyme and would not leave without him.
With the blood pulsing from his throat Cinankhen was certain that Thyme would probably not speak again. "Thyme", he said. "The black rabbit is comming and you may find him to be not as scary as some of our tales make him out to be. But is there anything that if you could you would still say in this world or want the world to remember though you alone know? If this is so blink once with your eyes Thyme."
-
Thyme looked at Cinankhen. Like him, he knew what was going to happen and that there is nothing anyone could do to stop it. He smiled weakly at Cinankhen's words, but he said nothing to him. Instead he turned his eyes to Neltita and used all of his remaining energy to spoke to her, despite all the pain throat-wound caused him:
"Take care... of your... self... Nel..." he said and sighed heavily, closing his eyes and breathing for the last time. It was over. The Black Rabbit took him to the land of dead.
"Thyme? Thyme?" Neltita whispered almost inaudibly "No. Wake up, Thyme. Wake up, please," she said nudging him gently. She knew it was no use, but she just couldn't accept that her friend was truly gone. She couldn't.
Arvens gazed at Thyme's dead body. The former captain of Owsla had seen the passing of many rabbits in his life, so he knew the right words and he said them with all his spirit:
"My heart has joined the thousand, for my friend stopped running today."
Neltita stopped her efforts and just burried her nose in her friends fur, bitter tears running down her mouth.
-
Cinankhen carefully approached Thyme and touched him with a paw. A very slight shiver seemed to run down his spine but after that he just shook his head slightly and turned away, retiring into one corner of the ruin.
-
Arvens looked at returning Rankin. It had been reckless to run alone after this weasel like that, but he didn't have a heart to reprimand the other rabbit. Not at the moment like this. Arvens turned his gaze to THyme's dead body and he knew one thing: they couldn't stay in this ruined place. The scent of blood will sooner or later attract weasel again or some other predator. They had to move immediately.
"Can you march again, Rankin?" he asked firmly and with the tone, that demanded quick answer. He hated to act in this brutal and cold way, but he couldn't let them fall into despair or go tharn. Otherwise, they all might be lost.
-
Rankin gazed past arvens and at the body. What would be an indifferent reaction, having the experience of losing loved ones to violence, was mixed with furiousness that he had managed to bottle up. He didn't know the buck very well, but knowing that the weasel had caused it angered him. He answered Arvens
"I can."
-
"Good," Arvens said "We will move out immediately then." He looked at Neltita, who was still sitting by Thyme's body. She acted like she didn't hear anything that was said. Arvens hopped to her and nudged her with his nose. He could understand her pain and the need to mourn friend, but they couldn't stay in the chapel.
"Neltita, we have to go," he said to doe, who finally looked away from dead body to Arvens.
"Go? Yes... You're right. We have to go, but what about Thyme?" she asked miserably. Former captain glanced at corpse.
"We can't leave him here. The body would attract elil into this ruins and that would bring trouble upon our mice friends," Arvens said "No. We have to carry him out."
"And burry him? I wouldn't want that weasel get him."
Arvens felt a wave of anger raising in his heart at the mention of the predator. How he wished he could get his claws on that elil...
"Weasels have good sense of smell and they can dig, so burrying Thyme won't help, Neltita. I'm sorry." he looked at the doe with compassion, then he turned to Rankin "Help me moving the body out of here, Rankin. Cinankhen. Go to mice burrows and tell them that they should be very vigilant for a few next days."
After that being said, Arvens grabbed corpse with his teeth, waiting for Rankin to help him with pulling it.
-
Rankin hopped over and helped with the body, gripping the former thyme's paw with his teeth and pulling the body out of the building with Arvens. He felt an inkling of sympathy for the doe, if not for her aid earlier with his wound, however he had the feeling that she wouldn't be able to stomach the loss so easily.
-
The hair on Mayberry's body was standing on end, and despite her raw, boiling and almost palpable amount of rage, she also felt a great deal of sorrow and pity for Thyme. "It shouldn't have happened... not like this. I should have moved faster, struck sooner, I should have done SOMETHING! I am so angry... and hateful, I'm going to find that weasel and I'll drag him back here with his head in my paws if I must!" she shouted aloud with her rage barely contained.
-
All along Cinankhen had remained a bit apart from everyone else. Only gradually and only when everyone else was leaving did he leave the corner of the ruin into which he had retired before.
-
Once outside Arvens released his hold of Thyme's body. There was nothing else to be done in this place. He looked at the others, who had left the ruins: Rankin, Mayberry, Neltita and Cinankhen.
Lord Frith. May I get them all to safe place alive. he prayed shortly, then said aloud:
"Time to go. Follow me," and he turned in direction they had been going before they met mouse Meadrah. He was hopping swiftly, expecting others to do the same.
Neltita stayed by the corpse for a moment before going too. Her eyes had gone dull, her ears were sagging and there was no spring in her step.
-
Cinankhen followed last but for Neltita in line. Moving rather mechanically. Only someone who would have been very close to him would have heard him huming a silent melody.
-
Eventually all rabbits had left and Whitetail was able to climb down the tree. He looked around, making sure that the longears were really gone. Then he walked to dead body, which was lying on ground. He smiled. At last, he will be able to satisfy his hunger with rabbit's meat. He was about to sink his teeth in the corpse, when he heard a growl behind him. As he quickly turned around, he saw a fox closing in, giving Whitetail a clear warning. Weasel hissed angrily, but he wasn't stupid. There was no way he could fight with the fox, so he just run into the building and once inside he looked out. At that moment, he saw fox carrying dead rabbit's body and running off, probably to his own den.
"Typical. You do all the hard work, you risk your life and then someone else takes away your prey," Whitetail snarled. He was so frustrated, that he almost didn't hear a small voice coming from some corner of the ruined chapel:
"Cinankhen? Arvens? It's me. Meadrah. Where are you, rabbits?"
Hearing that, Whitetail forgot about the incident with that stinking fox. He crept towards the source of the voice and he saw a mouse. She wasn't aware of his presence, so he used that opportunity, jumping at the mouse swiftly. She didn't have a chance.
"Mmm... This night isn't so bad after all," Whitetail said with a cruel smile, as he started his feast...
-
Right amidst his silent huming Cinankhen flinched suddenly and jumped as if he was jerking up out of a terrible nightmare. "The mice!" he shouted. "Did anyone of us talk to the mice after the attack?"
-
Arvens looked at Cinankhen, "You were supposed to warn them. You did that, right?"
At this very moment Neltita stopped, trembling, "Another friend died!" she cried miserably.
-
Cinankhen was staring at nothing specific. Muttering something unintelligable. Something that sounded like, "I was unpresent." was all that could be understood, if understood it was.
-
Arvens was clearly and understandably confused by both Cinankhen and Neltita, "What are you two talking about, in Frith's name?! What friend do you mean, Neltita?"
"The mouse that guided us into the ruins. Meadrah. She was killed by the weasel," doe answered, her voice shaking.
"How do you know that?" Arvens asked. He wasn't sure, if he believed her.
-
Rankin had remained unsurprised.. "It wouldn't be too hard of a guess anyway. The weasel was hungry and it found a mouse."
-
Arvens thought about that answer for a second. It wouldn't be strange for a weasel to kill a mouse (if there was an occasion for it), even though one rabbit should be enough of a meal for that predator. Arvens wasn't entirely convinced that Meadrah was really killed. On the other hand, somewhere deep in his heart he knew it to be true. Either way, there was no point in staying in this place. They had to move. If only they knew what lies ahead of them...