[PRP] An Unexpected Request (Furchtlos and Orenda)

[Kimaria]

[Apologies for the delay with this. It's been one of those weeks at work...]

She walked with an air of purpose, her tan fur looking as if it had been recently groomed, the bangs hanging in front of her eyes blown to one side from a particularly strong wind. And yet, despite the blows she had taken to her pride since being captured, she still looked determined and fierce. There was a stubborn heart beating in her chest. A stubbornness so strong that only death would take it from her.

But everyone had their price. Everyone had something that they would do anything to have or retain. Orenda's was her freedom. Her dependence only on herself. For that she would do anything but freedom was not bought easily. It, perhaps of all things, was a thing rare and hard to find. And perhaps, some might argue, one could never truly be free.

Still, the terms had been laid down and the female hyena had agreed to them.

Today, unusually, the jackals were not with her.

SilverLutz

 

[SilverLutz]

It was a normal day for Los. He had eaten, walked around a bit to meet new lions and hyenas (mostly lions though, the one female he had seen the other day was the only other canine he had come across so far), and had taken a quick trip to the stream to get a drink. So far, nothing out of the ordinary.

Which was why when he spotted Orenda from a distance, his tail gave a happy wag. Finally, a familiar face! Not a very friendly one with the way she was always scowling, but at least today she looked a bit better kept. She didn't have that shaggy appearance as she had last time. He set his paws in her direction and pricked up his ears to see if she'd hear him.

"Afternoon, Orenda," he called out, a cheerful look on his face. This pride was full of those who would hurt and even kill those who didn't agree with their ways, but that didn't mean they were horrible animals at all times. He was fiercely loyal to the lions that oversaw him and felt as though they were all one big family here. Which was nice, considering he didn't have one. He had been the sole survivor in his litter, his father abandoning his pups and mate soon after they were born, and his mother dying just a few months prior to his adulthood.

Kimaria

Quite all right!

 

[Kimaria]

Her name rang out in the late morning air and she turned her head to see him. Furchtlos. She hadn't been paying much attention before (because Orenda never did?) but the male was big and strong and was handsome with his dark pelt and strong markings. Her sister would have adored him. But her sister was dead. Still, as the female hyena turned to move towards him, something stirred in her gut that she hadn't felt since being a young pup.

Nerves.

She was nervous.

She tried not to show it but an observant one might notice the slight wilt to her ears that might depict a slight drop in confidence. She could battle and kill and fight for her life. But this? This was a situation foreign and frightening.

"Furchtlos." Oh, yes, he'd said to call him Los. Oh well, too late for that now. How did one breach the subject? Maybe she could do it in a roundabout way? Try and make it so that he asked her? She shifted her weight uncomfortably and focused her distracted gaze upon him. "For once, I am glad to see a face in this wretched place." And she was. "I don't like to admit it, but I am in need of some aid, and you are the only non-lion I know here."

Probably not the best way to start...

SilverLutz

 

[SilverLutz]

Los paused a few paces away from Orenda, tail wagging slowly. He was glad he had made a friend, even if she didn't want to be here. He hoped he could convince her otherwise - it would be rather sad to have to kill her if she didn't change her ways. He picked up on her rather uncharacteristic behavior, though, and his tail stopped swinging back and forth.

"What is it that you need help with?" he asked, tilting his head. He knew that she despised lions, but if she really needed help, wouldn't she ask one of them? There was a difference between being stubborn and stupid, and he was positive that she was not the latter. Los' mind instantly jumped to the worst: she was going to try to escape.

"If you're trying to run away, I can't help you," he said firmly, but not unkindly. "But if it's anything else, I'll do my best to assist you."

Kimaria

 

[Kimaria]

Could Orenda have been happy here if she'd given it the chance? Yes, likely so. They were her kind of people if she ignored their strange beliefs. They were fierce and proud and seemed to be itching for a fight - just as she - and yet the thought of serving alongside lions did not sit well with her. Neither did being given orders. She was her own commander. The day she submissively took orders from someone else was the day she gave up her pride. Gave up who she was - or so she believed.

"I'm not trying to run. I'm no fool, Los. They'd hunt me down and kill me. Or worse." Worse being brought back here to go through all of this again. She wasn't sure what she would have done if they did that to her. And who was to say that they'd even keep their side of the bargain?

What if she did all of this for nothing?

"Their leader." They called her a strange name. "Rapha." The name without the polite Oma following after sounded strangely short and empty. It was very rare to hear the Visionary's name spoken without it - if at all. "She struck me a deal." She paused and glanced around. Lions were moving close by, perhaps off on a hunt.

"But not here. Let us talk in private. I do not trust them and I'm not sure how widely known this bargain is." And, with a small snort, she shot a look over her shoulder and moved into deeper shadows.

"I don't know who else to turn to. You are the only one who I have spoken with here. The only one I know I can trust." That might have been pushing it a little bit. Orenda trusted no one but herself. Still, it couldn't hurt to extend that towards him. He was, at least, more trustworthy than a lion.

SilverLutz

 

[SilverLutz]

Los frowned a bit as Orenda continued to speak, wondering what she could possibly mean. What was worse than death? Death meant you stopped living, and that was no fun. Los liked being alive. That wasn't to say he was afraid of death, far from it in fact. He just felt as though being dead would be very boring. Laying around, waiting for the buzzards to come pick your bones clean...surely that was rather dull.

"A bargain?" he repeated, ears perking up. He paid no mind to the dropped respectful term. It didn't bother him in the least, especially knowing Orenda didn't particularly like lions. He followed her away from the lions that were roaming about, seeking shelter next to a large pile of rocks and twisted trees that could have once been some kind of altar for a long lost pride.

"What of this bargain?" he asked, fully intent on the female. "What does it entail?" And how was he the only one that could help her? Surely she had been here long enough to make other friends...or...maybe not friends but contacts. It was nice to think that she trusted him, though, and his tail wagged just a bit at the thought.

Kimaria

 

[Kimaria]

There really was no getting out of this, was there? She'd have to come out with it and what then? What if he said no? Hell, what if he said yes. Her fur prickled upwards without her realisation and, very slowly, she turned to look at him. Her eyes very bright in the shadow.

"They will set me free." She said, her voice toned low. The pause hung thick in the air, putting a nervous tension into the conversation and, for a moment, she looked away. But she wasn't such a coward that she wouldn't look at him when she said it. Even if she didn't want to. Her eyes flared back to his and, at last, she finished her sentence, trying not too hard to think about the implications.

"If I provide the Nergui with pups."

A wave of nausea swept through her. There. She'd said it.

SilverLutz

 

[SilverLutz]

Los waited intently for her answer, dark eyes staring at the lighter female. Perhaps if she served them for a season they'd allow her to leave? Or maybe they had given her a position that would keep her away from the lions?

The answer surprised him. He lifted his head a bit in shock. Pups? Well...it would do good to strengthen their numbers, have some new blood in the pride. But how did they expect her to find and steal pups? Or cubs, for that matter?

"They want you to...oh." And then it hit him. They didn't want her to steal cubs, they wanted her to make them. Had he been able to blush, Los would have been doing it at that moment. That was why she needed his help. He was the only one that could help her, in this instance, unless she found a rouge. But there weren't many rouge hyenas in these parts, let alone any that might want any child of theirs to be given to the pride.

"I see," he said slowly. "Well. That is a rather large order to fill."

Kimaria

 

[Kimaria]

"It is." She replied with a snort, diverting her eyes again to glance around, seemingly paranoid that something was going to go wrong. As if the jaws of the trap were inching around her so slowly that she wouldn't notice it happening until it was too late.

"I was told that there are a small number of hyenas here but since I have not seen them, they are of no use to me." She tried to put some authority into her voice when she looked back at him again. "I never thought to have pups, Furchtlos. And never would I have them with a male unworthy. But you..." She trailed. It was totally out of character for her to give anyone a compliment. He was, however, a good specimen. Strong and well proportioned and with that dark pelt to aid in masking him in shadows.

"Will you help me?" And it hurt her to ask for help.

But this was what happened when someone had something you wanted. She wanted to be away from this place more than anything. She would do anything to get it.

SilverLutz

 

[SilverLutz]

Los remained silent as Orenda spoke. Her freedom's price was pups. That much was simple. But what made him quiet was the fact that now he was faced with a dilemma. He wanted to help, but in assisting her he'd be letting her go free. But if the leader had said that it was okay...and they'd be gaining members this way...

He let out a slow breath through his nose, a little snort accompanying it. This was difficult. She was certainly not bad to look at and who didn't enjoy a bit of release but...it came down to his morals. What was the right thing to do? He really would dislike seeing her killed for trying to escape...

Finally, he nodded. "I'll help you," he said quietly. "With the promise that you'll let me raise them how I see fit." He doubted she'd have any problems with that, of course. She just seemed so desperate to flee. He couldn't have his children growing up to hate lions, though. That would certainly make living in this pride difficult.

Kimaria

 

[Kimaria]

The relief that flooded through her at his agreement was weirdly intense - a weight wrenching up from her shoulders that had been hanging over her since the day she had been brought into this place. "You may raise them however you want. I shall have no part it in at all. As soon as they can live without their mother, I'll be gone and they will be yours."

And she really couldn't care what happened after that. If they were raised here they wouldn't know any better. This would be their life and they would be happy with it. And if they weren't? Well, then it would be up to them to do something about it. She'd not be coming back and she'd not think of them again.

Or so she believed at that moment in time.

"I'm sure the lion's ruler will be pleased with you for doing this." She added, feeling a little tension seep back in. She still had to go ahead with the plan and that was something she was not entirely comfortable with.

"I'll come and find you later." She said, glancing around her one last time.

SilverLutz

 

[SilverLutz]

Los nodded slightly, glad that she had accepted his terms. He'd make sure they were tough, fighters, and willing to do as they were told, just as he had been raised.

"All right," he said quietly, nodding his head. He doubted she wanted to do...that right now. Right here, in the middle of the open plains. "Just. Let me know when you're ready."

He bobbed his head once in farewell before turning to go. He needed to prepare himself as well. Becoming a father was not something he had thought he'd happen so soon.

Kimaria

Last post from me!