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 Posted: Sun Aug 17, 2008 8:36 am
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Umoja couldn't take it anymore. The knowledge that they were at least on the borders of their homeland had driven the lion to action. His impatience drove him the leave the others behind, as the cub was holding them back. He liked Ingi, as the small cub had somehow guided them out of the tunnels that Umoja and Mapatano had been lost in for so long.
Promising to return or wait for them if he had found something, the dark lion had strode ahead, making sure that Mapatano could follow his trail. He had to confirm that they were indeed home, and so he stuck his nose on the ground as well as the air, slowly catching a few familiar scents in the air. While any bit of ground just outside of a mountain range could look similar to any other in the world, it seemed like home. The foliage and trees tried to confue him as he strode on, his paws kicking up a small amount of dust.
Mfalme had confirmed that they were home, if only because of the sheer amount of vultures that still lingered in the air.
"I wish I could fly," the martial eagle complained as he glided just above Umoja's head.
"I know, Bonded, but at least you're in the air again." Umoja paused, letting his deep violet eyes take in the sights. He knew this land faintly, but also knew better than to break his promise to the other three.
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Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2008 10:45 am
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Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2008 11:08 am
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Mfalme's sharp eyes caught movement before them. He snapped his beak, signaling Umoja to pause. "Heads up, Bonded, there's something up ahead. I think it's one of the kids."
Alerted by this, as Mfalme's tone was bleak, the black lion trotted forwards, slowly stopping as he caught sight of what Mfalme had seen. It was one of the rogue cubs, curled around his sister. His nose instantly caught the scent of the blood, and Umoja feared for the worst.
He wracked his brain for a name, any name that might come to memory. It took a moment, but it finally came to him. "Dumu..." It was hard to tell that it was him, with the avian wrapped around him, but he was always the darker-pelted one of his sibilings.
He cautiously stepped forward, not wanting to spook the young cub into more hysterics. Mfalme let himself glide a little higher in the air, keeping his eyes on the lands around them. Protection was his duty at this moment, and not comfort and compassion.
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 1:49 pm
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 2:16 pm
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Umoja slowly made his way around, his violet eyes taking in the scene. The body of Kuruka was huddled undernearth Dumu. It was a heartbreaking sight, especially for the fact that it struck fear into Umoja's heart. They were the same age as his own two children, and the idea that this could have just as easily happened to his own ate at him.
Keeping his movements slow and quiet, he moved around to face the pair. The amount of blood that had soaked into the ground was sickening. Fury washed over his mind at the thought that someone had done this on purpose. Why to just a gentle child?
Fighting against his urges to rush after whomever had done this, he settled himself down in front of Dumu, leaving a bit of space. He wasn't sure if the young lion trusted him, but Umoja needed to know what had happened. His eyes flashed curiously to the bird curled around Dumu, but that would wait.
"What happened, Dumu?" he asked softly, letting his eyes linger over Dumu's face. He was certain that the cub would not wish for eye contact, but reading the emotions in his body language was vital. It would help connect the pieces that the young cub would inevitably leave out. Umoja couldn't expect Dumu to say everything, as terrified and broken as he was.
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 3:48 pm
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 3:58 pm
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Umoja listened intently, refraining from sighing. This was going to take longer than he thought it would. Closing his eyes, he willed himself to relax and focus only on Dumu. Just because Kuruka had perished didn't mean that all of them did, even if the dread was weighing his stomache down.
Hearing a screech, he glanced upwards to see Mfalme signalling. He could tell that it wasn't for him. Was Mapatano just behind them? Perhaps Mfalme was responding to Hisa. With the knowledge that they were fine, he let his attention focus soley on the young, traumatized cub.
He wasn't making much sense. If he was staying with Kuruka, then why was he still alive? Mentally shaking his head, Umoja passed on that small detail. Dumu would recount it again hopefully, and Umoja would get all the facts then.
"A good thought," he said, encouraging the cub to continue speaking.
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 7:35 pm
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He shifted a glance up to the elder lion, surprised that he spoke. Half of him forgot that he was there. Meeting his gaze for a second made the small cub shake again. He cleared up his tears, feeling vulnerable. The whole point of this little trip was to show that he could help his pride. That he could do his share. That he could be an adult. But now he was just blubbering like some cub that lost his family. Even though he was that cub he was thinking about, he would never admit it.
"Then, I heard two voices." He said as he looked back to the ground, and closed his eyes, this time focusing on the memory to make it more clear. It happened so fast he needed to pause to think things through.
"It was Msiba and Machafuko. I heard them talking, they mentioned the pride, and Elea.." He started as he shook his head, looking for the memories. "T...then they got in a fight, and Msiba mentioned something about having a... a 'looker child'?" He didn't quite understand what they meant. "And once they had them that Machafuko could kill Elea and Haja." He said as he lost his voice.
"That's when Kuruka showed up..." He whispered, the words catching on the lump in his throat. "They....they saw that she was listening and....and.." He couldn't finish. It started to bring a whole new flood of sobs and shakes.
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 8:02 pm
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Umoja listened intently, picking up on every soft-spoken word that he could. The unfamilarity of some of the names distracted him, but he let the cub speak. If he interrupted him, it would be hard to coax the cub to pick up where he had left off.
Disturbed by this news, Umoja shifted his legs around, antsy to be on his way. He knew better than to leave the cub alone, though. He would just have to wait for Mapatano to catch up with Ajili and Ingi. Settling his stomache onto the round once again, his eyes flashed over Kuruka's body once more. So the little cub had been listening in on the conversation, and paid for it with her life. It seemed that the earthquake had brought more than just sadness to the Aka'mleli; it had brought darkness as well.
"Dumu," he said gently, trying to rouse the cub out of his pity. "Who are these two that you speak of? I do not recognize their names..." Strangers.
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 8:09 pm
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 8:18 pm
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 8:35 pm
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Dumu shook his head lightly, "No, I'm fine..." he said in a soft voice. His ears fell to the top of his head, and he curled his tail around his body as he looked back down to his sisters lifeless body. He became quiet as his sobs slowed to a stop. Soon the reality of the situation started to set in. This wasn't a bad dream that he would wake up from, his sister wasn't playing a joke on him, she really was gone.
He knew that he had to tell Peke. He had to tell him that he was powerless to save his own sister. Some big brother. After his parents had disappeared, he took it upon himself to take care of his siblings, and look at where he was now. He failed his family, and he knew that his brother would never forgive him. Part of him wanted to just let it go, deny it and go on as if he would normally would. But he was smarter than that. He knew Peke would find out eventually, and he didn't want to keep running away.
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 8:48 pm
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Nodding his head, Umoja let out a sigh of relief that he hadn't known was there. With the amount of blood, and Dumu so wrapped around Kuruka, he had not been convinced that it was only her's. Thankfully (though he hated to think of it like that), that had been the truth, and Dumu would be all right, if only physically for a while.
He glanced upwards, his eyes finding Mfalme. With a nodding of his head, he had send the martial eagle to go find the troupe to encourage them to pick up their speed. He needed them here now. The larger the group was, the more safe they would be.
"We'll get them, Dumu," he pledged softly. He might be promising more than he could do at that moment, but he'd see through to it. "Kuruka deserves it."
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 8:55 pm
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 9:03 pm
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Surprised at the actions that Dumu took, the black lion arched his head up a bit to make sure that Dumu was comfortable before resettling himself again. His mane drifted down along the backside of Dumu. Umoja smiled, hoping that it would make the cub feel a little more comfortable and secure.
Feelish a shift in the air, Umoja spotted Mfalme landing just to the side of him, hopping a bit as he landed on the ground to absorb his momentum. "They'll be here soon, Bonded," he said, peering towards the strange new bird. Hm. Assuming that she had a reason to be here, he hopped around to face Umoja. "I'm sure resting here will be the best thing to do. I've given them a round-about direction of where you are, and I'll admit that you're not too good at hiding your trail."
Umoja brushed off the playful insult, as he wasn't in the mood to toss around jabs with his friend. "As long as they find us. I think Ajili can help out in this situation." He looked down at Dumu, only seeing the top of the dark cub's head. Mfalme hopped back into the air, using himself as a signal for the others as he circled above them. Flying so close to the ground was tiring, but it was important.
Here they would wait until the rest of the troupe caught up.
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