Nuxaz -- Purple/indigo
ME -- BLACK
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It was in the midst of dawn that he awoke, stirring in his makeshift den near the Southern reaches of Tianxia. There was a comforting breeze blowing at this hour, and as his eyes fluttered from their drowsy state, he could make out the mountains in the distance, canvassed by the pink and orange wall of light the sun portrayed. He yawned, Tisha, popped up against his side like she always was, seeming to catch the yawn and mimic it in her slumber.
His eyes fell on her and they seemed to smile, his ears folding back as he did so; her features placid as every breath she took was in unison of his own. They both seemed to be pleased with their place in life now, they felt a sense of belonging and were humbled by it.
This serene picture could not last, for in the next hour or two he would have to meet with the Lady of the house, and begin his trials. Mentally he felt prepared, but physically he hadn’t done much more than walk and run; left with no knowledge of what these events would be, he felt nervous and incapable. Shrugging out of Tisha’s grasp, the Cheetah lifted his weight and checked the surroundings. She was safe here, in her hovel and wouldn’t even wake till the sun was high in the sky. She’d know where he had gone, and would wait for his return.
He began to walk toward the inner sanctum of the Pride, where there he’d find the lioness who would find his real place amongst the Tianxia followers.
Lady Ming had spet her morning doing her usual rounds around her territory with heavy thoughts on her mind. She had to be ready to answer any question asked of her as well as be able to create many a questions to test the two felines. This would be a different kind of trail for these two than it had been for the other cheetah, Skuld, she already had a position in mind for both of them and as such she needed to test them differently than she had her messanger. "I must test their minds," she mumbled to herself as she walked around the outskirts of the territory before she made her way back inland, her scoutting completed. A sigh escaped her lips as she thought back to her son, whom had been missing for quite some time, she often found herself wondering if he was safe, how he was faring. And as she approached her den she found herself thinking of him once again. She shook her head, clearing her of all thoughts. She needed to be focused, how else would she test another's mind if her own was clouded by unneedy thoughts? However she was allowed no more time to dwell on her thoughts as she found herself looking at the male cheetah. So he had come for his trial.
Perfect.
"Hello,"she told him with a soft smile, questions already forming in her mind
He hadn't waited long, seeing the shady figure come up through the mist and then appear before him; he knew it was Lady Ming. Grinning, the male Cheetah waited for her words before speaking his own.
"Good Morning to you, Lady Ming." His upper body slid to the earth, bowing graciously. "I did not forget your task."
Watching her, he could see the concentration beneath the flesh and the wiggling in his stomach continued, fiercely. Could he fail a test? Was that even possible; he didn't doubt it, but a throbbing confidence mingled in with his afflicting gitters seemed to soothe the thoughts he had and ease his own concentration. He would have to keep up with the Lady of the house, knowing full well her questions would not be simply understood.
She chuchkled lightly at his formality, at his eagerness. "As I can see," she replied dipping her head in return to him. "Now Banjoko," she paused studying his expression, "are you prepared both mentally and physically?" She inhaled before stepping towards him, aroung him. "Follow me," she instructed walking past him flicking her tail as she did so. She had a secluded little area that she had found, that she used to keep up her training, to stay fit. Reaching the small opening, surrounded by trees and up against a cliff she stopped, turning to him.
"Here is where your trail will began, I must first see how you handle the rough terrain," she told him golden eyes trained upon his face. It had taken her some time to learn the way of the terrain herself. The highlands weren't exactly the most forgiving territory. But as the emperor had pointed out t her, cheetahs and leopards were built for territory like that. "Show me."
His head reeled as she began to walk ahead of him, and he felt the sensational pull of gravity hold him in his place. Reluctant to follow, he finally set off one foot at a time behind her, tail swaying to and fro.
It wasn’t often that Banjoko was ever frightened by something; most of the time he was capable of keeping a cool head, which was one of the many reasons he and Tisha were alive today. She was most definitely strong enough to defend herself, but he was the negotiator; he managed to talk his way out of anything he didn’t feel was necessary.
But today, this all had to be done and he was not about to risk Tisha’s safety by ruining their chances here. One pride, out of all the rest that would accept them for more than just their species or colors was something to be cherished, and not disregarded. Trailing the Lady, he felt that confidence burst again, and the event seemed to lose its severity.
He still could not find his words, his tongue caught in knots between his locked jaws but as she moved fluidly up the slopes and jagged landscape, and she spoke those words that instructed him, he found he wouldn’t need to talk at all, if not only to ask; “How so?”
Inquisitively he turned his head, and eyed the territory she bestowed upon him with interest. Indeed she was correct for thinking a leopard could handle these platforms but; he? So used to running on flat land at speeds that fluctuated and were inconsistent? He was a flat land creature, though he could climb a good tree or two; he was indefinitely a savannah dweller.
“Just run?” He questioned, checking with Lady Ming to be sure he had it correct.
Ming studied his expression with interest, it was obvious that he was concerned, if not for himself but for his companion. "Will you be able to hunt in these lands?" She asked pausing as another question formed upon her tongue. "Just show me what you can do. If you can run, then run, if you can climb then do so," she told him without really giving him an answer. "You are presented with different territory, different situations, show me how you handle it," she explained settling back onto her haunches. She knew that the cheetah would have more difficulty with the terrain than his leopard companion, but if he were to stay he would learn to adjust. "In these lands you must know hot to use your surroundings to your advantage. Outsiders will not be accustom to our way of life, to the territory that we live on. You must outsmart them." She instructed. "After I get a view of your skills I will move on to the next part of the trial."
Ahh, he breathed, fully understanding now. He checked the lands again, looking at the impossibly tall trees and raunchy earth as it spread here and there. His tail stiffened as she settled back on her heels and prepared for whatever it was he had to offer.
For a moment, he simply looked; eyes to the sky with his body stretched out across the earth. He felt every muscle pulse, the interest he had in this land now building upon the knowledge that he could run freely on it. And as if in tow to the surge of adrenaline, he propelled himself forward onto the rock formations and up, higher than he would have expected himself to go at his moderate, but hasty speed.
Straight down the clearing he ran, toward a cluster of trees were he rocked back on his hind legs and lunged up into the first tree he came to. The limbs in these plants seemed to spout close, at least with this one and with little grace he leapt onto the opposite tree and skid down the face of its bark, running to the left of Lady Ming, still a distance away from her seat.
There were boulders everywhere, and miniature cliffs seemed to stretch out from the face of the mountains the pride lived. He raced across them, bobbing in and out between trees (at a slower rate than most, but good enough for him) and skipping over the shrubs that were placed in his way. The winds picked up, and in his favor they pushed him forward, a light kick in the rear to step up his game.
He would stumble every hop he made, or every dodge he would manage to take but his feet did not give out from under him, not simply because he was fully capable to finish the task, but for the leopardess that rested in his den.
He couldn’t see it, but what his patterns looked like was frayed and sporadic. He had no real technique in his running, just that he knew he had to run and so he did. Almost like a child on bags of sugar, he pinged from this end of the clearing to that, a wild and vibrant expression on his countenance.
And then, the drop in his excitement seemed to let fatigue settle in, and he knew his rate had been lost and his adrenaline diminished. He slowed, having trekked over everything he figured needed trekking and fumbled to a halt near Lady Ming, trying desperately to calm his raging heart and pants.
"Lady Ming...?" He questioned, out of breath but simply asking how he faired.
She watched with interest as he preformed many different feats, facing the challenge that had been presented to him. He would stumble, but that was to be expected, even still he did excellent given this was probably his first time on such grounds. When he came to a halt and made his way towards her she looked impartial, trying to hide the fact that she was impressed. "Now we move on," she stated with a nod. She moved to stand and circled him. "You will be presented with a series of questions, hypothetical situations, and you must answer them as though they were real situations and I needed your opinion," she paused, "do you understand?"
The male nodded his head, watching the lioness move around him; intimidating him. It worked, he cannot say it didn’t, but the hype he had just encountered seemed to ease the level, nearly banish the taunt all together.
Waiting was always the worst, he settled back on his haunches a bit and let Lady Ming do whatever it was she must. “I understand.”
"Good," she responded with a firm nod of her head. "An former member of Tianxia has turned his back on the pride and left without permission of any lady or lord, he is to be put on trial once he returned. Under the laws of Tianxia he is once again regarded as an outsider, who wishes to join," she paused, "however given his behavior to we let him rejoin?" She inquired interested in seeing how he would respond. "And if he is allowed again should we have him go through the trials once again?"
"In him leaving, he has embarrassed the Pride, as well as his Leaders." Banjoko begins, his features settling; comfort in this Q&A seeming to resonate. "Is it but too much to ask that any lion in the pride request permission to leave? Being that the Pride offers so much to those who are admitted in. In theory, especially to the South, looking over pros and cons which would both benefit the pride, and harm it would be necessary; however, in his case the chances of him rejoining should be slim to none."
The soft countenance he normally held had grown stiff and impressionable. "All the same, my only advice and input to this matter would be that in his rejoining, he must withstand the trials once again; them being much more difficult than in his first joining. Considering his leave was disrespecting the Prides way, trials based off reevaluating his honor as well as the level of truth he has left in him would suit." Bobbing his head in a nod, the Cheetah finishes off, a shudder passing over his tail in the excitement.
"Hm," she mused thoughtfull reassessing his response. "The exception to gaining permission to leave would be that of a messenger, or someone who has already been given permission prior," she told him, answering the question that he had asked her. "Messengers jobs are that of delievering messages to our allies, or potential allies as well as other needs as the lords or ladies need of them," she explained. "It is severly frowned upon to leave the lands without reason. or knowlegde. It presents a threat to the inner workings of the pride," she paused shaking her head. "This pride is very secretive, in a sense." After her information had been given she presented the next situation. "In many cases outsiders are frowned upon, especially if they wander the lands without permission from the governing lords, if an outsider, with possible cruel intentions was brought before the council, they would stand trial." She stopped to study his expression. "There has been evidence provide that said trespasser was attempting to get into the pride with the intention of hurting it, under the standards of the pride it is possible that they could be killed." Another pause. "What would you suggest we do, kill them or toss them out and why."
Banjoko felt torn by the follow up set of questions.
It was not in his way to assume death to any, his morals set as far high as to let the perpetrator give many excuses before even considering the toll. But, with evidence given and the laws set by the pride allowing; he would be tempted. His thoughts injected Tisha, her livelihood more important to him than his own. If she were confronted with this outsider, and inevitably put at risk, who was he to not guarantee the maiming of such mongrel?
”I will admit to being pulled at both ends; but I have come to terms with something just now. If indeed there was valid evidence, one that could be proven such as in the case you put before me, I know that it would be in my better interest, as well as the Prides to lay the hand of the law onto this creature. Evidence of his intent is just as strong as evidence of his actions; with this said however, we must also give a hand to reason that if he had not been captured, could he not have been moved to change his thoughts?
“His freedom would not go without cost, as a bounty could be set on his head and for the next time he is seen near or on the lands; death would be his price to pay. I do see the dangers in releasing him, as well, but if only to uphold your own pride, the Tianxia must be understanding and open to all the possibilities.”
Ming arched a brow intrigued by his answer. He would let the tresspasser go, interesting. When he explained why she nodded. "Very well then," she stated a small smile on her lips . "Your trial is over," she told him simply. "As for your position in the pride, which you have been accepted to, will remain as my knowledge until your leopard friend, Tisha had undergone her own trial." It was so that she could tell them together, of course if she passed the trial as he had. "However you must know that the events of these trials are strictly between the two of us, and should you tell others of these events, it can seriously jeopardize your future here in Tianxia."
And then, a breeze could be felt and Banjoko was free to relax once again. He let his paws shovel into the soil for a moment as he nodded his head and bowed like he had before. "Thank you, Lady Ming. And I will keep this all in secret; as is the prides way." His smile reflected hers, though he was a bit more timid in the gesture. "Thank you for this opportunity."
FIN.
