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 Posted: Wed Nov 21, 2012 7:45 am
 Act normal. Act normal. Aruná took a deep breath as she approached the den that belonged to the new Warlord and his wife. It was more than a little bit intimidating, so it was a good thing she had been invited. Akatta had seemed so nice when she met her, and Aruná looked forward to meeting her again. She told herself that it was all part of her grand plan to free her sister, but it would be nice to get to know the other female too. Akatta's dark pelt and blue eyes made her think about home, and she unconciously assumed that she'd be calm and wise like her old spirit indicated.
It wouldn't hurt to better understand the customs of her new home, even if she didn't intend to stay for very long. The fact that the thralls did most of the hunting was a foreign concept to her, and she was genuinely curious about what freeborn females did with their time... Akatta would probably have thralls of her own, she was an important lady after all.
"Uh... Hello?" she called, and then could have kicked herself for forgetting the proper way to greet people, "I'm here to meet Akatta Blålågor.
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Posted: Wed Nov 21, 2012 2:11 pm
A pale white cheetah stepped into the light with silent steps, her coat almost gleaming in the faint sunlight. The way the slender feline carried herself, full of grace and poise, definitely didn’t match her status as a lowly Thrall.
“The Lady is expecting you.” She said with little emotion, stepping aside to allow Aruná to walk inside with ease. Norolim knew how servants were supposed to act and talk. She’d never expected to become a slave who would have to actually use those skills though. “Welcome. Please enter.” Her words were short and polite but anyone could see there was a burning will hiding behind the composed facade.
----------------
Akatta hadn’t been feeling well for a couple of days but she didn’t want to postpone this little friendly meeting. She felt Aruná had great potential in the pride and wished to speak with her as soon as possible even though Njal’s ruling had made it impossible for the other lioness to make such a terrible mistake as to try to follow the path of a Reaver.
“Ah, Aruná. Welcome.” She didn’t add the term Outlander to her greeting, fearing that it might come across as a rude remark. Much like the common Stormborn greetings, it didn’t seem proper to use some of the common terms when addressing a female. “Please, make yourself comfortable. Would you like something to eat?”
She ‘d had Norolim prepare many furs to make the den look as warm and rich as possible as possible and there was a small gazelle in the corner, one that Norolim had caught herself despite not being particularly good at hunting. There were many trinkets neatly gathered around the den, proof that Njal had been through many victorious vikings.
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Posted: Wed Nov 21, 2012 2:43 pm
Aruná wasn't bothered by the white thrall appearing to show her in. It wasn't as bad when it was just a soulless animal and not a lion or lioness. Or perhaps it was just that Udongo was family, and that was what made her feel bad about the thrall business. They had slaves in her old home too, but they all deserved their position for their war crimes. It appeared that this pride had similar customs, sort of. But it struck her as overkill to banish or enslave an entire family. Not that she was going to say that out loud, she wasn't about to get into politics in a pride she had just joined.
"Thank you," she said as she entered. The cheetah made her feel very clumsy, for some reason and Akatta was a welcome sight.
"Thank you," she said again, settling in the richly decorated den. She couldn't help gawking just a little. "I'd like that."
It wouldn't be polite to turn down food, right?
"It's nice to see you again."
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Posted: Tue Jan 08, 2013 6:59 am
(So sorry, I just realized how long overdue this tag was!)
Norolim gave the two lionesses some time while they settled themselves comfortably before dragging the gazelle to the space between them, a little closer to the visitor than her mistress. She eyed the carcass for a few moments – a hard-earned prey for the cheetah who wasn’t used to hunting – before her eyes rose to watch Aruná critically. She abhorred being a thrall to these inferior creatures but at least there was some poise to Akatta. She was well-mannered, well-meaning and apart from having married a brute of a lion, Norolim couldn’t find many faults in the dark feline.
So she secretly liked Akatta. It wasn’t something she was proud of and it was a courtesy that she wouldn’t extend to any other lion, not those related to her, not the one she’d married and certainly not her visitors. She only realized how hard her gaze must’ve been when Akatta's eyes met it with unusual sternness and without any word being passed between them, Norolim took the hint and backed away to the wall of the den where she sat down and waited for further instructions.
-------------------------
“And you, as well.” Akatta said pleasantly, sitting down in a light colored pelt that deeply contrasted her dark coat. She had meant her words. The fact that Njal had become Warlord and brought back the old ways made him somewhat intimidating in the eyes of others and Akatta’s den was now the Warlord’s home. Her friends didn’t visit quite as often for obvious reasons. So while she couldn’t say that she was lonely, it was always nice to receive a visitor in the den that she was so proud of.
“You will forgive me if I don’t join you, dear. I’m afraid my stomach hasn’t been agreeing with me lately.” More than once, Akatta had wondered if the deposed High Priestess hadn’t put a curse on her. If she had, Akatta was proud to think that the Gods didn’t favor her enough to cause something truly serious. “But I am glad you came. We didn’t get a chance to really talk last time we saw each other.” Her eyes hardened when she caught the very un-submissive way that her thral was was watching the visitor but Norolim quickly readjusted her behavior and Akatta’s gaze softened almost instantly. Once again, she watched the other lioness from head to tail. Aruná had good sober colors similar to those of many Stormborn lions in the pride – similar to Aesir’s line but Akatta hoped there was no relation there. She would fit well in the pride, Akatta was sure of it.
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Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2013 9:38 am
Mogami No problem smile I only tagged you a few days ago.
"This is a nice gazelle," she said to Akatta before taking a bite. She looked a bit worried when the other lioness mentioned that she was unwell. "I hope it's nothing too serious. There must be many restless spirits around at a time like this."
Another aspect of Aruná's upbringing was that the invisible spirit world was as real to her as the visible and tangible one. She still spoke like a Mizimu lion, and thought like a Mizimu lion. She had started to notice that some Stormborn looked at her a bit funny when she mentioned the spirits, and she regretted bringing it up.
"I'm curious," she said, offering Akatta a change of subject in case the spirit comment hadn't been appropriate, "Do you mark your thralls in any way to keep track of them? In my old home the slaves were marked with green dye so that everyone would know of their disgrace. They were traitors and prisoners of war, mostly."
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Posted: Sun Jan 13, 2013 6:59 pm
Yes, it was a very nice gazelle. Norolim had to agree with that assessment though she’d found it a lot nicer before the visitor had put her dirty slobber on it. She frowned when Aruná mentioned spirits, somewhat uncomfortable by the brief comment. The Stormborn lions might think differently but Norolim came from a pride that believed deeply in the spiritual world, in angry souls that couldn’t rest and beings forever cursed to linger between life and death. Uncomfortable, the cheetah took one little step away from the weird lioness.
-----------------------
“My Thrall caught it. She’s becoming quite efficient.” Akatta stated with a hint of pride. She liked having an exotic Thrall who was elegant, beautiful and also useful. It reflected well on her family and it was a constant reminder that Njal had provided her home with a good Thrall in addition to many little treasures.
Of spirits and other such things, Akatta knew very little of. She was no priestess and had no interest in further delving into a world that was not yet her own – and hopefully wouldn’t be their own for a very long time.
“I should surely hope not. My ancestors at least, I hope they have found their place amongst the Gods. They’ve all died with honor.” Perhaps Aruná spoke of the dishonoured, the disgruntled thralls and all those who had died resenting the Stormborn. Or perhaps her beliefs were quite different from Akatta’s which made sense considering she was an outsider. The Freeborn was more than willing to be a helpful provider of information though. “Most Freeborns know who the Thralls are. Their behaviour gives them away if their condition doesn’t so marking them isn’t really necessary. Unclaimed thralls might be harder to recognize sometimes but it’s the duty of all Stormborn lions to know their fellow pride members even the more recent additions so they will never be confused for thralls... or the other way around. There are of course those who like to mark their thralls…” She glanced at the pale cheetah briefly, not really liking the idea that anyone would want to mark her immaculate white coat. “It doesn’t apply to other felines but I don’t think a lion thrall would be stupid enough to try and impersonate a Freeborn. The punishment would be terrible.”
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Posted: Mon Jan 14, 2013 3:50 am
Aruná didn't notice the effect her words had on the slave. It would never occur to her to try to discuss matters of the spirit world with a spiritless creature. That was just silly! Luckily Akatta didn't seem to mind her mention of spirits. The fact that she talked about dying with honor made her glad. That was something she could connect with.
"That's good to hear," Aruná said, "My parents died in a war I was too young to remember. But I was told they died honorably in battle. It's my siblings I worry about... I don't know what happened to them, and if they had someone to guide them if they've died. Oh, I wouldn't want to die without honor."
Aruná never learned that her own father was one of the lowly slaves of her birthpride, since no one had corrected her assumption that both her parents had died in the war. Perhaps it was for the best that the cubs of the rebel king would never know where they came from.
She nodded as Akatta told her more about the thralls of the pride. Those that weren't lions were easy enough to keep track of, since they couldn't very well pretend to be freeborn. She'd have to pay attention to the others then. Mistaking someone for a thrall was probably not considered very polite.
"I can imagine," she said and winced, mentally scrapping that particular idea to get Udongo out of here. "I guess I'll start to learn to recognize the thralls when I've lived here longer. I don't know many lions yet."
She knew Akatta, and she sort of knew the reaver she'd fought to get in here... She had talked a fair deal with the Lawspeaker that interviewed her after she had won... She was getting to know a couple of lionesses she'd shared a meal with... She knew the new warlord and the old, even if knowing what the beaten warlord looked like didn't do her much good. She'd seen most of the pride at the challenge, but she hardly knew anything about most of them.
"I guess I just need to try to meet more people," she said.
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Posted: Mon Jan 14, 2013 8:26 am
Norolim looked away from the lionesses to roll her eyes at the wall behind her. As far as she was concerned, only an idiot wouldn’t be able to recognize a Thrall after a quick glance. The slaves kept their eyes on the ground, their postures submissive and their tones polite. Anything else might incur the wrath of a moody Freeborn or Reaver and bring forth a punishment that in the worst case scenario could very well end up being… permanent. Very few Thralls considered escaping their situation, fearing the inevitable consequences and Norolim was no exception. She could dream of leaving this wretched place but she would probably never dare to make a serious attempt at escaping especially now that Njal had become the Warlord.
--------------------------------------
Perhaps mistakenly, Akatta was starting to think that there were many similarities between her pride and the now disbanded Mizimu, something that pleased her greatly. It was nice to see someone who had grown outside of the Myrsky Syntynyt but shared similar values and understood the importance of honor. Not all Outlanders did, not really.
“Oh yes, that is essential. But apart from the Outlanders like yourself, I think you’ll find that getting to know the family lines is much easier than you imagine. We all look a bit alike, you see.” She smiled playfully, imagining Aruná walking up to a meek Freeborn and confusing her for a Thrall. Not entirely unheard of. “I don’t think you’ll get confused, don’t worry.”
An idea came to her and Akatta smiled knowingly, despite not feeling entirely up to it.
“I believe we can make this day more profitable if we take a walk after you’re done eating. We can visit many of families and I can introduce you a good number of our fellow Stormborn.” It would be a good way to stay in touch with her friends and acquaintances.
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Posted: Mon Jan 14, 2013 10:05 am
Seeing the similarities between the Stormborn and her old pride was exciting to Aruná too. When she first got here she only knew them as thieves and kidnappers, but in trying to fit in and rescue Udongo she noticed more and more similarities. A Warleader or a Warlord leading the pride didn't make much difference, as long as someone strong was running a pride.
"I can imagine," she said and returned the smile, "The Warleader of my old pride was very... oh... let's call it prolific. And it would have been easy even for an outsider to recognize his kin."
She wondered if anyone in Sakata's line still lived or if his blood had been wiped out with the rest of the pride. She dismissed that thought. Dwelling on the past and the what-ifs and the maybes wouldn't do her any good.
"I'd love that," she said, and her ears perked up in a way that might have looked cubbish or silly, "You must know everyone around here..."
She took another bite, wondering when it would be polite to be finished with the food. The minders that raised her had taught her about history and the spirit world, and also basic manners, but she felt a bit at loss when it came to being in the presence of someone like Akatta. Luckily she was a very kind lion, and Aruná felt safe despite the unfamiliar situation. She sighed and made a decision.
"I found my sister the other day," she said when she'd swallowed a mouthful of meat.
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Posted: Mon Jan 14, 2013 11:10 am
“Prolific… Something tells me there was more than one lioness involved.” Akatta let out a little conformed sigh. Like Aesir, she supposed. Though thankfully, his litters, legitimate and illegitimate, had been small. “It is a shame that those with power don’t always behave accordingly to their status.”
Akatta wasn’t entirely sure what to think of her husband’s decision to banish Aesir’s family from the pride. It was a radical decision and it made a lot of sense – she didn’t doubt some of them would try to undermine Njal’s rule - but it was still a cruel thing to uproot entire families because of the sins of the head of family.
“An Outlander or two aside, I believe so. Though you might know some of the new Stormborn better than me. My new position requires me to keep up with the flow of new members so perhaps you can help me there.” She didn’t want Aruná to feel like she owned her anything. “We can help each other.”
Her eyes widened when the other lioness mentioned her sister.
“But that is wonderful! Is she well?” Akatta said with a bright smile, looking truly pleased by the happy news.
----------------------
Norolim’s brow shot up as she lost all pretenses to hide her feelings. She was not pleased. One, this visitor had come to take her mistress’ time and was to take even more of it in the future. Two, Akatta didn’t seem to be taking her present state into account when offering to help Aruná. Three… there were two of them!
Nope, not pleased at all!
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Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2013 2:41 am
"They say he even had cubs with a Goddess at one point," Aruná said. The warriors of her pride liked to brag about that part, but she didn't know if it was true. She sensed that Akatta wasn't too impressed by males spreading their seed just because they could. Hopefully it wasn't a thing that had to come with power.
Aruna hesitated for a couple of heartbeats before answering. Finding and talking to Udongo had been confusing to say the least. Her big sister didn't seem to want or need the kind of rescue operation Aruná had envisioned, and she wasn't even particularly upset to be enslaved. Granted, it was hard to do anything to upset the large lioness.
"She's well," Aruná said, not sounding entirely convinced, "I was afraid I would find her here as a thrall, and she is a thrall, but she seems happy. I don't know..."
Weird, right? Her eyes seemed to say.
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Posted: Sat Jan 19, 2013 12:07 pm
“A Goddess? It must’ve been a weaker deity. I do not think our Gods would lower themselves to the point of mating with someone who was not honorable, regardless of their position.” Akatta frowned and shook her head slightly though it was obvious she wasn’t entirely certain on this particular subject. “Then again, I am no Priestess and the wills of the Gods are often obscure.”
That was one of the things she most admired about her husband. He was a strong and bold male, beautiful to look at and just as tough in a fight. And yet he didn’t succumb to the calls of temptresses, had never brought home a cub from his many vikings and certainly didn’t go around covering Thrall females and diluting his blood with weaker felines… like Gaved. Gods forbid her but Akatta had been shocked to find out that the meek lioness that Thorgrim had given his son would now become a Freeborn, his saltwife and had even given birth to his cubs. Poor Dalla… What was to become of the Old Blood when such things kept happening? How would Thorgrim react to having his first grandcubs being birthed by a (former) Thrall?
And thinking of Thralls…
“Excuse me?” Akatta looked thoroughly confused for a few moments but realization slowly crept into the flames of her eyes. “How did it happen?”
---------------------------
Norolim swallowed quite loudly, looking surprised. Now that was an interesting development! So technically, while she couldn’t say anything to this annoying lioness, her sister shared the same rank as the cheetah – perhaps even lower as Noroim was the Thrall of the Warlord’s wife. Interesting.
The pale feline sat down comfortably with an amused expression, eagerly waiting to hear more on the matter.
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Posted: Sat Jan 26, 2013 10:38 am
Aruná made a mental note to seek out one of the Priestesses of the pride. She knew a little bit about Gods, or Greater Spirits as the Mizimu called them, but it would be god to learn more about the spiritual beliefs of the Stormborn. She might even meet one when Akatta showed her around later, but she didn't want to bother the other lioness with any more spiritual questions.
"I'm still not sure I understand exactly how," Aruná confessed with a sigh, "Apparently a young reaver surprised her after taking down a wildebeest, and since she didn't want to hurt him she let him take her with him."
It made no sense. Well, perhaps if you knew how gentle Udongo was it sort of made sense. She was just too nice for her own good. She could take down a freaking wildebeest, but she couldn't smack a young lion over the head and send him home.
"I found the tracks and the remains of the kill," she continued, "And I suppose I've been looking for her since... It was a bit of a shock to find out that she went sort of willingly just because she took pity on that young male. Ru-something... But when I asked around I heard he's not among the Stormborn anymore."
She was still getting to terms with the fact that Udongo had been abducted without any struggle, and that she didn't seem to be in a hurry to leave this place. It was nice here, she said.
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Posted: Sat Feb 02, 2013 12:07 pm
“I believe you’re talking about Ruzanski.” Outlander Ruzanski, Captain Ruzanski now. Currently on a ridiculous quest given to him by Aesir because the former Warlord’s favorite daughter had apparently given birth to his cubs – who, rumor had it, looked nothing like the supposed father. Despite being an Outlander, Ruzanski had been a tough young lion who’d managed to join the pride as an adolescent, defeated many rogues at the border and brought many Thralls back to the pride. He definitely had iron in his blood and he was a welcomed addition to the Stormborn family as far as Akatta was concerned. Though perhaps she saw him in a better light after he'd lost Aesir's favor.
Aruná’s sister, however…
Akatta hesitated, her expression thoughtful. While she often voiced her opinions regarding female Reavers and was somewhat suspicious of all females who joined the pride though dueling, the dark lioness felt conflicted in this situation. Yes, females seeking a fight and other male tasks was not something she supported but to lose one one’s freedom, to be willingly separated from family members not because of lack of ability but lack of… spirit? Motivation? It was ridiculous. Akatta could tell Aruná had fire in her, she had iron in her veins. But her sister…? She seemed to be the very definition of a Thrall.
“It’s a strange situation.” She said at last, her eyes saying that she’d reached a conclusion. She liked Aruná so she tried to give sound advice to her problem. “The life of a Thrall can be very difficult. Not all males are like my husband, you see and some don’t mind seeking a few moments of fleeting satisfaction even at the cost of having bastards. It’s not as if their advances can be refused either.” Her expression grew sterner but she didn’t voice her opinions on the matter. “If she’s an unclaimed Thrall, I would suggest you claim her as quickly as possible. If someone has claimed her already, I can have her word with her current master and pass her ownership to you. From that moment on, she will be under your protection and as safe as a Thrall can be in this pride.”
Akatta hesitated. She did not wish to have the Thrall’s obviously weak blood added to the Stormborn lines but she was committed to helping Aruná.
“If she has spirit hidden within and the iron in her blood comes to the surface, you can train her so that she might attempt to regain her freedom during the next Breytast Vindar. She may attain the rank of Freeborn if she does.” But Akatta did hope Aruná's sister would never rise in rank.
---------------------------------
Norolim scowled again, not pleased that her mistress was willing to devote so much time and thought to this silly matter, interesting and unusual as it was. She was an important lioness in the pride who certainly had more important matters to deal with. It also didn’t help that the cheetah was painfully aware that her species made it impossible to seek a Freeborn rank for herself. It was this life or trying to escape for Norolim and the pale cheetah knew Njal would take a personal offense if the Thrall he’d given his wife tried to run away. And if there was someone Norolim was afraid of, it was the new Warlord. He'd probably send out a entire band of Reavers after her and while cheetahs had speed, their stamina left much to be desired.
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Posted: Sun Feb 03, 2013 3:11 am
Ruzanski. The name sounded foreign, but Aruná tried to remember it this time. If she ever met him she'd have a few choice words to say to him! It would have been satisfying to challenge him for what he'd done to her sister, but that didn't seem like a likely scenario. From what Akatta had told her it wouldn't be right for a freeborn lioness to do that.
Aruná stayed silent. She could see that Akatta was thinking over her problem, and she didn't want to interrupt. Patience wasn't easy for her, but it would be worth the effort. When Akatta started to talk she just nodded and took in the advice offered. From what Udongo had told her she hadn't been approached by any randy freeborn males. She had probably been beaten, but not badly enough for her to think it was a big deal. It was hard to do any real damage on her sister, and she was good natured enough to just shake it off. It frustrated Aruná a great deal, but according to Akatta there were things she could do to protect Udongo.
"Thank you," she finally said, and it was obvious that it came from the heart, "I will do that. I think she would have told me if anyone had claimed her."
It was a huge comfort for her that Akatta used the word spirit. She had always known that her own spirit was fiercer and more volatile than her sister's spirit. Her sister's spirit was probably very old, and it wasn't easy to wake the warrior inside. The only time she'd ever seen Udongo show any such traits were when cubs were in danger.
"Who minds the cubs around here," she asked, "Is it the freeborn females or the thralls?"
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