Warrior's Brood [Valerath]

[Valeria]

The months had passed by swiftly, and Valeria could hardly believe the pack before her eyes. Motherhood had treated many of her sisters kindly, and while most of the others regarded their sons with disdain, she and Amara - though sometimes it seemed she did not want to - kept their sons near their sides. It was a bit disconcerting, to tell the truth. While Val had no qualms with Valhalla around the females of the pack, she worried each and every day that Leviathan was going to find himself in a mess that even she could not free him of. He was treading on thin ice with many of the others, and there was little she could do to stop him from falling into the lake when the time came.

It had been far too long since she last instructed the pups, and she figured it was about time her three oldest learned the art of combat at a more masterful level. Soon, Valkyrie would begin her training to take over the pack, and Valhalla would assume a position as a Templar of the pack. She still was not certain if Levi would even be allowed to remain within their ranks... The other pups seemed intimidated, even frightened of him at times, though he never saw the male's misbehavior herself. She could not just take the word of the little ones, as many of them carried after their mothers and would sooner see him booted from the pack than offered a protector rank within Valyn.

With a tip of her blackened skull, the alphess beckoned her young to join her in the heart of the jungle, where they would learn the ways that her father taught her before, and she would instill upon her pups. They did not have a father figure in their life, and Valeria was more than willing to assume both roles. She would mold them into the sharpest, keenest fighters the continent had ever seen. Except Arya, that was.

Her darling, little Arya was so much daintier than her siblings, and sometimes she found herself doting on Arya more simply to make up for the fact that she was inferior in size and strength. She needed the extra reassurance that only a mother could give, and she needed the support to feel that she was not growing up in the shadow of her siblings. The world needed more than just warriors, and she was fairly certain she would see if Arya was interested in studying under Athena to learn the ways of a healer. Perhaps she would find an interest there that would keep her out of harm's way. But there was no point in leaving her out of this training; she would simply have to work with Arya herself to ensure her three larger siblings didn't inflict any lasting damage against her.

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Word Count: 479 words
Tags: Valkyrie, @valhalla, Leviathan, & @arya
Notes: Time for a lesson from mommy XD

[Leviathan]

If Mother had summoned them, then so it would be. The Kenai male was growing stronger and large with each passing day, yet he was still bound to the orders of the alphess of the pack, their dear mother. There would be a day soon where he would take orders from none, yet that had not yet arrived. He was capable of far beyond the limits this pack offered him; he could forge a life beyond the lands of Valyn without the limitations of his gender. He simply could not surmise why the pack looked down on males to the degree they did. In fact, Leviathan could only see the strength and dominance of his breed, not the inferiority that the females within the pack seemed to believe. He was strong and capable. He was not hindered by the useless emotions that riddled the minds of the females around. He was not driven by want or desire, but rather by the instinct to survive and succeed. He was a machine in his own right, and he would be far more on his own than this pack afforded him. He was strength. He was superiority. And he was everything his mother seemed to be afraid of.

Perhaps that was why he often found her gaze to be different toward him than that of his siblings. He could not identify the sentiment behind it; like many other emotions, hatred, fear, or discomfort were foreign to him. He could not differentiate one from another; he only knew that whatever they thought of him, it was not good. Many of the others called him a bully. He simply found himself to be stronger and more capable; they were labeling him in a negative manner in order to build themselves up. He would not allow himself to be demeaned by their foolish labels and stereotypes. He was beyond their childish games and foolhardy behavior.

As the hulkish male strode toward his equally large mother, he routinely dipped his mottled head in her direction, offering the expected greeting and respect that was directed to the leader of the pack. He felt nothing toward her. There was no loyalty or love there. She was simply Mother. The title was there, and he knew what it meant, but with each day, his pup-like behavior was fading to grey, and his true nature was rising to the surface. He felt less of a connection to his brother and sisters with each passing moment, and with time there would likely be a full disconnect there.

There was a mild bond between Leviathan and Valhalla, but the male knew that his brother would be more inclined to remain here with their family. Truthfully, he had not discussed Hal's plans for the future, as his future did not involve any of the bloodline. He did not care much to think of their future, as that implied that their paths would be intermingled with his. The idea of that was simply unacceptable, and he would do everything in his power to avoid a future that involved them, particularly Arya. Even from a young age, she had gotten him into more trouble than he believed possible. With age, Levi learned more and more to steer clear of the smaller wolf unless they were required to be in the same area. It was only a matter of time when they were together before he somehow was made out to be the aggressor in whatever situation arose. Perfect little Arya could do no wrong, and big bad Levi was always the one at fault.

The large brute scoffed quietly, rolling his eyes in response to the thought. He could not take living in the shadow of a midget for much longer. For some reason, the pack seemed to care for Arya even above him. He was nothing more than dirt to the majority of the pack, which was why he had taken to spending his time alone with the company of the jungle more and more over time. He was capable of hunting and caring for himself. He did not need the pack to watch over his every move in order to survive like many of the others. Where they were small, he was large. He would no longer be held to the confines of their ideals.

"Mother, why have you called?" he inquired casually, his bizarre eyes gazing around in search of his siblings. As always, the others were lagging behind. He was unsure why Mother could not see that he was truly the superior of the litter. It was not an idea that he could comprehend being inferior to Valkyrie. There was clearly a reason behind her summons, but she likely would not reveal it until his three remaining siblings showed their faces. He would simply have to sit and wait. He was forever destined to be stunted by his brother and sisters; there would be no true progression for him until he was rid of the shackles that were his family in Valyn.


Word Count: 842 words
Tags: Valkyrie, @valhalla, & @arya
Notes: Levi is getting more distant with every thread. Uh oh.