Chaika was certain that he ready. He had prepared himself for this very moment for what seemed to be a lifetime.
Of course, it had only been a few weeks, but it felt like more. He had trekked through the winding hills of Nyjoro, and had reached The Kinath. When he first caught sight of the very tips of the towering mountains, his entire body began to wriggle with pure excitement. He had not felt even a slight bit of joyfulness ever since this horrible winter weather had begun. The freezing rain and wind had done him no good as he was traveling. At last, his tired spirit lifted as he approached the marvelous beasts, The Kinath.
Chaika had only heard of this eastern Anikira area called the Oriens a month prior, from a loner whose name he could not for the life of him seem to remember. The brute had told Chaika sweet anecdotes of his past time in the area. He had recalled of a beautiful forest, surrounded and protected by The Kinath mountain range. The part that Chaika had loved the most, was the beautiful freshwater pond located in the center of the forest. He always enjoyed sploshing in the shallow water on a the occasional scorching hot summer day. Just thinking about it caused his tail to swing back and forth with excitement.
The loner had also told Chaika about the pack who had claimed the territory, called Amar. Chaika had learned that the alpha was not one who enjoyed disrespect or slackers. The moment these words poured out of the brutes mouth, Chaika had thought of himself. He felt the same way, and hoped desperately that this would be taken as a positive by Kiddo, rather than it become a negative thing that he was similar to the powerful wolf. He had only worried about this briefly, but then decided it was not worth it. He was going to travel to the Oriens and ask to join the Amar pack.
As Chaika climbed the rocky surface, he only managed to slip on the wet surface once, suffering from a shearing pain on his right hind paw pad from scraping it on the rock. He had paused to soothe the awful pain and discovered it was only a minor scrape, nothing to worry about, and carried on after licking off the hot, sticky blood off of his paw. He was limping slightly, but after a few moments of walking, the cold ground helped numb what ever pain he had left, so he continued at a normal pace.
Chaika spotted a small cave-like opening in the rocks and after scanning it with his big, brown eyes and sniffing it's moist air, he proceeded inside of the space. It was rather boring, nothing inside other than rocks and a small pool of collected rainwater, but it didn't matter. He would only wait here for a wolf of Amar to arrive so that he could speak about his wish of joining their ranks. He did not feel comfortable intruding any deeper into the territory as a tresspasser, so he took a few mouthfuls of water from the pool and curled up beside it, finally protected from the wind and rain, his coat still soaking wet and cold.
He promised himself he would not drift off into sleep. He did not want his first impression to be "the wolf who was found comfortable enough to fall asleep in one of the caves." Chaika was not like that. He did, however, feel as though even if he tried he would not be able to fall asleep. Not here, not now. Oddly enough, he was not the slightest bit nervous. Instead, he was flooded with excitement and he imagined what life may be like the following day. Would he be a part of Amar, or would he end up rejected and go back to his previous life as a loner, and have to search for yet another place to call home? Chaika had not the slightest idea.
Kiddo decided that he wanted to go up his mountains and check to see if anyone was in the dens. It had become a routine to check them now that one of his own members had brought a loner into Amar's lands not too long ago. Kiddo had grown paranoid about wolves sneaking over the mountains and waiting in the pack's dens to attack them. Especially with that crazed alpha from Descai lurking about on the island. Kiddo wasn't afraid of them alpha himself as much as he was worried about what the other alpha may do. He was completely unaware of the strength that the pack had or any plans they may be making. Kiddo felt like a sitting duck, waiting to be shot. He didn't dare make a move to put a target on his back but he also didn't want to sit and do nothing. The pack was growing in numbers quickly which would deter the alpha from Descai from coming over here all willy-nilly.
As Kiddo was climbing the mountain that protected his home, an unfamiliar smell entered his nose once again. Another loner? Kiddo thought to himself and groaned slightly. By not calling to the alpha, it made this wolf, whoever it was, look very suspicious. Why didn't they call? Were they planning something? Were they waiting for others? Kiddo would have had no way of knowing had be not decided to see who was in the dens. Luckily, this wolf wasn't stupid enough to actually be inside of the pack's dens. Kiddo followed his nose to a male Timber wolf who seemed to be about 3 years old and he didn't look like he weighed anything over 100 pounds, if that. I am the alpha of Amar. What do you think your doing in my mountain, loner? Kiddo's voice didn't sound impressed but he was waiting to hear the brute's story before he made any movement to punish the brute for being there and not calling. Kiddo's body was tense but not stiff. His tail was raised and his head was held high and proud. He had made many leaps and bounds in terms of becoming a better alpha than when he first created his pack. He was walking like an alpha, talking like an alpha and thinking like an alpha. He had completely transformed from the "new guy in town that knows nothing" to " a guy on his way to greatness." It was a change that Kiddo was very thankful for. But his attention had to be brought back on the loner.
The brute looked...excited for something? What did he have to be excited about? He had never seen a wolf come into his territory and behave so excitedly. It was intriguing and interesting which was one reason why the Alpha was more willing to listen to what this brute had to say instead of dishing out the wrath of Amar. Kiddo was a bit obsessed one may say with things that were different. It didn't have to be physical differences but it could be. It could also be a different behavior than he had ever seen or a different personality or different skill sets or a different brain or a different way of thinking. Anything different, was at least worth looking in to for the alpha with only half of a tail.
Chaika remained in the cave, his thoughts trailing off in different directions. One second he thought about his mother, Nadia, the next he was wondering when his next meal would come. He was just beginning to feel hungry after a day of traveling to The Oriens. His stomach made a pleading murmur for something that would ease the cravings. 'Oh will you just shut up? This is no time to be thinking of food.'Chaika's mind soon raced to yet another thought, Kiddo. Would he find Chaika rude for making himself at home inside his territory? Would he find it odd that Chaika had not called for him? He knew he was forgetting something when he had curled up in the den, and it caused Chaika to feel as if he had failed already. Would Kiddo even consider accepting him after Chaika had made these mistakes? Chaika wasn't sure what the alpha would do, but he knew he felt absolutely horrible about it. He had screwed up his chances of joining the ranks of Amar, he was certain of it. He almost returned to his feet and left the territory all together. But then the smell of a brute reached his nose, and his excitement returned. It was Kiddo.
The wolf was much larger than Chaika, which he was not used to coming from a pack made up of scrawny things who barely had enough to eat. This wolf was very confident, as he should be as an alpha, and also did not seem very thrilled to see him here. 'It's probably because I forgot to call.' Chaika was slightly embarrassed now, standing before the alpha without any good explanation for himself. He rose to his feet, acknowledging the brute with a respectful dip of his head and listened to what Kiddo had to say. "I am the alpha of Amar. What do you think you're doing in my mountain, loner?" Chaika wondered the same thing. He was just thinking down on himself now. How could he be so ignorant to forget to call? Chaika knew he would never let this go, Kiddo probably wouldn't forget it either.
Chaika's face showed emotions of both respect and slight uneasiness. His excitement had completely vanished now. "Hello, my name is Chaika." Chaika greeted the wolf in a level, but in no way disrespectful, tone. "I'm guessing you are the great Kiddo. I have heard many wonderful things about you and your pack, sir. I was hoping I could join Amar myself. But first I must make a sincere apology to you." Most wolves would tremor away from showing another brute any signs of apology when first meeting him, only because they feared it would show weakness. Chaika didn't care if Kiddo believed he was weak. He knew it was the smart thing to do to apologize rather than shy away from his mistakes. He wanted to come clean with Kiddo right away. "Sir, I must apologize for my foolish actions today. I did not call to you, which was very wrong on my part, and I take full responsibility, sir. It somehow slipped my mind, and I am extremely sorry if this bothered you in any way, sir, as it has certainly bothered me." His head was slightly lowered, but he kept eye contact with the brute, his eyes showing little emotion.
His heart ached with regret as he awaited Kiddo's response. However, his feeling of excitement was slowly returning to him after getting his apology off of his chest. His tail remained still, he strained himself to keep it from wagging. This was not the first impression Chaika was hoping for. He deeply yearned that Kiddo would give him another chance to prove himself, to show just how professional Chaika really was.
Kiddo would have liked to have said that flattery would get you no where but that really wasn't true. It was true however that flattery didn't give you a free pass. This wolf whose name was Chaika would still have to explain himself and coming here without calling. His lands were his life. This along with his name was all that he had. He didn't have any airs to the throne to take over after him. This was it and it was very important to the alpha that the lands and the pack was very well taken care of and protected. It seemed like the pack had been having some security problems which he would need to bring up in the next pack meeting. Lynker would have to do more boarder patrolling or something. Kiddo could not have loners just prancing in here whenever they pleased and take a nap in the mountains. It had to stop.
The wolf rose to his feet and dipped his head slightly to the alpha. Kiddo was good at forgiving but not so much at forgetting. He would remember this day and if this wolf should show up again, his trust for the wolf would be minimal. He couldn't wrap his mind around why a wolf that looked to be around his age was so stupid as to not announce his arrival. It wasn't looking great for this wolf in Kiddo's eyes.
This wolf did make a good apology however. It took a lot for a male to make such an apology to another male. Especially without knowing him first. It seemed to Kiddo that this wolf was sincerely sorry and was really looking for forgiveness despite the lack of emotion in the brute's eyes. Kiddo could well relate to a lack of emotions. Well what is it that brought you here in the first place, Chaika? That was about as much forgiveness as that brute was going to get. Kiddo was not good at expressing gratitude or forgiveness. The closest he could get was moving forward and not holding on to it in the conversation any longer. This was not so say that he wouldn't hold on to this a bit longer in his head until this brute could truly redeem himself however that may be.
Kiddo still did not seem very pleased about what Chaika had done, but Chaika could see that the brute was somewhat impressed with his apology, which he was glad about. He didn't want Kiddo to think he was a complete idiot, although he had certainly acted like one. He made a promise to himself that he would probe to Kiddo that he was not stupid, that Chaika had the potential to greatly help out Amar. His expression stayed pretty much the same, though his eyes lit up with joy and thankfulness. Well what is it that brought you here in the first place, Chaika?" Chaika was happy to answer the brute, he was glad that Kiddo had changes the subject. Unlike other wolves who had an odd childhood similar to Chaika (which he had never met anyone who did), were never too psyched to speak about their past. Chaika, however, proceeded happily on answering the wolf.
"Well, sir, I was born into a small group of loners who called themselves a pack, they had an alpha, which sort of made them a pack. Most of the pack had health issues and were incredibly hungry and weak." Even Chaika winced at the memory of how awful they had looked. Until now, when he had met many other well-fed wolves, he had never thought that they were so skinny. It was just what he grew up with, he had become quite accustomed to it, but now he understood. "When I was born, my pack thought I was a hero of some sort. They fed me most of what they had, thinking someday I would save the pack. One night, lightning struck a dead tree and everything caught fire." Chaika focused his attention back on Kiddo. He was unsure what the brutes reaction would be by the end of the story. "I tried my best to save as many wolves as I could, sir, but many died that night, and those who were lucky enough to survive we're never found again. I heard about Amar from loners I had met. I traveled the long distance from the north to come to the Oriens. I came to ask if I may join Amar, sir."
Chaika's eyes were hollow with grief now. He had not mentioned losing Kyra or Nadia in the fire, for he feared he might actually cry in front of Kiddo. He had had enough humiliation for one day, he did not want to be seen as weak. He adjusted his stance to ensure he was not slouching. His facial expression remained emotionless, however he knew that if Kiddo payed attention to his eyes, he would understand how Chaika felt: lonely.
The truth was Chaika had absolutely despised his short time as an independent loner. It wasn't because he could not support himself, he could do this just fine. He had been able to support a whole pack with a decent amount of food, he could survive as a loner with ease. The part he hated the most was having little to no interaction with other wolves, unless he stumbled upon another loner, which he did occasionally, but it wasn't enough for Chaika. He was a very social brute who enjoyed having a nice conversation every now and then, not a suspicious one with a loner who could very well be out to kill him. Chaika needed Amar. His heart and soul pleaded to be accepted so that he could finally feel like he was a part of something important. Of course, he did not show this, he did not want to come across as desperate... but he was.
As Chaika went into his life story, Kiddo was expecting it to be much longer than what it was. Basically he came from a "pack" that had no real leadership or system of doing things. It sounded like some other packs that he knew of. Chaika said that many of them were starving which explained his low weight. Kiddo was a bit confused however about why this wolf would choose this place to join. The pack here was magnificent in Kiddo's mind but the food and the hunting here were very low right now. He was expecting it to go up as the seasons turned warm again. Perhaps this wolf was just looking for some protection and the possibility of food and saw the mountains which looked safe.
As Kiddo continued to listen to this story, his ear flicked back for a second, keeping alert of what was going on around him. This was his pack and his mountain but he had no idea what this wolf had planned. Perhaps this life story was a trap or a distraction to get him off of his guard for an attack. Perhaps this wolf was working for Descai. No, it couldn't be. Kiddo was over-estimating the alpha's intelligence. No way could that brute come up with an elaborate plan such as that.
Kiddo learned that when this wolf was born, his "pack" thought that he was some kind of hero. A lot of pressure put on a pup in Kiddo's mind. Kiddo also learned of a fire that had happened to this brute's family and that many of them died. Kiddo felt a little sorry for his loss as he too lost his family though it wasn't as dramatic as this wolf's story was. This wolf wanted to join Amar and by the look in his eyes, he looked lonely. If his story was true, he had the character that Kiddo appreciated.
What skills do you have to offer me? Kiddo asked in a slightly more understanding tone than before. Kiddo had a feeling that this wolf was telling the truth. Something about him just made Kiddo believe him. However, if this was a trap, there would be hell to pay for everyone involved. Kiddo would not allow others to make a fool out of him and get away with it.
At this point, Kiddo was accepting wolves of all skill sets. Hunters were needed and Warriors were needed the most but Kiddo was willing to consider everything that came to him. The larger the pack, the more intimidating they were and the less likely they would be to be put under attack.
Chaika could see that while Kiddo felt sorry for him, he was still suspicious, which Chaika could easily understand. He hated it hen wolves felt sorry about his past. It was the way it was, in Chaika's eyes. He could do nothing about it and neither could any other wolf. His family was gone. He still felt tremendous guilt when he thought of the wolves he had failed to save, but he tried his best to shake it off. He had done his best, but somehow it wasn't enough.
'What skills do you have to offer me?' The Timber's eyes lit up with excitement once more, but he did a good job of covering it up. He wanted to remain as professional as possible. He considered the question. He hadn't ever thought of his skills, in his old pack he carried out most of the work, he provided the food, fought off enemies, and even healed injured wolves with herbs and plants, though he wasn't quite an expert in any of the three. He hated healing because he always feared he would mix up two of the herbs and use the wrong one, and he disliked most forms of violence, so he usually attempted to avoid a fight at all costs. He was best at hunting, so he chose this as the skill he would share with Kiddo.
"Well, sir, in the past I have basically done everything for my pack. I have fought, hunted, and healed. Though I suppose I am most skilled in hunting. I did manage to support an entire pack with enough food to survive, seeing as no others in the pack were skilled enough to lead the hunts. However, I am also a decent warrior, so if the time came, I would be proud to fight alongside the others, I would not shy away. But I would definitely prefer hunting over anything else." What he said was true. He loved the thrill of stalking prey with a group of wolves, the adrenaline rush he received while he chased the animal to its death. And especially he loved the look on the other wolves' faces as he dragged the prey back to the dens. He enjoyed making others happy, he enjoyed watching them devour the meal he had brought, sometimes going hungry himself for this reason. The wolves he hinted with were in no means good at hunting, but Chaika knew that hunting in a group was much more effective than hunting alone.
He awaited the alpha's response, hoping that Amar had a place for him. He wanted the feeling of importance again, being a loner did not give him any of that. Of course, he did not want the pressure of being a "hero" just yet. Maybe someday he would, but for now, he wanted only to be a part of a pack, as just an ordinary pack wolf.
Chaika's eyes lit up with excitement when Kiddo had asked him what his skills were. Yet again, Kiddo had never met a wolf so..enthusiastic about things such as that. It intrigued the alpha which kept him interested in this wolf. Chaika told him that he basically kept his pack afloat all by himself. A difficult task. Kiddo knew this from experience. Well, at least this wolf had some talent. It wasn't easy keeping wolves fed and safe.
By the look in this brute's eyes, he was obviously much more passionate about hunting. That would be a good skill as Amar planned to move into Tyiar where the hunting was better. Kiddo's main priority was to keep his members alive and the food here was running out. Kiddo himself had lost a pound or two recently which wasn't a good sign for the rest of the pack. They needed to get to better hunting grounds and Kiddo would not take his pack and let them hunt in loner areas. It would be a disgrace. So, they would just claim Tiyar and that should solve that particular issue. Whether that would create more issues, Kiddo would have to deal with that when it came to it but it wouldn't be good for anyone if he had wolves starving to death because he wouldn't expand.
If what you are telling me is true, I believe we have a hunting position open for you. However, until you hunting has been tested by either myself or another hunter, you will be a subordinate. Welcome to Amar. Kiddo told him. You can follow me to the dens where the rest of the pack should be. Kiddo said as he turned to leave the cave and head to the den site. The weather outside wasn't nice at all but he wasn't going to spend the night in this cave with this male he had just met. He needed to go back to his pack and make sure everything had gone well today. One more member, one more talent, one more mouth to feed.
Chaika listened to the alpha's words, suspense building in his mind, until the words he was waiting for finally escaped Kiddo's mouth. 'Welcome to Amar.' The words repeated themselves over and over inside his brain. He nodded and replied, "Thank you for accepting me into your pack, sir. I promise you that you will certainly not regret your descision." Chaika listened carefully to the Mackenzie Valley brute tell him that the others should be in the dens. As Kiddo turned away from him, headed for the dens, Chaika's tail let out a few wags before he set out trailing behind his new alpha.
'I have an alpha once more, and I will do my best to please him just as much as I did with my prior one.' Chaika ran these words through his hapless a few times as his paws padded across the soggy ground, just to be sure he understood his purpose in this pack called Amar. He would do all he could to help Kiddo and his pack, assisting whenever he could. Soon, another thought crossed his mind. Meeting the other wolves of Amar. He was sure he would find at least one or two wolves to become acquainted with, he was a fairly likeable wolf. He thought of the range of personalities the others could have, but didn't ponder it for too long. He honestly didn't mind what kind of personality a wolf had, he thought of it as a kind of game to sneak his way through the tough outer layers of a personality right to the center. Of course, he took the process slow, the only reason he even did this was to make friends, really. He never managed to make a wolf too angry before. He was quite tactful when it came to friendliness and he was very proud of this trait.
Chaika continued trotting behind the wolf, truly prepared for what lay ahead. Yet, he was still excited. Many simple things brought excitement to Chaika, and many wolves often found it somewhat comical, which Chaika liked. 'I am a subordinate of Amar.' Chaika still could not believe this was true. He was about to start his life over, turn the page. He was no longer the "would be hero." He was just Chaika, subordinate of Amar. He liked it better this way. It lifted the weight of of his muscular shoulders, it gave him more room to live his life however he wanted. And Chaika was ready.
End Thread.
Last Edit: Feb 11, 2013 16:29:15 GMT -5 by Deleted
