Firefly Glen [PHE] Strides

There was some stirring going on. Rodyn did not know what had transpired, but it seemed to have the Akashingo wolves in a fit.

So he sought out @Kukutux and @Aiolos curious if they knew the goings on. And if he should attempt to broach the subject with the wolves. He didn't want to make an issue or bigger.

He tilted an ear forward and waited.

Rodyn, what's the matter? Worry lined the Moontide man's lips. Something was amist. Aiolos' grey-edged ears perked forward, lifting up from his lay and into a sit. It took longer to get up then he remembered not so long ago... yet no one was a fool to Sunman's aging.

she looked up toward rodyn, glanced at aiolos.

her eyes moved beyond them both for the flurry of gathered beings where pharaoh stood.

"do you know what has happened?" she asked of their law-son, turning her eyes back to rodyn as aiolos was quiet beside her.

Rodyn dipped his muzzle to Aiolos. I don't know, but something is amiss.

He tilted his ears towards the downy moonmother and lifted his muzzle back towards the wolves of the palaces.

He spoke his voice quiet, so as to not incite panic in anyone eavesdropping. I don't know. A messenger came, the more the coyote spoke the graver their faces became. I was about to walk over and ask, and thought the two of you may perhaps like to come.

He studied the wolves. I will not lie. Though they are good tradesman and treat us well mostly. There is something that I do not trust. But perhaps it is simply their ways are so different and I am ignorant of them.

Every minute that passed was one stolen away from the wounded Muat-riya girl; from felling her perpetrators.

His eyes were hardcast upon the small gathering, moving with the swiftness of a distressed leader, @Toula beside him. These were the figureheads of their allied forces, and now the time had come to see if they would act as aid in Akashingo’s hour of need.

“Good evening Lady Kukutux, Lord Rodyn, Sunman Aiolos,” he spoke to all three. “Forgive the interruption. Pharaoh Toula and I must pull out from the hunt prematurely. It has been reported to us that an attack was made on our Summer palace in the Naaghai. Our youngest mazoi has been gravely injured, and a prisoner set loose in exchange for her life. He is an ostensibly dangerous man, to children especially, so you understand why we must leave for Muat-riya tonight.”

To his wife he looked next, the call for aid made most effectively in the steady voice of Pharaoh.

her heart ached for the young Mazoi. Toula had never known the world to be so cruel—it had never been such to her. she prays to the Gods for strength, for wisdom—for safety and swift healing for Safiya! 
it is only my husband and I that shall go—we did not wish to withdraw entirely, in spirit of our new friendship. but with this threat to the children of our kingdom… she prayed this would be understood! she looks to moonwoman, to sunman, to the trader. we assume that the one that did this may not have acted alone—we go to find him, for retribution, and to ascertain if there are more. I do not pretend to think these are the sort of animals that will not strike down another child, or prey upon them. and so we invite you to join us on this hunt, when your own is finished. I do not relish in this, her voice was grave, her heart breaking. she did not want to kill. she did not want violence. 
quietly, she sought another way—was this the sort of man that could be appealed to? redeemed? for all her anger, she was not so terribly hotblooded as to strike without thinking, without speaking. her earlier words rang dully in her head. must anyone die? 
show me the way, Iset!

They are definitely uhh... extravagant. The Sunman said with a raised brow, as Rodyn felt an unsettling in his gut about the desert wolves. Aiolos had lived among those who were very full of themselves. That they felt they could take on the world and for the most part, their outstanding pride was quite warranted. Yet Aiolos knew of these wolves very little and they lived an obvious lifestyle quite far from the villages quaint, humble and homey ways. 

Now the royal pair came their way and Aiolos keenly listened, his mouth pressing in tight frown. While it is unfortunate that you must leave the festivities early, I completely understand the need to return to your people. He did not know who a 'mazoi' was in their ranks nor who it was they had been keeping prisoners, he understood the gist of what had happened. It was always a risk with gatherings of this capacity that enemies would use this opportunity to invade.

What does this man look like? Where is it he was taken prisoner from? Old ways die hard and their was a chance the man would return to his usual haunts to pursue his bad habits.

that rodyn did not trust these wolves held weight with kukutux. something great had come to this gathering, and it was an event which must be kept far from they and their trading.

sympathy for the young mother was great, brightened as the duck saw pharaoh and her proud husband on grave approach. 

nodding to her law-son so that rodyn might know she had heard his words, kukutux moved to greet the akashingo wolves.

a child. why did so much anguish center around those who were young? her heart ached for pauk and nutuyikruk and little fox; she remembered the kindness of samani and the laughter of ariadne.

and now vaire lay sick.

aiolos spoke, questioning. kukutux counted among those who had come, considering in silence a war party. quiet at the side of her sun man, she nevertheless reached to comfort the somber pharaoh, hearing much strength and sensing beneath it a motherly fear.

what they asked was great. moonmother did not think these wolves would come to the wilderness. they did not have such wealth as to attract many eyes. their power was in land and in the lineage of nuiruk which each year spread farther.

and yet pauk and nutuyikruk weighed harshly upon her. pharaoh had given to kukutux a powerful talisman, and its power was so that now moonwoman questioned again. could not the young ruler be trusted in part? 

still it remained significant that neither rodyn nor aiolos spoke in great amiability. it was to be noted.

when the image of the man had been given, she looked between them all. "do you give this inviting only to moonglow, or to all those who have camped here?" the duck asked first. was it a mention of friendship, or a request? her warmth remained, her concern true, but she wished directness now that yet again a child had found harm.

“He was pulled off the fringes of our Summer palace, apparently making unspeakable advances towards a girl child,” the king of Akashingo answered Sunman bluntly. He met his wife’s shoulder with a sidelong graze, a reassured press.

“They are renegades. Unkempt. They speak little of the common language, or none at all. They tote a green substance we have yet to identify, presumed to be poison. They are a danger to all, and we mean to eliminate them, but without knowing the strength and size of their numbers, Akashingo and Muat-riya’s forces combined cannot be certain of success,” and here Semer-wati’s lips tightened, for the admission alone felt like an aching failure on the part of the king to keep his kingdoms safe. But when his divine eyes traveled between the moontribe faces they were strong; unflinching. He turned to address Moonglow’s lady in white.

“No. This is a call for all soldiers in attendance who would deliver the hand of justice. Will you run with us? Take the hunt into the lowlands? Show these repulsive ingrates what happens to those who dare to maim our children and disrupt our peace?”

she stands with her husband, pressing gently against him as she felt rather than saw how the admission wounded him. how terribly she wished to know that they could simply just succeed—but it was impossible to know, before understanding just what it was they were up against.
her husbands words were inspiring. Toula felt again the rightness of their own mission, but she did not expect to be taken up on this straightaway—not in the midst of their own event. if there is more hunting that would keep you, and more to be done here before those warriors could leave if you wished for them to embark on this quest, we would understand. my husband and I go now—we can send word of our findings. we would be grateful for any number that could be spared, her words were soft and in earnest. I wish… I wish for no one else to know this sort of cruelty. and I will do my utmost, to ensure such depraved beings are dealt with. but it is not something I can do alone, she breathes, looking to the audience. I ask not for myself, or for Muat-Riya, or for Akashingo—I ask for all of the children of the Wilderness. perhaps the prisoner and this creature, with any of its own followers, shall return to the palace for more—perhaps they seek refuge in these territories, to rest, to recover, to grow strong. distance would not keep the moontribes safe—perhaps for a long time they might be, if they had the Gods looking over them, but certainly not forever. she was no all-knowing being, despite being a Goddess—but she saw a pattern, in the pursuit of this young girl. the poison she worried less about—that much was a thing, as a royal, she had accepted could be her own fate someday. 
but up until then, Toula would keep her children safe. and the children of the moonwolves safe too, by proxy, she supposed!

Kukutux gives question, if it was the privacy of their aid alone which they spoke and Sunman's ears perked with his own wonder. The travel would take the Moon village people very far from their homes and they were not the great kingdom which the desert wolves had made themselves out to be. Did their numbers not swell enough to handle the situation of hunting down one man with their own resources? 

Alas, more of the tale then became unveiled. They spoke of one man firstly, with an uncertainty of others who may be allied to him, yet as the story unfold further, it seemed more likely that the southern royals knew that there were more and that they were all incredibly dangerous. They sought the aid of any who may offer it. Aiolos could not speak for all those gathered here and likely so those who were here could not speak for the leaders which may yet still remain in their lands. Certainly warriors could be gathered, but how many and how long it would take was hard to tell, and would it best not be suited (and far quicker) to inform forces here, now, by the voice of Moonwoman and Pharoah herself? 

The voice of Moonwoman is powerful, The Sunman speaks, his fiery gaze sweeping his mate, then back to the far younger couple. Yet those who are called for aid should know who they fight for and hear the request from the one who asks it of them directly. I think that Pharaoh should stay, long enough at least for her and Moonwoman to speak to those gathered here now. This way after the hunts, they could return home, discuss and send their warriors south where they could, if they chose to. Aiolos did not think it should be up to Kukutux to speak to each pack on Akashingo's behalf and it would not be so. If they wanted the aid of those gathered, they should ask it of them all, face to face. At least one of them, as he mentioned, while the other stride ahead for home.

she wanted to! I cannot, her words are spoken in agony, unless it is a thing that we could do this very moment. I must pursue this evil, now, for they may already have struck again. they may be… she grit her teeth, swinging her head toward moonwoman. this is an evil that will not wait. I ask much of you, moonwoman—but were it in my power, I would do the same. and it shall be, Akashingo would have an army. and when the moontribes would see this debt repaid, Toula would lend the moonwoman troops. 
should it be able to be done now, though, Toula would speak with moonwoman. she looked to all their faces, seeking understanding—this was an urgent matter. she did not wish to be rude, but with more young lives at risk… she could not linger longer than that! she would not be too proud to ask for help—that vice would not be her undoing. 

just to chuck in her response immediately for Kukutux to decide best course!

just popping in mini-post

Ever gracious, Pharaoh spoke with patience that was already unwound in the hard heart of Semer-wati. The burning eyes looked to Aiolos.

“We do not have the luxury of time, Sunman. Three days stand between the glen and Muat-riya.” Their cause was too great to stall on the minds of those hesitant.

"go, with sedna's blessing," kukutux said with a quiet swiftness. she had not moved from his side, nor had she spoken during this time.

sun man held rightness. such a request must be made from the mouths of those who asked.

and yet! she thought of the children lost, of their daughters; for this she spoke again.

"i can give no promising that others will come. if they cannot see your need, they may make their paths back to their homes without listening."

but softly she regarded the young pharaoh, this mother caught between duty and anger. "i will send my voice to the leaders who have gathered. i will give them your words. they will choose for their villages."

to think of it in commonality; akashingo would owe much to the wolves of moonglow if the voice that aiolos called powerful might rally warriors to pharaoh's side. in genuine worry she moved, but in determination that her sunshine people avoid beholdenment in any regard. 

her green eyes were warm. "i will speak these things. moonglow gives a request: that @Racharra stay here, among those who remain in the camps. she will give help in this meeting." and her bond had belonged long to their village. known to them, meant to marry a sunshine man, it would be a showing of good things and a future more equal.

silent now, nodding toward toula, kukutux waited to hear the end of this urgency. her word would be kept; she would call together the leaders in the next morning, so long as assurance was made.

it was a far place to send any warrior. the number of days did not matter to the duck.

Rodyn wanted to balk at the story that unfurled. He wanted to say no this couldn't be who would hurt children. And yet he knew it would do no good. He regarded them and felt a tight clenching in his chest.

Rodyn was not a violent man. But he knew he would go if moonwoman asked him too. He shifted. And waited. There was urgency and yet he aligned with sun man's views.

can skip him

The need remained a point of contention. Rashepses all but stifled a scoff.

And when their children are endangered? Who would answer their summons? These wolves in the North would rather cower in their warrens than eradicate a common enemy.

Still, the moon matron was receptive to some degree, laying out her conditions to which Semer-wati was swift to agree upon.

“The nebet Racharra will make herself available, Moonwoman,” he assures, “our children and their governess, @Nasima, will also remain within the hunt camps.”

But he would offer little more. The rest, for Toula to devise, while Rashepses thought only of his own children, then, and what he would tell them.

They would not stay. Could not, they felt. Yet would Pharoah herself be a part of the war party in order to hunt down the mam and his group? She went now for her own new pup's sake and all the rest of their people, even if her post might be to stay in the kingdom. 

When the words of Sunman were not agreed upon, their eyes swept to Moonwoman with a hope that she would give them the answers which they sought. Aiolos said no more.

it was spoken then, settled.

kukutux would ask but she would not send. toula and rashepses would depart now for their battles afield.

"tell them they are welcome in the healing camp, and also when we return to moonglow," moonwoman offered, not wishing to leave the young ones outside of a village's protection.