Emberwood osam

she watched an old cow. her first thought upon seeing it was it will not survive the whole journey. stranger things had happened, though. she had survived an upheaval and a rebranding of her whole identity.

old marks rippled along the cow. something had tried to take her down long before and she had survived.

she decided that she did not want to pick this one off before its time came naturally. one might argue that the wolf hunters striking it down was plenty natural. she held no desire to make the call.

her path cut wide around the old cow, and the younger figures who gathered around it like a village elder. she was not sure where she might go. only that she did not want to be right here. to keep walking was perhaps very saatsine of her.

can we forward-date this to present day? suliya now runs with saatsine ;)! can delete if you would rather not.

suliya lingered in the shadows, observing the woman’s measured steps around the old cow, the quiet reverence in her movements. the woman had the saatsine spirit—bold enough to choose her own path, yet there was no landazoii blood in her. an outsider who carried something of their way, but not of their lineage.

she broke through the brush, a soft huff to announce herself, though her gaze remained steady and calm. there was no need for words; a shared respect passed between them as she acknowledged the choice to let the elder beast continue its journey. perhaps it would not survive to the end, but it had its own path, and suliya understood the decision to honor that.

with a faint nod, she fell into step, mirroring the woman’s wide arc around the creature and its young watchers. onward they moved, neither speaking nor stopping, both led by something untamed, unspoken, and deeply saatsine.

yes we can!

someone fell into line with her. for a moment, she thought she might see the grey man or his son. this was a new one. woman and confident. she did not question where she came from or why she walked alongside her.

she gestured to where sounds grew heavy up ahead. clashing antlers, deep thuds that signaled the masculine affair that occurred where they could not yet see. she did wish to witness, though. even if only to say she had.

a curious look spared to the grey winter woman. did she wish to examine the caribou's bullish display, too?

suliya dipped her head in acknowledgment, her eyes gleaming with a quiet respect for the woman beside her. this one carried herself with a confidence that needed no explanation, a presence as steady as the mountains on the horizon. she needed no words; instead, suliya let her gaze drift to where the sounds of battle echoed through the valley. the heavy crack of antlers colliding and the low, rumbling grunts of the bulls locked in combat sent a thrill through her bones, a reminder of the cycles that shaped the wilderness.

she settled beside the grey woman, both of them wordless as they observed the ancient ritual before them, the raw, unyielding power of the caribou staking their claims. it was a reminder that life and survival were built on these moments, on fierce displays of strength and will. suliya’s breath came slow and even, eyes fixed on the powerful animals, every muscle tense as she watched, enraptured by the spectacle.

she glanced sidelong at her companion, her expression respectful but laced with a subtle hint of curiosity. it was a rare thing to find someone drawn to the same sights that held her in awe, someone who would watch rather than disrupt. in the quiet of that shared moment, she felt a small, unspoken bond forming, an understanding that required no words.

this what saatsine do. heeding no words, just an understanding.

she thought of @Sun Eater for the display being made.

he had done much the same when he had first come to qeya river. she had not spoke of the affair after the day it had occurred! yet she wondered why it was not her at the helm. only unfortunately her bitterness was not to the man who stood there now.

her nostrils flared as if she had become caribou bull. if only it was as simple as clashing antlers together!

it can be. it should be.

what was the saatsine way in climbing? in providing? she did not think it was overthrowing. she thought that sun eater had only done such for the opportunity to bring back his son. for as much change as he had squeezed her through...no blame! no more scorch marks upon her heart!

her gaze turned to this woman, silent and steady. new and fresh but clearly not so. grey winter woman. ever learning, ever changing. she had seen the old cow and now she saw the young bulls vying for chances they may not have.

ice diver, she finally grunted. reluctance to break the silence, but she wanted at least titles among them.

no more senka, no more stone crier.

only ice diver, living among the saatsine.

suliya’s eyes shifted slowly from the bucks to the bulk of the storm-gray woman, a deliberate and thoughtful motion that mirrored her approach to this new presence. she had taken note of the name—ice diver—and rolled it through her mind like a stone across riverbeds, weighing it against the gravity of its bearer. a fitting moniker, cold yet resolute, like the ice that refused to shatter underfoot.

suliya, she offered in return, her voice a low hum, steady and unwavering. there was no hesitation, only the sharp clarity of her intent: to establish footing, even if it was on uncertain ground.

suliya had not yet a guild name. she would be blessed with one at sun eater's disposal, the helmsman of saatsine could only dub her as such. her brother had once called her dove coat, though that had been when she was a mere babe beginning to walk amongst the caribou.

she no longer felt a dove. a peregrine, perhaps.

suliya's bowels did not churn with hunger. overhunting had been the root of her exit. this was a primal era for these hoofed creatures, meant to establish a future of young stipends to take the helm of their own herd. this was no place for a lanzadoii to interfere, and she felt the woman beside her knew that as well.

suliya.

she thought she liked grey winter more, but said no such thing. it was not her place, she figured. only keeping the name for the woman behind her teeth and lodged in her mind.

her tail swept behind her once. a lick of scarred lips.

she moved now, but only to change watching position, to examine the clashing bulls closer. she looked for things like scarring, lame limbs, weaknesses. if these things could be exposed in their personal battles before hunting then it would make it easier.

suliya’s gaze lingered on the clashing bulls, their breath rising in sharp clouds against the cold air. the sharp crack of antlers echoed around them, but her focus flicked briefly to ice diver.

it is a fine time, suliya replied, her voice quiet yet firm. everything shows itself now—strength, weakness, intent.

she tilted her head slightly, catching the subtle shifts of movement in the herd, but her attention was divided. her next words were softer, almost an afterthought.

but the grey of winter... it makes the world quieter. you might find me favoring that.

her tail stirred once, betraying a moment of ease before she returned to observing the bulls, ever calculating, ever watchful. this one’s favor, though— she gestured faintly toward the larger bull, —may yet depend on how this ends.

grey winter was wise.

she did not think this was the woman's first time walking among the herds. she knew much, she had a trained eye for the wild creatures. perhaps she had been of a caribou clan before. which led more questions to ice diver's mind that she did not speak on.

if he fails, i might eat him first.

the caribou would not understand her words. yet perhaps they might understand the pressure of being watched by the hunters.

suliya hummed softly, a low sound of agreement that carried amusement beneath its weight. she shifted her gaze to the bull in question, her eyes narrowing as she watched the battle unfold.

wise choice, she murmured, barely louder than the ripples around them.

she did not elaborate, letting her words rest like a pebble cast into still waters. the caribou had been wise in their own right— establishing dominance with the pedicle spears upon their heads.

maybe a fade? i look forward to many more with them <3

praised, perhaps.

it did something good for the spirit that was growing to like this life. the wandering, the freedom, the endless hunting or tracking. she did not miss the river as much as she might have once had.

she was content to spend the rest of their daylight hours in this task. watching, weighing them against one another.

the white dove allowed them to sit in silence. this was the beauty of the lanzadoii, beholden not just within blood, but in the nature around them. the caribou fed, and they watched.

suliya was content, and she could hope the same for ice diver. ice diver was stalwart, and suliya felt that she could be too, in her presence.

fade here, can't wait!