Shadewood tusk dawn

— daa’ka kneels in the grass, breath visible, lips cracked. before him, a caribou fawn lies gutted, its body healthy, sacred. he had caught it in silence.

the blood is warm in his paws, slick and dark. he lifts it, smearing it slow down his own face—across the bridge of his snout, into the jagged scars at his lip, over brow and throat.

ice raven. trickster. ghost of the white. thief of souls. i offer blood. caught in your wind.

his paws drip red now, and he presses them into his own chest, over the old scars there. rubbing it in. painting himself with it. he draws a red line down each leg, leaves handprints over his ribs. the fawn’s body slumps beside him, its eyes wide and glassy. a red feather lies near its belly—he had found it there, tucked beneath.

he hears the approach of @Talvani. but he does not turn to address her, to look at her with those cruel red eyes or that daunting devil's smirk yet. he is lost in the throes of his worship. his praying.

you see me. you see daa’ka. son of blood. brother of brave lanzadoii chieftain. he drags his claw through the grass, circles the hare, traces sigils known only to the faithful. his body is painted in streaks of rusted red, dried to his hide like war marks.

bless us. keep the herd close. keep the forest full. make our teeth strong. make our limbs fast. bring no sickness. take no pups.

give me wife. one with sharp eyes. one with womb full of strength. one who speaks to wind. i give you blood, you give me blood. let her have children. caribou-blooded. lanzadoii-hearted. pups who howl your name before mine. let my seed make hunters and warriors. not cowards.

he stands now. bent, trembling with intensity. breath loud in the hush of the shadewood. feeling the watchful gaze of talvani now but continuing in his worships.

bless my brother. kusax̱asaa, your knife. your spear. make his bones unbreakable. his mind clear. his hunger true. bless his son. c’ede’. the future. chieftain-to-be. make his steps silent. make his bite final. i offer you the old ways. give us the new path.