|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Wed Nov 08, 2006 4:12 pm
The stag nodded thoughtfully, and contemplated the possibility of him actually finding a hind this season. He hadn't claimed a harem in the past Anlach, but it was mostly due to lack of interest than anything else. Surely he could find a doe that would be able to respect his age and title? His rack could still hold off a youngster, though any experianced Corps buck or Outrider could have him pinned quickly. There was, however, still that chance, wasn't there? He'd have to talk to a few of the hinds later on and try to find one that was worth the effort. He did spend more time with the female part of the herd than the other stags did, after all.
"Yes, Anlach is very hard to fight against. I even might take an interest this season and claim myself a hind. So long as none of your Outriders shares my interest. They've become so incredible with their skills, Fell. I sincerely beleive that they draw their strength from their leader." He had observed since the Lord had gotten his rights that the other stags in the herd carried a hieghtened sense of pride, and there was no doubt in Lailoken's mind it was because of their leadership
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Nov 09, 2006 3:01 am
"Will you?" Fell said with interest. He was not, in general, one for probing into the business of others, especially when it came to the affairs of Anlach. There was rivalry within the herd, no matter how brief and how easily forgotten, during Anlach after all, and it was sometimes a touchy subject. He had never quite brought the subject up with his Outriders before. But of course, he rarely shared the same friendship with his Outriders as he did with Lailoken.
Fell's gaze softened at the storyteller's compliment, and he dipped his antlers in thanks. "I don't suppose you're just saying that?" He said with a deep laugh. There was nothing he liked more than compliments to his Outriders, and ones that were linked to him were more than he ever expected, and came as a pleasant surprise each time. He liked to consider his leadership as one that helped forward the herd, but he had never dwelled on the thought that his ascension to the title of Lordship had much to do with any increase in his Outriders' skill or potential.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Nov 09, 2006 2:26 pm
"Of course I'm not just saying that. I sincerely mean it." The stag smiled and dipped his antlers in compliment. "And yes, I do beleive I might take a hind and have a harem once again. I'm old, yes, but not so old that I can't make a little one." At this he laughed, cracking himself up with his joke. A small bout of coughing followed, but he recovered quickly. "I don't really know what hind, though. As you know, I spend much more of my time with them than you and the Outriders do. It's sometimes unnerving to think that I'm amoung them instead of garuding them, and occasionally I end up isolating myself. However, I think that with the death of my dear hind several years ago, if you do recall, I lost the spark for does. I feel though that I should find one to enjoy. now that I have learned to deal with the loss of my favorite." It was an ugly topic, but with his age had come a reasoning that the hind he had spoken of had by that point deserved to pass on to live with Herne.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Nov 10, 2006 2:17 am
Fell smiled. "And a little storyteller it'll be, I suppose?" He joked. His smile remained, until the mention of the death of Lailoken's favorite hind, and his tone turned serious. Even Lords respect the dead, after all. "At least we can take solace in the fact that she has left us to join Herne in the heavens." He said. He knew how much it took to overcome such a loss, and he rather admired Lailoken for his courage to take part in Anlach once again.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Nov 10, 2006 6:39 am
Lailoken chuckled, but this time managed to not cough. "Haha, well you never know. Sometimes young ones follow their fathers, and sometimes they don't. I won't force the matter." he nodded to himself, thinking of the current crop of deer in the herd, trying to come up with a prediction for the future storyteller. "Yes. She rests with Herne now, and it's that fact alone that allows me to go on. Took some time to relieze it." His expression became solomn for a moment's time, eyes taking on a sorrowful feel. He came out of it quite quickly though, knowing that dwelling on the topic would only harm him. "And what of you, my friend? Do you think any of your current fawns are going to make it far in the herd?" He didn't mean that any fawn would be stupid, of course. He simpley meant go far in the ranks. Not every little one aspired to be a future lead hind or a future outrider captain.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Nov 10, 2006 7:05 am
Fell nodded thoughtfully. "I'm sure Artair will grow up a fine Outrider." He said after a moment's consideration. He had heard quiet a bit about the calf from Danica, and he was eagerly awaiting the day when young Artair ascended into the Corps and he could get to know the fawn better. "The Twins..." He paused for a moment again. The addition of the Twins, as he had learned to call them, had been quite recent and quite a shock. He had seen them play together before from afar, one the color of a sunbleached afternoon and the other as dark as midnight, but Dyani's taking them in did quite surprise him. After all, even he had been able to see that the black fawn, in particular, was wary and afraid of change. "I suppose they'll grow up quite famous." He concluded with a chuckle. The stark contrast in their coats alone would bring them more attention than they would probably want. Their life story... that was more.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Nov 10, 2006 9:21 am
Lailoken looked off at the herd, as if trying to find the three fawns in question. He had met with all of them at Larn already at least once, though two of them were still quite young. It was really an older fawn thing, to sit before the storyteller and leanr the Lore. "Yes, Artair does of potential. And the twins... They're quite an interesting couple, I admit." His gaze came back to Fell with a smile. "And I'm sure if you are to breed any hinds this Anlach they will be strong ones." It was well known that the stronger the buck, the stronger the calf, which often kept family lines in the Outrider Captains. There were, of course, exceptions to this trend, but as a general rule it held through. That was one of the factors that worried Lailoken slightly about the coming season; he was aged, and though he did not doubt his ability to produce a healthy fawn, he wondered if it would be a weakling amoung its peers.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 11, 2006 9:25 pm
"Life doesn't always work the way it should." Fell said with a smile. He thought with a pang how lucky his parents had been that both he and his deceased brother, Ashlore, had been so strong and brave. The thought of Ashlore clouded his eyes slightly.
As if reading Lailoken's mind, Fell spoke up. "Even if you are not as strong as you were back then, it doesn't mean that the youngling will be weak." He reasoned. "Like I said, life doesn't always work the way it should, or the way one expects it to." His own words turned his thoughts to Dyani and the twins. How strange it was that the beautiful but rather spacey hind should take in the two fawns. He wondered to himself how she had managed to get the stubborn-headed Drystan's consent. It was common knowledge within the herd that Drystan was not at all fond of change. She had adjusted to life alone with Tegwen, and if she hadn't wanted things to change, nothing would have.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Nov 12, 2006 5:44 pm
Lailoken smiled warmly, remembering how special Fell was. You had to be an awfully sensitive deer to pick up on another's train of thought. These days sensitivity in a buck was seen as a weakness and trained out of them through vigourous running. Lailoken, however, knew how important the quality was for all living creatures. Sensitivity does not mean weakness, it merely means one is tuned in with their surroundings, picking up on things the common observer might pass by. That was one of the things that made Fell such a great leader, the stag mused.
"This is true, I suppose. And if I can find a hind that would stand with me, I'm sure she'd be capable of raising a fawn to greatness." Lailoken didn't doubt a single hinds' mothering skills, for that was what they were taught to do from the moment they became does. Does were expected to help their older grazing pals with rearing fawns and calves, and helping the older deer with their daily goings. Lailoken shuddered to think of the day he would need a guide to go with him to the stream. He wasn't /that/ old, of course, but all deer reach that day eventually. Well, almost all deer do.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Nov 13, 2006 1:21 am
Fell nodded in agreement. He especially disliked it when any Outrider approached him in frustration for the birth of a weakling, or a stillborn fawn. It was, as he repeated so often, more so the stag's fault than the hind's. In a case as such, the stag would often storm from the Home Oak angrily, only to reconsider their actions and return to apologize in a few days' time. Fell didn't mind. As Outriders, the stags were treated with the highest level of respect, and because of such treatment, they often forgot the hardships of life. Fell knew that most probably not one of the Corps bucks had ever sat back to examine the herd's way of life, and realize just how lucky they were to be so free of complications so much of the time.
The stag looked out to where one of his Outriders watched the herd with a practiced eye, and watched as the stag tossed his impressive 10-tined antlers in acknowledgment of yet another Outrider stationed not far off. With barely a turn of his head, his gaze shifted to the hinds grazing peacefully in the secluded meadow, the older calves headbutting each other with their newly grown antler nubs, and the younger ones watching in awe. "I'm sure you will, Lailoken. Nothing is impossible." He said, feeling a wave of affection for the old stag and for the rest of his herd sweeping over him.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2006 3:48 pm
The stag nodded at the old saying, smiling slightly. There were times when Lailoken doubted his importance to the herd, when he muttered to himself about throwing away his honorable Outrider position. There were times, however, when his pride came though like star light, shining brilliantly with his regal stance. These were the times, when an older phrase was muttered, which could only have been passed by the previous storytellers. The other times were when a fawn begged for another story, just one more, please? And then there was the pride he had yet to experiance, when a young one came to the keeper of tales and asked to be taken under his wing, shown the ropes, and eventually became the herd's next storyteller. "You know, I believe you're right. Nothing is impossible. I mean, look at me. I was on the brink of leaving the herd, you know, running until I couldn't anymore. I probablly would've been eaten by wolves, which I think I knew and was hoping for. And here I am, a stag of.." He stopped for a moment, leaving his age out. No one in the herd truely knew the number of years he had walked the great land, and he intended on keeping it that way. "Here I am, a storyteller. And perfectly happy with life, I will say."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Nov 15, 2006 1:38 am
Fell chuckled. "Are you still refusing to tell me your age, Lailoken? Really, I would have thought you were not capable of such cruelty." He joked. In truth, he didn't really wish, or need, to know the old storyteller's age, but it made for a nice joke once in a while.
"Ah, you could have left, Lailoken," Fell said, looking out to the horizon rather wistfully. He had not forgotten his days as a wandering stag. "You would have learned more than any would think possible away from the safety of the herd." He paused. He had never told any deer of his fascination of the wolves. It was a crazy notion, and he knew it well, but he felt - he knew - that Lailoken was not one to judge as such. "If all deer had heard the call of the wolf as I did so many times alone, perhaps we would find less to fear in them..."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 18, 2006 7:25 am
Lailoken nodded solemnly, knowing well that Fell was above the other stags in that key way: he knew of other creatures more so than many did. Lailoken had seen the wolf during his hunt, had watched the fox as she nurses her young, had observed the raven scrounge for worms for his chicks; all of it was something that he beleived any deer should do. Of course, he'd never be able to take the same joy that a speaker would have, for all of his observing was purely observation. A conversation could never be sparked, such as Darkflame could do. In some ways, the storyteller envied the Outrider for his gift, but in others he pitied him. With great gifts comes a lonesomeness that only those beyond the herd could sympathize with.
"The wolves are complex, Fell." He mused for a moment on a pack that lived dangerously close to the herd. They served their purpouse, however, and though it was hard for a young mother to accept, a hardened stag who dared to think could find it as the natural order of things. When the wolf took down the injured deer, it was for the good of everything. If the wolf did not hunt, they would die, and the fox would grow fat and lazy with their new dominance in the carnivore world. When the fox is fat, they cannot be sly and cunning, and would soon loose their ability to hunt. When the fox is gone, the mice would run rampid and scare the deer by popping out of nooks where they used to not dare hide. The deer would die out form injuries of flight and the food chain would be disrupted. Every Lera in the Great Land had a reason for exsistence, and it was all in Herne's good plans that they flourished. "They are brutish and plagued by the blood lust, but without them, nothing could exsist. A rainfall in the storm would be missing, and without it a great drought would come and ruin all that is life." The old male nodded to himself, enjoying metaphors. "What have you seen of the canines, Fell?" Though he himself was a teacher, Lailoken could not pass up the oppurtunity to add to his pool of knowledge.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 18, 2006 7:38 am
Fell nodded rather sagely. "The Herla consider themselves the favorite of Herne." He said softly. "But are we really? We are all connected so intricately in a great circle that exists and binds all of us to mortality. And so, who really ends up on top?"
The Lord's gaze flickered to catch Lailoken's as he thought back to all he had seen and learned of the wolves. "When I first started out from the herd, I was certain I was being foolish and that I would be dead in the jaws of the wolves within three days." He said, feeling the fear that had coursed through him so many years ago all too vividly. "But the wolves are unlike Man. They hunt only what they need to survive, and what they cannot finish, the flying scavengers finish for them. They hunt only the weakest Herla, and more often than not it is only because of them that our herds may exist less fearfully for the danger of being hindered by the diseased and ill are lessened."
Fell's eyes seemed to change somewhat as he remembered the wolves' call again. "And that call of theirs." He began, almost hearing the trembling note sang into the wind. "It is not, as we believe, a hunting call. It is simply a call to each other, as the Herla bellow across the lands. It is their language, their song."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 18, 2006 10:08 am
Lailoken listened with the enthusiasm of a calf, nodding as Fell spoke. Some might find his words blasphemous, as his suggestions were that the Herla were not truely above it all. The storyteller, however, had seen much in his time on the great land, and had come to the same idea himself. He still beleived that Herne looked somewhat kindly on the deer, but he wasn't so ignorrant as to think that they were above the wolven kind in the god's eyes. Perhaps the great Herne favored the Herla, but Lailoken doubted very much that the deer received special treatment. Well, if it wasn't for Starbuck, the deer might even be amoung the lowliest of the creatures.
For this reason, Lailoken was creating a new breed of storytellers. The old ways were still rich in his blood, but he did not teach the fawns that they were the favorites. He never said otherwise, for his was an unpopular therory, but he thought that if he didn't plant the seed, he could help to create a new generation of deer that were more understanding of the world around them. Perhaps it was nothing but an old storyteller's dream, but with a stag like Fell leading the herd's movements, there was hope for Home Oak to come of its high throne and come to a harmony with the world around them. "That is true. Though I wish not to admit it, the wounded and sickly do us no help." Though he did not think of himself as sickly, he shuddered slightly. He was a healthy stag, somewhat past his prime, and without injury. If there were a hunt, he would surely survive. He had known the sickly, though, known the injured. The idea that a fallen friend would end up in the jaws of a hungry dog was just not pleseant. "I suppose the only comfort one can bring to themselves while thinking of something like that is that the deer who is so unfortunate to be caught is aiding in the circle of life."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
