Paying For The Sins Of My Brother

[Tourniquet]

The echo of the silence was almost deafening to his ears, the cool crisp wetness of the air around however was so very aggitating for his skin and fur. Rooting around around restlessly in the dull patch of dirt for a few scraps or perhaps a bone or two Tourn just sighed heavily and tried to clear his weighed down mind as light from the mighty fenris began to ever so slowly creak over the horizen to awaken his followers and perhaps in a few places worshipers.

Muttering lowly to himself the dragge slowly turned his back on the mound of dirt he had been digging and rooting in for the last half hour of time. Time that could never be givin back to him, lost to chaos. Perhaps he could find a better meal around the area. Becoming hopeful of something to better fill his belly he moved on as more and more light broke into the clouds of darkness hanging low over the sky. This darkness forced him to recall, as he trotted along his way, of the rumors he had heard spread by both the varg and the four winds. Genocide. That devil of a brother was back again, he would never get any peace now as it was bad enough to have a Ghost haunt you but to have another killer now stalking, waiting for the correct moment to strike and take you down was just too much for one to bare alone.


A chill broke through his built muscles as the thought broke into his mind, that brute with blood stained color fur was always a devil to him, never once was he kind or even thoughtful toward his younger siblings. Quickly he shook his head to rid himself of the thoughts, he knew he still kept a deep and very dark secret about himself and Genocide locked away and perhaps it would be better to share such info... but telling would draw the monster to him anf he couldn't afford it. "You are such a coward" yawned the Spirit from within his mind's depths but he ignored the rude beast, now was not the time for him to start listening to the monster "Hey now that hurt!" came the indignant squawk before the dark entity faded away. Later all he was able to harvest was a lowly tree squirrel, too distracted to manage to catch anything bigger. So with a sigh and a huff the dragga lowered himself down and began to eat silently, wondering what on earth he was going to do about this predicament.

[Kai]

The early-morning mist had not yet lifted from the valley. A dead quiet stretched over the land, intensifying the faintest of sounds. Rodents and other small lera shuffling through the undergrowth, birds offering up their songs to the still cool morning breeze. The light of Fenris had just begun to peek over the horizon; his rays were harmless at such an early hour, and were almost welcome to comfort the chilled hides of the still sleeping Lera, though as the day wore on, creatures all around the forest would be seeking refuge from his heat.

Stretching his long legs out before him, the Beta male of Koran let out a hearty yawn, his tongue curled and his toes flexed before his maw closed once more, giving him a chance to look around. From the inside of his den he could see the whole valley of Koran, all the way out to the river and up to where the border disappeared in a thick mess of trees. He was late to bed and early to rise, for he put himself in charge of patrolling the border religiously, every morning. Koran was short in their supply of warriors, and though Kai thoroughly enjoyed his morning and evening routines, he was eager for a few pups to step up and join the ranks as defenders of the pack.

With a sigh he rose to his paws and took a moment to stretch his back before heading out. Licking his lips he became aware of a hunger in his belly, an agitation that he could choose to try and deal with, or a distraction that he could venture to eliminate. Going with the latter, he set off for a brief hunt, heading off into the trees where he had heard Lera rustling restlessly before.

Pricking his ears, he listened to the tell-tale thumping of a rabbit. The soft, hollow sound of its hind leg beat against the ground in a rhythmic fashion; it was trying to ward him away. Kai had learned to ignore this threat at a young age. Dropping his belly to the ground ,he stalked forth until the rabbit was in sight, then he lunged quickly for it just before it dove back into its den. Caught by the throat, the lera hung lifeless from his jaws, though before he had time to savor his meal, he heard the sound of another nearby, crunching the bones of its latest meal.

Carrying the hare with him, it swung to and fro from his jowls as he walked. Peering through the trees he saw Tourniquet, a fellow
Koranian, finishing the last of what once was a squirrel. The corners of his mouth pulled up into a smile which looked goofy considering he prey still dangling from his mouth. He approached the young lad with pride in his gait, his tail held high in dominance, though not arrogantly so. Setting his prize down beside him, he looked down at the navy-touched Varg with his amber eyes. "Good morning, Tourniquet. You're up awfully early."

[Tourniquet]

Tourniquet had not even looked up when his beta approached, long ago had he heard the sound of the rushing paws and the rabbit's death squeal pierce the air, he had known the other was there soon after the rabbit had been killed. Slowly the navy hued varg lifted his head from what was left of the carcass of his meal, tongue lolling out to lick at his chops, ears flicking with Kai's words he smiled a little, both bemused but sad at the same time "I'm up still, I didn't sleep through the night... too many thoughts on my mind....I couldn't settle." he sighed heavily and tiredly, he didn't get to sleep at all when fenris went down, thoughts grazing his mind and startling him back to the cruel conscious world about him.

"Ha! I knew you were a big baby! Theres no point to even tormenting you anymore, you do just fine by yourself!" the personal demon laughed wildly in the back of his head as though he viewed the world as a sick little game, a twist of irony and fun as he often called it and often he was right. The sikla sighed and shook his head, ears flicking back against his skull. Well, he had wanted to tell someone about what he had kept bottled up since his pup hood, when he was driven out and forced to take care of himself. He shifted his body a little, who better to trust then Kai? The mann had been more then willing to listen to his problems before, so Why wouldn't he now? Besides maybe if he told someone he could sleep easier.

"Kai... Do you remember when I told you my old pack chased me away for something I didn't do?" he started quietly, he wasn't sure whether or not to wait for an answer and when he did not receive one within the first few minutes he continued "I think it's time I told someone about this... It hurts too much to keep it locked away anymore." he shivered a little as pain screamed through his nerves at the idea of keeping this in any longer, he couldn't take the pain anymore... the guilt and the lack of anyone to make him feel better, true all of this had made him stronger but what was strength without a content being behind it? Strength did not offer comfort to him, it only allowed him to survive a little longer and nothing else. Trembling a little he turned his eyes to the rising Fenris and spoke softly "I was accused...of killing the drappa... my mother... by knocking her off a cliff."

[Kai]

Cocking his head to the side, he observed the young male before him with nothing less than concern. The navy-tinted male had a bad habit of saying very little, and saying even less when something was plaguing his mind and causing him grief. Kai knew what it was like to have no one to turn to, for a long time he had kept to himself, burying his troubles until he thought they were deep enough to be forgotten. He had learned though that things were never buried for good, and torments of the past had a way of resurfacing at the most inconvenient of times. Though he still mostly kept to himself, he had been lucky in stumbling upon the philosophic gentleman, Silvanus, not too long ago, and the kind Krystal of GeRad, for they had both been kind to the ebon Beta, and had earned his respect and the esteemed title of 'friend'.

"What's been bugging you, Tourn? Can't have our ranks falling victim to insomnia, now," he said somewhat jokingly, his maw pulled up into a smile as he hoped to invoke a similar expression from the young male. Tourniquet had confided in him once before, and it was something that Kai had held on to. His aim in the pack was to be available whenever someone was in need, and to be able to accomplish such a goal, and to be the kind of superior that members could come to and trust, was something that he hoped for. It seemed the young male before him had more on his mind than just loss of sleep, and Kai wanted to be the one to listen to the demons manifest themselves so that Tourniquet might finally get some peace of mind. Settling down on his haunches, he made himself comfortable, the dead rabbit lay limp and forgotten for the time being at his side.

To Tourniquet's question he only nodded in return, leaving the silence to be vanquished by the Sikla's voice alone. Creasing his brow he could not help but feel sadness for this poor soul, the male had obviously held on too long to something that burdened him greatly. "You can tell me," he said softly, his voice a reassuring tone. What the young male spoke next was unexpected, to say the least. While a bit taken aback by the confession, Kai remained calm, his expression reflecting no judgment. "But how, if you didn't?" he finally said, not wanting to believe that the male could be capable of such a thing. Surely it had been a misunderstanding, as he had said, but how could they have reached that conclusion? "Why would they pin such a horrible deed on you?" he lamented, "How could they? The Tourniquet I've seen could never give the impression of being capable of such treachery." His amber eyes filled with confusion, he awaited an explanation that might shed some light on the unfair accusation.

[Tourniquet]

The navy tinged male slowly closed his eyes as Kai seemed taken aback and even perhaps angered that the sikla before him had been accused of such a thing and for a moment he smiled, liking Kai even more for his ability to refuse to judge on words but on actions instead, that indeed made him a valuable friend to have around... actions held the true meaning of one's intent and soul, not words which were cold and unfeeling. Slowly his gray ears perked forward again as he opened his golden brown lanterns to watch another rabbit hurriedly scuttle across the loose soil and away from the two wolves as fast as it's spring like feet could take it.

Sighing a little Tourniquet turned those same lanterns up to the lightening sky and smiled a sad smile before speaking in a soft but wise tone "You would have to understand my pack to understand their methods..... they were, No are a ruthless and sometimes homicidal bunch called The Balaclava." he paused and shook his head a little as though from disgust from even mentioning the name of his once family "Beyond the mountains in the forests below... they live in the swampy areas mostly.... with the mud and muck... they pride strength over everything else... and of course the best one among them was my older brother... Genocide." he shuddered at the name but now it was from fear instead of disgust, his fur standing up a bit at the mentioning of the name and for the first time his personal demon said nothing to his fear but only smirked to itself from the darkness.

"I was born as the runt in my litter..... and picked on constantly from nearly everyone, mother included... they hated weakness...We had no Siklas... Sikla were killed off if they emerged." Yes he remembered the sight of the blood and gore staining the muddy earth from many a wolf death, the howls of pain and the death sigh and rattle that wheezed through the body as it breathed it's last "Genocide came from a litter before me.... He was the biggest in his litter.... with fur the color of the Night and bloodshed... he grew to be strong... they trained him constantly until he lost the ability to feel" He trembled again and turned his eyes to Kai, the pupils contracted from the sharp tang of fear that had yet to flee from those old memories of his, it still lived like a nightmare in his mind "He forgot how to Feel Kai... whether it was Physical pain, hesitation or even remorse... he lost those emotions... all he knows is anger and joy at spilling blood and causing agony..." He turned his eyes away again to stare at Fenris as he rose above the clouds now, birds happily chirping their songs as he stared at the light blue sky and the rain clouds that hung along the horizon "It was he that told them I killed my mother.... and why should they believe the weak runt over their best killer? Thats just it... they wouldn't do that....father ended up attacking me, intent on killing me... I just managed to land one good blow in and escape." with that he dropped his eyes to the ground, silently nudging the bones of his kill without another word escaping his maw.

[Kai]

Gazing forward intently with his clear amber eyes beneath a furrowed brow, his focus shifted from Tourniquet to the lands beyond the younger male as he both awaited a more informative explanation and tried to fathom possibilities of his own. All the while his stare was unaccussing, the purity of his gentle orbs shining untainted by the Sikla's morose tale of treachery and misfortune. He paid little more attention to a passing hare than a flick of an ebon aud, his attention directed, for the most part, to the male before him.

As he listened to Tourniquet's caliginous recollection of his past family, Kai felt his heart grow heavy. The younger male had been brought up by a clan of monsters, devils that resembled Transylvania's own festering scourges of the North. Dwelling in swamps and twisted caverns, hidden within gnarled and secluded forests the beasts waited, biding their time until the next spell of bloodshed brought on by their greedy jaws. Though Kai had never met any of the notorious clan, he knew well the terror they spread and the awful reputation that followed them. "They sound all too familiar, in a sickening way," came his words, his deep voice filled with morose indifference. Lowering his body to the ground, he tried to relax as he listened to Tourniquet's tense tale. Long legs stretched out before him, he observed his large paws as he pondered the name of the youth's brother. Genocide, he mused. What a terrible thing to be called... Having the blithe inclination to believe, or want to believe, that goodness had the potential to exist within all beings, he entertained the idea that perhaps, having been blessed with an alternative title, Tourniquet's brother might have flourished into a decent character under the proper guidance and care.

Regardless of the brother's soiled potential, Kai could tell that even the syllables of his sibling's name left a rotten taste in the Sikla's mouth. "It sounds like you were lucky to have escaped with your life. I'm sorry that things had to be so rotten with your family." His tones were low and laced with sincerity, for if he had the power to turn back time and set things right, he truly would have done so. "Your brother sounds like a vicious representation of the hell you were forced to endure from your pack. But Tourn..." he said, using the smaller male's nickname in an attempt to comfort him, "You're safe now. You've found a new family here, one who won't judge you for something you haven't done, crimes you haven't committed. Come.." He said, rising to his paws, a smile lighting his maw, "Let's not dwell on such melancholy things any longer. You had repented enough for sins that are not your own." Leaning down he scooped up the now cold rabbit in his jaws and waited, eying Tourniquet with hopes that he might follow him back to the heart of the territory.