Of Serpents And Savages [Tinnok and Alva]

[Razkar]

Taloba Garrison
52nd Day of Fall, 511AV
11th Bell

"We're going on a snake hunt!"

Ah, if there were ever words guaranteed to warm the heart of a true Myrian, it would be those.

A lusty, blood-soaked roar rose from dozens of throats, following by the rattling of even more iron and wooden weapons. Spears, swords, axes, maces, clubs, bows, even daggers, anything that could maim and rend and tear. With a crash score of feet slammed into the ground, further shouting their approval.

Fang Rehkuna. Fang Ioxera. And the new bloods...

Razkar cast a glance at the odd fang out in the assembly. His own fang, led by the stern and taciturn Rehkuna, staring solemnly at the podium before here, twin gladii on her belt, were seasoned veterans of a score of clashes and skirmishes. Barbarian interlopers and Yukmen hordes had been their meat and wine, but save for Rehkuna herself, they had yet to slash with the Ancient Enemy.

Fang Ioxera was more noted for their trackers, bolstered by, ironically, the most hated of their group. Even as he flicked his eyes over, Razkar could see the prickly Fang Leader Ioxera glare at the tall, taut form of Tinnok. A picture of Myrian womanhood, she was strong, vicious and cunning, not to mention marked by Caiyha in a way that let the beasts of the Jungle, from army ants to tigers, become eyes for her fang...

... but her eyes were yellowed with black slits. Half-breed. Mixed blood, and mixed with that same enemy. When the words were spoken more than a few looks were sent her way.

She gave nothing away except a tiny, tight smile that Razkar recognized well.

Sweet, sweet anticipation.

But the third fang was... unusual. They were led by a veteran female whose name he could not recall, but they were recruits only just out of training. Only a few times had he heard of them engaged in battle, culling Yukmen in the jungle or chasing off the barbarians, but they mostly patrolled. Still, he knew them well enough. He had trained them, after all, or helped to.

One in particular caught his eye. Shorter than a Myrian female and far paler, she wasn't one, in fact. Another outcast in an army that exemplified the purity of the Myrian race, the gangly female was a Kelvic. But he noted with approval that any remaining trace of fat had been burned off her and her shimmering golden eyes were far harder than when they last met.

And, more importantly, controlled. The fire raged and had not burned lower, but it was caged now. Just waiting to to be unleashed.

Like us all...

"Hey!" Oxil hissed, nudging him sharply. "Pay attention!"

Kreesha herself, General of Myri, stood ahead of them, and as usual the green-hued warrior commanded full attention. Or at least she did now, and even after years marching and slaying in Myri's name, Razkar felt himself shrivel as she glared at him briefly. Followed quickly by Rehkuna.

Bugger, he though miserably, that's going to come up later...

"As I was saying," Kreesha continued, pointing with a dagger to the map of Falyndar, large and detailed as only the work of The Roost could be, "The Roost has been receiving regular reports from the Dagger Mouth clan, located here-"

She pointed at the south-western shore of the Kandukta Basin, a hundred miles south of Zinrah, which was marked as a cordoned-off black abyss on the map.

"-that Dhani have been sighted. Not just one or two, but several. This indicates two things. First and obviously, these abominations have strayed far from the Blockade, and thus are fair game for the Children of Myri." Another murmur of approval that she blessed with a rare, feral smirk, but it ended quickly. She was not done. "And secondly, there could be a nest of these creatures established in the jungle. We have no idea as to the size, but it needs to be found and destroyed."

A hand rose from Rehkuna, one of only three females there permitted to ask questions of their general. Grunts like Razkar would remain silent. Kreesha gave a crisp nod.

"What of the Dagger Mouth? What measures have they taken?"

"Their War Party has been hunting for several weeks but..." her jaw tightened briefly, though whether it was out of annoyance or grief Razkar could not tell "... their efforts have ended only in a series of deaths, disappearances and no trace of the nest. Simply put, they need the army of Taloba to fix this problem. So that is what they will get."

Razkar nodded again, already feeling the faint tremor from his weapons, visible only to him. They were shackled at his waist and begged for release. He placed his hands on them, almost lovingly, reassuringly.

"Hush," he murmured, still drinking in Kreesha's firm, booming words, "Soon..."

Then he blinked with surprise. Apparently, a march would be too slow, especially with the Fall rains reducing much of the jungle around Kanduktu to a quagmire even worse than usual. Kreesha smiled broader this time, slapping her dagger into her palm with clear mischievous malice as she eyed the new recruits.

"I do hope none of you get sick on boats..."

[Tinnok]

The morning began as it always did. Rising before dawn in the barracks, stretching, and going on a brief ten mile run. Whom ever was last to return was the one to gather food from the mess for the others, and to get the shame of failure. Tinnok never lost this race, she was fast and agile, and as the exercised she made sure to pace herself, her long legs were something to take advantage of, even if she didn't know the ins and outs of running.

The only problem with this game was that no matter what position she finished in, whether it be first or third to last, she was always the one that fetched the food and got all of the shame and looks anyway. In fact the last person was rarely ever chided.

So as she drew in shortly after Chinra that morning, third and not shabby for her own records, she made sure to rub down her legs and head to get food. No use in breaking the schedule, for it only put Ioxera in a foul mood if she had to wait for her food, and no one wanted their Fang leader in a bad one to start off the day.

But when she returned a smattering of food was already laid out...by the fang leader herself. Tinnok's eyes opened, and the fierce woman with her mace and bastard sword quickly explained. "They've called the fangs together...some kind of hunt."

But she hadn't said some hunt was a Dhani hunt. Oh how Tinnok relished her chances against Dhani. Fierce and wonderful advesaries, and marked with her own tainted blood. Ripping out their life force was like taking revenge upon her own...not that she had so much occasion too, but she fingered the pommel of the Scimitar on her hip fondly, remembering its previous owner's screams of anguish as she was hacked to bits Yes...this was going to be a good time.

The Tigress's fang was already familiar with the half blood, which made the steely introductions unnecessary, but Tinnok sighed at the fact that she was going to have to do it all over again with new blood that would still think themselves better than her. Tragic really.

She found Razkar's gaze just in time for him to draw the attention of Kreesha, which brought a sardonic smirk to the half-breed's features. Scanning the new fang she found a form much paler than she was used to seeing within the tanned units of Taloba. Even paler than Ayatah, if she was to judge. Bright red hair was also uncommon for a Myrian, and the individual certainly drew Tinnok's curiosity, for any outsider was always of potential interest to her, a permanent loner.

When stifled groans went around the fangs, Tinnok only stood blank faced. She had ridden in a few long canoes for fishing and hunting purposes...she wondered if these were the same craft they would take. Silent and quick if one knew how to paddle correctly, and judging by the noises and expressions traded from one face to another...it didn't look good.

[Alva]

Alva had a difficult time in concealing her excitement at the news, and among her Fang she wasn't the only one. They were recruits still, unused to the hardening of war, but they had seen a few scuffles of their own. However, all of them but for their leader, perhaps, had tested themselves against the Snakes.

Alva had a particular dislike for snakes, although she couldn't quite name the reason why. Seeing them writhe on the ground, legless but swift, irritated her. The ancient enemy of the Myrians, the Dhani, were even worse. While Alva had never seen one personally, she had heard stories of them and their abilities, such as how they were able to grow legs and arms and walk around as one of the people while still keeping certain traits only their kind could have. Alva shuddered to think of the possibilities.

It was a surprise to most of Fang Lidara that they would be accompanying more experienced Fangs on this venture. Their Fang hadn't had much experience as anything other than their patrols, wherever those took them, and guard duty. They were in waiting for their chance to do something big that other Fangs did, and this was it.

Alva did not share the thought that just one Dhani hunt would make her Fang any more formidable. They were still runts in the army, until they proved otherwise in their service. She felt killing Dhani would do little more than dropping a handful of strange dirt-people or invaders from the north or east. Alike to them, however, she felt the same fire under her skin to enjoy the hunt and kill. They were Myrians, war was their blood, and she mirrored that.

She glanced around swiftly to the other Fangs present, interested in who they would be following into this battle. She didn't recognise the first Fang, which was led by a very savage looking woman who seemed to be all kinds of savage. Alva would be able to respect that. She looked like she had seen many skirmishes. The other Fang she recognised, but only because two faces within it were familiar. Erama and Razkar, she recalled, which made the captain of their Fang Rehkuna. Although Alva again didn't know the captain personally, she now knew her name and would be able to inquire later. Not long after she returned to looking back at Myri's General, the mystery Fang was introduced. Fang Ioxera. Alva still didn't recognise the name. She would learn about that Fang soon enough, however, was her strongest thought. The best way to meet somebody and learn about them was to fight alongside them. It was how she learned her way around her own Fang.

She shouted her excitement at the prospect of leaving to go hunt those cowardly little snake-people now, a shout that had hesitated due to hearing that they would have to take boats. She had never boated before. This would be a disaster, but one she would meet head on.

[Razkar]

"Ruros' balls, I knew there'd be a catch..."

Razkar had to actually bow his head for a moment, lest Kreesha see the crushed smirk on his face. Zuran's muttered words did not carry far, but he knew that others were reacting the same way. Throats being cleared, feet shuffled, glances away... always the joker, that male. Kreesha flashed a look at him with that eerie predernatural knowledge, and at once he went ramrod stright, ike Myri herself was inspecting him.

"I am sure that some of you," she said slowly, last trio of words barbed and labelled "Zuran", "are not looking forward to vomiting over the side of a canoe, but we require the element of surprise. The Dhani will know in advance if we march from Taloba, and could have time to move their nest or conceal it much better than if three Fangs from the army arrived out of the blue. They do not watch the Basin proper, only its shores. If we move swiftly, under cover of night and dawn, we shall be ashore and in the target area before they can properly mount a defense."

She turned back to the map and circled a large area south of Zinrah, the lands of the Dagger Mouth consuming much of it.

"This is your hunting ground. Once you arrive, your fangs will split into three groups, each group composed of each fang. Ioxera, your trackers. Rehkuna, your brawlers. Lidara... your valiant and veteran heroes."

Even Lidara cracked a wry smirk as the rest of the yard broke into laughter. All except her fang, of course, who just stiffened and glared sullenly. Razkar smiled as he felt the indignation pour off them like smoke; that fierce, familiar desire to prove themselves worthy of the Goddess of War. He snorted softly, pragmatism gaining sway over his amusement.

You will have your chance. Some of you will not survive it.

"Once in your groups, you will move in a pincer." Two fingers stabbed out to the top and bottom of the rough hunting ground. "Two groups will skirt the north and south, moving quickly and securing the perimeter. The third group will stay in the center, moving forward, pushing our enemy... but moving slow. Giving the flank forces time to circle the rest of the hunting ground..."

Her finger moved slowly around the left-hand side of the circle and than a single fist slammed into the center of it.

"... closing the back door for any attempts to flee. The Dhani will be there. The flank groups must move fast and sure, not allowing the Dhani to escape or outrun the center group. Center must be painstaking, for any ground they cover that is not thoroughly searched could be an entrance or clue. Once any activity is discovered that leads to the nest, word must be raised. Runners, calls, messenger birds... they will be provided, by the way... whatever means you can muster."

She looked across the sea... well, lake, perhaps... of eager, listening faced and nodded somberly.

"Few times before in our history has the Ancient Enemy dared so much as to stray from the Blockade. I do not know what this implies. Whatever it does, the lesson must be taught and the example set. They will not defile out Jungle. Punishment for that sin will be immediate and certain, so that they will ever know the consequences of it."

A low, dangerous growl of approval from every present throat and she nodded again, bearing perhaps a touch more flexible.

"Good... the boats are already racing on the eastern shore of the Kandaktu. Collect your weapons and supplies. You march within the hour." She raised her fist high, turning to face the Palace. All of them would know blindfolded which direction it was in, and all aped her movement. "For Myri!"

"FOR MYRI!"

The briefing broke up quickly and as the Fang Leaders converged for discussion, the Fangs either intermingled or quarantined themselves. Razkar's own mumbled or boasted or debated furiously, but he had eyes for someone beyond them. Even as he walked towards her, he could feel the eyes of other purebloods like him watching critically. Many of them did not approve, he knew that. Fortunately, most had been wise enough (and listened well enough) to know that Razkar was not to be idly advised on what company he kept.

Few, he thought wryly as he closed with his yellow-eyed target, but not all. That prick from Fang Hurox...

Not that the memory bothered him that much. It wasn't like said prick had died, or anything.

"Well met, Wolf," he said as he approached Tinnok, greeting her with a warrior's respect, not the subservience of a male in a matriarchy. She was one of the few females he knew that would not chide him for doing so. "What say you as to our little walk in the jungle?"

As her lips formed an answer, he was aware of another, paler form approachng them. Ah, how familiar that gait was. Steady, purposeful, and more lithe than one would expect from such a lanky frame.

What do you expect? He chided himself. She's a Kelvic, and a tiger at that.

[Tinnok]

Ioxera's chin was held high during the entire accounting, and all members of her fang carried themselves with purpose. Though Chinra and Hiteo did not like being named trackers over warriors, no one could deny the hunting nature of Fang Ioxera and her warriors. The male and female grumbled amidst themselves about the boats and Tinnok stood in her usual position, off to the side of her comrades, eyes surveying her surroundings.

She liked tactics that complimented the natural order of her mind, sneaking during the cover of night would be a good way for her to practice her stealth...even if it was in a non traditional manner. Her fingers ran nonchalantly over the hilts of her weapons, legs a good distance apart. She needn't gather anything more than the loose clothes upon her back and her meager supplies, so it would be a bell of waiting for the half breed.

A small smile crossed her lips as she saw a muscled form wending his way through the ranks, rolling her shoulders. She saw the narrowed eyes and cold stares of her own fang, and had got taunted more than once about her friendship with the Eagle, what it truly entailed, but the half-breed paid them no mind. Some minds will see only what is in front of them. At the very least they couldn't make any Dhani hunting Dhani jokes...not after the amount of time Tinnok had spent upon the Zinrah blockade. One step at a time.

The small smile was under control by the time Razkar made his way over, and Tinnok inclined her head. "Eagle." Strange how the two inferior beings held each other so highly.

At his question Tinnok smirked slipping a dagger out of its hilt and flipping it idly in her hand. It was a small serrated blade, and she alternated between catching the hilt and catching the tip of the nasty pointed thing between her fingers as she contemplated. "I think it will be a nice challenge, good for the fang to hunt some actual Dhani, and the plan seems sound, but I am always a fan of stealth and secrecy over brute force..."

She inclined her head. "And what of you?" The half breed was always curious as to what was occurring in the male's mind, one that was a deeper river than most any she had found in Taloba to date.

The dagger completed one high flip in the sky, higher than the rest, and as it came down it seemed to travel past the point where the half breed would be able to grab it. Two quick fingers sliced through the air, sliding to border the blade and guide it back into its hilt in one fluid motion as another figure approached. When she retracted her hand from the blade a pink tongue darted up to lap at the blood pooling between the webbing of her fingers, and it was clear by the paler stretches of skin upon her dark hands that this was far from the first time she had nicked herself playing with daggers. Still going to have to work on that trick. She mused to herself.

The creature that approached them was an interesting sight. Tinnok was not a creature that would allow herself to instantly demean those that were different from here, so hypocritical the notion would be. Actions proved merit, but it still did not add up...the pale skin covered with freckles, brilliant almost fiery hair when it caught the slow filtering light of Syna coming through the canopy. From Razkar's expression he seemed familiar with the strange familiar, and the half-breed herself couldn't keep a smile from appearing on her face imagining what a strange trio they made, not even knowing the entity that stood before them was.

As was generally the abomination's habit, Tinnok remained silent, waiting for this new female to introduce herself, or for the Eagle to do the honors.

[Alva]

Alva's expression was one she wore often when she was confronted with insult or tease: her teeth bared so the sharp points gleamed, her gold toned eyes glaring, and her hands curved into claws. However, she did not retort when the others in the assembled Fangs chuckled at the expense of Fang Lidara's learning recruits. She took it, she felt that she had to. She would prove it later when she had her jaws around the throat of somebody that would kill them.

She ran one of her hands through her hair, fingering through the slightly knotted mass and casting a disgusted glare at the others assembled. She recognised Razkar's amusement, having experienced it before, and looked away to Kreesha who began to lay down the tactics they would use to bring an end to the dreaded Enemy. She sniffed, considering her own options. She was itching to be herself for once, the feelings of despair that built with prolonged lack of being a tiger and enjoying tiger things beginning to wear on her. She made her decision with a few short moments of thought, coming up with the idea that she would travel the Basin as a woman and help track the Dhani as a tiger, something she had long since wanted to do. Not much would escape her nose once she was able to actually hunt properly. The prospect was thrilling, to say the least.

Once dismissed, she lingered. She didn't require much other than what she usually carried on her and felt she could keep herself warm at night in her fur. She had her sword on her, always did now that she felt more confident in her ability to use it. Her leather armour was also a common sight, and she wore it now as well. What else would she need? Even as a tiger she didn't need any of this besides her claws and fangs.

She looked around herself at the people merging together to talk and scrunched up her nose at the prospect of joining them. While she was familiar with most of her Fangmates by now, she still wasn't comfortable with them. So, she turned from her group and looked around to see where Razkar had gotten to. He, at least, she knew. He wasn't as harsh on her as some of the others tended to be and she could respect his prowess, from one predator to another. She approached him, noticing on the way that he was already in conversation with somebody unfamiliar, but she continued anyway. The woman was different looking, as well. She couldn't quite describe how, but she just seemed different, like her bearing was off. Or she was trying to avoid the glares levelled at her regularly by shielding herself with ignorance. Alva couldn't explain it.

"Seen me coming, did you?" Alva asked as soon as she was in speaking distance, approaching at a casual pace she typically used unless in a hurry. "Do you look forward to killing Dhani?" Once within a distance she felt comfortable with, she stood there and tilted her head at Razkar, addressing him at first, before opening her question to the both of them. She tended to see men as inferior, so her interaction was tempered by a sense of superiority as well as respect. It was a strange thing to behold. She still didn't know what to think of the woman, but she decided to tell her who she was anyway. The look in her eyes was unfriendly, as it usually was. She didn't like other people at first meeting.

"I am Alva of the Patient Shadows," she said, placing her hand on her chest by way of introduction. She didn't use her birth name often, being as it was only one sound different, and had gone by Alva long enough for the name "Alava" to matter anymore.

She parted her lips in something like a smile as she awaited an introduction in turn so she could finally have a name to put to the strange woman's face.

[Razkar]

"Seen me coming, did you?"

Razkar allowed himself a sardonic raise of his eyebrow and flicked a glance up and down her lanky, pale frame. Amidst the crowd of tanned, tattooed and leather-clad Myrians, she was like a torch in a room of dancing shadows.

"You do cut something of a... distinctive profile, Kelvic."

"Do you look forward to killing Dhani?"

The male snorted softly and gave her a wolfish grin.

"I look forward to killing anything that trespasses on the jungle that is ours by right." The grin turned up on one side and both females were left wondering if his righteous rhetoric was not entirely serious. Especially when he shrugged and scratched under his chin thoughtfully. "But the Dhani? The Ancient Enemy? That is always an especial honor, methinks. The only enemy we have that truly tests our capabilities as warriors." His expression hardened again. "Besides which, they must learn to stay within their writhing rathole of Zinrah, within the Blockade. This nest... they are either stupid or insane or both."

He stopped and flashed an odd look in Wolf's direction. Was that... almost apologetic? Alva did not seem to see that Tinnok was half-Dhani, though her slitted, yellow eyes would have told anyone that. It was odd for him and must have been the same for her, not having a newcomer vent scorn and disgust at Tinnok within moments of meeting her.

Razkar frowned to himself, a new thought surfacing. He was a Myrian, pure in both blood and mentality, and the concept of not destroying an enemy that faced his race and his Goddess-Queen was of the worst repugnance. The Dhani were the best examples of that: the last piece of unfinished business from the ancient days.

Oh, if it were that simple, an odd and more measured part of his mind offered, but here you are, marching with a shifter and a half-Dhani. You doubt not their courage or loyalties, but your own intent? So hateful and uncompromising...

"I am Alva of the Patient Shadows."

Alava's formal greeting wrenched his thoughts from introspection and he allowed his gaze to wander both to them and those around them. Surrounding the trio were milling warriors, exchanging greetings, advice, even insults and challenges. Such a pugnacious people. But there was purpose to this apparent chaos, and he could see it even at a glance. Rations of dried meat and fruit were being passed around and packed into knapsacks. Weapons prepared and sanctified by quick prayers. Groups decided and as Wolf and Tigress talked...

"Alright, you dogs!" Rehkuna, of course, booming voice more like that of a male. "The boats are ready! Form up by Fangs and get ready to move!"

[Tinnok]

The half breed sized up the newly arrived Kelvic...she had seen a few in her time in Taloba, for they were one of the only races let through the gates of Taloba and let prove themselves among the ranks of warriors that inhabited the city and surrounding jungle. Which begged the question, what form did this one take when not prancing around in human form? Her hair was red, skin pale and freckled, stance and mannerisms fierce, so Tinnok could only assume predator in nature. It bore no more thought than that. If this way the went it sounded...she would find out what beast lay beneath that fair skin soon enough.

"Well met Alva, you can call me Tinnok of the Tempered Steel, or snake for short...if you prefer." It was rare of the abomination to joke of her tainted blood, but regardless what this creature thought of her, Tinnok figured she'd beat any insults to the punch. Flipping her dagger around her fingers one last time she licked a droplet of blood from the tip and slid it into her belt, returning the gesture unto her chest as a sign of greeting. "Eager to get out in the field I take it? I am curious to see what mettle your new fang has at its disposal."

In truth Tinnok couldn't give a shyke if the whole herd of the racist louts died at the hands of her half brethren monsters, but there was no need to voice such treacherous ideals to either of her comrades...and this one, so green. No...it would do better for more Dhani to die than her own people, but of course it would be more than naive to think no one would perish on this mission. Stealth or not, there was a reason why Dhani were called the Ancient Enemy, and it wasn't because they were easy to kill...

The cry to form up called out and Tinnok gave a sardonic salute to the newly met Alva, and the Eagle and formed up with her fang. She found it strange in that moment, for a few looks were thrown her way with a mixture of disgust and resignation. She smiled grimly, knowing that even though they all despised what she was, none of them could deny her skill and use, superior in nearly every way to the new recruits that would be acompanying them on this particular mission.

"Try not to pick up a pet on this run, aight, Snake Spawn?" Ioxera said wearily as they made their way to the boats. "I don't want to deal with a petching alligator or some shyke."

"Goddess, she'd probably feck it too, being an ugly petching snake and all." Chinra muttered, getting more than a few chuckles and a few smirks.

"At least I have an excuse for being ugly, Chinra. Are your parents to blame for that mug you call a face? Or did your mother beat you because you were one of those fat children?" Tinnok smirked as a few wan smiles pulled at her comrades teeth.

A short march brought them to a swollen river that normally wouldn't be deep enough to bathe in, let alone float a canoe, but now was filled with they long boats they would take on their journey, paddles slid under wooden seats.

"Shut it, all of you. At least pretend to have skills superior to those green pieces of meat, or I'll tie you to the stocks myself if you return alive." Ioxera placed herself in the back of one of the long canoes, taking up the crucial point of guiding hand. Five per boat. Tinnok got into one with her other comrades, taking up a paddle in the middle, able to shirk concern with steering, which would allow her to work on moving the paddle as silently in the water as possible.

One by one the fangs shoved off, Rekhuna's fang taking the lead and Ioxera's bringing up the rear. Stops would be made to allow scouts to check the surrounding jungle, but the aim was to move as fast and silent as possible to make it as far in the daylight hours as possible...so the trap could be set in ample time. Tinnok slid the flat wooden paddle into the water, a particularly bulky male in their fang by the name of Yayt keeping time for the paddling with a steady stomp of his foot along the base of the boat.

[Alva]

"Ssssnake," she hissed the word as an actual snake would, or at least as she imagined a snake would. Realisation was slow to dawn on her, and so was the trickle of distrust. Did that make the woman a Snake? It couldn't have. They'd have eaten her long ago and none would care less. Yet, here she stood, her slitted eyes once attributed to her being another foreigner, or even another Kelvic, suddenly distasteful and strange suddenly proof that she might actually be of snake blood. Alive and well, and with a Myrian name. She didn't know whether to respect the woman or be horrified at the implications. It must have been a more trying journey than her own to reach this point. "Fitting, I suppose, but I think Tinnok works best."

She might have sounded accepting, but her mind was still mulling over the revelation with the slow understanding of an unlearned creature. Her lip pulled back in an unpleasant way, a physical manifestation of the thoughts and emotions that either troubled her or aggravated her so often displayed, but she did not press the other for details. She needed to think, or not think, or whatever it was. Razkar's apparent camaraderie hinted that she must be more trustworthy than any layabout bit of snake vomit, so she could bear with that.

"I look forward to hunting with you." May you not find my jaws around your throat, nor I find your jaws around mine.

She turned as Rekhuna called out, her voice loud and piercing, and she smiled more eagerly now. A hunt. She looked forward to the hunt. She nodded at Razkar and Tinnok and then rejoined her Fang of newbloods, sliding into their ranks like it was practiced. They began to split up, jostling eachother for positions near their friends. Not that Alva cared. Few had proven what she sought personally to be 'friend material'. Of course, that left her with other outcasts. However, it wasnt so bad. Otala, the one at the front of the boat, came from one of the villages near the coast. At least they had somebody familiar with sailing among them.

Alva slid her paddle into the water and frowned, so tempted by the sight of the rippling waves to be alluring. She loved to swim, very much, but she shook it off and began to paddle as best she could. Her first time in a boat and she was unsteady with her movements, but eventually she struck a rhythm that felt... okay, and she maintained it whether or not her boatmates went differently.

[Razkar]

In years to come, standing almost steady on the deck of the Cuttlefish as it slipped across the Suvan Sea, Razkar would wonder what the big fuss was about that day and night on the Kandaktu Basin. The lake was not near as fierce as the Svefra's domain, but then again, the Cuttlefish was a little more steadying than a narrow canoe. That and the lack of alligators.

Razkar remembered the alligators. Especially at night.

The Fang Leaders regimented their underlings well, and by the time they were halfway across the water, night had already begun to fall. Razkar understood quickly that stealth, not speed, were their objectives. They wanted to appear out of nowhere, striking from across the water the Dhani so little paid attention to. The day was swift, arms aching on all Myrians and backs sore from crouching in the low canoes... but the night gave some respite. Slower, quieter strokes from the rough paddles. No talking. No more barked orders. Just bird calls, and watchful eyes...

At least in the day, on the glossy surface of the Basin, there was the suggestion of an alligator. Two protruding, prehistoric eyes. The swish of a tail. A line of bubbles. But at night, there was just an endless, shining blackness under the moon and stars. If you were lucky you'd see the gleam of teeth or eyes, but more than not... it would come from nowhere. Razkar made sure his feet were dead center in the canoe and couldn't care a shyke how many times Erama rolled her eyes.

"You know they make these larger than usual for a reason," she whispered, as if talking to a child, "Gators don't attack-"

A brief, abrupt, angry bird call from the boat to their left, the call for silence from their Fang Leader that was instantly obeyed. Razkar shook his head. Woman must have had ears like a bloody bat.

He cast his eyes about in the darkness and saw the vague, flitting shapes of the six other canoes. Three Fangs worth, moving surely and with purpose, nary a sound uttered or made from three dozen Myrian warriors, save the occasional gentle lap of water on oars, the prow of a canoe brushing aside a floating branch.

Razkar wanted to smile, but... but...

The Dhani were cunning. They'd had centuries to fortify and secure Zinrah, who knew how far their underground empire extended? Were there tunnels leading to the Basin? Were slitted and serpentine eyes, full of malevolence and amusement, watching they right now, preparing to drag them down to the water-

No. Worse. Let us all land and then truly spring the trap, attack all three fangs at once-

The male clenched his jaw and forced the thoughts away, paddling mechanically and-

Something rose ahead of them. A huge something, long as the horizon and... ah, that would be the shore, then. Vast and black and tall, it was devoid of lights or torches, the Daggermouth Clan's village nestled deeper in the foliage. Razkar's heart leaped as he saw it, instinctively jerking around to share his relief with...

She wasn't there. But she would be.

I'll not bore the reader with the tedious military details of the beachhead. It was as simple a process as one would expect. The debris in the water grew thicker, the water shallower, until with a full-body lurch the canoe beached itself onto the muddy bank. Razkar gritted his teeth even as he slipped over the side into the knee-deep mud, thinking it would be stunningly stupid to die now, suffocated by mud, after crossing one of the biggest lakes in the world.

Wolf would never let him live it down.

And as he thought of her, he saw a pair of golden eyes flash by the nearest canoe, a head turn his way and bob quickly before setting off. The fangs were already separating, no time spent fraternizing by the rank-and-file. The Fang Leaders met quickly, their commune resolved in whisper and short, sharp gestures, then it broke apart.

Alva and her fang were going to be the southern pincer, disappearing into the treeline with the purpose of those desperate to prove themselves. Razkar watched them critically for a moment. It made sense, them having that position. If the Dhani panicked and were engaged, he reasoned, they would probably flee north, back towards their stronghold, not deeper into Myrian-held jungle. So if Alva and her fellows were lucky, it would be a pursuit, not a stand-up brawl for them.

Ioxera and her rough-hewn trackers vanished with considerably more stealth, he saw, Tinnok leading the way, gnosis pulsing softly under her skin. They would be in the center, finding traces of the Ancient Enemy and chasing them down, flushing them from whatever holes they were hiding in. A slower pursuit, but perhaps the most crucial one.

Which left...

"Start moving, and keep pace," Rehkuna said sharply, already moving for the trees with the sun rising at their backs, "We have to make this fast..."

Rehkuna's fang. Brawlers and butchers, or so he'd heard them referred to. A hard line that the Dhani would crash into should they try and flee back to Zinrah, crushing them between two other fangs. That was the idea, anyway. Razkar had never engaged a Dhani personally, but the stories he had heard...

The male's lips moved as he saw the red head and the brown braids vanish to his left and then further left. A silent prayer to the mother of them all (well, two of them anyway), whose work they were about that morning.

"Myri guide your hands, females... and Dira your blades..."

That done and little else to be said, Razkar picked up his feet and dragged himself out of the mud, following his comrades into the jungle that would remain in shadow, long after the sun had risen.