01-18-2010, 06:22 PM
555
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One might have to be blind to not see that Vieira was petrified of how Kaena might react—that alone made Snake a little nervous. Though he didn’t think it was likely (but what had that ever stopped from happening?), if Kaena decided to pin all the blame on the coyote woman, he might have to step in and do something about it. He was still firm in believing that she had no place being out on the borders alone—only the leaders and the Hydras of the clan probably had the skill enough to do that. He watched silently as the Centurion stepped forward, causing Vieira to cringe and look away. He could not see them, but he imagined he could smell the salt of her tears in the air. But then the aging woman offered a more compassionate touch, and Vieira’s light-furred form crumpled into her. Some tension that had been building up in his shoulders released some, though he was still on edge. As he looked at them now, he realized that they looked so very much less like master and slave and more like mother and daughter. Perhaps there was more of an emotional bond there between them than he had thought.
There was a pause between when he said Vieira wanted to explain herself (which she had insisted upon only minutes ago) and when she finally leant back from her superior, offering the short words that, in summary, described what had happened. Kaena reached out to her once more, soothing her as one might a fretting child. Snake watched, feeling somewhat awkward and distant from such an emotional moment. It did not make much sense to him. It was almost a blessing when Kaena looked his way and offered him a straight question.
“Yes, he was,” Snake said without any uncertainty. It was a scent that he remembered strongly from his own fleeting visit to the borders with Hezekiah and the flight that they had made with Haku Soul nipping at their heels like a hound from hell. He also remembered it from his first few weeks living in the area, the scent that belonged to the pale-furred woman with the fiery hair that had attacked him for no reason. But there had been a subtle difference. “The scent was not as prominent as it should have been for a longer-time member, though, Kaena. I believe that they might be recruiting. This one might have been new, and was seeking to prove himself to the leadership.”
Which made things all the more dangerous. Since Gabriel had led the initial charge against Haku with Samael, things had been generally calm. It felt as though both sides were feeling out their boundaries, and fortifying themselves in their own lands. But both seemed to be growing exponentially—as if newcomers were like vultures, sensing the bloodshed that was to come. Sooner or later these hotheaded arrivals would want laud and award, so they would go out to try to prove their valor. It was then that Snake feared things would begin to become truly dangerous. There was nothing worse than an enemy who had nothing to lose, and closely behind that was an enemy who had something to gain. Position, respect, honor—these were things that some creatures fought to the death for.
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One might have to be blind to not see that Vieira was petrified of how Kaena might react—that alone made Snake a little nervous. Though he didn’t think it was likely (but what had that ever stopped from happening?), if Kaena decided to pin all the blame on the coyote woman, he might have to step in and do something about it. He was still firm in believing that she had no place being out on the borders alone—only the leaders and the Hydras of the clan probably had the skill enough to do that. He watched silently as the Centurion stepped forward, causing Vieira to cringe and look away. He could not see them, but he imagined he could smell the salt of her tears in the air. But then the aging woman offered a more compassionate touch, and Vieira’s light-furred form crumpled into her. Some tension that had been building up in his shoulders released some, though he was still on edge. As he looked at them now, he realized that they looked so very much less like master and slave and more like mother and daughter. Perhaps there was more of an emotional bond there between them than he had thought.
There was a pause between when he said Vieira wanted to explain herself (which she had insisted upon only minutes ago) and when she finally leant back from her superior, offering the short words that, in summary, described what had happened. Kaena reached out to her once more, soothing her as one might a fretting child. Snake watched, feeling somewhat awkward and distant from such an emotional moment. It did not make much sense to him. It was almost a blessing when Kaena looked his way and offered him a straight question.
“Yes, he was,” Snake said without any uncertainty. It was a scent that he remembered strongly from his own fleeting visit to the borders with Hezekiah and the flight that they had made with Haku Soul nipping at their heels like a hound from hell. He also remembered it from his first few weeks living in the area, the scent that belonged to the pale-furred woman with the fiery hair that had attacked him for no reason. But there had been a subtle difference. “The scent was not as prominent as it should have been for a longer-time member, though, Kaena. I believe that they might be recruiting. This one might have been new, and was seeking to prove himself to the leadership.”
Which made things all the more dangerous. Since Gabriel had led the initial charge against Haku with Samael, things had been generally calm. It felt as though both sides were feeling out their boundaries, and fortifying themselves in their own lands. But both seemed to be growing exponentially—as if newcomers were like vultures, sensing the bloodshed that was to come. Sooner or later these hotheaded arrivals would want laud and award, so they would go out to try to prove their valor. It was then that Snake feared things would begin to become truly dangerous. There was nothing worse than an enemy who had nothing to lose, and closely behind that was an enemy who had something to gain. Position, respect, honor—these were things that some creatures fought to the death for.