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Anything you Sow

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  1. #1
    Kid's Avatar

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    Kid

    Cahalith
    Hunter in Darkness

    +1
    DV
    3
    PRE

    What do the photographers call it? Magic hour? Golden hour?

    Whatever, something like that, Kid thinks. Because, whatever the name is, it's that hour on the American River. The sun is slowly sinking in the West and the day is dissolving into a burnished gold. Everything gilded, from discarded styrofoam cup to the I-Street bridge downstream.

    Kid sits in the tall weeds between the bike path and the water next to an old pumping station, watching the light melt into the river and the river melt into itself. His bike is laying next to him. Backpack also close at hand, beside a plastic bag containing no less than five Highlife Tall Boys. The sixth is busy making not infrequent trips between the ground and his lips.

    He's taken off his t-shirt. Too hot for that shit. Wishes he could strip his cut off shorts too, but no need to be indecent. A rollie burns between his lips. Those passing on the bike trail, jogging, strolling, riding, see only a crust punk or homeless youth, skinny but not altogether ragged, enjoying a summer evening. No trouble to anybody.

    What Kid is actually doing is waiting for another Wolf. His fellow Gibbous Moon, the strange yet intriguing Hector. He's put out the word the best he could, using all the tools he'd learned as one of the People on the road. The marks and graffiti. The whispers, discreet obviously, to those on the streets that might encounter his newfound Pack mate. An invitation to meet and do what Cahaliths do best: talk.

    Who knows if the child of Red Wolf has received his missive. Or, even if he has, if the Farsil Luhal will show. But Kid sure hopes so. While he waits, the young Hunter in Darkness whistles a tune, breezily, trying his best to just chill, enjoy the golden world. After all, things are already darkening at the edges.
    Meninna | Cahalith
    WP: Essence: Primal Urge: ●●

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  3. #2
    Hector's Avatar
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    4
    PRE

    Hector appears in his own time. Perhaps it is not the time suggested by Kid in his missive; perhaps it is before; perhaps it is after. This Red Wolf runs on his own time. Apparently he even lives in his own version of reality going by the way he ambles along, twitching and jerking dancing to his own rhythm. His eyes are glazed over as he shuffles along on his own auto-pilot. He neither sees the bike trail, nor the river, nor the liminal spaces between urban land and quiescent water.

    Until the moment he does.

    Kid sees Hector draw near. He see's the Cahalith amble past... almost. The sudden stop is bone jarring as the spare homeless man pirouettes and stares with a sudden intensity at the waiting wolf.

    "Hey, man. Nice spot."

    Hector walks boldly forward, sniffing the air heavily. He offers Kid no handshake, for none is needed. He simply drops into a messy heap right next to the Menina.

    "Yeah... Hows it going?"

    Hector's face explodes into a dreamy smile. Only his eyes are hard and feral. They watch.
    Iron Master <<Farsil Luhal>> Cahalith

    Primal Urge: ●●●

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  5. #3
    Kid's Avatar

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    Kid

    Cahalith
    Hunter in Darkness

    +1
    DV
    3
    PRE

    The uniformity of human movement is a fine thing. It sets a pattern, a kind of background noise. Against which atypical gaits or gestures serve as markers or signs, signals of some difference, the importance of which can then be determined.

    A Hunter knows this. Or better know it. Knows that, even if you're not searching, you're always looking. For tracks, traces, signs. Because you don't hunt prey. Not until the end. You hunt tracks.

    And so Kid picks up Hector right off the bat. Its in the way his fellow Cahalith uses his body, navigates the world. Everyone else out here is jogging, speed-walking. Moving at a steady, mindless pace. Not Hector. Hector seems impelled by a different force, a different beat. Hell, he's got his very own time signature.

    Kid doesn't get up though, just watches (from the corner of his eye) the Iron Master make his sudden, jolting stop.

    "Yeah, sure is," Kid replies. One hand is already freeing a tall boy from the plastic bag. "Time of day don't hurt either. Always love evening light on the water." Offering the beer subtly to his company. "Come on and sit down, enjoy it with me."

    When Hector collapses beside him, Kid sets the proffered refreshment on the ground between them. It's there for his companion if he should want it.

    "How's it going? With me?" He returns Hector's grin, though his smile is more warm than dreamy. Inviting, unguarded. His eyes likewise. "Good as always, friend." He plucks the rollie from between his lips and takes a gulp off his own beer. "Trying to learn what's what with this town. Get settled in, yeah?"

    He offers the half-smoked cigarette to Hector, a token of camaraderie, "How about you? What's been up with ol' Hector?"

    Forgot this in the First Post
    Meninna | Cahalith
    WP: Essence: Primal Urge: ●●

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  7. #4
    Hector's Avatar
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    PRE

    "Beer..." Hector mumbled quietly before stretching out his man-paws to claim the offering.

    He guzzled, completely self absorbed. Then:

    "Oh I'm... okay. I had a falling out with a friend. He had put his roots down to close to mine. Very sad. Shame - it was a good spot with plenty of open space. Out in the open but no one could get at you. Shame."

    He frowned.

    "Still learning the lay of the land."

    He drank some more.

    "You sure know how to pick good spots. So what we talking about today?"

    Hector grinned like a madman. In many ways, he was.
    Iron Master <<Farsil Luhal>> Cahalith

    Primal Urge: ●●●

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  9. #5
    Kid's Avatar

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    Kid

    Cahalith
    Hunter in Darkness

    +1
    DV
    3
    PRE

    "It's a hard thing," Kid takes a gulp of his own beer, "arguing over ground." He glances at Hector before looking back to the river again. "But necessary." A beat. "Hope no one was hurt too bad." That last bit is obviously a joke. When it comes to the People and territory, it's almost a sure bet that somebody is gonna get hurt. And bad.

    "Glad you found a spot, though. You'll have to let me know whereabouts. So I don't have to go through all the business to get in touch, you know?" A drag off his cigarette. "If you want, I mean." Kid would prefer to have some way of finding his pack mate, but he won't push the issue. A Wolf's business is his own, in the final estimate.

    "Me? Never needed a reason to talk." He shrugs, chuckling. "Talk too damn much, that's what I'm told." He's grinning too, though not in that unhinged way Hector has. Christ, he's a rough one, Kid thinks. But life among the People is rough, so it doesn't exactly surprise him.

    "Like listening too, though. And I was thinking--if we're gonna run together, we might want to share some stories. Where we're from. What we've done. Words and deeds, yeah?" That way, if either of us catches it, the other can pass the tale on. Kid doesn't say the last bit out loud. He assumes the other Cahalith will get his drift.

    It's their job, after all: recording the history of the People. And especially of the Pack. Kid figures they might as well start now.
    Meninna | Cahalith
    WP: Essence: Primal Urge: ●●

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  11. #6
    Hector's Avatar
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    PRE

    Hector belched and gestured vaguely with his drink.

    "Look for where all the freeways merge, east of downtown. Can't miss it - they all piled together one atop the other. I claimed a camp at the heart of all that... right under the big pillars at the heart of it."

    He was still smiling.

    "Yeah... There was a guy already there. But -ah!- he didn't take to me too well. So... We had words. After a fashion."

    He grimaced. Then beamed.

    "But thats my place now. Close to the heart of the city, with the roads sailing through the skies above me. Yeah!"

    Hector listened, head lowered. He was looking at his feet. No? The glint of light off the can, maybe?

    "Well. Okay... I was a man, once. Couldn't make it as a man. Too sensitive. Too soft. Too weak. Not yet become. The herd are harsh. Their world is brittle. Soulless. I fell through the cracks. Drugs. I am not ashamed to say that. I had not yet become, see. I hadn't seen my real mother. When I did... I sang. My soul sang. I became."

    He shrugged. It was as simple as that.

    "I was near Denver at the time. Plenty big hunting ground there so I was picked up pretty quick. I"m no Old Time Warrior, so the Suthar Anzuth were right out. So were the Hirfathra Hissu - 'cause, man! They just fucking whacked! I do not want to know about what weird shit they work in!" He shuddered. "Now your Menina got the right idea... but I'm a city guy. I can't do wild places. I gotta be where the people at. Much regret but I could not swear that Oath, and so it was to the Farsil Luhal that I went. Iminir... Ah! No." He sucked in his lips.

    "Like I said before, I didn't really join a pack. But a studied under some of the more powerful Cahalith out in the Rockies. People heavy with brands and the scars to prove them. Wise in lore. We all knew that once I had learned enough I'd be out on my own, passing the lore onto People elsewhere. Kinda my purpose, you know."
    Iron Master <<Farsil Luhal>> Cahalith

    Primal Urge: ●●●

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  13. #7
    Kid's Avatar

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    Hunter in Darkness

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    DV
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    PRE

    At the heart of it... Kid himself has taken to thinking of the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers as the heart of the city, but Hector is also right to use that word here.

    "Seems to me, a city has many hearts..." he says, nodding. It's a vague sentiment, but a Cahalith can't be shy of riddles. "I know the one you're talking about, though..."

    Kid watches the play of emotions on Hector's face, unable to ascertain exactly what he means concerning the "words" that were had. "After a fashion, I'm sure..." he echoes. How a wolf deals with the herd is his own business, unless it causes a ruckus. Kid has a feeling Hector's conversation partner won't be causing anyone anymore trouble, however. For better or worse.

    "Seems like good ground, Friend. Glad you fixed yourself up right," he says with a smile. Finishing his beer, he wrestles another out of the plastic bag and cracks it open. Listening to Hector's story all the while.

    "Oh yeah," he concurs, "I know that song." How confusing it is, the first time, to feel that rhythm, to hear, even see, the music of their Mother. The night of his own First Change comes back to him in fleeting pieces. The terror of those visions, the half-glimpsed stories, going on and on, back and into the past. Only later did it become a comfort to him, only later did he learn how to let his soul sing, as Hector puts it.

    "We," Kid obviously means the Meninna, "would've been happy to have you, friend. But I understand. Everyone of the People must make their choice, find their place." Save for those who didn't, though Kid doesn't have much to say about the Ghost Wolves at the moment. "But no matter what, <<Urum Da Takus>>, so that's that."

    "Mmhmm," he hums his agreement. "Some of us pick up the yarn, others dispense it. All that matters is the stories, though. That they keeping getting told. And, in the telling, that they're remembered."The look in Kid's eyes says that he's fascinated about Hector's time among the Lore masters. Such a wealth of knowledge, of stories! The young Wolf would give a finger, maybe two, to have that experience. Instead, he prods Hector on, hoping for more detail on his time among the wizened in the Rockies: "So what was that like, your time with them in the Mountains?"
    Meninna | Cahalith
    WP: Essence: Primal Urge: ●●

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  15. #8
    Hector's Avatar
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    "Different. Quiet. But not always so. Nature surrounds you, always, up there. But we were always popping into town, so it was less like we were hanging in a mountain fortress and more like we had a base... And from there we'd go out into the world of men. To patrol. To hunt. To sing what needed to be sung - under moon, beyond the borders... Wherever it was needed."

    He sloshed his beer, testing how much remained.

    "Ain't never seen so many of the People in one spot. Not before. Definitely not since. Its a world of its own, that hunting ground is. Hence why I could tag along with the packs without taking any oaths of fellowship, you know? That pressure just ain't there. Opportunity I could not pass up. I tried to live Red Wolf's way - adapting to different packs, different territories. All in the pursuit of our lore. Hell! Musta worked! Got me a wisdom brand for it. Heh!"

    He drank, moderating his intake. Grimacing, he continued to speak.

    "Now I'm not one for name dropping and all, so I'll be brief. It was the Silver Syndicate that inducted me into the the Tribe; and I guess it was them who pushed for me to do what I did. I spent some time with the Pickering Family - hence why I never want to cross paths with them Bone Shadows ever again. Ah! Mountain's Proud Children... I learned the most from them. You should be proud of that, thems nearly all Menina. Red Knives near skinned me alive."

    He shuddered.

    "Yeah. Up in those mountains we still rule. Hunting is good. Tough. But good. We still got the numbers up there, see. Its more than just a fight for survival. We got ourselves a culture going. But I gotta say. One misstep and..."

    He gestured with his hands.

    The Forsaken lived life on a knife's edge.
    Iron Master <<Farsil Luhal>> Cahalith

    Primal Urge: ●●●

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  17. #9
    Kid's Avatar

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    Cahalith
    Hunter in Darkness

    +1
    DV
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    PRE

    Kid nods his understanding, "Yup--I got you. Was the same way where I come from. Though it was swamp and not mountains. Lots of room to spread out, hunt. Though...civilization was never too far away. Still, something nice to that. Being able to choose where you want to be...and when." It's definitely a different story in a city like Sacramento. But, then again, Kid's been on the road a long time, seen a lot of different territories. It won't be too hard to adjust. Or so he hopes.

    Kid stubs out his cigarette while he listens, taking out his loose tobacco and papers to roll two more. When he's finished he lights his own and offers the second and the lighter to Hector.

    "Well that's a whole different kind of scene, huh? I've walked into a lot of territory, but never seen Us so thick as that. How'd that work as far as keep things...civil? Seems like it might cause some trouble, so many of the People on top of each other like that." At Hector's mention of his Brand Kid gives a nod of respect. He's got one of his own, but he's not one to brag.

    "I've heard those names," Kid responds to Hector's account of the packs in the Rockies. "Was in Colorado a few years back. Can't go anywhere up there without hearing about the Syndicate, or the Proud Children for that matter." It's the truth, though Kid had never actually run into them.

    A drag off his cigarette, a plume of smoke inhaled. "So let me ask you, Friend: what's your feeling on our own situation, pack wise I mean? You seemed keen to stake out territory in the rail yards, that still your thing?" Another big gulp off his beer.
    Meninna | Cahalith
    WP: Essence: Primal Urge: ●●

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  19. #10
    Hector's Avatar
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    Hector was staring off into space. Only, he was not.

    "Well. Thick on the ground is relative. Rockies is a big place so... Always room for more somewhere but what it does mean is the prime picks are taken. Take here... In this town we can pick wherever we go. We can choose that park if we want; we can choose the confluence of them there rivers. Hell we could lay claim to the wildlife preserve to the west of town if we wanted. Now if this was the Rockies, those spots might already be taken. We might have to choose from - I dunno, say - some wide open space in Elk Grove; or the shores of Lake Folsom (way out of town) or maybe a tiny slice of river bank further south; or maybe the docks near the canal and nothing else. And we may have to fight for it, too."

    He shrugged and chugged the last of the beer.

    "Now as to how matters stand right here, right now... I been too long away from a pack, man. I need it. Feel it, in my bones. As its just us, well... Thats a pack right there."

    He turned to face Kid at last, his eyes suddenly focussed.

    "Rail yards for sure. Close to downtown. Close to rivers. Close to new building projects and old waste ground. Plenty to do in a small space, see. So we're not stretched thin. And if you want something more for its location... The station is one of the ways into town, see. If one of the People comes into town by that route, we'll be able to pick 'em up right quick."
    Iron Master <<Farsil Luhal>> Cahalith

    Primal Urge: ●●●

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