[center][sup]The Rise of Kul[/sup][/center]
[center]Smor’Gen’Blok[/center]

Za’Kul felt both a rush of adrenaline and then the terror of wonder. Safety, that was all he desired. Perhaps he would be seen as weak for it, but war was no way to live; the Lok’Sha had shown the world that when they had lost their own campaign against the other nations so many years ago--and they had lost it right in their home, right atop the mountain where their greatest achievement now stood in ruins. They could not bear another loss.

When Mai’Li and Kul’O came with the news, Za’Kul found his giddy killed. To his father he looked first, then to Ja’Kul; finally, he turned to Mai’Li and Kul’Lo.

“Wor do this?” how fickle a thing is optimism; clenched fists, Za’Kul stormed to where his battle axes were; he moved to grab them and then thought of the Wor he had just saved. Za’Kul had promised them things would be different with his tribe, that the Kul were nothing like the monger Wor… and now it came time to show them that the Kul were beasts of their word. He let his hands fall back to his sides.

“I will go to Low Jo. Bring message to Low Dahla, too--all Low tribe must meet. Cannot have war in Low Tunnels with Wor. Cannot have [i]our[/i] home collapse.”