EliteCommander

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"I don't think Meesei would do anything dangerous until she thinks you're ready." Kaleeth commented. There was some guilt in her mind for not being brave enough to accept Lorag's offer, though she knew that she would make for a poor Champion, if the worst came to pass. Unlike some of the others, she was rarely in positions of leadership. "And it sounds like Lorag wants you to to be trained first. I guess Sabine will have to spend a lot of time with you."

Ahnasha nodded to Kaleeth. "He'll have to. Enchanted trinkets would definitely be helpful; you'd be allowed to use them in any kind of duel for your title if you were Champion. But, I have a feeling that Meesei and Lorag both would still want you to be able to defend yourself without them. As for the idea of you actually one day becoming Champion, though, I also thought about what that would mean. I don't want to think that Meesei, or any of us are going to die in this war. After all we've been though, I think we can all finish it together. But if you stay as Meesei's second, you would eventually become Champion. You'll outlive her by hundreds of years. I won't say that I'm against the idea of staying in a central role in the clans, but...I'll also admit that a part of me was hoping to be able to relax after all of this is over. I think we all would deserve that much."

---

The thought had crossed Julan's mind that his grandparents, or whoever he ended up speaking to, might not believe what he said at first. Even being as young as he was, Julan could recognize that his claims would be surprising. He had come up with a few ways to answer the question, but again, he was nervous enough that he did not say much to lead up to his answer. "Um, in the castle. They're in the castle. Janius, that's my father. Janius Aelius. That's my father. He was born here. He told me his parents were Remus and Aeramina. I guess everyone here thought he was killed by spiders a long time ago, but he wasn't. He lived, but he couldn't come back. He didn't want us to come here earlier, but...I wanted to meet my grandparents. I think he's just afraid. Can I meet them?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

The silence in the air persisted for a time after Lorag had left the room. Regardless of how directly or indirectly involved they had been, the meeting gave everyone much to think about. Ahnasha was the one to eventually break the silence after giving a deep sigh. "So that...was not what I was expecting. I never would have thought I would see a day where Lorag was stepping down. No matter how old he got, I always expected he would, I don't know, go down fighting or something. He must have been talking about this with Meesei for a while."

Ahnasha took Fendros' hand in hers, looking sympathetic. "And I know there's a lot of responsibility being put on you. It's not like you're becoming the Champion or anything, but still, you'll be the second highest ranking lycan in Tamriel. How do you think you're going to go about training him, Sabine? I know magic has never been your strongsuit, so...what can we do to make you more resistant to it?"

---

"Yes, hello, um..." Julan began, obviously nervous. He had been going through his thoughts almost constantly for most of the evening about what he would say if his plan had worked, but his anxiety was momentarily causing him to freeze up. He stumbled over his words and looked down at the floor for a few seconds until he finally stopped himself to take in a deep breath.

"Does, um, Remus and...Aeramina Aetius live here? I'm their...grandson." Julan said, quite suddenly. He had at first intended to pace out that revelation after they were introduced, but he was panicked enough to start rushing through his own thoughts.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Lorag looked like he was somewhat less irritated, though he looked no less serious. "Good. If that spell absorption makes you resistant to magic already, then I figure even more magic resistance would make you a tough soldier for them to fight."

There were a few moments of silence as Lorag looked around the room. With no comments from the others, Lorag figured that the matter was as settled as it was going to get for the moment. "Okay, guess that's it. You'll take my spot in the pack, Fendros. I'll keep my role for now, while we're on this mission. But, once we're back at the clan, you'll take over. 'Course, I'll still be doing most of the same things I'm doing now; you're not going to be taking over all my jobs, but the Alpha will be goin' to you first for jobs she'd normally have given me. Just be ready to do a lot more training in a short bit of time. You need to be ready as quick as possible. Sabine and Meesei can help you learn what you need, and Sabine'll train with you until you know you can't lose. Make sure to get all that fear and doubt out of your head and be ready to learn faster and better than you ever have before."

Lorag started to walk towards the door, but as he was stepping past Fendros, he stopped and put a hand on his shoulder. "After Sabine, you'll be fighting Meesei."

---

Julan had a mildly confused expression listening to Rhazii as they started to approach the door. "Um...okay?" He commented. He was not quite sure why Rhazii was spending so much time describing the maid. It was like he paid more attention to her than the people they were actually there to talk to.

Regardless, there did not seem to be anything standing in the way of them approaching the house, so Julan eagerly walked up to the door and started to knock. With all the other people in the house, there was no guarantee that it would actually be his grandparents who would answer. But, he had been thinking for hours on what he would say whether it was them, or someone else.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

With his arms crossed, Lorag stepped up closer to Fendros. "Mhmm. Well, if you're gonna be the one to do this, if no one's challenging you for the position, then you still need some kind of challenge. You said you don't know if you could protect your position from mages? Well then that's what you've got to learn. Sabine, you can fight Fendros. Teach him how to beat you. Also teach him how to take advantage of that birthsign of his. Maybe get you some magic trinkets, or see if there's some other kind of magic or something that can make that birthsign better. I don't know what all the details will be; I just know that you're going to work on those weaknesses of yours."

"You've never learned any kind of magic or anything, right? You think you could pick up something to protect you from magic?" Lorag asked Fendros.

---

While Julan had been willing to let Rhazii take his time to observe the house, it was not long before he started growing impatient. He looked around nervously to make sure that there was no one watching them, then looked up at Rhazii as he lightly tapped his foot against the ground.

It was clear that Rhazii was not seeing what he had expected, but without being able to see for himself, Julan did not have much of an idea of what he was looking at. "Come on, hurry up. Do you see them? Or is it their butler, or...house governor? Can we knock on the door now?" Julan asked in a whisper just loud enough for Rhazii's Khajiit ears to hear.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Lorag's attitude did not seem like it had changed in the slightest, even with a willing volunteer to take over his position. The meeting was evidently not going how he had expected. "Look, I can't make you volunteer, Sabine. Honestly, Fendros is the one who I thought of when I first know I was gonna have to do this. Whether you know it or not, you've learned about leading from Meesei, and you've learned fighting from me. You're experienced, and I know you're not just going to bring everything crashin' down around us if you ever end up in charge. And Meesei thinks you're even more promising than I do. I expected you were going to be the one to end up takin' over for me."

Lorag turned his attention to the others, more specifically Sabine. "But that don't mean I expected everyone else to give up. Honestly, I think this is Meesei's fault. With this whole war, she's been changing how we think. How we act. She's been getting us all to work together, to focus everything on fightin' the enemy. That's all fine and great for fighting a war, but that's not how lycans act. That's not how packs act. A pack of wolves compete. The strongest get to the top and the rest follow because they know their alpha is the best they have. They don't argue...politics. They fight, they compete, and they make each other better by doin' it. The Champion should make themselves the best leader, because they have to be. They should be the best fighter, because they have to be. The Champion should be the best because they worked to become the best. If none of you have to compete, have to fight to take over my role, then when you do eventually become Champion, you'll only be a shell of the Champion you could be. Fendros, can you beat Sabine in a fight?" He asked, somewhat impatiently.

---

Though he was still grinning and, internally, congratulating himself on coming up with a good story to tell his grandparents about his father, Julan showed some uncertainty as he looked at the house, running his hand through his head of red feathers that had started to grow somewhat recently. "Um, well...I was thinking we could just knock on the door and ask if my grandparents are there. But...if you think it would be better to try to look in there first, you can do that. Just don't get seen or we might get in trouble. Try to tell me if you see...um..."

Another thought came to Julan's mind, which furthered his uncertainty even more. "I, um...do you know what they look like?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"I...think that either of them would be best for it." Kaleeth answered hesitantly. "Fendros can lead really well, I know. He's led me on missions before. But...Sabine is a strong mage, and people could see her more as being Meesei's successor?"

For Ahnasha, she was conflicted on if she even wanted Fendros to become Meesei's second or not. If he did, then he would eventually end up becoming the Champion, even if Meesei survived the war unscathed. Unless she started to pursue life extension as well, Meesei would die of old age before Fendros even started showing signs of aging himself. He would potentially be leading Tamriel's lycans for quite a long time, which could limit the kind of life they could live together. However, that also meant that Fendros could keep the clans more stable than Sabine could without life extension. However, one thing she did not question was his capabilities. Reaching over to him, she placed a hand on his shoulder. "I wouldn't count yourself out so quickly. Remember your birthsign: you're an atronach, Fendros. You're the kind of warrior that a lot of mages fear. With some training, maybe some enchantments, you could fight off pretty much any mage."

Lorag, with his arms crossed, huffed at the rest of the pack. "By Hircine, I don't believe this. I expected more of you all. The lot of you are tryin' to pass around the title like it's some kind of rotten meat. You know I'm right on this, you see the need to handle Meesei's succession, so I expect you all to be jumping on the chance to serve our clans to the absolute best of your abilities. I expect you to be enthusiastic about taking on this role. You think that if Meesei died, she's want you all to be fightin' each other trying to give away her title? No, she'd expect you to step up and make yourselves the best Champions you could be. Fendros, Sabine, you're both qualified for different reasons. Let's pretend for a second that Meesei died and the clans need a leader. Now are you going to both step up and make your claim for my position?" He said. His demanding, harsh attitude would be familiar to anyone who had even watched him training recruits.

---

Julan nodded to Rhazii. "Yeah, they were hunting bears I think, but were caught by giant spiders. He was working for that, um, guild. The fighters one. He killed the spiders, but got trapped. Aunt Meesei and her pack rescued him from the cave. But, we can't tell my grandparents that he was rescued by lycans, so we have to come up with something else. We also have to make it make sense that he wouldn't go back to them. It might make them sad if we make them think that he ran away or something."

Rhazii and Julan made their way outside the castle. It was past nightfall, though they could both see perfectly fine. The house that Janius had showed them was not far away, so Julan slowed down while they spoke. "I was thinking about it before. You know that guy that the pack has been helping? Marod, the Imperial? Well, he's a part of the...I don't remember exactly how to say it...the Oculus? Well, I really don't know what that is, but they're obviously important. The city guards gave us an entire room in their castle just because he asked them to, and they've been acting weird just because he's around. Imperials must think that Oculus group is really important and respectable and everything. So, what if we said my father was one of them? And the rest of the pack too? That could explain why father never went back to my grandparents. Do you think we could maybe say he joined them in secret or something? I think the Oculus are very secret, so it might make sense."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ahnasha shifted with some discomfort, carrying a distinct amount of uncertainty in her expression. As competitive as she was, and as much as she had always liked to advance her position in the pack, this was on an entire other level of importance. Unlike Sabine, she did not necessarily doubt that she had the skill or experience to be Champion, but rather, what she had learned of politics over the last few years made her worry that it would not be a good idea.

"Sabine, I...well I won't say that I couldn't do it. I can fight in a lot of ways: magic, swords, bows. And I've been in leadership positions before. I know Vera and all the others from the old Bruma clan appreciate my role in saving their clan. But, I don't think it would be a good idea for me to be the center of attention. I have...abilities that many in Tamriel don't appreciate. Having a necromancer as Champion...we could lose the cooperation of a few of the Morrowind clans just based on that alone. I know there are already people there who are not particularly keen on having an Argonian Champion. But you, Sabine, are not nearly as 'offensive' of a mage as a necromancer is. People can respect you as Meesei's apprentice, and I think you're more knowledgeable than you are giving yourself credit for. Not to mention, you can definitely protect your title. You have been training and practicing under her guidance for all this time. I mean, you are older and more experienced now than Meesei was when she first found you in the Cyrodiil wilderness." Ahnasha said, attempting to be as encouraging as she could to Sabine. Although, she did not lock herself into solely supporting Sabine as Meesei's second. In fact, her attention soon shifted to Fendros beside her.

"But...I would also say that you could do it, Fendros. Meesei has already trusted you as a leader for years. And you can definitely defend your title, just like any of the rest of us. I know you are not skilled with magic like Meesei, but you don't necessarily need to be, as long as you can protect yourself from it. I would say that you or Sabine would both be qualified." Ahnasha suggested.

---

Julan rushed to find some parchment and ink, then simply used his own claw to write out his message. It made his handwriting even rougher than usual, but the message was mostly legible. He wrote out, in Jel, that he and Rhazii headed to the kitchen, then placed the note on his father's bed. Julan could write in both Jel and Cyrodilic, but he had chosen Jel specifically because he knew that it would be his mother that would have to read it. While Janius could understand Jel by this point, he was rarely in a position where he would have to actually read the language, instead of just listening to it.

Although he did not have much of a specific plan for getting out of the castle, Julan fortunately did not need one. The guards were aware that their new guests were somehow associated with the Penitus Oculatus, and while most probably did not know why there would be children among them, they also did not question it. As a result, Julan and Rhazii faced no resistance in simply walking straight out the front door of the castle.

On the way, Julan spoke quietly to Rhazii. "Okay, so, I've been thinking about it. I know father probably wouldn't want me to say he became a lycan. That's the one thing we're all supposed to lie about. So, I think we need to come up with a reason to tell them for why father left them. Maybe just...change the real story a little bit? Father told me how he ended up joining the pack, did he ever tell you?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Lorag shook his head. "And who says you can't? Most of you have known each other basically as long as you've known me. You know each other, you trust each other. It's not like a stranger would be taking over. Besides, I'm sure in Oblivion not gonna give up all my authority. I'm asking one of you to step up and become the Alpha's second. Anyone else'll have to challenge me for my rank if they want to get ahead of me."

Lorag looked around the room with a demanding expression, reminiscent of the attitude he usually carried when training recruits. "So, whose goin' to step up? How many of you are goin' to try? I'm expecting volunteers here. I'll be honest, some of you are more qualified than others, but all of you are qualified in at least some way."

---

Since he had been thinking about his plan for hours, Julan had thoroughly convinced himself that it was a good idea, so Rhazii's doubts did not bother him. "He won't be mad, not once his parents know about him. I think he's just afraid or something. I don't know why. Who would be afraid of their parents? I'm sure they'll want to see him once I tell them about him, and I'm sure everything will be fine after that. My grandparents won't let him punish us."

Julan glanced quickly towards the door. He was eager to leave, so he wanted to convince Rhazii quickly. "And if they didn't want to come see him...well it wouldn't matter, since my father won't know we're gone. Uncle Lorag looked serious, so that meeting will probably take a while. And we can just leave a note here saying we went to the kitchen or something. For dinner. They didn't say we couldn't do that. It would give us plenty of time."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

The storage room was not particularly large, nor was there any source of light apart from the magelight spell that Sabine had helpfully provided. However, it was far enough from any important place in the castle that they would not be disturbed. Although the meeting started out with an awkward silence before Lorag remembered that he would actually need to be the one to start things off. His mind was quite obviously scattered between his thoughts.

Being the blunt individual that he was, Lorag started off by getting straight to the point, abruptly enough to almost be startling. "So, um...yeah, I've decided I can't be the Alpha's second anymore."

After what she had witnessed earlier in the day, Ahnasha was one of the first to let out a sigh. "Lorag, that's...ridiculous. Yes, you're not in your prime anymore. No one is going to lie and try to convince you that you are, but giving up your position? That's...Lorag, I know you're smarter than that. Just because Fendros beat you in a duel doesn't mean you're not still the best at what you do. You have more experience than half of us combined."

Predictably, Lorag was not even close to being convinced. "Yeah, I know that. If I dueled a child a thousand times, he'd win at least one on blind luck. It's not about some duel, and this isn't some spur-of-the-moment choice I'm talkin' about here. It's just, I've been thinking about this for a while. I've had a lot of time to think about it, so I know I don't got a choice. You know what it means to be Alpha's second? It means I become Champion if anything ever happens to her. That's not somethin' I can do. Maybe ten years ago, but not now. Bein' Champion used to be just about being the strongest, but now there's all this...politics and stuff that I can't do. Didn't used to think that was a problem. Thought that I could just listen you all your advice for the political stuff while I beat the war drums and inspire all the soldiers. All I'd have to do would be to defend my title. And sure, if I became Champion today, I could defend my title. For a little while. But what about a year or two from now? Five years? I'm too old for this. Meesei's second needs to be someone who can be a leader, and keep a hold of the title long enough to keep things stable. It needs to be one of you."

---

Meanwhile, Julan was in the pack's room in the barracks alone, apart from Rhazii. They had been given a room separate from the guards so they would not be disturbed, so now that Lorag had taken most of the pack to a meeting, and Meesei had gone to speak with Areldril, it was just him and his brother. Julan could not be more excited; he had expected that this would be much more difficult.

What would likely clue in Rhazii first to the fact that Julan was up to something would be the fact that he was still in his city clothes, despite the fact that they were supposed to be going to bed for the night. He opened the door to the room and peered into the hallway for a few seconds before retreating back into their room and approaching Rhazii in his bed. "So Rhazii, I've...been thinking about something. So you know how you were able to meet your grandparents a long time ago? Well...I don't think it's fair that I can't. It's not like it would be hard or anything; we're right here in the same city! I really want to meet them, so I think we should go do that. Sneak out into the city, I mean. The house he showed us isn't far from here, so it shouldn't take long. We might even have time to go explore some of the other parts of the city. He wouldn't hardly let us see anything earlier."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

If you wanted to move us on, Lorag would call a private meeting for everyone in the pack that night, apart from Meesei, who would be speaking with Areldril, and the children.