Muttonhawk

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"Well, most cities are placed in areas which don't flood, at least not as often as in Black Marsh. They're generally bigger, more people, bigger buildings made from stone and wood." Janius let Leaps jump from his arms one more time, then put one arm around Kaleeth and used his other hand to prop up Leaps as best as he could. "Although, in my city, Bravil, the drainage isn't great, so when it rains it gets muddy and smelly rather quickly. Still, there are large walls around it which keep dangerous creatures and bandits out, so not moving around is a trade-off I think."

After a couple more attempts, Janius decided to just let Leaps stage jumps from his shoulder again and wait for the creature to get tired of it. "As for my teachers? Well, I had a few. First was a nanny until I was twelve years old. She was a old Breton named Greta. She was very strict, but she took care of me and taught me to read, write and count. After that I had a tutor until I was sixteen, who I only knew as mister Hart. A horrible man by all accounts, fond of a yard stick, but he was able to teach me a bit about history, how to address nobles, basically preparing me to behave like a rich person I think. That was all until father put me in the Fighter's Guild, which is like a... I suppose a guild of people you pay when you need warriors for anything. I was taught to fight by a number of instructors until I joined the pack. When that happened, well, I was taught things by everyone. Meesei, Lorag, even Ahnasha. They taught me the important things. They taught me how to survive." Feeling as though he was rambling, Janius decided not to elaborate any further. Instead he looked down at Kaleeth with a look that was somewhere between being happy for her and sorry for himself, "For all of your father's behaviour, it was good of him to take it upon himself to teach you. Mine was quite distant."

---

Sabine returned Meesei''s hug without hesitation. It was nice of Meesei to consider her personal space, but right now Sabine didn't mind. She didn't really feel as much of an explosive anxiety when people were paying idle attention to her anymore, and she wasn't sure if she would or not in the future. For now she was happy to see Meesei happy. "It's okay," Sabine replied, slowly pulling away, "I don't feel scared to talk anymore."

Sabine went to resuming her salve and wore a small smile. Even if it was just something as small as talking with Meesei, it felt good to do so without her mind telling her to run away. It opened up so many possibilities that Sabine couldn't fathom it all at once. For now though, she was happy enough to continue with her alchemy. Perhaps Ahnasha might want to talk as well when Sabine would hand her the new batch.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"I suppose it depends how much a long time is." Janius followed Kaleeth to the shallower water, "I mean, human children usually learn to walk and speak by watching others as well. That all happens within two or four year-pffthahaha!" Janius' explanation was interrupted by his reaction to Leaps' next jump, straight off Kaleeth's face. However priceless Kaleeth's expression was, Janius sat up and reached out to hold Leaps still for a moment, "Determined, aren't you Leaps? Here," Janius held Leaps up in his arms to provide a platform for him to jump at the fleshflies. Upon hitting the water, Janius scooped the hatchling up again and repeated lifting him up to his heart's content.

Still sitting by Kaleeth, Janius moved the conversation from early childhood to later. "So what was growing up in the village like? Did you have many friends? A teacher? What did you get up to?"

---

Even if Meesei had her doubts, Sabine felt confident enough that the Hist will provide the right advice for her alpha. Even if she had turned her back on her village, Meesei was a loving person. The Hist would understand what her life was now.

In addition, Meesei's assurance of her love towards her family was warming to Sabine as always. However, this time Sabine was reminded of a different part of her coven life. Similar words from Ariel were often spoken when she would tuck her in at night. Even if the pack wasn't her birth family, Sabine still loved them the same way. She decided to speak like she did back with Ariel in the past. "I love you too, Meesei."

It wasn't much, but it was something that Sabine would have said a lot more in the pack had she not been so quiet in general.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"So it was instinct for you as well? Interesting." Angling his arm in a way that made it easier for Leaps to climb it without digging into his skin so much, Janius chuckled at Leaps determination, then responded to Kaleeth. "As far as I know, all humans are born without the ability to swim. It's the same for Khajiit and Mer I think." Leaps-On-Elves made its second attempt for the fleshflies and didn't appear to have any more success, but Janius didn't quite see with how fast it was moving. It splashed in the water between Janius and Kaleeth, causing Janius' to blink and flinch.

Before allowing Leaps to try again from his shoulder, Janius lowered himself back into the water and floated for a while, reminiscing. "We all have to be taught. You Argonians are lucky. We don't have gills, so if we don't get it right the first time without instruction, we drown." Janius kicked through the water towards Kaleeth and put his arm around her waist, "Many people don't know how to swim at all, they just flounder in the water and sink." Janius turned his head to Kaleeth with a joking smile, "So did you have to get taught how to walk?"

---

Meesei's words explained quite a bit actually. Sabine didn't think of questioning it during the ritual, but afterwards she had found it strange that Meesei seemed to know the feelings behind Sabine's memories.

"The Hist helped me, and I had never met them before. I think they will help you." Sabine paused her seed grinding and looked up at Meesei, "I want them to help you. They seem nice."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

With what Kaleeth explained, Janius lowered his head as well in sympathy. It must have been horrible for Kaleeth with what she experienced. "I'm sorry," was all Janius could think to say. He silently regretted bringing up sad memories in Kaleeth and kept quiet for the rest of the short walk to the water.

Thankfully, Leaps wasn't fazed. Instead, he happily waddled into the water with such enthusiasm that it made Kaleeth laugh. Janius shared her laugh as he undressed himself in turn before wading in a short distance and diving under. It was a good thing that Leaps' antics lifted the atmosphere somewhat. Once Janius surfaced, he wiped his eyes and took a refreshed breath through his mouth. He stroked through the water back towards Kaleeth with a smile. "Gods, I always forget how good the water is in this weather."

Leaps seemed to start slithering and meander through the water like a snake and started to circle the two. It caught Janius' eye. He stood upright and watched in wonder. "He's a natural, isn't he?" Janius remarked, "I didn't learn to swim until I was six years old," he motioned to the hatchling and put a hand on his hip, "He's barely a few days old and look at him." He then turned to Kaleeth, "Though I suppose if you live in the marsh you would learn to swim early on as well, wouldn't you?"

---

Sabine curled her lips and nodded. The voices seemed to chaotic and unordered that she supposed that it made sense for them to be unpredictable. While she ground some seeds into a mortar and pestle, she thought more and came up with another question. "The Hist, did they say anything to you? When we drank the sap?"

The Depths of Deception

Shuo's response to Shiva's criminal record was surprisingly neutral. If fact, with how he replied, perhaps he was one of the few officers Shiva would serve under that could remove the stick up their arse if they needed to. Shiva considered for a moment, looking at Shuo with her head angled forward, then replied with a nonchalant "Yes sir," before looking off to one side again.

Before long, the dropship reached its landing point, letting in rays of sunlight and a blast of hot air as the ramp lowered. Shiva was in two minds about leaving her belongings on the craft, but it was the only sensible choice by the sound of it.

Despite Shuo's comment as they disembarked, Shiva was distracted by the metropolis of Concord. She looked up at all the buildings and vehicles whizzing between them. She didn't even notice the security drone giving her a quick inspection right next to them. Having been in the military service or the hospitality of the government most of her life, she didn't get to see much of any cities often, and this one was particularly impressive. Too bad the climate was rather barmy.

Their destination building seemed to be three different buildings trying to disguise as one. Shiva imagined a situation where architects from all three nations of the assembly were locked in a room and literally wrestled over the design controls, eventually coming up with the incoherent mess before them. Well, at least it served its purpose.

The quick walk to their briefing was silent. It eventually reached a waiting room with a couple of rothians seated next to each other, gaudy clothing and all, and an unnerving looking dirophyd by a window. Shuo saw fit to seat himself down on a couch opposite the rothians. Seeing as there was plenty of room for both Shiva and Shuo on the couch, and it looked like the most comfortable Masulu seating in the lobby, Shiva followed his lead and took a seat as well.

Shiva held her hands in her lap and looked over the rothians with an slightly unsure face as Shuo interacted with one of them. Rothians on the battlefield were one thing, but Shiva never really go to meet many up close. She could never read their alien faces, and the experience that came with their age was always slightly intimidating. By the sound of it, it was possible that the rothians would be part of the inter-species team, same with the dirophyd.

As though their arrival times had been sequenced due to a grand higher plan, it was barely a minute before a different dirophyd entered and approached the group, followed by a human and another rothian. At least the human shared her name, and even had the courtesy to provide a more pronounceable nickname. Shiva waved to them all in greeting. Every single time she encountered alien species, she was thankful for the standard issue translation implant that she, as well as probably everyone present, had. But still, sometimes subtle communication was just enough. Besides, she still wasn't quite sure which boundaries to push with her new CO. Everyone here was probably a rather high rank in their own jurisdictions, and Shiva didn't know the social metagame.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Janius paused to rub Leaps under the chin, then stood up. As for Meesei's question, Janius looked at Kaleeth to confirm that she didn't have anything else to ask, then he gave a grateful smile to Meesei. "I think that's all for now. Thank you, Meesei." He said, before turning around and heading for the door of the common hut. "Time for a swim then?" Janius asked Kaleeth with a half smile.

On their way to the river, Janius wanted to keep the mood away from their impending separation, so he tried to make conversation of a different subject. "So, I never got to ask, what was your brother like? If you don't mind me asking, that is."

---

Sabine was still in a good mood after writing her letter. She had decided to try making more inflammation salve for Ahnasha, so she was currently ordering her alchemical supplies and starting to prepare ingredients. While she did so, she glanced up at Meesei a number of times, wondering. After a while, her curiosity overtook her. She asked Meesei quietly and slowly, "Meesei, did you ever go through the ritual like I did, except for your decisions? You helped me to think while I was with the Hist. I was wondering if you knew what was going to happen."

The Depths of Deception

Baskets, Reganza, Hailfire, and/or Fatal. You guys still around? Could one of you guys get a post in?

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"A male, huh?" Janius made an acknowledging hum and nodded. Looking at Leaps as it squirmed in Meesei's arms, he wondered how exactly a creature of its nature would be desexed. He'd once been forced by his father to see a sheep go through the process by local a farmer with a knife, but if there was anything he remembered from that nauseating experience, it was that the 'offending organs,' as Meesei put it, were on the outside. Leaps didn't have anything visible that Janius noticed. He suspected that creatures like wamasu did not have them visible all the time. It made him scratch his head, then look up at Kaleeth from where he was still squatting. "I don't suppose anyone in the village knows how to neuter a wamasu, do they?" Janius asked, not holding out any particular hope.

The Depths of Deception

After stowing her bag and weapon under her own seat, opposite and one seat to the right of Shuo, Shiva looked across to the cockpit. Having power and not using it, what was that supposed to mean? Does she secretly want to shoot up the city? Shiva crossed her arms, but didn't get any more time to think about it before Shuo ever so pointedly asked about her tattoo.

Shiva looked back at him with a serious face, her arms still crossed. Unfortunately, Shuo was higher ranking, so it wouldn't be in her interest to give a snarky answer. She just shared the same information that she normally did with her COs when they asked. Her tone was professional and to the point, but had an annoyed undertone that would prefer Shuo to mind his own business, "Rebellious treason, destruction of sovereign property, physical assault of sovereign law enforcement, assisting conspirators against the sovereignty, and littering. Two years jail time, twenty years of military service, and twenty-eight years left on my sentence. Not that the mark will disappear by year fifty. Did you require any further details, sir?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Okay, so Kaleeth/Janius and Sabine/Meesei have become temporarily desynchronized a little, so the last post with Sabine/Meesei takes place in the near future. It should be sorted once Kaleeth and Janius finish talking to Meesei, but yeah, I've acted accordingly.