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The moon shines brightly, bathing everything in it's glow. A lone owl hoots in the distance, and the call echoes across the city and off the walls. A shadow stretches up the wall, walking slowly. Silently. Taking care not to disturb the city's sleeping inhabitants, Arrfā sets his feet down carefully as he makes his way to the city gates. There's a clatter behind him, and he whips his head around, hand resting on the hilt of his sword. His green eyes, which are wide and alert, dart around, looking for anything unusual. An odd looking shadow, the glow of eyes.
His eyes sweep the area one more time. He huffs in annoyance. "Nothing... probably just some damn orrésh playing a joke," he snarls softly. He turns back and continues on his way, occasionally checking over his shoulder. But, he makes a common, but terrible, mistake. As with most, his eyes never leave the ground. If he'd simply looked up, he would have seen the three Azaras watching him from the rooftop. The female growls softly, "V'err, we're taking a great risk here." The tall male, T'ashv'err, or Sea Hawk, answers, "I know R'annt'arr. Just 'ang on fer a little while longer. We'll follow 'im out when he leaves." The female, R'annt'arr, or Frozen Darkness, replies, "But V'err! The guards!"
T'ashv'err smirks slyly at her and chuckles softly. "Don't worry about that," he chuckles. "V'err... what the hell did you do man?" R'annt'arr hisses, eyes narrowed. "You didn't kill them I hope." T'ashv'err shakes his head. "No no no. I know the code well as you. Don't 'urt those not involved wit' wrong doing. I simply said we were 'ere investigating the murder. It was a younger Ashàrr, so I think 'e was too scared to ask fer proof," T'ashv'err admits. "They're still taught not to let us come and go as we please. They can get in serious trouble for breaking that rule. It's one of the big ones," R'annt'arr points out, turning her duel colored gaze to T'ashv'err. He looks away and murmurs softly, "That calico was 'is sister."
R'annt'arr blinks in surprise, then sighs, "Now, thanks to the orrésh, there's a brother without a sister. Look, I know we normally only take jobs assigned to us, but this time-" "No R'annt'arr. We can't. You know that," T'ashv'err interrupts softly. R'annt'arr sighs. "Aye. It's just breaks what little heart I have left to think of what that brother is going through." T'ashv'err pats her shoulder. "I know R'annt'arr. I know," he says, giving her shoulder a little squeeze. "Oi! I'm about to loose 'im! We'd better keep up!" the stocky male informs the others, who both nod. "Aye, right you are F'isw'err," the female agrees, nodding to the stocky male, whose actual name is W'errf'isk'urr, or Fire Poppy, and the three hop across to another rooftop silhouetted against the full moon as the pass in front of it.
Their feet hit the roof with nary a sound, and Arrfā continues on, unaware of his being followed. The group of three follows him as he reaches the gates, and the young Azara male, also calico, blocks him. The Azara, an 18 year old, has a spear with which he blocks the gates. "You don't want to go out there now, sir. You'll end up like my sister," he informs Arrfā. Arrfā tilts his head as he stops. "Your sister? Who-" Arrfā starts, but the guard stops him. "The one who got murdered by the orrésh," he says quietly, tail drooping. Arrfā, who didn't want to kill the Azara in the first place, winces. "Oh, I'm so sorry for your loss," he says, putting his hand on the guard's shoulder.
From a rooftop, the trio watches. T'ashv'err grunts. "Well, seems 'e isn't comfy wit' the murder 'imself," he comments softly. R'annt'arr nods. "Aye. I don't think so either. I'll bet he has a boss who forced him. And that boss can't be a orrésh, for no orrésh would be able to give orders to an Ashàrr. That means the boss is either an Ashàrr or an Ashàrrosh. That makes the murder all the most heinous," she growls softly. "Wot kind o' Ashàrr or Ashàrrosh would order the murder o' its own?" the W'errf'isk'urr grunts. "Simple. One who has bigger goals than making a single town angry. This murder, by now, is probably on the way to Ashkā," R'annt'arr says, then sighs. "Poor Ishk’afarr. First Rāsh’err now this," she says softly, shaking her broad head.
T'ashv'err nods in agreement. "Though, it has been about seven years since that witch was killed," he points out. "Still," R'annt'arr grunts. "Wot about Ishā? This is gonna 'it 'er 'ard," W'errf'isk'urr says. R'annt'arr nods. "Aye. Wonder how her and the others have been," she grunts quietly. "Well maybe she'll be ok. I mean, she did buy that orrésh to save 'is arse when 'e was forced into slavery for killing Rāsh’err, which I 'ave yet to understand the logic behind. 'E got rid of that annoying pest," T'ashv'err grumbles. "Well the law states any orrésh who murders an Ashàrr or Ashàrrosh receives the death penalty. Ishk’afarr had no choice," R'annt'arr says. "And that's why I'm glad we're outlaws," W'errf'isk'urr mutters. "What was the name of the orrésh Ishā bought again? V’eshn’orr?" T'ashv'err asks. R'annt'arr shakes her head, giving him a glance. "Close V'err. Ashn’orr was his name. But let me just say Ishā's change of heart was... shocking, to say the least. But I am glad she did change. Otherwise who knows what may have happened to that orrésh," she remarks. T'ashv'err grunts in agreement, then they hush as Arrfā walks through the gate.
Arrfā walks into the shadowy woods, heading back to the swamp cave. His green eyes slightly glow in the mist that wraps around him like a blanket. Walking on the well trodden path, Arrfā shivers as he looks down through the spooky tunnel caused by the trees that hug the sides of the path. His ears shoot straight up when there's a slight crunch behind him. He whips around, drawing his sword as he does. The shing of it being pulled from its housing echoes through the trees, amplified by the heavy moisture in the air. The sword shines brightly in the moonlight.
Arrfā pulls his lips back in a grimace of half fear and half anger. "I'm not in the mood to play your damn games you blasted orrésh! Show yourself!" he snarls, eyes scanning the shadows and undergrowth. A low growl sounds, and Arrfā jerks his head towards the sound, then quickly wishes he hasn't. Fierce green eyes glow from the shadows, full of angry fire. "This is no game, and I am no orrésh," Arrfā hears a threatening female voice snarl. Arrfā's eyes widen with fear. Then a massive sleek furred female Azaroth lunges from the shadows, moonlight glinting off her bared teeth and extended claws.
Arrfā gives a cry of alarm and narrowly dodges the vicious female. She sails past and is swallowed by the undergrowth on the other side. Arrfā turns towards where she vanished, but there's no sign she was there, apart from the twitching undergrowth. Then the snarl echoes again. "You'd better run... for I'll be back!" Terrified, Arrfā flies down the path, running away from the Azaroth, who hides in the shadows. After he has ran around the bend in the path, he dives into the undergrowth that hides the secret trail. Shivering, he couches in the bushes, hoping the Azaroth isn't following him. Which she's not.
Back at the place he was attacked, the Azaroth female sits in the middle of the path, moonlight washing her fur silver. The color of her fur is white with dark tabby patches scattered throughout. Her ears are the tabby pattern, but the left one has a white splotch on the back. She curls her tabby tail over her paws as T'ashv'err, R'annt'arr, and W'errf'isk'urr walk out of the shadows. "Nice job R’ushshā," R'annt'arr says, coming to stand beside the Azaroth. R’ushshā, or Soldier, dips her head. "Thanks R'annt'arr. D'ya think I scared him enough?" T'ashv'err nods. "Aye. I saw the look on 'is face. 'E's scared alright," he confirms, then he chuckles. "So, yer plan fer tomorrow should work R'annt'arr," he says, smirking as he turns to put his arm around her shoulders. R'annt'arr gives him a glance, lips turned up in a slight smirk as well, then she sighs as she looks in the direction Arrfā ran. "Let's hope he listens."
Arrfā shivers in his hiding place. Waiting ten minutes, he listens for the sound of pursuit. After he is very sure, he crawls onto the hidden trail. Before he takes the hidden trail to the cave, he rolls in the pungent mud. Groaning when he feels the mud seep through his fur and cling to him, Arrfā continues to roll till there is no way to track him by his scent. "Ugh. This BETTER keep that demon from following me," he snarls as he shakes the extra water off. He gets a whiff of himself and gags. "After I give my report, I'm having straight to the lake."
Racing down the trail, he comes to the cave entrance. Shaking himself off again, he plunges into the darkness. As he passes the sleeping humans, one lifts his head at the stench. After Arrfā passes him, another human grumbles, "Blast. What'd he roll in? Dead stuff?" The first human finches, the young calico's screams still ringing in his ears. He hasn't been able to sleep since the murder, due to the amount of inner conflict. 'Why? Why did we have to kill her?' he thinks as Arrfā walks to the center of the cave.
Arrfā stops in front of the darker portion of the cave and says, "Arrkā, I've been to the city. They have found out about the murder, and are furious at the orrésh. Some even want to out and kill all the orrésh they can find." A low, growling chuckle flows to Arrfā's ears, then suddenly erupts into loud, demonic, and maniacal laughter. The evil laughter causes all the humans to wake up. Arrfā flinches as the harsh laughter echoes through the cave. In the darkness teeth flash, and Arrfā takes a step back. The laughter stops. "Oi. Why do you reek?" Arrfā stutters, "I-I'm sorry Arrkā. An Ashàrrosh attacked me. To loose her I had to roll in the mud."
"Bah! Just go get that stench off you. Now! And go out the back way," the harsh voice snarls, then turns and vanishes back deeper inside the cave. A spiky black and tan tail flicks into the light, then vanishes into the darkness with the rest of the villain. Arrfā sighs and walks out the back way. After he's gone the boss calls out, "G'orrk'of!" The huge black Azaroth with a rusty copper patch on his head pads out of the shadows. "Aye? What is it boss?" he growls. "We are in need of a new henchman, since that other one is, well you know. Go find one. Male or female, I don't care. Go now!" G'orrk'of nods. "Got it, Arrkā. I know just the orrésh," he growls, and goes out the back way.
Sliding down the muddy path, he goes down the hill behind the cave. At the bottom he silently slips into black water. Strong strokes propel him quietly through the water without causing a disturbance to the glass like surface of the lake. Swimming across to the other side, he pulls himself out of the water with nary a sound. Shaking the water off his pelt, he sniffs the air for danger. Finding none, he makes his way to the small camp of humans, which has not been seen by any other Azara except the boss.
G'orrk'of stalks into the camp, ears shoved forward and lips clearing his teeth. All but a few humans vanish as he comes into the camp. G'orrk'of goes to the leader of the camp and growls, "The boss wants another." The leader of the humans, an older male, protests, "But, sir, we have given you seven. That's the agreement. We let you use seven young males, and you leave us in peace and keep our location secret." G'orrk'of growls, "One displeased the boss. We now have six." The leader gives a start. "You've killed one!? Both you and your boss SWORE they would not be killed! You liars!"
Quick as lightning, G'orrk'of swings a massive paw at the leader, sending him sprawling. G'orrk'of snarls, "Don't take that tone with me K’orrèsh! Do you know how easily I could end your life!?" An evil smirk splits his face. "Or perhaps I should let the boss know of your refusal. Let him decide what should be done with you. Don't even think about going to the city and selling the boss out. Who do you think they will believe? An Ashàrr, or a worthless orrésh?" he snarls, claws out and glinting cruelly in the silver light. His amber eyes glow with malice.
The lead human pushes himself painfully to his hands and knees. Gasping for breath, he stands shakily. Keeping his head down, not making eye contact with G'orrk'of, he limps into the bushes that line the camp. "Take who you want sir," he mutters as he vanishes. G'orrk'of grins in triumph, then snarls, "Will K’aft’arr come forward?" The small crowd gasps and begins to murmur in hushed tones. "Kaphtar?!" "Is that Azaroth crazy?" "But Kaphtar's a girl!"
"Shut the hell up, the lot of you! Quit your jabber and just accept the simple fact I'm the toughest among you right now!" a harsh female voice roars, and silence crashes down, thick and heavy. A muscular, pale skinned, almost bone white, female with jet black hair and blood red eyes walks forward, lips pulled back in a feral grin that shows her teeth, which she has sharpened into fine point. Her finger tips glint unnaturally in the moon light. She has black paint around her eyes, giving her a demonic look. There's a gleam in her eye that matches even the most bloodthirsty monster's. There's only one way to describe her. Scary beyond all reason.
G'orrk'of smirks. "Ah, there she is. Scary as ever. Nice teeth," he purrs, eyeing K’aft’arr's teeth. K’aft’arr smirks. "Thank you. So, the boss needs a new henchman eh? I'd be more than happy to help," she purrs, eyes gleaming. "Aye, I told him I knew just the orrésh. Now, let's go. The boss is expecting me, us, back soon," G'orrk'of says, turning back. "Yes sir," K’aft’arr says, then walks over to him. "We will get there faster if you ride," G'orrk'of says, jerking his head to indicate his back. K’aft’arr nods and climbs on. Soon as she sits down and grabs on, G'orrk'of is off running back to the lake.
Going back across the lake and back up the slippery slope, the duo reaches the back entrance of the cave. G'orrk'of stops just inside and K’aft’arr hops off his back. After both have shaken themselves off, they follow the tunnels back to the main cave chamber. G'orrk'of tells K’aft’arr to stop by putting his tail in front of her. She stops, and G'orrk'of goes forward and growls, "Boss, I'm back." "About time. What took you so long?" the boss growls back. "Oh, K’ishb’arr was being uncooperative. I set him in his place," G'orrk'of replies casually, but the smirk on his face and gleam in his eye show his true intentions.
A dark shadow jerks around and red eyes glare from the darkness. "That mangy k'orrésh dared to oppose me?" the boss growls, voice full of anger. Smirking, G'orrk'of nods. "Aye sir. What do you plan to do with him?" "K’ishb’arr? Oh, I don't think he'll be leading them much longer. Now, where is your recruit?" G'orrk'of calls, "K'aft'arr! Come forward." Just as K'aft'arr takes a step forward, an angry voice snarls, "KAPHTAR!? Boss, are you out of your mind?"
One of the humans walks out of the tunnel that leads to the main entrance, his brown eyes full of anger. K'aft'arr mocks, "Living up to your name I see! Obnoxious as always, Ez!" He ignores her. "Boss, Kaphtar can't join us! She's a female!" È'sh protests, coming to stand in front of the darker portion of the cave chamber. "And stronger and braver than you!" K'aft'arr snarls. È'sh whirls to face her, a sneer on his face. "Then prove your strength, oh great one!" he mocks, gesturing with open arms towards his chest. K'aft'arr smirks, a dangerous gleam in her eyes. "Oh, you wanna dance?" she purrs. G'orrk'of smirks wildly and backs away from K'aft'arr.
The other humans rush in, eager to see the K'aft'arr put in her place. Or so they think. È'sh sneers at her. "Show me your best!" he roars in contempt. K'aft'arr bows her head and purrs softly, "Very well. Come at me. Or are you a coward?" È'sh's brown eyes blaze, then he lunges at her with a furious roar. K'aft'arr's head suddenly jerks up and her eyes intensify, blazing with red flames. Neatly dodging him, K'aft'arr rakes her fingers down his shoulder, and once again they reflect what little light there is in a way fingers shouldn't. But the thing is, it's not her skin that catches the light, but the claws she's fitted herself with. The AZAROTH claws.
One blow is enough to send È'sh crashing to the cave floor with a scream of pain. K'aft'arr is on him in an instant, using the Azaroth claws to rip him open, straight down the middle. An unearthly scream rips from his throat, only to sputter out into hacking coughs. The humans, frozen with terror and shock, stare with wide eyes at the scene unfolding before them. Then, one gives a cry of alarm and the others break from their frozen trance and flee back the way they came. They all huddle together in the sandy pit, shivering and whimpering. Unable to get the ghastly scene from their minds, they fix their blank stares straight ahead.
From the direction they came harsh laughter echoes through. Tipping his head back the boss roars with laughter. G'orrk'of joins in as K'aft'arr licks the blood off the claws. "Now, you're EXACTLY what we need. Say, where did you get them claws?" the boss asks after he's done laughing. K'aft'arr smirks. "A wise huntress never reveals her secrets," she purrs, showing her shark-like teeth. The boss roars one again with laughter. "Aye, you know how to pick'em G'orrk'of," he chuckles.
G'orrk'of smirks and says, "Told ya she'd be perfect." The boss nods. "Right you were. I think, even though we now only have six orrésh, K'aft'arr here can cover two positions just fine. Wouldn't you say?" G'orrk'of nods, a gleam in his eyes. "Aye," he purrs. "Then it's settled. K'aft'arr will cover two positions. Now, find her a place to sleep." G'orrk'of nods. "Come on K'aft'arr. Let's get you settled." The two vanish deeper inside the cave.
Arrfā walks back inside the main chamber. "Ah Arrfā. Did you get that revolting stench off you?" the boss asks. Arrfā nods. "Yes Arrkā." "Phew I'm glad. Now, I need you to go back into town tomorrow. Gather those Ashàrr you spoke to today. For they shall help with phase two..."
Let me just say now that this isn't the best of chapters I've written, so go easy on the judging. I know it skips around a bunch between povs, but if you don't follow I'll be happy to explain.
Now, don't place your bets on who the villian is. I may throw a curve ball. Then again, it could be who you think. Or is it?
And apparently, those mysterious Azaras from Ch. 2 know and have met the characters from the original A.S., created by the amazing Arven. How shall it factor into Race to the Finish?
Also, if you've read any of my stories before this one, you'll know who the mysterious Azaras are based off of. If you're happy they're back, great! If you're not happy about me bringing them back, don't worry. They're not major characters like in True Colors or Journey. But I just had to put them in.
And W'errf'isk'urr's name, Fire Poppy, is ironic, cause the character he's based off of smuggles opium, which is made from the poppy flower.
K'aft'arr is also based off a character from True Colors and Journey as well. Yep, NIGHTfrost is back.
For those of you who don't know her, she is my dark(er) side given form.
The Azaroth who scared Arrfā is based off a friend of mine who died just a year or two ago. Her name was Little Puss. I miss her as much as I miss Little Tiger. Little Puss and Little Tiger were really good friends, and when Little Puss saw the snake that killed him, she went nuts and started boxing its head. Little Puss actually saved my dad by jumping in front of the copperhead when it went to bite my dad. Little Puss did not die from getting bit, but from old age. She was about 14 when she died. Before she died she was the same age as me. I'll never forget her.
This is the longest description I've ever done, so I'll stop rambling and let you get on with reading it!
And to Arven, I tried my best to combine two Azarian words, G'orr and K'of, to make one word. If I got it wrong just let me know and I'll fix it fast as I can!
Note: The black Azaroth, G'orrk'of, is Razer's younger brother.
Now, don't place your bets on who the villian is. I may throw a curve ball. Then again, it could be who you think. Or is it?
And apparently, those mysterious Azaras from Ch. 2 know and have met the characters from the original A.S., created by the amazing Arven. How shall it factor into Race to the Finish?
Also, if you've read any of my stories before this one, you'll know who the mysterious Azaras are based off of. If you're happy they're back, great! If you're not happy about me bringing them back, don't worry. They're not major characters like in True Colors or Journey. But I just had to put them in.
And W'errf'isk'urr's name, Fire Poppy, is ironic, cause the character he's based off of smuggles opium, which is made from the poppy flower.
K'aft'arr is also based off a character from True Colors and Journey as well. Yep, NIGHTfrost is back.
For those of you who don't know her, she is my dark(er) side given form.
The Azaroth who scared Arrfā is based off a friend of mine who died just a year or two ago. Her name was Little Puss. I miss her as much as I miss Little Tiger. Little Puss and Little Tiger were really good friends, and when Little Puss saw the snake that killed him, she went nuts and started boxing its head. Little Puss actually saved my dad by jumping in front of the copperhead when it went to bite my dad. Little Puss did not die from getting bit, but from old age. She was about 14 when she died. Before she died she was the same age as me. I'll never forget her.
This is the longest description I've ever done, so I'll stop rambling and let you get on with reading it!
And to Arven, I tried my best to combine two Azarian words, G'orr and K'of, to make one word. If I got it wrong just let me know and I'll fix it fast as I can!
Note: The black Azaroth, G'orrk'of, is Razer's younger brother.
© 2015 - 2024 Scarlett-Hyde
Comments21
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Oh myyyyyy!!!
Sorry for my enormous delay, but I'm so happy I've finally found some time to read these chapters, because they were amazing <3
The story is getting really intense! And it looks like each side has their own reason to do what they're doing, which makes me think there's no real "enemy"
And I LOVE the character of G'orrk'of! <3 (Awesome name by the way, it's really clever!
)
The boss makes me think more and more of Shid'arr, but now I'm wondering what exactly he needs the seven (well, six XD) humans for! And whoa, Kaphtar is scary! O.O She looks and behaves so wild, I'm intrigued by her But I wouldn't like to meet her at night... or during the day for that matter XD
And OMG thank you SO much for the reference to my story! <3 I absolutely loved reading it! And now I'm really eager to see how it plays in the Trio's adventure! Also, poor Arrfa XD He makes me want to hug him XD
This is absolutely gorgeous and excitng! I totally can't wait for more!
Sorry for my enormous delay, but I'm so happy I've finally found some time to read these chapters, because they were amazing <3
The story is getting really intense! And it looks like each side has their own reason to do what they're doing, which makes me think there's no real "enemy"
And I LOVE the character of G'orrk'of! <3 (Awesome name by the way, it's really clever!
) The boss makes me think more and more of Shid'arr, but now I'm wondering what exactly he needs the seven (well, six XD) humans for! And whoa, Kaphtar is scary! O.O She looks and behaves so wild, I'm intrigued by her
But I wouldn't like to meet her at night... or during the day for that matter XDAnd OMG thank you SO much for the reference to my story! <3 I absolutely loved reading it! And now I'm really eager to see how it plays in the Trio's adventure! Also, poor Arrfa XD He makes me want to hug him XD
This is absolutely gorgeous and excitng! I totally can't wait for more!