The broken lands.

[Ecnalab]

Looking through the tarp that covered her cage, Aitainyn could see that her, cart and several others, were arranged in a circle. Most of the people outside were setting up stalls and other attractions for the carnival that she was meant to be a part of. The land around them offered little in the way of cover, being mostly badlands, however, that might not be a problem considering that off in the distance, the telltale spires of buildings could be seen. A city lay in the distance, a fair sized one from the look of it.

 

[ShinyHappyFitsOfRage]

Aitainyn observed. In the distance... a city. Limited cover in all directions other than that. That was her jungle, her first stop. She'd have to find clothes, and probably passage elsewhere to get away. She didn't know local policies on runaway slaves... at least she hadn't been branded. Aitainyn knew her time was limited. She had to get out before anyone noticed... and the longer they didn't notice, the better. There was about to be an act, so they wouldn't be able to chase her in full force anyway, but the least they knew, and the longer they didn't know, the better. She briefly considered finding Zeera for some vengeance, eyes moistening when she thought of her family, of whom she knew not how many were dead, but quickly dismissed it. She would live, for her families sake. Perhaps she'd have a chance for some measure of revenge another day. Using the key, dextrous hands, and all the stealth that a paranoid woman with her life on the line could muster, she'd move to open the lock of her cage, then look quickly for something to use as makeshift clothing to conceal herself for exit from the camp. A small tarp, a large burlap sack, some linens, anything she could find. She was going to try to sneak out silently, and flee once she hit the edge of the camp.

 

[Ecnalab]

Slipping out the door of her cage and under the wagon, was easy enough. With most of the people around engaged in some form of preparation or another, there were few people on guard. Finding something to use as clothing proved a bit more difficult. The only thing she could grab, safely, was a single long cloak that someone had set aside as they went about their business. Finding actual clothing would require braving some of the tents of the encampment, and that would risk drawing attention to herself. Meanwhile, she was already close to the perimeter of the carnival, and a quick sprint would easily put her out of the range of torchlight.

[Sorry for the long wait between posts, work was kinda' crazy this week.]

 

[ShinyHappyFitsOfRage]

Aitainyn was used to going without clothing, though she hadn't had to hop from civilization to civilization to survive in the past. Now... now she was in a different land, and it was a gamble, how long she could prowl unknown territory and hope for sustenance while she got her bearings. Still, she didn't want to spend any longer in this place, not at all, and without a small thong to tie clothing to a limb or somesuch, it would be wasted soon after her transformation anyway. She went for the edge of the torchlight, to escape as silently and swiftly as possible, and once in the darkness, should she make it without incident, quickly and quietly... she'd go full wolf and put distance between her and this place, taking to the wild to search for food, and possibly bandits that she could kill and steal from.

 

[Ecnalab]

Taking to the wilds, Aitainyn was at the mercy of chance in this strange land. At least with most of the broken lands being made up of rocky badlands, her trail would be difficult, if not impossible, to follow. Still, that was little comfort as she ran through the night, into the day, and into night again. When the sun rose on the second day of her flight, she was exhausted, and on the verge of starvation, when at last she found salvation. Cresting a low rocky hill, she looked down into a shallow valley, and the river cutting through the bottom of it. The water was flanked on both sides by green grass, and trees, and all along the water's edge gazelle were stopped to drink.

 

[ShinyHappyFitsOfRage]

Aitainyn was absolutely unwilling to enter into human civilization again weakened and desperate. There was no reason for her to run as she did... she should have hunted the very first night instead of taking a breakneck pace towards the next godsforsaken gathering of humans. As she had planned. Whatever force had caused her to not do this confused her to no end. If the carnival of slavers had followed a massive wolf into the wilds, it would have been beyond stupid, and futile on their part, so her prolonged, self destructive flight was reckless, and unnecessarily, and beyond abnormal for her normally pragmatic approach to not dying stupidly. For now, she'd stalk the gazelle, a lone wolf... large, and too dumb to conserve any energy for hunting, apparently.

 

[Ecnalab]

Indeed, her flight from her captors had been unusually reckless, and as she chastised herself, and stood low to begin the hunt, she heard something. It was faint, and at first she thought that she had imagined it, but a moment later it was there again. It fluttered on the wind, a faint sound that seemed to tug at her ears, as it blew past her. "Come...". It was a voice, neither man nor woman, that seemed to be coming from the small canyon that the river below her flowed into. "Come." It called again, this time it was unmistakably beckoning. "Come."

 

[ShinyHappyFitsOfRage]

Aitainyn listened, and heard. She was wary... she was beaten and battered, and this could be just the next trap. She had little choice, though... she was starved, probably too tired to hunt. Either way, it was a risk. Whatever this mystical voice was, so strange and from nowhere... she had to take the risk, now. She followed the voice, trudging along slowly, stomach growling and muscles burning, bones aching. She followed the wind, and followed the voice.

 

[Ecnalab]

She followed the canyon for a time, and as she walked, the greenery around the water grew thicker, and more vibrant. Grass was soon joined by ferns, tall plants, and even palm trees. The river, became clearer, and under the water, Aitainyn could see that it teemed with fish. However, there were also larger shapes under the surface... crocodiles.
Finally, rounding a corner, she found the end of the canyon, and the sound of crashing water filled her ears. The walls of the canyon widened out into a large, enclosed, garden of sorts. Trees, and other plants, grew thick alongside shrubs, bushes, and grass, carpeting the floor of this canyon in green, where it was not cut through by the river. The sound of water came from the far side of the clearing, where the river tumbled down from over the wall, in a brilliant waterfall. And that was were she saw something. Off by the falls, there was some sort of structure, though she could not make out the details through the thick vegetation. She also noticed that the voice had stopped.

 

[ShinyHappyFitsOfRage]

Greenery. So much, that it hurt her eyes. Waterfalls, lush vegetation. But she was moving away from prey, and her instincts roared their defiance of that decision. A building? She hated buildings. It was something of the sort. Something manmade, that nature sought to reclaim. Aitainyn looked upon the fish hungrily, but didn't feel like tempting the crocodiles. She'd have to be desperate to hunt in their territory, where they could sneak up on her in the moments it took her to catch anything to fill her belly. She didn't hear the voice anymore, but pressed on anyway. She'd already made the stupid decision to listen, and would inspect this structure, hoping that the mysticism wasn't a trap to put the crocodiles to shame. For if she fell into another trap, she highly doubted she'd emerge alive.

 

[Ecnalab]

As she drew closer, she realized that the 'structure' was no building. There were no walls or roof, only a flat foundation of roughly hewn stone slabs, about fifty feet across. It was what was on the stone that caused her to pause. Bones. Mounds of bones, skulls mostly, and all human. Jutting up from the bleached pile was a single pillar of stone, it's sides carved with the images of fierce beasts, and it's top crowned by a single massive skull of some creature she did not recognize.

 

[ShinyHappyFitsOfRage]

Aitainyn was hesitant, but again, had little choice. Something had called to her, and she'd find out what. The skulls made her wary, of course. Was this a shrine of some sort? Did it matter? Unless she wanted to go try and find a gazelle herd again, or fish in front of the crocodiles, all she could do is pray and hope for divine providence. She continued onward, viscerally aware of the likelihood that she trudged to her doom.

 

[Ecnalab]

As she drew closer to the monument, Aitainyn could feel something heavy in the air. A presence fell over her, and she knew she was not alone. Suddenly, the air rushed around her, and the voice from before was there again. This time it was no whisper, though, but a great roar of some unknown beast that nearly deafened her, before lowering to a powerful masculine voice.
"Ah, at last, a worthy vessel has arrived."
The voice seemed to come from the skull mounted upon the stone pillar, though no matter how Aitainyn might try to cover her ears, she heard it just the same, as if it rang inside her head.

 

[ShinyHappyFitsOfRage]

Aitainyn had no means to cover her ears, not with paws in place of hands. Her ears flicked and twitched, as she looked towards the skull that the voice seemed to come from, but it didn't change. Not the direction the voice came from, nor did her eyes lay upon someone else. Her thoughts were too wolfen in this form, and she shifted... a slow process, back into a naked human, steely gaze watching the skull as she contemplated it.

"Vat mysticism is this?" She circled the thing, in a distinctly wolfen way, trying to figure out what it was... as though that would have any affect. "You know of me, somehow. Your voice... is in mine head." She looked around. Her questions were likely the wrong ones. "A vessel for vat?" She looked into the skull, as though she might penetrate its mysteries merely with her eyes.

 

[Ecnalab]

"I know every beast that stalks the Broken Lands, including those that can take the shape of man. You stand before Volgrund, the lord of the wilds, and master of beasts. And you..." The booming voice paused, before continuing in a low rumble. "One such as you has been long awaited, indeed."
Volgrund, that was the name that civilized folk came up with for the spirit of the wilds; the true king of beasts. Aitainyn suddenly realized that she might be speaking to an actual god. Or, at least, something pretending to be one. Still, for so many different animals to live in this canyon without killing each other, there must be something keeping them all calm.

 

[ShinyHappyFitsOfRage]

Man did not always fear the gods. Aitainyn did. This could be a simple man of magic instead of a god, but even if that was the case, he held power. It was best to err on the side of caution.

"I must profess mine ignorance, then." She looked out over the canyon, at beasts that stood in peace, whether predator or prey, among one another. "Your power is... acknowledged by this one." She knelt before the statue, paying homage. Perhaps a more human habit... perhaps animals were wise enough to do as well as men.

A god of beasts... if such was true, this god could well be her own creator. A true father, to her and all her kind. The idea was... strangely comforting. What savage, used to hostile lands and scrounging for survival, didn't dream of a penultimate parent figure, watching over them, as in the days when they were young?

 

[Ecnalab]

"As it should be," said the voice. "Long did I reign over these lands, before the civilized men encroached, and brought their new gods with them. In their mad quest to tame my lands, they desecrated, and perverted my shrines, until now only this one remains intact; and I am all but forgotten. But you, you could serve as the vessel of my return. Tell me, little one, how have these Broken Lands treated you?"

 

[ShinyHappyFitsOfRage]

That was a simple question. "The savagery of civilization is a profane thing. Humanity oversteps its self... and has for too long. They make me ashamed of this form. They keep their fellow creatures in cages, they torture and enslave for sport, for profit. There are few enough with redeeming qualities to them... and they follow the worst among them, a sordid pack. The broken lands could use a touch of the old ways... or a full return."

Her eyes narrowed, her anger stirred. "I long to return home and tend to my pack, or whatever might remain of it. I do not know. I was taken in stealth, trapped in a cage. They intended for me to bare myself as their trophy, for a crowd, for their perverse amusement. I would not be troubled to see their blood flow as the rivers themselves." There was venom, and vitriol in her words. Men hadn't earned her love, certainly.

 

[Ecnalab]

"This land could be brought back to the old ways, when man was just another beast upon the plains. But, it would take more than just one to do this," the voice confided. "Tell me, have you met others like yourself? Ones who skirt the lines between man and animal?"

 

[ShinyHappyFitsOfRage]

Aitainyn shook her head. "No. Once, there were tribes, according to stories I heard. I never met them... I led a pack of wolves, unaware whether even my own mother was as I am. If there are others, they have never revealed themselves to me." She didn't know if she had a people of her own, or if she was some aberration, a mystical freak of nature that had appeared from nowhere. Having been raised from wolves, she was even inclined to believe a mother wolf had truly birthed her.

 

[Ecnalab]

"They are few, and far between now, but the Broken Lands still hold some of them. You will need the help of all of them, if you wish to take up my cause," said Volgrund.

 

[ShinyHappyFitsOfRage]

Aitainyn listened. In large part, because she had no choice. She didn't like civilization... but her anger and resentment didn't drive her to desire war. She only wanted her peace, her cubs. Still. One had to fight for territory, if they wished to have hunting grounds with which to fill their bellies. Civilization declared its self at war with her. If she didn't respond in kind, she died. Her belly growled, reminding her of this truth. Visions of her cubs, lost, reminded her of this truth. She leaned against a stone block, watching the skull that she imagined this voice originated from, and thought a moment, before nodding her head. She'd gathered her resolve. Survival, for a wolf, required a pack... she'd find no pack among men. "Show me the way, and I will find them."

 

[Ecnalab]

"You will find them in the wilds, living mostly as animals," Volgrund explained. "To the south, among the badlands, and rolling savannahs, you will find Senecoza, the hyena, and his marauders. There you will also find Momoza, the lion, and his pride. To the east, where the land is less parched, and turns from scrub to jungle, you will find Ninza the panther, her troop. To the west, among the high mesas, you will find Luxo the elephant, who is ensnared by the vile cult of Derketo. Finally, to the north, where the land rises, and from which you hail, you will find Brom the great bear, and his clan."
He paused then, letting all he had said sink in, before continuing. "But, first you will need to regain your strength. This valley is thick with food and water. Take what you need of it, and rest before you go."

 

[ShinyHappyFitsOfRage]

Aitainyn listened, and thought on these opportunities. She thought she'd start west, for Luxo seemed to be the only one in a state of crisis. The others could probably wait longer.

The mention of food and water snapped her from her thoughts, bringing her to the more immediate concerns of the present. She had her task, she knew what she needed to do. She pawed at the dirt, and dipped her head at the skull, then turned to hunt. She wanted red meat, and she would hunt gazelle this day. She was still too wary of the crocodiles to try her paw at fishing, though she was abnormally good at it in her lupine form. But nothing filled the belly like blood and meat from game animals. She hoped she was still up to the challenge of hunting, in her exhaustion.

 

[Ecnalab]

One of the gazelle was easy enough to catch, as they seemed to put up less chase than one might expect. As she ate, Volgrund continued to speak. "Each of these wild ones knows the location of another of my shrines; for each of them was once a caretaker of my faith. Once you secure their aid, help them retake my holy ground, and drive out whatever plagues the sites. Once my shrines are cleansed, then I may manifest my true power, and the Broken Lands will be wild once more."

 

[ShinyHappyFitsOfRage]

Aitainyn was truly surprised to find the game an easy catch. She supposed she should have more faith in the entity that claimed a divine mantle... but what she saw as providence, the gazelle undoubtedly saw as its doom. Nature was bypassed, by this entity's decree.

Shrines. Cleansing. This was truly a god by her understanding... worship was its power, and given the honorary rites to a land, he could spread his influence, in mystical, unfathomable ways. Wild... it was something she preferred to 'civilized'. This god might well be someone she could worship, even as man worshiped their gods. The encroachment of civilization was the irrevocable loss of territory, of hunting and breeding grounds. Man grew in power, and his abuses were legendary, beyond what any 'simple' animal could concoct for sport. They were easy creatures to loath. Aitainyn buried her maw in meat, and lapped up blood, making quite a meal of the creature. She'd paid her proper respects... making sure the kill was quick, as painless as possible, even saying a prayer over the deceased to her new god. She respected her prey, and honored it. She ate to survive, as all living things did, at the cost of others, and did not feel great guilt for her nature, but she empathized nonetheless. As she may one day be the prey of another, so too did she hope she would be respected were she caught in similar circumstances.

Caretakers of the faith... she thought this might be quite the spiritual journey. Where she thought Gods the fairy tales of man, she now learned that they were indeed things that might be real, even by the absurd definitions men accorded them. These were priests, by mans reckoning... she might learn much from them. She took time to rest after she ate and drank, and filled her belly anew before setting off at a more sedate pace over the mesas, the hilly lands to the west. She would find the elephant, a strong, enduring ally, and she would learn more of this god entity, and the threat civilization posed to all wild things.

The land rose before her, brilliant and wondrous, as she trod the unbeaten path west, into the setting sun. The hills were waves of the land, grassy and often sparse of shade, but it bothered her not. She conserved her energy, but kept mindful of her pace, and hoped that there would be more guidance of some nature towards her query... 'west' was such a vague tidbit of guidance on its own, and gathering information from animals as a lone, giant wolf was... a task.

 

[Ecnalab]

Days passed as Aitainyn made her way ever westward, and even more days passed after she reached the tabletop lands and began searching the hills and valleys for some sign of her prey. Fear that she may not be able to find her prey in the natural maze had just began to creep into her mind, when she heard something from around a bend, the sound of voices. Keeping low, and moving to a better vantage point, she found herself looking down on a group of people, maybe a dozen strong. They were dressed in long, flowing, black robes, with golden trim, and deep cowls pulled low to hide their faces. They were making their way through the small canyon, some of them pulling carts full of food and wine behind them, and all were muttering a chant as they went that Aitainyn did not recognize.
The procession made its way along slowly, but steadily, and none of them seemed to have noticed her.

 

[ShinyHappyFitsOfRage]

Aitainyn found herself with a distinct advantage in this situation. Fed and rested, she was at her max, and with the element of surprise, as well as a favorable battlefield, she could hope to take on the entire group alone, even if they sported some dire trickery. If this was part of a cult controlling the elephant man, she didn't want them to meet up with the main group. Sneaking wasn't really her strong suit... terror tactics and straight murder suited her far better. She waited, prowling the canyon ridge, she'd wait for the perfect moment, when they were passing underneath a lower ledge... where she could hop down and bury two underneath her weight. She'd take the time to tear a throat out, to mangle and snap a forearm in her maw if it was close enough, as it only took mere seconds with her size and strength, but then she'd be moving again... a viciously mobile, fast and strong target that weighed more than twice what any man there did.

She didn't pretend at greater numbers and put them on alert... she didn't wait for nightfall. She wanted to send a message, and intended to take no survivors. She'd leave one alive long enough to interrogate, of course... presuming things didn't go horribly wrong.

 

[Ecnalab]

The attack went about as well as could be expected. With the element of surprise, Aitainyn was able to make quick work of the, virtually unarmed, procession. And, sure enough, as she surveyed the massacre, she found a couple of people still alive; a young man, and woman.

 

[ShinyHappyFitsOfRage]

Aitainyn savaged her foes... and filled her belly from their corpses as well. The softest, choicest bits of meat... there was more than she could eat, but she didn't ever hunt for sport, and hated to let food waste. It didn't take her long to eat, but it served to intimidate the survivors, who, if they tried to flee, would find her eye upon them, and would be brought low and crippled to dissuade further attempts. When she was done eating, she'd change... standing among them, she'd shift, spending many seconds shrinking to a chorus of disturbing noises as her bones re arranged and muscles shrank, until she stood above them, naked and bloody and filthy, as a woman. She'd search their cargo, quietly, finding some things for loose fitting clothing that would tear easily should she need to change, and a weapon. Anything would do... a quarterstaff was best. When she'd found what she wanted, she'd stand over the pair, having had them huddle together, and would crouch before them, eye level, covered in the blood and viscera of what were their companions. "Tell me about your little..." She looked back over the robed figures. "Group. Where were you headed? What were you doing? And what in the hells lead to your choice in friends?" Her face was a blank mask, void of emotion. She'd not murdered people... she'd neutralized a threat. Humans were never harmless in her eyes, save for pups, and even with them, one must be wary.