DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf, NBCUni, USA Network and probably others can lay rightful claim to the rights of these characters – not I - unfortunately
This is not really a story, more of an essay. An allegory about Goren's life and place in the world. Repurposed from a writing assignment in school several years ago.
A Sheep Among The Wolves
It's hard to fit in when you're a sheep in a pack of wolves. The wolves are always hungry, always on the hunt for food and all manner of perceived necessary items required for their survival. But, most of all food. And when you're a sheep, you're easy prey.
A sheep stands no chance against a full-blooded and a full pack of wolves. It is driven into a corner until the wolves decide who the lucky bastard is that gets dinner today, or if the meat will be split between them. There's not much chance a sheep could ever escape the wolves by itself. That is if it's already backed up in the corner.
But if it's not in a corner, the sheep can run. Though it's worth remembering the saying "you can run but you can't hide" as it would certainly apply to present circumstances. There is no escape from the wolves completely. You can run and run and run, but they will always catch up to you in the end. They can drive you off a cliff or into a lake. They'll leave you just as messed up as if you had been taken while standing in the corner surrounded by the lot of them.
However, there is that teeny tiny, little chance, that one in a million chance that a sheep can survive in a wolf dominated population. And that one chance is to somehow gain their respect. Nevertheless, to gain that aforementioned respect is easier said than done, that's why the odds are so astronomical against it. One usually has to prove oneself. Either by hunting down something eatable, or fighting the lead male wolf. In some cases one has to beat more than just one wolf.
Goren had been there. In the exact same position, most of his life… Although nearly driven into a corner, he had fought tooth and nail to get out of it, and though he stumbled several times on his way, and even fallen once or twice as he ran, he gained respect when he turned mid-way and faced the lead wolves head-on, never backing down. It had been a long battle, a hard battle which was still being waged. At times, he barely escaped with his life. Even though the lead wolf had done little to credit his victory, his second-in-command and several others had certainly shown a grudging and growing respect for his courage in the face of overwhelming odds.
It helped tremendously if the sheep had a quick and brilliant mind, but even that was not enough, for no matter how smart or good one is, you must continually prove your worth unless you are in the supreme power position. There is no denying it. One has to make a stand, show what you believe in and how far you will go for that same belief. Goren had gone all the way, time and again. He stood by his beliefs, his sense of justice, though at times wavering at the threat of other wolves, he had turned his weaknesses into strength. He had his complexes, but who didn't?
In the end, he, as a sheep, had reached the position among the wolves he had sought. They worked together in a uneasy alliance. After years of rock hard belief and unflagging dedication, he had gained his place of position. They knew every weakness and strength within him and he knew theirs. He would have their back and they would have his. He was confident of that fact. Confident not because either party trusted the other to act for the greater good, because neither trusted the other to act for the greater good.
