OoO( 1 )OoO
It was calm and cool that day on the eastern coast. The sun rose into the sky from its long slumber and cast a crimson glow across the the placid sea. The day was calm and quiet, like any other beautiful day on the coast line.
Two otters sat on the sands in front of the sea, watching the sun rise to glory across the vast waters. Truvo was an otter from a family of fishers that lived off the sea. Together they all lived in a cave dwelling dug right into the side of a cliff that faced the massive sea.
Truvo's son Garflow was still a kit, but very mature for one so young. The little otter stared across the sea at the orange sun. "Favver, why does the sun get up so early in the mornin'?" he asked.
His father smiled at his sons curiosity and looked at the sun himself. "Cause, he has to get up every mornin' and raise his family. Just like we do." he said gently. The little kit sat and dwelled on the answer for a moment before asking another question.
Jumping to his paws, he smiled at his father. "Well, when are you goin' to show me how to raise a family?" he asked excitedly.
Truvo got up and dusted the sand off of him before responding. "As soon as you get old enough to carry a fishing net son." he said. "But for now, lets go help Uncle Ivan with his boat so he can bring back dinner for us." The little otter nodded eagerly.
"I bet I beat you there!" shouted the little otter as he raced for the small boat near the shore. Truvo kicked up sand as he raced after his hyper son. When they arrived at the craft, they noticed another otter sleeping inside it; wrapped in the sailcloth and snoring loudly.
Truvo snorted at the sight, but still smiled. Walking up to the craft, he gave it a swift kick and yelled, "Ivan!" The otter jumped up at hearing his name and slammed his head on a wooden oar. Holding his head gingerly, Ivan fell back bawling in pain.
"Oh no! They slayed me! I'm killed!" he shouted as he rolled around inside the boat, rocking it back and forth.
"Oh stuff a barnacle in it ya big lug!" said Truvo loudly as his brother sat up rubbing the spot where he had injured his head. "What are you doin' layin' about when theres hungry mouths to feed?" asked Truvo with mock anger.
Ivan slowly looked around and saw Truvo. Looking at his brother sheepishly, he scratched his head. "I was just restin' my eyes ya great barrel gut. And there is only hungry mouths to feed cause you keep stealin' midnight snacks!" said the otter grumpily. But, eventually he sat up and began to rig the boat. With Truvo and Garflow's help, it was up in a short time and was ready to sail. "Cummon lad, lets get this fish into the water." he said as he looked at Garflow. The little otter trundled over and together they shoved the boat through the sand, leaving a large gouge where it had been sitting. It ramped off a sand pile and quickly made a large splash in the water, soaking both otters.
Ivan then jumped into the boat and began oaring away. "Go on and tell that brother of mine that I'll be home around noontide!" shouted Ivan and he slowly drifted up shore. Garflow turned around and raced back for the land where his father was standing with a large smile on his face. When his son ran to him, he picked the little otter up and set him on his shoulders.
"Favver, Uncle said that he would be back around moontime."
Truvo smiled at his son and said, "Moontime huh? Well then we better go fishin' for ourselves if he's goin' to be that late." Walking away from the shore, the two otters went back to their cave to get rest for the day ahead.
OoOoO
The evening wore on as the sun rose higher into the sky. It had reached its zenith long before and was now sinking towards the other horizon. Sand on the beach to the north of the cave flew into the air as the otter ran, his breath heavy and blood dripping from his fore head. Injured as he may be, he still ran.
Truvo had finished with lunch earlier that day and now was sitting in front of the cave, waiting for Ivan to arrive. But his brother was late, which meant something was wrong. He scanned the northern sea for any sign of his brother, only to see nothing. Then, as he scanned again a figure on the sands caught his eye.
Ivan ran with every ounce of energy he could muster. He saw the cave and used the last of his energy to print to the entrance. Truvo saw his brother approach and immediately got to his paws. Ivan reached his brother and fell over in the sands, his chest heaving greatly from lack of air.
"Ivan! What's wrong mate?" shouted Truvo as he reached for the otter.
"Is...everyone...alright?" he asked through gasps for air.
Truvo got onto one knee and turned his brother onto his back. "What do you mean?" he asked confusedly.
Ivan sat up and looked at his brother. "What do I mean? The pirates! They said that they had already sacked our cave down here!" he yelled. Truvo shook his head in shock.
"There were no pirates around here mate. They don't come around 'til winter, maybe that blow to the head got to ya..."
"There are pirates and they said that they..." The otter suddenly stopped shouting as realization struck him like a rolling boulder. "Th-They haven't been here?" he asked. His brother shook his head. "Oh no..."
OoOoO
South of the cave dwelling, three travellers walked along the sandy beach, looking for any sign of life that could help them on their journey. One was a ferret with thin black armor on and a long bladed pike over his shoulder. The taller one was a fox with fur as black as night and a tunic and belt to match, and the third was a smaller fox; half the size of the other two but colored the natural orange.
Together they marched down the beach, not saying a word to each other until the ferret spotted something ahead of them. It was a ship, but not like the one they had sailed in. This one bore red tattered sails and an evil aura about it. The ferret turned to his comrade and questioned him.
"What do you think mate? Pirates?" he asked. The black fox said nothing; but put hispaw on the blade in his belt in response. "I thought so too. By the size of that ship they could number from a dozen to a score and a half." he said. Drawing his short sword but keeping it from view, the fox looked at the ferret questioningly. The ferret nodded gravely. "I don't like pirates much either mate, and seeing them beached means one of two things. They either ran out of food and water and have landed to look for more, or worse. They found some place that they think might have something valueable. Which means that somebeast is in trouble over there if that is the case. I think we should check it out."
The fox nodded and all three ran towards the otters cave.
OoOoO
"They used me to find the cave!" shouted Ivan as he beat the cave wall with his fist. Truvo and his other brothers were inside hiding the women children; hoping that the pirates wouldn't find them in the secret cave under the floor. When all of them were inside, Truvo closed the wooden trap door and buried the secret door under sand.
"Its not your fault mate. They lied to you, you had no way of knowin' it was a trick." said Truvo as he grabbed a sword made of coral stone and tossed it to the oldest of the brothers. Grabbing a long stave for himself, he turned to the crestfallen otter. "Now get on your hunkers and grab somethin' to help us. We have to fight them off now that they are here."
Ivan grabbed a small cudgel and a sling from the pile they had mustered. "Yeah...your right. We have to keep them away from Juna and the others."
"They're here!" shouted the oldest otter as he stared out of the cave entrance to the ship on the shore. The eight strong male otters walked out of the cave entrance to face the threat.
As they all filed out of the cave, they noticed over a score of vermin standing on the shore at the waters edge. The leader of the pirates was a large raggedy rat with a red headband on his head that stood ahead of the rest. He drew a lethal looking scimitar from his matching sash and aimed it Truvo. "You there, put down those weapons and surrender. Then maybe we'll let you live." said the rat with a sneer.
Truvo glared at the rat darkly. "You know what I got to say to that offer rat?" he asked. The rat said nothing, when Truvo nodded. Ivan stepped forward and let the stone in his sling fly, making it smash into the rats nose instantly knocking him off his paws.
The rat bellowed in pain as the stone collided with his snout. Grasping his damaged nose, he yelled out, "Get him!" All the other vermin from the ship raised their weapons, ready to charge; when they were all startled to a halt by a loud whistle. Both the otters and the vermin crew looked in the direction of the sound and spotted a ferret and a fox standing down the shore from them. "What do you want?" shouted the head pirate.
The ferret looked at him and yelled back, "Which of you lot are the pirates?" Although he could tell by looking at them, he wanted to make sure.
"We are! And don't think that you are gettin' any of the loot when we are done slayin' all these otters!" shouted the leader, who was now back on his feet. The ferret smiled and hefted his pike. It was a long weapon with a handle made of hardened black wood and what looked like a rapier blade on the end.
Truvo looked at the two figures and a grim look crossed his face. "They don't look like good news mate."
Ivan sighed. "I know. We mighta been able to get rid of the pirates by ourselves, but those two look like trouble." he said. Suddenly, the ferret turned to Truvo.
"You there! Would you like some help with these vermin?" asked the ferret.
Truvo's face went from grim to confused. He glared at the ferret and decided it better to negotiate then to make another enemy. "What's your price ferret?" he asked.
"We'll talk about that when I've finished." he said, then ran forward. The fox stood where he was as his friend charged towards the crowd of rats on the shore.
"What do we do? Do we help 'im?" asked Ivan.
"I don't think we have a choice. If we take out the pirates, we can overpower those two easily if they try anything." he said. Gripping his stave tightly, he ran forward and attacked the rats head on.
The ferret had taken four rats off their feet with a quick horizontal thrust of his pike, clothslining all of them. Then, he used his momentum to swing around and slash two more with the blade instantly killing them.
Truvo and the otters had sent rats flying head over heel when they crashed into the horde of pirates. Truvo swung back and forth cracking rats over their heads and across their jaws. Ivan and the others swung clubs and slings taking the rat army down without much of a fight.
Finally all the rats had been either slain or pummeled to unconsciousness; except for the leader. The ferret warrior turned to the rat and held his pike blade at the rats throat. "And what should I do with you?" he asked.
The rat cowered and crawled backwards in an attempt to get away from the blade, but failed miserably. "P-Please, don't kill me. I never meant you any harm." moaned the rat. But the blade only got closer, biting into the skin on his neck.
The ferret glared at the rat. "I should kill you here and now for threatening good innocent folk like them. You pirates disgust me. But, I won't. I shall leave your fate in the hands of those you meant to slay. If they decide that you should die, then I won't hesitate to kill you. So plead your innocence to them, not me." he said as he pulled the blade back. Walking forward, he gave the rat a swift kick which turned it onto its stomach in front of the otters.
Truvo was astounded at the ferrets words. Never had he heard such justified talk come from a ferret before, and never did he think he would. Only when Ivan elbowed him did he come back to reality and look down at the rat. Growling, he walked up and jabbed the rat in the nose with his stave. "Why should I let you live rat?" asked the otter.
The rat winced in pain as the otter prodded his already injured nose. "P-Please. I wasn't actually goin' to 'urt you. We just wanted a little food and water after a long journey. Please spare me!" said the rat. Truvo could tell just by looking at the rat that he was near tears.
Pulling his stave back, Truvo used it to lean upon. "Well rat, you deserve nothin' less than to be slain for tryin' to attack our cave." he said. At this, the rat cowered as if he were about to be struck. "But, I am not a murderer, nor will I ever be. It is not my place to kill an unarmed beast. But, if you ever come around this shore, I will take it as a threat and won't stop to think about killing you. Now take the survivors of this ship and get runnin'!" he said sharply, making the rat jump. Quickly, the fallen leader woke up what was left of his crew and together they all ran for their lives.
The otters all turned to the two who had helped to win the battle. The ferret and the fox, who was now at his partners side, both turned to the otters and stared as well. It was silent for a while before the ferret spoke. Shifting his wieght onto the spear, he smiled slightly. "Those were nice words. I am glad you decided not to kill them." he said.
Truvo, still stone faced at the ferrets attitude, replied. "Yeah. They are pirates and have no doubt killed before, but they are all cowards. They will eventually run into someone who isn't as kind as we were." he said staring the ferret in the eyes.
"I suppose you'll be wantin' that reward now?" asked Ivan, who still didn't trust the two.
The ferret smiled and shook his head. "No reward is necissary. I just wanted to help because I can tell that you are kind beasts, unlike them. I could never accept a reward for helping you out with something as small as that." he said. Ivan's eyes widened at the response.
"Y-You mean you don't want anything?" he asked, gaining him an elbow to the stomach from Truvo.
The ferret laughed out loud. "Well, I would like some information if you wouldn't mind. We came this way looking for somebody, but we haven't had much luck in finding him." he said.
"Well, that can wait 'til after dinner. Would you like to join us?" asked Truvo.
Both the ferret and the fox smiled. "Well, if its not too much trouble. It has been a few days since we had something decent to eat." he said.
"Of course. After all, you did save us from losing anybody to those blasted pirates. My name is Truvo, and these are my brothers." said the otter.
The ferret shook the otters paw warmly. "This is my partner Zango the Shadow. My name is Cloud. Cloud Longspear."
OoOoO
Later that evening, the caves natural happiness had been restored when the otters came back untouched. Like Ivan, the women had trouble believing that Cloud and Zango didn't want a reward for their deeds; but even they warmed to the two polite beasts. The kits in the cave were immediately entranced by the spectre like appearance of the black fox, which had gotten him a few friends among the younger otters.
The pirate ship had been pilfered for anything of value, then torn apart for firewood. The rest was sent off to drift in the sea until it beached somewhere else, or sunk.
Inside the cavern, the otters got to know the three travellers. Zango had gone and brought the little fox back with them. Truvo sat with Cloud talking over a bowl of shrimp stew with a small loaf of bread a piece. "So, where do you come from friend?" asked the otter.
Cloud took a swift bite of the bread and swallowed before answering the otters question. "I come from across the sea. It was a long journey here, but we made it in one piece." he said smiling.
Truvo looked at him curiously. "Why would you be travellin' that far over a sea for? Surely you didn't come all this way to look for food." said the otter.
"Of course not! As I told you before, we came looking for another beast that was said to come this way. We have been tracking him far and wide for four seasons now with no success in our mission. Only recently had we heard that he travelled the sea to here."
"So, what is this fellers name? And why are you lookin' for 'im?" he asked curiously.
Cloud froze when asked the question. He waited a moment before answering the otter. "All I can tell you is his name. They call him Dregg Ironclaw, and he is supposed to be somewhere in this coutryside. Have you heard of him?" he asked.
Truvo thought for a second before shaking his head. "Sorry mate, can't help you there." he said.
Cloud smiled slightly at the answer. "Good, its probably better that way." he said.
"What do you mean?"
"Lets just forget about it, alright?" asked the ferret. Taking the bowl in his paws, he drank the last of the stew and wiped his mouth on the back of his paw. "The less you know about him, the safer you will be." he said.
Truvo was still confused, but left it alone after seeing his friends mood shift. Seeing Cloud finish his stew, a beautiful female otter walked up to Cloud with a smile. "Would you like some more stew?" she asked. The ferret mearly held the bowl forward and bowed his head politely.
"And who do I owe the pleasure?" he asked.
"That's our sister. She has the most beautiful voice in Mossflower Country." said Ivan from on the floor. The otter had made good friends with Zango and his daughter, Liska. Together, they sat on the sandy floor with Ivan's other brothers, trading different treasures with Zango.
The ottermaid covered her face modestly. "Honestly, its not that good!" she said.
Truvo smiled at her. "Folks named her Songcrest because of 'er singin'. She could charm the birds into given 'er their eggs if she tried." he said.
She smiled and gave her brother a playful punch, sending him to the ground. "Oh stop it you big flatterer!" she said.
Cloud stood to his feet and smiled at her. "Thank you for your kindness, but that stew filled me up quite nice." he said.
The ottermaid looked him in the eyes and instantly knew that it was a mask. Her face changed from embaressed to worried in an instant as the ferret warrior walked away.
OoOoO
That night, Cloud sat on the beach outside staring up at the full moon. He left his weapon and his friends inside the cave to sleep, not wanting to bother them. Staring up at the heavens, a tear rolled down his face, noticed only by him and the otter watching him. Songcrest had watched him leave the cave and followed him out to the beach. Now that she saw his true face, she felt rather heartbroken that something could make a warrior like him cry.
"Can I ask you something?" asked the ottermaid quietly.
Although surprised by her presence, the ferret didn't move a muscle to look at her. Keeping his gaze locked onto the moon, he mearly answered back in the same tone. "Go ahead. I'll answer it if I can."
Sitting next to him, the ottermaid looked at the night sky with him before speaking again. "What is it that you are hiding from us?"
Finally looking away from the sky, he stared at her confusedly. "What do you mean?" he asked.
"I heard you talking to my brother about this Dregg Ironclaw. He did something to you to make you look for him didn't he?" she asked. "What did he do that can make a battle hardened warrior like you cry?"
Cloud looked at the waves lapping onto the shore. He kept staring into the waters, wondering if he should tell her. Finally, he broke the silence. "If I tell you, you have to promise me that you will tell nobeast about it. I don't want others worried about me while they have their whole life to live." he said.
"I promise." she said.
Taking a deep breath of the cool night air, he spoke in a quiet tone. "Five seasons ago, I lived in a village where nothing went wrong and nothing out of the ordinary happened. It was the most peaceful, quiet place that you could ever imagine...until he showed up." he said. "Zango, our leader Shinrah Icefur, myself, and a friendwere out teaching Zango's daughter the ways of the forest. How to gather, track, forage, and other useful trades in our village. We did the same with all the children in the village when they become a certain age. But that day of all days, I left my wife and son in the village to help Zango teach his daughter everything she needed."
Songcrest hadn't heard most of the story, but she could already tell where it was going. She sat and stared at the ferret as he related his story to her.
"Dregg Ironclaw attacked my village with a horde of over a thousand vermin. The villagers never stood a chance, and he didn't take any prisoners. He didn't spare anybeast, not even my wife or new born son. He attacked like a shadow and vanished from the country afterwards. So we went after him. After we landed here,wesplit up to look for his army.We are toalert the other if we find him. But we haven't had much luck." he said. Looking over at the ottermaid, he noticed that tears were running from her eyes as well.
"That's terrible! How could anybeast be so evil?" she asked.
He mearly shrugged at the question. "I don't know. I was raised in a different place far from that village where war was everywhere. Survival was the only thing on anybeasts mind, so I have seen plenty of bloodshed in my day as a young one. But, none of it compares to the sight I saw at the village that day." he said looking at the moon again.
The ottermaid just stared at the waves after drying her eyes. Then, another question came to her and she looked at the warrior. "Wait, how is your leader going to find you if he finds the army?" she asked.
"He doesn't have to. All he has to do is howl, and we will know where to find him." he responded.
"Howl? What do you mean?" she asked.
"Our leader is a creature unlike many others. He is a white furred wolf, which gives him the ability to track at amazing speed."
"A wolf?" she asked surprised.
He nodded. "Yes, and when he howls, it would send a chill to the bone of even the most hardened warrior. It can be heard across country easily, which is how he is going to contact us." he said.
Even though she only heard the description of their leader, she already felt her insides go cold. But she ignored the feeling as she stared at him again. "Well, maybe we should get inside. You don't want to freeze out here do you?" she asked playfully.
He smiled and stood up, shaking the sand from his long cloak. Holding his paw out to her, she grasped it and he pulled her up. "I guess not. I better get some sleep as well if I'm going to start tracking again tomorrow." he said. Together, they walked away from the wave washed beach and into the cave.
OoOoO
ChesButler: Thanks. You're my first reviewer.
Nin: Well, the little guy thing I didn't really think about. But I had to think over putting the plastic flower in there. I knew that it was a little away from the story. But, oh well. Whats done is done.
RiverFox237: Wow, I'm glad you like the story. And I hope you like this chapter as much as you liked the Prologue. Thanks for the review!
Thedarkflamer: Thanks, thats the first time I got a compliment from a flamer.
Well, I'll try and get the next chapter done in a hurry now that I have fans to read it. Keep an eye peeled.