Raven Wolf - 03 - The Warriors - Chapter 08 by Kurapika < Submission

Keywords male 1172564, female 1062702, cat 210140, wolf 190413, feline 147860, mouse 53215, tiger 38222, skunk 33702, coyote 11858, series 4573, book 4368, mink 3025, novel 1249, raven wolf 329

Chapter Eight

Yula is standing it what looks like and endless amount of fog, he hardly able to make out anything around him. He stares ahead of him, something starting to become clear through the thick fog.

Yula wakes up, he quickly sitting up in his bed and looking around him his heart pounding as he tried to catch his breath. He looks around the hut he was in, his father nor sister anywhere in sight, it still pretty early in the day, Yula having come to doze off for quick afternoon nap. “Shiya... I need to find Shiya...”

He quickly gets to his feet leaving the hut and beginning to search around the village, he remembering the words that Achak had told him when he had fist come to the village. “A vision of the future, those are the easiest to distinguish. You will never be given a whole setting, nor will you be able to see everything. Like the fog you traveled through when coming here everything that is unimportant for you to see will be hidden, only things that you must know of will be seen. Because of this visions of the future of often vague, and don’t make sense to those that would heard them. It is your job to figure out what that meaning is.”

“The most important thing about a vision from the future, they are always warnings! That is why it is so important for you to interpret them.”

Yula turns a corner to sharply, losing his footing and hitting the ground, the villagers staring at him slightly startled and confused as they watch him scramble back to his feet to resume his search. “Shiya!”

He lets out a surprise scream when he runs into someone, causing them both to go toppling to the ground, Yula letting out a groan as he pushes himself up from where he had fallen “Sorry about that...” He opens his eyes to see who he had run into, finding Tahki’s stern and un-amused glare staring back at him, Yula letting out a high pitched squeal as he quickly jumps back off and away from her, the angry look she had given him frightening. “Really, really, really sorry about that!”

Tahki lets out a displeased grunt as she pushes herself back to her feet, not saying anything about it as she begins to brush the dirt off of her fur.

Achak, who has been walking alongside Tahki at the time, approaches Yula on all fours as he usually did, crouching down next to him and poking at him with his staff. “Why are you in such a hurry today? I can’t say I've ever seen you move that quickly before, you’re really not one for running. I don’t blame you though I don’t much like it either, or any physical activity for that matter. It makes me sore.”

Tahki’s ears fall back as she gives an embarrassed sigh to Achak’s comment, while Yula looks over to Achak. “Do you happen to know where Shiya is? I really need to talk to him!”

Achak watches as Yula quickly scrambles back to his feet and begins looking around him for the person in question. “Shiya? Well I would expect that he is tending to his duties as the chieftain as he usually does. The chieftain really has no shortage of work around here.”

Yula looks back to Achak. “So then he’s around here then?”

Achak shrugs his shoulders. “Well... that’s not what I meant... he may not be around here at all, his work does take him outside of the village a lot as well.”

“So is he here or isn’t he?”

Achak crosses his arms thinking the question over. “Well, when I said that he could be here I didn’t mean that he was here, and when I said he could not be here I never said that he wasn’t here-”

Tahki steps in front of Achak, pushing him back behind her as she looks down at Yula and answers his question before Achak is able to keep him here by his further ramblings. “What Achak is trying to say is that he has no idea where Shiya is.”

Achak frowns as he looks back to Tahki. “Well that's putting it a little bluntly don't you think?”

Tahki glances back to Achak. “Clearly he is in a hurry and needs to get right to the point!” She looks back to Yula. “Why the hurry anyway? You look as if you saw a ghost.”

Yula shakes his head. “Not a ghost, a vision, and that I really need to tell Shiya about. I mean, I'm only allowed to talk to him about them so I have to find him!”

Tahki crosses her arms. “Well I guess those are the rules...” She looks down to Achak. “Achak, why don’t you find the chieftain for him? You know better than anyone else where he might be.”

Achak nods his head as he turns away from her, lifting his nose in the air and sniffing for a moment before quickly bounding off. Yula watching him leave before looking back to Tahki. “How is it he knows where Shiya is most of the time anyway? Is it part of his job as the tribe’s shaman?”

Tahki grins as she shakes her head no. “No it’s nothing like that. Achak and Shiya have known each other for a long time, even before you were born. I suppose you could say that they are each other’s closest friends.”

Yula frowns at the information. “Is that why Shiya lets Achak stay a shaman even though he's terrible at his job?”

Tahki lets out a sigh. “It’s not as if he can easily be replaced... then again... it’s not as if he can’t be replaced.” She scratches the back of her head. “You're most likely correct that the relationship between the two is why Shiya continues to be so patent with him regarding all of Achak’s mistakes, if anyone else were chieftain I doubt they would be anywhere near as lenient towards him.”

Yula tilts his head to side. “Not even Iuana?”

Tahki shakes her head. “Especially not Iuana, she’s one the ones most opposed to keeping Achak as the tribe’s shaman.” She looks back to Yula leading the topic away from her husband’s situation. “Why don't you resume your search, if there’s more than one searching for him you may find him sooner, as soon as Achak returns we'll find you and tell you if he was able to find anything.”

Yula nods his head as he takes off to continue his search of the village, Tahki sighing to herself as she watches him leave. Yula once again reminding her that Shiya would not for much longer be their chieftain, that of course making Achak’s situation bad. “I hope for Achak’s sake whoever it is Iuana ends up with is more reasonable when it comes to Achak than she is, and will somehow be able to sway her opinion of him.”

*******

Teddy lunges his spear into the water that surrounded the island the hidden village of Raven Wolf lived upon, a smile crossing his face as he pulls the weapon back out of the water, he having managed to run it through a fish and catch himself a meal.

Iuana begins to clap her hands, she seated on the shore and watching him. “Get used to that while you still Teddy, all that’s going to change as soon as you become a member of Raven Wolf. We can’t hunt food remember, it’s part of the curse.”

Teddy lets out a weak laugh as he turns back to her. “You and that curse, honestly I’m sure you could hunt just fine if you would just give it a try.”

Iuana shakes her head no. “There’s no need for me to look like a fool trying when I know I’ll never be able to catch anything.”

Teddy walks back to Iuana. “Suit yourself.”

Iuana sighs as she watches him. “I know you don’t believe that either the spirits or curses exist, but as soon as you see one of the spirits I’m sure your mind will be changed.”

Teddy sits down next to her. “You know Shiya told me that the spirits are not shy, so if they’re not shy then why haven’t I ever seen one.”

“Because you don’t recognize a spirit as so when you do see them.”

Teddy laughs at the comment. “Oh yeah? So how am I supposed to know a spirit is a spirit when I see it?”

Iuana smiles as she nods her head yes, getting to her feet and walking over to the waters. “Honestly, only children ask questions like that.”

Teddy gives her a weak grin. “Yeah… well when mom and dad were teaching those lessons I wasn’t paying attention as usual. Remember, I hated all this wild stuff when I was a kid, still did up until coming here with you.”

Teddy is suddenly hit with a cold splash of water, Iuana laughing as she watches him fall back in surprise, she having managed to catch him off guard and startle him. Teddy quickly getting back to his feet and running towards the water, scooping up and handful of it and splashing her back, Iuana laughing as she tries to shield herself, still getting soaked anyway.

Iuana is about to retaliate but stops when she sees some else on the shoreline near them, Kitchi walking alongside Eleven who right now patrols the islands shores for any signs of danger. “What’s Kitchi doing here?”

Teddy looks over in the direction that Iuana is staring in. “Eleven’s supposed to be patrolling this area, maybe he’s just keeping her company.”

Kitchi walks alongside Eleven as he questions her. “-I mean, I know you leave the village every night, and I’m not accusing you or anything, I’m just wondering where it is you’re going all the time.”

Eleven doesn’t answer him, she instead looking over to Iuana and Teddy when she sees them, calling out to get their attention and avoiding Kitchi’s question. “Iuana, Teddy, what are you doing here.”

Iuana smiles at her as she looks down as her drenched coat. “I guess you could say we’re just playing.”

Teddy looks over to Iuana. “Well I originally came here to catch a fish or two.”

Kitchi grins at Teddy. “Hunting while you still can are you? Don’t get too used to it, once you’re an official member of Raven Wolf you’re not going to be able to do it anymore.”

Teddy nods his head with a laugh. “So Iuana keeps telling me.”

Eleven walks past them continuing on her way, Kitchi sighing as he watches her leave. Iuana notices the downhearted attitude that Kitchi has, she questioning him about it. “Kitchi are you alright?”

Kitchi nods his head. “Yeah I’m just fine… it’s Eleven I’m worried about.” She looks out to her figure as she continued her patrol along the shoreline. “Every night she leaves the village, and she never tells anyone why, not even Tahki. I just hope that everything’s okay with her.”

Teddy looks back to Eleven, she was a very quiet one, it was hard for most to figure out what was going on in her head, then again, she was one of the so called super soldiers, and as so seemed to focus a lot of attention on her responsibilities, so it may not be anything more than that. “I won’t worry about her, as a warrior Eleven can take care of herself just fine, as a person well, maybe she just needs some time to herself or something.”

Kitchi lets out a sigh, Iuana looking back to Teddy. “I should be on my way, my father should be leaving the village to speak a chieftain of a neighboring tribe, I promised him that I would go with him.” She waves to Teddy before leaving. “I’ll see you again when I get back.”

Teddy and Kitchi watch her leave, Kitchi looking to Teddy once she is gone. “Hey Teddy, you seem to be good with girls maybe you can help me out here. I mean you’re able to get Iuana’s attention easy enough.”

Teddy looks back to Kitchi with a laugh, Kitchi was a lot younger than Eleven, Kitchi like a school boy that had a crush on his teacher, Teddy though not harassing him about it and providing him with an answer he would give anyone else, there no need to make Kitchi cross with him. “I wouldn’t say that I’m good with women, it’s just Iuana, me and her just seem to get along so well together.”

Kitchi hums to himself as he thinks the situation over. “I guess you’re right…” He looks back to Teddy curiously. “So what do you think someone like me would have to do to get someone like Eleven’s attention? So that maybe I can get along with her as well as you do Iuana.”

Teddy shrugs his shoulders. “There’s really no magic formula or even advice for me to give you.”

“Drat…” He sighs before glancing back toward Teddy. “So you’re going to enters the trial for Iuana’s suitor then?”

Teddy looks back in the direction that Iuana had gone in. “I don’t know… maybe I will.”

Kitchi smiles at the news, though not a definite confirmation it was closer to a yes than he had ever gotten from Teddy before when he had confronted him on the topic. “Well good for you, I bet Iuana will be really happy about that.”

*******

Vaan sits at a computer inputting codes into it as Dolly sits before him and the rest of her team, Dolly giving him and the others the details that would be needed concerning the trials they would be attempting to secure Raven Wolfs leader during.

“The suitors trials are an important ceremony, everyone that holds an significant role in the Raven Wolf tribe is going to be there. The chieftain, shaman, elders, first warrior, second warrior, the chieftain’s second in line and of course all the warriors of the tribe will be there. There’s a good chance that even the tribe’s oracle may be there. If that’s the case than we might be able to get back subject 1502.”

Both Chance and Alistair lets out yawns, Chance because he was tired and Alistair because he found the topic boring. “Yeah, yeah, everyone important is going to be there, so how do we capture Raven Wolf’s leader?”

Dolly frowns as he looks back to him. “It’s not going to be an easy task, Raven Wolf’s leader will be constantly guarded by the best of his warriors, and then there’s him himself to deal with, and he’s proven difficult to face on a number of occasions, and if that’s not enough the best warriors from tribes all over the country will be there, if we start something too soon then every single one of them will be after us.”

Kane speaks up, questioning Dolly on this scenario. “You said that the best of the tribes will be participating in the trials, but you also said the best warriors of Raven Wolf would be protecting their leader. Are the warriors of Raven Wolf not allowed to participate in this tournament?”

Dolly looks back to him as she answered his question. “The first and second strongest warriors of Raven Wolf are both female, it’s very unlikely that they will be participating in a contest meant to win the hand of the chieftain’s daughter.”

Dolly continues as she looks back to her team. “Because this will be a trial to find his replacement Raven Wolf’s leader will be present during all of the fights, but as I said he’s going to be well guarded by the best of his warriors the entire time. We’re not going to get our opening to strike until the very end of the trials. By then the bulk of the warriors there would have already fought one another and should be too tired and worn out to prove to be much trouble.”

Kane nodes his head, there still some concerns though. “What about the warriors that won’t be participating in the trials?”

“We’ll have no choice but to deal with them, but if we play our cards right we won’t have to go through them to get to Raven Wolf’s leader. Near the end of the trials when a winner is announced the leader of Raven Wolf will confront him alone within the center of all those that had gathered, to acknowledge his strength and agree to pass on his role of leadership. That moment there is our best chance to capture him.”

Zack frowns, that not really sounding any easier. “He’ll be at the center, surrounded by everyone there, how does that make it easier than any other moment he’s there.”

Dolly begins explaining, though it didn’t sound like it at first this was the best opportunity that they were going to get. “There are only six of us, if we have any hope of doing this successfully than we have to wait until Raven Wolf’s leader is properly divided from them.”

Vaan looks up from the computer that he had been working on. “She’s right you know.” The room darkens as the screen that was being displayed on his monitor also played on a large screen on the wall of the room they were in. “I’ve reading up on the history and rituals of this event, what Dolly is saying is true, that moment is going to be the best opportunity that we’re going to get.”

On the large screen stood a layout of the even in question, markers that signified the positions of the various tribe members upon it. “The area in which the fights will be taking place is very large, Raven Wolf’s leader and the winner of the competition will be standing in the centre of it, meaning that everyone else is going to be very far away, too far away to get to him in time should we choose to move in then.”

He circles an area of the map where many figures are gathered. “The warriors and Raven Wolf and all its important members will all be here, where the leader was originally was. That means that even though we’ll be surrounded, the only ones that we have to worry about will be on this end of the grounds. If we make our escape route on the opposite side, furthest away from where they are, they are then they shouldn’t be able to get to us in time to stop us.” He motions toward the rest of the markers on the map. “And as Miss. Conner already stated, the rest of the warriors that are there will have already worn themselves out from the trials, so you should be able to make our way through them without much effort.”

Alistair laughs at the plan. “Great, just one thing, how do you propose we get to the center where he’ll be without anyone else noticing?”

Kane looks over to Alistair, the answer to that simple enough. “And infiltration, we will hide among the wilds, and then an aerial assault, with the center of these battle grounds being one of the drop zones.”

Alistair’s ear perk up, this now starting to sound interesting. “Do tell.”

Kane stands up, he having all the information that he needed to devise a plan. “Miss. Conner is of wild decent, she should be able to blend in with them without being seen as a domestic and alerting them to anything. When the moment we’re looking for is at hand she’ll give us the signal to attack.” He looks over to Alistair. “Me and Quincy will be the drop team, I’ll hit the center point and secure Raven Wolf’s leader, Quincy will land near the Raven Wolf warriors, and keep them busy, to be sure that they don’t interfere.”

Alistair grins. “That sounds like fun, I can’t wait!”

Kane then turns to Chance, who quickly sits up in attention to keep from looking as drowsy as he was. “Lockheart will secure and keep the exit path clear.” Chance nods his head understanding his orders.

Kane then looks to Zack. “Magellan, it will be your job to get Miss. Conner out of there safely. She won’t have any military weapons on her as to keep from standing out, and once the wilds find out that she as the one that gave us the signal they will be all over her.”

Magellan looks over to him. “What makes you so sure I’ll be able back in the service by then? Remember I’m under military surveillance right now.”

“We still have time before the trials, you should be back in service by then.”

Alistair laughs as he looks back to Zack. “No doubt, the General wouldn’t leave his favorite little pet stuck at home for so long, you have nothing to worry about.”

Zack glares over at Alistair, the two staring each other down hatefully, Kane stepping between the two of them now not the time. “That’s enough out of you two. If this plan is going to succeed then we all need to work together, so put your differences to the side for the time being and act like the professionals you supposedly are.”

*******

Shiya frowns as he stares intently at the small blue crystal that hangs around his neck as a necklace, his concentration interrupted when he hears Achak calling out his name. “Shiya, hey Shiya!”

Shiya takes his eyes off the strange jewel as he sits up, looking down to the ground far below him, Raven Wolf’s chieftain right now sitting high within a very tall tree. “What?”

Achak circles the base of the tree, a very confused look on his face. “What are you doing all the way up there?” He makes a quick jump to the side when Shiya throws a bag out of the tree it landing near him.

Shiya begins to climb down while answering. “Collecting some ingredients for you, I noticed that you ran out.”

Achak approaches the back opening it and looking inside at the tree seeds Shiya had gathered. “What are you talking about? I have plenty of these left.”

Shiya’s feet touch the ground as he lands next to him. “No you don’t... you’re confusing your ingredients again...”

Achak looks back to Shiya. “Really? That would explain a lot.”

Shiya sighs as he stares at Achak. “Sometimes I wonder if you’re even trying.”

Achak frowns follows after Shiya, he already on his way to his next task. “You know that I am, don’t be so mean to me.” He quickly runs ahead of Shiya when he remembers something, stopping in front of him and forcing him to stop as well. “That’s right, I was asked to find you. The oracle is looking for you. Apparently he had another vision, and judging from how panicked Yula looked this was a very important dream.”

*******

Dolly is back home, she standing on the balcony of her apartment as she talks to her mother on the phone, Zack inside on the sofa watching TV as usual, there not much else for him to do while he was here. “She said that Teddy was doing just fine, and that he had made the decision to stay with Raven Wolf and remain a wild.”

To Dolly’s surprise her mother seems pleased with this information. “Well good for him! I was always worried that Teddy would never find himself, he always seemed so lost growing up.”

Dolly frowns, thought it was good to know that Teddy was okay it wasn’t good news. “Mom, he’s joined Raven Wolf, not only is that the cursed tribe, but it’s a tribe that’s currently being targeted by the military. How is that good in anyway?”

“Well as long as your brother is happy I don’t have any complaints. I hope he finds himself a nice girl while he’s there, I’ve been waiting years for grandkids but you and your brother were always too busy with your work for anything like that.”

Dolly sighs, her mother not seeming to grasp the point. “Mom this isn’t as simple as moving to a new house, this is-”

Dolly’s mother interrupts her as she continues going on. “So now that I know that Teddy is alright how are you doing? Your father says that you’re living with a man now.”

Dolly seems embarrassed to have the topic change to this situation. “Yeah but-”

“Is he handsome?”

Dolly groans as she looks through the window of her balcony at Zack who has changed his position on the sofa, he now watching the TV upside down. “He’s just a friend from work mom, nothing more than that.”

Dolly stops her conversation when she sees something, a strange robotic device that was perched on the railing of her balcony. Dolly begins to look around her, she sure that she had not seen that there before. “Hey mom, it’s getting late, I have to wake up early tomorrow so I’ll call you back another day alright?”

She hangs up the phone as she makes her way over to the strange device and begins to curiously look it over. “Where did this thing come from?”

She jumps in surprise when it begins to move, it rolling along the railing closer to her, the voice of a young girl coming from its speakers. “-Miss. Conner-”

Dolly stares at the strange contraption. “It talks…”

The small robot like contraption moves closer to her. “-Not really, right now it’s just transmitting my voice via radio-”

Dolly watches as the robot, not entirely sure of what to make of this. “Who are you?”

“-A friend of your brothers-”

“You know Teddy?”

“-Yes, and you going against him like you are right now concerns me. Which is why I think it’s best that not stay in the dark like you are, there are things the military is hiding that you need to know-”

Dolly stares at the small robot, something clicking. “You’re that hacker that been causing the military trouble!” She frowns the only projects and missions that this person had interfered with thus far having been ones she had been working on. “Why should I trust you? You’ve been nothing but trouble! If it weren’t for you we would have been done all this before Teddy ended up getting pulled as deep into things as he is right now!”

The small robot doesn’t answer her as it takes a flash card out, holding it out for her to take. “What’s this…?”

The small robot continues to hold the card out for her to take. “-This is for you-”

Dolly takes the small card, looking it over curiously. “What’s on it?”

“-Information that you’re looking for, I’m sure you’ll find it very illuminating-”

Dolly looks back to the small machine. “Why are you giving this to me?”

“-A gesture of trust, to put it plainly you have some information I would like, but I know you’re not going to tell me what I want to know without trusting me first-”

Dolly shakes her head, she not getting it. “What could I possibly know that you might want?”

The small robot begins to back away as it prepared to leave. “-Raven Wolf’s location-”

Dolly looks back to the robot only to find it gone, how this person could have possibly found out that she knew this she wasn’t sure. She looks down to the flash card she had been handed, curious as to what information could possibly be on it.

She looks around her for any signs of the small robot or anyone else, only to find nothing significant anywhere in sight, she turning back toward the sliding window of her apartment and going back inside.

Zack looks over to Dolly when he hears the window slide open. “How was your talk with your mom? Did she take the news about Teddy well?”

Dolly sighs at the reminder. “She took it almost too well I think… she’s so pleased that Teddy’s ‘found himself’ that she’s not even stopping to think of what kind of danger he might be in.”

Zack laughs at the comment as he turns back to the TV. “Right now would be a perfect time to throw out some kind of insult towards wilds being stupid don’t you think?”

Dolly hits him on the back of the head while walking past him, Zack not even fazed as he had been completely expecting it.

Zack looks over to her before Dolly is able to retreat to her room for the night. “Hey, I’ve been curious about this for a while now, but have you ever wanted to run away from the military and the city? You know, just run away from everything and just start all over again like your brother did?”

Dolly sighs at the question. “No.”

Zack seems surprised. “Really? I wasn’t expecting that, I mean you’re more into your wild roots than he was right?”

Dolly puts the phone she had been talking on back on its charger. “That doesn’t mean that I ever thought that I should leave the city and become one.” She looks back to Zack. “Why are you bringing this up? Are you afraid that I might switch sides like my brother did?”

Zack shrugs his shoulders. “No, just curious I suppose.” Dolly turns to leave heading toward her room, she stopping for a moment when Zack speaks up again. “You know you don’t have to descend from wilds to want to run away from everything, domestics can feel that way too… anyone can.”

Dolly sighs as she turns away from him continuing on her way to her room, she enters her room closing the door behind her before flopping down onto her bed, she holding the small card she had so recently received over her head and staring at it. She right now torn over looking over what was on it or handing it straight over to the military, it after all directly from someone that was hindering their missions and even hacking their system.

She thinks over what the hacker had said to her, about the military keeping her in the dark. It was true that despite her involvement in these missions there were many things that she was still missing information on, it of course always causing her concerns, especially when her brother was involved like he was.

She turns over looking at a desk in her room, her computer sitting idle on it. “I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to give the card a quick peak.”

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Raven Wolf - 03 - The Warriors - Chapter 08

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