UNHINDERED BY FAILURE
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A Father’s Pride
In 1019AB, Silvanus had finally come of age. It was his time for a rite of passage. Connor remained behind and stayed with the tribe. He had no idea what Silvanus had in store. Connor remained anxious the entire night. He feared what it would mean when it came time for his own trial. He wondered if he could finally please his father by becoming a man. But to his surprise Silvanus returned before the night was through, and with two fresh kills in tow.
Connor was mortified. How could he ever hope to surpass that feat? If he was to impress his father he’d need to match that success or best it. He felt inadequate. To make matters worse his father was showing tremendous pride in Silvanus. Throughout the eighteen months that followed — their father simply would not stop reminding Connor of how skilled and adept Silvanus was. Silvanus was the bar in which Connor was measured, but no matter how hard he tried he couldn’t match him.
In many ways Connor surpassed Silvanus. Connor was more knowledgeable in the ways of the Wolf; he was a better hunter; and he was at times stronger and faster than Silvanus. But nothing could please the Al’Mora. Tirelessly Connor strived to better himself and prepare for the hunt. Silvanus saw this and recognized just how capable Connor had become. He feared that Connor would best him when the time came.
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Failure to Rite
Connor had come to fear the rite of passage. It had haunted him for months and dwelled in his dreams. Restless nights threatened to drive him insane. Yet he worked hard and molded himself into the keenest hunter he could manage. The other members of the tribe whispered among themselves and agreed that the boy was a great hunter. They assured him he would perform well and make his father proud. With their words in his mind he looked forward to his season.
In late 1020AB, as Nixia covered the world in winter, Connor made his attempt at the rite of passage. He went into the night with his handmade dagger. The cold was bitter and harsh. He kept running and running, doing his best to keep himself strong in the face of the harsh conditions. His mind turned and he used every technique he knew to find his prey. Yet there was no prey to be found. Never in his life had he seen the forest so scarce.
He ventured on and labored to find any evidence of life, but none was to be found. But what he did find was the smell of putrid death and fresh blood in the snow. He found evidence that something was killed, and its remains were strewn about the wood. At first it appeared as though it was a wild animal, but an animal wouldn’t leave so much behind. He found not one, but many kills. Each was intact, to a degree. Their body parts were scattered, but once collected they created a whole.
No animal would leave behind so much meat uneaten. The smell brought the predators. The hunting ground was spoiled. He did not think anyone from the tribe would dare to ruin his attempt. The last person he suspected was Silvanus. The night faded and the sun rose over the hills. Connor had failed. He decided to build a fire. He burned the kills left behind and suffered as the aroma filled his nostrils. He hungered. The rite forbade him to eat until it was finished.
After warming his body, Connor snuffed out the fire and continued on his search. He’d had to travel farther than before. When the sun reached high into the heavens he decided to finally return empty handed. He was surprised how far he had ventured. By the time he had returned the sun had fallen again. His belly turned. He had not eaten a single thing.
He was not welcomed like his brother before him. His nightmares had come true. The Al’Mora would not look at him. Connor felt like a failure. Perhaps he was never worthy of his father’s praise. But as he accepted his defeat, Connor noticed something in Silvanus. It was very subtle. Connor began to wonder as he caught the fleeting look in his brother’s eyes. Did Silvanus spoil the hunting ground? Connor was confused. He could not see how that would benefit his brother. But he felt it to be true.
From that point on Connor grew very suspicious of Silvanus.
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Twice Spoiled
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
It was not until 1021AB that Connor would see the next full moon and have his chance to complete his rite of passage into manhood. Like before he noticed that Silvanus vanished into the forests for a while leading up to his trial. His brother returned with nothing in tow, but his feet looked as though they had labored with the hunt. Suspicions grew. Nevertheless Connor was determined to prove his worth. He dismissed his fears and his suspicions and set out that evening.
But once again he found the hunting ground spoiled. This was no coincidence. Almost immediately he was certain it was Silvanus, but he could not find proof. He could not turn around and return to camp to blame his father’s favorite son. He ground his teeth and continued with his secondary plan. There were times in the past where he saw the deer migrate. Connor decided venture far from his tribe’s hunting ground.
He felt no sadness as the day wasted away. He spent hour after hour traveling and climbing further and further from home. In time he crossed into lands that did not belong to the Bishop, but he did not know of such boundaries or limitations. Upon entering the new lands he found his bounty. He spotted a single stag and tracked it down. Using the techniques taught to him, he ambushed his prey and dug his knife into its throat and bathed his blade with the blood of the kill.
He had done it. Finally he had succeeded. And as he cleaned his kill and prepared it for travel, he spotted another stag in the distance. He repeated his actions and brought down the second beast just like the first. He spent the entire night cleaning and preparing the meat. By the time morning came, he packed up the meat and began the long journey home.
Connor did not return to the Wolf Tribe camp until the evening of the second day. He had completed his rite of passage. Yet he did not earn his father’s respect. He saw the look in his brother’s eye and scowled at him. They looked at one another. Connor made it clear that he knew it was Silvanus, but did not speak a word of it. He couldn’t. His father wouldn’t hear of it.
From that point Connor’s father thought him lower than dirt. Connor knew now that no matter of hard work and skill would ever appease his father. But he wasn’t going to give up. He had to be a man. He felt that perhaps one day his father would appreciate that.
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Silvanus Lost
The actions undertaken by Silvanus and Connor that past winter marked the beginning of the end for the Wolf Tribe. From that point on the Wolf Tribe was doomed to suffer a slow and pitiful death. But perhaps it was the justice of the Wolf Spirits. After all, it was the Al’Mora who was responsible for dealing much of the death in the Tribelands. They had lost their homeland due to his ignorance, greed, and lust for power.
Silvanus would soon follow in his footsteps. He would become the perfect son, whether he realized it or not. It was not long before the Bishop returned. With him were two missionaries. The Bishop wanted to settle the dispute between himself and the neighboring land owner, and the missionaries hoped to take the young wolves away to teach them true religion. The entire affair ended poorly when Silvanus felt insulted by one of the missionaries. Connor’s brother slew the man and ripped him open.
That is when Connor became aware of the word murder. He had never heard it before and it was a concept his father did not teach him. But apparently Silvanus was to be punished for it. Such was the ways of the robed men. Connor looked on as a helpless observer as his own kin bound up Silvanus and carried him away. He looked to his mother for answers. She simply told him that the men who lived beyond the wood saw life differently.
She also told him that the men beyond the wood saw them as inferior. She said that to them, they were just Savages. Connor learned many new words that day, but more importantly he realized that there was a huge and dangerous world out there. His brother was taken away and lost to it. Connor was certain that his brother was dead. The men who took him were far different than his own kin.
Sometime later the Bishop returned. He informed the Al’Mora that Silvanus had escaped. He asked for their help in tracking down the boy. Connor aided in this search. He came across Silvanus’ personal hideaway but did not find him. He had simply vanished. But what Connor did find was Silvanus’ collection. When Silvanus fled he packed light. So the bulk of the complex traps and other artifacts were left behind for Connor to discover.
At that moment Connor began to connect the dots. He had wondered what made Silvanus so successful when he hunted alone. For each time Silvanus ran with the pack, he was always the slowest and the least successful. Connor did not realize that his brother had an edge. While he had not seen anything like the artifacts before, he was capable of determining their use. Silvanus didn’t clean them very often.
Blood still stained the metal spikes, levers, and chains. The scent of animal was pungent. Once again he couldn’t think to bring the artifacts to his father. Inevitably his father would see it differently. He would see it as Connor trying to undermine his brother when he wasn’t there to challenge him. Connor would look like a coward in his eyes. Defeated, he just chose to gather up all of his brother’s artifacts and set them aflame.
He burned everything, and left the cave as the soul keeper of his brother’s secrets.