Hello folks, it's late I know, but the chapter I personally have been looking for has arrived!
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Rage
The sun felt amazing on my skin. Warmth, it was warm, not blistering or cruel. it enveloped me and I loved it. The air that blew by, the wind tickling my nose. It was the single greatest moment of my life; as well as my most cherished memory. That first real taste of what I thought of as freedom.
Alas, all dreams come to an end. After the initial moment, all of my pride doing much the same, the murmurs reached our ears.
The populace that surrounded them, a multitude of pridelings, and there offspring. Seeing these children, how they played without a care; I hated them. I despised them in that instant. They knew nothing of pain, or suffering, or power. yet they were allowed clothing, food, play. I wanted to kill them all, all of them within my path.
I must have made an involuntary movement because a hand suddenly seized my shoulder, and squeezed with bone crushing force on my healing bones. A whisper tickling my ear. "If you move, i will kill you whelp. These are our people, we suffer so they can live. We protect what is ours, weak or not, that is the life of our warriors, and leaders." The Blood Fathers words echoed in my mind, and I looked at him, hating him all the more.
These people, weaker than all of my Pride were allowed freedom, while we were enslaved. Why had we been allowed to slaughter and kill our own in the Pit then as we had grown. Why those that were weaker there, and not these. My question must have shown threw the hatred because he whispered while forcing our group to proceed, leading me while maintaining that bone crushing pressure. "Our Warrior caste is not the same as the normal citizens. We kill the weak, and yes, we cull the weak of them as well. Those born deformed, or lacking. But you, and your brothers and sisters are Berserkers. You are different, and if I have to break every bone in your body, and break your mind, you will learn what it means to protect our people." Releasing my shoulder, the release actually hurting more, he proceeded ahead of me; I followed while feeling hollow inside.
I could not fathom his reasoning, we had been taught so different within the Pit. Might makes right, the strong rule the Pridelings. It was true, I could see that. But we had been put through that hell for these people? I cursed whatever Gods there may be for this fate. Vowing to myself, whispering and stoking my anger, that I would grow stronger. I would break any and all of my chains one day, and truly be free. I would relive that moment when i first felt the sun, no matter what I had to do.
No matter what...
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Hydra
Everything was amazing when I first left, even though I was near Rage, the insane bastard that he was, my anger at him could not detain my moment of freedom.
I to saw the children, I saw the way Rage's body tensed. We had all noticed the signs of his anger in the five years we were forced in that Pit. I hated them too, but I could not see killing them. Though I knew my mentality was nothing like our 'leader'
He was insane, in my eyes. He slaughtered, killed, butchered, and devoured without remorse or hesitation. I respected the drive for freedom in my own way, but his methods were...monstrous, even to the others.
I hated him because I had watched him devour my twin; in my weakness I had crawled away from the scene to save myself, even as I heard the dying cries of my brother. His pitiful mews as a cub in truth begging for help before they were silenced, replaced my the wet tearing sound of flesh being devoured.
I hated him, yes, but I hated myself more. I would kill him, if I ever gained the chance without risking my own life. Patience was my first lesson in that Pit, I had learned it well. I would wait years if I had too for my chance.
I watched the other Cubs beside me for a moment, the only other one who made all attempts to avoid Rage was Bitter, in her I felt a kindred spirit. We were free now, I could find methods of speaking secluded with her in time. For now, I continued following behind Rage, and the Blood Father, ignoring the stares and whispers.
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Bitter
Birds, real birds. They were beautiful to listen too. I had heard something similar in the Pit once, and only once as it echoed from the top of our hell. It had given me hope when I felt death was my only hope. It allowed me to grow, and force myself to keep living.
The sun felt amazing, it seemed to energize me, the vine tattoo that covered my shoulder seemed to glow faintly as the suns rays hit it. Did it grow longer? shaking myself mentally I turned my attention to the scene of the Blood Father stopping Rage from launching himself, catching feint words but without the ability to truly make each one out.
I shivered lightly, staring at the scar covered back of Rage, he held almost as many as the Blood Father, and repressed my fear of him. He was always watching me over Hate and Envy who all but through themselves at him on a daily basis. The stare disturbed me, ever sense we reached sexual maturity. I feared nightly I would be dragged off against my will and taken by force by him.
In a way, his stare saved me from the males that could physically force me, but it disturbed me to much. I'd catch him watching like I was food ever sense were were one. It had grown worse as the years went by. He never spoke to me personally, or any of us beyond a few words to answer a question or when issuing orders.
His silence alone was frightening for me. In the heat of battle the result was magnificent, but outside of that...we could all feel his rage swirling beneath the surface, the seemingly calm silence just a facade; even to him I suspected.
Forcing my eyes from him, i caught Envy's gaze and smiled with my lips closed. I liked her and Hate, regardless of there fascination with that monster. They were my sisters after all.
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Rage
Ignoring the weaklings around me, I looked behind me a moment toward my eight. Seeing them amuse themselves in useless chatter I turned my head forward, looking at my surrounding. The buildings just outside of the Arena seemed to be mostly shops. I saw a variety of goods, even some pretty stones that looked like amber. Armour, weapons, toys, and food. They seemed to abound out here.
This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it
For the killing field I suppose? It mattered not. The roads were well kept even if all dirt. I could only assume it was like a market. When we went through that, we then entered a square with a large fountain placed in it's center. it seemed the only place with stone walkways, all around us buildings that looked more for living in that shops dotted the town center. The fountain itself depicted the Blood Father, and each of the Ten holding weapons aloft, there mouths wide as if roaring, and water spewed from them in a constant cycle to the base of the fountain.
I knew this city was in the very center of Hyborium forest, and was called Blood Stone. It housed the entirety of the Prideling population of two hundred thousand, save those that were in the field.
In the distance you could even make out four large mansions, they housed the four strongest bloodlines beneath the Ten themselves. Each fighting each other when allowed for a higher standing in the political hierarchy, and power base.
Above those mansions, was the Keep. A castle like construction that focused utterly on defense. It house the Black Guard, the elite of the elite of the warrior caste. Each soldier in there army aimed to join there ranks. There were conditions, they had to have grown powerful enough to unlock the immortals gene hidden within the blood stream. This allowed them to never die of age. It was the perfect gift to the war mongering people that were the Pridelings. Even with our long life span of nearly one thousand years to attempt to gain this, few ever did. You could count the amount that have in the hundreds, and even they perished in wars, or battles held for supremacy over another. Regardless of what the bastard had told me, we were still animals after all.
When we reach the Keep, we were stopped. What met us was a massive lizard. I felt my eyes widen in surprise at the creature that Dwarfed even Ogre in height and muscle mass. It's hissing language reaching our ears while it spoke to the Blood Father in a condescending tone.
"So, these are my new guard?"...
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Lord Dravon
I watched them as they made there approach to the Keep behind me. To my question, the cat simply smiled cryptically, and nodded. "Yes, Lord Dravon. Rage, Forge, Hydra, anvil, Hate, Bitter, Envy, Curse, and Cruelty.." He spouted off the other cubs names as well. But my eyes were aimed at the little monster I had seen those few years ago, now full grown. He looked fiercer than he had as a cub, his eyes looked just like his Fathers, cold and distant while promising death. Ah, but secrets secrets. They didn't know there parentage. I personally found that odd, but these beasts always confused me.
"Him" I said while pointed at Rage. "Must I take him?" The cat shrugged lightly at me.
"He is this Prides leader, there focal point; as well as being the main director to aim there rage in the right direction. You must remember my Lord, these are Berserkers, not soldiers. They are an instrument of death and destruction."
Raising a scaly ridge above my eyes I regarded the whelp. Frightening in his anger and brutality at the time, he was still a weakling by these peoples standards of warrior. No doubt I was the final test in there intricate dance of creating stronger and stronger beasts of war.
Hissing my frustration, I simply nodded. "I'll take them now then."
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Rage
What? Wait, WHAT?! This thing was there master? They were going to b his guard? Each of my brothers and sisters held similar expressions of utter shock, and pain. They had gone through hell for war, not to be some Lizards pets.
"You will do as I say, move how I will it. I am Lord Dravon, and your master. You will call me Master when you speak to me, and only when spoken to. Is that understood?" His voice, those hissing sounds hurt my ears. But one by one we each answered with a 'yes Master' the shock still not having worn off.
"Good, Craxus!" the Lizard bellowed, and a smaller version of him landed beside him from the air, folding his green wings tight to his body. "Take them to Tridant outpost." I watched like a hawk as the messenger blanched slightly. What could be there to scare these scales creatures? It made me excited, and momentarily forget my previous shock, and pain at being a pet for a Lizard. Nodding, the green Draconian motioned for us to follow him, and again we were trumped through Blood Stone, never seeing the final smile of the Blood Father, nor the calculating gaze of there new Master.
Even as we went through the forest of Hyborium, the smells, and simple wonder of these ancient trees were diluted for us all as we knew that our freedom had been short lived before being given another form of slavery.
But I shouldered that knowledge, suffered through the pain it caused knowing I was property, a Pet to that Lizard. I would break these binds, and all the others when I was stronger. No one would stop me.
No one...
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Woot woot! I have been wanting to do this chapter for a while now. I can begin detailing the world around the Cubs, the people, the species, and all the fun wars and battles that will commence in the very near future. I hope you look forward to Seeing why they were sent to this Tridant outpost. :p
Next up, I will be introducing and entire new caste of key people and stepping away from the Pridelings beyond these cubs.
On a side note, the polls have ended, the people have spoken. They want an interest in sex, I have set the stage of course but nothing like that will happen until a chapter or two from now. Romance will also begin to get simulated into the story. They are only five after all. haha, even they have room to change there blood thirsty mentality, or do they? Hmmm.
As a special treat I will also be having the cubs 'learn' about the geography, and other nations and continents in the next chapter from that messenger. A special treat for the runner up poll
Rambling done, thank you all you new followers, and favorites, and a further thank you to you folks that have regularly commented on my chapters. You have continued to make this fiction so much fun to write.
Much love, and many, many, MANY cookies to you all.