Chapter 38: Demoted
“Why am i the one to do this?” Jax lamented aloud, wrapping the next strip of healroot over his Grand Hunter’s thigh. Joseph smirked at him with amusement in his eyes through the winces of pain.
“Because if i asked Harrow, she would spent the next week making uncomfortable comments about my junk.”
He quirked a brow as he focused on the treatment. “And you believe i wouldn’t?”
“I think i would- ah-ow.” Joseph gasped as Jax tightened the bandage and reached for another. “I think i would be able to shoot them back without things being weird.”
Jax failed to suppress the smirk. “I’m flattered that i occupy your thoughts in such a way.”
“Fuck off, Jax.” Joseph barked through a laugh. The mostly barren walls of the med bay reflected the burst of sound, the slight delay causing Pan’s ears to flatten as the volume assaulted them. If she minded, it didn’t show.
“You lost a lot of blood.” She commented with a worried expression. It was true, the Human had all but ruined his clothing by soaking it in the red liquid. The kicks he had sustained to his legs had nicked an artery and his arm was in a grisly state as well. Joseph waved off the concern with his free paw.
“I’ll be okay after i eat and get some rest. Though i am a little light headed.” He added the last thought absently as he ran his claws through his hair.
“I wish you would stop throwing yourself into dangerous situations without thinking.”
The Grand Hunter feigned injury at the accusation. “I would never! I’ll have you know i was having a very intellectual debate with Mi’low here on the merits of our respective fighting styles.” He waved a paw to the otherwise silent observer of his medical treatment, the Grand Huntress having been escorted by them when Joseph noticed her injury. Though, the blood was a close match for the colour of her fur, so Jax wasn’t entirely sure how he had seen it.
Pan glared at the cause for most of her bond’s wounds, the perpetrator in question held her composure but couldn’t hide the smallest attempt to shrink under the scrutiny, much to Jax’s amusement. “Perhaps if it did not conclude with you being indisposed i would be more accommodating to our guest.”
Joseph tilted his head heavily and batted his eye lashes. “Aww, I’m glad you care.”
The Paw flushed with colour and averted her gaze, her tail betraying the effect words had on her as she attempted to still seem cross with him. “Were you to pass, i would have revived you so that i may end you myself.”
“I think Violet might take issue with that.” He furrowed a brow and stared at the ceiling as if contemplating the Atmo’s reaction. Jax was tempted to picture the resulting effects but opted not to, the den-kit being so devastated was not something he wished to see.
He checked the mass of plant-matter on Joseph’s arm, the extensive abuse it had received left the resulting treatment more akin to a cast than any standard patch job. He figured that, even with the Human’s surprisingly robust healing factor for surface level injuries, it would take a while for them to fade to scars. Were they to be in possession of more of the medicines that had mended his own broken bones, would the male heal within a sun?
No use in pondering the impossible. He confirmed that the treatment was as complete as it was going to be, Joseph tossing two small white pills into his mouth and swallowing them dry.
“Medicine?” Mi’low finally spoke for the first time since she had been unceremoniously brought in for treatment. Luckily, the cut from the arrow was rather shallow, so they only needed to clean the wound and it would heal naturally without assistance. Pan translated the question, her irritated expression returning as she remembered the female was still present.
“Pain killers.” Came the flat response.
“Should you be partaking as heavily as you are?” The Grand Huntress raised a brow judgmentally.
Joseph frowned, unimpressed with the sentiment, but gave a half-nod to concede the point. “No, but to be fair, i did get mauled by an alien and then had to fight massive fuck-off honey badgers with a rage-boner for Lilhuns, all while doped up on adrenaline and low iron.”
Mi’low simply stared for a moment longer from her position on a chair she had been offered, obviously conflicted with the brash method of address. Jax was mildly impressed she had not commented on his current state of undress, the Human reduced to just undergarments for the purposes of stymieing the bleeding. He had some minor lacerations and contusions across his torso from shallow claws and kicks, but nothing that required more than a swift wipe with a clean cloth.
“I am finished.” Jax announced, happy that his short stint as a EMT escort on a particularly rough base had imparted some basic first-aid onto him. Harrow was the most learned on medical treatments, having been required to read through many reports to validate the inventory of medications and materials used, but he supposed Joseph was of status to be afforded modesty if he so desired. Even if Jax found it odd. Being tended to by females seemed preferable to him.
Joseph grabbed the prepared clothing, standing to don it before flopping back onto the bed with a groan of disapproval. “Remind me to specify ‘no claws’ the next time i get the chance to get into a pissing contest of a fight.”
“That would be wise, yes.” His mate commented, her agitated tone at odds with her sitting on the bed next to him. He reached out and idly played with the fur of her thigh.
“I take it that we may commence the discussions now?” Mi’low requested, not quite sure how to react as the conversation was not translated for her to follow. Joseph raised his head to glance at her before dropping it back on the bed.
“Sure, i guess. Jax, are Sahari and Nalah sorting out the sleeping arrangements?”
Jax nodded. “There has been enough beds completed in the barracks to accommodate the visiting pack, mostly due to Atrox sharing with his mates.”
“Works for me.” Joseph gave an indifferent shrug, a flinch showing through his tired face as the bandaged arm landed back on the bed from the exaggerated gesture. Jax had thought it premature to furnish a building they had not the numbers to populate, but he had to admit, Joseph was right about having somewhere to have people of dubious alignments stay without compromising the safety of the pack. Even if he himself would simply station them just outside of the gate. “So what are we talking about? You guys just sort of showed up and started shit. Though, given the state of your group, i can guess what happened.”
Mi’low flinched. “Yes, our settlement was mostly brought to cinders and our last remaining hunters perished due to those white beasts.”
Joseph exhaled heavily while he stared at the ceiling, an absent paw running along the length of Pan’s tail caused the Paw to fidget under his touch. “So you’re shit out of luck and wanted to... What? Strong-arm us into helping you? Take the place as your own until you noticed we could have killed you all?”
The Grand Huntress had it in her to at least look ashamed at her actions. “We knew not of your temperament. Most would not allow vagrants into their dens without proving they are worth the cost to support them, and my pack would not accept the charity of one whom is too weak to defend them.”
“So your hand was forced, yeah.” The Human deadpanned, turning his head to look at her. “Well, what’s next? Are you going to ask me to house you guys while you find somewhere else to set up shop?”
Mi’low paused while seeming to be considering something, tentative words tumbled out as she phrased the words carefully. “I would request that you consider obtaining the pack under your purview. I propose us as vassals.”
Joseph caught an inhaled breath, groaning as he shunted his eyes closed with his fingers. “Great, more shit i don’t understand. Alright, someone fill me in on how the fuck that works?” He glanced at each of the present parties for an answer.
“They would exist under your banner but have an independent command structure.” Jax supplied. “Given that our circumstance is as it is, they would likely operate much the same as independent contractors whom are under your hire.”
“Give them some of our shit and a spot to set up and they’ll help out without answering directly to me.” Joseph surmised, giving Mi’low a pointed look to confirm.
“I would be placed at your behest, though my members would speak through myself.” She confirmed.
“So you would be the union rep for the workers, got it.”
Mi’low bristled, a thinly veiled snarl tinting her words with indignation. “I dare not deign to be such a vile creature.”
He raised a paw to cut the tirade sort, inadvertently stopping Pan from reciprocating. “A worker’s union. Not the Union. You’d bring forth any complaints or considerations from the pack so that i don’t need to ask everyone all the time. It’s a Human thing.” He paused to think. “Maybe closer to a middle-manager? I tell you what needs to be done and you send people where they need to be. Grand Hunter lite, i guess. Am i a CEO?”
“Do we return to Grand Hunter Industries?” Pan quipped to Joseph’s amusement. He patted her on the base of the tail as he chuckled, eliciting a response he didn't pay attention long enough to notice. Jax sighed internally.
“Then, yes. Much the same as your descriptors.” Mi’low hesitantly relaxed her posture. “We are in dire need of rations and shelter, both of which you seem to have in spades.”
“And what do i get?” Joseph asked in an uncharacteristically cold manner, his words clipped. “I give you whatever you want for walking up to my front door and threatening my family, for what reason?”
Jax’s ear flicked as the unexpected intensity was repeated again as his mirror shared the sentiment. The Grand Huntress recoiled with a conflicted expression as she spoke with much less self-importance. “I will receive any and all commands without question nor hesitation, as long as you honour your duty to support my pack. They will assist and follow your Heads within reason, though they reserve the right to abandon such tasks should they feel mistreated.”
Jax half expected Joseph to launch into a speech about servants and slavery, but much to his surprise the Grand Hunter retained his stoic expression and answered simply. “Accepted. You will answer to myself and the pack and your people will answer to mine in exchange for residence on my land and your needs to be met.”
Mi’low’s eyes widened for a moment, a flash of gratitude shown through before she swiftly knelt before the male. “I will honour this on penalty of death, Grand Hunter. This lowly one will serve for her kin.”
“Good. Go. You can ask Tel to prepare something for your pack to eat and make sure everyone is okay with the bed situation. We can discuss anything else that needs to be brought up later.” He dismissed casually. She wasted no time in bowing on her way out of the med bay, the door closing softly behind her.
Jax watched quietly with curiosity in his gaze as it returned to the male whom had made a decision he had not expected. “You accepted servitude?”
Joseph regarded him out of the corner of his eye, his response plain. “She knows exactly how fucked they are if i don’t agree to some sort of arrangement.”
“But you could have offered them a place within your ranks.” Jax offered, knowing full well how terrible the idea would be. Thankfully, Joseph did as well.
“And get shanked by someone i barely know? Pass. I’d rather keep Mi’low on a short leash and let her sort them out. I have a better handle on how she works, anyway. It’s not so much the titles at play so much as it’s about the relationship. She needs a stronger ally to back her up and i need the manpower to get shit done. It’s a game of appearances where we both get off better if the other plays nice. Plus, she already knows her pack and they trusted her enough to drag their asses through what looks like one hell of a rushed march into enemy territory in the vain hopes for sanctuary. If i stick my dick in that pie, I’m just going to get burned.” He reached up to scratch Pan between the ears as she listened quietly, the bond leaning towards him at the attention. “Also, I’m still kinda pissed with her for suggesting she would put Violet’s blades on her mantle. Even if it was just to goad me into taking the fight seriously.”
The Paw froze for a second, her gaze landing on her mate. “She said what?”
He pulled her into his chest, restraining her weakly with his uninjured arm as he snorted. “I did rip her shoulder out of socket for it.” He thought for a moment. “Probably fucked her liver up for a while too, assuming they’re in the same place. Wasn’t really considering that when i was hammering into it.”
Pan frowned despite her attempts to bury herself within him. “I will not forgive her so easily.”
Joseph managed a soft shrug without dislodging his mate from her place. “Feel free to make her do the annoying work for a while. Not like she’s in a position to argue. Make her clean or scrape leathers. Free up some time for the others. Maybe shovel the snow? Hmm.”
Jax chuckled at watching Joseph contemplate exactly how to best use Mi’low while placating his protective bond with soft strokes of her fur. “So how does it feel to demote a Grand Huntress?”
Stolen story; please report.
The Grand Hunter raised a brow at him as his claws worked its way to Pan’s chin to continue the scratching, the latter closing her eyes and abandoning the frown for a contented smile. “I did what now?”
Jax almost laughed, momentarily forgetting that his friend was indeed alien. “She is no longer in command of notable pack. She is under your command. She is now, at best, a High Huntress.”
“God damn it, so many fucking titles.” He groaned with his eyes closing as they rolled. “I just barely got used to the whole ‘Grand Hunter’ shtick. I take it that being a ‘High Huntress’ means they answer to a Grand?”
“Yes.” Jax affirmed. “The next rank down would be a Low Huntress, but that would imply she is under the command of a High Huntress and with her own pack below her.”
“Ah, command trees, got it. So what’s with the ‘Huntress Pan’ thing?” Joseph pointed to the melted puddle of fluff that was intimidating their guest a short while ago.
“As a Paw, she is second only to yourself and can act on your behalf when required.” He explained.
“What about Heads? Odd that you guys use the same term that i did.” He mused.
“I suppose it would happen eventually.” Jax shrugged at the coincidence. “We are to command our own units as designated, but we do not supersede your commands nor are able to command each other’s members without express permission. You would be able to command them directly, however. We will likely commandeer some of the new pack for our purposes, though they will not be loyal to us in the same way.”
Joseph held a contemplative expression for a while before nodding. “Suppose that makes enough sense. Whatever. We’ll figure out what everyone is good at in a few days before getting them to do shit. Give them time to get used to things.” He paused for a moment cracking a smile as Pan’s breathing slowed into a restful depiction of sleep. “I want you and Sahari to take them out snaring. Get a bead on where their heads are at while you show them how we do things. If they try to cause trouble without you noticing, let them, but keep track of who. We’ll need to know whose going to be a problem and i would rather them steal or break our snares than figure out ironwood or bows first.”
“It will be done, Grand Hunter.” Jax stood from his chair, giving the male a slight bow before leaving the room. He would need to scavenge from the pack those who have little use elsewhere in order to form his guard, but he supposed that anywhere Joseph puts them, they will be used to ensure the pack as a whole will prosper. Perhaps a rotation of members would be best to ensure that those who are on watch are well rested?
Jax pivoted an ear as he heard the Grand Hunter’s mate stir. He was more than aware that Pan had woken from her minor rest at his dismissal and had been holding back her chastisement in light of the company so far, the female having been ready to bite her bond’s ear off for trying to best beasts in melee while severely injured. The expected lecture began as soon as the door closed behind him.
“I believe we need to discuss your fascination with death and how fond you seem to be of courting it.”
“In my defence; you are amazingly fluffy.”
“Joseph.”
“...If i ask to have Violet here, will her cuteness distract you?”
“No.”
“...Shit.”
Jax left to join his mate in their room, chuckling to himself as his Grand Hunter was subjected to a tirade from a worried female. Surely not a position he envied.
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“I pray the sun greeted you well, Grand Hunter.”
Joseph wiped the sleep out of his eyes as he fixed his pants with his hand that wasn’t part of a flora cast, blinking a few times for good measure to ensure that he was, in fact, being greeted at his bedroom door by a fairly short red Lilhun in what could be considered a slightly overzealous bow, her waist bent at a perfect ninety-degree angle. Pan offered her own sleepy translation from the bed as she looked back through the window to the cresting sun that had only just began its journey through the sky.
The pile of Lilhuns that had decided that they rather enjoyed communal sleeping stirred once the noise clued them in on his absence and the appearance of an intruder. Sahari ignored his plight of having to socialize while also needing to grab a shower by instead pulling the nearest warm body to her own. The body in question belonging to a surprisingly compliant Nalah who was content to become a body pillow while she watched the impromptu show with a satisfied smile.
“It’s like... It’s fucking early, Mi’low.”
She held her posture stoically as she responded. “We are in need of instruction as well as duties.”
He scratched at his chest, momentarily forgetting why he was shirtless until he remembered just how warm the ‘fluff pile of doom’ had gotten. “I thought i said to take a few days to get settled in. How the hell did you know where my room was anyway?”
“Head Tel informed me.” She answered candidly, her commitment to being a right-angled triangle being somewhat impressive were it not for the blockage of his egress. She had spent the night in the med bay after Pan had spent the better part of an hour making him promise to bring at least one escort who was armed to the teeth whenever he left the base. She had insisted on several, but he had managed to talk her down after pointing out that they would need a dedicated group of them to sustain that.
“Just... Dude, stand up. You’re making my back hurt just looking at you.” He complained uncomfortably while noting to give Tel an earful about privacy, tensing his face as he could almost feel the muscle cramps from holding such a position so rigidly. It couldn’t have been easy with the cracked ribs he had given her which had been discovered by Tel when the newly minted ‘High Huntress’ attempted to assist the cook with some of the meal preparations. Mi’low complied after a moment, eyes flickering around his form with curiosity until her professional composure reestablished itself.
“With all due respect; my pack must not grow complacent. I request designations for them to contribute rightly.” She reiterated with a stiff posture. Everything about her body language said that she was sizing him up, herself still unsure about what made him tick. He was too groggy to care at the moment, thoughts of washing off the sweat that had built up as a result of body heat and fur winning out on his list of concerns.
Joseph waved her off, stifling a yawn with the crook of his elbow. “I’ll drop out to the workshop and hold interviews after I’ve had time to wake up.” He widened his eyes to force them to cooperate. “God, i miss caffeine.”
Mi’low tilted her head, tail flicking as she gave him an appraising stare. “What of our tasks until then.”
He cycled a deep breath. “Tel said you guys have a wagon or something past the walls, right? Drag that to the workshop so we can do inventory.” He lazily turned and addressed the blond body pillow, her fur displaying subtle golden stripes in the dim sunlight. Huh, never noticed those. “Nalah, think you could work with Mama to get some thin tablets ready? We need to start keeping track of what we have.”
The planner casually placed her paw upon the one holding her hostage as she thought. “I believe Harrow would be better suited. Her writing is more legible than my own.”
Joseph paused for a second, brows furrowed tightly as he stared at her. “Writing. As in; putting words on something in a physical display of a language.”
“Yes?”
He turned to Mi’low. “Can you punch me in the stomach?”
He didn’t get to finish exhaling as her closed paw forced a coughing fit as he fell to his knees, the punch winding him violently. She stared at his writhing form on the floor with a questioning look, the rest of room joining in with their own conflicted expressions. “May i ask why i was requested to do such a thing?”
Joseph struggled through a breath, regaining the ability to speak after a few tries. “Holy fuck, that hurt. To answer your question; i just realized i could have taught the Atmo to write. Sure, they would have been limited to the dirt or scratching wood for practice, but we have ink now. Hell, i could have figured out something simple a while ago.”
Pan faltered her translation for once, coming to the realization herself. Nalah sighed, sounding defeated as she guessed where this was going. “Hit him again.”
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Lilhun script is weird.
Joseph realized this after having Harrow, apparently the best in penmanship amongst his menagerie, write out a few translated sentences once he had convinced Mi’low that he would be by later to sort her pack into where they would be working around the base. The writing reminded him of cursive Russian mixed with cursive Japanese. That is to say; it was a complete cluster-fuck to look at, no matter what mildly impressed compliments Pan offered when she had seen it.
His own writing was fairly limited, his work rarely needing more than a sloppy signature on occasion had rusted his already subpar skill, so he was ready for the remarks they would have on it. Sure enough, everybody commented on the fact that he needed to make multiple strokes to complete each character of a word instead of only ever needing to place the quill down once. He tried to explain that English did have cursive, but it just wasn’t something he ever practised. Jax patted him on the back with a sympathetic look that was only slightly ruined by the smirk he failed to suppress.
The Atmo were pretty excited to see the return of the script, apparently remembering his hazy scratching on the rock-worm near the pod and instantly recognizing his name when it was put to paper. Er, tablet.
When asked to demonstrate their own interpretations of visual communication, Mama spent quite a long time trying to hold the quill until they suggested she dip her blade into the ink. Once the issue of Atmo compatible writing utensils was placed into the queue for things that they needed to make, Mama had managed a passable attempt at writing down... something, the unfamiliar usage of her arm as a pen showing through a rare instance of her discomfort using her blade for something that didn’t involve cutting the material supplied.
Nobody present was able to verify what exactly she had transcribed as the group had gotten excited and yelled suggestions at once, a confusion Mama was too busy chittering about to clarify. Regardless of content, Mama had placed some vaguely familiar runes onto the provided tablet, causing Joseph to bring his fist to his mouth as he thought.
“Where did i see that?” He paced the room for a moment before snapping his fingers and running off to his room to retrieve an item from the closet. Objective in hand, he brought it to the hub where everyone was waiting to see whatever it was he had thought important enough to run off without explaining. “Knew i recognized it!”
Joseph laid the two pieces of the armour that had saved him in his fight with Jax, pointing to the similar runes that adorned the neckline on the destroyed gear. Comparing the example to the engraved designs, there was a rune or two that matched.
“Joseph?” Harrow called to him in a bit of a sing-song cadence.
“Yes, Harrow?” He held his focus on the armour, refusing to meet her gaze.
“I think you might be as dumb as you look.”
Joseph nodded sagely. “Yep. I know.”
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“Okay, so that brings us to the last one.” Joseph sighed out from his seat in the production building, recently renamed ‘workshop’ as it had been outfitted with work benches rather than beds. It was planned that this building would be the centre of most crafting jobs since it was protected from the elements and between the two living arrangements while still having enough room and allotted space to fit new equipment and the like as needed.
Harrow dipped her quill in the ink, refreshing the implement for the newest dictation of whatever specialization or occupational experience the next Lilhun had. So far, they had; Two construction specialists, a chef, two general labour types, an animal handler for future domestication efforts, an agriculturalist, an artist in the form of Atrox, and Mi’low as an actress turned counter intelligence.
The actress in question was stood passively at attention in the corner to oversee the interviews as well as to make sure Joseph wasn’t doing anything untoward to her pack, not that he was planning to. He waved for her to go get the next in line, Sahari adjusting her hold on her spear as the High Huntress left to fetch them.
“As much as i would relish the opportunity to run my weapon through Atrox’s mates, Astra and Ferra will be a boon. Assuming we may quell their tongues, that is.” She commented with no small amount of ire in her tone.
Joseph leaned back into the chair, releasing a satisfied groan as his back cracked against the backrest. “Sure you don’t wanna’ tell me about what happened?”
“It is not my place to discuss.” She shook her head softly to accompany the denial with a visual.
He stared for a moment before slouching forward in his chair and resting his arms on the small table, deciding that he would need to keep an eye on them. “Well, having someone whose job is farming and knowing their way around plants in general should help us out in more ways than i care to count, come spring. Ferra will be a bit of a wasted asset until we can identify which of the animals here would be a good candidate for domestication or general husbandry, though her experience in assisting in the mines will mean that Nalah will have someone to order around.” He placed a fist to his lips. “Actually Nalah would be in charge of both, wouldn’t she.”
Sahari laughed, Harrow joining in with her own mild chuckle as she was confirming something on her tablet. “I believe her domain shall encompass much of their forces.”
He chewed his cheek as he thought about it. “True. She’s in charge of planning the development, so the carpenters will be following her directions whenever they feel the need to build something. The mining effort will be under her as well, whenever she’s not dealing with the construction side of things. Then there’s the farm... I don’t think it will be too big of an issue until it warms up, most of the other work is independent and time consuming as well as requiring less oversight while tasks are under way, but it is something i should revisit later. I think she’ll manage for now, but let me know if she gets overwhelmed.”
“You believe she will admit inadequacy?” Sahari asked coyly.
“Nope.” He affirmed with a sardonic roll of his eyes. “But she’s more likely to vent to you guys. I like her, don’t get me wrong, but it feels like she’s walking on eggshells around me sometimes.”
“Even after she claimed you in the bed?” Harrow offered, raising her gaze from the scribbles for a moment to grin at him.
“I don’t think ‘being held hostage by a sleeping yellow ball’ counts as ‘claiming’ and i resent the assertion.” He replied dryly, fighting the smirk. Her involvement in his rest had been a surprise, especially since he had awoken halfway through the night to discover that the arrangement had evolved from just him and Pan to half the pack deciding to invade.
At the time, Tel had acted as a group pillow, Sahari had made an effort to keep everyone’s legs warm, Pan reprized her role of his little spoon, and Nalah had decided to make him into one as well. If it wasn’t for the sweltering heat, he would have brushed the issue off for another time.
Unfortunately, sweating was something that he found uncomfortable to do while sleeping, so he abandoned his shirt and only kept his pants on due to Sahari being firmly attached to his legs and thus ruining any attempts at disrobing further. In hindsight, stripping mostly naked would have been a bad idea anyway, but at the time he was too warm to care. Thankfully, a little prodding at Nalah’s thigh, the only spot he could reach once she had reestablished her role, encouraged her to flop onto her back and allow the ambient air to cool him.
When he asked why the group had unofficially claimed his bed, the answer given was that he simply produced more heat than the building’s atmospheric regulator. He had a suspicion that there was more to it than that, but considering that he had added another notch to his tally of ‘almost dying’, it was something he was willing to overlook.
Besides, it wasn’t like he minded overly much. Pulling fur out of his mouth on occasion was a worthwhile trade for waking up in a colourful sea of fluff. Pulling fur from other locations was slightly less worth it. He remembered complaining to Violet and Mama about one of the downsides to fur and found himself confirming it more than once.
“Maybe me and Jax should join the pile some time.” Harrow poked at him under the table with her foot, a suggestive smile playing under her half-lidded eyes.
Joseph dropped his elbow on the table as he turned to point at her. “I am not asking Mama to make the bed bigger again just so you guys can ignore the rooms you chose.”
“Oh, you like it.”
“I’m not risking you two getting frisky while I’m in the room. Much less on the same bed.” He crossed his arms, wearing a smug expression as he made his statement.
She rested her chin on a paw, snaking her tail under the table to rub at his leg. “It wouldn’t have to be just us.”
They held eye contact until Harrow burst out laughing at his conflicted expression, Joseph caught off guard at the suggestion and remembering what he walked in on. A nervous cough started his brain back up while Sahari nudged the orange trouble-maker to shut up and translate as Mi’low entered the room with the last interviewee. She gave them a curious look but assumed her watchful post in the corner as the male sat across the smaller table. Joseph cleared his throat to hopefully remove the blush from his face.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Joseph, the guy in charge around here, apparently.”
The male’s ears maintained a slightly drooped position and his tail was wrapped around his waist, signs of a nervous Lilhun on display despite the efforts to subdue them. “I am one known as Heralt.”
“A pleasure, Heralt. We’ll keep this short, since i need to figure out where exactly everyone is going to be put to work after we’re done talking. Can you tell me about any work experience you may have prior to working with your military?”
He brightened up slightly, obviously not expecting to hear query past his most recent activities. “I assisted my den-father in his smithy. He was a male who honoured the old ways of tool craft.”
Joseph felt his eyebrows shoot up, both threatening to fly into the stratosphere. “You’re a blacksmith?”
Heralt dropped his gaze. “An apprentice.”
“Interesting.” The Grand Hunter held his composure while working out the details of how he was going to use the male before him. “Your work aboard the ship?”
“I was training to be a part of the security detail.”
“Well that answers the question of what work you will be helping with on occasion.” Joseph mused aloud.
“He set fire to our dens on his last watch.” Mi’low added with a taste of irritation. Joseph spared an inquisitive glance towards the possible pyromaniac.
Heralt looked down right depressed as he answered. “My mind was elsewhere when the beasts attacked. I knocked over a pyre in my haste to alert the others.”
“You killed several of our pack.” Mi’low barked with a snarl.
Joseph held a palm up to stop Mi’low from turning this into a tribunal. The female almost disregarded the silent request to still her tongue until Sahari tapped her spear on the floor with a hostile glare. “Though it is not my place to judge you, accidents happen after all, i think it would be a decent idea to know where your head was at. Was it blind panic?”
The brown Lilhun sunk into his seat a bit. “I was remembering a female i was attempting to court before my conscription.”
Joseph was expecting any number of responses. That was not one of them. “I see.” His expression fell as his mind slipped to his own lingering attachments to his ex-wife. Sahari placed a firm paw on his shoulder and gave him a concerned look. He smiled weakly to assure her that he was fine, the attempt at mollification falling a bit flat for some reason. He turned back to the male at the table. “I assume you held to the same line of work since coming here?”
Heralt nodded, opting to stare into the table instead of meeting the eyes of anyone at it.
The Human took a deep breath, focusing on his task instead of trying to sort out any unwanted emotions for the time being. He clapped his hands and stood to his feet, the noise startling the two who had yet to become accustomed to the man’s proclivity to punctuate important statements with loud noises. “Well i think you will be working with Jax until we get some ores coming in. After that, I’ll leave it up to Nalah, Harrow, and Jax to work out your schedule as i think you’ll be useful to each of them.”
The brown Lilhun looked at him with a confused expression. “I will be working as a smith?”
“As well as reprising your role as a guard on occasion, yeah. I’ll have Jax show you where to keep an eye out, but it’s mostly just metalwork when we have it.”
“I am not an expert.” Heralt spoke quietly. “I know little about the sciences of the craft.”
Joseph chuckled. “Boy do i know someone who would be more than happy to fix that fucking problem. I’ll have him draft up a file with the important shit for us and get Harrow to transcribe it into something you can read.”
Harrow shot him a glance. “You would need to read it out for me.”
Joseph winced, knowing full well how many hours of reading technical works on the finer points of metallurgy would be required. He could only reply with a defeated sigh.