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 Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2016 5:18 pm
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Kimondo locked eyes with Liuhe as he offered an explanation for his presence, a flood of mixed emotions going through her as he did. He had hardly been a zealous follower to his father, but he had blamed the rebels for what happened, for provoking an unwelcome response from a king they knew was not afraid to do it.
Tamaa spoke before she could, so she stayed quiet.
Liuhe looked from Kimondo to Tamaa, immediately recognizing that he was the one who had taken over for Umepatwa. It helped that he was standing next to Kimondo, the only lioness Liuhe really knew in the crowd, but Tamaa did have his own reputation now, too.
There was a long pause before he answered. How remained to be seen but why.. that was a complicated answer he wasn't sure he trusted. Ultimately, it was a self-serving decision and he didn't know if being that genuine would help or hurt.But honesty was his first step in distancing himself from his father and his methods.
"I am not my father," he said finally, "I don't agree with what he's done and I won't, by my silence, give my consent or approval to this madness. While he is king, I am heir and I would not inherit this."
It was a struggle for him to stay standing tall, holding his head proud.. he was trained to be a proper prince but it was harder in practice. He had never cared for his lessons but now was more important than ever.
"I would, however, finish what Umepatwa started," he added.
Hivyo and Behram were silent at Liuhe's side as the prince tried to strike up a truce between himself and the rebels. Hivyo was calm and confident. Whether or not they liked Liuhe, the prince was an easy path to the king.. but for that they needed to trust him. That would be the only slip-up. He expected they had only one hope, and she was standing next to the wary blond.
Behram's silence was matched with a more serious, grim demeanor. Everything Liuhe spoke, rang true with him. He was no prince, and stood to inherit nothing but the legacy of his father and grandfather.. and he wanted to distance himself from that, too. It helped that he believed in Liuhe.
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Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2016 5:57 pm
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 It was only force of will that kept Iki from rolling her eyes at Kimondo's words about Nyeusi. Seriously, sure. Frankly, the young Hunt Leader thought that the damage Nyeusi had done stemmed more from the insane lioness not understanding when to stop. It wouldn't surprise her. And if she wasn't totally insane, there was no proof that she'd fully regained her wits either.
"Not a bad plan, Ahava," Iki replied to the male when he suggested a plan that would essentially include several Nyeusis. "Are you volunteering?" the lioness asked, raising an eyebrow.
A second eyebrow joined the first as Liuhe joined the group. A Prince? The Heir? Now this was rather unexpected. And, if he was to be believed, at least one of his brothers also sympathized with the rebels.
"Fine words," she muttered softly to herself, watching the young adult. It remained to be seen if there was more to him than words. |
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Posted: Sun Jul 03, 2016 8:20 am
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Tamaa was silent for a long moment, staring at the prince. Liuhe's reasons were similar to those his brother had given. He seemed to recognize and accept that changing sides could very well risk his position as heir. And in the end, he wanted the same thing Tamaa did.
Finish what Umepatwa started.
Those words resonated terribly with Tamaa. Umepatwa wouldn't have trusted Liuhe, and he probably hadn't trusted Yueyun very much either. But he would want Shangyue dead, and Tamaa would do whatever it took to make that happen short of making a deal with the mad king himself. Good thing said mad king wouldn't just agree to lay over and die, then.
"Umepatwa wanted to kill Shangyue himself," Tamaa responded at last. "I won't make you do that, if you're not up for it. But I'll take your help. And if it works...if we survive this...I'll make sure they know you did the right thing." A semblance of acceptance proffered, an offer made, and trying not to wonder if he was making an awful mistake, he let out a long sigh and shook his mane before continuing. "We were talking about distracting the guards, drawing them out with attacks, and sending in a strike for Shangyue and anyone left standing with him. You have anything to add to that, or a different idea?"
Maybe leading wasn't so hard, sometimes, if you tried really hard not to realize you were responsible for everyone. And tried harder not to wonder who would live if they went forward with this. Focus on the goal. One step at a time. Yeah, he could do this. Maybe.
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Posted: Sun Jul 03, 2016 4:10 pm
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Liuhe barely contained a sigh of relief when Tamaa seemed to accept him, and it was even more difficult not to look at Kimondo to see if she might be willing to forgive him. He had to stay focused! His ears flattened as Tamaa outlined the suggestions they had already worked through.
Behram relaxed when Tamaa started listing off the plan of action as well. While not addressed directly, he took the acceptance of the prince to be acceptance of himself as well. If Liuhe was forgiven in the end, and Behram had helped him, surely he would be safe as well. His back-up plan involved making a run for it, he had no strong motivation to stay and fix things if it would only make things worse for him, not like Liuhe and Yueyun.
"Do you really have enough for that?" he asked, glancing around, "There's what, half a dozen here? Yueyun can't be here, are there any others?"
It was hard to emotionally keep up with everything that was happening at that moment, but Kimondo knew she had to set all of that aside and focus on the task at hand. Just like Liuhe. He looked nervous, but she wasn't sure if she was projecting or more capable of seeing it because they had once been friends.
"It'll be enough," she said, looking from Liuhe to Behram, "If we can distract the guards."
She hesitated and then looked at Liuhe again.
"Meshach is home and he's going to challenge Shangyue for the throne," she said, "Will he accept the challenge?"
Hivyo looked almost cheerful when the others accepted Liuhe, feeling confident enough to break away from the prince's side to properly join the crowd of them. If that was all settled, they could really get to work. He listened to Behram's cautious criticism and looked around at the group before them.
None were from small, unknown families like himself and Tamaa.. but they were all members who had stayed out of trouble as far as he knew. Only Tamaa and Yueyun were compromised, and that was a good start. They'd be fine.
He was so confident, he was even grinning as he found a place near Iki where he could watch.
Behram's caution rang in his ears but he was distracted when Kimondo spoke. She didn't ask for his opinion, she expected him to know exactly what his father would do. Taken aback, he didn't have an immediate answer.. but he had a pretty good guess.
"He'll have to," he said, "He can't lose anything he hasn't already lost. If it's an honorable challenge and he wins, his claim will be secured. If it's an ambush, he'll use that against the rebels."
"What if it's honorable and he loses?" Behram asked grimly. Liuhe was leaving out the only option that mattered to the rebels.
Liuhe looked over to Behram and then back to Kimondo and Tamaa.
"I can't imagine he'll play fair," he said, "He won't lose."
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Posted: Sun Jul 03, 2016 10:06 pm
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Behram's gaze went back and forth between Tamaa and Liuhe as they spoke, wondering how they would ever manage to work this out. Liuhe could have acted on his own if he had the nerve to kill his father himself, but maybe the support of the others would help.. he knew they'd all prefer the relative safety that came in numbers.
"We'll make sure you're not alone," he murmured to Liuhe, nodding grimly, "If we can't get any of them close, I'll stand with you."
Perhaps it was the only benefit to being one of Fasrin's sons. He could get nearly as close to the king as Liuhe and Yueyun on his own, but with their help, there was no question he'd be there.
Hivyo could make no such offer, his presence was neutral except in the face of a paranoid king. He couldn't offer his support in just any old situation. But the prince knew he had his support, otherwise he wouldn't be here.
Kimondo sighed and offered a sad smile when Tamaa said he hoped that Liuhe would take advantage of his proximity to the king and do what needed to be done, if it came down to it. They would have a lot to talk about when all of this was done.
"We'll make a distraction," she said, "If he really accepts Meshach's challenge, if Meshach or the others don't take care of it then.. we will. We're all in this together."
Liuhe glanced from Tamaa to Behram when he offered his support, then to Kimondo, and finally back at Tamaa. He smiled grimly and nodded.
"I'll do what I can to get you there," he said, "But if I can't, if you can't.. then I will."
This ORP is now done. You may continue to post until you can wrap up what your characters are doing or thinking.
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