In reply to Amara Brightsky (msg # 227):

Melocks eye glimmer in the firelight, "I never said you claimed I wasn't a Ranger," He rubs the parallel scars on his neck, "At least one thing I've done was to build friendship between foes, and I did it well enough that no one realised how bad it would have been without me," The smoke in the tent causes him to cough, "but enough talk about my many many faults, I need a drink." Melock grabs a skin of kumiss and finds a fire with some space around it and sits down.

From outside comes a gruff shout of welcome and staggering over to them comes Tokar Eight Sable, the gnarly old brave smiling his gap toothed smile at the sight of his former wards

"You're back" he shouts, clapping Melock hard on the shoulder and giving Amara an arm to shake.

The flap of the tent is pulled back allowing the Darkness of the darkest day of the darkest season to press in against the light of the fires within the bachelor's tent and from that Darkness steps the young Raven brave.

Most know Ohanzee but most would not recognised this figure as him and likely were it not for the blue Water rune marked arm even fewer. As the once handsome brave steps in, his flesh, scarred top to toe moves and creases in disturbing ways.

He grins and the same gap in his teeth is still there, a memento of the encounter with the mudsharks. In his hair is the familiar black Raven feather hanging to the left, but on the right now is another feather, a brown one.

Amara grinned as she shook Tokars hand. "We're back and once more with many stories to share." Amara paused for a moment for dramatic effect "And of course, some nice things to spread amongst the clans."
This message was last edited by the player at 15:18, Mon 22 Aug 2016.

He winces at the force of Tokar's greeting and stands back up,"I'm glad your eyes haven't failed you yet Tokar." he smiles and offers Amara the skin of kumiss he's been drinking from. He beckons Ohanzee over, "Ohanzee, come see Tokar." He runs his free hand through his blonde hair, "It seems like everyone is happy to see us back."

A small man gets up at the outer edge of the circle, he would be barely visible over the heads of the seated braves, but the cloth wrapped around his head catches the light. Tokar notices him and shrugs, in the slight pause the small man speaks. “I too, am glad to see you come in. Your band was well thought of by my folk and most of them had clear sight. You may not know me, but I have seen some of you. I am one of those that ride the earth bird. I have come to ask for a place in your camp and a stake in your game. I am not as strong as most of you, but I share your link to the ghost way (Sun Hawk lights my path now that my guide is no more). I had gone off to the wild to find a quiet place where the ghosts might treat with me as a friend, and when I found the trail of my clan again it came to a bad end. I saw no sign that there might have been a break out. All I saw was a lot of death. I railed at the gods for a while. I searched, and I checked a cache or two that I knew of. I found none of them. I hear that Death stalks in your dust, Death stalks in mine too, I am Temush Cloud - last of the Big Peckers“ He sits again and is lost behind the heads turning towards him.

Amara's eyes showed warmth as she reached to her side, to hand over a bone to Temush "Sky Bone Blue has been a great friend to us, and the deaths of the others in your clan have been avenged. Sky Bone Blue gave us this bone to call on him once in a time of need. I think he would be very pleased to know that the Big Peckers yet exist." Amara tilted her head to one side, frowning as she watched Temush. "So you are the Khan of the Big Peckers, perhaps Sky Bone Blue will talk to you and guide you as you regrow your clan."

Temush rubs his eyebrows face downcast before replying. "Thank you for your good word. I have my doubts that one man and three birds can bring back a clan, but it may be that fate will prove me wrong. If you will have me, your band may draw on the few things I have brought in. If some of my folk find me then I shall give back what I can. I will be pleased to hold the bone until you need to call on Sky Bone Blue". He smiles at Amara and examines the bone, working out what it is.

Temush finds himself the centre of attention, all eyes now on the diminutive brave, as if many of the  bachelors hadn't even noticed him before. In an act of solidarity the two ancient Ostrich slaves come over to offer their fellow tribesman roast impala and a flask of kumiss.







"Well eat your fill and whilst you do regale all of us with what has been happening, or is it to be kept for the ears of the Elders and no one else?"



"Aye this fella came in a week or so ago, brought in by some of our outriders. What with the feather in his hair and me remembering that you'd met his kinfolk and that his Khan had been in this very tent...Well he's been treated well and has caused no trouble...."

Having had an uncomfortable talk with his family, Kobal tended to his bison Black Hoof.  Haaro was probably off somewhere hunting, as manul cats do.  I've got some cured sable for you later, he sent to his familiar.

Entering the bachelor's camp, his spirits can't help to lift.  A chance to boast to the others of their deeds.



"Some we can tell, Eight Sable," Kobal says, gripping the man's arm in welcome.  Somehow the Thunder Bird brave manages to speak loudly for the whole tent to hear, yet lower his voice conspiratorially, as if sharing a secret with the bachelors.  "Some of it will shock and surprise you all!"



"Our thanks.  Certainly, he'll be welcome among us Wandering Rangers."  He turns to the short man.



Kobal steps up to Temush, and waits for the man to stand, before clasping the other's arm in greeting.  The bison brave towered over the sitting ostrich brave, but even when Temush stands, Kobal still towers over him.

"Be welcome, Temush Cloud," he says.  "I am Kobal, son of Colnar Three Steps.  Your khan was a wise and determined man.  It was an honour for we Wandering Rangers to ride with him.  Death has followed us, but many times we have beat it off.  And at times perhaps even cheated it, haha!"  He thinks of Hoskar, now Two-Feather.  "Besides," he continues, "this is Prax.  Waha Khan of Khans taught us that Death is no stranger here, at times a bitter enemy, but at times a friend."
This message was last edited by the player at 03:19, Mon 05 Sept 2016.

Voras watches the exchange between the newcomers and the other Rangers and when Kobal finishes he speaks "Greetings Temush Blinking-cloud. It is good to have another follower of Sun Hawk about and perhaps together we can keep the antics of the Ravens in the light." and the light from his forehead shines brightly pushing the Darkness outside the tent back, keeping it at bay.

As Voras speaks, Temush's head tilts slightly to the left and a small grey blob on his shoulder opens its eyes and tilts its head almost upside down, and back again.
"Ooooh" it says. "This ought to be good"
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 20:44, Sun 04 Sept 2016.

"I shall be proud to ride with you, and all of the Wandering Rangers" the small man says, hoarsely. Nodding to the old Ostrich slave, he takes a swig from the flask of kumiss.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:08, Sun 04 Sept 2016.

Melock can't help but laugh at Voras's words, "I look forward to the challenge of sneaking things past both of you." He winces at the light Voras gives out, "At least I can tell when you're close." When he sees the owl on Temush's shoulder, he grins at it, "I like your familiar, did you raise it from a chick?"

Ohanzee approaches the old warrior "Greetings Tokar. I hear you've been having problems with raids by Impala riders taking beasts? It'll be a little dick called Angry Wasp who blames us, well Henal to be precise, for enticing his wife away from him. She left him way before she bumped into us."

"Anyway, the prat raided us on the way home and got Scorpionmen to fight his battle for him, tricked us into their nest instead of fighting them with his braves himself. Scared of loosing that battle like he lost his wife I expect, but using Chaos... well start of a slippery slope that if you ask me."

"Some escaped and we've to report their nest site to the elders."

Temush is joined by Tarnessh Listens to Silence, another Sun Hawk follower, who introduces himself as the brother of Kobal, both braves of the Prairie Thunder Bison clan.

The pygmy had heard of this Kobal, grandson of a previous chieftain who was to be wed to the daughter of the Khan of the Black Shield Bison clan. From what he had gathered both they and the Prairie Thunder clans had come together to make an alliance.

Amara growled, glaring darkly at both Melock and Ohanzee "Raven runs riot over our group. No-one keeps them in check." Her eyes narrowed on Melock as the initiator of the most recent raven escapade.

He smiles sweetly at Amara, "I try my best." Melock's smile fades as her gaze doesn't and he looks at the floor instead of Amara. There's a pause before he speaks and when he does, there's a note of uncertainty in his voice, "What's done has been done and we've spoken already about how I plan to try to make amends, what else would you have me do?"

Amara sighed "Not do it again. This isn't the first or even the second time that your self serving goals have caused us problems. Remember that what we are out to do, is not to glorify Raven or Melock, it is something far grander in scale. It is to restore the Garden. There are times when your personal goals and ravens goals are in alignment with that and that is when you are useful. When they are not, you harm us all."

In reply to Amara Brightsky (msg # 246):

He raises his eyes to Amara's face and with a soft smile, "I can promise you now, in front of two Sun Hawks, that I won't repeat any of my previous mistakes." He gently shakes his head, "but I can't promise Raven won't lead me in to new adventures, I can only say I'll do my best to resist. I've already ask Hoskar to help keep me alive when we visit Pavis."

Amara sighed in exasperation "That does no good. Your past mistakes are over." she shook her head, drinking a long draught from a skin of khumiss "Promise me this...that you think before you act. That you consider our goals as rangers before your own. I follow Thunderbird, yet the things I do never go against our goals. You follow raven and should also hold yourself to the same." she put the stopper back into the bag and threw it towards Melock. "When raven and you have worked towards what we seek to accomplish it advances our cause, but these days I wonder if you are more a hindrance."

In reply to Amara Brightsky (msg # 248):

He side steps and lets the skin of kumiss fly past him, "If my past mistakes are over, then please don't bring them up again." He absently rubs his neck scars with his scared left hand, and takes a deep breath to try to make himself focus, but instead he starts savagely coughing. After a minute or so he manages to bring it under control. "Sorry about that." He glances at the two Sun Hawks, "Do you need me to promise now, or can I have the night to think about it? And to be clear, I always think before I act, whether its about anything thats happening there and then is another matter."

Temush catches the wayward Kimiss skin and since he is now holding two, offers it to Voras, "It must be a bit of a strain to have the four birds on one cadge" he mutters to the Sun Hawk brave "Much as all try to work for one goal, it may not look that way at times"

"Bastard little shit" exclaims the grizzled warrior "But you gave them the thumping you deserved yes?"

"Mmm we've lost a fair few head in the last week to him and his braves. Likely we'll need to make a counter raid to take him out."

Whilst talking Ohanzee can't help but notice the brave is eyeing up his horrible scars.

Kobal's mood and face darkens at the name of Angry Wasp and the mention of the scorpionmen.  Cause of the death of his newlywed wife Jella.

And although his family had not been aware of his wife, they had arranged a marriage into the Black Shields clan, leaving little time to grieve properly.



"I'm in," says Kobal with feeling.  "I'll knock his head clean off his shoulders."