Post by nymeria on Jan 16, 2011 0:48:16 GMT -5
Nymeria rode quietly along the Skirmir River's edge. It was a loose marker of the end of Nyalcom territory, and the beginning of Rulin. She'd traveled along it many times, both as human and wolf. Today she was human, and riding a stallion. If it had a name, she didn't know it; it was from one of Nyalcom's stables, and she hadn't thought to ask.
It was evening, and the ground was cold and hard. The horse wasn't having any trouble as it made its way down a wide, well-trod path. Nymeria was dressed warmly, her fur-lined cloak pulled up. It began to snow, the white flakes lazily streaming down from the night sky. The moon was waning, but there was still plenty of light to see the trail by. Besides, Nymeria had been down this way so often she could have done the patrol blindfolded.
Every few minutes she would look over the Skirmir river. It was quieter than usual, its banks iced over, though the heart of the river ran too quickly to ever freeze. But it wasn't the river the Alpha was looking at; it was the land beyond. Looking at Rulin from this side of the river always stirred a strange, haunted feeling inside of her. She wasn't a woman prone to much introspection, and she thought that second-guessing oneself was a sign of weakness (and one she'd never show). But here, so close to the "enemy" territory, it was hard not to think about the events that had led her here.
I killed one Alpha of theirs, and two of mine own. She thought to herself. Was it worth it? Had she done it to prove she could, or because she actually thought she'd made things better for Nyalcom? It was hard to say, but at least things were better than they had been decades before her. Less bandits, less in-fighting. Nyalcom had always been the most rebellious sibling in the family of the four greater packs, the least disciplined. That was beginning to change, and the change had begun iwth Nymeria's reign.
And still... it'd been a high price to pay, and she wasn't sure she was truly finished paying it.
It was evening, and the ground was cold and hard. The horse wasn't having any trouble as it made its way down a wide, well-trod path. Nymeria was dressed warmly, her fur-lined cloak pulled up. It began to snow, the white flakes lazily streaming down from the night sky. The moon was waning, but there was still plenty of light to see the trail by. Besides, Nymeria had been down this way so often she could have done the patrol blindfolded.
Every few minutes she would look over the Skirmir river. It was quieter than usual, its banks iced over, though the heart of the river ran too quickly to ever freeze. But it wasn't the river the Alpha was looking at; it was the land beyond. Looking at Rulin from this side of the river always stirred a strange, haunted feeling inside of her. She wasn't a woman prone to much introspection, and she thought that second-guessing oneself was a sign of weakness (and one she'd never show). But here, so close to the "enemy" territory, it was hard not to think about the events that had led her here.
I killed one Alpha of theirs, and two of mine own. She thought to herself. Was it worth it? Had she done it to prove she could, or because she actually thought she'd made things better for Nyalcom? It was hard to say, but at least things were better than they had been decades before her. Less bandits, less in-fighting. Nyalcom had always been the most rebellious sibling in the family of the four greater packs, the least disciplined. That was beginning to change, and the change had begun iwth Nymeria's reign.
And still... it'd been a high price to pay, and she wasn't sure she was truly finished paying it.
