Though it was a naless town that suffered that loss at the hands of the deceitful Keel, the results of that loss are called the Massacre of Tiliel. The Massacre! Do not forget what that word ans! Never forget what they did to our people! Whenever the foul “moderates” raise their heads and dare to suggest that the eastern scourge that calls themselves an “Empire” might be sothing we can make peace with, we need only rember the fallen. Those who did nothing more than follow the Gran Verat’s commands! Why would we allow those bloodthirsty beasts to stand among us, when they murdered those who followed the absolute mandate of our divine leader?
–Instructions from High Veran Leiteli to those of the traditionalist wing of the Synod.
I dread of clashing tal, exploding flas, and screams of agony. All around , keelish and humans battled for survival as Callings burst into life and began to exterminate my people. In return, sprinting packs of keelish dashed through and around the felled bodies of their comrades to set into the humans. There, the brutal lee devolved into ripping and tearing as Earthspeakers fought to protect their friends.
This was a true battlefield, much different to the ek battles I’d witnessed between tribes, and more soul-shaking than the little “war” I’d staged against the wolfstags. That was only a bloody hunt. This… everywhere I looked, I could see crumpled bodies and weeping wounds, the sll of offal and viscera choked the air, and I couldn’t take a single step without wetting my toes in blood. The screams of dying keelish and humans alike mixed to a constant, bone-chilling cry, and though I couldn’t rember fighting against anything, the taste of blood filled my mouth and mind alike. Part of revolted at the assault on all of my senses, and another part of gloried in it. Did I want to set my people on this path? Was there any other option? As my mind battled against itself, so of the first words the Administrator had said to began to echo through my mind:
[If the juncture cos in the which you must choose, choose violence. It may not be the answer for a human, but it nearly always is for a Keel.]
Her words filled my mind, echoing through every recess of until I could feel my body shaking with the influence of her power, of the Administrator’s unfathomable purpose. Around , the bodies began to rise, human and keelish alike, their jaws unhinging wide open as their voices joined the chorus.
“Choose violence.”
“Choose violence!”
“CHOOSE VIOLENCE!”
“CHOOSE! CHOOSE! CHOOSE!”
I sat bolt upright as the dream faded from my mind. As I gasped and tried to gather myself, to regain my composure, Nievtala’s presence descended over . “Choose.” Her voice set my mind to quaking once again, and I shuddered in place, trying to calm myself. Beside , Sybil stirred before waking and looking at . Imdiately she saw the struggles in my eyes and rose from our wolfstag pelt bed to sit beside . Wordlessly, she nuzzled into the crook of my jaw and neck, and her presence paired with her warm breath and the soft rustling of scale on scale cald enough to stop my desperate, wheezing attempts to get more air.
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As the den around slowly ca into better focus, Sybil stood and gently raised to my feet. It took a mont to realize that her steps led to the bath, where she led to settling deep into the sands. I didn’t hesitate to release my magic in a [Skill]less discharge of vibrations through the sands. They scrubbed my whole body and eased into the cracks between my scales as Sybil stepped behind and began to lightly massage the soft and tender spots of my neck, jaws, face, and frills.
After minutes passed by, I had nearly recovered and opened my eyes to look at Sybil. She looked at with genuine concern, and as we made eye contact, she didn’t press . Instead, she simply asked, “Are you ok?”
I let out a shuddering breath I hadn’t realized had still been stuck in my chest. “Better.” Then, with another, deeper, calr breath, I added, “Thank you, Sybil.”
She nodded, and, as was her way, said no more. I was reminded of aggressive lovers from my past life, won who had constantly pushed themselves to show their affection and devotion, and in so doing, had pushed away. Sybil, instead, was comfortable and sure of herself, present and supportive, but never pushy. She pushed herself hard as my Beta, pushed herself to support to the best of her ability as my second in command, but as a lover, she was… comfortable.
For the first ti, I wondered if I was as important a partner to her as she was to . If my presence ant as much to her as hers did to mine. I’d simply thought that I was a catch, as a khatif and Alpha, and much more, but did I do enough for her? With a stretch of my arm, I caught Sybil’s hand and pulled her into the sands of the bath with . She yelped in surprise, as under the influence of my magic, the sands had fluidized, and she fell directly into my arms and lap. A part of wondered over how I knew what fluidization was, but the rest of imdiately tamped that curious part of down.
“Sybil.”
She looked up into my eyes and, after a mont’s hesitation, relaxed into my chest. “Yes, Ashlani?”
“Thank you, again. Not just for comforting , but for supporting in my plans, for asking questions, for caring for , for helping make my general thoughts into actionable plans. For following my directions, and for ensuring that the directions I give are wise. Thank you for making better.”
Sybil had averted her eyes as I continued my praises and thanks, but she returned to returning my gaze. “Thank you, Ashlani, for being yourself with . I know there are things you know you do not share, but tell what you can, and I will be here for you.” Then, she nuzzled into my neck once again, and the quiet sounds of my magic shifting the sands and the scrape of scale on scale filled my den. I felt the desire, the almost instinctual need to mate with Sybil, and I pressed my chest against her, and I felt reciprocated in her the sa desire.
“Hey! Ashy boy! I hear you have a great new plan! Wanna tell about it?”
Rulac’s voice interrupted us before we could move any more, and as I bitterly whirled around to look, I could see a self-satisfied smirk covering his stupid, fat face. He knew what he had done, and he gloried in it. As I fought to keep my rage in check, he continued, “Oh, sorry, were you in the middle of sothing?”
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