He wondered if she was testing him. He knew that she was furious with him for attempting to defend Cole from her assault, before she had manipulated him into delivering the near-final blow on their younger brother. Did she know that the thought of tormenting humans no longer had any appeal to Talon? Was she aware of how much torturing Matilda yesterday had sickened him? She must have. Black Blood was no mouse-brain. This is a test of my loyalty, he realized with a lurch to his stomach. She’s looking for ways to indirectly point out that I’m getting soft. If I refuse to join the war party, it might look like I’m trying to avoid conflict. Thankfully, however, he had an excuse not to go: he had already taken part in the battle with the Moon Tribe yesterday and helped Black Blood bring down the Son of Earth. He had been Matilda’s public tormenter that same day, in view of everyone in the tribe. Surely no cat could blame him for wanting to take a day off from battles. He was tired and needed to rest. The nightmares from the previous night had only added to his fatigue. He ran all this through his mind quickly and decided that he was safe. Knowing that everyone in the room was still waiting for an answer from him, he asked, “If I don’t lead the party, who will?” Black Blood gave a small nod toward the other end of the circle on Talon’s left. “Mist Rise.” As the long-furred tom glanced up with surprise, Talon felt himself relax. Despite being in charge of the warriors’ training and strategy-planning—ultimately being one of the strongest and most ferocious fighters in the tribe—Mist Rise was one of the few cats who did not seem to share the same lust for violence as his tribe-mates did. Although young, only a little older than Eagle Talon himself, he was thoughtful and methodical in what he did, and often liked to think outside the box, which is one of the reasons why he ranked up so quickly at such a young age.
Yes, Mist Rise would be a good cat to lead the war party. He was not one who enjoyed the smell of fear; he would simply subdue the village and keep everything orderly and under control. “I’m honored by your offer, Black Blood.” Eagle Talon dipped his head low to his leader. “But I’m afraid I need some time to rest along with my tribe-mates.” Black Blood’s eyes narrowed. “So it’s a no, then.” Talon raised his head and met her gaze steadily. He did not flinch at the deadly warning in her sharp, emerald-green eyes. “It’s a no.”
As Jukeni had predicted, it was by dusk they were nearing their destination. The trip had taken a little longer than planned, for Kai and Kaeden went back and recovered a dazed and moaning Jukeni. Thankfully, the arrow he’d been shot with by the Pingouser had merely grazed his right arm, and though it was painful, no permanent damage had been done. The exhaustion Kai felt numbed his senses, which is why he did not realize they were being surrounded until a low voice broke the silence. “Stop right there or we’ll shoot.” Kai, Jukeni, and Kaeden froze in their tracks. Heart hammering, Kai stood still while scanning the dark trees. It took several seconds of careful inspection before he was able to locate a tall figure standing within the shadow of a tall pine. The stranger was holding a crossbow up—and with a sinking feeling, Kai realized the bolt was aimed right for his own head. “Drop your weapons,” another voice said. Kai realized that a dozen people had circled them from the shelter of the trees and undergrowth, using the shadows to their advantage and having snuck up on their victims without a sound. Kai wordlessly berated himself for not being alert enough to have noticed them coming—as a ninja, picking up clues to ambushes like that was one of his top priorities. Jukeni and Kaeden had stiffened, but they didn’t look quite as alarmed as they ought to have been. Kai began to realize why when Kaeden raised his furry hands into the air and said, “It’s just us, Rantan. Allies.” There was a quiet pause. Kai saw the stranger lower his crossbow and peer through the leaves. “Kaeden?” Surprise was evident in his voice. “What are you two doing here?” The rest of the newcomers stepped forth and exposed themselves from various clumps of bushes and undergrowth. All of them wore gray, green, and brown mottled cloaks and hoods over their heads—Kai realized that these were probably made to camouflage with the natural color of the wilderness. That’s pretty clever, he reflected reluctantly.
He scanned the new set of faces: eleven people stood in a circle around Kai and his friends. Most were men, but there were two women and there were several dog-people. Two of the dog-people had pointed ears and a long, narrow muzzle like Kaeden did, but three more had big, floppy years like hound dogs, and in comparison their muzzles were shorter and stouter. They all wore clothes, stood on their hind legs, and gripped crossbows like humans, and their multi-colored eyes glittered with just as much intelligence and menace. Jukeni chirped, “Hi, guys.” “Hi,” several of the cloaked people and dog-people responded casually. “‘By’lännie’, guys,” the first man—Rantan—cast his comrades an irritated look. “Our greeting is By’lännie, remember? Not ‘hi’. By’lännie is the traditional Pawreles phrase among the ancient warriors! You’ve got to remember this stuff!” “‘Hi’ is easier,” one of the floppy-eared dog-people muttered in a feminine voice. “By’lännie, all,” Kaeden greeted with a little smile, obviously deciding to humor Rantan. One of the men gestured to Kai with a hostile look. “Who’s that?” he demanded sharply. Kai bristled, but Kaeden responded soothingly. “This is a new friend of ours. Kai helped me and Jukeni escape from the town’s entire brigade last night when they seized Nama’s house.” The tension among the strangers rose. “They found you?” Rantan demanded. “Some scout or spy must have seen us leaving the town the night of the raid,” Jukeni replied, his smile fading. “They must have gotten busy gathering troops or watching us or something, because they only attacked last night.” Worriedly a middle-aged man with graying hair, “Did they seize the plans?” “Nope! We escaped before they could search us,” Junkeni said triumphantly. “I have them on me.” Rantan visibly relaxed. “Well done. We can’t afford to lose them, after taking so many risks.” Kai, crossing his arms over his chest, cleared his throat loudly. “If they’re so valuable, why didn’t you try getting them to your base as soon as possible?”
Rantan stiffened and gave Kai a stare of instant dislike. The older man responded before Rantan could. “The raid almost went horribly wrong. The survivors had to escape as soon as possible and get back to base, but if they were tracked, then all would be lost. Kaeden and Jukeni live in the town where we raided the base, and while it was almost equally as risky, we gave the plans to them. They wouldn’t have to flee as far, and because they’re locals everyone knows, few would suspect them as part of the rebellion. “While most of our men fled the scene and returned to headquarters while trying not to be tracked, Kaeden and Jukeni went the other way with the papers. We planned for them to deliver them to headquarters as soon as the heat had died down. But it seems that the Pingousers finally became suspicious of Kaeden and Jukeni.” Rantan muttered, “All right, nice recap, Thaio.” “The boy asked,” Thaio protested. Rantan’s mind was already on other things. “Fine, people, let’s move it.” He waved one hand at the other cloaked figures and the three boys. “We can’t stay out here for long. Let’s get these three back to base. Jukeni’s hurt,” he added, giving Jukeni’s shoulder a dark look. “How’d that happen?” “Ran into a few Pingousers,” Kaeden responded. Rantan acknowledged the reply with a brusque nod and turned away. The others followed suit, including Kaeden and Jukeni. Kai had no choice but to follow. They drifted quietly away into the trees. Once again Kai found himself half-stumbling wearily through the moist dirt and leaves. He felt tired and sore all over, but he made an effort to observe the unfamiliar people he realized to be Kaeden and Jukeni’s comrades of the Pawreles rebellion. Most of them had their backs to him as they led the way through the woods, so for the moment, all he could observe from them was how their soft-soled boots made little noise on the ground and how well their mottled cloaks seemed to drift and blend with the environment.
For a little while, the group traveled down some invisible path between thickly-grown trees and undergrowth. With the evening sun glaring through the forest canopy, Kai felt as if they were drifting through a thick, secret tunnel of pure, enigmatic green. The lights and differing shades distracted him from observing the rebellion warriors as he’d meant to. Several minutes later, the group cleared the trees and came to a small rise. There Kai peered past the shoulders of the cloaked people and saw a low, tree-filled valley sprawling before them. The hill they stood upon continued upwards at a slope to their right, leading up to a short cliffside that, going far enough, eventually gave away from grass and bushes to rocks and sand. Upon this cliffside stood a castle. At least, it was the closest thing to a castle Kai had seen in Pawreles. The castles in Ninjago had stone foundations that sloped from the ground and made it seem as if the building had grown from the earth itself. Many floors were stacked upon one another, each with its own set of angular rooftops and shingles whose corners pointed to the sky. Often the castles and temples had simple yet beautiful color schemes that made the building a magnificent sight to behold. Even the skyscrapers in Ninjago City, while they surpassed these temples in height, could not compete for beauty. This Pawreles castle, it seemed to Kai, was everything a castle in Ninjago would not be. Dark, gray, colorless: these were the first observations he made. In terms of height, this pitiful foundation couldn’t hold a candle to even some of the smallest temples Kai had seen in his lifetime. Ninjago castles stood up on their own, holding itself high and proudly into the sky; this Pawreles castle seemed to be clinging to the ground like a lifeline, hugging the moist green earth with its dark walls that crept away from the main structure and surrounded it, like one long, agile snake slipping up and down the uneven slope of the grassy cliffside in order to make its circumference around the fortress.
Stout, ugly towers sprouted from this wall like scowling soldiers, and the dark narrow slits built into the walls were black eyes that glared down at the arrivals. The main building—a squat, squarish thing, with only three or so more pitiful towers accompanying its rooftop—sat upon a simple, orderly stone foundation, one that grew another wall outside and hugged the biggest buildings like an over-protective guard. There were more walls and towers than Kai would have expected. A fair bit of greenery flourished within the first wall and its battlements, but other than that, the whole thing about the stone castle seemed to Kai dull, bland, and lifeless. In reality, the fortress was quite impressive, but Kai was determined to prefer everything of his home realm to anything he met here. Rantan led the group up the slope to the castle. As they neared it, Kai craned his neck back to inspect the rough stone walls and towers. Many of the blocks making the tall barrier were cracked, or bleeding moss and weeds. Some blocks were missing entirely. Shingles on the towers were missing. The occasional brick lay half-grown into the ground, having been left there for years. Observing the overgrowth of foliage around the structure and the poor state it was in, Kai realized that this castle must not have been used in years—why else would it be in such bad shape? Unless these people are just really bad at taking care of their castles, he thought wryly. A short cobblestone road led the way through the main gate. Weeds, grass, moss, and flowers poked out from the uneven blocks set in the ground, testifying to its age and lack of use over the years. The cloaked people escorted the boys down the path through the ancient, rotting gate that someone had left open. Kai caught a glimpse of a rusty brown portcullis hanging over their heads. The old spikes seemed to be glaring down at him, threatening to plummet. He suppressed a shiver and went on.
Beyond the gate, Rantan led them out into a large courtyard. Clumps of weeds and grass sprung up from the broken cobblestones here and there. A single tree, naked and blackened with age, stood sagging in the middle. The courtyard was closed in by the main buildings and towers. One bell tower stood the tallest of all, sitting neatly upon one of the large rooftops. There were many windows built into the buildings, each with their own pair of wooden shutters whose red paint had faded long ago. There were a couple of piles of barrels and sacks shoved off to the side, but other than that, the place seemed completely bare of life. Movement flickered from the corner of Kai’s eye. Feeling edgy, he turned quickly and caught sight of another cloaked figure stepping out from a door to one of the towers. He scanned the courtyard again, and was suddenly aware of several more dark figures slipping out from the corners and nooks. They appeared slowly, making slow, cautious steps toward the group. Kai was sure several of them were eyeing him with hostility. Rantan waved one arm casually to them. “At ease! It’s Kaeden and Jukeni—with a friend.” The menacing vibe eased significantly. Most of the figures visibly relaxed and threw their hoods back, walking at a more casual pace to meet them. A select few were still slow in coming, but for the most part, they seemed to accept Rantan’s announcement pretty easily. Kai wondered if Rantan was the leader of the rebellion, what with his authority over the others. A young man trotting out from rickety old stables at the other side of the courtyard called out, “Did they bring the plans?” “Sure thing!” Jukeni crowed, using his good arm to yank out the few pieces of paper and wave them in the air. “All right!” Another man—one of the dog-people—laughed in jubilation. “Way to go! I’ll go tell Bird!” He ran off on his canine feet at a surprisingly smooth lope. Kai finally decided to speak up. He was tired of being quiet. “What is this place?”
A few more faces—human and canine—flashed suspicious looks at him. Kaeden, meanwhile, turned to him and explained, “This is an old castle that was abandoned many years ago. The Pingousers in the area seem to have forgotten about it, and it’s well-hidden here in the hills, so we decided to have our base here—at least for the time being. It’s still in pretty good shape.” Kai cast another skeptical glance at the colorless buildings, weed-filled yard and broken bits of stone here and there. I beg to differ. The excited crowd of rebels was still milling about the three boys, most of them asking Jukeni and Kaeden questions about what had happened and how they’d escaped. Jukeni seemed to be enjoying the attention, but Rantan eventually cleared his throat and called loudly, “All right, all right, that’s enough! Give the guys some space, now!” He turned to Kai, Kaeden, and Jukeni. “You three look exhausted. Let’s get you in the dining hall where you can get some food and—” “Just a minute,” a quiet voice rang authoritatively through the air. The hubbub fell to a hush. As one, the group of rebels turned and cast their gazes upon the young dog-man returning from the building he had entered. With him was another human. “Tinny Bird,” one voice muttered. Another shushed him, and they became quiet. Kai peered past the shoulders of Kaeden and Jukeni and set his eyes upon this mysterious leader of the Pawreles rebellion. The very first thing that struck Kai was that he was short. The man was barely four feet tall. While certainly not fat, his physique was stout, and he walked with a quick stride across the courtyard. Dark, piercing eyes glinted beneath a shaggy mop of light, gray-streaked curly hair. Facial hair lined his sharp, bony features. Upon his small torso he wore a faint blue-colored tunic that matched dark leggings, which were tucked into his child-sized boots. Two pouches and a thin dagger accompanied the leather belt wound about his waist.
As the short man neared, a flash of silver glinted in the fading sunlight. Kai looked and realized with a jolt that a large curved hook was attached to the man’s left hand. The hook had been sharpened to a deadly point and polished thoroughly. Some intricate carvings decorated its base where it was attached to the leather that clung to his wrist, too small for Kai to see. The hook swung by the man’s side just as easily as his other hand did, as if the hook had grown there naturally. Briskly Tinny Bird stepped past the other rebels and stopped in front of Jukeni, Kaeden and Kai. He gave them all a keen look. His voice was surprisingly deep and gravelly. “So, you two made it out alive.” He looked up at Kaeden and Jukeni and gave them nods of approval, though he didn’t smile. A permanent scowl seemed to be etched upon his face. “Well done—and the plans?” “Here.” Suddenly not as loud and jubilant as he was a minute ago, Jukeni took the slightly-wrinkled papers and handed them over to Tinny Bird. The short man took them, glanced at them briefly, then folded and stuck them into one of the pouches on his belt. “Who’s this, then?” He cast his gaze upon Kai. “This is Kai,” Jukeni offered. “He helped us escape General Daigsohn and his troops last night when they tried to arrest us at my mom’s house. He’s awesome.” “He, in short, saved our lives.” Kaeden addressed this to the crowd. “We wouldn’t be here without Kai, and you wouldn’t have the plans to Lord Hälogen’s castle.” Kai felt a surge of pride when he saw the majority of the rebels look upon him with new curiosity and admiration. Tinny Bird, however, did not seem all that impressed—or, if he was, he didn’t show it. The only change in his dark expression was one eyebrow being raised. “That so?” He met Kai’s gaze. Kai felt like he was meeting the gaze of a child with facial hair who wore a grown man’s scowl. “We’re in your debt, Kai,” the rebellion leader said gruffly. “You returned to us two good warriors and what could be the key to us getting the advantage in this war. We don’t have much, but—how can we repay you?” “I want to join the rebellion,” Kai declared.
That caused a stir in the crowd. Men and women muttered to one another in low voices, their tones of surprise evident. The only reaction Tinny Bird granted was the raise of his other eyebrow. “Indeed? And just what do you think you have that we can use?” Kai wanted to bristle at the note of derision in his voice, but he only replied, “I can fight. I have talents unlike anything anyone here’s ever seen.” “Huh.” Tinny Bird crossed his arms and seemed to be regarding Kai. For a second, Kai thought he could see the hint of a smirk beneath the older man’s thin beard. “All right, then. I’ll let you prove it.” Tinny Bird used his hook to gesture to one of the cloaked men. “Bring me two swords. We’re going to see what Kai’s got.” Without needing an order, the crowd backed away, forming a wide circle around Tinny Bird and Kai. Kai had the sudden impression of being back in Master Chen’s arenas, when he and his team had to fight other Elemental Masters in order to win back Zane—this situation, however, should be somewhat easier than the Tournament of Elements. He tried to hide his own smirk as he regarded the short man standing before him. This’ll be a piece of cake. The man returned bearing two swords in scabbards. He handed one to Tinny Bird and the other to Kai. Kai accepted the weapon without much thought, until he felt its weight in his hand. What the…? He gave it another look and raised his eyebrows in surprise. The sword he held was straight as a line. In Ninjago, the good swords always had a curve to them; this gave the katana an elegant advantage in cutting and slashing. This sword he held right now felt more like a long, crude tool than a weapon. Suddenly wondering if this was some sort of stupid prank, he cast a quick look at Tinny Bird. The rebellion leader didn’t seem to notice anything was amiss. He slipped his own straight sword out of its scabbard and tossed it away. He gripped the hilt with one hand, leaving his hook hand free. “Ready?”
OK, Kai thought to himself as he copied Bird’s movement and slid his own sword out of its scabbard. I guess these are what Pawreles swords are like. Experimentally, he shifted the weight of the weapon in his hands. It felt heavier than a regular katana would, and the weight wasn’t as delicately balanced as it should. Stupid. What, do people just hack at each other with these things like overgrown butterknives? “What’s the matter?” Bird smirked faintly. “Have you never seen a sword before?” No, you people just don’t know how to make good ones. Kai was tempted to say this out loud, but decided to keep it to himself. He only curled his lip at the short man and said, “How about we quit talking and start fighting?” The weight and power that smashed itself into Kai’s broad blade nearly threw him off his feet. As the crowd gasped, startled, Kai felt himself staggering backwards several paces, stunned. Tinny Bird, having lunged forward a pace to smack the blade of his sword against Kai’s, stepped back. Once more, he arched his eyebrows at Kai. “Then pay attention.” Kai felt his face flush. Quickly, he regained his balance and took the traditional fighting stance he would if he were holding a katana; his right foot pointing forward, his left foot pointing somewhat the opposite direction. Though it felt heavy and clumsy in his hands, he raised the sword up to eye level, bending his arms so that the weapon was held horizontally next to his face. Tinny Bird seemed to be regarding Kai with something like puzzlement. “That’s a new one.” Abruptly, Kai was aware of a few mutters coming from the crowd. He didn’t turn to look at the audience—no way was he going to lose his concentration now—but he realized that the Pawrelesers had probably never seen this sort of fighting stance before. This theory was confirmed when Tinny Bird placed his feet in position similar to Kai’s, but held his sword lower, so that it shielded his torso at a peculiar angle. “Use your fire!” Jukeni called from the thick of the audience. “Jukeni…” Kaeden said warningly.
No one seemed to take notice of Jukeni’s random comment. Kai himself decided to ignore it. This is going to be a fair fight. Tinny Bird spoke again, still keeping his stance. “That how you hold your swords where you’re from, Kai?” There was a faint note of mockery in his voice. “We know how to use them right,” Kai retorted loftily. “If you say so.” Tinny Bird came at him again, low this time. Kai was prepared for the action, but not for how his opponent moved. In some adept twist of his arm, the rebellion leader slashed up. Kai made a move to deflect the blow, but to his dismay, the sword he held was slow and awkward, and the movement of swinging it down as he would a katana somehow made the weapon nearly slip out of his hands. Bird didn’t even need to avoid it. He simply ignored the ungainly move and smacked Kai’s thigh smartly with the flat of his blade. Though the thin material of his pants, Kai felt the sting keenly. Get it together, man. Hurriedly, he adjusted his grip on the hilt and held his sword at a lower angle, attempting to copy Bird’s stance. Before he could think of what to do, however, Bird came at him once more. This time Kai managed to take a couple steps back and block a couple of the blows, though they were wild and clumsy—and he had a feeling that the older man was merely toying with Kai for the moment. Frustration made Kai’s blood heat up beneath his skin. Sure, he wasn’t used to the sword, but he should be better than this! With a cry, he swung and launched himself at Tinny Bird. The short man sidestepped the overhead swipe with ease, smiling as he did so. The weight of Kai’s sword threw him off-balance again. Determined to get the hang of it, he once again adjusted his grip on the hilt and spun around to face Bird. He hopped forward and swung again.
Perplexed, Cole looked. For the first time, he saw that Little Leaf, in her small bakeneko body, was sitting in Nya’s lap. The expression on the calico’s face was one of complete awe and fascination. Her eyes were nearly as wide as dinner plates and her jaw hung open by a few inches as her gaze remained solidly fixed upon the flashing TV screen. More than a few times she’d flinch and bristle at some explosion. In these moments she’d sometimes duck her head beneath Nya’s chin or bury herself in the human’s arms, trembling from head to paw. When this happened, Nya would grin mildly and give a reassuring pat on the back or stroke her around the ears. Yet in all this, the little Moon Tribe shapeshifter seemed to be having the time of her life. “Can you believe it?” Jay whispered, following Cole’s gaze. “Little Leaf’s never seen a movie before! A movie! I decided it was time to culture her.” He beamed up at Cole. “And what better way to introduce your little sister to the world of theater than getting her into the Starfarer fandom?” Cole gave Lloyd a quick glance. He was sitting at the other end of the couch, also watching the movie and occasionally giving Little Leaf an amused look. Cole figured he was sitting away from her so as not to inhale her fur and give himself an allergy attack. “She’s not my sister,” Cole muttered. “We have different sets of parents.” Jay shrugged indifferently. “Well, you both share a brother and a sister.” Cole felt a scowl trying to edge its way onto his face. Jay didn’t seem to notice his irritation, turning his gaze back to the movie. One of the main characters was in the middle of their death scene. Fritz Donnegan—the lead hero of the series, as Cole recalled—was crouching over them and desperately and dramatically exchanging final words with his friend (or his brother—Cole couldn’t really remember). “Oh, no!” Little Leaf’s stricken cry made Cole glance at her again. The little cat was bristling all over, and her ears were flat upon her head with horror. “What’s going to happen? Is there anything we can do?”
Aw, she's never seen a movie before, that's adorable. XD
*snip* One of the main characters was in the middle of their death scene. Fritz Donnegan—the lead hero of the series, as Cole recalled—was crouching over them and desperately and dramatically exchanging final words with his friend (or his brother—Cole couldn’t really remember). “Oh, no!” Little Leaf’s stricken cry made Cole glance at her again. The little cat was bristling all over, and her ears were flat upon her head with horror. “What’s going to happen? Is there anything we can do?”
Aw, she's never seen a movie before, that's adorable. XD
I thought we were all due for some Little Leaf cuteness.
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