The Lead Crown, Chapter 1-6: Malcom
Tranquil Waters: The Lead Crown Ch 1-6, Malcom
The tent was dark when Malcom opened his eyes-- three hours until dawn, by his estimation. The large, curvaceous body of a bear woman from the Valley Tribe rested within his arms, while the svelt, slender, yet still hintingly masculine form of a Jungle Tribe leopard clung to him from behind. Neither of his lovers had noticed the movement of the tent's flap. The wolf withdrew from both of his bed partners and looked up. "What is it?" he inquired of the visitor, a young Yew Tribe buck.
"Many men wearing the Symbol have left their cities and are searching the countryside." the messenger explained in the tribal tongue, lingering at the entrance to the tent.
Malcom sat up more fully, disturbing both the bear and the leopard. Still bleary-eyed, both of his lovers moved to cling to one another, snuggling back down into the many loose fur blankets that covered them. He didn't need any further explanation regarding the men wearing 'the Symbol'; to the Tribes, 'the Symbol' always referred to to the church. Why the church would be out in force was of secondary importance... "Where?" he inquired, as it was the more important question; he spoke the deer's language out of courtesy.
"They have not come to the Tribelands... yet." the buck responded, answering the underlying question the wolf had been wondering, "Just the lands of the Rock Tribe."
The Rock Tribe-- that was the name for the people of Lehsunia. Why would the church be conducting wide spread deployment of their people around the settled lands? Was it the latest move by the church to exert its influence in an attempt to overthrow the University's?... or Noriene's? He focused instead on the young runner, who apparently was waiting for permission to provide further information. "Go on." he bade the buck.
"The Yew Tribe's traders have seen the men of the Symbol following after many city men coming toward the Tribe Lands." he cleared his throat, stepping from one hoof to the other before adding, "They think there may be a wolf of the Oak Tribe with them."
That comment got a raise out of Malcom's ears. He had spent several years with the Oak Tribe and he had never found them to have any real interest in the Lehsunians. "How far away are the Yew Tribe scouts from them?"
"I do not know." the buck replied, "But I believe they are following the people the men of the Symbol are after."
"Is the Yew Tribe willing to find out why these people are wanted by the men of the Symbol?" Malcom asked, finally climbing out of the mass of pillows and furs that was his bed.
The buck's eyes trailed over his naked form with an obvious sense of appreciation, but the runner stuck to his task of information, "One of the men is a man of the Symbol, but he does not speak like the rest do... he is a..." the young deer paused, and slowly tried to sound out a word that fell oddly from his muzzle, as it was not from the language of the tribe lands.
"Heathen." Malcom spoke it for him, "He speaks against the men of the Symbol."
"Yes." the buck nodded in response.
"I would be grateful if the Yew Tribe could find out more." the wolf responded, reaching out a paw to rest it on the young messenger's shoulder, "I will be among your people in five day's time... will they be able to find out more for me?"
"Yes." the buck confirmed confidently.
"Spirits lend you speed." it was a parting phrase that all of the tribes understood, and was considered a blessing of courtesy to any messenger. Without another word, the deer nodded, and about faced, disappearing off into the distance at great pace; Malcom had always respected the skill of the Yew Tribe messengers.
"Mmmm..." a soft rumbling purr called to the wolf from behind. Turning around, Malcom saw his male lover seated up in bed, eyes gazing at him, "Your concerns are never few, Wild Wolf." the young leopard spoke to him in the Lehsunian tongue rather than that of the Tribes. "Come back to bed..." The feline had made a point to learn it.
"As you said, Ja'ir... I have many concerns." the wolf responded in Lehsunian as well. He moved to a large wooden desk, one of the few non-tribal items decorating his tent. Malcom sat down in the desk's matching chair and pulled a piece of parchment from one of the drawers along with a quill and an ink well.
"It is too early for scratching letters." Ja'ir offered, half-way between a pout and a yawn, "Every time you use the feather it ends poorly when responses come."
"Whether the response is good or bad, I feel better knowing it." Malcom explained, returning their conversation to the tribal tongue.
"The place of learning..." the leopard spoke up, slowly disengaging from the female bear, who, blearily, clung to his torso, "the... University..." the Lehsunian word rolled off his muzzle unevenly, but with the practice of someone who sought to learn, "...you have not spoke of it since you found out about the great fire."
"It is not my place to worry about." the wolf countered, putting pen to paper as he began writing a missive.
"But you worry anyway." the leopard's arms slid across the tops of Malcom's shoulders as he began to gently massage them, "If you worry about it, you should do something about it... it is the best way to make the worry go away."
"I do not desire to step on my sister's toes." Malcom responded as he continued composing his letter.
"Step on--?" Ja'ir began.
The wolf quickly changed the turn of phrase into a suitable one for the tribal tongue, "I do not want to sit in her spot."
"Ah..." the leopard confirmed, his paws running down the front of Malcom's chest as he embraced him, "But you still worry, Wild Wolf... do you not?"
"Yes." he confirmed, and finished writing out his letter. "I am done." he confirmed, and slid the missive into an envelope, "I will send this in the morning."
"The Jungle Tribe has traders returning from Vallara... you can question them when we arrive." Ja'ir offered, not-so-subtly reminding Malcom that the MAIN reason the leopard had come to the Valley Tribe camp was to collect him for his stay among the Jungle Tribe. That, and to spend the night with him... but primarialy to bring him back to the Jungle Tribe.
"Good." the wolf acknowledged, and stood.
"The Valley Tribe traders returned yesterday." the female bear spoke up from the bedding; she had apparently finally found an interest in their conversation, "My father was not with them..." she slowly sat up, "They said that he was late because men from across the waters brought violence to the city."
"Your father is still in Newport, Keiara?" Malcom inquired, then paused, "What did they say about the men?"
"Tahnka said that they were men from across the water... they traveled on the big boats." she sat up, the lighter cloths beneath the furs clinging to her voluptuous form with the tenacity of a dedicated lover... but the rising dread in Malcom's chest meant the sight went almost completely unappreciated.
"What were the flags?" the wolf paused, knowing most Tribals had no care for standards or heraldry, "Colors... what colors did they wear?"
"One group of men wore a soft purple... like the color of the sun setting on the ocean." her words were poetic, which made sense coming from Keiara, who had been training for years to become one of the Valley Tribe's story tellers.
"Ilyse." Malcom acknowledged, the cold grip on his heart squeezing, "The others... blue and brown?"
"Like a spring day sky, and the hue of freshly churned earth." the bear woman confirmed with a nod, "You know of these men?"
"Wyra." the wolf answered, "I know both of them." he sighed, shaking his head, "Did the traders say how your father became involved?"
"No." she admitted, "Only that men wearing the mark of the Newport people took him from the trading places and did not tell them if he would come back."
Malcom truly felt for Keiara. He knew that she was worried but, like most of her tribe, the bear woman was very good at controlling her emotions. What made him feel worse was that his concern for her was second only to his abject fear that something was quickly boiling over in Newport. If there had been an altercation between Ilyse and Wyra then Lehsunia would be held responsible. With his brother and sister at odds, there would certainly be no clear-cut response to the pressing issue which meant, among other things, that he would have to revise his letter... URGENTLY.