March, 28 2007

"Lillianna is now den mother...
everyone knows she is pregnant.
Some people know it's with a metis.
Sadly we also know there is a chance she may die..."

There are many things I have found out about the caern and garou society...
firstly, I am indeed werewolf I have come to terms with this, and have found that
my past means nothing now. Now that I have learned the basics of shifting I have
been confronted and asked to help the newer cubs... I have doubts about them.

I was asked by Lillianna to provide a challenge, for Grace's rite of passage, and
after talking with Grace about how she is always being betrayed. I am glad this was
a non-personal attack, to prove her worth.

The objective I was given was to test Grace to see if she was ready to become
Cleioth, the rank after cub (Rank 1) her challenge was to guard a pregnant fostern
from attack.

My first plan was to draw away Grace and leave her cub unguarded then to have
my pack close in and take out the cub. Using a sneak attack from the Umbra.

The first attack was prevented due to Elona's interference, and to the confirmation
of my fears that the cubs were not trained well in combat, they are strong, but they
are afraid of attack.

I dropped out of the Umbra in a surprise attack, and had but two seconds before
being hit. Grace hit me across the face with her boken, I heard it connect with one
of the other cubs. Then I heard something that almost made me lose control, the
thump of running feet. This is the first change I will make if I become cub alpha, I
will lead their training regiments. I understand that they are new... but to abandon
a fight this early and easily...

I found myself out-manned and overpowered, there was no choice for me to take
but regroup and lead another attack.

With this development in the course of things I have come to realize, the task ahead
of me will not be a simple one.

It is odd though last night I told Grace that I wouldn't challenge her position as
alpha. And yet that is what I have ended up doing. I have basically evicted Grace
from her position as alpha via means of advancement. Perhaps peoples views of me
as a Shadow Lord were correct. I want to be honest but something tells me I have
a future in this caern for something special.

The next challenge I presented was to bring in force. At this point I should comment
that it is agreed upon that there should be no lethal force and no gifts are to be used. I
was joined by a guhral who suggested that a garous strength is in numbers. Which led
me to the idea that I should try and recruit a stronger force, Therin was his name, I
will use his help in the future. However at this point I recruited Flash Gordan, a Bone
Gnawer of Silent Strider aspect, and a female garou, whom I have spoken little to,
I must remember to speak with her.

With my new force we set out in an honorable fashion to fight with Grace, we found
her not far from the den. After reacquainting ourselves with the challenge we prepared
to fight. Elona, the wise girl she is, threw a challenge to make me either drop my boken
or to run away, I am a warrior at heart. I dropped my weapon, but she was persistent
she used intimidation, which would have worked had Therin not stepped in. Therin
held a challenge against Elona to make her either stand down or run away, she is a
warrior as well... she stood down.

I dodged Graces boken, grabbed it broke her leg and beat her with her boken. In
essence I would have won had the battle not gone in a completely opposite turn
there was a grand fight, but unfortunately things took a turn for the worse. The cubs
know nothing of the heat of battle, in this battle they chose to watch and stand out
of harms way. It is odd that I ended up fighting off two opponents, and they, the
stronger fighters stood away and fought no one. Unfortunately after a while Flash
decided that honor was no longer important and he used a gift. Falling touch, on Elona
she was doing nothing and he used falling touch on her, a humiliation to a great warrior.

I close saying only that next week I will be cub alpha... I have proven my skill.

Stephens Story

Running down the trail Stephen felt the sweat of his brow fall to the ground, his shirt soaked with blood and matted fur. He turned the corner to find a cave entrance, and a man.

"What is your name?" The stranger asked, blocking Stephen from entering the cave.
"Whats going on? I need help!" Stephen spoke speedily.
"What happened?" The man interrupted.
"Last night I passed out... well I guess it was a bit before that. I started drinking and got relatively smashed. At the time my friends Karen and Michel were acting up and started having a fight. I walked in to see what was going on... and passed out."

Stephen recollected looking at the man in front of him with some curious regard. He and his garb looked Asian, he was draped in what looked like priests clothing and had two swords at his belt.

"When I woke up I was covered in blood and had fur matted to my skin, my shirt was torn and my friends were nowhere to be seen. I ran for fear and that brings me here." At this the man took Stephen by the arm and brought him inside. The entrance was crowded with people.

"Who is this?" A woman asked looking at Stephen in his tattered clothes and ragged appearance.
"A new cub." The man told the woman. Leaving out the door he had just entered.
"Another one?" The woman muttered, she was dark skinned and her garb was fit for a priestess.

Just then a man in a Russian trench coat entered the cave accompanied by the man in priests clothing. Everyone stopped and bowed, Stephen sat down and watched the procession. The Russian
was taken into the next catacomb and Stephen got up to gather more information.

"Stop! Your filthy!" A strong broad Scottish man stopped him from entering the next room.
"Just cleanse him." The man spoke in a growling demanding tone.
"A cub? I'm not an animal!" Stephen spoke but shut up instantly and looked at his clothes.
What if... no

outside he was asked to stand a ways away from the enterance and wait to be cleansed. The woman raised her hands, and suddenly a slight drizzle of water was poured down upon his skin. He started scrubbing off the blood and hair matted to his clothes. The Scotsman stepped in and cast another spell, causing the water to downpour.

"You clean?" The Scotsman asked rhetorically.
"Who are you people" Stephen spoke but got no answer.

Inside he found the enterance even more packed with people, he waited for someone to notice him. Soon the man in priests garbs showed up again.

"Who are you?" Stephen asked the man.
"My name is Kensai, I am the pack protector." Kensai stated walking towards another man.
"This is the new cub."

Kensai gave Stephen to the new man, this one was dressed in green and looked rather less regal than the others Stephen had talked with. The man analyzed Stephen and said to follow him. They walked through the passageway and into a grand hall. A huge cave of mammoth
proportions. The hall had been packed, this room was crushing with twice as many people. They were of all different types, creeds, races, sexes, and some even looked to be mixed bags of all of it. Stephen looked around and noticed something that made him stop in his footsteps, there were not just humans here, there were wolves, in multitudes of sizes, what looked like cave men, and Werewolves.

"Oh f**k, thank god. I must still be dreaming, that would explain the rain." Stephen thought following the man in green.

Stephen followed him out the other side of the cave, into a smaller canal of passages. Into a cave that was filled with boxes and furniture.

"Sit I have much to tell you. My name is Gregory" The man said, in a polite suggestive manner.

Stephen sat and listened to a story of what had most likely happened to him his friends and why he was covered in fur. It had already been a long day, and he could still tell it was merely dawn. There was a noise at the catacomb door.

"Hey Greag how's it going? Oh a new cub great!" Gregory welcomed him into the room and continued on.

"So we are connected to Gaia. More so than humans, for we are wolf kin, Werewolf, Garou."

At this Stephen stood back and realized something important, something odd, something dire, and he only hoped he was dreaming.