Comm: Exploration | The Beach

Orange rock crumbled beneath Kuruk’s paws. He helped and jumped to a place with better footing. The greying brown dire huddled against the cliff face.

“Careful there, Kuruk.” A greying brown and dappled piebald doubled back from a broader path leading down the cliff face. He sniffed about the larger tokota’s lowered head, rubbing against him reassuringly. “Come now. We’re almost down.”

“I d-don’t want to go, Yansa. I want t-to go b-back.”

Arkadios snarled from ahead, causing the submissive dire to jump and tremble harder. “We are not sparing the time to escort you back.”

“Peace, Arkadios,” Yansa said. “I told you I would help him down. Let me do so.”

“We are wasting time!”

“We would already be down if you had not pushed him for the first three bends. You are a great alpha, Arkadios. You could be greater if you allowed compassion for those who follow you.”

“You dare say that to me with your back turned, venatori?”

“Because you know it to be true. Tell me, alpha, how full would you like our bags to be of healing herb for further mishaps due to your displays of brute domination so that you may continue to have a pack to lead?”

Arkadios growled, lips twitching. “I do not tolerate insubordination, Yansa. You are lucky you are valuable to me.”

“I know.”

Arkadios huffed and turned back around, advancing further along the shelf cut out of the cliff face.

Yansa turned back to Kuruk whose trembling had lessened for the shorter tokota’s honest defense. “Come, friend. We will make it down together.”

Kuruk sniffed and shifted his weight. “The ground moves under me, Yansa. I’ll fall.” A high hysterical giggle escaped him and Yansa licked his forehead and he cut it off.

“You won’t. Come, step where I step.” With one last rub for reassurance Yansa began to back up.

Kuruk cocked his head and inched his weight forward to the next step. Urged by the lighter tokota he placed every paw step exactly where Yansa’s feet had been. Yansa paused to turn around and pulled more healing herbs from the rock face to stuff into the packs strapped to his sides. The further they progressed the wider the shelf became for footing. Yansa breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Kuruk relax. The larger starmarked tokota was prone to crazed episodes where he could not be reasoned with.

Halfway down the cliff face Arkadios tightened the drawstrings on his packs. “Mine are full, Yansa. There are more here for Kuruk to each ahead.”

“How is the footing?” Yansa asked.

Arkadios tested the ground and edges under the plants in question. “Sturdy, and wide.”

“Alright, let us through.”

The dominant tokota obliged, pausing to watch as Yansa coaxed Kuruk to stand and brace his forepaws against the cliff face. He snorted at Kuruk’s reluctance and felt satisfaction at the other dire’s twitch. Yansa continued and at his words Kuruk took hold of the pink foxglove, albeit delicately, and pulled. He was gentle at first then gradually added more weight until he had the whole plant, roots and all.

“Good boy, Kuruk. Just let it drop. I’ll get it you just retrieve the others. Don’t forget the valerian.” Yansa tucked the plants into their packs.  

Arkadios snorted but nodded in approval. So it was all the way down to the white sand beach at the bottom of the cliff. Arkadios lead the way investigating the crooks and crevices where the jagged rocks met the sand. Few knew what this unexplored coast held and besides that he was hungry.

Kuruk was taken by excitement when his feet touched the sand and he hopped in place, whining and wagging his tail while Yansa struggled to loosen his packs.

“Alright, alright, just a moment.” Yansa was pulled closer to the water with each hop. He struggled with the buckle and snorted. “Kuruk, this would go faster if you held still.”

His words only made Kuruk pull harder. Yansa grumbled when the water washed over his toes but only when he was in up to his elbows in lapping waves did he manage to get the fastenings undone. Yansa snatched up the stuffed packs while Kuruk took off with great splaches and giving joyful howls.

Yansa sighed then chuckled under his breath and marched back to shore. He draped Kuruk’s packs over a collection of rocks and boulders then joined his part in Arkadios’s search. After hours of searching his portion of the beach Yansa found no more plants at the base of the cliff and returned to sit by the collection of boulders supporting Kuruk’s packs. When Arkadios doubled back along Yansa’s portion he sighed with barely concealed exasperation.

“There’s nothing there, Bear.”

“Determination can get you a lot of things, Yansa. You could have made out better yourself if you just pushed a little farther. Then an equally great reputation would precede you too.”

“Oh, I should be so honored that my name represent such fear as yours.”

“My name spreads obedience and respect.”

“Your name spreads control, yes,” Yansa said. “Beware, misbehavers, or the Bear will come gobble you up! Perhaps one day you will also be an enslaver equal only to those in human history.”

Arkadios’s growl turned to a roar in his charge across the white sand. The moist white material flew everywhere in clumps as he body slammed Yansa then pinned the smaller tokota to the ground. “You will learn respect!”

Yansa growled and pushed back at Arkadios but stilled when the dire did, submitting to the pin, knowing he could not win against the brute strength of the alpha and knowing also that he was in no further danger.

“I will not be undermined by insubordination. I know how you coddle my pack–”

“And tell me how their performance has worsened as a result.” Yansa was careful to keep his voice low, his tone calm. Though Arkadios had affirmed earlier on the cliffs that Yansa was valuable he had no doubt that this bold alpha would not hesitate to remove him for blatant subordination. Yansa shifted, wincing at the grit of the sand.

Yansa’s words did make Arkadios think. Since Yansa’s addition to his pack their performance had improved, marginally, he admitted, but enough to notice.

“I am trying to help you, alpha,” Yansa appealed.

Arkadios growled and applied pressure. Yansa forced himself to relax and huffed. After a few moments Arkadios released him and Yansa counted to ten before sitting up behind Arkadios. He followed the alpha’s gaze to Kuruk and waited, regaining his breath. They watched the starmarked dire splash in the teal water, diving under waves and shaking off great heaves of white spray from his fur.

“It wasn’t you who found the trails leading down here,” Arkadios said, “was it?”

“No. When Kuruk came to you, you were disciplining one of your more active troublemakers and Kuruk was terrified into a fit. So he came to me.”

Kuruk dove under another wave and came up with a wriggling fish between his jaws. He trotted towards the pair energetically but slowed under Arkadios’s gaze. Finally, he sank to his belly and crawled the last fifty feet to drop the barely twitching fish under Arkadios’s nose. Kuruk licked his chops as he backed off before whirling to throw himself into the water again.

“I know your methods are effective, alpha,” Yansa said, “and I respect them, but not all your pack members need such heavy teeth.” 

“Hm. Perhaps.”

- FIN -