[PRP] One Warrior To Another [Ajax x Yaotl Yolotli]

[Conrad The Mighty]

The volcano that was just barely visible from the tower in Milintic Square was always a source of mystery and wander for the old spirited, tribal male. He had only visited twice before and the end of the first trip was one of the Fire females had rudely driven him off. Of course he had to go back, he had only begun to figure it out. The second trip was a bit more of a success, bringing with him a couple of perspective Champions. Although he had no preconceived notions of the trip being a recruiting mission, wherever he went, he shared and some chose to support the cause. He had no ill will against those whom did not want to become a Champion, nor even those who did not want to hear about it. Sometimes it was nice not to repeat himself over and over again, yet others, it was inevitable, and even felt predestined. Ajax did not fancy himself as a vessel of whatever gods or omnipotent one(s), he just had strong instincts and knew when something just simply felt right. Such things would come in handy if he found himself in a battle or even a skirmish with one of these bands of ruffians he has heard were popping up.

Actually, he was rather looking forward to testing his gumption against someone. Not that he would ever bring such a situation upon himself, but if the circumstances were right, he would not back down if they were presented. It would one day be the job of the Rose Knights to patrol the most common routes between the various colonies of different tribe lands. But today, it was Ajax's right, not so much his responsibility. The breeze was far too sweet to bring any ill will to his paws. The closer to the 'Ring of Fire' territory, as he understood the Fire Tribe B'alam called it, the more sulfur mixed with the sweetness of blossoming berry bushes. It was tantalizingly seductive. But he did not intend on going there today, just close enough to take up the smell and let the world happen to him. The rather large realm was still relatively reclusive as far as residents was concerned. He may run into no one at all accept for a beautiful day.

Caitlyn Hellstorm

 

[Caitlyn Hellstorm]

Ever since he opened his pale eyes and found himself tossed into this brutal world fighting for his literal survival, but the result of that emotional and physical wringer was very severe. It left him blinded with physical, psychological and emotional scars along with a limp and a wound that will constantly open and ooze no matter what he does. There is a small blessing among the curse that he is forced to live with, whenever he is around fire sources (volcanos, fire and whatnot), his sight will return to him but he will be seeing blurry and vague shapes along with colors. Hence, Yaotl Yolotli never left the ring of fire territory and he have marked a quite good amount of property just for himself so he was pretty content with staying in that area where he is capable of seeing blurry colors and figures.

One day, the male turns his pale eyes toward the edge of the massive area that allows him to see vaguely and there is a tingle of curiosity to what is out there but he knows that when he moves away from ring of fire, his sight will fade out into darkness. His tail twitches as it unfurls away from his body and he starts that slow painstaking trek toward the edge, his pale eyes darts all over the place while he mentally prepares himself to rely heavily on other four senses he have. He immediately senses that someone is already at the edge and his vision is already fading out because he is moving away from the area, his ears twitches while his tail sways back and forth like a blind person's cane would do.

He lifts his head up into air, drawing in a deep breath, taking in every scents that is there and that someone's scent reached his nose. "Male.." His raspy voice whispers as he turns his head into the male's direction. His pristine white horns gleams in the sunshine as he steps out of the shadows, looking like he just materializes out of nowhere. "Identify yourself and your purpose of lurking near here." He rumbles the command out.

Conrad The Mighty

 

[Conrad The Mighty]

The male knew a command when he heard one. He wasn't exactly used to obeying them, but he did not want to cause the effect of not adhering. Perhaps he had stepped onto someone else's 'property' or there was some other reason his presence would make another uncomfortable. He pondered through a bow, but when the male's eyes did not follow him, he figured the all black Fire Tribesman was blind. That fact, along with the rest of the male's appearance was a simple enough explanation.

"I am Ajax, and I mean you no harm, Sir. " As normal, his tone was deep and his words were sharp. At this point, there was nothing to say that did not need to be said. He continued, "Curiosity is my purpose." If there was ever to be a war between two prides, Ajax wanted to know where the weak points and strong holds of each realm laid. Not necessarily for the purpose to attack, but more along the lines of support. Yeah, that's it.

This B'alam was slightly bigger than Ajax, who had fancied himself a quite the buff male. Whomever took down this great male was either among a large number or someone Ajax needed to be be weary of. The fact that this individual was still alive was either a feat of glory, an act of mercy, or an oversight on the part of the other party. If he were permitted to launch an inquiry, he would take the opportunity.

Caitlyn Hellstorm

 

[Caitlyn Hellstorm]

A tiny self-deprecating smile appears and disappears from his muzzle when he could sense that the male is finally realizing that the male he's talking to is blind and his pale blue eyes flickers to the spot where he assumes that the male is at. He quickly got used to the stares, and the barrage of questions that would come soon enough if he ever let in the fact that he will answer those questions.. it wasn't like that in his early days. His temper and sharp tongue have been tempered and now its under tight rein while he stood there, stoically.

When the male spoke of his name and his purpose, Yaotl Yolotli shifts his head little bit so his now measuring eyes are 'staring' at the male while he mentally analyzes the tone and sharpness of the words. His tail stopped swaying and curls up around his hind leg as a small odd smile appears on his muzzle. "I pity you.." He softly says in his raspy voice as he tilts his head to side, sensing things around him. "Naive..." He tilts his head to opposite side while a small odd smile disappeared from his muzzle. With a sigh, he leans heavily on his non injured leg. "I am Yaotl. Curiosity is your purpose. From the sound of your voice, you are not Fire." He simply says as he lifts his head to upright position. "So what are you?"

Yaotl Yolotli could feel that the male's curiosity is going to kill him if he continued to be stoic and not letting him ask him all of those same old questions he have been hearing after he survived the wringer. He decides to just keep the male that calls himself Ajax hanging for now until he gets all of answers he wants from him first. The dark red spot starts to bloom on the fresh bandage and he mentally sighs to himself because that wound seems to be a curse or a constant reminder that the world is a merciless place and he needs to constantly be on his guard.

Conrad The Mighty

Couldn't sleep @v@

 

[Conrad The Mighty]

An insult? That was not a very good way to kick this shindig off with. He was going to laugh, but that was almost more insulting than calling someone you cannot see an undesired name. Perhaps it was his tone that offered this misconception. To correct that, his voice was unweavering but his tone rang more authoritative.

"I assure you, being curious, does not make someone naive." He was no cub, nor freshly awoken gilly. But he also had nothing to gain by this blind B'alam to see that, so he was not going to push it.

"I am of the Earth Tribe, but I need none of your pity." He too stood stoic with no malice in his words, in a mexican stand off of will. While it was probably this fire male which deserved the pity, he offered none. This Fire B'alam was talking down to him, he had no idea just who Ajax was. But that was alright, he wasn't going to push it. He did not need his standing in the clan to speak for him, it was not a part of his moral fiber, just something that he is doing.

Ajax also got the sense that if these two could get along, they just might have quite a few things in common.

Caitlyn Hellstorm

 

[Caitlyn Hellstorm]

As another male's unwavering and authoritative voice reaches to Yaotl's ears, he couldn't help but to smirk when he realizes what another male is trying to do and he shakes his head little bit with a soft sigh. From the sound of another male's voice, Yaotl already passed a personal judgment that Ajax haven't really seen the full extent of the world like he have so in his book, the male is still naive. "Curiosity..." He rasped out the word as a ghost of smile appears on his muzzle. "doesn't mean you are naive." Yaotl already knows that he is getting off on wrong paw with this male and frankly, he doesn't really care about the cordiality.

"Your voice and your way of posturing..." He says with a small laugh. "is what makes you naive." The male could tell that Ajax is no threat as he settles down on his hunches, looking relaxed while his sightless eyes moves all over the place, his ears twitching while he takes in the surroundings through sound and touch. "Earth..." He turns his head back toward the direction where the voice is located. He takes in a deep breath as he wish there is a fire source nearby so he could get a feel of what colors he is.

"You might don't need my pity but I certainly didn't give you any." His raspy voice is filled with amusement. "I was just simply stating that its a pity that you are the way you are right now." The familiar throbbing appears in his injured leg as he knows that the bandage is on its way to becoming soaked... again so he casually lifts his paw up off the ground to lessen the pressure on his leg. "What are you curious about, Ajax?" He finally inquires while his head faces in general direction of the male he's interacting with right now.

Conrad The Mighty

 

[Conrad The Mighty]

"I cannot apologize for my voice any more than you can for bleeding." The reddening of the bandage had not escaped his notice. There were a lot of other things he could have said to spit back at him, but he chose silence. What would this all black male perfer? Ajax walk up to him and say 'damn! you look like a right git! someone must have played with their food so much it bit them back, guess i get to finish the job' -kill- I think not.

Ajax was actually getting fa little irritated and exhibited it only by rubbing his tongue along his back teeth as his jaw clenched. His breath faltered not, nor did he make any sounds to give it away. This male just said the words 'i pity you' then said 'i didn't give you any pity'. Come on.. You may be messed up, but use a little logic, please! What does his voice and his way of posturing have to do with the way he was right now? Instead of spitting out something nasty, Ajax decided instead to use the opportunity to pick the other's mind. He spoke still strong and reserved. He didn't have to explain himself to anyone.

"Then tell me, what is the way to be?" Ajax was expecting some thug answer and began to form an idea to answer the mystery of how this male's appearance came to be.

Caitlyn Hellstorm

 

[Caitlyn Hellstorm]

The male didn't react as Ajax pointed out about the bleeding because there is nothing he could do about it right now. His stash of bandages is in his den and its a good distance away from where they are right now so all he have to do is be patient and go through this interaction before he could go to hunt to replenish the blood inside him. His mangled whiskers twitches as he could sense mild irritation filling the air and its certainly not from him, he licks his maw while he continues to look in the direction of the male (or at least he thinks he was, he was few centimeters off).

Yaotl knows that he can be quite confusing sometimes, saying one thing but change the story in next breath but he knows that keeping others confused will work in his benefit. As the male's question reaches to his ear, his pale eyes finally connected with Ajax's eyes when he finally got the exact position. "That question have many answers. It is tailored for each individual. My way might not be yours. Yours might not be mine. So I can't answer that question." He simply says as his tail unfurls away from his body, swaying in the air.

"I am fully aware that you were expecting some kind of rough or tough answer from me." He says in soft raspy voice as a flicker of amused smile appears on his face. Yaotl pushes himself off the ground with a muted groan as his leg throbs angrily and he limps over in Ajax's direction. "I am blind. I am a cripple in so many ways. I have scars all over me." He says softly as his pale blue eyes stares Ajax down in silence. "So naturally...." A wry smile appears on his muzzle as he shakes his head little bit, "balams are going to assume the worst about me."

Conrad The Mighty

 

[Conrad The Mighty]

"You assume much, Blind One." Ajax did not receive what he was expecting either way. But he was able to learn something useful about the male after all, that was a win in his mind. If he wouldn't offer a name, the fire male would earn various nicknames in the process. It didn't matter to him that the male couldn't exactly guess where he was, all things considered. This one also had invisible scars deep in his mind. Not too surprising actually.

"But unfortunately," Ajax continued, repositioning himself into a more relaxed stance. "I do agree with you on one point. I could not see or imagine you living my life, as I cannot see myself living yours." It would indeed be very difficult for the Rose Chief of the Bayeux Clan to be a blind B'alam. As this male has surely done, he would be forced to learn life in a whole new way. A day in the life of this damaged black one, would be interesting to say the least. But if he is crushed in spirit, it could be as difficult as being blind. Who is to say which form of cripple is worse than the last?

With these thoughts, he could approach the conversation from a different place of understanding.

"What is it you are doing so far from the heart of the fire of the volcano? Your kind feels empty without it, does it not?"

Caitlyn Hellstorm

Man this is so much more tense than I thought it would be! lol

 

[Caitlyn Hellstorm]

Yaotl's tail flips to other side of his body with a thump as he listens to Ajax's voice and the surrounding noises at the same time. "I assume...." He says in that raspy amused voice of his as he lifts his chin up in a way that would remind anyone that he's still a warrior regardless his disabilities. "I don't assume things, I make my observations based on what I hear or see." In his opinion, everyone walks down the path that are designed for them and won't be able to completely understand each other's experiences so in this case, Ajax is the young and naive one between those two.

His pale blue eyes disappears behind his lids for few moments while he takes in the sounds of the birds calling out to each other and uses that sound to keep himself on even keel. "Indeed. From the sound of your voice, you are leading a pack of your own or are looking to lead one." He softly says as he turns his head away from Ajax, revealing more scars down his neck indicating that someone tried to grab a hold of his throat and rip it out. His actions seems to be slow and deliberate as he turns his head back toward the male in front of him just in time to hear Ajax's two questions.

"I would say curiosity but I have a feeling you would throw the naive thing back in my face." He says with a wry smile twisting on his muzzle, there is a glimmer of white fang among the black. "So I am going to tell you that I am just exploring and getting to know the area around Ring of fire." He pauses as he shifts his weight to injured leg, causing the blood to ooze out more faster. "We do feel empty without it but at same time, we can get by with a source of fire no matter how big or small it is if we have to travel away from the volcanoes." He simply says. Bringing his injured leg up to his muzzle, his pink rough tongue starts to lap up at the blood that is staining his black fur and his eyes continues to stay fixed in the direction he knows Ajax is at.

Conrad The Mighty

XDD I know right? I blame Yaotl for this!

 

[Conrad The Mighty]

The heart of a warrior, Ajax was not phased by this 'warrior's' injuries, no matter how much he tried to rub it in his face that he had sustained such great injury and persevered. As he listened to the male contradict himself, he could do nothing but silently smirk and flip his tail. This conversation seemed to be going in circles, and Ajax's solid resolve was wearing thin.

There was only a few ways he could see this coming to an end: rudely, abruptly, violently, or politely. Some where in the discourse, this conversation became a match of wit and power. It wasn't a game he had much experience with against such a formidable opponent. When he looked at it from that perspective, this became much more interesting. How could he win this verbal battle without any low blows? As the Fire Male lapped up his own blood, he tilted his head for a moment, but it didn't phase him any more than that. He slowly began to circle

Ajax stood up and stretched himself out, then slowly began to circle the other.. There was no way out of the two of them, that Ajax was the naive one. Even if Ajax was closer to the beginning of his path than this nameless Fire Tribesman, he knew where his path was leading him. He would have a bright future, the highlight of this one's life was behind him.

"Thank you for the information." Truly, it could be helpful in the future. "Maybe you should get back to your fire, coteries that wound. An obvious observation, it seems that most of your injuries are on the front of your body.. That would lead me to believe you were the instigator of this tragedy that has befallen your body. The only question I have, is did the other B'alam escape with his life?" Purposely, he neglected the other's correct assumption of a 'pack'.

Caitlyn Hellstorm

 

[Caitlyn Hellstorm]

His tail curls up against his hunches as the male continues to tend to that cursed wound on his leg, he appeared to be completely relaxed but the looks can be deceiving sometimes. Yaotl pauses for a minute when he senses another male getting up and the shift in the air tells him that the male is now circling around him. He didn't turn his head as the male goes behind him because he knows that Ajax will get an eyeful of scars on his back as well, although.. those scars are more subtle than the ones on front of his body.

Closing his sightless eyes, Yaotl was a picture of calm and composure on outside but on inside, he's tense and wary, waiting for Ajax to attack or dictate what they will do next. When Ajax spoke again, he opens his eyes with a hint of smirk flickering across his face and shifts his head toward the direction of the voice, amused at how he thinks that this wound on his leg could be cauterized. He have tried so many different things to heal or close this wound but it continues to bleed to his annoyance. The male just simply gave up and crafted himself pile of bandages to use whenever he needs to replace them.

"Instigator?" Yaotl says with a little raspy laugh as he shakes his head little bit with a sigh. He is led to believe that Ajax is trying to ask him the questions by using runabout way instead of direct and that caused Yaotl to be irritated with him but he refuses to show any emotions. He is not the one to beat around the bushes or take a long way around to ask questions, if he want answers, he will ask questions directly and get it done with. "I wish then I would probably be better off than this current stage." he simply says. If Ajax wanted to play this game, then he shall play it as well. "It wasn't just one B'alam." He stretches his body out as his claws extends out, kneading into the earth. "There were so many more than just one, young one."

Conrad The Mighty

Sorry about the wait. Have been feeling blarg lately.

 

[Conrad The Mighty]

Very rarely did Ajax ever expose his 'tell', that even minute reaction of frustration when a twist turns an outcome unfavorably. For him it was a twitch in his cheek bone just under one of his eyes. And very few things ever triggered it. Being called 'young one' was a new trigger he could add to the list now. What he gave to the black fire male was a silent pause where he silently drew in a slow breath and let it go.

Ajax watched the B'alam's power play maneuver and smirked to himself. Perhaps this meeting was more evenly matched than he thought.

"I see. Well then was it mercy that lead the aggressors to let you retain your life? Or do you suppose this was their desired outcome?" His tone had a little grumble in it to accentuate his point.Honestly, Ajax wondered how he could still be alive. Perhaps his persistence was a personality fault, a little taste of poison.

There was a tribe Ajax had not yet gotten the opportunity to learn much about yet, and that was the light tribe. But information from the Wind Triber he had traded for said they had unmeasurable healing powers. But if the information came easily to Ajax, he assumed the other would figure it out eventually. The information coming from him may sound disingenuous in the end.

On the other hand, what would the male do with the information? Throw it back at him, or purposely never take that avenue of possibility because it was first introduced by a stranger such as Ajax? What a conundrum.

Caitlyn Hellstorm

No problem, I totally understand.

 

[Caitlyn Hellstorm]

With his eyes closed, the large male tilts his head slightly with his ears swiveling toward the direction Ajax is in and he sensed a little tension rising from the male along with the long exhale he did. With a slight smirk on his scarred muzzle, the male's tail swishes to other side and he pauses briefly at the questions that Ajax inquired, noting that there is some grumble in another male's voice. "Interesting..." Yaotl murmurs as he stands up to his fullest height and opens his pale eyes, staring down at Ajax with cold expression spreading through his facial features. "What makes you think they let me live? Let's ask them, shall we?" He rumbles the answering questions and his eyes widens little bit.

"Oh wait.. they all aren't alive." He finally says with a flash of fangs when he lifts one corner of his muzzle in a sardonic smile. "What makes you think I would allow anyone who attacks me to live?" He leans in closer to Ajax's face, his sightless eyes staring at another male like two flints of ice for few heartbeats before he turns away from Ajax, clearly not interested in this line of conversation anymore. "Young one..." He slants his sightless eyes over his shoulders in the general direction of Ajax. "You have so much to learn. Lesson one, if anyone attacks you with an intent to kill you.. you do not let them live."

"Second thing you need to learn, young one.." Yaotl is deliberately calling Ajax 'young one' due to his theory that it gets to Ajax and he starts to walk away from the large male. "Never assume that you have that right to ask or demand answers from other b'alam." His flinty sightless pale eyes sweeps the area behind him and across Ajax's as well and his tail flicks near the ground while he knows that he's purposely riling Ajax up. Perhaps this large male wants to see if Ajax would be stupid enough to attack him or he's testing Ajax to see what he would do in this kind of situation.

Conrad The Mighty