Stagnate Son p2

Yellow opened his eyes to a small foot poking him. Above him stood Grey and Patches, behind him was Green Runner embracing him. Grey was holding food, quite a bit of it in fact. Still groggy Yellow failed to make words as he questioned the situation.

“It’s first twilight. Brown told us to meet you here and to bring some extra food for the two of you. She said something about expecting you to need it. Anyway, I’m sure she and Red will be here soon for our training.”, Grey rambled on.

Yellow cleared his throat and was finally able to speak.

“Thanks.”, he said, taking the food into his hands.

Green Runner began sniffing, possibly in her sleep as she never opened her eyes while reaching over and grabbing some of the meat. She began feasting on it behind him without sitting up. Yellow chuckled and Grey joined him.

“Say Grey, do you remember seeing a charred area at the shiny’s cave?”, asked Yellow.

“Um, I guess so. There was this pile of burnt wood near the mouth, but I assumed it was just a lightning strike, why?”, asked Grey.

“Well lightning strikes make a crystal-like area on the ground and usually start a fire. They don’t leave a circle of burnt wood and ashes.”, said Yellow, sitting up to eat.

Grey and Patches sat down with him.

“Okay, the shiny did a lot of weird things, what’s your point?”, asked Grey.

“My point is, maybe they created that fire somehow, like how they created all their other strange items.”, said Yellow.

“What’s it matter, are you worried the shiny is going to burn down the forest?”, asked Grey.

“No but thanks for giving me that to consider. I was thinking maybe we should learn how they do it.”, explained Yellow.

“Wait, you want us to make fire circles? What for? Doesn’t that sound dangerous?”, asked Grey.

“Just think of the possibilities Grey. We could keep our eggs warm without laying on them, and we could keep warm in the winter. Maybe we could ward off other predators or corral prey.”, said Yellow.

“Yellow fire burns people, it doesn’t keep them warm.”, said Grey, shaking his head.

“No, you’re not thinking it out Grey. The shiny and his pack must have sat near the fire to keep warm. Also, I think they place their food over it, although I don’t know why yet.”, explained Yellow.

“What would give you that impression? We didn’t see anything like that when we monitored them.”, said Grey, tilting his head.

“Well um, Green Runner and I saw it while you and your old pack were scouting.”, stuttered Yellow.

“Okay so you know how they made they fire?”, asked Grey.

“Well no, we didn’t see that part.”, said Yellow.

“Yellow, please tell me you aren’t suggesting what I think you are.”, questioned Grey, standing up.

“We just need to witness the process, that’s all, in and out.”, said Yellow.

“You saw what happened yesterday right, or was it just me? Because I saw one of the shiny’s pack nearly kill all five of us and the shiny disfigured one of the horned ones.”, protested Grey.

Green Runner suddenly let out a long yawn and sat up, still chewing the last of her food.

“I’m sure Yellow here can think of a way to approach it safely. Hell, maybe he can communicate with it.”, she laughed.

“No!”, shouted Yellow.

Grey jumped back, startled, while Green Runner put her hand on him. Patches simply opened her eyes wider as Yellow panted and tried to calm down.

“None of you mention that to anyone, and never try it, understand?”, he commanded.

They all nodded and Grey carefully re-approached him.

“Red tell you something that frightening yesterday?”, asked Green Runner, rubbing her head on his.

Yellow simply nodded, not wanting to get into it with them.

“Well speaking of him.”, said Patches.

Yellow’s pack turned to see Red and Brown walking their way with a large crowd following them and three men being dragged with them. He remembered them from somewhere but couldn’t place it.

“Aren’t they from White’s nest?”, asked Patches.

“They sure are.”, answered Green Runner.

Green Runner grabbed him to let him know they were standing up and Grey and Patches followed. Red and Brown soon arrived with their crowd surrounding them. The three men were tossed to the ground in front of them and held down on their knees, all of them were beaten and bruised.

“Yellow, rest well?”, asked Red with a grin.

Yellow nodded, not taking his eyes off the squirming men on the ground.

“Ah them, let me tell you a story Yellow.”, said Red, circling the men.

“Last twilight these men strode into the nesting grounds claiming they had brought the shiny with them to kill us all in some kind of poor attempt to get revenge for White. So, we subdued them, rather easily I might add, and waited for the inevitable. They were so sure of themselves, at first, but as night gave way, we all realized their guest wasn’t showing.”, explained Red.

“So, they betrayed us?”, asked Yellow through Green Runner’s snarling.

“Correct, and what is our punishment for betrayal?”, asked Red with his killer smile.

Yellow looked to Brown, who nodded her head. Clearly Red had brought them here so Yellow could kill them and show the nest he was seriously going to be in command soon.

“Well, we haven’t exactly made one yet, this is the first betrayal I know of.”, said Yellow, scratching his neck.

“Oh, do you not remember what happened to Orange?”, asked Red.

Yellow saw Blackhead in the crowd, who nodded to him. Yellow sighed.

“Ah, right.”, he said.

“Thought I’d let you do the honors, you having made this grand nest and all, and them wanting to destroy it. Normally we would have a fight, but these three didn’t seem to want one, choosing to lead death here while we all rested. So, I don’t think they deserve a fight to the death, they don’t deserve our risk.”, explained Red.

“I see.”, said Yellow.

“Can I really kill three men, just like that? Red wouldn’t hesitate, but our differences are as important as following his lead. They just wanted revenge for their Alpha, they just wanted to… They wanted to lead that thing here, and have it kill us all. It would have killed Greener, Grey, Patches, Red and Brown. It would have destroyed what we all fought so hard to create, and for what? Revenge for their stupid Alpha? A man to dumb to see my genius and live with us as equals? No, there’s only one punishment fitting this.”, thought Yellow as his scales went cold.

Yellow snarled and bared his claws as he slowly stepped toward the three men. His nails dug into the ground as he walked, his teeth bit down as his eyes narrowed. Two of the men seemed resigned to their fate, calm and unmoving, while the one between them was different. He trembled in fear and pulled away from his captor’s grasp. He froze however, as Yellow came to tower over him.

“How dare you fear death after what you tried to bring about.”, hissed Yellow, squinting down at him.

“No, you’re wrong! They forced me to help them. They told me they were sent with a way to kill the shiny and needed a spare pair of claws, honest! When they ran off, I didn’t know what to do besides follow them!”, desperately panted the man.

Yellow raised his brow and looked at the other men.

“Is this true? Did you deceive him?”, he asked.

“What’s it matter, are you going to kill us twice?”, laughed one of the men.

“Ha you see Omega, Walker here is just too gullible to pass up. We knew he would do whatever we said, and we knew he would slow down the shiny as he ran behind us.”, the other man laughed.

“Is this true?”, asked Yellow.

“I guess so sir. I was the only male nester in White’s nest. I was frequently harassed by many of the others.”, whimpered Walker.

“Reminds me of myself.”, he thought while tilting his head.

“As for these two.”, he thought with a killer grin.

“It’s a shame we’ve already eaten.”, he snarled, cutting down with his claws.

The heads of the two men fell and rolled as his claws past through their necks. Blood spurted out and the hunters holding them dropped their corpses with laughter. Red held back his cackling in what was probably an attempt to avoid a coughing fit, or seem authoritative, as the rest of the crowd joined in. Yellow’s eyes drifted to Brown, who was starring at him in shock, no, perhaps pity? This confused him until Greener’s arm fell on his shoulder and she whispered in his ear.

“What about the other one?”, she said.

Yellow looked down at the shivering man, realizing he hadn’t made his decision apparent to him, or perhaps anyone. The parting crowd suddenly captured his attention however, and he glanced up to find Purple-Tan approaching with his pack.

“Red we’ve covered the trail they left and made several fake ones leading away from the nest.”, said Purple-Tan.

“Good, good, great time as always friend.”, said Red.

“Purple-Tan.”, said Yellow, posing it as more of a question.

“Yes sir?”, he asked.

“We were to busy to talk yesterday.”, Yellow continued.

“Yes, we had a tight schedule, following your orders.”, said Purple-Tan.

“That’s what I wanted to talk about. You’ve been Red’s lead Beta for many winters now yes?”, asked Yellow.

“Yes sir.”, he said.

“Well this is a bit of an odd thing to say, but I wanted to make sure you didn’t have a problem with me.”, Yellow went on.

“Sir if I may, I have no desire to lead this entire nest. I was raised by Red to fight and frankly I enjoy it. Because of you, things here are better than ever, me and my pack are all able to mate now and know our eggs will be safe here. I’m not a planner like you, it’s clear to me that I can’t make decisions like the ones you did yesterday. Red informed me of his decision a few days ago and while at first it did strike me as odd, I’ve come to understand it.”, explained Purple-Tan.

“He made a bit of a puss about it.”, chuckled Red.

“Sir I believe it’s important to air my grievances, but I always obey orders, Brown taught me that.”, he said.

“That’s good to hear.”, Yellow said with a smile.

“I’m not looking for a complacent yes-man to lead the hunters. I’m glad we could clear that up. Now, for what I really wanted to talk to you about.”, Yellow continued.

“Sir?”, he asked.

“This man here, Walker, is cowardly and weak. He was easily conned into helping these headless fools. We don’t need anymore nesters due to our coming population growth, I need all the men, and the strong women, in the forest hunting. So here are my orders, take him and train him. Make him strong, obedient, and unafraid. I’d prefer you went easy on him, convince him this is in his best interest in terms of survival and finding a mate, but you’ve got the experience so it’s your call. I hope it’s not to big of an ask, we need as many hunters as possible, and I want this place to be as efficient as can be.”, explained Yellow.

“I see, no problem sir, I’ll break him in and make sure his loyalties fall in the right place.”, said Purple-Tan.

“Great.”, said Yellow, picking up a head with a killer grin.

“Starting today everyone will rotate training sessions with their hunting. I’ll make sure you all have plenty of time off, but we’ll be working hard in between then.”, he addressed the crowd.

“So, let’s eat!”, he yelled before taking a bite out of the heads neck.

The crowd stomped their feet in approval and began tearing the dead men apart.

“Yellow…”, whispered Brown.

“He’s changed, hasn’t he?”, whispered Red.

. . .

Again, and again the mass of mutilated bodies tore him open and devoured him. He could feel every bite, every muscle tearing, his intestines being sucked out inch by inch. His skin broke and tore, his bones snapped, and the teeth kept coming. Every time they scratched off one layer of flesh and meat another appeared, and the cycle continued. When his eyes reformed, he could see their crying faces. When his ears weren’t filled with blood he could hear them crying.

“Why didn’t you save us?”, they chanted.

“Why did you let them eat us?”, they asked.

“Why did you get to live?”, the voices echoed into his mind.

Emotion recoiled in agony, squirming under the tug of the corpses devouring him. He could move, he couldn’t think, he couldn’t break free from their grasp.

“We deserve this. We were given the nanites and yet we couldn’t save a single person. We should have been eaten. Morcant should have been given these.”, Emotions child-self whined in the void.

“Just kill me. I can’t take this anymore.”, thought Emotion as his throat filled with blood.

“You’re the one who wants to keep going through all this pain. You know what I want.”, said the child.

“Logic said we could make it. He said we could do anything we set our mind to. I just need to try harder.”, thought Emotion.

“How much is enough? How hard must we try? A simple life, that’s all we asked for, and we failed. Then it was, keep going and accomplish things our dreams, grow stronger, find something to take pride in, something to live for. Well how did that work out for you? It’s been years since then and we’ve accomplished nothing. Finally, we get caught up in this hellhole and are offered a virtual heaven and what do you do? You challenge a god and take us strait to hell all in search of what, a reason to live, that feeling we had back then? What we had can’t be restored through some act or quest Emotion. What we had was simply a lack of knowledge. We didn’t know how cruel and meaningless the world was. There’s no going back. There’s nothing left to fight for. Just let this end, please.”, the boy pleaded.

“We made promises.”, thought Emotion as his limbs tore one more.

“We weren’t the only ones. How many promises were made to us? What about us? How much more do we have to take with nothing but betrayal and indifference to look forward to?”, asked the boy.

“We could, we could…”, Emotion attempted to think of a solution.

“We could be at peace. We could let this nightmare end.”, said the boy.

. . .

Justin woke in a flash to a twilight sky, his body recoiling in phantom pains. He felt his insides churning and he turned over to puke onto the dry soil. He coughed and shook his head before looking around to discover he had somehow traveled back to the old cave entrance. He stood up and admired the mountain from the base.

“No matter where I go or what I try to do it always ends the same way, failure. At least I can do this, for us.”, he said.

He was completely relaxed, his face in a pleasant droop, his arms like noodles, but still responsive. His left side was finally responding, if only impulsively, as he began his climb up the mountain. He could still remember the feeling of Tacktay on his back as he ascended the base. The wind blew his blood-stained hair as rock crumbled in his hands. It took no time at all for him to reach the summit.

The empty nests of flying monsters still remained, surrounded by short grasses and ferns. The view hadn’t grown any less beautiful as he watched the red canopy sway, leaves wisping away in the wind. Shadows danced on the grounds he had tried to tame, on the tall grasses. A single bee buzzed over to him.

“Hey there little guy, you lost?”, he asked.

The bee flew right threw his nanites and landed on him before crawling around his chest.

“I guess your actually a girl. Anyway, I’m not someone you should cling to, trust me.”, he said while shooing it away.

The bee took flight and continued its lonely journey through the infinite wilderness. Justin took one last look at the beautiful hellscape that surrounded him and allowed the feeling of his childhood to take him again. The feeling of cool air blowing through his hair while he didn’t have a worry in the world.

“I think I tried hard enough. Sometimes I tried to be logical, sometimes I gave in and gave my fantasies a chance. Wish I could say I didn’t have regrets. I wish I could have saved the people I met here, I wish I was strong enough to keep going, to fulfill my promises.”, Justin told himself.

He stepped up to the edge of the mountain and kicked a pebble down. He didn’t bother trying to see it land. He took a deep breath of the fall air and closed his eyes before his left hand pulled back.

“Stop!”, yelled a young boy.

Behind him stood his younger self, but it wasn’t his side. The boy’s scowl and angry squinting gave it away, it was young Logic.

“Where is he?”, Justin asked with a sigh.

“He gave up, just like you’re doing now.”, growled young Logic.

“I can’t blame him. We really fucked up this time, people are dead, people I cared about.”, said Justin.

“Who cares? I’m not ready to go. I want revenge, I wanna win.”, said young Logic.

“We can’t win little Logic, we’ve failed. I can’t do this anymore, I’m tired of losing. I’m so tired.”, said Justin.

“I won’t let you do this! I can’t let them beat us!”, yelled young Logic as he tugged on Justin’s left arm.

“I’m so sorry little Logic. I’m failing you too, but I can’t take this anymore.”, said Justin.

Young Logic dug his heels into the dirt as he struggled against his older self. Justin cried, knowing he had failed him again, but he felt another pair of hands on his sides. His other half, young Emotion was pulling him towards the cliff. He wondered what Logic would say, but knew it was too late for that. He knew it was time for the nightmare to end. He moved his right arm near the aberration of young Logic and threw it back towards the cliff, carrying him off of the mountain.

He closed his eyes, letting the sharp winds overwhelm his senses, reminding him of a rollercoaster he was too frightened by as a child to enjoy. His younger personalities went silent and evaporated. He smiled as his brain emptied its pleasure chemicals, finally allowing him to feel the sweet release he had longed for over so many years. No more worries, no more boredom, no more anxiety, just a glorious fall. It was just him and the wind.

“Justin…”, a feminine voice called out.

He opened his eyes to a ground fast approaching. He felt hands wrap around his chest and a familiar body rest on his back. A lizard like head whispered in his ear.

“You’re not ready to fly yet silly, you don’t have your wings.”, said Taysass.

He didn’t have enough time to think of a response to the aberration as he flew towards the ground.

“Don’t worry, I’ve got you.”, she said.

Taysass slung around him and her large feathered wings spread from her back before engulfing him. Once again, he was surrounded by pure white, only this time without hungry corpses or ancient A.I. This time he could only hear her breathing and a loud thud before the settling of dust in the wind. The wings opened, revealing they had indeed landed, completely unharmed. He looked up at her smiling face.

“Why?”, he asked as tears filled his eyes.

“I told you.”, she said.

“But I don’t wanna go on anymore. What’s the point?”, he sobbed.

“Do you remember what Logic wanted?”, she asked.

“You know him?”, he questioned.

“I know a lot of things now. Answer the question Justin.”, she said.

“Um, he wanted to save the galaxy or whatever like Tute said.”, he said.

“And what’s wrong with that?”, she asked.

“Don’t you get it? I can’t! Everything I try fails, whether it’s simple or complex, big or small, it always fails.”, he whined.

“You’re wrong. You’ve succeeded at many things. You kept us alive for a time, remember that? You helped me and Tacktay find a reason to live, you gave the others strength.”, she said.

“None of that meant shit! Everybody died!”, he yelled.

“It meant something to us, all of us. I don’t regret a minute of the time we all spent together. Thanks to you, I got to see my baby, if only for a moment.”, she said.

“It’s because of me you’re all dead.”, he snapped.

“No silly, it’s because of you we all lived. You gave me what I needed to fly, and now I’ll do the same for you.”, she said.

“Eh?”, he whimpered.

“Long ago, young Logic told you to stop living for others. He said they would use, manipulate, and betray you, make you their slave. He said to only be kind, to only make goals for your own sake.”, she explained.

“Mm.”, he mumbled.

“Well maybe it’s time to make an exception. You can’t keep going on this harsh journey because you lack faith in yourself, because it’s too much to ask of yourself for the prize of self-satisfaction. Justin don’t you see, you can fight for us. The dead cannot enslave you; we can only inspire. We will be your strength, your will, your shield. We can pick you up when you stumble, and pull you forward when you’re tired. And when you win, I promise, you’ll have found the thing you’ve been searching for all your life.”, she proposed.

“How can you be so sure? I’ve spent a decade looking for it, having incarnations of it slip through my grasp over and over.”, he said.

“Justin, do this for us, for yourself, and when you’re done, I’ll teach you how to fly. If you try to leave with all this regret, I promise you’ll just fall back down to this hell.”, she said.

“But, what about my promise?”, he asked.

“Oh, don’t worry about that bud.”, said Morcant.

He turned around to see him scratching his ears, like Taysass, he had returned. Was he hallucinating? Were they ghosts?

“I was dying Justin, now that I think about it, going down the river makes the most sense. We’ll still run into each other again like we said, so don’t worry about that. Even if it takes a while, even if I’m not there when you kick that farts ass, we’ll find each other.”, he said.

“Tute isn’t a fart.”, Justin laughed before tearfully coughing.

Morcant laughed and extended his hand. Justin grasped it and he pulled him to his feet.

“It must have been hard fighting alone all this time. Never opening up to anyone fully due to your past, but we’re hear now bud. We’ve got your back, and we believe in you.”, said Morcant.

“You do? After everything, after seeing me like this?”, Justin asked.

“Mm, you look a lot stronger and cooler from the outside.”, Morcant said with a toothy grin.

“You’re just saying that.”, Justin said, wiping his eyes.

“I didn’t believe someone who thought highly of me either, not until I met you and realized what it meant to believe in someone. You aren’t perfect by a long shot, but you can really come through for others when it counts. I think you can beat this game Justin, if you let us help you.”, said Morcant.

“Morcant, I don’t know about that.”, said Justin, holding his left arm.

“It’s not just you now. We’ve got your back, we’ll all pitch in to help.”, said Morcant.

“Logic said not to live for others, that they’d enslave you.”, said Justin.

“Justin…”, Morcant began.

“He didn’t realize at the time we could find people we could share trust with, people we could mutually respect. If they aren’t out to use us, then what’s wrong with helping them?”, asked young Emotion as he materialized.

“You always wanted to be a hero little me, but you didn’t have to go through the betrayal.”, said Justin.

“We can get through this and save everyone, while asking for nothing in return. We can grow strong so no one can hurt us again. I think the thing we lost is the confidence in ourselves, and I think we can find it again.”, young Emotion explained.

“We can take revenge on everyone who hurt us by doing this!”, said young Logic as he joined them.

“Eh? Even you’re in on this?”, asked Justin.

“Don’t you see? What better revenge is there than saving the galaxy from the Tide or whatever? We’ll be a hero, no one will mess with us.”, explained young Logic.

“Well, I guess that makes sense. I can see why the two of you want to keep going, but we’ve already tried this. Me and Logic wanted this too, and we failed.”, said Justin.

“You were to busy trying to keep us alive to complete the mission.”, said Tacktay as she crawled up his back.

“An honorable pursuit, but perhaps if you focused on completing your journey you might find success.”, said Yujark.

“If Tutelarius is keeping us somewhere, then you can still save us.”, said Churbet.

“Emma did say I shouldn’t stay here. Perhaps she knew I would lose all of you and fall into despair. Maybe I really can find the spaceport, wouldn’t she have tried to talk me out of it if she thought I couldn’t?”, said Justin.

“Exactly, we can still do this. With you marching forward, and us holding you up.”, said Morcant.

“It may take a while, but we’ve got nothing better to do.”, said young Emotion.

“I don’t care how long it takes! I want to make Tutelarius pay for all this!”, shouted young Logic.

“Yea that’s it, team spirits!”, shouted Morcant.

“Dumb.”, coughed young Logic.

Morcant slapped the back of his head and everyone laughed.

“I’ll sail down the river and find the spaceport. I’ll kill that cruel god, and I’ll help Emma defeat the Tide.”, said Justin, clenching his fists as he looked to the sky.

“Hell yea!”, Morcant joined in.

“With the nanites I can fix my mental problems. In fact, since they cover our worlds, I can solve all our problems in an instant by having Emma calculate the possibilities. I can telepathically show everyone how to fix their worlds, and I can fix any broken minds I come across. No one will be able to stop me!”, Justin rambled as he grinded his teeth.

“Yea, okay that’s a bit much but sure.”, said Morcant.

“If Tute really brings everyone here then I can revive everyone who’s ever lived! I can fix their broken ideas and we can all live together here in peace! I will bring heaven down to the Earth with Emma as our new god.”, Justin maniacally continued as his body began shaking.

“Okay bud, that sounds a tad dangerous there.”, Morcant said.

“Don’t you see?”, Justin asked, his face twitching, his younger personalities fading back into his body.

“With Emma super computing and future telling capabilities, we can determine how best to live. What laws and rules work, how much bio or technological adaptation our species need to survive long term. We’ll create a paradise that lasts for eternity!”, Justin exclaimed.

Morcant grabbed him and shook.

“Buddy your getting hysterical on me. Anyway, I told you we’ve got your back, so let’s do this thing. We can conquer the whole universe or whatever.”, said Morcant.

“Mm, and I can help you guys too. I promise I’ll find you and help you get back to your family Morcant.”, said Justin.

Morcant nodded and smiled.

“Don’t worry about Emma, she should be uncorruptible, her being a super mind and all.”, said Justin.

“Well shouldn’t the others have been as well then?”, asked Morcant.

“Logic mentioned that. He decided they must know more than us and that these experiments might actually be warranted. That or they’re working with bad parameters or they’ve malfunctioned.”, Justin scratched his head and shrugged.

“Don’t worry about it, we’ll solve that problem when we meet up with them.”, he reassured the ghost with a toothy grin.

Morcant sighed and shook his head.

“Alright then guys, let’s go build that boat. Maybe this time we can do it right”, he said.

“I can cook us some lunch.”, said Taysass.

Justin laughed with his ghosts as they headed for the river.

. . .

Yellow walked through the dancing shadows of the second twilight with his pack. Three nights had passed since his public execution of the traitors and the grand nest was running smoother than ever before. Efficiency in all areas had grown due to training and overlap, with no sigh of stopping. Defenses around the nests were being constructed out of wood, along with tools similar to what the prey used. Couples were reporting fertilized eggs in their nests and now everyone recognized Yellow and his pack as they traveled from the training area to the meeting place.

“So, what’s different about this meeting Yellow?”, asked Grey.

“Well we’re going to sort of recap the last feast cycle with the pack leaders and discus a few things, as well as plan out the feast tomorrow.”, explained Yellow.

“I’d say we’ve made a lot of progress. You’ve shown… progress in speed, strength, and stamina.”, said Green Runner after taking a double take.

“Right, he’s gone from the speed of a snail, to the speed of a snail fleeing the sunlight.”, said Patches in her driest humor while riding on Green Runner’s back.

“Patches.”, scolded Grey, waving his claws like a worried nester.

Green Runner laughed and fell into a state of nervous giggles for a moment. This was unusual, but she interrupted him before he could ask her about it.

“I think you’ve made great progress for a mere four days darling. Especially in terms of nest upkeep and um, Alpha related things.”, she said.

“I agree, we’ve really mastered hunting together as a pack. You’re getting good at using just one arm and I plan on bringing up training with tools I’ve been tinkering with in the meeting.”, said Yellow.

“Huh? You think I’m not as good with just one arm?”, Green Runner said, raising her eye at him.

“Uh, well, no…”, Yellow fumbled his words.

Patches let her head drop to hit Green Runner’s neck. She looked flustered as her head turned first down, then away.

“No point in dragging it out.”, said Patches.

Yellow stopped their walk as he swallowed his building anxiety as he wondered what they were talking about.

“Yellow yesterday I laid a batch of eggs.”, said Green Runner after turning to face him.

“But Greener, don’t you lay eggs every cycle?”, he asked, tilting his head.

A bright red flushed over her face as she snarled with rage. She hit him over the head before yelling.

“You little idiot! This is hard for me so could you just understand?”, she exploded.

Yellow tried to shake off the dizziness of the sudden blow while deciphering her words.

“Just what the hell is this crazed female trying to say?”, he wondered.

“Oh my, you two really need to work on your personal communication.”, said Patches.

“Huh? We communicate great in our hunting and training.”, said Yellow.

“That’s not what I mean at all.”, said Patches.

“Their fertilized.”, snapped Green Runner in a huff, looking away.

“Huh?”, said Yellow as he processed this.

She snarled at him and he covered his head with his hands.

“I mean Greener that’s great. Why were you hesitant to tell me?”, he asked.

“Really you think so?”, she asked, sliding her face to his.

“Of course, that was the purpose of our mating.”, he said genuinely yet sheepishly.

“Well I was worried it was just something you did for pleasure, since you have a whole nest to run.”, she said, diverting her eyes again.

“The nest is practically running itself; I just keep things smooth and updating. After this meeting I’m hoping the workload will become even more dispersed.”, he said, his thoughts drifting to systematics and numbers.

He grabbed her face and pulled it close to his own again.

“This makes me really happy Greener; I hope you know that.”, he said with a heartfelt smile.

“That sure eased my nerves, thanks.”, she said, blushing.

“Besides, that reminds me we need to talk about how we’ll all take care of the next generations at the meeting.”, he said.

She rolled her eyes and got the group walking again.

“Wow you two, that’s great news.”, said Grey.

“Thanks Grey, I hope you two find success as well.”, said Yellow.

“Yea, we don’t know yet if we’re compatible, her being a shadow and all.”, said Grey.

“Actually, this was meant to be dual news to ease her nerves.”, said Patches.

“Hm?”, questioned Grey.

“My batch from last night is also fertile.”, blankly stated Patches.

“Really? Are you sure?”, asked Grey, hopping with excitement.

“A woman knows, and of course, they are yours Grey.”, she said.

“Oh of course, I believe you. You haven’t really left my sight after all these past few days.”, he rambled excitedly.

“I don’t know if they’ll be viable Grey, but we can keep trying if they aren’t. You’ve got me forever regardless.”, she told him.

“Oh Patches, it goes the same for me.”, he said, tearing up.

Yellow hadn’t been able to tell when she was being sarcastic, but based on Grey and Greener fawning over her, he assumed they could tell she was being genuine. That or she was a great liar. He trusted the two of them to know her though, as he had to worry about the nest. They were almost at the meeting circle, and a crowd had already gathered. He had so much to talk about he couldn’t really think of where to begin, but they had all twilight after all, and he had his friends with him. The crowd of mostly hunters parted to reveal Red, Brown, Blackhead, Purple-Tan, and Chipper at its center.

“And there he is, for a moment we thought you might be late to your own meeting Yellow.”, said Red, grinning.

“Oh, you know me better than that Red.”, said Yellow, mirroring his smile.

Yellow and his pack entered the circle of hunters and joined the inner circle with Red and the others. Yellow motioned for everyone to sit down as he planned on a long meeting and he wanted them to rest for tomorrow. Many of the hunters huddled together and shivered as the wind blew through the small clearing in the forest they were using as the meeting place. Yellow cleared his throat and shook his head, attempting to remain composed as Green Runner practically enveloped him.

“We were just discussing the plans for the feast.”, said Blackhead.

“I see, and how is that going?”, asked Yellow.

“We’ve found positions for everyone participating, including the Shadows. Chipper and the Nightwalkers will be putting holes in place overnight along the border for our ambushers, along with keeping watch.”, explained Purple-Tan.

“Sounds great, simply expanding our last plan should work fine, with the exception of shiny prevention. It followed those traitors for a while, we should assume it might again. After baiting the Horned Ones, if needed, then we should create false trails in mass along with rallying at White’s old nesting ground.”, said Yellow.

“That’s quite the maneuver, I fear we might not be able to keep everyone in line if the shiny goes on a rampage.”, said Purple-Tan.

Yellow scoffed and stood up, watching the killer smile form on Red’s face.

“Well everyone? Can we count on you to not run back here like frightened hatchlings?”, he asked the crowd.

“Yes sir!”, the crowd immediately responded.

“My pack and I have fought the shiny before, I know how much you might want to run, but we cannot lead it back here. Try to follow the plan and lead it to White’s nest as false trails are made, or die trying.”, said Yellow, squinting at them.

Perhaps it was just the wind, but a chill brushed over them as he spoke. The crowd hesitated and shivered before responding again.

“Yes sir!”, they repeated.

Yellow plopped back down with a smug expression, looking to Red for approval. He gave a single nod, but his gaping, toothy grin had already told him the answer.

“Very well, I think that was my only worry sir.”, said Purple-Tan.

“Purple-Tan please, everyone in this circle should feel free to call me Yellow.”, said Yellow, his claws waving apologetically.

“Not in front of the others, just in private.”, said Red, panning to the crowd.

“Mm, right well something was brought to my attention on the way here. I’ve heard that the first batches of fertilized eggs are arriving.”, said Yellow.

Brown looked to Green Runner, who nodded to her, along with Patches. She gasped and turned back to Yellow, who couldn’t believe she figured that put so quickly.

“Yellow why didn’t you tell me?”, she asked excitedly.

“Well, um, I just found out and we’re here to discuss nest issues.”, he fumbled over his words.

“I’ve heard the same reports. Apparently, we’re going to have the largest batch of hatchling ever and right before winter.”, said Red, his smile gone.

“Well this kind of problem is what these meetings are for.”, said Yellow timidly before clearing his throat.

“Well get to my food plans momentarily, for now let’s stick with the hatchlings. The nesters usually took care of the Alpha’s single batches of eggs and I see no reason for that to change drastically, with a few exceptions. The couple will take care of their own young and be given food based on their work. We’ve already been doing this to a limited extent, but I think establishing a small council to decide how much work merits how much food, as well as distribution and records.”, explained Yellow.

“Records?”, asked Blackhead.

“This council should be made up of representatives of every profession, possibly elected, possibly chosen by the Alpha, and they should keep track of the food in every respect. Hunters will report all food gathered and eaten, food will be stored or distributed by nesters, and this council will keep track of the quantities and times to ensure none is stolen.”, said Yellow.

“How?”, asked Grey.

“I was thinking we could make markings in trees, perhaps make up some symbols to determine certain quantities or times, like this.”, said Yellow as he drew into the dirt with his claws.

He drew a single line with an L under it and a circle with lines coming off it.

“See here, a single leg was brought at midday. Something like this.”, he said.

“So, this council will have to establish these marking as well?”, asked Red, head tilted.

“Yes, and the nesters can teach them to the hatchlings when they aren’t training.”, he said, smiling.

“Any objections?”, asked Red.

The inner circle traded glances.

“Makes sense, I see how your trying to keep things fair and incorruptible, however, have you thought about the races of this council? What if no Shadows or Nightwalkers are chosen?”, asked Blackhead.

“Well right now we’ve got regular people, little people, and the two you mentioned. Oh, no offence Grey.”, said Yellow.

“It’s fine, we’ve never really named each other. I’m probably the first litter person most of you have seen. We’re more common elsewhere.”, said Grey.

“Well everyone here should be treated equally. I would suggest we make a supervisory council for oversight and decision making, along with the food council, and perhaps a group to judge those accused of crimes. “, said Yellow.

“Do we really… need all these groups?”, questioned Red, coughing.

“We need to think about expansion. We could have thousands of people within just a few winters.”, said Yellow.

The crowd murmured in shock. Yellow wondered why they hadn’t considered that, only to remember he was basically the only big thinker he knew.

“The Alpha will make the final decisions while the advisory council will propose rules, oversee expansion projects, along with observing the food council to ensure efficiency and lack of corruption. The council of judges will interpret the laws and deal with the accused. Hunters will make their own hierarchy and follow any rules passed by the Alpha that the advisory council makes along with working with the food council. However, they will only directly answer to the Alpha and the judges when need be. Now for the voting.”, explained Yellow before looking around for input.

“I think I can see where you’re going with this, whichever group is most populated will vote for all the food.”, said Chipper.

“Precisely our dilemma, so I’m open for suggestions.”, said Yellow.

“What about one member from each race and group on the councils, voted on by who the represent?”, asked Blackhead.

“That’s a start, they’ll each have competing interests and will have to compromise, but what if a few of one race is elected?”, asked Yellow.

“Hm, that may be as fair as we can make it.”, said Blackhead.

“What if the people could vote to remove someone if they think a problem is arising?”, asked Brown.

“Not bad, we could make that a decision for the Alpha to confirm so people don’t all gang up on one group. Also, the Alpha can break any tie votes in decisions by the councils.”, said Yellow.

“I’d want to make sure there isn’t unnecessary interference in the hunters work, or the others for that matter.”, said Purple-Tan.

“Well only the Alpha can agree to a rule, and he looks to the needs of everyone.”, said Yellow.

“Thinking to the future though, what if Alphas come to favor one group or race?”, asked Purple-Tan.

Yellow looked down and scratched himself. This was a good question. He wanted his system to last without corruption or suffering, but it was becoming clear it might be harder than he thought. He racked his brain for an answer, tapping his skull with his claws.

“Well it’s not foolproof, but if there is ever a serios breach of decency like that then I would suggest absence of work or revolt.”, he said.

“Huh?”, asked Red.

“If a group or person thinks they are being seriously mistreated, and not simply suffering along with everyone due to lack of food or something, then they could hold days without work, or attempt violence. In the end this would force fairness or cause the Alpha to stop them with the hunters. We need to be careful when we choose Alphas in the future, as they hold a lot of power and responsibility here.”, explained Yellow.

The inner circle mulled it over, mumbling to each other.

“Perhaps a group could vote for a crisis representative to state their case to whoever is causing the problem and negotiate or leverage their lack of work or violence.”, said Grey.

“That might speed things up in times of crisis, good idea Grey.”, Yellow agreed.

“It’s definitely less dangerous in terms of abuse then our old system.”, said Brown.

“Can’t the advisory council worry about this stuff and change rules if there are problems once it’s established?’, asked Patches.

The crowd’s murmuring ceased as they waited for a response. The chill of the wind grew as the twilight dragged on.

“Alright then, it’s settled. After the feast the councils will be voted on and they will make symbols to use along with beginning their roles. Now, where were we…”, Yellow’s voice trailed off as he itched his snout.

“Children.”, said Green Runner.

“Ah yes, I was thinking that couples could be responsible for their own young, along with help from the nesters during most hours if they’re working. Also, perhaps they can decide their children’s mates or have some say in the matter. I think that the parents and nesters should teach their children along with guide them into a line of work, with the parents having the final say.”, suggested Yellow.

“Fair enough, the young should listen to the old and particularly those who made them. The nesters will care for the young, but the parents will help and have true control of their children’s destiny. I don’t know if they shouldn’t be allowed to choose their own mates or jobs, but perhaps that’s the councils problem.”, said Brown.

“Should voting be restricted by any means?”, asked Blackhead.

“Only those working and perhaps criminals could lose the privilege for a time or all time.”, answered Yellow.

“Anything else? It’s getting late.”, asked Red, coughing again.

“Food.”, said Blackhead.

“The tools.”, said Purple-Tan.

“Alright simple. The tools the hunters have been testing are going to be used to kill long necks to increase our food supply. We will also build enclosers out of wood to raise their young as most of them die in the forest. We can determine how many to raise as we count how many we kill throughout the seasons.”, explained Yellow.

“These tools that you’re working on, you got the ideas from the prey at the feat yes?”, asked Blackhead.

“Correct.”, said Yellow.

“Well I think we all have the same question, if they work, why not use them in the feast as well?”, asked Blackhead.

“A rule of appearing weak.”, answered Yellow.

“Huh?”, asked Blackhead.

“We already kill the feast prey with great efficiency and little losses. These tools might lower those numbers if we don’t train with them first. Also, the prey might react differently if they know were intelligent like them.”, explained Yellow.

“Differently?”, asked Chipper.

“Trust me on this everyone. Once we’re used to the tools, perhaps we can try it, how’s that?”, asked Yellow.

“Sounds fine. Anything else? We need to wrap this up before nightfall.”, interjected Red, straining to not cough.

“Red are you okay?”, asked Purple-Tan.

“Of course, don’t you…”, Red managed to say before entering a fit of coughing.

He gagged and wheezed as his head tipped over. Brown tried to comfort him, but he pushed her away. The coughing continued as he struggled to breath. He was shaking, becoming hoarse as his eyes widened. Blood eventually spat out of his mouth, first only a little, then a lot. You could hear it clogging his throat as the crowd had become silent.

Yellow noticed they had all turned to him, but he could only look down in shame. He shook his head, knowing there was nothing he could do.

“Yellow what’s going on? Is he sick?”, asked Purple-Tan.

“There’s nothing we can do for him.”, he responded without looking up.

Red’s coughing finally died down as he spat blood and drew heavy breaths. His arms buckled as he clearly lost the strength to keep Brown from holding onto him.

“Sorry about that everyone, bug must have flown down my throat.”, wheezed Red.

“Nonsense!”, snapped Purple-Tan.

Red looked up to him, tears and snot running down his snout. Everyone froze, expecting Red to snap, but he sighed and laughed.

“Guess I couldn’t keep this a secret forever.”, he said.

“What secret?”, asked Purple-Tan.

“Lumps.”, said Blackhead.

“Oh, you read minds old man?”, asked Red.

“I’ve seen this before Red. Doesn’t look like you have much longer.”, said Blackhead.

“Yea well, I could say the same to you, you wilting fuck.”, laughed Red.

“Father.”, said Purple-Tan.

“Sorry I just didn’t want to disappoint you any further kiddo.”, said Red.

“What are you talking about?”, asked Purple-Tan.

“First I make Yellow my heir, then I die of some illness.”, said Red.

“I might have not understood that at first, but after all I’ve seen I have no problem with Yellow. He’s clearly much wiser than the rest of us combined, just look what we’ve created so far.”, said Purple-Tan.

“Then what’s the problem?”, asked Red.

“What’s the problem? You’re dying! You’re dying and I can’t do anything about it. When were you planning on telling everyone?”, asked Purple-Tan, steaming in rage.

“Well I was hoping I could die in battle before it got this far.”, said Red.

Brown looked away and gasped, like she had been stabbed in the back by a set of claws.

“Dammit Red, why are you so prideful?”, she asked.

“Don’t any of you get it? If I show weakness people die! You die, and you!”, Red yelled, looking to the two of them.

“This meeting is over, everyone, get some sleep and report here tomorrow to begin the feast!”, he addressed the crowd.

The outer circle scurried away without a word as the inner circle panned around.

“You guys to.”, said Red.

Yellow grabbed Grey and Green Runners hands and began walking away with the rest of the inner circle besides Brown and Red.

“You’re wrong.”, said Purple-Tan.

“Boy, I may be sick but you’re pushing it.”, growled Red.

“Yellow has made it clear to me that no matter how weak we are compared to our enemies, as long as we stand together, we can win.”, said Purple-Tan.

“Purple-Tan, I assure you, no one has ever survived the lumps.”, said Red.

“Try.”, said Purple-Tan before joining the others.

“Sorry.”, said Yellow in passing.

“Don’t be. We’re all ready to follow you now, so lead us to victory.”, said Purple-Tan as the group went their separate ways.

. . .