Solera

Strength: 109 - Speed: 108 - Stamina: 102 - Smarts: 111 - Agility: 79 - Skill: 1

This was it, she told herself, time to say good bye to home. Everyone else had already left; Brin had escorted them to their various new homes across the Savannah and her mother was out with her aunts on yet another hunt. There had barely been enough time to say farewell to her, nonetheless her sister who was simply known as "Shine's vandal girl." They weren't given names and she herself didn't have one; she was likewise called "Shine's golden cub" or "the golden one" if she was referred to at all. Brin didn't see the point in giving his cubs names when in reality they weren't his. Yes, they proudly carried his blood but their fates were sold young to others in exchange for luxuries such as breeding and hunting rights. One day, her mother had told her, it would be the same when she bore cubs. That day seemed so far away though, and today seemed to stay too long.

She heard the muffled sounds of her father's foot falls coming from behind her. He was coming back from delivering her vandal sister to some lion in the valleys to the far south. Oscuro, she believed his name was. Most likely she would never see her beloved sibling again. She didn't look at her father's arrival and instead focused on the path they would be taking. Their journey was the shortest but also the most treacherous. The territory they were heading towards, owned by a lion named Ahadi, was only a few miles due west. But a large series of ragged peaks blocked their route and the sole path through them was a perilous mountain pass. Brin had assured her that she could make the full distance without an issue. She was, after all, a product of one of the land's most infamous bloodlines. Her breeding was above par and strength coursed naturally through her veins. Making it past the mountains didn't worry her; the unknowns on the other side did.

"Are you ready to go, my dear?"

She looked up at her father's eyes. He was a plain lion to be sure, nothing like the assortment of characters that constantly came to his pridelands. Unlike them and their odd hues of red and blue, he was a simple shade of a deep blackish-brown and bore only a whitish tint on his underparts as a marking. He wasn't bred with glitz and glamour in mind, but that was why she loved his appearance. It was always a welcome break to see her father at the end of a long day wondering at how many different colors lions could come in. Weakly, she rose to her paws and glanced up at Brin.

"I guesso, daddy. Ready as I'll be."

They began their journey as Brin moved forward without another word. Hesitantly, she took off at his heels, giving one forlorn look over her shoulder as she said good bye to home. The mountains loomed ominously in the distance and she knew at the gentle jog they were moving at they would soon be upon them. It amazed her endlessly how high they had always been. How could rock climb high enough so that even birds couldn't fly over it? High enough that clouds passed in between the peaks? The summits were even tall enough to hide the rising and setting of the moon and sun. Every evening she would watch the great disc of the sun slip below the crags, outlining their black figures in stunning fiery rims. In broad daylight she could see every stone on their earthen surface, the twisting contours and layers of the rock continuously perplexing her mind.

Time passed in silence and before long they were upon the narrow pass that lead to the other side of the ridge. Her father didn't wait for a moment before pacing forward, leaving her no chance but to follow. While the path started out relatively smooth. However, the further they went the bumpier it became. There were tons of boulders, pebbles, sharp turns and tiny crevasses to squeeze through and avoid. Even a rock slide occurred, halting their progress until well after midday. Although she was barely a yearling, she was expected to keep up. She received no help in clambering over the massive rocks or conforming her tight body to the cracks they were forced to wiggle past. Instead, her father simply watched her with curious green eyes and occasionally gave only a single nod. Whether it was a nod of approval or something else, she had no idea. All she knew was that was his only communication with her.

Being as young as she was, the silence weighed heavily on her. Finally, in mid-afternoon she could take it no longer. After easing herself over another barrier, she broke the curtain of silence that had characterized the journey thus far.

"Daddy, do you know dis Ahadi person we're going towards?"

She wasn't quite sure what she expected. Her father, after all, was a lion of few words. It was a miracle he responded at all.

"I know he's there, my dear."

"What do you mean? Is he the lion we always hear roaring in the night? Is he daddy?"

"Well, of course he is. He does the same thing I do; it lets the other lions around know he's there and those are his lands. We must respect that."

"Do you know him? Huh, do you know a lot about him?"

"You know I usually keep to myself, but I have spoken to him once or twice. I don't know him terribly well. When I have talked to him, I can tell that he's quite the character, however. His pride always seems well fed and happy, and his lands are quite vast. You will do well there."

"Are he and his lionesses nice daddy?"

"Seems so."

No more words were exchanged after that.

By the time they reached the other side of the pass, the sky had fallen black and stars were beginning to shimmer. The sun was on the far horizon in front of them and glared in their eyes as they emerged from the boundaries of the ragged peaks. Brin paused for a moment, looking at the golden-washed plains before turning to his daughter. Chuckling at her surprise, he nudged her towards the new lands.

"Go on alone from here, you'll be fine. Just head towards that rise a smidge east and you'll find the rest of the pride. I'll see you when the floods come again."

Before she could even say her farewells, he bounded off back the way they came and disappeared into the darkness of the mountains. Watching him go, she decided there was no place to go but forward. Cautiously she took the final strides into her new pridelands. The tall grasses tickled her golden fur as she headed to the rise that had been pointed out to her. She assumed it would be the den, but maybe it was just a meeting point to take her to the actual den. Either way she bounded through the sea of Savannah grass and waited to see what lie before her.

She reached thus rise as the last drops of sun disappeared below the far horizon. A few rays of light remained, but they would soon be swallowed by the upcoming night. The grasses thinned out and she caught the first glimpse of her new pride. First impressions were promising. Unfortunately for her, she stumbled upon a first of lionesses, all gathered around a white and black one. The two in the center were going at it... Usiku and Valyria, she caught their names as.There was another lioness moderately in between the two of them and already she could tell they were soft spoken. It was only when Valyria told her sister, Eliahe, to stop interfering did she catch the name of this other lioness. But where was Ahadi? Surely he would be around to stop squabbling within his own pride! None of the other lionesses, whose variety of colors blew her mind, were daring to step in. It looked like the arguing two were the main huntresses, as in between their arguing bouts she could see the rich muscles rippling below their sleek forms. Deciding it was best she stay out of his rather charged battle of the titans, she slunk back into the thick grass.

This went on for a few more minutes before she heard voices in the distance. And then an earth-shattering roar split the dusk landscape. Instantly the circle of lions parted and the three in the center swiftly shut up. Curiously, she peeked her head out of her hiding spot. Two males were striding up. One was a moderately young grey male with blue eyes and a bunch of feathers protruding from his jaws. The other was a confident middle-aged male with a rich dark brown coat. It was quite clear he was the one in charge.

"My god, Roman and I can't even go on one patrol without two of you fighting! It's getting pathetic guys."

It was then that he strode into the middle of the fighting lionesses while Roman waddled off, rolling his eyes no doubt. She took a good look at this new lion while he addressed his fighting lionesses and it soon became clear this was Ahadi. He wasn't anything impressive, she could tell, about average build. His color interested her, however, as did his eyes. She had never seen a lion with two differently colored eyes before! So shocked was she that it took her a few moments before she noticed that they were focused upon her.

"Besides," Ahadi said, "I believe you've terribly frightened our newest arrival. Not very proper."

It was then that he walked to her and arched around her back. He softly nudged her out into the open terrace in front of the other lionesses. Slowly she inched forward before smiling sheepishly at her new pridemates. She could swiftly tell they weren't impressed by this yellow ball of fuzz that was shoved at them. They quickly decided that there were other things to do this evening and parted ways, spreading out over the savannah. Swallowing sadly as she watched them slink off, she heard Ahadi grumble behind her.

"Sorry about all that. I'm afraid that those two have been rather moody of late. Perhaps it's better they're not here to greet you in their shitty moods, eh? Females these days, I'm sure you're aware of their bi-polar tendencies. Can't imagine how Brin deals with your steroid-ridden aunts."

She couldn't help but loosen up and chuckle. Her own mother was often the same way as were all her aunties. And they were many times more powerful than these girls! Giggling, she noticed that it was now night among the pridelands. The moon lit up the area, however, and it wasn't all that dark. She glanced up at the male lion.

"Is this my new home, Mr. Ahadi sir? It seems awfully big for such a little cub like me."

"'Aye, well keep in mind it's not just you here, sadly. As you can see there's quite a few egos running about here. We have to have space for them all, unfortunately, and even now I'm not positive we have enough. Just call me Ahadi, too. No need for formalities... erm, what's your name again? I forgot."

Now she lowered her head once more, looking sweetly up at him.

"Daddy never really gave us names unless we were staying. He said it wasn't his proper place to name us when we belonged to another."

"Aaah," Ahadi sighed, "I see. Well, I guess it would be my proper place then and I am afraid you wandering about without a name simply won't do. We shall have to give you one. I have always thought golden girls reminded me of the sun and so that's what you shall be. You will be my drop of sun, you will be my darling Solera."

Solera. She rolled her new name off her tongue, mouthing it over and over.

This, Solera decided, she could get used too.