NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 036: Yuras the Boulder, Chieftain of the Nine Sisters Tribe
“GENERAL KENOBI!!!!!!!” I shout automatically, without thinking, before I even turn – and I do it quickly. I can feel the blush spreading on my cheeks, as I finally face the intruder – and my embarrassment fades, replaced by a complex mix of feelings, making my head spin and legs weaken.
Standing before us is a man of a truly titanic posture, holding powerful and focused Aura. While not towering over us – well, me, as I’m slightly taller than him – the width of his body is plainly absurd. His shoulders, covered by a power-emanating cloak made from some beast, are easily twice as broad as mine. His barrel-sized upper body is bare, displaying his Greek-sculpture-like musculature, as well as his tanned human skin; he must be a Smoothkin. To my surprise, there are red, flowery tattoos on his chest and sides, continuing on his arms, only sometimes marred by a scar. His left hand is on the long, decorated – and clearly magical – axe he uses as a support. On the opposite side, the thumb of his right hand is tucked into an impressive looking, enchanted belt with flowery embroidery and bone fastener; there are also some charms or trophies hanging from it. Looking down, flowery ornamentation continues down the sides of his short trousers, barely covering his powerful thighs. He is also barefoot.
Taking notice of his relaxed posture and non-hostile Aura, I finally look at his face. And I have to say I am… disappointed. While I can’t call him ugly or unpleasant by any means, his physiognomy is at best honest and simple, a huge downgrade from what I expected seeing his body and smelling his masculine musk. The fact that his round head is absurdly small compared to his massive neck and body certainly doesn’t help. It also seem to be wider than longer – though, to be fair, it fits the general look of the man. His perky nose with a scar across it, his small, pale blue eyes, thick brows and long, wild, reddish hair – nearly concealing his long, droopy rabbit ears, the only visible Beastkin characteristic classifying him as a Rabbitkin, or Krolsun specifically – and especially his widely open large mouth, contribute to the look of a simple musclehead. Probably kind-hearted – but not a very bright one nonetheless.
...or am I too harsh on him? His current look of utter confusion can be easily explained away by my dumb shout. I’m sure if I were to look at my friends right now they would look silly as well. And when I think about it, expecting a gigachad face on anyone is a bit much; I’m not on the internet, after all. And the more I look at him, the more details I notice – like all the small wrinkles I’ve initially overlooked; he’s way older than I thought at first glance – and it is probably the biggest surprise. I shake those thoughts off; I need to properly greet him at last. “Um… hello?” I say shyly and cringe internally at my anxious sounding voice – so I cough and point Nyx at him, to reassure myself. “Greetings, traveller. Who might you be, and why are you here?”
This time I sound more confident, so I’m way more satisfied with how I said that; it also seems that it broke the Rabbitman out of his stupor. He suddenly gets a more concentrated and serious look as he quickly assesses me; then he relaxes again – this time with a wide grin, giving him an air of a jolly uncle. His eyes, however, stay more focused. All of it rends most of my first assessment – there is a clear intelligence and cunning to the man. The observation makes me tense and I prepare to fight just in case… though I’m not sure if I can even win in a state I'm now in – and this thought sends cold chills down my spine. I realise I’m less worried about myself – but rather about my friends.
The Krolshun notices my distress and… chuckles. Then he picks up his axe, casually lodges it into the nearby tree and finally spreads his arms wide. “It seems you’ve found a fiery one, eh? I take it your mission was a success?” His voice is deep and quite attractive, while his tone is playful and happy; only his accent is a little off, as if Kolokolan is not his first language.
“Chieftain Yuras” says Nugund suddenly and in a respectful tone – him recognizing our visitor allows me to drop the defensive stance and relax a bit. Also – a Chieftain?! “It went even better than we expected – but be honest and admit you expected nothing” his tone turns bitter at the end – he was, after all, tricked into coming here.
“E! Who cares – what’s important is that you no longer seem to seek death” the tattooed man exclaims with brutal honesty, devilish smirk and a wave of hand. I’m speechless – and my thoughts must be visible on my face, since the wide man turns to me. “Heh, but where are my manners? A huntress asked and I’ve yet to answer!” He then… strikes a pose, pushing his massive chest forward, flexing his muscles and putting his fist above his heart. “I’m Yuras the Boulder, Chieftain of the Nine Sisters Tribe! A great warrior and relentless hunter, even better peacekeeper and, especially” he winks at me! “A lover like no other on this side of River Brda!”
As I am – once again – left speechless and with a deepening blush, I am suddenly hugged from behind by Pola. “Oh, come on!” She scolds the Rabbitkin playfully. “You should know better than to tease our poor Kora! It’s obvious she’s in heat – and besides” her tone turns more serious. “I believe your clan Witch has told you many times to only go after girls who gave birth at least once, as she’s sick of making all those ointments!”
I try to process what kind of ointments she meant, but I am not given the time as the Krolsun erupts into boastful laughter. “That she does – good, old Lora! But your girl here – Kora, you said – seems to be a fair bit larger than most other gals; I’m certain she wouldn’t have any problems with me!” His laughter grows louder as my blush deepens and even more when I cover my nakedness with my hands and tail; even my Moonberry’s sigh transforms into a chuckle. I, on the other hand, am stupified. He definitely cannot be that huge down there, can he? But before I can voice my questions he continues. “Enough of it – there are more pressing matters to discuss” his shift in tone to a more serious one is abrupt enough to shake off most of my embarrassment. “I introduced myself… after Nugund called me by my name. It seems a similar thing has just happened to you!”
I cannot help but chuckle at that – and his disarming smile and enthusiasm. I sigh and massage the base of my nose for a bit – partially to get rid of the rest of the awkwardness I feel, partially to collect my thoughts and resolve. “Well, I’m called Kora of the Wilds – and as for my story” I pause and sigh again. “I will tell it by the fire, as it’s a long one and I’m sure we are all getting ravenous!”
“Ha! So Gods truly sent us someone to help us clean up their mess” Yuras comments with conviction and a nod when I finish retelling the history of my life, with an occasional comment regarding last few weeks thrown in by my friends. Neither me nor Olka have any energy – or even mood – to argue with the herculean Beastkin about it. We just look at each other and she shakes her head; she probably knows him better than me, so I trust her judgement. At least he doesn’t spout any prophecy bullshit. I would gladly finish that topic here, but the Rabbitman continues. “I wouldn’t have guessed that the one they send would be a daughter of Alaranna and Zoraya, but that’s even better!”
I tilt my head. “Whose daughter?” The names sound familiar, but a bit off… like Krolsun’s accent.
“Ah! Right!” To my amusement, he slaps himself on the forehead. “In Kolokolan they’re Alarana and Zorya; not that there’s much of a difference, really” he explains and grins widely at me. “You see, I’m not originally from the Nine Sisters Tribe – I’m not even from the mountains, really!” He laughs heartily and continues. “I’m not good at telling stories, so it will be quick” he pauses for a bit, collecting his thoughts.
“As you’ve definitely noticed, my Kolokolan is slightly different. That’s because I was born in a small Tamaran village, far to the South – so I had to learn the language we are speaking right now!” He chuckles. “Not that Tamaran and Kolokolan are that unlike; still, sometimes things slip for me, especially things like the names of Gods” he waves his hand dismissively. “They can even change what species they are, so what’s the difference, really?” He laughs. “Anyway, as the biggest and strongest of villagers, I left home and soon found a really nice Vydretha, so I joined her tribe, even becoming it’s Chieftain at some point!” He – rather abruptly and omitting nearly all of the details – ends his tale with a roaring laughter… but there is a tinge of melancholy to it, as if there’s something painful there he’s avoiding.
“Awww, why so short?” Pola interjects before I can react. “You omitted so much, including my or my son’s favourite parts!” She exclaims with a pout that results in another round of laughter from the Chieftain.
“Why, if you like those stories so much – why don’t you tell them?” He encourages the Lisitha in jest.
“What happened to her? The woman you mentioned” I ask solemnly before the conversation derails once more. The laughter dies in his throat. Then he sighs heavily.
“I bet you can guess” I nod, keeping my silence. Yuras sighs even deeper. “She died… so long ago that our daughter doesn’t even remember her.”
“I’m sorry” I say but he dismisses it with a wave of hand.
“Don’t be, she had a pretty happy life and will be reborn soon… well, as soon as little Roka decides to finally get pregnant” his mood sours and he sighs deeply while I am conflicted. I know the reincarnation is real, but... aren't the dead supposed to lose their memories? Alas, I don't get the chance to voice my questions. “And while she’s not getting younger, she’s very picky and only interested in girls, so unless there is one blessed by Alaranna she fancies…” the Rabbitman rubs his chin and assesses me again, as if seeing me for the first time. “Hmmm… even your names are so similar some may mix them up…” he mutters to himself.
“Stop it!” I shout, wrapping myself tighter in fur I use to cover myself, since my clothes are ruined and I have none to replace them. Alas, the Chieftain is not even listening to me; he nods, as if agreeing with himself and stands up.
“Let’s fight!” He proclaims suddenly, with an impossibly wide grin.
“What?!” My confusion knows no bounds.
“We will fight” Yuras declares in an authoritative tone. “I need to know if you’re up to little Roka’s standards – and besides, I have to see just how powerful the Gods' Chosen Daughter is!” He gets more and more agitated while explaining – not that it actually makes a lot of sense to me. “So don’t hold back and fight with your full Aura!”
“I have basically no clothes I can move around… much less fight in” I complain; I’m not really in the mood – in addition of a fatigue from my previous encounters starting to settle in. AND we've just eaten - so I'm getting rather sleepy.
“Ha! That’s no issue – if it makes you feel better, I’ll just have to undress too!” To my shock he drops his fur cape and starts unfastening his belt.
“Wait! At least leave the pants on!” I stop his rash actions, flustered. “And aren’t those magical? Won’t you be at a disadvantage?”
“E!” He waves his hand. “You’re not in the best form either; it seems only fair to level the field.”
“I’ve never fought a… humanoid… err… sapient opponent before” I confess and he responds with a fit of laughter.
“Well, there’s always a first time to everything – and it makes my decision to not use my magic items even more fitting!” He says cheerfully; I have no retort to that. “But enough talk; let’s brawl!” He assumes a fighting stance, urging me to attack him; I am about to – reluctantly – take the first swing, but we are interrupted by a dead Horned Rabbit hitting Yuras in the head.
“Hang on!” Shouts Olka angrily, with folded arms – she must have been the one to throw the carcass earlier. “If you really need to, tussle further away from the camp! I will not set up another if you mess this one up!” She warns us – and she is a bit scary doing that, to be fair; even the herculean Beastkin before me seems to be affected. We look at each other and nod, non-verbally reaching a mutual agreement; then we move.
Strangely enough, now that we are moving from the camp, my heart starts beating faster and my internal flame starts rising in intensity. Despite my initial hesitation, I start anticipating what is going to happen. My enthusiasm rises so much, my mouth starts mirroring the stupid grin of the Krolsun opposite of me; am I turning into a musclehead? Or is it just that I’m falling victim to his contagious enthusiasm? The more time I spend with the man, the more of his natural charisma I notice; no wonder he became the Chieftain, despite being an outsider initially.
“I see you are eager to go” he comments with a laughter as I take off the fur and throw it to Pola. I am even no longer anxious, nor ashamed of my own nudity; I am perfect after all, and I have to remember it. I have to make everyone remember it.
“Are you ready?” I ask, taking a stance myself – however amateurish it can be – and I grin. “Prepare to get an ass-whooping!”
“Ha! I like your confidence – come at me!”
