The Treecloud Saga: 1. A Troubling Tribal Secret
okay. my stories have sucked. i know. lets see. i'mma drop the yiff. i'm going to write a first draft for a story i've been thinking of. excuse the spelling, please, mates. enjoy, if you'll can. hehe.
In the wee hours of the new morning whines and muffled yells could be heard throughout the hometree of the Treecloud tribe of squirrels. Young Zan, still wrapped in dreadful sleep, kicked and battered his paws yelling at enemies only seen by his sleeping mind's eye. Zan floated through breaking branches as shadowed foe-squirrels chased and stalked his every move. He tried to scream but no words or sounds came forth from his bleeding throat. The enemy squirrels caught up with him and grabbed tightly onto his flailing tail. This jarred him from his slumber and with a yelp he lost his balance upon the sleeping pirch he had chosen for the night. It just so happened to be a night he chose not to sleep in the dreys that were constructed through out the hometree. Wind whistled through his ears as he vied for a branch or twig to grab onto but found none in time. The only one he was able to catch was closer to the base of the branchs. He clutched tightly to the weakling branch, but to no avail. With sleep still weakening his sences he clutched with all his might to the twig but it snapped. He twirled his body to face the coming ground scape. His paws braced for the immenent impact. He hit with a thud and then darkness encased his brain once more. This wasnt sleep though, there were no dreams or thoughts for that matter. he was out cold.
Zan's sister awoke with a start as she looked around for her brother. Zerus' eyes darted around trying to find Zan but he was nowhere to be seen. She squinted to see through the low, blue light of dawn. Again she found nothing in the pale light. She jumped to her paws and climbed up to where her father was. She was a few seasons older than her brother and never let him forget it. Her father was the chieftan of the TreeCloud tribe and a kind, just but firm ruler. No squirrel under eight or so seasons could leave the hometrees with out elder supervision. She didnt want to see her brother in trouble. Even though he was almost a full eight seasons old. "Father. Father Terairus. Mother! Zan is missing." The great squirrel leader jumped to his paws with a startled expression. "Wha, what... Zan? Missing?" he knelt to his awstruck daughter and she told him all she knew as he looked at her through blurred sleep dimmed eyes. She could offer no answers to the location of her brother. Zan prefured branch sleeping than sleeping in the numerous dreys of their hometree. So it wasnt like they could go to a specific place where Zan would've been. He could've been anywhere. The warrior leader Terairus jumped and climbed to the treetop to scan the park in which they lived. But the dawn light was still too dim to make out much of anything. A solemn tear came to his eye as he vowed to find his son. A few slivers of sunlight beckoned the large squirrel's eyes to the horrizon as he watched the sun rise slowly upwards through the pink tinged horrizon. Terairus hoped that the coming light was an omen of good fortune in the coming hunt for Zan.
Zan awoke in a cold dirty place with no light except for one little speck off in the distance. There were moans and screams of agony all around him. His eyes were swollen almost shut and he couldn't move his right wrist or paw at all. It was broken like so many twigs stomped beneath a strong beast's footpaws. He kicked his feet at the dirt floor, they were the only parts of his body that were free. His neck was bolted to the wooden wall that lay behind him, his paws were also chained to the wall on either side of the brace that hugged his neck snuggly. Only being able to comfortably move one paw he strained his left wrist trying to break the strong metal binds. Zan's eyes started to adjust to the dim light as he stared into the darkness and around the small cavern. About three squirrels and two sparrows were chained to the scraped wood walls of the small space they were in. Zan started to notice that the cave seemed to be just a drey, not a next type though. The squirrels of this tribe must have been creating this drey for many seasons and generations. He cleared his throat and spoke up, "Ahem... where are we?" A sparrow chirped out into the darkness to Zan, "We inna cave o' chains. We be captive of the great Fountain Kingdom." Zan's eyes went wide in the dim light as the legends he had been told of the evil Fountain Kingdom lead by the wicked ruler Garruz spun through his mind. His heart nearly stopped as it was clutched by the fear that he tried to swallow. He knew he'd have to overcome his terror if he was ever going to see his family and tribe. "We be new slaves. Alla dem other slaves be in the other holes and work for dem nasty bushy black furred tree wormas. I know your tribe, da Treeclouds. Good good, tree wormas. Not like these wretches." the sparrow gave an angry chirp into the darkness and went silently into her own thoughts. "What's your name, sparrow?" He asked the silent bird as he sucked up his fear and ate it down to grow a bit more couragous. The female puffed her chest feathers out and tried to look heroic even though she could not stand straight up, "My name be Battlebeak, daughter of the great warria sparra Bloodtalon chieftain of the mighty Serus clan." Zan's fear started to subside a bit having now befriended a warrior sparrow. He felt a little bit of hope creep into the darkness that engulfed the captives.