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AR chapter 330
🕑 Added 2025-02-22 04:00:04 +0000 UTCThe Rodentia and Mustelid bring news, and it is not the Otariid’s place to answer. These new neighbors are not at all seafaring, so it is the place of the Lupine and Ursine to decide. The Rodentia have been the initial contact while the Mustelid have merely overseen the meetings to ensure news is returned to the Union. Those who have spoken with them have said that, contrary to expectations and historical evidence, communication is possible and simple.
The Otariid are presently available to bring whoever is deemed necessary to the continent, and thus we request that the Lupine and Ursine Councils meet and discuss as soon as they can manage.
-Message from Marshal Inuksuk, son of Ilnak to Lupine Councilor Atakk, daughter of Ilannaq
Since we’d encountered one of their kind before, I didn’t feel the need to attempt to trap or contain the creature.
“You’re not the first speaking rat named Tar I’ve spoken with.” I said. “Would you like to climb onto a boulder or something so we can look into each other’s eyes?”
“That is possible, if you would prefer. I do not mind staying down where I am comfortable, though. I do not forget that I am so much smaller than you, so it would be more for appearances than anything else.” The squeaky voice carried an unfamiliar accent, one I’d never heard except from the other Tar.
“I’d prefer to speak with you closer to eye level then. I would offer to carry you, but it seems it would either be an insult or a threat. Would you climb on that boulder there?” I gestured to a large jutting stone nearby and Tar scurried right over. Once… he? had made his way to the top, he stood on his back feet and cleaned his whiskers assiduously. It took him a mere moment before he refocused entirely on me, his black eyes studying me with a surprising intelligence.
“I must say,” Tar spoke, “that I’m quite pleased to find you. I was told that there were some keelish like creatures near here, and that you were able to speak no less! Quite a surprise, quite a surprise indeed! I simply needed to come and see for myself, as I’ve only ever seen things with scales that wanted to eat me.”
“I wouldn’t mind eating you.” I joked, but the way the energetic rat froze at my words immediately let me know that it was far from my best received joke. “I won’t, though. Anyway. My name is Ashlani, and I’m the Alpha of this pack here. Why are you looking for us? Mere novelty?”
“Very well met, sir Ashlani! I am quite pleased to have met you formally. I’ve never met a keelish with a name before, but then, you are no mere keelish, are you not? And to answer your question, I suppose you could say the reason for my curiosity is novelty, though I am loath to categorize my interest merely as curiosity. No, I would call myself a researcher more than anything. I’ve run through the ruins of cities and interviewed whatever creatures are able to speak with me. Well, able and willing. There are, of course, those who see me as naught more than speaking vermin, if you’d believe it! Regardless, I, Tar, am a distinguished scholar! I am working on my original text, titled A Personal View of the Highs and Lows of the Shandise and Their Inhabitants, Volume the First.”
“Well, we’re new here. I can’t imagine that we’re worth speaking about to compile your text.” I responded. “So you’ll probably prefer to speak with anyone else that can.”
“There’s hardly anyone to speak with in the Shandise, so I can’t imagine anyone better! Just some of my own people and the occasional hunter from the Hordes. How long have you been here then? Why did you come? It’s all so exciting!” Tar bubbled.
“Not long.” I answered with a sigh. “And to survive. There’s no fun story about it. You know what keelish are, obviously, and most think we’re just like them. Obviously, we’re not, as we are able to speak and be civilized. Now, what are the Hordes?”
“The nation to the northwest, of course.” Tar waved away my question with a dismissive paw. “I can see that you’re much different from other keelish. Were you ever keelish or do you just look like them? Those behind you, except for that iceberg of a creature, look quite a bit like keelish, just much larger. And where do you come from? How did you get here? Do you have any boats? Oh, how I love boats!”
“That’s altogether too many questions, and I’m not going to answer them all. We came from far away, and on foot. Now, Tar, I have a variety of questions, and if you want me to answer them, you’ll have to answer my own from now on. Understood?”
“Oh, of course! Anything you have to ask, I’ll tell. It is one of my responsibilities as a scholar! A little you clean my back, I clean yours. You’ve answered sufficient questions, I would think, to merit asking some of your own. Please, ask away!”
Surprised by his forthcoming and open nature, I hesitated. What should I ask first? After thinking for a moment I asked, “How many of your people live in these mountains?”
“I couldn’t say specifically…” Tar trailed off as he looked down and his paws and seemed to count on each of his fingers. “Maybe fifty? I couldn’t say. I could be considered something of an outcast, so I’m not privy to information such as that. We aren’t a close-knit group, and even those who are better perceived among our numbers do not enjoy frequent contact with any other families.”
I flared my frills in acknowledgement but Tar didn’t respond. I realized my error and spoke, “Very well. For your information, if I do that with my frills again, I’m effectively saying yes.”
“Oh, wonderful information! Thank you! Now, there must be some reason why you are traveling. My cousin, foolish as he is, mentioned that there were thousands of you marching through the Shandise. I cannot believe that is the case, as so many keelish would tear through their surroundings in days. They’d starve to death! Even so, I believe that there must be more to your pack than these ten here. Why did you leave your swarm behind?”
A simple enough question. “We’re exploring what there is to see around here. There’s much to learn and see, since we’re unfamiliar with the area.”
“And have you found anything exciting? What is exciting to you and your people? Oh, so many questions to ask!. I must apologize, Alpha Ashlani. I must wait my turn. Please ask away, so that I can learn what else there is to learn!” Tar shifted excitedly in his position as he looked up at me with glistening eyes. I chuckled and gestured for the rest of my pack to settle down. We’d be here speaking with this talking rat for a while yet.
