Dearest Sister ¬ Age of Resistance

XIV.

The Before of Battle

Maudra Laesid was kind enough to house Soraya the previous might and in all honesty the guest chambers were a delight to sleep in. Maybe it was because they were the first proper or as close to a proper bed as the Drenchen could get. The bed itself was actually just a large flat hammock which hung from four wooden beams- the hammock itself was intricately crafted with several layers of rope to create a more comfortable sleeping area. The blankets if you could call them that were thick and heavy with a nebrie hide serving as a protective outside layer while the under was a type of moss which apparently only grew within the trenches- they picked those, let them dry before plucking the clumps apart. They made a great insulation and were oddly soft but it was far too hot to be covering one's body with such. Pillows were about as normal as any which was a surprise. So when the morning arose, Soraya found herself facing towards the bark walls of the tree, laying upon the heavy blanket with a pillow stuffed beneath her head. Her clothes which she had been demanded to relinquish by the maidens of the Maudra- were now swapped for brown leggings and an overly large green tunic. Unfortunately, her top half could not be spared in the appropriate sizing due to her being bigger than a childing from her waist up but her bottom half did however fit into a pair of adolescent gelfling. The tunics wide neck fell around the bare warmth of her shoulders as the princess sat up, sleep weighing heavy on the blinking of her eyes.

She would be lying if she said she didn't miss her home, her bed, her sister's and her mother. And now, fully awake and staring up at the ceiling did she truly realize that she had it good in life. But that was in the past- her mother was not returning nor was Ha'rar her home anymore. The only place that would welcome her with open arms would be that of the Sifa, the other clans wouldn't necessarily turn her away- well the Dousan would but the other's wouldn't be to keen on having her around. She could always stay with Onica, Cadia and Naida and would willingly bring Tavra along with her. It was no secret the love her younger sister and the witted Sifan had for each other- even mother knew but her response was unsupportive, not because the light of her life was a female but because she was Sifan. The All-Maudra supported no romance with a gelfling that was lower than the Vapra. Tavra told her one day when she found her eldest sister gathering winter thorns along the coast of the Silver Sea that she hoped to set sail with the Sifa clan but remained in Ha'rar to help Seladon and Brea as they often found themselves looking to her for guidance. Soraya jokingly replied that she'd might as well fall into the sea and never return since she wasn't part of the reason she stayed.

Soraya smiled to herself. She missed her sister's dearly- even Seladon whom had been guided away from Thra but hearing the previous night that she was with Brea and Maudra Fara was a great relief that the veil over her eye's had been lifted. If only she knew of the whereabouts of Tavra, maybe she had made her way to the Sifan Coast to be with Onica by now.

A knock on the wooden door broke the princess of her thoughts and the sound of Naia's voice reminded her it was a new day- a new day in which the gelflings would rise for the sake of their future. "Princess? Breakfast is being served."

"Coming!"

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Gurjin looked up from his rumfig porridge after the shadow of his sister blocked the warm sun ray from hitting his back. "Not like you to sleep in." Naia plopped down beside him, stretching her legs out and wiggling her toes till they each popped individually. "Wasn't sleeping in although that doesn't sound quite bad."

"What took you so long then?"

"I was waking the princess but it seemed she was already awake when I got there." Naia swiped a piece of fig from the top of Gurjin's slop which he weakly protested to. "Where is she anyway?"

"Where is who?" Soraya lowered herself down across from the twins, a small bowl of berries in hand. Gurjin narrowed his eye's, the green tunic that fell scandalously around her shoulders looked vaguely familiar. "Hey! That's my tunic-" Naia smacked the side of his head with a hiss to silence his outburst. "Don't say that so loud- it's bad enough we've gotten looks for even bringing her here." Gurjin rubbed the side of his head with a frown. Soraya suddenly felt those looks, last night it was hard to tell if anyone was even paying attention to the trio but now it was as if every group that surrounded the smoke lines from burnt out fires was watching them. "Also, I told Dula to give her your tunic."

"Oh that makes it better- why? Not that it looks bad on you or anything, I mean you don't fill it out but the way you have it now is rather pleasing to the eyes- ugh!" Maybe that is where all his lack of sense went off to. From the many times Naia had to beat on his head for the nonsense his mouth vomited it was no wonder he lacked a brain to fill the space above his neck. Soraya hid her amusement behind a handful of berries which she deposited into her mouth. "For once can you be mindful of your tongue?" Naia shook her head with a heavy sigh. "It's not a crime to speak my mind, Naia." Gurjin rolled his eyes as he slobbed down the rest of his breakfast goop. "No it isn't- unless what you do have to speak makes you sound like a dirty old gelfling."

"D-Dirty old gelfling?!"

---

Maudra Laesid stood at the balcony which overlooked the heart of the Great Smerth, below her clan stood in numbers awaiting the word that will seal their fate. And they wouldn't have it any other way. "Last night the fires of Thra had been lit- across our world to each and every clan. This is something rare, only ever happening when the power is unbalanced and the forces of Thra must seek out to eliminate the corruption. As the children of the swamp- we must fight for justice. We must fight to show that we are no lesser nor weaker than any other- be it the vile cretins who have deceived us or the gelflings who have looked down on us. Drenchen- sisters and brothers, stand for Thra, stand for your clan!" The gelflings below cheered, throwing their fists into the air. Soraya glanced to her side to see both Naia and Gurjin doing the same which prompted her to raise her's into the air as well. "Go- prepare your weapons, your armor, your courage. Let us show the Skeksis just who the gelflings of Sog truly are!"

It was deafening the way the Drenchen clan hooted, cheered and hollered but it was welcomed. The sound was one of union, the answer to a call that waited so long to be heard. Gurjin, in the high of the rile looked over his sisters head towards Soraya who had joined the affections of his clan with a holler of her own and a raised fist. His ears flicked back against his head as she turned her eyes towards him, caught in the act of unabashed staring. She tilted her head, a coy smile playing at the corners of lips. Maybe it wasn't so bad to admire, even if nothing would ever come from it... and that oddly made his throat run a tad bit dry. Gurjin gave a bow of his head before turning his attention back to the situation at hand- it was time to storm Stone-in-the-Wood.

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" Time expands, the contracts, all in tune with the stirrings of the heart. "

-Haruki Murakami

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A/N

Sorry for the very late update, between christmas shopping and preparing gifts- I hadn't had much time or the energy to update sooner. This chapter was supposed to be the final before an epilogue but it would have been too long and wouldn't have been published till after Christmas with how slow I write lol. So the battle of Stone-in-the-Wood will have to wait till next update. Enjoy the filler!