World of Ranicke Bk. 03 Ch. 02

When the boy sat up in his bed he did it with a gasp. The sun was up and shining in the window across from his bed. His slave was pulling the curtains back and getting his clothing ready. "Good morning sir. I hope you slept well."

"Reasonably well thank you." He rolled out of bed and stretched as he padded his way to the privacy room and took care of his morning business and splashed some water on his face. He didn't bother looking in the mirror since his slave would take care of making sure he looked good. With a slight shake of his body he stood tall and walked out. "Well time to get me ready for the day."

It didn't take all that long for his slave to get him presentable. Once he was ready he grabbed his satchel and slung it before walking out of his rooms. His slave would take care of his rooms and have everything ready for the evening. When he was left alone in his rooms the boy ensured nothing of interest was left out. Everything was carried on him and as he made notes and updated what he had he destroyed the old notes. It was time consuming but necessary.

Once he had finished eating he headed towards his tutors. The first part of his morning was always with the tutors as he learned history, laws, politics, and culture. By now he was well schooled in reading, writing, and mathematics. His favorite subjects dealt with science and alchemy. Currently he was adding reading the secured books in the library. He wanted to find out what that voice and place might be.

"Good morning prince and shall we get started? Let me see your work from yesterday." The current tutor took the papers the boy handed him and did a quick look at them and nodded. "Looks good and I will give them a better review later." He was pleased that the boy had started to pay better attention to his studies. Of the son's of the leader this was by far the best and most intelligent. He rather hoped that he would survive to take the throne or the empire was probably going to fragment.

Once he was done the next tutor came in and started the next set of lessons. His morning was filled with lessons till it was time for lunch. That he spent in the formal dining room with his father and brothers. The females were kept in a locked wing of the palace to ensure their purity till they were betrothed. They were used for binding ranking members of their empire as well as other empires. Since that was the way he had been raised he didn't question it.

As he was sitting down he ignored the glares from his brothers since he was currently the favorite. This would change quite possibly as the others did better or worse or if he failed at some task or another. One thing they had been forced to adhere to was beyond bullying no physical attacks were allowed. He had seen a number of punishments for breaking that rule and they weren't pretty.

After lunch was over then it was to the weapons trainers. They were having to modify the training since he was smaller and far more petite than his father and brothers. Rumor had it this was due to their mother not being his mother. Considering that his father was as faithful to his wife as a Luxom with its pack it was possible. Even though he didn't have the brute strength of his brothers or father but he was fast on his feet and learned very quickly. They were still trying to figure out the best weapon since a good portion of what they used were too heavy.

Currently they were using a long kid's blade and a light set of armor and axe since that was one of the symbols of the empire. All of the sons were trained with the axe. Normally it was a heavy battle axe but he could barely lift the damn thing. Now wearing the silly kid's armor did annoy him but they were working on getting him some made just for him. Same went with the sword but the axe they were not sure what to do. A cut down battle axe would just look stupid.

He was actually starting to enjoy the weapons work though it wasn't something he was going to really focus on. It did make him feel safer though not safe. It was never safe in this hell hole and hadn't been for some time. He sighed slightly since it had been getting progressively worse. When he was finished with the weapons training it was back to the library to do his homework. Now came the fun part, breaking into the locked cabinets and doing some more research.

Eventually he finished there in the library, went to dinner, and then back to his rooms. He sent his slave out so he could do some 'studying' without interruption. He opened his satchel and pulled his items out and went back to the book he had wanted to study the night before. It was a book of prophesies from many years ago. There had been a reference to something similar to a glowing pool of light. He hadn't found anything about voices though and needed to do some additional research.

~~~

By the time they reached the next camping spot they had been moving for another two weeks. From what Dan could tell and from what he had heard about they tended to stay in one location for one to three months. It really depended on the foraging and hunting. The tribe had long since learned to replant what they used as far as root veggies, herbs, and other plant life. They had also learned to plant a number of odiferous plants around the plots they had created. This kept most of the foragers out of the plots so that when they came back there was usually lush growth.

For Dan much of his day was spent training the warriors with fighting abilities as well as learning the tribe's style. He also helped train the women and children with defensive fighting in case they were caught away from the camp. It would hopefully help them survive till such time as they were found. Periodically at night he would also stand watches to keep wild animals away. All in all he was starting to enjoy the life the tribe lived. Nang was doing well also though the girls were having more of a problem. Most of that was related to the loss of the technology and their friends.

At the moment Dan was standing at the entrance of their tent and looking out over the camp. They had arrived that morning and everyone was in the process of setting up. Unlike breaking down they had to do a moderate amount of work to get the camp up to par. It was things like trimming back branches, digging dirt out of post holes, and cutting back the grasses. It was obvious that they had been using this location for years and possibly decades. The majority of the caravan locations were predetermined and designed for a particular caravan.

As he was looking out over the camp and watching the tribe members Nang came up behind him and wrapped her arms around him. She leaned against his back and sighed in contentment. He wrapped his arms around hers and gave them a good squeeze. "Hard to believe we have been over here for two months isn't it? I am rather liking it though I am missing my music."

Nang snorted at him. "Poor baby, missing all the moldy old songs you listen to. I think your music tastes ossified back during the late 80's." She loved teasing him about that. Most of it was pretty decent but she much preferred music from her country. "I have to admit that it doesn't seem that long does it? The girls seem to be fitting in reasonably well. I do feel rather bad that they were torn from their old life and friends. For you and me settling down here would be a great retirement." She gave him a good squeeze before moving around in front and letting him wrap his arms around her.

They were across from Jim's caravan and could see their girls helping out. "I feel odd knowing they are living over there but the caravan simply isn't large enough. Now that we will be here for a while we can see about expanding the tent." Nang nibbled on her lower lip before smiling. "We might need to consider expanding the caravan. Well I suppose building a new one that is larger. For just the two of us it works though snug. When I deliver there isn't room for the crib." She mentioned that in a very casual tone.

Dan sighed. "I know but since we are helping take care of Jim's family and children I don't feel too bad. I suppose it is like having very close neighbors that might as well be family. Besides, though I will deny saying this, I think they are finding comfort from Saulo and Farion." When she mentioned delivering it was so casual he didn't catch it at first. "I have been considering getting a larger one and finding a new family that..." He twitched. "Excuse me but what did you say?"

Nang snickered at him. "Well you might be an old man but certain parts are young enough... The spirits, forces, whatever you want to call them let me know I am about a month along." She was grinning big time when she mentioned that. "I do think it would be a good idea for you to start working on a new caravan don't you?"

Dan muttered at her for shocking him that way. In revenge he trapped her arms and then started nibbling and kissing her neck. He was deliberately hitting her ticklish spots on her neck. "Shock me like that and you get punished. I will put you over my knee later and paddle you for good measure as well." He only did that for a few minutes. "I am pleased though the idea of taking 80 or so turns to raise a child is rather daunting. Heck dealing with them going through puberty for several years was bad enough." He turned her around and gave her a good kiss. "Love you lady and I am pleased."

Nang squealed and laughed as she tried to avoid his nibbling but to be honest she was enjoying the moment of just them. "I can think of other ways to punish me Dan. We can talk about it when we go to bed." Nang let him turn her around and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Love you to Dan." She gave him a good kiss before leaning against his chest. "I am too. I hope it is a boy so we can have a little Dan as well."

~~~

Bear was sitting in front of the caravan he had been provided. Since he was single it was a bachelor's caravan and had four males in it. It had four beds and drawers for their stuff as well as two small desks. He had to admit it had taken him several weeks to get used to sleeping around people again. That wasn't even mentioning that he was the only human in the caravan. That wasn't a problem other than getting used to fur everywhere and the odd scents from them.

Since the caravan had been set up and they had performed the welcoming and cleansing ceremony upon arrival. Once that had been done the tribe started moving the caravan's in and setting up the camp. It had been an active day and there would be more to do in the morning. By tomorrow evening the majority of the camp would be set up and what was left was for the individuals.

One of the males in the caravan came out and stretched. "I don't mind the traveling and I don't mind the staying in one place but I really hate the packing and unpacking. I really do not like having the fun of clearing the saplings and their stumps." He sniffed the air. "Stew again darn it. I know we just got here but I was really hoping for something different. You hungry Bear? I am going to have some stew and complain just for good measure."

Bear snorted at him. "At least you don't have to worry about eating pemmican... Don't ask what it is since I would hate to ruin your meal." He grinned at him as he stood up and stretched. "Food does sound good even if it is stew. I just wish I had some of the spices and herbs from my world." They headed towards the food tents and met up with several more of the Shaman.

One thing Bear liked was the Shaman weren't limited to males. Females could be Shamans as well since they didn't have medicine women as such. They had a separate healer group who took care of that aspect. When they were joined by several ladies one came over to Bear and settled down to walk next to him. Though she was simply trying to act friendly he was getting the 'would like a bit more' vibe from her. Not in a bad way but in an 'I am interested in you' way. He really wasn't sure what to make of it and wished Jim was still around to talk to. Granted he could go to the Chief or even Jim's ladies but they weren't from his world.

Welsa smiled up at Bear and greeted him. "Ready for dinner and some relaxation afterwards? There is usually a dance after the meal. It isn't anything formal and mostly to celebrate making it to the next camp site. Would you like to go or do you plan on going?" She liked is appearance though as a human he had a very angular face. With the wrinkles and white hair there was so much character in his face. He had seen and experienced a great deal in his life and it showed.

Bear cleared his throat. "I am most definitely looking forward to some food though I can't wait till we have something other than stew. It is good but after several weeks of it I could use a good steak and veggies. Some corn bread would be lovely as well but I haven't seen anything that looks or tastes like corn." When she asked about the dance he almost sighed. It had been long enough since his wife had passed on that he didn't feel guilty about a possible relationship. He simply wasn't sure what his thoughts were about getting into a relationship with a non-human.

They were attractive and he could admit that but more than that? He simply wasn't sure how to feel about it. "I might. I am feeling my age though and if I do go I will probably relax to one side and let the youngsters have the fun." Other than the children the adults hadn't been there long enough for the world to affect their age and appearance. He wasn't feeling the aches as much but that was a relative term.

She couldn't help but shake her head at him. "I know that we age differently but you aren't that old. I can tell you have many years ahead of you." Since Welsa could tell that he wouldn't be comfortable if she took his arm she simply walked next to him. "I do have to agree that as the night wears on the danced become more energetic. I do like to sit to the side and listen to the music as well as watch the younger generation. It reminds me of when I was younger."

Bear had to snort at her. "In earth terms I am almost seventy years old and that is reasonably old. There I would have maybe ten or fifteen more years to look forward to. Here I really don't have any idea what my equivalent age would be." He contemplated asking her why she was interested in him but that was something to talk about in private. "People watching is fun I agree. Some nights Dan and I would hit a bar and simply watch and laugh at the younger people doing their thing." They continued talking as they walked into the cooking tent.

~~~

Pam was done setting up her section of the sleeping area for the Artists tent. It was sectioned off for the single artists and they had a reasonable sized bed, a small press for their clothing, and a desk for everything else they might need. Now that she had it the way she liked it Pam pulled the curtain over the opening shut. She had to admit she almost wished she had a more private area since it could get rather noisy at night. As far as sex there was very little privacy unless you lived in a caravan since everything else was cloth tents.

She had slowly gotten used to the sounds at night and was able to sleep through most of them anymore. The communal baths didn't bother her much now that she had gotten used to them. It was still a bit odd but not uncomfortable or embarrassing now. Now that they were going to be in one location for a while she was going to see about getting to know a Squorrel she had her eye on. He was a nice gentleman and very intelligent as well. In some ways he made her think of Jeff her former husband.

When she walked out of the tent she looked around and found he was leaning on a tent pole. Pam walked over to him and gave him a warm smile. "Are you going to dinner? I am starving and was wondering if you wanted to go with." The sun was still up though it couldn't be seen through the constant presence of the clouds. Since she had arrived there was only one evening she could remember seeing the stars.

Kinnie smiled at her. "I was planning on it and was waiting for you. I have a feeling you might be interested in more than just eating and discussing art forms." He twitched his ears and tail when he said that. "If you would like we can go to the dance this evening and talk and get to know each other better. I would enjoy that."

She blushed lightly and pretended to hide her face. "I feel so transparent now and I was hoping I was being subtle." Just because she put her arm around his and gave it a light squeeze. "That sounds lovely and I think I would enjoy it. I haven't danced since my husband died several years ago so you will have to show me."

He let her tuck her hand around his arm and placed his other hand on it and squeezed lightly. "Not transparent Pam but Squorrels know this sort of thing. It is one of our skills if you want to call it that." When she mentioned her mate passing away he gave her hand an extra squeeze. "I am sorry you lost him. I would be more than happy to show you some of the dances. Please don't hesitate to ask me what questions you have. Very little will offend me when asked in honesty."

Pam blushed slightly when he squeezed her hand. "I have to say you do have some lovely fur and it is so soft." She had to wink at him and smile slightly. "We can discuss your skills later on as well." She turned even pinker when she said that since she normally wasn't that forward. "I will and thank you. I hate to keep bothering Jim's mates since they are still in mourning."

~~~

Ana and Allie were sitting in Jim's tent and eating since the food had been brought over. They had pretty much gotten used to helping with the younger kids eat. Farion and Saulo were there as well helping. The mood in the tent was still pretty quiet and the three women were still mourning and it showed. Allie could tell that Jim had been the center of their world and especially Nasha. Sorrel was definitely the lead female and Nora seemed to be slightly more distant.

It wasn't that she didn't love Jim so much as though she cared a great deal for him part of the reason she had mated with him was for Tonya. It gave the little girl a father figure to look up to and who loved her. Allie had to admit the little girl was darling even if she was mischievous. As far as the other children all of them were well behaved and polite. Farion was really nice and cute as well. She loved scratching his ears when they were relaxing and he seemed to enjoy it as well.

Ana seemed to like Saulo as well though not quite in the way Allie was attracted to Farion. There were several other boys that interested her but for the moment she was content. From what she had seen once the kids hit sixty to sixty five years old they started forming relationships. They normally lasted maybe a turn or two before they moved on. They could be deep relationships but once they reached their majority they played the field. It wasn't expected for them to settle down right away and start a family since they were in training.

While unplanned pregnancies did happen it wasn't the norm. If it did happen there wasn't any stigma since during heat they were very active and they didn't have birth control as she knew it. There was something that would encourage the female to get pregnant but nobody would talk about it. That rather confused her since sex was an open subject as far as she could tell.

Tonight she was tired and was going to bed early. She was stronger than she had been before they had arrived but her endurance still wasn't what the other kids had. There was supposed to be a dance after dinner and chores were done but it wasn't going to happen for her. Chances were Ana wasn't going to go either.

Ana was pretty much thinking the same thing about the dance. She was beat and she was going to bed shortly. As she looked around the room most of the younger kids were looking tired as well. They had arrived that morning and had spent the day working to set the tents up. Yes the jobs they were given were age appropriate but it was still tiring for them. Farion was probably going to the dance since this was stuff he was used to doing.