(( Disclaimer: Discretion for mild expletives, violence, gore.))
The Xaela clan known as Buduga is identified - and sometimes dreaded - for its unique look on proliferation. They recruit only males, and therefore cannot produce more members sexually. Instead, to swell their ranks they will resort to kidnapping and brainwashing, either ignoring or slaughtering the remaining souls that do not stand up to their arbitrary inspection. Oftentimes there will be recruitment raids, generally comprised of a cadre of specially trained Au Ra who will descend upon a settlement and either raze it to the ground, or operate covertly. Either way they will strip the town of all males deemed fit, or die trying.
During one such raid over a decade in the past, the Buduga descended upon a Xaela encampment of the Himaa tribe, known primarily for the strangely common trait of multiple births. The attack was swift and merciless, exacted with near-surgical precision.
Screams and shouts permeated the air, transforming the small camp into a bloody battlefield, yet it was hardly worthy of the title. The tribe's meager defense force had been the very first target, and had been quickly overwhelmed by the highly trained Buduga. Some of the male fighters had been clapped in irons, though the majority were slain on the spot without mercy.
In one of the nearby tarpaulin shelters, yet untouched by the carnage, a set of young boys barely approaching pubescence cowered. Not two or even three but four identical boys hid under blankets and stools, and could do naught but listen to the horrific noises floating through the walls and the single window. Shock and fear gripped the lads, suppressing them into inaction.
"Do you think they'll see us?" one dared to query of his brothers.
"Shut your mouth!" came the hissed reply, "You're going to get us found!"
"These bastards hardly seem like amateurs," mused the third as he rose to his feet from behind a dresser.
"Evan! Get down, you fool! Do you want to get killed!?" admonished the second.
"I don't think they're going to kill us," said the lad with trepidation. An uneasy silence followed as all three of his brothers very specifically did not voice their opinions on the matter.
The boy who had stood approached the window, ignoring the hastily whispered warnings (and then insults) floating from behind him. He came close enough to see his reflection in the window, and through it the view of mind-numbing violence. Blood ran freely through the dirt, bodies of the dead piled up, all of whom had been walking, talking, living, breathing only hours before. The staggering horror clawed its way through the young Au Ra's stomach, instilling in him a resentment which already festered hotly. His vision blurred, and refocused on the reflection. He, like his brothers, was coming into adulthood boldly. Dusky skin of rich mahogany, and hair of starless raven cut a striking figure, along with the radiant blue limbal rings. A perpetual frown graced the youth's face, framed by long lashes that made it easy to understand the boys' popularity in their daily lives. Or... their former lives.
But vanity was not what had taken the lad's attention. He saw with rising dread that there was a dagger poking through the canvas behind him.
Without thinking, the standing young man dashed to the back wall, to the confused cries of his brothers. He arrived just in time to watch it fall away, sliced into ribbons as a huge Buduga raider dropped the jagged dagger he'd used to peel open the tent. As soon as he spotted the lad, he grinned vibrantly from ear to ear.
It all happened so fast. While his brothers could do little but look on with stunned horror, the boy puffed up his chest and pointed back over the figure's shoulder, "Get the seven hell out of here!"
The raider's grin barely wavered - in fact, it only grew. He seemed almost proud of the youth... or was it proud of himself for his find? He drew a wickedly curved blade from his hip, and thumbed over his shoulder where the boy had indicated, "Sure will. And yer comin' with me, pipsqueak. Got a set 'a stones on yer, doncha?"
"Not on your life!" replied the boy, surging forward and throwing a punch towards the large man's neck.
"It's not mine that's in danger here, laddie," chuckled the raider darkly as he swatted the attack aside carelessly. He raised the blade then, already stained with the blood of the townspeople. He did not seem like the type to bluff.
But the boy did not back down. He launched another punch, but the raider's patience had already grown thin, and his weapon swung down to meet the second attack. Stunned into shock, the Au Ra youth staggered a step backwards, staring at his maimed hand as if unable to understand what had happened. He looked up, into the eyes of his assailant, and heard the sound more than he felt it. It sounded wet, and sticky, and wholly unpleasant. The man was grinning again. Then there was the sudden realization that the raider had already attacked. And this time, the sword had gone right through his belly. Both of his hands trembled as they gripped the weapon impaling him. He gasped for air that would not come.
"NEVAN!" one of the boys finally found his voice, but the display of unfettered violence had cowed him into torpor. The raider's grin remained, and he noted to himself to search the dwelling thoroughly. These Himaa camps were great for recruitment.
Yet recruitment did not await the boy who had been brave. With hardly a thought, as if he were simply some monster that had dove upon the sword, the raider extracted his weapon and swatted the youth upside the head, toppling him over into the growing pool of his own blood. His last thought before darkness came was of his mother.
The Xaela clan known as Buduga is identified - and sometimes dreaded - for its unique look on proliferation. They recruit only males, and therefore cannot produce more members sexually. Instead, to swell their ranks they will resort to kidnapping and brainwashing, either ignoring or slaughtering the remaining souls that do not stand up to their arbitrary inspection. Oftentimes there will be recruitment raids, generally comprised of a cadre of specially trained Au Ra who will descend upon a settlement and either raze it to the ground, or operate covertly. Either way they will strip the town of all males deemed fit, or die trying.
During one such raid over a decade in the past, the Buduga descended upon a Xaela encampment of the Himaa tribe, known primarily for the strangely common trait of multiple births. The attack was swift and merciless, exacted with near-surgical precision.
Screams and shouts permeated the air, transforming the small camp into a bloody battlefield, yet it was hardly worthy of the title. The tribe's meager defense force had been the very first target, and had been quickly overwhelmed by the highly trained Buduga. Some of the male fighters had been clapped in irons, though the majority were slain on the spot without mercy.
In one of the nearby tarpaulin shelters, yet untouched by the carnage, a set of young boys barely approaching pubescence cowered. Not two or even three but four identical boys hid under blankets and stools, and could do naught but listen to the horrific noises floating through the walls and the single window. Shock and fear gripped the lads, suppressing them into inaction.
"Do you think they'll see us?" one dared to query of his brothers.
"Shut your mouth!" came the hissed reply, "You're going to get us found!"
"These bastards hardly seem like amateurs," mused the third as he rose to his feet from behind a dresser.
"Evan! Get down, you fool! Do you want to get killed!?" admonished the second.
"I don't think they're going to kill us," said the lad with trepidation. An uneasy silence followed as all three of his brothers very specifically did not voice their opinions on the matter.
The boy who had stood approached the window, ignoring the hastily whispered warnings (and then insults) floating from behind him. He came close enough to see his reflection in the window, and through it the view of mind-numbing violence. Blood ran freely through the dirt, bodies of the dead piled up, all of whom had been walking, talking, living, breathing only hours before. The staggering horror clawed its way through the young Au Ra's stomach, instilling in him a resentment which already festered hotly. His vision blurred, and refocused on the reflection. He, like his brothers, was coming into adulthood boldly. Dusky skin of rich mahogany, and hair of starless raven cut a striking figure, along with the radiant blue limbal rings. A perpetual frown graced the youth's face, framed by long lashes that made it easy to understand the boys' popularity in their daily lives. Or... their former lives.
But vanity was not what had taken the lad's attention. He saw with rising dread that there was a dagger poking through the canvas behind him.
Without thinking, the standing young man dashed to the back wall, to the confused cries of his brothers. He arrived just in time to watch it fall away, sliced into ribbons as a huge Buduga raider dropped the jagged dagger he'd used to peel open the tent. As soon as he spotted the lad, he grinned vibrantly from ear to ear.
It all happened so fast. While his brothers could do little but look on with stunned horror, the boy puffed up his chest and pointed back over the figure's shoulder, "Get the seven hell out of here!"
The raider's grin barely wavered - in fact, it only grew. He seemed almost proud of the youth... or was it proud of himself for his find? He drew a wickedly curved blade from his hip, and thumbed over his shoulder where the boy had indicated, "Sure will. And yer comin' with me, pipsqueak. Got a set 'a stones on yer, doncha?"
"Not on your life!" replied the boy, surging forward and throwing a punch towards the large man's neck.
"It's not mine that's in danger here, laddie," chuckled the raider darkly as he swatted the attack aside carelessly. He raised the blade then, already stained with the blood of the townspeople. He did not seem like the type to bluff.
But the boy did not back down. He launched another punch, but the raider's patience had already grown thin, and his weapon swung down to meet the second attack. Stunned into shock, the Au Ra youth staggered a step backwards, staring at his maimed hand as if unable to understand what had happened. He looked up, into the eyes of his assailant, and heard the sound more than he felt it. It sounded wet, and sticky, and wholly unpleasant. The man was grinning again. Then there was the sudden realization that the raider had already attacked. And this time, the sword had gone right through his belly. Both of his hands trembled as they gripped the weapon impaling him. He gasped for air that would not come.
"NEVAN!" one of the boys finally found his voice, but the display of unfettered violence had cowed him into torpor. The raider's grin remained, and he noted to himself to search the dwelling thoroughly. These Himaa camps were great for recruitment.
Yet recruitment did not await the boy who had been brave. With hardly a thought, as if he were simply some monster that had dove upon the sword, the raider extracted his weapon and swatted the youth upside the head, toppling him over into the growing pool of his own blood. His last thought before darkness came was of his mother.
