Late afternoon turned to night when Rav, Cloud, and Shine watched the adults leave with the Aster-Fate and Morning-Prase in the lead.
The blossoming stars that was scattered across the night sky seemed to dull.
This is going to be chaotic, right? Rav thought for the first time as she saw the last of Vex-Ice disappearing into the trees.
There's basically no leader other than Sage-Onyx, Glow-Tunnel, and Moon-Hill. Moon-Hill's wife, Kem-Lock, died when Zeo was born.
Star came from a sickly mother and a father who was hurt from the massacre, which he soon died from his wounds, and Hua.. Hua? My goodness, his story is supposed to be brutal. By far the only apprentices with an actual living parent or parents is Zeo, Rav, Shine, Night, Husk, and Breaking.
Husk and Breaking's mother is Crippling-Creek, yes, her, but they both barely look like her.
Husk has pebble gray eyes and fossil gray wings, star patterns that matched his brother, Breaking.
His hair reached to his shoulders, it's glossy tangles getting lighter as it goes.
And for Breaking, with his calm personality (a lie) and the matching wings with star patterns on the top of his wings, had a creamy yellow eye and green-gray eye, which is supposed to be from.. er.. Vaite-Key.
Yes, that means Vaite-Key has two wives. Well, he loves Gravel-Zircon more and honestly broke up with Crippling-Creek. Rav wants to be honest, Crippling-Creek was literally the first person who Vaite-Key liked, then Fade-Trix, then Gravel-Zircon.
Crazy, right? Rav learned that just yesterday too. Wild.
"Well, it's really going to be fun, right?" Cloud said as she tried to take out her ponytail. "We gotta go to sleep. Everyone did, then tomorrow we see what'll happen."
She sighed.
"I just hope it ain't gonna be too bad."
***
The morning was beautiful, Rav didn't get waken up early, he felt well rested, and was now excited for the day. Until he remembered that literally almost every adult was gone.
And now we need a new control, right. Well, let me hope it's not going to be so cra-
The loud voices Rav started to hear meant that it was really not working.
Rav just sighed.
Stretching, he walked outside and could clearly hear the shouts of anger.
"No, but we have to have the elders to do this!"
"Moon-Hill is still here, right? He can lead us!"
It sounded like Husk and Night were fighting.
As he came outside of the Apprentice Cave, he could see Night, with her unnatural jet black wings spread out in a defensive way, and Husk's outstretched arms as to prove his point, were facing each other with hissing and undocumented points.
The other apprentices either stood by or wasn't even seen, while Sage-Onyx and Glow-Tunnel just ate pieces of rabbit.
"But Moon-Hill's a Builder, no? The elders don't even have any interest at leading!" Night snapped, pointing toward the uninterested Sage-Onyx.
"The elders could easily outmatch Moon-Hill in experience! They should lead, until the Aster-Fate comes back!!" Husk also pointed toward Sage-Onyx, who started to look like she was starting to like the attention.
"Then it should be the Healers!" a apprentice yelled.
Both Husk and Night scowled, saying, "HOW?!"
"Well," oh, wow, it was Petal. "Because they are quite high in the tribe, so they gotta lead."
Petal rubbed her cheek and picked at her ear feathers, it's blueish-gray features turned to soils gray. "It's third after Guardians, right? So what's wrong with that-"
"BECAUSE I DONT WANT TO?" Shine, her hands full of freshly picked mint, exploded from the camp's entrance. "WHY WOULD I?"
"I don't want to either," Cloud said as she walked in from behind Shine, her attention on her basket other than the actual problem.
"And I don't too!" Rav spoke up, waving his hands, which made Petal's whole attempt seem meaningless.
He ran over to his sister and his fellow Healer while more joined the debate.
"I think I should alter Petal's suggestion quickly," Zeo who wasn't the best person to ask said, flicking his right wing. "Rather than having the Healers lead, we should actually have the Healers and elders decide things."
"No," Night brushed off Zeo's comment, "I think Moon-Hill should. No multi-power tripping as your hidden intentions scream."
By the smirk on Zeo's face, Night had guess his intentions correctly.
"We have to uproot those overgrown mint plants in the small garden because it's becoming annoying." Cloud said as she tied up her hair. "Especially the weeds that are finding it's way into the garden. I hate it's attempts of choking out the marigold we now need. Shine give it here, your crushing those helpful things."
**
"Nothing has been decided yet," the dark cave echoed Three's anxious voice as Cloud eavesdropped, no, just collected information on the current situation.
"Everyone is just wild! A random hunting squadron coming back with little food because of how another hunting squadron was in the trees stalking birds! Then they're complaining of each other, now we only have fish because of smug Depressed with Feather, Flame, and surprisingly not surprising Hua."
Ok so only Depressed was a smart one in this madness? Cloud basically solved war with one thought. Seriously! Rolling her eyes, she dipped the yarrow into the clear stream, washing off the dirt.
It's cold touch made her want to take her hand out of there, but since she's not supposed to give anyone disgusting thing, she won't.
"And anything else??" Her companion, Shine, asked.
Three's jittery wings appeared from over the edge of the short dip. "Y'know... Zeo's suggestion actually seems like the best right now. It's like picking a new tribe leader other than one temporary leader."
Nah.
That's enough now, Cloud got up and stretched as the yarrow floated in the water. "Rav!! Come down here and wash out your hands. Shine, we gotta settle this matter at hand."
A shocked gasp from two different directions told Cloud that both of the apprentices heard, and she shook out her wings in slight satisfaction as Rav's cold aura washed over her.
It wasn't the best, but it didn't matter as long as she knew he obeyed.
His question really didn't surprise her though. "Why do we have to do it?"
She didn't answer for some seconds, cracking her knuckles and smoothing her faces feathers, making sure they are still even there since it didn't help warm up her face.
"Well, because Zeo's power-tripping point sounds more sensible as the time goes. Don't worry, I ain't going to accept him as a Healer apprentice." That really has to be the beginning of Zeo's plan.
Spreading out her wings, Cloud almost knocked Rav as she powered them up and gave her first heave, not exactly liking the stiff wing muscles moving under the feathered skin.
"Wash your hands and come up to the top floor, plus don't be slow about it," Cloud shouted back over her shoulder when she surprisingly gained a lot of height.
She reached the top of the hole and landed in the cave where a tall stone pillar blocked her sight, then went the herb storage side as she cautiously watched the dotted Io moth crawling into the different cracks in the stone wall.
It's quite empty, but not for long until some random apprentice brings a new venomous insect and apparently a new disease too. But that meant new herbs to collect and it's nicely done benefits.
Shine watched Cloud come into the main cave of the Medicine Cave, which means all those generations of Fallen Angels they really made this one place huge.
"Ok.. so are you serious about this?" she asked as Cloud walked straight past her and Three, going to the door.
Sunlight fluttered in by the tiny holes in the ceiling, and a bigger skylight that was deeper in the cave gave better light to the plants, growth, but the sane Healer would pick the door.
"Yes I'm completely serious about this," Cloud swung open the door to cold snowflakes and a cleared glade. "What do you expect?? Yea, you really didn't expect me to do nothing about the chaos and let it stay like that until they come back? Jeez, no!"
And I know after this all passes, my soul name.. Shine's, Zeo's, Petal's, Lightni-Flame's and Feather's soul names have to be after all of this, I just know it. And with the soul name ceremony comes the crystal creature Cloud always wanted.
Footsteps echoed behind her as she stepped into the dead grass and walked towards the elder's place.
It wasn't exactly a cave, it was a huge tree log that curved at the end until it disappeared into the ground, moss and mushrooms dotted the top of the wood. A young willow tree grew through the top of the huge log, and a craved out entrance in the soft wood had its leafy vines pushed back by a all to familiar hand.
Oh no not the Obsessive apprentice!! Zeo!
Did she have to bring him up every time she thought?? Gosh no, he's annoying-
Oh. Zeo came back out and sparkling-like gray that came out after him made Cloud's heart jump.
"Ayy but you have to at least think about it! You can't just brush it off as if it's the- my goodness it's cold I hate it!" The familiar voice that Cloud will willingly moon over if she could change her past, and the face that curiously looked at Zeo has his useless words went right over his head.
"But- no, actually ok, I think Cloud will listen. She's not the type to listen properly though. I guess Rav? Nah, too soft and he's new!"
"Your as new as he is," Zeo complained as he started to run over to the approaching Healer apprentices. "Hey, want to make a deal?"
Then Cloud snapped out of her stupid feelings and stood up straighter.
"What deal?" she mistakenly spoke with a unfriendly tone! Oh what will he think- nevermind.
Lightning was running around in circles trying to warm himself up. "Ohh can we go back to the elder's sleeping centers I'm colddd."
Yes, Cloud likes Lightning alot. Which is stupid for someone who wants to completely be a independent Healer. But she might have a chance after getting her soul name.. and after he gets his too.
"I just want to say that we should go by what I said. I think it's relatively smart and good and yes yea whatever mhm so, agree?"
We were going over to the elders anyway.
"I have to ask the elders first."
"Oh no need for that," Zeo wrapped his wings around himself and crouched, which was really tempting to Cloud. "I just talked to them. Ignore Lightning, the elders agree."
"The elders agree?" Shine came infront of Cloud with question. "Lightning made it seem as though they didn't.."
"Well I'm sure they did," Zeo and Cloud said at the same time, then looked at each other with suspicious looks.
"How do you know?" Zeo asked.
"I just know," Cloud replied.
"And I know it's cold so let's rejoin the elders!" Lightning cut in, simulating a breeze nobody wanted.
*****
"I honestly don't want to lead a whole tribe myself, so I totally agree," Moon-Hill hastily murmured. "Even though I'm quite as old as to join elders."
"Your much too young stop your bluffing," Glow-Tunnel's sweet voice didn't match her appearance and natural personality but it's her, not Rav.
"So.." Shine, sitting beside Rav with her legs under her leaned closer to the three chattering seniors with hope.
"Yes, I agree too," Sage-Onyx opined. She flicked her wing in a surprisingly quick movement, scaring a big away. "But now I'll give this order-"
"Yes!" Quite a late celebration.
"I'll give this order: Night, Petal, Three, Flame, and Feather hunt, Breaking, Husk, and you Zeo you go check out the territory, Hua, Lightning and Depressed should stay here because the others are out, and you Cloud, Rav, and Shine- do whatever you intend to do."
A sigh of relief escaped Rav as he released his wing from his grip, it painfully became a little sore.
"Finally some solid commands." The voices from outside meant that everyone else heard and was discussing this, and Cloud got up to repeat what Sage-Onyx said with a more clearer voice.
"It was really going to go downhill if Zeo never gave this genius plan," Shine whispered to Rav.
Well if the power-tripping wasn't included, Zeo would be a wonderful Aster-Fate. But that meant he had to get his soul name first, be recognized by the current Aster-Fate, Morning-Prase has to at least like him and know him, he has to prove himself, he has to train as a Guardian and keep up the good behavior until the Aster-Fate is at her last breath and says that Morning-Prase should take Zeo with his soul name as the need Aster-Fate, and train very hard to have done a ceremony nobody but the deputy and Aster-Fate knows how to complete.
"Yea," Rav shuddered. "But Shine, if it you-"
"Oh nice your speech is better!" Shine interrupted Rav, observing. She also stood up and padded around Rav, her wings carefully tucked in behind her. "That's good, you surprisingly became better at it."
"Well- ok, yes. But now can I learn Crest?"
A surprised expression then changed quickly to ecstatic. That meant yes by a mile.