[Jaykobell]

At least, that would've been the case had Darijo not thought of another ingenious idea.

You could leave it to the green Soveris to sit on something for a few days, only to come back to you with a way to change things, or to bypass them. He would become restless and bothered up until he found a solution, and find a solution Darijo did. Maybe Boitumelo wasn't quite charmed by his ideas, but Darijo had another Soveris who might listen to him. One that was higher in rank than the Prince.

When it came to him like a flash of pure, unfiltered genius, the green Soveris had been unable to keep it under wraps. He had to go tell Nogah right away, even if it was just about time for their curfew. As day troopers, it was understood that they would be confined to their dens came a certain time of the night, where the night troopers would take over. Another cog in the big structure machine, and it wasn't quite as bad as it sounded, if only for the fact that you couldn't go talk or see any other Soveris while the curfew was in place. Still, that didn't matter; he just needed the white bird to give him a few minutes of his time right before the curfew, and no one would get in trouble.

He flew off and headed straight for Nogah's tunnels, his wide and excited smile letting every other Soveris who passed him that he was going at it again. Fortunately, the majority were too uninterested or disturbed by his lack of structure that no one bothered to question him about anything. Not that he cared: he only had a few minutes before the curfew started, so the less Soveris that bothered him, the better.

Once he'd reached Nogah's den, Darijo slipped inside quickly and tried to keep a low profile. However, in his case, it meant whispering loudly, in which case his whispering wasn't so unnoticeable anymore. "Nogah! Nogah, listen to this! I got the best idea I've ever had!" He saw the white bird jump with fright when he entered and started talking, but that didn't affect Darijo's mood, his grin bigger than ever and stretching all the way to his ears.

"D-Darijo!" Nogah squeaked as he tried to collect himself, his wings having stretched from the fight and his fur bristling slightly from the shock. He sighed when he noticed who it was, but he was still a little shaken. "What's with you? What idea? I thought we agreed we wouldn't—"

But the green Soveris didn't let him continue, putting a foot right over his beak and edging closer. "No, Nogah, I don't have much time, but I have to tell you this now. I can't believe I didn't think of it before!" Considering Darijo had said these same words so very many times before, they could only mean trouble.

[Jaykobell]

Nogah had to put everything on pause in order to understand what was going on. What was Darijo doing in his den so late? To the green Soveris' credit, he'd been doing fairly well at keeping a low profile and doing his duties as the higher ups expected him to do them. Breaking the curfew wasn't exactly a big offense, but considering his reputation, anything could be a big mistake for Darijo. What was so important that the other had to tell Nogah here and now at all costs?

Regardless of what it was, the white bird knew he wouldn't be able to chase the other away until he'd talked about his ingenious idea. With a defeated and nervous sigh, Nogah looked back at Darijo with worried eyes. "Fine, what is it? Hurry," he urged on, not wanting to get caught with the green bird, either. Boitumelo actually seemed to appreciate Nogah's efforts, and the thought of everything being for naught if they got caught now was enough to make the white bird's heart skip a beat.

"You know when I said there's probably a whole bunch of things out there that still haven't been discovered? Things that we could bring back for the clan?" Darijo reminded, and the other quickly nodded to confirm that he remembered, urging Darijo to move on quickly. "Well, Boitumelo would never let us do that, that's for sure, even if we asked him. That's why I came up with the best idea I've ever thought of!"

"Then what is it?" Nogah pressed, his heart dreading every single passing second, waiting for Boitumelo to call the curfew. If Darijo's idea was so ground-breaking, he sure was taking his time getting to the point!

But the time limit didn't seem to faze the green Soveris, as he simply continued to grin madly with excitement. "If Boitumelo won't listen to my idea, then there's only one other Soveris I can go to," Darijo moved on, and Nogah simply nodded quickly. "That's why I figured that all I have to do is request an Audience with the King, and we're good to go!"

"Oh," Nogah replied after Darijo had finally told him his amazing and ingenious plan, and it was only after a few seconds that the other's words finally sank in. "Wait... Wait, you want an Audience with the King?" Nogah blurted out afterwards, his eyes widening and his beak dropping open. "Are you serious?"

[Jaykobell]

The idea, in and of itself, was absolutely ludicrous. The King had other things to do than to sit there and listen to whatever complaints his troopers had to make. Requesting an Audience was to basically ask the King or the Queen to make some time for a meeting, whether to discuss positive or negative things with them, and getting one could be ridiculously difficult depending on the season or on the status of the clan. If the tribe was facing threats from another rival Soveris clan, then the King and the Queen were typically too busy to allow an Audience to anyone. If things were a little more peaceful, like they were now, then asking for a meeting wasn't as difficult, but it had to be for a good reason.

"Shh, not so loud!" Darijo pointed out as he put his foot back to the other's beak again. "You want the whole tunnel to hear you?" the green Soveris pointed out, and to which he just got Nogah shaking his head slowly from side to side. He kept quiet for a little bit, giving it a few seconds to make sure no one had heard Nogah shamelessly blurting out the other's great plan. After a few seconds, Darijo let his foot drop and his grin remained just as strong as before. "Anyway, isn't it a great idea? If it benefits the clan, of course the King would allow an Audience."

Although the green male was convinced, Nogah could only tilt his head worriedly, looking less convinced than his partner. "How are you going to request an Audience, though? Boitumelo would never deliver the message if it comes from you." What other way to request a meeting with the King than to ask the Prince himself? The problem was that Darijo didn't exactly have a good reputation to his name, making it all the more difficult for him to get what he wanted.

Instead of getting dishearted, Darijo's grin just got bigger: if that was even possible at this point. "Oh, don't worry, I have a plan for that, too. There's one other Soveris who could place a bit of a good word for me other than Boitumelo," he pointed out, all the pieces slowly falling into place as he laid out his master plan.

Nogah blinked, wondering who that particular Soveris could be. There was one more bird that came to mind, but neither of them trained under him, nor did they really know him. "Edmao?" Nogah hesitantly asked, naming the male Royal Guard to the King. It was imperative that the King and the Queen have a personal guard to make sure they were protected at all times. While Boitumelo trained the Look-Outs and oversaw the overall management of the males, Edmao was in charge of the Warriors and of protecting the King, specifically. While Nogah knew the males well enough, he wasn't very familiar with their female counterparts except for the Princess, for obvious reasons.

But Nogah was surprised to see Darijo shake his head at the name of the male Royal Guard, and the white bird was all the more curious as to who that one Soveris was that Darijo had in mind. "Not Boitumelo, and not Edmao, either. No, I was thinking a little bit more cryptic... Say, one particular Soveris... like Pearce."

[Jaykobell]

It took a few seconds for the name to truly sink in, but once it did, Nogah felt all the more confused. He simply tilted his head at the other Soveris, looking perplexed. "Pearce? Duke Pearce? But... we don't know him, and he doesn't know us. Why him?" The clan described its hierarchy based on various royal titles. On top were the King and the Queen; below them were the seconds-in-command: the Prince and the Princess. In-between were the Royal Guards, the two most battle-ready Soveris of the clan, and who had the duty of protecting the King and Queen with their lives. Below that, there were the troopers: the normal Soveris of the clan, otherwise known as the majority of the clan.

In the middle of it all, you had one title that wasn't used very often, or rather, that was used only for a very specific kind of Soveris. Any children that were a result from the King and Queen in power held the title of Duke and Duchess, of course, depending on their gender. No other Soveris in the clan could obtain the title; it was similar to the titles of Marquis and Marquess, given only to those Soveris who'd done extraordinary things for the clan. The two, however, were very restricted and rare titles to hold.

Pearce and his sister, Afua, held the titles of Duke and Duchess, respectively. Not only that, but they both took care of teaching the basics to the third group of Soveris in the clan. The hunters, who were called Trappers, learned the basics of hunting and prey from Pearce and Afua, one teaching the males, and one teaching the females.

Still, despite being somewhat well-known by everyone in the clan, the two siblings were supposedly very quiet and typically did not mingle with their fellow Soveris unless they truly had to. If that were the case, what made Darijo believe that Pearce was any better than Boitumelo or Edmao? Even if the two males didn't work or learn under the latter, the Royal Guard was already a better choice than Boitumelo.

At Nogah's question, Darijo simply shook his head calmly. "That's exactly why I want to talk to him. If he doesn't know us, how can he possibly refuse some small talk?" Boitumelo was out of the question without a doubt; Edmao somewhat knew the two of them, but he probably had a pretty good idea of their reputation thanks to working so closely with Boitumelo. Considering both the Look-Outs and the Trappers needed to cooperate with Warriors while they were doing their respective tasks, Edmao knew all three ranks like the back of his foot. By talking to Pearce, a Soveris who was just as influential, and one who didn't know of their reputation, was the best course of action.

Nogah gave Darijo's logic some thought, but he still looked a little perplexed. "That may be true, but... I hear he's not really the type to mingle. What makes you think he'd even listen or talk to you?" Finding the right bird was one thing, but it would do little good if said Soveris wouldn't talk to them.

Although Nogah was bringing up a good point, Darijo simply shrugged nonchalantly. "I won't know until I try to talk to him, right? I heard from some Trappers that he's nice enough." Admittedly, he'd also heard the rumor about Pearce being somewhat anti-social and typically difficult to talk to because of that. On the other hand, the majority of the Trappers had mentioned him being rather fair and understanding to them. Maybe it was a little bit of both? It was hard to tell when you'd never met the Soveris in question yourself.

[Jaykobell]

Nogah still looked perplexed, but to be honest, he didn't really know what to answer to counter Darijo's arguments. Neither of them worked with Pearce very closely, so it was hard to judge how the situation would go. Maybe the Duke would categorically refuse to talk with Darijo, or maybe he would be curious enough to hear him out. "I hear he's not easy to find when once he's done briefing the Trappers. Where do you expect to find him...?"

"Way ahead of you," Darijo replied right away, which surprised the white bird. "There's lots of rumors floating around about this guy. Apparently he hangs out a lot with the blacksmith when he's not on trapping duty." That, too, was just a rumor, but it seemed to be a pretty consistent one. The majority of Warriors had heard from some Trappers that Pearce often hanged out with the blacksmith when he had some free time. No one truly knew what he was up to, but Darijo could care less about that part: he just wanted to find the Duke.

"Gulbrand, the blacksmith?" Nogah replied worriedly, not quite confident about dwelling into the workshop of the blacksmith Soveris. Really, every single influential Soveris in this clan was intimidating or frightening in one way or another. "So... So what? You want to—"

As the two birds were discussing, a loud, shrill cry resonated outside the tunnels. It echoed throughout the stony maze, reaching even the birds nested in the deepest corners of the tunnels loud and clear. That was Boitumelo's signal for the curfew, and it also meant that their time was up. When the cry sounded, Nogah's heart skipped a beat, but it seemed like he wouldn't have to worry: Darijo was already heading right out the door, even though they hadn't finished talking about what they were going to do next. "D-Darijo? Where—"

The white bird was cut off again as Darijo looked over his shoulder and spread a wing, indicating for Nogah to keep it down. "Briefing, duty, blacksmith. Got it? All right, gotta go! G'night, Nogah!" the green Soveris blurted out in a quick string of words, and without giving the other a chance to answer or argue, he made a mad dash for the exit.

"Wh... what? D-Darijo!" Nogah called out, but then it quickly caught up to him that trying to chase the other was a foolish idea. The curfew was only a few minutes away now that the cry had been sounded, so leaving his den would only bring him problems. "Oh... what did he say, now? Briefing, duty... blacksmith? Or was it duty, and then briefing? Oh..." Everything had happened too quickly, and everything was too stressful. Ah well, for the time being, he would simply sleep it all off. Darijo would just lead him came the next morning; that sounded like a much better scenario than trying to break his head over remembering exactly what they were going to do.

With a small and worried sigh, Nogah settled into his feathery next, curling up in a ball and trying to calm himself down to a point where his tormented mind could afford to fall asleep.

[Jaykobell]

The night came and went, and soon enough, the morning sun was breaking across the mountain. For many Soveris, the break of dawn was the beginning of their day, and for a few others, it was time to go to sleep. So was the routine for the troopers of the clan, or at least, for the majority of them.

Certain Soveris, however, had a rather irregular schedule, and that was the case of the blacksmith, who typically worked as soon as the moon was starting to set to give way to the morning sun. It was during that time when the sky turned a beautiful lilac color, tainted with the blue of night, but also with the yellow of morning, eventually going from a light purple to a gorgeous yellow and pink display.

Not that he could see it, being cooped up in his cave.

His cave was the clan's one and only official forgery. Piles of precious stones, metals, and Soveris plates sat all over the cave, waiting for the blacksmith bird to melt them and forge them into something usable. The mountains had a wonderful array and supply of stones, gems, and metals, all of which he used to create armor for the troopers. When a Soveris got injured or if one died, he would also collect all the usable, natural parts he could get, such as the feet scales of the birds. Being natural pieces of armor, they could strengthen whatever he created if he mixed them with the right elements.

The forgery was typically dark, lighted only by its own burning fire and the torches that hanged on the walls. At that point, the blacksmith probably had the best night vision of any other Soveris in the clan. Not that it truly mattered for anything; his job was solely that of the blacksmith, and he didn't partake in hunting or patrolling. He would engage in battle if an enemy clan attacked, but otherwise, he stayed out of it too. He didn't speak to a lot of Soveris in the clan, and not a lot of Soveris spoke to him. He was okay with that: he was more of a loner, and being left alone with his creations and his skills was enough to keep him sane.

[Jaykobell]

There was one particular bird that visited him daily, however. A special little one, and initially, a relationship between the two probably would've never happened. However, it turned out that the other Soveris had a favor to ask, and only the blacksmith could really help him in the entire little clan of birds, as the only Soveris who played and interacted with fire and melted elements on a daily and constant basis.

His morning was just the usual. Recently, he'd only been tasked with making new helmets and new armor; no Soveris had come to him to fix their already-made armors, due to how peaceful it'd been recently. Admittedly, his materials were running low, considering how many new items he was creating; soon enough, he would have to replenish his piles. For now, it was only about melting, mixing, and then forging. What was different this time around was that he had enough time to sit down and plan every single little detail on every new piece of armor that he made, considering he didn't have a lot of pressing or urgent orders to fulfill. He could afford to give the helmets carvings and patterns, and he could especially make sure to make the royal ones a little bit more luxurious.

His job was a silent one, except for the constant burning and sizzling of burning metals and other materials. His thoughts often chipped in, but not out loud; only within the boundaries of his mind. That was why it was so easy to hear oncoming Soveris enter his cave, and so difficult for any intruders to surprise him. Very few bothered or dared to enter his forgery, but it felt about the right time. It had felt like a few hours since he'd started on these new pieces, and the footsteps were calm, yet tense. Even before the other Soveris had reached him, the blacksmith could see glittering stars flicking and moving rhythmically in the distance, with colors that were unlike anything the clan had ever seen before.

He didn't even need to glance or look in that particular direction to see the other Soveris coming his way. He simply continued to harp away on the new piece of melted elements, burning a scorching red, orange and yellow color, all three entangled into a dangerous semi-liquid, semi-solid mass. He was about to start hammering away when the approaching Soveris finally arrived in the main chamber of the forgery, but even then, the dark orange and black Soveris didn't bother to turn. "Always right on the clock, ain't you, Pearce?"

[Jaykobell]

The young Soveris before the blacksmith was truly one of a kind. While most Soveris in this clan had natural colors, with a portion also having some unusual markings and colors, the young one here was another story altogether. His dark navy coat was nothing special, but his Celestial marking was out of this world. Bright colors of yellow, orange, red, and blue all ran across his body, the stars and the glitters flickering as the Soveris moved. No Soveris in the clan had such a particular color pattern, except for his sister, whom carried similar genes.

Upon hearing his name and the comment from the blacksmith, Pearce tipped his head down briefly, out of respect. "Would you have it any other way, Gulbrand?" the younger Soveris asked, and his question was enough to make the blacksmith stop what he was doing.

"Can't have it any other way if you're a Duke, kid. These birds are gonna expect perfection from you," the orange bird pointed out, just as he turned his head to face the younger male. As an older Soveris, he knew what to expect from this clan; the little Duke, however, was still learning how to handle the tribe. He would learn soon enough that showing weakness or anything that could endanger the clan was just out of the question.

The words of the blacksmith hit home, but Pearce didn't let it show, as he simply raised his head and held it up proudly, seemingly ready for anything. "If the humans are any reference, I was already born as such, Gulbrand," the dark Soveris pointed out, although admitting such a thing left a bad taste in his mouth.

His comment only earned him a loud laugh from the blacksmith, who grinned at the youngster. “Humans don’t know anything, Pearce. You ain’t living with humans anymore: you’re living with your own kin.” He shook his head and regained his composure, and after he realized that the young one wasn’t going to answer anything back, he continued on. “Let’s see whatever ‘perfection’ you say you have, kid. Come on.”

[Jaykobell]

Upon saying that, the orange Soveris turned around and started leading Pearce further down the forgery, limping about on the remaining three legs that he had. The blacksmith was injured after a horrible battle with a rival clan very many years ago, which had left the orange bird with one leg missing. They’d had no choice but to amputate it, or else the bird could’ve had problems down the line. Still, the injury had never stopped him from getting along with his business, and it hadn’t interfered with his mood, either: he was still as hard-headed and hard-working as ever. Not only that, but it had been because of this injury that the Soveris had wanted to find a way to protect his fellow birds in battle. That was what got him to find this ingenious idea to create armors out of metals and Soveris scales. Thanks to his idea, many Soveris had been saved from amputation and even from death.

Whatever you threw his way, the blacksmith wouldn’t let it get to him, nor was he the type to lash out and get aggravated over comments. Pearce, however, was the opposite, and the last comment the blacksmith had said left the navy male wincing. “You know perfectly well,” the youngster started, following the limping Soveris along, “that I don’t think that of myself. If I did, I wouldn’t be here, every single day, in order to learn from you,” Pearce pointed out, knowing that Gulbrand knew better than to discuss this particular matter with him.

“Is that so?” Gulbrand rasped at the youngster, and he could feel the navy Soveris narrowing his eyes right at him. “It ain’t what you think that matters: it’s what you say, kid,” the blacksmith pointed out, to which the younger male didn’t quite seem to know what to say in return.

“I don’t say that I’m perfect, nor do I think so, either,” Pearce retorted, getting a little irritated at the topic; if anything, his remark just earlier had been said sarcastically, and hadn’t been meant to be taken seriously. Needless to say, the Duke wasn’t very happy that the blacksmith was opening up this one can of worms. “So can we talk about something else?” the Soveris asked, hoping to change the subject as quickly and as smoothly as possible. If he was going to be training today, he wouldn’t accomplish that by arguing with the older bird.