[䏠xote]

username iceypopCS
name 勋忠 ["sheen-zong"]
[xunzhong, xun meaning "virtuous" and zhong meaning "loyalty/devotion"]
gender male

Story

moonlight dyed the blood that dripped from the prince's blade silver, glittering upon it, dancing over its surface before it turned dark and fell to the floor where more of it had pooled. the body there was of the emperor--still, unbreathing. xunzhong remained frozen, his dark eyes attempting to make sense of the carnage before him, of the son who stood over his slain father, the weapon still in paw.

for a long moment, neither kalon spoke, the general's claws still resting over the hilt of his sword.

"...aren't you going to sound the alarm?" the prince finally murmured, his voice even and cool, chillingly so. there was no remorse in his eyes, no hesitation on his lips. he knew what he had done, and he was not ashamed.

"..." xunzhong was quiet for a long, tense moment, before surveying the scene before him once more. "...i must ask you why, before i do."

he could not understand. the emperor was beloved by most, a kind and gentle spirit who would never harm a fly. he was against war, and certainly some of his policies were...ineffective, but nothing to deserve this. xunzhong had grown up alongside the prince. he knew him well, and he could not fathom why the soft spoken, beloved only son of their ruler would commit such a heinous act.

"...there is no explanation i can offer you that will make sense, general." the prince returned, gaze softening. "i cannot give you the information you desire, nor can i provide you with a reason that will make sense, now. all i can ask is that you trust me."

"trust you?" the general raised a brow. his heart ached. he had always trusted the prince. he had served he and his father for longer than he could remember, had been beside them through both hardship and celebration. he thought he had known them well, both of them, thought he had been close to them, had been aware of their thoughts and feelings and hopes and dreams.

and yet, despite his heart yearning to take the outstretched paw of the prince, he felt as though he had perhaps never known the creature standing before him.

"i know it is not easy to ask of you, xunzhong. yet you have been beside me for longer than anyone. i ask you to trust me, if you believe that i am a good man."

there was another pang deep within the general's heart. he shifted, drawing his sword, and sorrow passed over the prince's features. slowly, the older kalon raised the gleaming blade above his head, and brought it down as the prince closed his eyes--

but no blood was spilled.

when the prince opened his eyes, the general was holding his dark ponytail in his paws, hair severed and cut away, now a mane of tangled black, the beautiful, elaborate red and gold comb that signified his status still attached. he stared down at it a long moment, longing in his eyes, before offering it to the prince.

"i feel betrayal so deep that it runs like needles through my bones." xunzhong admitted. "but i have grown beside you and watched you since you were very young. i want to believe that this would not happen without reason."

the prince took the offered object, running his thumb over the carefully crafted ceramic petals there.

"...general xunzhong assassinated the king. you attempted to seize him, but he escaped." the general murmured gruffly, the words stated as though fact, and the prince's head shot up.

"...they'll hunt you, general."

"then let them come."

"they may kill you."

xunzhong glanced up, and his thick brows furrowed, though his eyes were soft and hinted with sorrow. "...then so be it. if they must do so to keep from suspecting you, it is a burden i will gladly shoulder." the general reached out, and took the prince's bloodied blade, wiping it across the fabric of his clothing to clean it. the blood under his paws was cool and sticky, stagnant.

"...when you have done what you can, and completed the task you cannot share with me..." he murmured, holding the prince's blade back out to him. "...call me back to your side, and i will be here before the sun can set."

the prince took his sword, and he smiled, a soft, sad smile that made xunzhong's heart break a little within his chest.

"...until then, general, i will do all i can to keep them off your trail. do not find yourself dead before you can return to me."

the general smiled, and turned on his heels, darting back out into the night to flee as quickly as possible. he'd need to gain some distance before the prince called for help if he wanted to escape alive.

--------

word traveled quickly. xunzhong was wanted, a hated criminal, despised to assassinating the king. he did not mind the insults. he was not bothered by those chanting for his capture and execution. within his cloak, he kept a slip of paper announcing the prince's coronation, to keep the newly appointed emperor's name close to his heart. he would not leave the country, though it would undoubtedly be safer that way. he did not mind living day to day. he did not mind hiding and stopping low to survive within the country.

after, he had a promise to keep.

[mackstarr]

username: mackstarr - name: Beorn // a character from Lord of the Rings who can assume the form of a bear - gender: male

The town was quiet. Beorn walked calmly through the shadowy cobblestone streets, barely lit by the sliver of a moon. Windows were shuttered everywhere he looked. He knew the townspeople were on edge with the rumors of a fearsome black creature that would come out at night to wreak havoc on the livestock and crops that were the livelihood of the village. Children were not allowed out once the sun had set and were constantly being watched by their elders. There had been another attack today, and the town council had been attempting to make it look like a member of the community was committing these crimes. Tensions were high and friends were doubting friends. Beorn wanted to put an end to this fear and he had set out tonight, when the forest was dark, with a sword he had purchased from the local blacksmith around his waist and a swinging lantern in his teeth. The roads turned to dirt as he crossed the bridge leading away from his home and the looming black outline of the forest before him made him shudder. He stepped with false confidence into the overgrowth, walking by memory a trail he had followed days before when investigating in the daylight.

After what seemed like forever, he could make out the shapes of stone caves before him. He stood before the opening, feeling very small despite his larger than average size. He set the lantern before him and removed his sword, clanging it upon the stone in a sort of taunt. There was no movement. He banged again, more forcefully. Something stirred in the shadows. There was a deep grumble and then a blacker shadow than the caves loomed up before him, eyes glinting yellow in the lantern light. Standing in front of Beorn was the biggest bear he had ever seen. It let out a roar and Beorn turned, leaving the lantern behind, and gripped his sword as he ran faster than he knew he could run. He could hear the bear crashing about behind him but he did not dare look back. This was no time for second guessing. What seemed like hours passed, Beorn's lungs screaming for air, when his ears finally were able to pick up the sound of rushing water over the pounding of his heart. He raced up to the river, spinning to face the pursuing creature. It was mere yards behind him and he only had seconds to act. Beorn lunged out with the sword at the same time as he leapt to the right. The sword caught the bear's neck and the bear's claw caught Beorn's face, leaving a gash over his nose. It tumbled past him into the river and Beorn watched as its shadowy form was swept away and then over a waterfall. It would not be coming back to hurt anyone else.

Beorn stumbled back to the village, his legs quivering with exhaustion and blood from his wound running across his face. He reached the edge of town as the sun was beginning to rise. A female kalon caught sight of him coming down the road and let out a shriek. Beorn only then realized what he looked like. Angry voices filled his ears and Beorn tried to explain what had happened, but was only drowned out by hurled insults. They thought he was the murderer. The town council head appeared and only magnified the beliefs and anger of the townsfolk. Beorn dropped the bloodied sword in dismay and backed away. "Get out murderer! Never come back!" His heart pounded and he saw no choice but to turn and run. Their angry voices echoed behind him, his nose stinging, and he ran toward the unknown life that awaited him now.

[sobble]

slightly early goodluck! there are some amazing forms already <3

[kidcandy]

early good luck everyone, i'm going to bed early tonight so I hope everyone gets their forms done <3

[kolyakun]

Good luck everyone!
I really liked coming up with a story for this fluff

[Kyo]

THIS IS NOW CLOSED
No more posting until winner is announced, thank you!

[Kyo]

First of all I’d like to thank everyone who entered and hope you enjoyed using this prompt as an exercise in your creative writing. Your ideas where all woven with such obvious care and attention that I honestly enjoyed reading each one and I hope to see all of you continue to improve and expand in your natural talents for story telling.

This was not an easy choice so I will be rewarding two honorable mentions to those who I was especially impressed with in terms of creativity, conciseness, and how well written the piece was.
Ignominyy & iceypopCS
Both of your forms really stood out to me and I was impressed with where you took the prompt. Your execution was fantastic and I hope to see you both continue to use your talents to advance in your skills and creativity. Outstanding work!

As for the winner of this kalon, I am pleased to award this kalon to the following user
junkratss
I loved your story and it stood out to me throughout judging. Your ideas for this prompt where far different from that which I expected so I was pleasantly surprised. You kept is short without saying to little and the extra you included gave me a great visual of your story. I hope you take good care of your new kalon and can’t wait to see the ways you develop him in the future!

Again thank you to all who entered and hope to see you around in the future!

On a tiny side note I just wanted to add that this kalon does in fact have facial hair. It's black and so it's a little hard to see but ahhh just thought I'd throw that out there lol

[kolyakun]

Ahh congrats junkratss! I can't wait to see how develop him in the future!
And congrats to those who got honourable mentions!

[sobble]

OH goodness thankyou so much Kyo! I had a ton of fun writing his form and can’t wait to develop him further, congrats to the hm winners and everyone else who entered, i loved your stories!

[avaloafe]

'grats, you can keep the art i made.