{"sf1_id":248,"sf2_id":"0mvbpdAm","title":"Bones and History","author":"Wirewolf","words":4737,"posted_at":"2002-12-01T19:29:00.000Z","tags":["M/F","NC","Rabbit","Rape","Tiger","Violence"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/248-bones-and-history","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/s/0mvbpdAm","image_url":"https://cdn.sofurryfiles.com/submissions/thumbnails/01/d6/01d6d562-95a0-435d-8542-77e3d8a00944","description":"","content":" Bones and History  \n  \n(c) 1999, Wirewolf  \n  \n\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*  \n  \n\"Where are you taking me?\"  \n  \nThe only answer she got was a harsh tug on the leash connected to the  \nleather collar around her neck. She stumbled and nearly fell. The dog  \nbehind her laughed and pushed her, watching her try to keep her balance  \nwith her arms tied across her back. The cat holding her leash hissed at the  \nother guard.  \n  \n\"Knock it off. I don't want to have to carry her if you break her legs.\"  \n  \n\"Shut up, Perrin,\" the dog groused. \"I can have fun if I want.\"  \n  \nWith frightening speed the cat spun, grabbing her by her long, soft ears.  \nHe pointed a finger in the dog's face, the needle-tipped claw out and  \nquivering. \"Not on my watch you don't!\"  \n  \nAneese gritted her teeth. It was impossible to suppress the whimper that  \nrose from her throat. Perrin was hurting her ears again. She heard the dog  \ngrowl threateningly and wished she could make herself disappear.  \n  \n\"If you don't-\" said Perrin.  \n  \n\"You can't make-\" bellowed the dog.  \n  \n\"I'll gut you like-\" Perrin howled.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; A shadow moved in front of the flickering torches that lined the stone  \nhalls of the keep. Both guards fell silent instantly.  \n  \n\"What's going on here?\" The voice was soft yet full of menace. The  \ndog whined quietly.  \n  \nAneese couldn't make out the new man's features, but he was obviously  \ncanine. He was huge, possibly a wolf. His eyes glowed in the torch light.  \nShe wondered if he would kill her.  \n  \n\"W-we f-found her,\" stammered Perrin.  \n  \nThe wolf's eyes bored into the cat's. \"Really.\" Contempt and anger  \nwere waging a war for control of his expression. Anger was winning.  \n  \nThe scent of fear filled the corridor, and she wasn't the only one  \nproducing it. She unconsciously pressed against the cat, wanting  \nsomething between herself and the huge canine.  \n  \n\"Who are you?\" The voice had lowered, a danger sign to anyone with  \nworking ears.  \n  \n\"P-P-Perrin Bentear,\" the cat managed to say.  \n  \n\"Taukly Threetoes,\" whispered the dog.  \n  \nA black furred hand, big enough to cover the top of her head, reached out.  \nPerrin didn't hesitate to place the leash in it.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; \"I'll mention your names.\"  \n  \nThe two lackeys had no trouble interpreting his dismissal. They made a  \nhasty and almost dignified retreat. The wolf said nothing more as he  \npulled her leash. She followed quietly, terror building within her. This  \nwolf meant to kill her, she was sure. Maybe he would hunt her down for  \nsport, or break her with his bare hands. Whatever was in store for her, she  \nwas certain he would be the last thing she ever saw. She tried to speak but  \nwas able to get only a single word out.  \n  \n\"Please.\"  \n  \nTo her surprise, the wolf stopped. When he turned to stare at her with  \neyes that reflected the molten fire of nearby torches, she felt her mouth go  \ndry. She tried again to talk to her captor.  \n  \n\"Where are you taking me?\" She swallowed and forced herself to speak  \nabove a whisper. \"Are we going to see my family? Where's my mate?\"  \n  \nThe wolf was silent and still. His long predatory face showed nothing of  \nwhat went on inside him. When he finally spoke, his voice was as  \nindifferent as his expression. \"You're mate is accused of a crime against  \nFauna. The Rasha will tell you.\"  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; Aneese trembled at his words. A crime against Fauna? What could her  \nmate have possibly done? He was only a farmer, like most folk in the  \nprovince. They paid their tributes as best they could, raised their two  \ndaughters to be good citizens and obey the Rasha in all things. What  \ncould the crime be? When she tried to ask, the wolf said nothing. He  \nonly led her through the cold hallway to the Rasha's main chamber.  \n  \nThey stopped at an enormous wooden door carved with the likeness of  \nthe Rasha. Actually, it was a likeness of all Rashas, past and current.  \nLineage was power, and the holy Tigers had held that power for as long as  \nFauna had existed. To be here was an honor.  \n  \nUnless one was bound and accused before the Rasha.  \n  \nThe wolf placed his hand against the door. He looked at her,  \nconsidering. \"Frightened, rabbit?\" he rumbled. She looked up at him,  \nwondering if he could hear her heart pounding within her thin chest. She  \nnodded, unable to do more than that.  \n  \nFrom a pocket of his thin leather vest, the wolf produced a vial. He  \ngazed at it, turned it around. Meeting her eyes, he said, \"This will give  \nyou courage.\" He unstoppered it, held it to her mouth. She hesitated, not  \nknowing why he would care if a poor farmer's mate was scared to meet  \nthe Rasha. His eyes hardened, and he opened her lips and tipped her head  \nback. The thick, sickly sweet fluid burned its way to her stomach.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; The wolf rapped lightly on the door, twice, before pushing it open.  \nAneese looked up again at the wolf before they entered the Rasha's huge  \nchamber. \"Who are you?\"  \n  \nThe wolf was staring into the Rasha's chamber, veiled hunger lighting  \nhis face for an instant. Without looking at her, he replied, \"I am called  \nGroustch. I am the Rasha's Second.\" He walked into the chamber,  \npulling her with him.  \n  \nEven in her frightened state, the opulence of the room stunned her.  \nBeing a farmer's mate had given her no cause to imagine such splendor  \nexisted. Beautiful embroideries graced the harsh stone walls while thick  \nrugs lay underfoot. Ornate furniture of polished wood stood along the  \nwalls like sentinels.  \n  \nAt the far end of the room, dominating the scene, was the throne. It was  \nenormous, carved with fanciful creatures she had never seen. Heavy  \npurple cloth hung from the sides. Arcs of the material were held up over  \nthe throne to form a canopy. It cast shadows over the throne's occupant.  \n  \nShe quailed at the sight of the Rasha. It wasn't his physical size, which  \noutstripped even Groustch's impressive bulk, that unraveled her. It wasn't  \nthe voluminous purple robe that covered him from neckfur to feet. It  \nwasn't even the deadly compliment of curved scythes that lightly raked one  \nworn armrest of the intimidating throne.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; Aneese found herself devastated by the sight of the Rasha's face. His  \nbroad muzzle, full of unseen teeth, lifted. Eyes, like the wolf's, reflected  \nthe room's flickering light. Where the canine's were molten gold, the  \nTiger's were a dim, bloody red. She barely registered the bands of black,  \norange and white fur that framed those eyes, that face. The Rasha's thick  \nmultitude of long whiskers twitched slightly. Her knees weakened at that  \ntiny movement.  \n  \n\"Aneese Stillwater, Ta Felidae,\" the wolf announced. The Rasha's ears  \nquivered at the sound.  \n  \nHe moved. It was like the avalanche that had buried her village during  \nher childhood. He approached her with a certain inexorableness. The  \nrobe briefly parted in front as he stood, showing more mutely striped  \nfur. One leg, then the other pierced the robe as he stepped forward. Wide,  \nheavy feet, their claws showing their tips, padded silently over the floor  \nrugs.  \n  \nGroustch took a single step back as the Rasha stood before her. Aneese  \ndidn't start trembling until the Rasha spoke.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; \"Do you know why you are here?\" His voice was deeper than the wolf's,  \nmore forceful, more brutal. It was also soft, silken as a lover's voice. She  \ncould never have imagined such a voice.  \n  \nThe only sound from her was the rapid wash of her panicked breath. She  \ncouldn't tear her eyes from his face. She feared him too much to look  \naway. All she could do was shake her head minutely.  \n  \nHe stood, towering over her. He lifted a hand to her neck, the rough pads  \nof his fingers rasping over the leather of her collar. He twisted her neck  \nslowly until her head was pointed at a small table with gilt edges. She  \ngasped, partly at the increasing pain, partly at what she saw on that table.  \n  \nIt was one of the skulls Billis had found while plowing their field. The  \ndiscovery had puzzled them. No creature in all Fauna had such a head.  \nThe rounded skull had no discernable muzzle, square, flat teeth and a  \nmuch higher forehead that any decent being could claim. Her mate had  \nput the skulls in a sack and left them in the tiny feed shed behind their  \nrough brick cottage.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; The Rasha held her neck tighter, bringing his thin black lips close to her  \nshivering ear. \"Do you know...\" He squeezed harder, bringing tears of  \npain and terror to her eyes. \"...what that is?\" He shook her once, hard.  \n\"Do you?!\"  \n  \nFear robbed her of any reply she could have made. The mighty Rasha  \nhad cut off her air. She could feel her pulse pushing weakly against his  \nthick fingers as her vision started to go gray at the edges. She tried to  \nshake her head, to answer the Rasha. She could only squirm helplessly.  \n  \n\"Yoomuns!\" the Tiger whispered fiercely, his breath burning the furless  \ncup of her ear. He released her and she collapsed to the soft, expensive  \nrug. She dimly saw his robe swirl like purple water as he moved back to  \nhis throne.  \n  \nWhen she had gotten her breath back, she tried to sit up. It was difficult  \nwith her arms tied behind her. She was surprised when Groustch moved  \ncloser to slide a hand under her shoulder to help her up. Still panting, she  \nlooked at the ruler of all Fauna. The Rasha was staring at her from the  \ndarkened depths of his throne. She looked to Groustch, but that one only  \ngazed at her with his continued indifference. The silence was thick and  \nheavy.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; \"But,\" came her small voice. She turned her pleading eyes to the Tiger.  \n\"But- but yoomuns are just...\" She swallowed, unsure if she was  \ncommitting an act of disrespect by uttering contrary words to him. \"I  \nthought they were just pretend, like gobbles and snatchers. There aren't  \nany real...any real yoomuns.\" She shuddered at the word.  \n  \nYoomuns. They were story creatures; Demons supposedly driven out by  \nFauna before time began. They were portrayed as destroyers of all  \ncreation. Their dark, foul presence was said to be enough to kill whole  \nvillages.  \n  \n\"Do you doubt me?\" His growl threatened to stop her heart. She shut  \nher eyes and shook her head emphatically. \"Oh, no, Ta Felidae,\" she  \nsqueaked. \"You're the wisest of Fauna.\"  \n  \n\"Do you doubt your eyes?\" He pointed with a lethal claw to the cursed  \nskull.  \n  \n\"No, Ta Felidae,\" she breathed. She felt a burning in her stomach, like a  \ncandle that had been swallowed alight.  \n  \nThe creak of Groustch's leather vest, the faint scratch of the Rasha's  \nclaws on his armrest were the only sounds to accompany her shuddering  \nbreath. She ached to ask what fate was decreed for her and her family.  \nShe dared not.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; The Rasha picked up a nearby silver goblet and drank its contents  \nswiftly. He didn't notice the subtle shift of his Second's eyes. \"Do you  \nknow of the sacred texts of the First?\"  \n  \nHer wet, brown eyes opened but stayed resolutely on the rug beneath her.  \nShe shook her head again, her aching ears flopping gently.  \n  \n\"They are the testaments of those who came before us, those who  \nbrought life to the land. They are the commandments to all Fauna, that  \nwe may survive and flourish.\" The Rasha's voice had dropped to a cough  \nof thunder muted by mountains.  \n  \nAneese struggled to hear his words. Her concentration was being drawn  \nby the building fire within her. It was spreading out from her gut into her  \nlimbs, up and down her spine.  \n  \n\"The texts have guided the Rasha for all time. They are the law, and the  \nlaw is clear.\" The holy Tiger drew himself up, leaning forward. \"They  \ntell all Fauna that knowledge of yoomuns is forbidden. Those who hold  \nsuch knowledge must be destroyed for the good of all Fauna.\"  \n  \nShe stared openly at the Rasha, an offense in itself. A chill in her heart  \ngrew, fighting with the fire that seemed to be consuming her from the  \ninside. \"Billis?\" she whispered.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; \"He and your offspring are dead. The texts demanded it.\"  \n  \nThe brittle knife of ice that had pierced her heart shrank, eaten away by  \nthe flames. She felt numb, as though the war raging through her insides  \nbelonged to someone else. She wasn't sure what she thought, what she  \nfelt. She wasn't sure of anything except her sweet Billis was dead. Killed,  \nno doubt, by the Rasha. Or perhaps his Second.  \n  \nAneese was a gentle creature. She loved easily and clung fiercely to  \nthose she cared for. Hate was foreign to her. Yet as she tasted the ashes  \nof the Rasha's judgement, she felt something new. She hurt, it was true.  \nShe had known hurt before, was familiar with its sharp bite. This was  \ndifferent. It was born in the flare of heat consuming her from inside.  \n  \nThe fire, she realized in a sudden stroke, was Groustch's doing, the  \npotion he had given her. It was affecting her, changing her, making her  \nfeel something she had never felt in her short life.  \n  \nThe Rasha stepped down from his throne again, circling her. She  \nwatched him approach.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; She hated him.  \n  \nIt shocked her, to think such a thing. She had always been a good  \ncitizen, done her duty.  \n  \nShe loathed him.  \n  \nShe closed her eyes, fear circling her heart as the Tiger did her body.  \nThe Rasha ruled Fauna, he had to be obeyed.  \n  \nShe would...  \n  \nHer eyes snapped open.  \n  \n...kill him.  \n  \n\"Second, leave us.\" The Rasha's voice was harsh, tight. The wolf  \nmoved out of the Tiger's sight.  \n  \nAneese trembled violently. It was no longer fear that drove her. It was  \nfury. Billis was dead, her children were dead. They had died because of  \nsome old bones and the creature before her. The bones could not be  \nblamed. Their owners were dead, yoomun or not. The Rasha, she  \nrealized in another sudden flash, was singly responsible. He had destroyed  \nher mate, her daughters, and now her.  \n  \nShe didn't know how, but she would see the Rasha die. She struggled  \nagainst the leather straps holding her arms behind her. They held. The  \nTiger moved closer, passed in front of her. The fire lashed out.  \n  \nAneese looked up at the face of Fauna's greatest predator. \"Coward!\"  \nshe shrieked.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; The Rasha recoiled as though struck. Blinking, he stared at the  \ntransformed rabbit. This pathetic, useless creature spoke to him in such a  \nway? Not possible.  \n  \n\"Killer of helpless children!\" Aneese took a single step forward,  \nmindless of her captivity. \"Eater of dung!\"  \n  \nThe shock of the moment passed, and the Rasha snarled. This animal,  \nthis insignificant beast was squealing at him, spitting deathly insults. His  \nclaws leapt out. He would teach the piping rabbit who held the power.  \nHe grabbed her by the shoulders, lifted her up. The blazing rage within  \nher shown brightly in her eyes, but he cared nothing for that.  \n  \n\"You are mine!\" he roared. \"You are nothing to me!\"  \n  \nHe held her close against his hips. The heat of his own anger had fired  \nhis lust, and he meant to quench that flame before he extinguished hers.  \nAneese had no clothes, seldom wore any except blankets in the deepest  \nwinter months. His robe parted again, this time forced open by the spear  \nof flesh between his striped legs. He pushed her down onto himself,  \nthough he wasn't hard enough to actually gain entry to her. The brush of  \nher squirming body against his sex was thrilling to him. He ignored her  \nhate-filled eyes, her spite-filled mouth. He rubbed himself with her body,  \ntaking pleasure in her angry cries.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; She felt the fur of her belly getting wet, and knew well what the Tiger  \nintended. She howled her disgust. \"Motherless worm!\" she cried. \"You  \nlie with pigs! You mate with monkeys!\"  \n  \nHis lust spiraled upward, filling him with demands. He rubbed himself  \nharder against her, bringing new cries and slurs. He felt himself  \ncapitulating to his bestial tendencies. Soon, rubbing was not enough. He  \nlooked down, shifting himself and her, aiming to take her with a single,  \ndeft stroke.  \n  \nAneese saw his intentions and twisted for all she was worth. It was  \nuseless. She tried, instead, to bring her legs up, to kick at him. Her legs  \nwere well muscled and powerful. If she could get enough room to aim at  \nhim she might hurt him before he could take her.  \n  \nThe Rasha had dealt with rabbits before. He knew their puny strengths  \nand waited for her to make the move he expected. When she lifted her  \nlegs to kick him, he drove into her mercilessly. His aim was practiced and  \ntrue. She screamed as his barbed penis wrenched its way into her, tearing  \nher. He pushed down harder, and she threw her head back, mouth open,  \nunable to make any more sound.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; A rumbling sound worked its way into her ears. Dimly, she recognized  \nthe thrum of the Tiger's purr as he lifted her. She felt the spines of his sex  \ndig into the walls of her womb. Pain whited out her vision. Her anger  \nwas unabated, unable to escape. The pain seemed only to feed her fury.  \nShe sucked in a breath to curse him again, but could only shout hoarsely  \nwhen the Rasha rammed his scalding hot shaft back into her. Her legs had  \nshifted unwittingly around the Tiger's waist. She tried again to draw them  \nup enough to kick him. He merely lifted her again, his barbs drawing  \nblood from her vagina.  \n  \nThe rabbit stopped struggling after a time, and the Rasha was able to  \nenjoy the tight warmth she offered her master. Her small form seemed to  \nlose all strength. She only lay there in his grip, limp and quiet. It didn't  \nmatter to him. All he cared about was reaching his peak. He tightened his  \nmuscles and thrust into her harder than before, eliciting only a strained  \ngrunt from his subject. He could feel his testicles drawing up, preparing.  \nHe closed his eyes, straining. His mouth opened, his pale yellow teeth  \nexposed as his black lips drew back. A hiss worked its way from his  \nmouth, followed by a full-throated roar.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; He thrust once more as his body fired his essence into the dangling  \nrabbit. He felt exultant, triumphant. He also felt unnaturally exhausted.  \nHis strength seemed to have fled him, perhaps to take residence in his  \nvictim. He staggered, suddenly finding it difficult to hold the silent rabbit  \noff the ground.  \n  \nHe opened his eyes. Before him, the rabbit hung in his grasp. She was  \nstaring at him with white hot rage. He was unconcerned about her. What  \nconfused him was seeing Groustch standing behind her, staring at him  \nindifferently. Such an invasion of the Rasha's privacy was outside his  \nSecond's nature. What made less sense was that the wolf was holding the  \nrabbit's bound arms.  \n  \nWhen Groustch said quietly, \"Take him. He's yours,\" he suddenly  \nunderstood. It was treachery, and he was unprepared.  \n  \nThe wolf tore violently at the straps binding the Aneese's arms, shredding  \nthem effortlessly. With her arms free, she was able to grasp the thick fur  \nof the Rasha's sides. Her blunt claws couldn't hurt him, but they helped  \nher dig into the Tiger's pelt for a solid grip. She pulled up with all her  \nstrength and was able to finally get her legs in front of her. But she didn't  \ntry to kick the Tiger. Instead she planted her bare feet on his thighs. She  \nlaunched herself at him, pulling up with her arms and pushing powerfully  \nwith her legs. She opened her mouth, the two sharp chisel-edged teeth in  \nfront aimed for his throat. As his blood-engorged penis ripped one final  \ntime from her body, her muzzle slammed into his throat and her jaws  \nclamped shut on his larynx. Her brown eyes were hard as stone as she felt  \nher jaws close, crushing the Rasha's windpipe.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; Stunned by the abrupt turn of events and weakened inexplicably by  \nhis efforts to rape the rabbit, the Rasha was momentarily unable to defend  \nhimself. Instincts are strong in Fauna's folk, though, and he quickly raked  \ntwo sets of razor-needles down her back. He felt her quiver under the  \nassault, but her jaws only squeezed harder. His lungs were already  \nstarting to burn for lack of air. He raked her again, desperately trying to  \nrid himself of the small mammal with its teeth locked in his throat. His  \nmouth opened and he inhaled sharply, but nothing happened. He was  \nsuffocating. He gripped her head in both hands and pulled. That only  \nsucceeded in damaging his larynx further and sending unimaginable pain  \nthrough him. Eyes wide, he glanced at Groustch. The wolf only stood,  \nout of reach, watching the spectacle with keen interest.  \n  \nThe Tiger knew, then, that his Second was responsible. His eyes flicked  \nto the goblet. The water had no doubt been tainted by the lupine's hand.  \nIt escaped him why the wolf would abandon years of loyalty and his  \nblood-oath to do this thing to him. He would ask him before he personally  \nexecuted him. If he lived that long.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; The room was losing its edges as he started to fade. He finally put both  \nhands around the rabbit's neck and squeezed as hard as he could, intent on  \nbreaking her. His strength had diminished, however, and the bones would  \nnot break. He continued squeezing, hoping to bring the very death she  \nintended for him. Her breath whistled twice, then ceased. He had her. If  \nonly he could outlast her.  \n  \nGroustch watched, concerned that the Rasha, with his enormous lungs  \nand powerful hands, would finish the rabbit before she could destroy him.  \nHe wanted nothing more than to help her, to break the Tiger's hold on her  \nneck. He knew he could do no such thing, not without endangering  \nhimself and his continued service to the next Rasha. He listened closely,  \nwaiting to see which would stop breathing first.  \n  \n\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*  \n  \nThere were wonderful smells around the room. Bread and wine, flowers  \nand incense. Voices, soft and kind, mingled with the scents.  \n  \nShe opened her eyes to sunlight. The rays streamed through a high  \nwindow, lighting up dust motes that danced a tiny, stately waltz. She  \nstared at the swirling display, unable to understand how they moved or  \nwhat they meant. One of the voices came near.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; \"Aneese Stillwater. Can you hear me?\"  \n  \nIt was Groustch. The wolf moved into the sunbeam. It lit all the fine  \nhairs on his arms and head, surrounding him with a finely jagged halo. It  \nwas so beautiful, she thought she might cry.  \n  \nThe large canine knelt by her cot and touched her cheek. \"Do you  \nremember me?\" His voice was so concerned, his touch so gentle. She  \nwondered if perhaps this wolf was, in fact, someone else, someone who  \nhad not delivered her into the lair of her family's murderer.  \n  \n\"Aneese?\" Groustch sounded worried.  \n  \nShe tried to speak, but her words were only a harsh croak. Fire burst  \nfrom her throat, the agony of her struggle revisiting her.  \n  \n\"It's all right,\" her lupine benefactor assured her. \"You've been attended  \nby a healer. Your wounds were serious, but not life threatening. Your  \nvoice will return in time.\"  \n  \nHe sat on a nearby stool, an imposing creature made harmless by  \ndrawing his legs under him and staring at her with quiet distress. He sat  \nby her for some time before he spoke again.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; \"Aneese, I'm sorry.\" He seemed ready to say more, but held his tongue  \nwhen a young cat entered the room. The newcomer's ears twitched at the  \nsight of the awakened rabbit.  \n  \n\"Oh, she's back with us!\" The feline moved back towards the door. \"I'll  \nget the healer.\"  \n  \n\"Wait,\" Groustch commanded him gently. \"I wish to speak to her first.  \nGive us a few minutes.\"  \n  \nThe feline bowed. \"Of course,\" he replied and disappeared.  \n  \nTurning back to her, he placed his large hand over her much smaller one.  \n\"I want you to know. It's important for you to understand. Very  \nimportant.\" His hand gripped hers carefully.  \n  \nShe marveled at how numb she felt. The death of her beloved Billis, her  \ndaughters; it seemed to lose their potency when compared to this urgent  \nwolf. It puzzled her.  \n  \n\"The yoomuns.\" He hesitated. \"You must tell them. Tell everyone you  \nsee about them. Make them understand they are real.\" He frowned.  \n\"Were real. They were evil and destructive and killed everything. And  \nnow...\"  \n  \nHis eyes widened. It frightened her, seeing him so earnest, so scared.  \n\"Now we're becoming like them. Just like them.\" He looked down at  \nhis hand, covering hers. It had started to tremble. \"It started with the  \nRashas. The power, the control over others. And now it's spreading.  \nThere's been fighting, deaths over stupid things like trading prices, whole  \nclans killing one another.\" He looked her in the eye, squeezed her hand  \nbriefly. \"We're walking the same path they did. It's in the texts.\"  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; Aneese was confused. Why was Groustch telling her these things? Why  \nwould he betray the Rasha and the Fauna and the texts themselves? What  \ndid he truly want, truly expect from her?  \n  \nHe leaned closer, lowered his voice. He gave her one of her answers.  \n\"The Rasha was wrong about the texts. The passage reads, 'No creature  \nshall be allowed to exist who has the essence of the yoomuns within.'  \nBut it doesn't mean to kill those who know about the yoomuns.\" He  \npaused, letting the words sink in. \"It means we must destroy those who  \nact like the yoomuns.\" His voice lowered, his eyes widened. \"The Rashas  \nhave been treading that doomed path. Their time must end. History must  \nnot repeat itself.\"  \n  \nHer head swirled and spun at the thought. Destroy the Rashas? How  \ncould one injured rabbit do such an impossible thing?  \n  \nGroustch stared at her for a time, as though waiting for an answer.  \nEventually, the wolf pushed the stool aside and laid a warm hand on her  \nforehead. \"You're safe here. The Rasha is dead, and his successor has  \nbeen told you are also dead. Rest, heal. We will talk later.\" He watched  \nher a moment longer, then turned and left.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; Once the sun-gilt wolf was gone, there were only the dust motes to keep  \nher company. She watched them move without pattern, wondering what it  \nwould be like to exist with such aimless grace.  \n  \nOf a sudden, she wished she were nothing more than a speck of dust, free  \nto float in a sunbeam. She didn't want to be a part of a world where rulers  \nkilled unjustly and loved ones vanished because of old words and older  \nbones. Mostly she didn't want to live with the burden of warning all of  \nFauna about the yoomuns. How could she? She was only a farmer's  \nmate, a simple rabbit born to a simple life.  \n  \nBillis. Beautiful, kind Billis. She ached for his company, his voice. She  \ncould picture his face, his oddly lopsided smile. Her throat tightened  \npainfully and her eyes watered. He had not done anything to deserve such  \na pointless death.  \n  \n\"What do I do?\" she silently implored her mate's ghost. \"What can I do?\"  \n  \nGroustch's words suddenly came back to her. 'History must not repeat  \nitself.' She envisioned all the things that had happened to her, the sad  \nevents that had brought her to this point. What if it happened again?  \nWhat if creatures, unknowable in form and thought, stumbled across her  \nown skull in some distant time to come? Would those creatures be killed  \nas Billis had been? Would they be left, alone and injured, deprived of all  \nthey held dear?  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; Could she allow that? Could she let her bones and her history destroy  \nothers?  \n  \nWatching the sunlit motes, she imagined she could not.  \n  \n\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*  \n  \nThis text is (c) 1999, Wirewolf  \nIt may be downloaded and printed only with copyright information intact.  \nIt may not be distributed without author's permission.  \nComments or other responses should be addressed to:  \n  \n  \n[[email\u0026nbsp;protected]](/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection)  \n[[email\u0026nbsp;protected]](/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection)  \n[[email\u0026nbsp;protected]](/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection)  \n  \n  \n\n"}