DISSECT AND ANALYZE // o, joining + injured

//this is meant to be a one shot and joining mixed into one
gore warning!
if you’re feeling lazy then just read the last five paragraphs but I would be really happy if you read it all
5,951 words!! my longest one, beating my previous record by 2,247.

He shouldn’t be alive. Odds had been stacked against his survival down to his very core. So how, then, was he walking? Breathing? Existing? While he was still young, he’d been chocked up as the outcast and ignored by his siblings. He was different. Different how? Was he doing something wrong? Everyone behaved differently than he did. It was peculiar.

Most mother dragons, if they noticed there was something wrong with their young, would take them far away from home and abandon them to be eaten and killed. If a hatchling wasn’t fortunate enough to receive such a death, they would starve to death all alone. Somehow, Ska’arq knew that. Yet, he was still here, under his mother’s care. Eating. Breathing. Living. Yet that didn’t make him feel any less-

No, wait.

Feel? What did that mean?

To touch. Of course- he knew that. But it seemed to have another meaning. What was it? The lack of understanding made him want to pursue the answer.

Ska’arq was a hatchling, only four years old. He lived on a rocky cliff together with his two sisters, Helira and Jiqari, and his mother- Gamila. Their father had left long before they had hatched. Kani’ik was his name. It was unfortunate that he knew nothing about him, but that was unimportant.

He didn’t carry either of their genes. Hell, not even his grandparents’ genes. Jiqari was a milky blue, and Helira was a deep russet orange. His mother was a baby sky blue. After inquiry, he’d discovered his father was black. Melanistic, as he’d been later described. A recessive gene. It would be impossible for his children to inherit it, unless Gamila carried a melanistic gene within her. She didn’t. Ska’arq, on the other hand, stuck out like a sore thumb. His scales were an odd, vibrant purple. Although he might never know why, it didn’t concern him. He understood genes. The basics, anyway.

But... there were things he didn’t understand, no matter how hard he tried. The concept of ‘emotion.’ What did it mean?

”Mother, I don’t understand,” he’d once asked. It wasn’t long ago - of course he still remembered it - but it had stuck in his mind vividly. He could only wonder why. Gamila had been preparing dinner that afternoon. A soft hum hung in her throat, and her hips and tail gently and slowly swished from side to side. On the large, flat, and bloodstained rock before her lay a carcass, already skinned of its fur. The pelt was tacked onto the cliff wall; he watched droplets of blood slide down the stone before turning back to his parent.

Focused on cutting the meat into smaller, more preservable pieces, her head didn’t turn when she responded. “Understand what, sweetheart?” She knew of how different her son was. He had no physical ailments, per se, but he could be considered what some called a ‘runt.’ He was weak, and easily pushed around by his larger siblings.

But that wasn’t his only problem. “Smiling. Laughing. What is the purpose of such trivial things? What benefit do they serve?” Ska’arq was missing a portion of his soul - a mistake on nature’s end when he was conceived. Because of this, he couldn’t feel emotions. A small toll to pay, some would argue. Some would even consider him lucky. No jealousy, anger, or sadness? He was free of all the negativities life wanted to throw at his mind!

It wasn’t like he could feel grateful to not have such a burden. Those who confronted him about his luck failed to see the other side of the coin. He couldn’t laugh or feel joy. He couldn’t immerse in the tranquility and feel at peace with birds chirping overhead and a friend at his side. He couldn’t fall in love, or delve into the happy, secure future of such a powerful relationship. He couldn’t enjoy the simple things in life, like the smell of home or the beauty of a blooming flower. He couldn’t relax to the sound of falling rain. He didn’t understand any of it. He lacked any and all social cues. It was up to him to study others and try to understand and mimic the patterns in their behavior.

Setting a strip of meat on the boulder, his mother turned to look down at her smallest and only son. It was the moment he remembered so, so clearly. The look on her face. A mixture of lightly squinted eyes and furrowed eyebrows. The look of the corners of her mouth turned down ever so slightly. An expression, as he knew it. She was expressing an emotion that he would later come to know as ‘confusion.’ “What do you mean, sweetie? Smiling and laughing is an expression of joy!” Her facial features lifted briefly before scrunching up again. ”You’ve felt joy before, haven’t you?” Even as she said it, there was ‘doubt’ in her voice. She didn’t seem to believe in her own words. Her head dipped down to become eye level with him.

Ska’arq gave a single shake of his head before it cocked to the side. An odd habit. Joy? It was a new word to his ears. The way she spoke of it suggested that it was an object. Did it relate to the word ‘happy?’ He wanted the answers. Would touching this ‘joy’ give him a better understanding? “No, I have never felt ‘joy’ before.” His head tipped further to the side. “Do you have any? I would like to see it.”

In a nearly synchronized action, the two blinked at each other. It was then his mother sat up, mouth pulling upwards and eyes resuming a squinty look. There it was. A ‘smile.’ But it looked different. He didn’t understand why. Several small bursts of vibrated air escaped her jaws. It was called a ‘laugh.’ It was related to joy. Did that mean it was nearby? Pulling his stare away from her, the hatchling peered around. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

“Joy isn’t an object, Ska’arq! It’s a feeling! An emotion! Don’t be such a silly goose.” she exclaimed with a chuckle, catching his attention again. Raising her hand, Gamila gently brushed his cheek with her finger before nudging him away. “Go find your sisters, honey. Mommy has to make dinner.” Then, having been left without much choice, he had briefly watched her resume stripping and preparing the meat before he turned away to obey her suggestion. Emotion. Such a peculiar word. He would have to find out just what it truly meant. Perhaps watching his sisters would help provide a little understanding. He had learned many things from them already, after all.

On his fifth birthday, his mother had given him a notebook. She had hand crafted it herself. The pages were rough and yellow, bound together with string and sealed with a leather cover. Along with it he had been given a pencil. Jiqari and Helira has watched in the background. Jiqari had looked intrigued. Helira seemed disgusted, based on the extreme contours on her face. They had their own presents - other hand-crafted goodies. Did handiwork run in their family?

Ska’arq looked down at the book and pencil, lifting each in his hand and peering at them. “I’ve noticed you like to etch things in the dirt, so I thought you’d might like a notebook to write in instead! It’d be much easier to track your thoughts with,” his mother said gently. With a simple nod, he opened to the first page, pencil poised in his right hand. He briefly stared at the paper blankly before he began to scribble furiously in it.

Without warning, the hatchling placed the pencil between the pages and snapped the notebook closed. “Thank you,” he said blankly. Thanking someone was considered polite and kind. Soon, in the future, he would learn the art of crafting notebooks himself. He would continue to write in these notebooks throughout his life.

Gamila leaned back, grinning widely. Standing up, she brushed her children with her tail before heading to their cave. “Now! Who wants some birthday dinner?...”

Ska’arq was five and a half years old when his mother vanished. He and his siblings were old enough to care for themselves. There hadn’t even been a good-bye. When they’d woken up, breakfast had been waiting for them, but Gamila had been nowhere to be found. There had been a note explaining her leave. While Jiqari and Helira broke down, panicked, and cried, he had simply sat in the background, writing down every detail. They had then eaten the last meal prepared by their mother in silence.

Sniffling with a mouthful of food, Jiqari turned to her eldest sibling. “What’ll we do now, Helira? Where did Mom go? When is she coming back?” Her shoulders shook, threatening another sob. Helira pulled her close into a hug.

“Don’t worry about it, ‘kay? I’ll keep you safe. Mom will be back, just you wait.” She bumped her sister’s cheek with her snout.

Ska’arq didn’t understand this reaction. He wanted to find out more. “Mother is not going to return. I am aware that you read her note. Did you not understand its contents?” He paused his scribbling to look up at them again. Helira shot him a look of intense fury. He wrote something in his book and circled it.

Helira stood up, baring her teeth at her brother. “You had better shut the fuck up, Ska’arq. There’s no way mom would just abandon us.”

Another note. “All the signs lead to the conclusion that yours is wrong. Gamila is not going to return. This is a fact.” His cold stare lifted to meet hers.

In a fit of fury, she let out a scream, leaping forward and tackling her brother to the ground. The notebook and pencil skidded across the stone. “I said shut the fuck up!” she snarled. Lifting a hand, she clawed his cheek. Ska’arq didn’t flinch. He could feel the burn of his exposed flesh, and the warm blood that now slid down his cheek. Helira wasn’t done yet. She leaned down, now in his face. “You think you’re so smart! Better than everyone else! You’re not! You don’t know a damn thing! I’m tired of your shit, Ska’arq! You’re weird! I’ve never seen you show any fucking emotions once in my life! You’re a damned freak!” This time, she smacked him. He bore no reaction. “If you think I’m going to take care of your weak ass, you’re wrong. Anything you’ve ever caught was scrawny at best. You’re a pathetic hunter. I don’t know why Mom didn’t kill you while she had the chance,” Helira spat before backing off of him, leaving the purple dragon to sit up and wipe the blood from his face. Helira turned back to glare at him. “I don’t want to ever see you around here again. If I do, I’ll kill you. Now get out.”

Ska’arq collected his scattered belongings, checking the book for damage before squatting and swiftly writing several bullet points before closing it again. Grasping the pencil and book in his jaws, he moved across the cliffside and towards the woods. He knew Helira was still watching him even after the undergrowth swallowed him whole.

For the next half year, he had to survive on his own. During that time he’d acquired many skills - digging dens, prey capture methods, defense methods - that strengthened him. He was still a log way away from truly understanding emotions. Helira’s anger had been a beautiful display. He had thought loss was only limited to sadness. He knew now that he was wrong. What else was he wrong about? How would he find out? His sister had threatened his life if he returned. She was stronger than him. If Jiqari helped, he wouldn't survive in a fight.

During the night, staring at the entrance of his hastily created den, the idea came to mind. Perhaps he could create his own reactions and study them. Ska'arq nibbled on one of his claws, unblinking and lost in his thoughts. There was nobody around to test his theories on. No- not true. The wild animals all around him were viable test subjects. He would start there.

Creature after creature died under his claws, many of them left uneaten. He started small, trapping chipmunks and slowly squeezing them to death or simply tossing them in the air and watching what happened when they hit the ground. All discoveries were recorded in his notebook. He gradually got larger. Squirrels, birds, rabbits, sometimes foxes. If only he were bigger, he thought. He could spread his research to even larger subjects.

All of his recordings seemed stagnant. Small subjects only tried to flee. They died fast, with short screams. The larger the animal, the louder and more violent. Some of his scales had been torn out. His body was covered in scratches. None of the animals had shown anything but fear. No, the foxes tried to fight him, but he didn't fully believe it was anger. He had put them through pain. How did pain and fear relate? Pain was supposed to relate to crying. Sadness. The animals had never shed any tears. They only screamed. Could it perhaps be the fear of pain? The evidence appeared to suggest as such.

But what did it mean to feel fear? To feel sad? He could feel pain, but he never reacted to it like the others. He didn't react to it at all. If both fear and sadness related to pain, why had he felt neither? Had he felt it before but never realized it? If so, why didn't he act the same way as they did? All of them? He had never cried before. He had never screamed out of anger, fear, or anything. What was he missing? what was he doing wrong?

Countless times he tried to evoke the same reactions from himself as those around him. He had purposely put himself through pain before. He had played games to try and make himself laugh and put himself in situations that would make others angry. Nothing had ever happened. So why? What was he missing?

Ska'arq stopped chewing on his claws and crossed his arms on the dirt. What if it was the animals? They had never shown him anything but fear. They provided insufficient research. Could only sentient animals teach him how to feel? Perhaps that was it. He knew just the two - despite the risks - that he could start with. The next morning, he abandoned his burrow and set out on returning to his old birthgrounds.

If unsentient animals could only feel fear and sentient animals could feel everything, what did that make him? The thought had burned his brain for a while. He couldn't even begin to come up with an answer.

Living on his own seemed to have put the male through a growth spurt. He was stronger and larger now. As he approached his sisters, whose backs were turned to him, he noticed they didn't seem quite as big anymore. If anything, they were... equal. Was he bigger than Jiqari now?

When Helira caught his scent, she whipped around and stared. He was prepared for her to attempt to kill him. She stood still. “Why did you come back? Here to beg for our help? I've got news for you, buddy. Never. Just because you grew a couple inches doesn't mean we're obligated to take you in," she taunted. Jiqari stood by her side, eyebrows furrowed, but she didn't say anything.

Ska'arq dipped his head in an attempt to show respect. "I am not here to beg for your help. I can take care of myself now. If it makes you joyful to hear, I can help you take down larger prey if you so wish. I simply desire to return to the place I once called home." He stood straight, cold cyan eyes meeting her brown ones. She seemed to be eyeing him up, taking in the multitude of healing scratches all over his body.

Jiqari whispered in her ear, bringing the russet dragon to give her a skeptical look. The youngest sibling pointed at Ska'arq. Following her finger, he looked down at the notebook tied to his ankle. Helira rolled her eyes before glaring at her brother. "Jiqari wants to give you a chance at staying here for a while to prove you won't be useless shit. I personally think she's crazy, but I'll humor her. If you do anything stupid I'll slaughter you." She whipped around, storming across the cliff and into the cave. Left by their lonesome, Jiqari offered a nervous smile at her older brother before scurrying after the eldest. Briefly closing his eyes, Ska'arq followed after them. It was time to begin his research.

Helira's jabs and taunts were relentless, but it quickly became obvious that he was no longer as useless as he used to be. Eventually, with Jiqari's help, she adjusted to his presence once more, and the teasing stopped.

The notebook his mother had given him was full. It was messy and disorganized, crammed full of scribbles. Ska'arq had taken time to make fifteen. He didn't know how many he would need, but extras would never hurt. He then began to separate them into groups and categories, even sticking labels on them and creating lines and boxes for notes and drawings. He needed this to be understandable and legible. The first book he would use, he decided, was joy.

He had never been so detailed and thorough with his notes in his entire life. He even created diagrams about things that would seem obvious to even a young child. Half of the book was dedicated to Helira, and the other to Jiqari. That he knew of, neither of them had ever looked into his notebooks. He hid them just to make sure. No one needed to see his private research. During this time, he and his siblings had turned six years old.

Months and months were spent gathering countless amounts of research that he trapped between the leathery-smelling pages of his notebooks. So many emotions. He'd combined some within the same notebook, since they shared similarities. Sadness, anger, guilt, disgust, jealousy, frustration, courage, pride, determination, curiosity... and so many others. However, he'd been saving one for last.

Fear.

It was time to fulfill the moment he was waiting for. Was feral fear different from sentient fear?

It was, coincidentally, the day he and his siblings turned seven - their hatchday. September thirteenth.

That morning, Ska'arq had woken up to Jiqari's face beaming down at him. Well it's about time you woke up, sleepyhead! Helira and I have just finished breakfast. Come on, get up!" She then backed out of the cave, scurrying back out to the food that roasted over a fire. His nose twitched as the smells hit his nostrils. He rolled to his feet and came out to meet them. Looking up from the meat that turned over the flames, Helira waved.

"And... done! Jiqari, dish that up, will ya?" The russet sibling moved away from the spit and sat down next to her younger brother. As the youngest dragon scurried about, evenly distributing the meat that Ska'arq had caught the previous night, Helira turned to him. Suddenly, she let out an odd chuckle mixed with a snort. "Y'know, you would be a real hot guy if you weren't... purple. You look like a real big doofus." She turned away and snickered.

Ska'arq watched the fire. "I cannot control the genes with which I was born."

"I was just kidding! Jeez, will there ever be a moment where you're not as stiff as a board? For once in your life?" She stopped when her bundle of meat was dropped at her feet, the same then done to Ska'arq.

Jiqari sat down right between the two, looking pleased with herself. With a glance to the left, she grinned at her brother. "Eat up! Today's a big day!" She then took a big bite, eyes rolling upward as she hummed. An expression that showed it was delicious. "Helira sneaked out and somehow managed to get some processed spices last night, the devil! It tastes so good!" She looked at her sister and giggled, who shrugged. It was evident that she was pleased with herself despite the attempt to hide it.

Ska'arq only stared at his siblings blankly. "Big day?" he echoed. He had been unaware of this. Helira snorted in his direction before nudging him with her snout.

"Our hatchday, you dork! Did you forget that easily?" Yes, he had. He was completely absorbed in going over his countless notes over and over. With fear being the last emotion he wanted to study, he was busy preparing for it and contemplating his research methods.

"Yes," he responded at last. "It does appear to have slipped my mind. I do apologize." An apology was considered polite - required, rather - when one has done something wrong. In this case, the forgetfulness of something important could be considered 'wrong.' With a roll of her eyes, Helira huffed and resumed chowing down on her breakfast.

The single brother returned to his own in silence. Once finished, he stood up, bringing his sisters to look up at him curiously. A piece of roasted meat dangled from Helira's jaws. "Where y'goin'?" she mumbled around it. Ska'arq was already walking away, towards the forest. The early morning light seemed to douse it in shadow.

He tossed his words over his shoulder without looking back. "To plan," he said. "Today is a big day, after all..." Pausing at the treeline, he added, "I suppose I must plan accordingly." He then vanished into the undergrowth.

Jiqari slid another bite of meat from her stick, chewing thoughtfully as she watched the spot her brother had been moments before. "What do you think he's planning, Helira?" she asked curiously, shooting her a sidelong glance. Helira shrugged, tipping her head back to polish off the last bite.

"Beats me. You know him well enough. It's probably something weird or stupid. He's about as dense as a hunk of steel. I still don't get him." She shook her head and shrugged again before pushing herself upright. "Help me put out the fire, will you? It's starting to get hot out."

With a faint frown on her snout, the milky blue dragon stood up and began to help scraping the charred wood out of the fire. She was likely the most fire resistant out of all of them. "Yeah, I know, but that's why I'm so curious."

Fear.

The last spot of his research. He'd been saving it for last. Why was that? Was there even a reason? Possibly. Empty eyes stared into the distance. His mind was simultaneously blank and teeming with thoughts and research. During his primary research, he had conducted his experiments on wild animals. They had only screamed out in fear and pain. The fear of pain was now the most common fear he was aware of.

Maybe, just maybe, sentient fear was different from feral fear.

When Ska'arq returned to the open rocky cliff, a quick sweep of the area told him Jiqari had gone. Helira was finishing up her cleanup of the fire. With one last glance, he approached the older sibling. "Where has Jiqari gone?" he inquired. He couldn't begin without her.

Surprised, the russet dragon looked back at him. "Oh, you're back? She went out to plan and get some supplies. She has something in mind too, y'know." A smug look crossed her face, as if she already knew. If he had been around at the right time, he likely would know too. She was awful at withholding information.

Helira swept some ashes over the edge of the cliff. He watched as they scattered in the breeze. It was a shame Jiqari wasn't here. He'd planned on beginning with her. But that was fine. He could start off with Helira first. He'd never seen her express fear before. The process would certainly be fascinating.

Ska'arq edged towards the brawny female. "Will you assist me with my plan? It shall be surprising, to say the least." Asking was not forcing. If he asked, she would be more willing. He dropped a brown sack on the ground, which clanged violently.

Turning her back to the edge, brown eyes met cyan. "Sure thing. Whatcha need? What do you have there?" She moved closer. This was the first time her brother had ever done anything like this. He was getting involved. Was his... wall finally breaking down? Whatever it was?

The purple dragon backed up, twisting around as he headed for the cliff's wall. Looking up at the near vertical stone, the sound of faintly clicking claws told him Helira had followed. "So... Are you going to tell, me, or-?" He wheeled around with surprising speed, hand lifting to slam into the back of her neck. Helira's eyes flew wide. A short cough spat into the air before she crumpled to the ground. A cold stare watched her unmoving form for a moment. She was still breathing. It was time to set to work.

Nails.

Seven nails.

After hoisting her against the wall, he'd started with her tail. With the thick, rusty stake he'd pried from an abandoned railroad, he'd slowly pounded it into the base of her tail. With each hit driving it deeper into her flesh, a new flow of blood pulsed from the gruesome wound. The sharp clang of stone told him he'd embedded the nail. After that, with awkward maneuvering, he'd moved on to nailing her hands to make sure she wouldn't fall. After that, her feet. Finally, her wings. When she woke up, there was no possible way she could injure him.

Empty eyes watched his sister's sticky, crimson life force slither down the stone. The afternoon heat beat down on the cliff.

While the sun slid towards the horizon, the area took on a golden hue. A horrified shriek sounded from behind him. Ah- there it was. Fear. Jiqari had finally returned.

The makeshift bag in her jaws dropped to the floor as she scrambled over with a wail. "What happened? Who did this?" Tears were already beginning to streak down her face. They glistened in the setting sun's light. "Helira- Helira! Wake up! Please! We'll help you down from there!" She reared up, gripping a nail with shaking hands. Ska'arq swung his tail at her when she began to try and remove one. It thudded into her side, knocking her to the floor with a cry. The youngest child struggled to her feet with a cough. "S-stop! She's hurt! She's hurting! Why aren't you helping her?"

They locked eyes. Ska'arq's face twitched. The corners of his mouth pulled upward into a visibly forced smile. "Today's a big day," he answered. His voice remained monotone and empty. Jiqari was frozen in place as her eyes widened in fear. What? she mouthed weakly. Her voice didn't seem to work.

The violet reptile's head cocked to the side. A new thought had occurred to him. There was no way she would willingly sit and watch him kill Helira. It was the fear of pain. Of course she would not want to watch. If that was the case, he would have to force her to get the information he needed. Ska'arq pounced on her, wrangling his younger sister to the ground. The tussle was brief. Using the rope that had tied the bag for the nails shut, he bound her limbs together like he was trussing a bird. She let out a pained whine, writhing feebly on the ground. He dragged her across the ground and dropped her near Helira. Planting a foot on the back of her head, he pinned her down. That settled that.

A soft, broken moan caught his attention. The male turned around to look at the star of the show. Helira's head slowly lifted as half-lidded brown eyes peered blearily around. When her body twitched, her eyes were suddenly wide. Her head smacked against the stone, jaws parting in a strangled scream. She had tried to move her limbs.

For a moment the violet dragon was silent, watching his russet sibling tremble and shake as sobs began to gurgle in her throat. Jiqari was already afraid. There was a good start to this process. Perhaps this experiment would be on her after all.

Keeping her firmly pinned to the ground, he forced her to watch, horror stricken, as he slowly murdered their eldest sister.

The three of them didn't have an abundance of items to call their own, despite the stereotype that would always follow their species, but they had enough. Ska'arq now wielded a knife in his right hand as he eyed the reptile nailed to the wall. Yes, perhaps he could start there. As he got closer, her head shook slowly from side to side. She couldn't get away from him. She was helpless.

The knife slid through her flesh with ease. He listened intently to her agonized screams, waiting for every breath she sucked in and every sob that tore its way back out. Eventually he had to settle for hacking at the joint. He couldn't quite seem to be able to sever it. Blood spattered his face. After a few more swings, it was separated with a sickening crunch. Helira's severed wing swung downward. It remained staked on the nail.

She was heaving for breath. Her cries had changed. They seemed weaker, more elongated sounds and cries than screams. Jiqari was figuratively frozen stiff. She stared at the blood that now began to pool on the ground.

Adjusting his grip on the blade, he moved on to cut off her other wing. Again, her cries became weaker. Interesting.

Her tail went next.

Her legs.

Helira was barely moving now, flanks expanding and falling raggedly and weakly. The blood pool below her had expanded considerably. It had now spread around their feet and Jiqari's head. A hoarse gagging and retching brought him to look down. The pale blue dragon vomited, all of her stomach's contents spewed on the ground. The foul scent hit his nose. He couldn't stop yet. He had just lifted the blade to cut off her arm when a breath choked in Helira's throat. Her body contracted in a convulsion. A bloody cough feebly blubbled at her jaws before her head fell forward. Several minutes passed in silence before he finally pressed a red hand to her neck. There was no pulse. His sister was dead.

The knife clattered on the ground as he dropped it. His work was done. He had completed his research- no, wait.

Ska'arq bent down and untied Jiqari's limbs. Her wrists and ankles looked indented and irritated. Despite her newfound freedom, she didn't move. He backed away from her, watching closely. She shook uncontrollably, eyes wide and distant. Despite a lack of physical exertion, her sides heaved in hoarse panting. His eyes soaked up everything he saw before him. She was horrified into silence. Fear had caused her to expel vomit. He had never seen such a thing before. Fascinating.

Half an hour later, she finally staggered to her feet. Her once bright, joy-filled eyes were hollow and haunted. Was this how he looked? No- there was something else there. It was growing slowly across her blood soaked face. What was it? Her eyes were locked onto the mutilated body of her eldest sister, which was still nailed to the wall, severed parts and all. "You killed her," she rasped. Her voice was a mere murmur. The sky had darkened to a crude bronze. Streaks of sunlight reached out desperately as the mountainous horizon threatened to swallow it. Jiqari's shadow was cast upon the corpse.

"Yes," he confirmed. It was a fact.

"You killed her!" Her voice rose to a shriek. She stumbled towards him, but quickly gained momentum until it was a full-on charge. Her footwork was ungraceful, but it was all she needed. In seconds she was upon him, claws sinking into his scales and flesh while her teeth sank into his shoulder. Jiqari jerked her head, tearing at his flesh. He could feel the pulsating pain of the wound. Whirling in a circle, he lashed out at her in an attempt to remove her. In response, she only bit down harder.

Ska'arq rolled onto his side, crushing her head and forcing her to retreat away with a pained cry. He wasted no time in seizing her in his grip, scoring his bloodstained claws down her milky blue side, drawing more blood that would stain the stone. His teeth closed around her jaws. His sister completely froze with a quiet gasp. She had lost. The faint sob had barely escaped her jaws when the reverberating snap of her neck echoed in the now silent air. A breeze rustled the leaves of the forest behind him. He released her corpse, and she fell limply to the ground. His wounds now pulsed and throbbed with pain.

Flicking blood from his claws, he wiped at the spots on his face, which had dried stiffly on his scales. He would just have to wash them out later. For now, he had to leave. There was no place for him here anymore. Within a few days, decay would set in. The area would attract larger predators and scavengers that he couldn't afford to fight.

He walked right past the bodies of his only family, gathering his notebooks together and piling them in the sack. He retrieved the bloodstained rope that had bound Jiqari's limbs a few minutes earlier and tied the sack closed. Then, setting off slowly, he left his home for the last time.

Three days had passed since then. His shoulder continued to throb with pain. He had little medical knowledge, but he had to wonder if his wounds were becoming infected. He had washed off all of the blood - his, Helira's, and Jiqari's - soon after leaving home.

Even someone like Ska'arq, who had lived far away in a rocky valley, had heard of the four Clans that had formed. Civilizations of organized, sentient animals. Although he had gathered much of the information he needed, there would be no harm in collecting more. Without much intention to, he had found himself getting deeper and deeper into a dark, swampy forest. This was one of them, correct? The 'warbound' group that called themselves the... what was it? Tattered something? Unimportant.

Ska'arq set his precious cargo on the driest patch of land he could. He was seven years old, roughly the size of a coyote. His face was hollow and blank. He bore vibrant purple scales that were unlike anyone in his family. On top of that, he had just murdered them to complete his research. And now here he was, showing up in a strange civilization that he had only heard rumors of as he traveled to his part of the land.

Of course, it would have to do. He took another step forward, raising his head high. If he spoke loud enough, someone would possibly hear him.

"My name is Ska'arq," he shouted. "I have heard tale about a civilization that lives within these lands. I desire to speak to you. I have no place to call 'home,' and the tales I have heard state that you will accept anyone into your ranks." A fair introduction.

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