[Judd's experience might be clouded by being raised to be a weapon, but even still, he was Psy. Silent or not, logic and pragmatism will win out in the end. There was no reason he could see for altruism in this situation.]
I will not disapprove of being incorrect in this situation. Walker, Hawke, or the other SnowDancer lieutenants might be able to see it differently and come up with a better solution, but they are all better people than me.
[Over time, they've made him a better person too. But he will always think like a soldier first. Perhaps he'll outgrow it with time, perhaps he never will. No one around him seems to mind anyone either way.
Judd wasn't going to say anything further on the subject, but he notices the look of disapproval on David's face. It makes him feel almost... obligated to defend his pack.]
Though we weren't changeling, we purposefully broke territorial law. If we were human, we perhaps would have been roughly escorted to the perimeter and warned never to return, but we were not. We were Psy, in a time before fall of Silence, when those on the Council were trying to vie for supremacy among the three races. The very idea of 5 Psy hiking through the woods was unheard of. Psy stuck to the "civilization" of cities and left nature to "the animals".
And yet 2 cardinal Psy and an Arrow suddenly appeared in their territory. The Changelings were distrustful, rightfully so.
Exactly the way Walker and I had expected they would be.
[He glances over at David.]
I don't expect you to understand, but Walker, Sienna and I went there to die. SnowDancer was known for their ruthlessness to outsiders, but were territorial of their young. We were certain they wouldn't harm Marlee or Toby on sight. At 16, we were unsure where Sierra would lie in their hierarchy, so we could only operate under the belief they would view her as an adult. Sienna knew as well. We all had no choice.
Instead, the wolves decided to use us for ransom. Unfortunately for them, there was no one who would pay for us, unless it was to put us directly back into the position we had tried to escape from. Hawke was put in a no-win position.
And he let us stay. He blooded me to Lieutenant. Brenna saved me from myself. I saw Sienna smile for the first time. Marlee and Toby are happy, with no trace of Silence remaining in either of them. Walker is mated to the pack's healer is going to be a father again.
Walking into SnowDancer territory changed our lives in ways we will never forget.
I can say with certainty had the roles been reversed and Hawke had been taken by the Arrows, we would not have been as merciful.
no subject
I will not disapprove of being incorrect in this situation. Walker, Hawke, or the other SnowDancer lieutenants might be able to see it differently and come up with a better solution, but they are all better people than me.
[Over time, they've made him a better person too. But he will always think like a soldier first. Perhaps he'll outgrow it with time, perhaps he never will. No one around him seems to mind anyone either way.
Judd wasn't going to say anything further on the subject, but he notices the look of disapproval on David's face. It makes him feel almost... obligated to defend his pack.]
Though we weren't changeling, we purposefully broke territorial law. If we were human, we perhaps would have been roughly escorted to the perimeter and warned never to return, but we were not. We were Psy, in a time before fall of Silence, when those on the Council were trying to vie for supremacy among the three races. The very idea of 5 Psy hiking through the woods was unheard of. Psy stuck to the "civilization" of cities and left nature to "the animals".
And yet 2 cardinal Psy and an Arrow suddenly appeared in their territory. The Changelings were distrustful, rightfully so.
Exactly the way Walker and I had expected they would be.
[He glances over at David.]
I don't expect you to understand, but Walker, Sienna and I went there to die. SnowDancer was known for their ruthlessness to outsiders, but were territorial of their young. We were certain they wouldn't harm Marlee or Toby on sight. At 16, we were unsure where Sierra would lie in their hierarchy, so we could only operate under the belief they would view her as an adult. Sienna knew as well. We all had no choice.
Instead, the wolves decided to use us for ransom. Unfortunately for them, there was no one who would pay for us, unless it was to put us directly back into the position we had tried to escape from. Hawke was put in a no-win position.
And he let us stay. He blooded me to Lieutenant. Brenna saved me from myself. I saw Sienna smile for the first time. Marlee and Toby are happy, with no trace of Silence remaining in either of them. Walker is mated to the pack's healer is going to be a father again.
Walking into SnowDancer territory changed our lives in ways we will never forget.
I can say with certainty had the roles been reversed and Hawke had been taken by the Arrows, we would not have been as merciful.