Pleek is a Smili, which are created by Spotty.
Mate: Kamaliah' s Sanjana
Personality
Bold. Pleek raises to any challenge that comes his way, especially if he feels he can manage to overcome it. He is a born leader, though he does not live near an inhabited village.
Easily unsettled. If he does not know something, it bothers him. He has to check unfamiliar situations out, and determine whether or not it is a threat to him, his lifestyle, or those he cares about. He is also skittish around fire, because he does not know how it exists or works, despite living in an area that is often struck by lightning and, therefore, has many wildfires.
Family-Oriented. Pleek cares very much for his mate and cubs, even though one is missing and, at times, appears to be presumed dead, only for signs to appear again.
Claustrophobic. Cages. Caves. Walls. Firm, permanent relationships. If he feels remotely trapped, he is terrified, and will fight back. He often has nightmares about being contained to one spot or duty, and is shaken to the point where he has to leave the area. He often goes to areas where a wildfire has cleared the trees, the vast openness soothing him. Despite his devotion to his family, he fears not being able to move on eventually, when it is time to part.
Blunt. If Pleek feels a certain way, he will not beat around the bush. He will simply come out and say it, unless it involves his weaknesses and fears. Those, he keeps to himself.
Somewhat Possessive. If Pleek decides something is his, he will guard it enviously.
Likes
Deer. When he is able to trap them, deer meat is his favorite, though he will settle for wild boar or capybara without much of a fuss.
Freedom. Being claustrophobic, this is one major necessity to keep him calm.
The Night. Because of his dark coloring, the heat from the sun gets unbearable, and so he prefers to be somewhat nocturnal. He is also more camouflaged when there is less light, and thus he is able to catch more food.
His Family. He would do anything for Sanjana, Amarao, and Lantana, as long as he does not feel trapped by them. For example, he refused to baby-sit the cubs when they were helpless.
Dislikes
Entrapment. Naturally, an effect of his phobia.
Fish. As his least favorite meat, he refuses to take a bite. His mother weaned him on fish, and he repeatedly choked on fish bones as a young cub.
Rivals. Known enemies that pose a threat intimidate him. For this reason, he distrusts other male Smilis, and refuses to find a village to live around, as he feels they may try to sway his family away from him.
Heat. Because of his dark coloration, his fur is already heated. Hot days and nearby burning wildfires make him miserable.
Background
Soft padding over the charred remains of what were once proud trees. Safety. Grey-blue eyes turned upward, to the open sky, as hard, forced breathing slowly eased up. The cage had opened.
Pleek’s claustrophobia developed at birth. His mother was new to the idea of parenting, and did not quite know what she was doing, but she was his mother, and he could not really hate her for it. When she went to hunt, his lackadaisical father would conveniently disappear, leaving her with no choice but to hide him away in a hollowed tree, blocking the exit with several leaves so predators seeking young Smili flesh could not reach him. However, every sound was amplified in his wooden cage. Every squawk of a bird was a growl of a monster, or crackle of flames as the wildfires that plagued the area burned all around him, determined to cook him and leave him for the vultures. The wind was the hot, sticky breath of the beast as it scented him. Rodents that skittered in the underbrush were mighty paws, digging, searching, seeking… for him. His mother had little choice, though; she certainly couldn’t leave her little ash- grey cub out in the open, where a boar could trample him, or one of the resident large predators could easily take him as food. And so, reluctantly, he would let his mother hide him, despite the nightmares that have never relented, even to adulthood.
Scales. They glistened and shimmered in the sun, as the dying animal before him struggled to find its breath. It gills stood straight out as its tail fin hit the ground, desperately seeking the water it needed to survive.
Fish meat. Oh, how Pleek despises it. His mother couldn’t go far to trap food because of his fear, and usually brought back fish from the river, using a special technique involving a log that he’d never bothered to learn. When she had offered a live, flopping, bleeding fish instead of her teat, he refused to eat despite his grumbling stomach. Eventually, though, starvation made him cave, so he left his mother’s side as she slept and, through trial and error, learned to eat. His first bite was a small chip of the carcass’s fin, which hurt his throat on the way down. Slowly but surely, he learned where the more palpable meat was located, though not after finishing off the tail and swallowing several spines and bones. That night, he pledged then and there that, once he was on his own, he’d never have another fish again. That oath has stood unbroken since then.
Growling. Grey faced off against black and red, defensive blue-grey staring into bemused yellow as the stranger stood between two equines- Non-Threats. He had to protect what was his.
Pleek is very territorial, and will meet a familiar challenge with a fight. As a cub, he was often brought pebbles of turquoise by his mother. He loved batting them around, watching as they rolled over the ground and clattered against rocks. They were his favorite toys, and he treasured him, especially since they were gifts from his mother. However, he was not the only one that sought them. Bowerbirds seeking to attract mates would steal them even as he played, and would viciously attack him if he tried to retrieve the stones. Memories of their beaks and talons has caused him to guard what he loves with an envious passion, and ward off any rivals that pose a threat to him before they know what he has. He refused to move near the village when he and his mother parted ways, never knowing that the village itself was being overtaken by a deadly illness, and he was, in fact, assuring his health as well as his territory and whatever belongings he chose to claim. Before Sanjana, his “family” consisted of a hoatzin with a broken wing that he had named Ki, and he happily guarded and cared for his pet bird until he killed it as an offering to his future female companion. He wanted a true family to claim, after all, and Ki could not bear him cubs. And so his protection was placed over Sanjana, as well as the litter they had together. Though Lantana ran away, he still considers her as his, and plans to resume his protection if she is found.
Rival male Smilis are rare in his area of the forest, especially since the village was wiped out. However, upon seeing the black, red and white male that is Angatuyok travelling with the ragtag band of rebels from the area known to him as The Flatts (known locally as the North), he immediately lashed out, attacking the more dangerous- poisonous- male with a furious passion. The pair was separated only by the two tall equines’ hooves, and Pleek only reluctantly settled when reassured multiple times that Angatuyok, or Angat, as they referred to him as, was not interested in a female mate.
Heat. The sun pounded on his dark back as his body begged for mercy, release, just a little bit of shade and shelter from the lava. Chains, dragging behind him… but there was no fight left… He was spent… trapped… wake up, wake up!
The travelers’ story was originally scoffed at, but the nightmares he had when he lay down to rest petrified him. Trusting Sanjana to take care of Amaro, he boldly agreed to help, hoping Angat’s poisoned teeth and the quagga pair’s plans would be enough to stop the hyenas before they could approach his home and possibly force him into slavery in the hot volcanic pits of the Shattenland, where he would likely lose his family to some terrible fate or another. Naturally, he couldn’t have that. The next morning, he gave his farewell to his family and he set off with the group, sending looks of distrust toward his only other carnivorous companion. Just because Angat was their best hope didn’t mean he had to like it, and he wasn’t afraid to show his lack of fondness, usually by killing the smallest animal he could find and taking it for himself.
Light from the stars and moon gently washed the ground with a soft glow. The sun had long since set, and the cool night air had taken its place. The Flatts was a flat land… open… free….
True freedom. Pleek desires it with an undying passion, though he knows that the only way to get it, is to earn it, which can only be done with others beside him, and leading him. Though a leader, he had never experienced organized battle before, and was thus unsuitable to lead the herds and packs of rebels that were assigned to attacking and defending against the hyenas. Rather, he was given the task of scouting out potential allies, and sending messages with his new pet, a Kayrah by the name of Rathburn, to the band with news and invitations to try and persuade groups of animals throughout the North and surrounding areas to join their cause in order to defeat the common threat that was Shiva.
All in the name of freedom.
Hooves beating against the ground. The deer’s antlers reached toward the sky as the animal tried to run, but one of its hooves fell into the trap-hole, and bone snapped cleanly in two with a sickening crack, coupled with the pained bellow of the beast. Within seconds, hyenas closed in around the captured animal, tearing its flesh off of its still-fighting body. He did not eat.
Pleek’s love of deer meat has caused him to create a method of trapping them. He digs holes in an area where deer frequent, and waits until at least one is in a prime area. Then, he roars, bellows, and screams, making as much noise as he can manage to startle the creature into running, and hopefully mis-stepping into one of his holes and breaking its leg, halting its escape and enabling him to kill it. However, during his time spent in The Flatts, he discovered that hyenas were always around to take advantage of his traps, and thus he should either always be prepared to take his kill, or go hungry. His distrust of all hyenas, including the supposed turncoat Banya, was based on his belief that they exist to steal.
Five hundred behind. A thousand ahead. The odds were against the rebels, though they were only a distraction anyway. The real fighters were already in enemy territory, aiming to kill the head of the beast that was the army.
Pleek led the herds into battle. He was a confident and able leader to the location, but quickly gave the leadership to one of the fighters from the horse herd once the fight began. None of the fighters were to know that the Smili that led them had no group battle experience. One of the beasts that had followed Angatuyok behind the enemy lines had said it would have ruined morale, and was thus a bad idea to reveal such a flaw. No, they were to believe that they, too, had sharp fangs fighting alongside them, especially since most were herbivorous creatures that sought shelter and peace from hyena attacks. Who was he to deny them that?
Freedom… for now. But grey-blue had never seemed so… empty… without a purpose. Nevertheless, he had succeeded in his quest, at least for the moment. He was safe for now.
When Angat returned with Shiva’s head between his teeth, Pleek turned and headed home, releasing Rathburn as he did so, as the kayrah would have been unsuited and miserable in his home. After all, Pleek always took care of his possessions. He had only just reached the edge of his forest when he found the entire place had been burned by a rampaging wildfire, and his family was nowhere to be found. And so, with a heavy heart, he started over, taking new leaves for his bedding from the still-living part of the forest, and seeking shelter whenever possible from the hot and ruthless sun that glared over the ash-covered land below it. Slowly but surely, the forest grew back, and the tall, fast-growing trees sheltered him again from the miserable daylight.
Violet eyes watched. Murderous. He was doomed… the owner of those eyes would easily kill him, take everything… wake up… wake up!
Pleek knew… this nightmare was not over yet.
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Story excerpt
Pleek glared at the slowly swinging red, white and black tail in front of him. Angat was hiding something. The female equine had nearly kicked him in the red and white cheek for bearing his teeth and threatening others with yellow tinged… well, what appeared to be saliva dripping from his mouth. The thought that the beasts were so ruffled by a little drool confused him, though he assumed that, in their crazy equine society, spit meant danger, or something.
He noticed the female dropping back to walk with him, though he refused to greet her. She was a prey item, if only for a very large meal. Though her hooves were a bit on the dangerous side.
“I apologize about Angat. He forgets, sometimes, that he’s extremely dangerous. He could have killed you last night, when you attacked him. Brave of you, but I wouldn’t do it again.” Her voice was soft and sweet, like honey, a radical difference from the affronted yelling he had heard from her last.
“Killed me? I was about to kill him. I don’t want him near my family.” Cold and sharp. Pleek’s ears were rotated back unhappily, flat against his lowered neck.
“He would have killed you. His teeth are poisonous. He’s going to kill Shiva when we can organize a big enough distraction.”
Poison? That was new. Pleek made a mental note to either avoid his mouth, if he ever had to fight him. He could not be too careful, especially with his family involved. He could not- would not- let them down. Ever.
By Lirrie, Tessakitty, and Kam:
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