Too Quick to Judge- Mange x Kavron

1) The mid-day sun of the late winter brought no warmth. Bloodied paws padded through the Wasteland earth, leaving behind faint traces of the lifesource they had once provided some poor soul. The visage of some twisted creature of these lands had appeared on a small crest nearer to Eden than most dogs of his kind dare do. But this was no ordinary dog.

Mange stared at the tall gates before him. The blood upon his pelt belonged to some poor creature that had the misfortune of being around when the hungry lad had been prowling. Mostly dried now, Mange paid it no heed. His wiry coat was often spotted with the stuff. This was further than the Wolfhound mix usually went. In fact this was the furthest south he had ever been. A natural denizen to the less densely populated ravines that lay north of the city, he hardly ventured within the city let alone south of it.

2) Kavron was bounding down the walls of Eden, patrolling the area near the healthy dogs' safe haven. It was mid afternoon and he often found himself paroling the wasteland... it had been the last place he had seen his late mate, Angel. He had seen her torn and lifeless body before his eyes, but sometimes he still hoped that somehow she would come bounding out of the horizon to see him. His deep brown eyes were fixed wistfully on the distance and he did not even notice until he was very close that he was not alone out here.... he turned his head as his peripherals warned him of another figure nearby. He looked to find himself only yards away from a huge orange and white wastelander. Patches of fur missing and pelt matted with blood....and sized twice the size of the largest dog Kavron had ever seen. His fear froze him to the spot for a moment, but then he remembered....he was a Scrapper, even offered the position of Heavy Scrapper, but he turned it down because he enjoyed the police work done by the normal Scrappers... that meant he was one of the best fighters in Eden... he knew that he would stand no chance against this animal, even with his horned mask and fighting skills, but he needed to be brave. He threw out his chest, his tail curling over his back and his hackles raised dangerously. "What are you doing here?"</b> he barked, standing firmly and resisting the urge to shake with fear. He had already decided that he was going to die, but he would die a brave death, fighting to protect Eden from this creature. For all he knew, maybe this big fellow had been responsible for his Angel's death. The very thought shot new waves of courage and hate coursing through the strong legs as he stared boldly up at the huge wolfhound mix.

3) Mange was no stranger to the strange-faced creatures that traveled in herds through the Wasteland every now and again. The Raiders tended to trail them, and where Raiders went Mange avoided. Though their meat was sweeter than that of most of the other creatures of the Wasteland, he never actively hunted them as they tended to avoid the areas where this massive ambush predator dwelled. Besides, their foreign smell and bizarre face structuring tended to baffle the poor boy. All in all he was glad when he came across a carcass, but even gladder when they stayed far away from him: Mange disliked things that traveled in groups. Yet, the visage that was coming towards him was alone. It came at a healthy speed, unhindered by the weariness that lay in the bones of any Wastelander. Though smaller than he, it’s strange darkened face had horns on it, similar but not quite identical to his favorite skull.

Mange cautiously held his ground, his size alone was always an advantage. But as soon as he heard the creature speak his face took on a mask of sheer bewilderment. What was this thing?! Skull-faced and speaking a language he could understand, yet the creature’s mouth did not move. Mange took a frightened step back. “Monthah! Figmenth of imaginathun!” he lisped, split tongue slurring his words. Had his delusions become reality? What was this thing?!

4) Kavron narrowed his eyes as the wastelander did something very odd...he looked bewildered... even frightened! And... did he just call him a monster? He</i> was the monster? Kavron felt empowered by the fright he instilled in the wastelander and he went on, speaking loudly and with authority. "I am no monster! You are the monster! Running around lawlessly, slaughtering innocents!"</b> he snarled, getting angry. This dog could have been one of the many that attacked the convoy his Angel had been on. No one had survived. He would not be surprised; this dog was large enough to fight five single-pawed Edeners! But for some reason, in the back of his mind, he doubted it... he had always thought the one to kill his beloved would be less... jumpy.

5) Mange contemplated the gibberish this dog spoke to him. Lawless? Innocent? What did that even mean?! Discolored eyes gave the opposing monstrosity a look over once more. The opposing creature had the body of a sizable dog but that face... that horrible, horrible face! “No, y-you are!.” he stuttered like an indignant toddler. “Not real, not real.” he said in a sing-song voice briefly screwing closed both his eyes, “...and...” he opened one bicolored eye and gave and small huff before opening both again. “Still there. You are real? What are you?!”

This was a bit too much for him. His head hurt from the concentration of all this thought. While he had been forced to think and speak more and more frequently, the cogs in his brain were still a little rusty.

But this... this thing just couldn’t be real, right? It had to be a figment of his delusional mind. The strange-faced ones never went out alone, and they couldn’t speak could they?

6) Kavron tilted his head, utterly confused. How could this dog, easily twice his size, think he was a monster? Shouting intimidating things at the dog seemed to have no effect, he just looked more and more confused and he seemed to have no idea what Kavron was saying. He heard the dog ask the question, acting and sounding like a huge puppy, "I'm... I'm a dog...." he answered uncertainly. He was a little afraid of shouting again, since a swipe of his paw would send Kavron flying, and he didn't want the dog to...have a tantrum or something.

7) The mutt could hardly believe his ears. This thing was a dog? “Really? But... your fathe. Fathe is... skull?” He was still at a loss. Mange was born of these lands, and had never been this close to an Edener let alone spoken to one. Hell, he had never even been this close to Eden before. His thoughts were troubled.

He gave the opposite dog a questioning look and took a small step forward, just one was enough for now. While Mange was in no way an overly trusting dog, he was more comfortable being close to others than most Wastelanders tended to be. Raising his head to get a better scent on the dog, Mange tilted his head in confusion. “You smell... dimfwent.” he lisped, at a loss for proper words. Had Mange understood the proper concept of cleanliness and sanitation perhaps that would have sparked some knowledge, but alas in the Wasteland both of those were lost concepts. He wrinkled his nose and stuck his split tongue out in concentration. This was all a bit too confusing.

8) "My... my face? Oh, no, this is just a mask, to help me breathe." Kavron explained, finding himself no longer so frightened. He got the feeling that this dog wasn't going to kill anyone... Kavron stepped back quickly as Mange stepped forward. What was that? Why did he do that? Suspicion sprung into Kavron's mind once again. What is this were an act? He narrowed his eyes as the dog said you smell different, "Well... Eden is a lot cleaner than the Wastelands..." he explained, slowly beginning to calm down again.

9) While Mange would never be one to win a battle of wits, the boy made up for this fact by being incredibly instinctual. And what his instincts were telling him now was that this was neither a safe area nor a dog to be trusted. He seemed too... cautious. Mange was used to the bolder dogs of the Wasteland. Manipulators, liars, thieves, that Mange could deal with. But someone who his their face and was keeping a distance religiously. Well, Mange was not used to this and therefore little pings of warning were going off in his head.

This opposing male was lucky that Mange’s hunger had been quenched for now, and as such the boy was more curious than anything. Keeping his same distance he padded several feet forward in a perimeter arc. The other dog didn’t seem like the skittish type but Mange realized that he was acting as such around him. The uneasiness was wafting off of him, but Mange didn’t want this dog to do a runner (in which case Mange’s instincts would take over) he wanted to view this oddity. “Not much nethethity for clean here. But... what ith thith “Eden”?” Mange questioned. Before allowing time for the other dog to respond he added “Thowy for speech, I try to keep it thimple so otherth-th can underthtand.” he stuck out his split tongue purposefully now, “Maketh it a little hard to thpeak.” He gave a small smile at the end which was twisted to a wicked length when paired with his disfiguring smile scars.

10) Kavron felt himself stiffening as the dog paced around him. He shifted uneasily, following the dog with weary brown eyes. "Oh... I see." he said, "Eden is where the dogs with masks come from..." he explained. He tilted his head as the dog explained the cause for his speech impediment. "I understand. I'm sorry that happened to you." he said. He wondered if wastelanders could feel pain at all... but it looked painful... but, then again, most features of the dog's body looked painful to him. "Do you... have a name?" he asked the dog, looking up at him. Kavron was not a small dog at all, but this dog made him feel like little more than a helpless puppy.

11) Mange was enjoying this game; this funny plaything was keeping him amused. Like a beast stalking its prey he reversed his pacing to take him back to where he had originally stood. Mange’s smile grew at the male’s questioning, but it held no warmth. Face split in half with the beginnings of a grin he replied, “Oh thertainly. I had a name onthe but I have no uthe for it now. You may call me Mange.” he finished, obviously struggling a bit with saying his own title. Were it not his times spent conversing with a certain Eater female he would still be struggling with even more of his words. While the mutt found it damn near impossible to fully articulate his thoughts, it was obvious that there was more going on in that twisted mind than met the eye.

While it wasn’t much more, Mange still had some cogs left that were at work. But with a voice reduced to pidgin dialect there were few who could believe that he was more than just some vicious behemoth.

12) "Mange... I see." he repeated, feeling even more uncomfortable as he paced around back to where he had started, "So, Mange..." he honestly would have liked to slowly make his way back to the gates of Eden where he could get out of this situation, but he knew they would not let him in unless this wastelander was long out of sight. Although he disliked his position, where he felt his life hung on the whim of the huge dog, he was curious too, so that kept him holding his ground without yet thinking about an escape route. "you say you have no use for a name. Do wastelanders not talk to each other?" he asked the big mutt.

13) “Never thaid had no uthe for name. No uthe for that on. I. Am. Mange.” he stated a little too forcefully, discolored eyes narrowing. It took but a few heartbeats for Mange to wince and recoil a little from his actions. A twisted tone had overtaken his voice when he had spoken before, but when he spoke again it was gone, “Of courthe we thpeak to each other. Thome leth frequently,thuch ath I. But not everyone ith alone. Death runth in packth, thothe of uth alone tend to be leth thociable but more amicable.” He finished quite succinctly even though his words were slurred and lisped. Though his voice no longer held that twisted edge that had completely altered his tone, he still stood in a lazily dangerous manner. Head lowered, a small amount of bloody saliva dribbled to the earth below. His stance was still calm, loose, lazy. While some of his words might hold an edge, his body language was that of a hunter at ease. It was obvious that even while his words might hold a bite he wasn’t planning on making said notion a physical act.

14) Kavron forced himself to hold his ground as the dog spoke forcefully to him. He couldn't help the fear the welled inside him, though. And the bloody saliva and narrowed crazy eyes did not calm him in the least. He was relieved when the dog went on less threateningly, but his words were still disturbing... his body language spoke of peace, but Kavron could never know...he was still at the dog's mercy... at any moment he could decide to kill him... he hoped that Mange had no plans of eating any time soon... He listened as the dog described the dangers of wastelander packs as oppose to loners. "I suppose I am lucky you do not run with a pack, then. Do you just like being alone better?" he asked.

15) The brute cocked his head. “Whyever thould you worry about my pack thtatus?” he mused quizzically. As far as he knew the two were alone, was this male so curious because he had a pack waiting nearby himself. “And you dear nameleth one?,” he uttered the question with the raising of furred eye-brow, “Have you not notithed that I care not wether you have a pack. For it is just you and I, no other numbers hold heft. Living in the now ith what keepth uth alive.”

He gave a small sniff at the other dog, almost as if it were inferior. This strange faced and even stranger smelling creature was beginning to be no longer as interesting to Mange and it showed. Rather than just walk away like he usually would instead he countered with a question of his own: “Now, tell me of thith ‘Eden’.” He rolled the word in his mouth as if tasting it. It had a strange foreign sound to it.

16) The Anatolian Shepherd shrugged. Perhaps he was being too pushy, but he had never met a wastelander before. He found himself intensely curious...especially since he had no idea they could even talk sense just this morning. "Kavron," he said as Mange brought up that he did not know his name. He figured that it was up to this dog whether he survived or not, so he ought to at least be a little friendly with him. "I apologize; I did not mean to offend you." he said uneasily. Eden is where I live with a group of other dogs... behind this wall beside us, actually." he said signalling with his nose to the towering wall nearby.

17) The beast cocked his head. Behind the wall? Now that he looked off at the cliff he saw a seam running down it. Mange considered this crack for a moment. He had dealt with doors of various types, but the thought of that as an opening confused him. “But it ith a cliff...” he stated, giving the opposing dog a glance like he had gone mad. Maybe this creature actually was some sort of demon that was just trying to trick him... he should be careful. He raised a bushy eyebrow inquisitively, silently egging on the male to explain.

18) Kavron looked at the wall. Yes, it did look like a cliff, he supposed, to those who did not know that Eden existed, "Oh, well, it is behind the cliff." Kavron explained, looking back at Mange, "Underground. It was made by humans a long time ago. Do you know what humans are?"

19) “Under... like cave?” he cocked his head further, sending one tattered ear to flip inside out. “Hmm...” he stuck out his split tongue in concentration. He himself lived in a sealed off and long since forgotten drainage tube. The most of it did run below ground, and he knew of dogs such as Raiders that lived below the hostile surface. Yes, he could understand the idea of someone burying underneath a cliff for a more tepid environment. But what was that other thing he spoke of? “Hoo... hoomanth?” The word was odd, yet another foreign word that tasted exotic.

20) Kavron blinked thoughtfully. Yes, he supposed Eden was like a cave, although the word "cave" made him think of somewhere cold and dark and damp, while Eden was far from any of those things. But, once he thought about it, he supposed cave was a good way to describe it. "Yes, much like a cave." he said.

His tail wagged a little as Mange seemed not to know what a human was. Like a young boy may get excited over trains or race cars, Kavron got excited over humans. He had never seen one, true, but he loved hearing stories about their civilization and their relationship with dogs. "Well," he said, "humans were a kind of animal that lived a long time ago... well before I was born.... they used to rule the world." Although he was not entirely comfortable around Mange, not in any sense of the word, and even with those he was comfortable with he rarely opened up, he could not help but expose the deep interest he had on the subject of humans.

21) A faint smile twitched to Mange’s lips. He couldn’t help it, the other dog’s enthusiasm was infectious. “Hoomanth.” he repeated the word with a small nod. “But... you thay ”were”... are there none left?” This concept, though not foreign to him, was a little unsettling. True it took an intelligent creature to fully understand the true concept of “zero”, but it was still within Mange’s capacity.

And yet, how could all of these creature, these “humans” be gone? Perhaps he had just worded it funny, or perhaps he was just wrong. Sure, if Mange killed all the rats in the Metro, or all of the Raiders nearby, they would be gone... But there was always more somewhere. The concept of everything of one thing being gone... gone forever? It sent a visible shiver through him. “None? None at all? But... how... why...” Mange’s eyes narrowed on the earth in front of him. The concept that all of something could be gone forever was a little too earth-shattering for him.

22) Kavron looked sadly toward the horizon, "No... there are none left." he confirmed. He blinked slowly. He never knew a human, or knew anyone who had ever known a human. All he knew were stories, and they sounded like the perfect beings to handle this situation... known for their weak bodies but their incredible minds more than making up for it. And they had chosen dogs of all other animals to be their guardians, helpers, and best friends... he longed to meet one.

He looked back at Mange, noticing that he seemed to be having a very difficult time with the concept. Kavron tilted his head slightly, his eyes gentle as the dog asked about them. "Well, the infection killed them all...their kind was not strong enough to survive." he said.

23) “I-infecthon?” Mange pondered the word. Infections happened to wounds that were left to fester... he had had a minor one once: it was not a pretty sight. Did an entire kind of animal get an infection? That seemed so... odd.

While there were those in the Wastelands that knew of such things, Mange had lived a rather secluded world. All he knew of life came from his puphood or from his many years alone. And Mange- or rather Humphrey, had not had the most wholesome upbringing. The inbred colony which he was born into had long since forgotten why they refused to let outsider in, only keeping it as such because of tradition. When his mother got “sick” and turned on her pups, all Humphrey could do was try and rationalize this... it did nothing to help his mental stability. The idea that their was a raging inferno deep within slowly eating away at him was a concept he knew nothing about. For all Mange knew, his deteriorating mental state was because he was just crazy.

24) Kavron tilted his head. This dog seemed to be unaware of what the infection was.... had he not noticed the sick dogs everywhere out here? Had he not noticed himself?, "Yes, infection." he said, "The disease that the world is suffering from right now..." Surely Mange knew what he was talking about... maybe he just needed a reminder.

25) “Infecthion... ditheathe...” Mange pondered this. He himself was crazy, yes, drooled blood, lost patches of fur at random, but that was normal out here. He had no way of knowing that there was anything wrong with him, that he was grotesque to others. “What of thith? Thuffering you thay? I thee no thuffering...”

And for the brute it was true. Mange saw the world through rose colored glasses. Everything was fine in his world. Sure he had to fight tooth and claw to survive, often went hungry, and was wrecked by mental anguish, but that’s the way it always was. Or at least how he had always remembered it to be.

26) Kavron considered the dog for a moment, realizing nervously that he had no idea that what is happening to him was abnormal. Kavron quickly tried to think of something to say next... he didn't want to offend this massive dog if he didn't even realize that anything was wrong. "I suppose... there are different ways to live. I am not very familiar with the wastelands, so perhaps I misjudge them." He said. He had just met this dog, for all he knew Mange did have a good life... although he did doubt it, by his standards anyway. More likely was the concept of you can't miss what you don't know.

27) Mange pondered the dog opposite from him for several moment. All was silent save for the sound of wind sweeping over the Wastes around them. Liar. Tattered ears slowly drew back as the mutt stated: “Yeth... diffwent...” No, perhaps not a lie but definitely not a truth...  For one as mad a he, Mange was gifted with a strong instinct. Deep within his gut often lay the truest feelings on a situation. But whether or not he listens to them is the key. Right now warning bells were going off. Hesitation, nervousness, trailing off in speech... none of this led to truthful statements. This dog wasn’t saying something.

But like usual, Mange was more interested in what was happening in the now versus what could have been said. “Sssssssssssso why come to the Wathte, Kavwon?” he said the sentence slowly, stressing each syllable and  even being able to pronounce an “S”, albeit with much hissing. He made a point to restate the name of the other creature. In normal conversation it would not be such a big deal, but for Mange the fact that he even made note of  name meant something. But be it for good or bad?

28) Kavron noticed his body language and felt his nerves rising. He regretted having even mentioned the infection... clearly this was all Mange had ever known, and so he would have no idea about anything that Kavron was talking about... and Kavron did not want to be the one to tell this huge dog that he was diseased....

Kavron was relieved when the dog changed the subject, but looked a little startled at the dog mentioned his name. Oh, yes, I did tell him my name. Kavron reminded himself, having forgotten that he had introduced himself. "I usually make rounds by the wall every day or so to take a look around and make sure everything looks peaceful around here." Kavron said. He also just liked the walk. He often stared out onto the horizon, thinking about his long lost mate who had been killed in the wastelands... as if waiting for her to come bounding into view to be with him again. And hey, maybe she would! Maybe she was alive and just infected. He wouldn't mind if she was infected, he would love her anyways. They could live in the wastelands together, they would make it work. He believed in this long-held, nonsensical dream especially now that he knew that there were wastelanders who would carry full conversations like Mange. Some dark, desperate hope was flickering in his chest as he talked to this wastelander...even though he had seen her dead body with his own eyes over two years ago...

29) Mange gave a grudging nod. He was not one to take to patrolling, unless prompted by mother, but the eaters and -blegh- raiders did. Some were much more territorial, and for good reason. With but he and mother being the only denizens of their gully there wasn’t much reason to worry. But the others... they had reasons to fear outsiders, outsiders such as Mange. Mange was a loner, a hermit, an outcast. Being alone for so many years with naught but a tin-can to speak to does nothing good for one’s mental health.

“Well,” he drawled lazily, “Thun lower, I thure we both have walking me mutht do.” He stated, referring to his own long walk home and to the other male’s continuation of his rounds.

30) Kavron smiled a little, happy that Mange seemed to know what Kavron was talking about. His reaction was similar to that of many other scrapper when the subject of patrol was brought up. Kavron was one of few who actually enjoyed the walk.

It was relief but also slight sadness that Kavron felt when Mange implied that he would leave Kavron to his patrolling. No doubt he would be very happy to be safely within the walls of Eden after this troubling encounter, but it was also intensely interesting to him, talking to this wastelander. He nodded, "Yes, we both best be getting home before it gets too dark." Kavron agreed with him, "But it was a pleasure to speak with you, Mange." Kavron said, his voice formal but he was sincere (kinda). "I must admit I've never had a conversation with anyone outside of Eden before. But I feel that I have learned a lot." He smiled a bit at the huge dog. He wanted to at least try to be on friendly terms with Mange, or neutral terms at the very least. This huge dog was not one you want as an enemy.

31) Mange mustered a small smile at the other dog’s words. “Darkneth not kind to many.” After a brief moment of contemplation he added, “You are an interethting one... thtay thafe... Kavwon.” With that Mange turned on his heels and began a steady pace towards the north. A dog of few thoughts and even fewer words, Mange was not one for common courtesy. But the lad could not help but to ponder the strange creature he had spoken with. Now some distance away he paused to look over his shoulder and back towards Eden.

Strange... Mange had long since known the skull-faced ones were intelligent. They showed forethought in their actions and movements, but never had he been so close to one before. Such strange things. It still seemed like utter madness. Creatures with such strange faces that could not only understand him but also speak his language? Sure he had seen other “intelligent” creatures such as bears or rats, but never had they been able to converse. Well, not that he wanted that anyway; the prior was deadly and the latter was food. Still unsure of the reality of the situation, the mutt resumed his homeward travels.

32) Kavron dipped his head to the huge mutt. "You as well." he said as Mange turned and bounded away. Kavron watched him a moment as he went further and further into the wastelands, wondering where he would go now... where he lived. Kavron let out a sigh of relief. He had survived the encounter and he was safe now. He turned and bounded back toward the gates of Eden. There was nothing he wanted to do more right now than to get back behind the safety of the walls.

But he had learned a lot about the wastelanders by speaking with Mange. There were different degrees of the infection, and some did not even know that they are infected at all! He must have been born in the wastelands.... Kavron had no idea that wastelanders could breed... it was a little alarming, but also kind of nice. It was nice because wastelanders could find love too, and form relationships with each other. Maybe it was not so terrible out here...