Khan of the Steppes

"Hello," Book Smart said. "I'm from the Dark Water tribe. I've always been interested in learning new things, and this adventure seems like the perfect chance to do so. I don't want to delay our departure, but I did bring breakfast, if you'd like it." He then set the remaining bowls of Royal Jelly down, suddenly glad he'd brought enough.

Royal Jelly:

"Saf nak Muth La urat tha; Shashav, Muth La," Cau'rha said quietly before quietly sucking in the jelly. He made a mental note to teach the phrase to Anemone and Silver; it felt uncomfortable for him to say it.

Pahmuthi Translation:

Royal Jelly:

"Hmm...Well, that's quite kind of you...Thank you...My name's Silver Steele..." She smiled, picking up one of the bowls and beginning to eat...It tasted...Odd. Good, but nothing she could put her finger on, the flavors were like nothing she'd had...It was quite good, though, and she nodded, chuckling softly. "Amazing...It was delicious..." She nodded her head gratefully, glancing about...Quite the motley team, but it was from all tribes...It only made sense.

Spoiler:

"That was very thoughtful of you Book." Anemone said as she picked up a bowl. After taking a few bites she asked, "So... do we have any more joining us I do not know of?"

---

Instant Party: 3. Well, good thing that A) I don't have Derp and B) Derp wouldn't apply anyway.

"I haven't heard anything about you before," Sleipnir said to Silver. Then he turned to the zebra, "Sleipnir." The stallion said as he introduced himself again to Zane. Then waved away the offered royal jelly by the unicorn. "No thanks, I've already eaten." He then addressed the group. "My name is Sleipnir of the Prairie Striders. Udus Khan has a plan of sorts and I wish to know what it is. Therefore, with his permission, I am coming to observe this undertaking of yours. So I have to ask: What is it that the Khan plans to accomplish with this group?"

Zane nods at each as he says their names, though his gaze lingers on the minotaur.
"Sleipnir of the Prairie Striders and Silver Steele, we meet at last.
Though...you cause my thoughts to reel; have we met in the past?
Zane looks at her for a moment longer, trying to remember why she seems familiar, before turning to respond to the gazelle.
"...yes, this should be the full complement; we do not seem to be missing anyone.
And with everyone present, I expect this will be rather fun!"
Zane gives the gazelle a wide smile before turning back to the earth pony.
"As to Udus Khan's plan, I think that the best answer comes from him.
But from how I understand, I believe that we are a...uh..."
Zane waves a hoof in the air as he searches for the word. "...prelim."

@Caden2112:

"Then let us get on our assigned task." Sleipnir voted before looking around to see that everyone was in agreement.

~Elsewhere.~

"I will trample that shaman into the dust when I find him." Crimson Hoof grunted as he looked over The Meet from a nearby hill. The breeze wafted over his short-cut mane. "Once he steps outside the sacred grounds..." He muttered as he turned to his assembled group of a half-dozen Red Hoof soldiers. They all stamped the ground with one hoof. "We will stain our hooves red," they all said in unison. The mantra of the Red Hoof Tribe.

"The Red Hoof Tribe has already left." Sleipnir responded. He saw them moving out as he trotted to the meeting point at Khan Udus' taken-down tent. "Although some of them looked ready for battle, all painted up." Sleipnir sighed. "Though I guess that is how they always look sometimes. They are a warlike tribe after all."

"Ah, I suppose it's possible...I don't quite recall, I did a lot of...travelling...before I met with Khan Udus and joined his tribe, eh, heh..." Steele paused for a moment, subconsciously reaching down to rub her leg as she thought. Had she 'found' anything that belonged to them...? Probably, she hoped the zebra wouldn't put two and two together, if so. "Still, you said they were getting ready for a brawl...? What exactly did you say to 'em to get them so riled up, again?" She remembered there'd been a debate a couple of days ago, but it seemed that everyone had let it slide afterwards. Clearly she was wrong.

After a shocked pause, Book Smart interrupted, "Wait, Crimson Hoof is upset at us? Um.. I mean, it's just that I've heard some really, really bad things about him. From what my elders have said, unlike his father, he acts like a madstallion. They say he's actually been destroying other tribes instead of raiding them!"

"Um," Book Smart said, desperately trying to think about how to reply to that. Suddenly, he straitened. "I've already made my decision. I'm staying with this, wherever it goes. My tribe elders didn't want to speak up about Crimson Hoof because they're worried about becoming his next victim. If Udus Khan's plan works, though, that's not something we'll have to worry about anymore."

Book gave a sigh, looking down at the ground between his hooves with a frustrated expression. "And, I spent most of the first day trying to ask around, to see if the stories were true. All I got were vague answers that everyone already knows about. It's as if almost no one here even wants to talk about Crimson Hoof or his tribe."

"If you do want to confront him, I'd be careful." Gesturing at the nearly-empty meeting grounds, Book Smart continued, "From what I've heard, Crimson Khan, Crimson Hoof's father, is getting old and spends most of his time planning his campaigns these days. I don't think he really cares about this meet. He may not even know what Crimson Hoof is doing during his raids. That means Crimson Hoof is probably here with the biggest, toughest of the Red Hoof that he could find."

"The good news is that the Red Hoof tribe as a whole has just one shaman, and that sort of job isn't respected within the tribe. I don't know for sure, but if Crimson Hoof picked the group coming here, he probably didn't bring his shaman." The changeling-unicorn ground to a halt as he realized how much he'd been rambling about this. "Um, that is, from what I've heard about it."

Anemone says nothing, lost in dark thoughts.

"Hm. No shaman? That's interesting to know... let's see for sure," Cau'rha said, confidence rising in his voice as he drew a circle on the ground...

It's Witchcraft!:

Zane shook his head, fairly certain he hadn't met this minotaur previously, before putting a reassuring hoof on the unicorn-changeling's shoulder.
"The Red Hoof tribe can indeed be intense, but this might be an encouraging start.
Many tribes worry about their interference, and what we do could change their hearts.

That is not to say, that we should engage him in combat.
I am just pointing out, that what we do will have impact."
Zane expels a sigh at the end of his speech.
He'd like to simply create a wall of mist and avoid the confrontation entirely, but that would send the wrong message. The Mist Tails have hidden for long enough. It is time for them to step into the light and show that it is no longer acceptable to survive. They must live.

"Why would you provoke Crimson Hoof? The Prairie Striders have enough problems with the Red Hoof Tribe without you bringing more fire to the tinder." Sleipnir piped up. "If Crimson Hoof challenges you, I will sit back and watch. I am not going to bring war on my tribe." He looked at the others, "And I suggest you do the same if you plan on having Udus Khan's plan work."

A look of worry covers Zane's face, and he turns to the earth pony.
"I understand your distress, but that cannot be the solution.
It is vital to our success, that we do not fall to their persecution.

If things are to get better,
then we must stand together."

"The hay with that noise...Someone's gotta stand up to them and their thugs. I don't like it anymore than the rest of you, but someone's gotta show them they can't keep this up. You ask me, they're a bunch of short-sighted bullies. Someone's gotta teach 'em actions have consequences!" Steele slammed the base of her staff against the ground to emphasize the point. "If we don't, they're just gonna keep hurting innocents until they get stopped or they run outta victims. Besides, how are we supposed to prove Udus Khan's plan has a shot at succeeding if we're still running scared, huh?" She pulled herself up, putting on a brave face.

At this point Anemone speaks up, "Dealing with the Red Hoof tribe is not part of our task. They can be crushed later when we are sure we will have the strength and knowledge that doing so will not undermine what our Khan seeks to create."

Book Smart breathed a sigh of relief as he looked nervously back and forth. "I don't want to fight Crimson Hoof either. I'd just as soon find a way to avoid him. Whatever happens, though, we have to stick together. That's the basis of Udus Khan's whole plan, isn't it?"