Theapan Temple (Part 1)

Vorbuk felt someone walking up behind him as they walked around the temple grounds. The person was quiet. He could see Zoe standing behind him and she looked troubled. There was a lot that had gone on recently and she had not had her chance to talk to Johan about the stone she kept hidden.

It did not take long for their entire group to come together outside. The only one among them who seemed to have trouble coming to terms with what was going on around him was in fact Bredret. The center of everyone's focus was on the child that they had brought out of the dungeon. Chase was still in his tiger form while lingering closely to Vorbuk.

"Should we leave him with the temple?" Prince Leo asked the question first. What might happen in the future would be hard to predict. The origins of the child was still unclear to them as well. They had to decide what to do with Chase in the future and could not drag out the decision.

"Do you really want to leave the child to that man? It would almost be similar to giving a child to Bredret." Daryl denied the thought of leaving the child to the pope. It was not that he was a bad man but the child had been found in a dungeon. To leave the child to the temple gave him an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Bredret snarled at the insult. It was as though his pride had been wounded.

Vorbuk could not stand to watch them bicker of the matter. The tiger that did not want to stray far from him at his side was listening quietly to every word. As he stepped forward; Vorbuk took his human form.

"I'm sure you would be a great father to your own child if you had one," Vorbuk's eyes swept from Bredret who stilled with a bewildered expression as if he could not decide how to react. His gaze landing on everyone else. Normally he would keep his opinion quiet because the others could handle most matters. He was a companion anyways so it was not required of him to always do everything.

But this is the matter of how someone would live their life.. Chase might be a child, but he was still probably much older then he looked. His human form was of a child yet his tiger form gave off the reality that was chase. As a beast he was a young adult because the half of him that was a beastman caused his animal form to age closer to that of a mortal. The only thing that was hard to judge was his level of intelligence. For his species one could say he was young. When it came to his mentality however could someone who was hundreds of years old be considered mentally young like any average mortal?

No, Chase had every right to decide for himself where he wanted to be. Vorbuk felt that way when he considered everything in his mind. Chase might be a child but he should be able to comprehend the weight of his own choice here.

"Shouldn't the one who makes the choice whether to stay or go be the one the decision affects more then anyone else here?" Vorbuk said out loud as they all looked at him.

"Are you sure you want to leave the choice up to the kid?" Daryl asked with a confused expression. In the eyes of everyone the child was still young to understand the weight of the choice to stay or go with them. It was hard for them to grasp the sense of understanding that Vorbuk held towards allowing Chase to choose.

"Chase?" Vorbuk tilted his head back to glance at the younger white tiger that stood behind him. He could hear the sound of the tiger's breathing rumbling as though it felt uncomfortable. As the tiger slowly morphed it took shape of the young boy. His black hair hanging down in front of his face as his emerald green eyes looked curiously up at Vorbuk and Prince Leo.

"Yes?" The boy asked while carefully observing the atmosphere of those around him.

"What do you want to do?" Vorbuk could see the look of confusion on everyone as he spoke to the child. The confusion did not last long as everyone was soon curious as well what the child would want to do. Even if they did not feel comfortable with allowing a young child to make a dangerous choice they still were bound to be swept with curiosity what decision they would choose if given the chance to do so.

"I don't know." Chase's three worded response was enough to still everyone.

For most people they may consider his response to be simple and annoying. It could be considered a way of dodging giving an answer at all.

That was not the same thing for Chase. It was true that he did not know. As far back as he could recall he had been trapped within that dungeon. He had grown without knowing what daylight looked like. Nor had he ever experienced the various foods of the outside world.

What did it mean to stay at the temple? What did it mean to go with the others?

That was something he had never had to consider before in his life. It was true that he understood that it was heavy question to be asked. Yet that single question cast his mind full of different outcomes. If he stayed he would still be able to see sunlight. It would still be different from everything he went through inside the dungeon. But that was equal if he went as well.

Everything was different no matter which choice he made. That was the conclusion he had in his mind when asked. The only thing that would be different was one thing he didn't want to so easily loose..

"I want to stay with you.." Chase's hand grasped hold of Vorbuk's black and white clothes. He was not willingly going to separate from the one who'd brought him out of that darkness.

"That-" Daryl was going to say something but was quickly cut off.

"Chase made his decision so we should just respect that. You can't say his safety would be guaranteed just because this is a temple." Vorbuk did not care if his words sounded harsh towards the gods. Whether it was the temple or the palace neither option could guarantee Chase's safety.

"What are we going to say in the future if someone asks where he came from? It is bound to come up eventually.. especially if we take over Theapan.." Prince Leo muttered the words but was serious about the question. If the child was in their group he would eventually be questioned after they took over Theapan.

Even those that served the king could not keep secrets buried easily. No matter what position inside the palace they gave the child in the future they could not keep things hidden. The fact that Chase was found would become known. They might not be able to dig up that he was from a dungeon but anything hidden around Chase would be bound to surface over time.

"We'll say he's mine." Vorbuk's words were so blunt that the air chilled around everyone. Even Chase looked confused.