Meeting Dagger

Writers: AmajoS, Miriah
Date Posted: 14th March 2019

Characters: Rothen, Karhal
Description: Karhal shows Rothen a glimpse of working with canines.
Location: Amber Hills Hold
Date: month 9, day 22 of Turn 9

Karhal

Rothen rubbed his gloved hands briskly together as he made his way to
the kennels. The sun was barely up and the temperature still had a
long way to go to reach the predicted high of 28 degrees. But, he was
excited. He'd given even more thought to this since the opportunity
had been presented and liked it even better. Not only would he be
learning new things, but if he did well, he might advance his career
significantly. Standing sentry was well and good, but it was hard to
be noticed for additional responsibilities and advancement when most
of what you did was stand by doorways.

Reaching the entrance to the kennels, he quickly opened the door and
hurried in, breathing a quiet sigh of relief in the much warmer space.

Looking up from a crouch, Karhal waved Rothen over from inside a
shrouded enclosure. "Keep your voice down. We just had a litter born."
He spoke quietly to the new mother, stroking his large hand over her
head. "Good girl, Dacha. Good job."

Being careful not to make too much noise, Rothen approached. Sure
enough, there were a number of squirming little puppies, jockeying for
position. He couldn't help but smile at the sight. "Hard to think
something so small will bet as big as their mother," he whispered.

Karhal nodded slowly. "Aye...I hope to get one or two good guard
canine's out of this litter. They've a good, proven sire, but we can
never tell until they're about six sevendays old." He rose from his
crouch, closing the enclosure with a quick click. "Come with me." He
gestured and walked to the end of the row of enclosures, stopping at
the gate. There was a massively muscled canine within, slowly wagging
its tail. The blocky head swiveled to peer at Rothan, and gave a
short, deep bark. "This is Dagger."

Rothen held his hand out toward the dog, inviting him to sniff. "Hello, Dagger."

The canine dutifully sniffed at the offered hand and waited patiently
as Karhal clipped the lead to his collar. "Follow me, Rothan." He led
them out to a clearing, where another man was pulling on and buckling
heavy pads on his arms and thighs. Dagger immediately went to
attention, tensing in anticipation as his tail slowly began to wag
once again. "Rothan, this is Veyter. He assists with the training our
guard canines. He's also our lead tracker. I'd like you to see what
Dagger is capable of, how he's trained, and what may be expected of
you."

The now bulky man nodded at Rothan, saying nothing as he moved to the
center of the clearing. "Ready!"

Karhal glanced at Rothan for a moment before speaking a soft command
to the canine, gesturing to Veyter. "Dagger, watch!" Dagger
immediately strained at the lead, every muscle coiled as he
half-crouched. A deep continous growl erupted as the once docile
canine became a quivering powerhouse of potential aggression. Karhal
released the lead, but the canine stayed in place, waiting for the
next command. Across the clearing, Veyter began to run in the opposite
direction. "Dagger, feast!"

The canine exploded into action, compact body stretching out in a full
run towards Veyter. The other guard seemed to turn his body just as
the canine reached him, and in an instant heavy jaws clamped down on
the padding covering Veyter's arm. Snarls were heard as Dagger savaged
the padding, his head twisting violently and dropping his weight in an
attempt to drag Veyter down.

Karhal jogged forward, picking up the lead and pulling back. "Loose!"
It took another tug, but Dagger did release the panting Veyter and
dropped to his belly, his tail wagging eagerly. Karhal clapped his
assistant on the shoulder, quietly thanking him before leading Dagger
back to Rothan. His hand ruffled the dark head of the canine, praising
him. "Thoughts, Rothan?"

"That was impressive," Rothen replied. "Veyter isn't a small man."

"No, he's not." Karhal agreed, inwardly pleased that Rothan had
passed the first test without realizing it. "Dagger is used for
training demonstrations mostly, but after my own canine, is one of our
top breeders and workers." He handed the lead to Rothan, watching as
Dagger's dark eyes followed the movement.

Rothen held the lead tightly, not wanting to fumble it or have it
pulled from his hand. He had a feeling that this canine could pull a
lead out from a man's hands pretty easily if the man wasn't careful,
and what sort of impression would -that- make? "Do you want me to do
what you did? Give the commands and all?"

"No. Until he knows you and trusts you, he won't accept those commands
from you. For two sevendays, you'll work with him and Veyter about
basic commands and how to handle a canine his size. Dagger won't be
your permanent partner, Rothen. He's too valuable and you're too
green. He'll be training you more than you will be training him. All
of your other duties are rescinded for those two sevendays. Your sole
focus will be working with him." Karhal's lips lifted. "If Veyter's
report to me is favorable, you'll be paired with another canine and
you will train her with our help from the absolute beginning and she
will be your permanent partner."

Nodding his understanding, and, to be honest, relief that he wouldn't
be expected to command the canine immediately, Rothen replied, "Yes,
sir." Then he asked, "You said before that I'd be keeping my canine
with me all the time, is that the same for Dagger while he's training
me?" He grinned at the end, amused by the notion, though seeing the
sense in it. Even now, holding the lead, he felt like this canine was
just tolerating him.

"Not for the first week, but for the second, yes. He's well-behaved,
but he will test your leadership and I doubt you'd like to experience
that on your own at first." He glanced past Rothen and nodded as
Veyter, now in normal gear, approached. "Eventually, we'll also see
how you hold up in the pads. If you're going to release a canine on a
man, you'll have to know how it feels. But that's not necessary until
much later."

Veyter spoke up, his baritone amused. "My boy can pack a punch." He
grinned at the canine, but didn't touch him. "You're with me, Rothen.
Let's get you started."

Rothen felt a bit of trepidation at the idea of being taken down by
Dagger, after having watched Veyter, but not too much. The other man
was obviously no worse for wear and no one ever said being a guard was
a safe occupation. He was glad he was being eased into the training
though. With a nod to the captain, Rothen followed Veyter, noting that
the canine fell in easily beside him.

Last updated on the March 22nd 2019

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Meeting Dagger