His brother's tribe had been a strong one, won with honor and united by force and strength of will. When the leader died -- fatally gutted by a boar on a hunt gone awry -- no one expected his nameless brother to be the one to step up and take his place. The golden-antlered buck was not the prime example of a totoma -- frivolous, self-centered, and even, some whispered, more apt to back down from a fight than not -- but the idea that he might have to bow down to some young upstart rankled him. He was proud, egotistical, haughty -- and although he was not the first into a fight, he was still as stubborn as the next totoma, and knew that he had to use the skills that were his to forge a new life for himself after his brother's death.
These skills he possessed -- charm, wit, and the power to win over others to his side with his words -- did not serve to persuade the entirety of his brother's tribe of his right to lead them, but a fair amount decided to follow. His words had charmed them, and a loyal few declared they would stand by him through thick and thin. With support at his back, the buck knew he could not fail. "I will no longer step back and follow in the hoofprints of another. My time to lead has come and I will take it. From this day forth, I shall serve none."