Heiress Loch carry on whistling in the dark

Pack hunt for OTB! @Serach @Aponi @Lena @Ember @Nalda @Latif @Dread @Arion @Lila
First round ends 23/2! Heiress Loch is just a little south of OTB and we'll go off there in the next round. ^^

you do not know who is your friend

and who is your enemy

Long rays of slanting sunlight fell across the little clearing. In the east, the stars had already begun to wink into existence, bright dots against an ever darkening backdrop. Through the trees, he saw the western sky, burnished bronze and blood red staining the bellies of a few wisps of clouds. The sun was setting on yet another day, and within an hour and a half it would be full dark. Ice didn't mind. They were wolves, they saw by what little light was graced upon the world, and they saw well. If anything, the half-light between day and night made it more difficult for their prey to discern their shapes from the shadows and the trees, while posing little challenge to them—the merciless hunters.

It was how they had survived.

A grim smile curved Ice's lips, and bared the slightest hint of teeth to the oblivious evening. He stood a bit past the southern borders of Oak Tree Bend, a set of barely visible tracks leading north upon the snow's crust. South was where they had to go for this; south was where the prey was. He'd found several roving bands of mule deer and elk a couple of days ago, and he doubted they had moved out of the area this soon. Spring came from the south, after all, though it was still a ways away.

His large, pale head tipped back, and his eyes tracked the stars for a moment. In the mixed light of dusk and stars he was both cast into deep blue shadows, and lit with gold arcing along the edges of his silhouette.

"Star light, star bright," he whispered, breath smoking into the cold air. ".. but stars only shine at night." The smile grew less hard, more wistful, and he lowered his head briefly. "Good thing it's almost night, then." With a snort he threw his head back again, and this time, his deep, resounding voice split the stillness of the day's end. It rose, higher and shriller, carrying through the trees and echoing around the pack land, a call and a summons—come to me, gather, gather for the hunt. As his lungs grew empty the call faded into silence, and Ice lowered his head again. Ears and eyes strained into the blooming darkness as he waited.

until the ice breaks.

come to me, gather, gather for the hunt.

The howl rang loudly in Dread’s ears as it sang through the air, his ears perking up from the lax position they were before, as he recognised it as Ice’s voice calling the pack for a hunt. Carefully covering up the half eaten hare that he had pulled from a cache, Dread turned away from it and begun lopping towards where the howl had come from.

It only took him a short amount of time to arrive at the spot, his dark coat melding into the darkness of the woods, his golden eyes settling on Ice. the sun was only barely peeking over the horizon yet Ice was still cast in shadow. But it wasn’t hard to pick him out in the darkness, as his eyes had adjusted to the low light.

As he drew closer to the older wolf, he bumped their shoulders together and nipped at his ear playfully, as if taunting him to begin playing with him, like when they had first met. But it was meant as a simple greeting and Dread settled on his rump a few feet away, having to wait for the others to arrive before they could begin.

A wisp of hot air rose up from Serach's mouth, visible for just a moment before disappearing into the chilling evening. The day's light was rapidly fading, but the Bend wolves had been called into action. Stomach growling in anticipation, Serach had hoisted himself up from his resting spot and began to lope south, stopping only for a moment to call back that they were coming. If all went well, it would be a few more hours before they could settle down in their dens, noses pressed into their tails to keep them warm. It would be well worth the wait, he hoped as he ran over the snow, a pale ghost in the dusk of the dying light.

This would be the first hunt that the new Oak Tree Bend pack would have together, and the anticipation lifted Serach's spirits as he ran towards the gathering spot. They were a decidedly young pack, but the leader was eager to see how they would work together and although their collective inexperience was potentially worrisome, it also meant there was an opportunity for teaching. So long as the younger wolves listened to advice given and directions, he was hopeful that it would go well and provide a much needed bonding experience that cemented their ties to one another.

Hot on the trails of Ice and Tenebrae, Serach was the third to arrive. He brushed by the younger male, touching his shoulder and cheek with his nose in greeting before moving next to Ice and offering him a dark nose to the scruff. Tail wagging easily behind him, he too settled in to wait for the rest, eager to get started.

Despite the arrival of dusk, Lila was far from tired. She was restless, and had wandered away from the Bend in hopes to kill a bit of the feeling. The girl didn't bother looking for anything to chase. She merely let her paws take her away.

The sun was slipping down, the light above dwindling in a hazy pink. The child was far from tired. She was restless, and had wandered from the Bend in hopes to kill a bit of the feeling. The young Aquila didn't bother to find anything to chase. She merely let her paws take her away into the pressing shadows of the copse.

Here she was alone, but it was better than feeling that way in the Bend, surrounded by others. She pulled in a long breath of the cold air, contemplating why she even felt this way. A call brought her to a sudden halt, catching her by surprise. It was quite close, and as it sounded her head cocked. A hunt. With a purpose found, she let her paws churn up the snow, carefully choosing direction.

Landing in the clearing, blue-gray eyes scanned the area. It was her nose who told her first who was gathered. None of the new recruits. She let out a quiet huff of her displeasure. Her mother wasn't here either. With the distance it took her to reach them she had collected herself, and her dark tail wagged. It was with ease she brushed up beside Ice, and nosed at Serach's chest. The jury was still out on Tenebrae, and she only briefly gave him a glimpse. At least he was here, ready to be put to work.

A young deer has been separated from the rest of its herd. Hunt Opportunity

@Lena
@Latif
@Arion
@Nalda
@Ember
Aponi's absent but I hope she'll join in when she can! Next round on March 4th or earlier if everyone posts! :D No posting order. We'll arrive at the Loch soon, so you're welcome to bring us there in your posts, maybe come across a trail, etc. I want to give a few more people the chance to get in before the hunting begins...

you do not know who is your friend

and who is your enemy

Silence covered the lands after his howl faded. His pulse thrummed in his ears, contrasted by the crisp quiet of a winter evening—each breath subdued, white smoke rising to a darkening sky. The silence held, pale ears straining into the blooming darkness. Then—Serach's voice answered him. They were coming.

First out of the shadows was Tenebrae, and he brushed up next to Ice, who bared some teeth in the corner of his mouth and batted a paw after that dark spine. Ice remained in place when the yearling moved off a little, but his eyes moved with him. Despite them having been in the pack together for some time now, Ice still didn't know him very well, nor his capabilities. They had to spar, more than their playful batting, though he hadn't intentionally put it off it still hadn't really happened. It would, in the least, be interesting to watch him tonight.

Next was Serach, and he gladly returned the gesture, burying the length of his pale nose in off-white fur. They were in this together, now, and together they'd get out of it, see the pack through to spring. It felt good to finally be there for one of his sons.

Then Lila stepped out of the shadow and into the starlight. His head reached out as she passed by, hoping to give her a reassuring nudge to the shoulder. Something about her reminded him of Aiyana, though what it was, he wasn't quite sure. The quiet, thoughtful demeanor? The fact that they shared the same coat color, and the same white patch on their chest? The only thing setting his memory apart from her was the blue-gray of her eyes. Aiyana's had been classic Tainn gold.

The forest around them was quiet. No howls had rung out, no snow crunched under paw pads. Second by second it settled like a lead weight in him, until he closed his jaws into a grim line tinged with disappointment. "Well," he began, throwing a silver-eyed glance south. "There's enough of us to take down a mule deer, and if others are intending to come, it won't be hard to track us. Come on," and with that he was moving south at a slow jog, intending to cover ground and save time. "I've been tracking the deer in the area for a while. There's bands of elk, mule deer, some roe deer, moose. I had my eyes set on a mule one but we'll see if more turn up."

until the ice breaks.

let the stars above shine in your soul

If you haven't posted yet and still want to participate, please feel free to jump in at any point!

Nostrils flaring, Serach peered into the gloom. Looking south, he willed the shadows to transform themselves into real creatures they could hunt. He could feel the weight of the task ahead on his shoulders, but despite the lack of help from the shadows around them, he was not anxious. Turning his head, he looked north - towards pack territory - at the crunch of snow underneath small black paws. Barely distinguishable from the falling darkness, his lips curled up into a smile as he made out Lila's familiar form. He greeted her with a quiet hello and a nuzzle to the ear, excited to see how their hunting lessons would show themselves in a larger group hunt.

However, as the seconds became minutes and the forest around them remained still, his excitement was curbed. He had been hoping to see some of the pack's newest members join them, so they could get a feel for what it was like to work together. But the woods remained silent and he met Ice's cold gray gaze with one of his own. There would be consequences for this, his silent furrowed told his father, a wave of embarrassment rising in his chest. It did not reflect well on himself or Aponi if they could not rally their pack for something as necessary as a hunt.

He murmured a quiet agreement and lifted his haunches off the ground. Shaking his body, he cleared the snow clinging to his fur and set off at an easy lope after his father. "A mule will be enough," he said, his nose already looking for the familiar scent trail that would lead them to their prey. "Lila and Dread, you'll likely have to focus on chasing the deer. There's not enough of us to ambush them, but we'll need you two to make sure it can't escape by flanking it and keeping it separated from the rest of the herd." It was impossible to tell how it would actually go once the hunt truly began, but Serach always felt better with a plan. He did not want to end up injured like Triell had been, or worse, and with so few wolves to help, it was that much riskier.

(This post was last modified: Mar 03, 2017, 04:02 AM by Serach.)

Narrowly manages to toss in the brat Nalda

She'd trekked southward, following the Cold Water Creek deep into this dense, dark forest she now called home. She was still undecided on the whole thing, having become used to her independence since the fall of the Pines. Pack life had never been the reclusive girl's strong suite, even as a pup she'd preferred exploring on her own rather than play with her age mates. In Broken Timbers she'd been able to do that as she pleased, but that didn't seem like the case here. Of course it was all a give and take, she'd known joining a pack would mean taking on responsibilities for her new leaders in exchange for a warm den and full stomach; I guess I just hoped it wouldn't be so hard..! The family reunion hadn't exactly been a fairy tale ending, and she hadn't really considered what came after. As a result she found herself wandering a lot, drifting through the foggy woods, just another ghost. At least there was plenty of new things to investigate.

As she was doing when the distant howl reached hear batty ears, making them flick back along her head. She'd figured it wouldn't matter if she turned in late, too caught up in stalking an old deer trail along the stream; What she hadn't considered was the possibility of being called to gather. At first her instinct was to ignore the old geezer's summons, they could handle a kill without her, surely; I'm not much of a hunter anyway… But when Serach's voice called in answer, she thought better of it. She needed to keep op a good impression, and ignoring the leaders' wishes was not exactly the way to do that. So she sighed heavily and turned tail, heading back towards the distant voices at a brisk trot, turning to a lope as she caught sight of pale figures up ahead.

She joined in on the group from the side, slipping out her tongue to pant like she'd been running the whole way. With mixed feelings, she noted that she wouldn't have been the only no-show, spotting no sign of neither Aponi nor Arion, much to her disappointment. Lila was there though, and after brushing by Serach with a low head and apologetic whine, she sought out her younger cousin, offering a playful nudge and tail-wag, before falling in step with her. She seemed to have made it just in time too, as the glimmer of moonlight on water appeared up ahead, and a smell off dear reached their noses.

Word count: 423

"Speech" Thoughts

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throws in arion quickly D: but he bring deer

The smudge had spent most of his free time exploring the surrounding lands and getting acquainted with the new territory. It was a peculiar feeling, to jump from one pack to another—a pack that had nearly suffered the same fate as the Pine wolves prior to their arrival. The remaining wolves were united here and for the first time in awhile Arion felt safe.

A call sounded, disturbing his nighttime adventure. His tail wagged softly behind him despite the frown he wore, his stomach growling suddenly. He could not refuse an opportunity at a hot, fresh meal no matter how strong the urge to adventure was. There would be time for exploring after he had a full stomach. Despite his initial hesitation, the boy quickly fell into a run, his dark body streaking through the trees. This hunt would be an excellent opportunity to meet his new packmates and show the leaders that he was not as useless as he appeared.

The sky grew darker as he ran, the last remaining rays of light quickly diminishing behind the horizon line. As he maneuvered through the trees a fresh trail caught his attention, causing his path to veer briefly. Deer! Perhaps this was what they were hunting… or had the group discovered this trail yet? He was close to the others, a quick sprint and he would have reached them, but he stopped. The boy tossed his nose to the sky, calling for the group in the distance, and alerting them of the fresh trail he had come across…

Letting out a small huff of greeting towards Serach when he arrived, and giving a small nod toward Lila, Dread kept his ears alert as Ice spoke while moving off south, towards where the prey was. Lifting himself to his feet, not bothering to shake his coat out like Serach, Dread fell in line just behind his leader and Ice.

His ears flickered back when he heard another joined their party. Glancing back, seeing that there was another yearling like himself, Dread wondered how this hunt would go. While Serach had a plan, which he was confident in, the oldest and most experienced out of their group was Ice while everyone else was still young. Would they be able to catch the deer that Ice had already considered for their hunt? But Dread told himself they'd be fine. There were five of them- well, six now if the call that was just heard was to be believed.

Another newcomer to the pack? And one that sounded just as young as the others gathered behind Ice. Dread snorted. Talk about young blood. He thought. But it didn't matter. They had higher numbers now and a greater chance of taking something down, which was good and could mean they might just be successful.