The more he saw of this land, the less impressed he found himself being. He never thought he would miss the salty taste of the ocean and the crisp breeze that fell over the land in the mid stages of winter… and yet here they were, in this land that they didn’t know. At least he had his cousins, though the rest of his family seems to have fucked off to who knew where. He supposed it was possible it wasn’t their fault, just because Vayko himself had not been able to make this call… if he’d had a choice, he would have stayed home.

He huffed softly as he trailed the edges of the creek towards the west. He could see the forest in the distance that seemed more welcoming than the land to the east had been… yet he knew he would have to circle the creek in order to reach it. He wasn’t a huge fan of heights, and so seeing the daunting mountainous structure in the distance had certainly sent him in the other direction in an instance. He had taken to exploring, trying to get a lay of the soil under his paws. If he could just do that, he kept telling himself, then he could figure this out, whatever this was.

His tail waved dismissively of his thoughts, humming softly as he looked out longingly over the shore. It was water but it certainly wasn’t the same. Things felt harsher here, like survival was more cruel… and he longed for home. It wasn’t often he thought those thoughts… he was often too vain to, in fact… and yet there he stood. He sighed softly, tail flicking from side to side again as he lifted his head and backed away from the waters edge back towards the forest he had been in before (the Wildwood) to rejoin his cousins.

Vayko blamed the mysterious two-legged creatures that had bit them… it was odd, because it hadn’t even been with tooth or claw, but with some strange element they were able to hold in their paw. He didn’t understand it, nor did he want to. He just never wanted them to do that again. He sighed softly, head down but mouth open to breathe in the scents of the Creek and surrounding area, keeping his ears and nose peeled or any kind of trouble. Normally he lived for trouble, but right now he’d prefer to avoid it, at least until he could gain a firm grasp on what was happening. He caught the scent of deer, abandoned like the prey from the other day he had shared with his cousins and his mouth water.

That being said? Trouble usually found Vayko… it usually smacked him upside the head like a Louisville Slugger of an ex-girlfriend, in fact. He heard a chuff, his head snapping up as his ears pinpointed the direction, a sharp golden gaze falling on an older male, darker fur with greying around the edges. Whether that was natural or from his tender age, Koko couldn’t be certain. “Oi, what’s it to you then?” He snapped out disinterested. He had wanted his attention, and now he had it. “Do you always go chuffing around at wolves you’ve never met? Has your age hit you that hard, old man?” Real smooth, Vayko. Way to avoid conflict, Vayko. Way to go, Vayko. “That deer is mine and I ain’t sharing!”

Vayko knew that he could be… difficult to get along with, but in his mind that wasn’t his fault. It was the fault of the wolves who were just bitter they couldn’t hang with him. He was eager to turn his nose up at the older man, and that was clearly no secret between the two of them. “I noticed, I just didn’t care to acknowledge your existence until you went chuffing about. Honestly, who does that?” The question fell harshly from his tongue as his tail whipped in an irritated manner from side to side. One of these days, his mouth was really going to get him into trouble.

There was a scowl at his words, a snort of amusement. “You even try to get a morsel and I’ll bite your defunct nose off.” He shot back quickly moving to firmly place himself between the carcass and the man. “I’ve got family to feed so move along.” The only wolves he was willing to share with at the moment were the rest of the Valle, which for his purposes were Andrey and Viorel. Everyone else could politely, or not so politely, buzz off. “You’re not my elder. You certainly are an elder, but to be my elder you’d have to earn my respect.” He was accustomed to acting as he had been allowed in the Estuary, not here where he was a loner and held no sense of power, because here his family name meant jack shit.

Vayko had an attitude, but he also had the mettle to back it up and he knew it. Plenty of scuffles back home with the other kids had shown that he had the bite to back his bark. He started to chuckle with a more sinister edge to his tone when Hudson let his banner fly, snorting softly at his words. “Nah, they just taught me to give them to those who deserve them.” He shot back fiercely with a growl as Hudson lunged at him. Thinking on his feet, he sidestepped, narrowly but successfully avoiding the muzzle grab as he snarled, fiercely, his own tail curling over his back as he shifted, going for a muzzle grab of his own to force the man to the ground.

This character seemed to think he was hot shit, but Vayko liked to think he was hotter and he wasn’t afraid of trying to put him in his place after such a display. Age had nothing to do with respect in his world, only actions. Anyone who could go toe to toe with him would earn his respect, and Vayko wasn’t sure this man fit the bill. It was an accoladep that would fall short of this man's ears.

He felt the satisfaction of his taunts as he felt his teeth snap against the sensitive muzzle of the other man’s jaw, holding it tight in his grasp as he tried to speak against it, seeing the watering of the eyes as he made eye contact, a fierce look backing it. He held it for a few moments before releasing it with a snarl. “Get outta here.” He snapped his jaws at him, clearly having earned his kill. “And think about who you decide to fuck with next time.” The words were hissed out, tail lashing from side to side as the fur bristled along his spine. He was being nice and giving him the chance to leave. If he wanted to keep going for the kill, then perhaps he could, but Vayko could be there to meet him with tooth and claw and he’d already proven himself not only limber but fierce with a bite nasty enough to take a grown man down, so the only question remained: would he continue to fight or would he leave with his tail between his legs?