Swift River Armageddon Flame

Takes place right after this thread, or well, pretty much running parallel to it. Marsh only please. <3 Dated January 27th; Ren's thread was pushed forward.

you do not know who is your friend or who is your enemy until the ICE breaks. The certainty in his blood had reached a boiling point, and Ren's return had been the spark to star the fire. Swift River was caving in on itself, dying, being suffocated, and it was no one's fault in particular. Collective collapse, distrust, pain, grief, loss, every blow they had suffered weakened them and — he swore under his breath as he disappeared into the shadows. He did not want to bring the confrontation about in front of them. Would Marsh defend his place? Or would he yield to Ice? What am I even doing? Every shadow held Aiyana's pain, Corinna's grief, and Rissa's smile, forever erased. Every shadow held Torrel's energy and Indru's fierce eyes. It was like she had said: he lived here, despite there being no trace of him. No physical trace. The River King could never be separated from the River. He haunted them and Ice knew he could not snap out of it, unless they moved. And restlessness drove him to act, need bade him do what he was about to do. Not dislike, discontent, no, never — Marsh was strong. Marsh was a wolf. But Marsh was not Indru, and somewhere along the lines, Ice had realized that there were few other wolves he would follow, and with him gone... Choosing a place to stand, a small glade studded with bare bushes within their old forest, Ice tossed his white head back and howled. The call vibrated in his throat and echoed among the trees, calling Marsh to him, the urgency and beat of his heart giving some of his purpose away. Adrenaline was flooding his body, and he could hear his pulse in his ears; not roaring yet, but rapid, light and fleet. The breath almost stuck in his throat as his call ended, and he waited, waited, for Marsh to come. For it all to be over. Raising his tail and sweeping his ears forward he waited, his gaze ready to fix on Marsh's iron one and demand submission. The silence was heavy in his ears, winter holding its breath and waiting. It was a curious feeling, like standing upon the brink of a war, on the edge about to leap: would he fly, or fall? Would he be able to save Swift River together with Corinna, even if it mean they moved away from the Grove which had sheltered them for so long? Away from the memories of pain and loss.. into another phase, a new start. If he expected every wolf to abandon them sooner or later, they would never grow, never flourish. Sometimes you had to take risks, and deep down he knew, that if Ren ended up leaving again... it would snuff out the hope he was trying to nurture, close the crack opening in his rugged heart. Odd, that so much hinged on one wolf. .ice aesir

Blargh, this sucks, because I am high on adrenaline from speed-writing, as I'm about to leave like.. now. xD

let the stars above shine in your soul

To be honest, I wouldn't mind if we had an audience - it would probably be interesting for the pack. Only if you're okay with it"

Also... damn I really need to sort out all of Marsh's information before we get into this properly. :C

He had been enduring. Swift River was not ruined, but it had not been healing as Marsh had wanted. Indru had torn holes in places that Marsh could not reach. He had defeated Rhysis, he had fed his family, he had kept the borders stinking and clear of dangers. Every movement had ached, felt unnatural. Every day was closer to spring, closer to the truth of what would happen to the pack; Swift River would need puppies again, he believed, to help wipe the stain of Indru and help start it again.

The thought of being their father made him feel deathly cold.

It was all a facade, a pretense, though he had done his best not to show it; it was too dangerous to let the outside world think that he was weak, and it was not a large step in logic to include his packmates in that. But as time dragged on, he began to wonder if, maybe, the pretense was more harmful than otherwise. If he was going to be expected to do this forever, then he was going to die too early, from stress and discomfort and unhappiness. But what could he do? To leave left him feeling nauseous; he could not abandon Corinna, not like this. She would have to send him away herself.

Everyday he wondered whether she would, but she did not. What did that leave? For somebody to take his place?

Once, he had waited for the day when Ice would challenge him, but that had been when Indru still stood at the head of the pack. Marsh had been proud to be second, in his own way, but not through vanity or the desire for power. He had been pleased to be trusted to guard such a valuable position, and should the day come when another wolf wanted it, he believed that he would be a worthy test of character and mettle. He would not relinquish the role to somebody who could not handle it.

Nobody ever had, despite waiting. And now it was different. Now it was more important. Now it was worse. He sat upon one of the pack's most valuable treasures, breathing fire but detesting the pile of gold he guarded. He did not want it, but if he did not protect it, who would come to claim it? Was his contentment worth the risk of allowing the pack to fall to an unknown entity? Would Corinna choose anew, or would it be forced upon her?

He had looked at Ice, sideways glances, but long ago he had wondered and nothing had come of it. When the guardian called for him, though the message was there for Marsh to read, he did not yet comprehend. Tired and tense and perhaps a little lonely, Marsh turned towards the sound eagerly, always happy to spend time with a wolf he trusted almost unlike any other.

But he was not deaf. A few steps into his approach, the oddity of Ice's summons struck him, and for the first time in a long time, a part of him truly wondered.

Aware of a shift in the air, when he emerged, it was not with dominance - his tail hung at a wary neutral angle behind him, ears forward in curiosity, eyes easy on Ice's - but with a confidence. Had he harboured any doubts as to his interpretation of Ice's call, the visuals and scent of the other dashed them. This was happening.

The dragon stirred, blowing smoke out of its nose, feeling the prickle of sharp gems under his belly, hating them even as he protected them. Eight years, and life had not prepared him for this. It would potentially be the most important moment of his life, and it was over something he didn't want but had to pretend he did.

If Ice wanted this, then he would have to show it. Boldly Marsh took a step forward, watching, waiting, waiting for the tipping point. He could not hand over the key. The key had to be earned, had to be utterly deserved, and it could not be exchanged without due ceremony.

He felt strangely numb. It was finally happening.

He did kind of walk away from the rest but *shrug* I guess it's fine, as long as they don't intervene... xD
I love Marsh. <3 This line: "Tired and tense and perhaps a little lonely, Marsh turned towards the sound eagerly, always happy to spend time with a wolf he trusted almost unlike any other." broke my heart and made me feel like a villain ;~;

you do not know who is your friend or who is your enemy until the ICE breaks. Time passed. Seconds turned to minutes, all counted by the fast, strong beat of his heart, a noise like a drum within his skull. Through open jaws quivering breaths were exhaled, breathing white smoke into the air. All of it were testament to his anticipation. Part of him felt like a thief, as if he was doing something he had no right to do, but somewhere, it also felt right — something he did for himself, because of himself, and not because of Marsh. Marsh had done nothing wrong. Marsh was a wolf, and a damn fine one at that. But Ice's dragon had woken, too, and had set its eyes on the hoard of gold beneath Marsh's. As always, it stirred that place in his chest when the russet wolf padded into view. Deep down, in a place where he had not been touched before. It nestled there, like an ember, always warm, always glowing, ready to burst into life the moment Marsh breathed against it; the realization that this was about to happen mingled with the customary flood of warmth through his veins, and the mixed, intense sensation made a shudder rip through him. Thick, pale fur rippled over broad shoulders, and Ice swallowed; the calm before the storm was the worst, the hour when his heart stumbled and nervous nausea tried to lay claim to his soul. With a flick of an ear he tried to shrug it off, silver eyes darting from Marsh's eyes to his ears, his back, his tail. Odd, that he hadn't come in guns blazing. He knew what was going on. Ice knew that he knew, knew it as their monochromatic eyes locked together, and he wished, desperately, that he could convey everything he felt in that gaze: the need for this, as well as the deep, warm emotions which rolled just beneath the surface. The only thing which scared him about this whole ordeal was the possibility of losing Marsh. But Marsh was a wolf. They were both wolves. If Ice wasn't strong enough to take it, he wouldn't; if Marsh wasn't strong enough to protect it, he wouldn't get to keep it. There was nothing personal in it, and yet it hung over him like the blade of a guillotine. Stupid. He tried to breathe deeper and force the thoughts aside, locking his gaze again and putting a little pressure in it. He was ready when it came, that first step forward, the sign that Marsh would defend what he had; blowing out white smoke through his nose Ice did not yield. Instead, he answered in much the same way, springing forward a step, showing that he was up to the challenge. Behind him his tail was high and stiff, a sign that this was not a mock fight — this was real. .ice aesir

let the stars above shine in your soul

Cali moved swiftly through the trees, not needing to see Ice's long gone form to follow. He had been acting strangely a few minutes ago at the border and for the first time in her life, she had pulled rank and ordered Jessie and Hotei to gaurd Ren at the borders. When the howl split the air, she slid to a stop, her heart racing. The call was clear. Ice summoned Marsh and she knew that it would be for no simple joining. He would have called for him from the boarders for that. He would have called for Marsh and Corinna. What she knew in her mind, her heart would not accept, so she continued on almost blindly now.

When his trail led to a glade, she stopped short at the sight before her. Her breath came in quick pants, small billows of frosty air swirling in front of her as she took in the scene and was forced to accept the inevitable. Ice was challenging Marsh. The pair of old friends faced off, both tense with anticipation and on the verge of an explosion. Soon the dust would be settled and Swift River would be changed forever once more, no matter who won this epic battle.

Knowing that it was not her place to intervene, she licked her lips nervously and moved off to the side. She knew that it was her place to witness, no matter how her heart cried out for both of them. They had both been here far longer than she, but they were her pack mates. She didn't want to see either of them hurt, but she knew that this would be brutal. The mantel of leadership might be ill fitting on her old mentor, but he took his responsibility seriously and would not easily forsake his position. This particular storm had brewed in dark shadows and silence, yet now it was here and Swift River would ever be changed...

Never Underestimate a Heart of Fire...