Ghastly Woods To Darkness

It had taken a few days to reach the woods, deliberately skirting well to the west to avoid the two packs between. In that time, she had grown comfortable with the white wolf at her side, the feral darkness never quite sneaking up on her as it had done so many times before. It seemed companionship was the key here. Good thing she had almost gathered enough for them to take their leave, then she would rarely have reason to be on her own again.

It would almost be quicker to travel directly to the place she had first thought of from here, up and over the mountain, but they still had others to collect, and her children. Now the ball was rolling, she felt solid determination in her soul. She walked every inch the queen. They would not be kept from her. What was rightfully hers, would not be taken from her again. They would pay with blood if they tried.

Finally, they came back to her old den, so close to where she had seen him last. Her nose fell to the ground as she sought a scent, something fresh. Something new.

She didn’t want to call out, not here among the haunted trees, ghostly whispers weaving through the branches. These woods were old, who knew what other secrets they hid? What other dangers... It was part of what had drawn her here when she first came to the lands, gnarled trees, so thick that they blocked out the sun, branches caressing her in welcome... now that she had lived in the open, her face caressed constantly with fresh mountain air, she doubted she could ever happily reside under such a dense canopy again, even if it felt like home.

Finally, the breeze carried to her a whiff of the one she sought, and small smile graced her lips as butterflies kicked up a storm in her stomach. She should have come sooner. What if he had changed his mind? In silence, she moved towards the scent, seeking the tawny man that did such funny things to her.

<b style="color:#642c4a; font:Georgia;">“Speech”

(This post was last modified: Jan 01, 2013, 08:21 AM by Naira.)

The tawny phantom hadn't been too far away from the poisoned mistress. He had been munching on an unfortunate little hare's leg when her alluring mountain-filled scent wisped past his nose that, in return, twitched with curiosity. His ears swiveled in her direction. No other signs of her arrival were needed. He recklessly abandoned the half-eaten hare in his wake, moving towards one particular area: where they first met. It was going to be dark, icy winter, and since he had rumored "cold blood", he struggled to move in such snowy temperatures. His bones just wouldn't allow fast movement in such un-ideal conditions. Even so, the dirty white snow that fell from the gray sky above hadn't made these dark woods any lighter. Intruders continued to turn and run away from a freezing death in the middle of the lifeless trees that stood eerily, ready to swallow them whole and digest them.

But he had remained in this forest still, undaunted by its ghostly threats. He was unfazed by the whispers in the wind that warned of a slow, snowy death. He had always been attracted to danger, and he knew that it ran in his veins. His murderous gene of being fearless was surely going to become the red-handed culprit of his long awaited funeral.

Tenzin remembered the first time they had met. How could he forget it? It wasn't his idea of a perfect encounter. They both had long, dark pasts, and one of the shadowy assassins was on an important quest to change their fate. Ten hadn't been in the mind to be a tool of her use, but he had agreed to it anyways. Damn. He thought as he relived the moments that occurred a week or so ago. Was it right to help her? It wouldn't benefit him any, that was for darn sure. But he promised her. Although he wasn't a nice guy of any sort, he kept to his word. Yes, he would help her for any price. Even death, because that was what he promised to her.

When she came into view, it struck him. She held herself with more pride than when they had last seen eachother. Impressed, Tenzin crept out from the trees and sat down. "So, who are you lookin' for now, my queen of poison?" The viking-voiced wolf gruffly greeted her in the only way he knew how. Her nose was prodding around the den, causing him to wonder. Was she looking for him? It was quite a possibility. Tenzin was sure that he was the only wolf actually living in the Ghastly Woods.

(This post was last modified: Jan 02, 2013, 01:25 AM by Tenzin.)

She could hear him, moving closer, her head raised as a smile lit her eyes. Blood smeared his pale jaws, it would seem she had interrupted his dinner. The mere fact he had come was proof enough to her as she confidently stepped forward to press her muzzle against his cheek, breathing in his now familiar earthy scent with relief. Even if she couldn’t find her mate, she would have her pack, and maybe with time, they would find him... And if they never did? Well that wasn’t a thought she was willing to entertain right now.

His words teased her ears and bought a steady smile to her face as she pulled back. <b style="color:#642c4a; font:Georgia;">"Not of Poison. Of the Pass." She teased cryptically. She was so close to having her pack, she just needed to gather her children, and Valiant with his plus one. She was still curious to see what he would offer her. Something of the female variety no doubt... She just hoped whoever it was wasn’t a handful. She hardly had the patience anymore.

She had left her new ally with a description of her mate before she vanished amongst the welcoming trees before, and time had passed since. She couldn’t help but ask the man <b style="color:#642c4a; font:Georgia;">“Any sightings of Rhysis?” Her golden eyes searching, hoping beyond hope. But she was strong. She could go on without him if she must... Or at least, that was what she kept telling herself.

In a split second, she was in front of him and nuzzling his fur. "Not of Poison. Of the Pass." Naira teased him, making him chuckle. The Pass. His fur crawled with curiosity as he wondered exactly where they would harbor after they took the children and ran off, with or without Rhysis. He had never heard of anywhere called "The Pass", so this information made his ears perk curiously. He bit his tongue as she asked a question involving the status of her mate.“Any sightings of Rhysis?”

"I have good news for you, Naira." Tenzin smirked, taking in her fresh, pristine mountain scent as they embraced each other. "I have seen Rhysis, but he calls himself "wolf". Forgive me if he acts like this when he can remember shit, but to tell you the truth, he's a plain out ass." He sighed, shaking his pelt as he finally took a step back. His liquid eyes were likes pools of magma in the dim lighting of the creepy setting around them. He remained in a standing position, wondering if it was time to leave and find the others yet, and if that was why she came.

He found himself watching her when he stepped back, un-noticeably studying his new leader. This new pack out be a force to be reckoned with, and he was sure of it. Naira must have pulled the strongest and smartest wolves of Relic Lore to aid her in this quest. His tawny tail steadily swished behind him.

(This post was last modified: Jan 03, 2013, 12:08 AM by Tenzin.)

She could not shake the smile from her face when the tawny man before her spoke of ‘good news’, but as his tale progressed, it slipped straight off her face and was replaced with one of deeper thought. He was still mad then. Perhaps Valiant would have better luck? Perhaps it was time to consider a plan B...

Shaking the bad news from her fur, like so many snowflakes, the smile came back to her. Now was not the time, this was all about celebration. The plan was coming together, for the most part, relatively smoothly, and she wouldn’t have even given it a second thought if not for the wolf that stood before her now.

What more was there to say? Beyond Let’s go get my babies back? She loved her children, yes, but sobbing sentiment would get her nowhere with the storm that was brewing overhead. <b style="color:#642c4a; font:Georgia;"> “Something is off...” She quietly admitted, searching eyes glancing between the closed trees. <b style="color:#642c4a; font:Georgia;"> “I met a wolf, who said a storm was coming... He wasn’t speaking of the weather...” She spoke in hushed tones, wondering if Tenzin had more to add of his own listenings since they last met.

He watched as the smile appeared, faded, and then re-appeared on her face. He wondered what she could possibly be thinking about. Tenzin sighed and rolled his eyes, waiting for an explanation for her emotional downfalls and uprises. He raised a questioning eyebrow, but his ears perked when she began to speak again. He watched her intently, concentrating on her words. She seemed tensed and anxious as she quietly admitted to him, "Something is off....I met a wolf, who said a storm was coming... He wasn't speaking of the weather...” "

Tenzin paused and thought about it. A storm? Weird. His fur started to bristle, but it quickly smoothed down. Yeah right. The only storm that he knew about was their invasion on Poison Path. He looked down at Naira and smiled deviously. A crooked smile...a "it makes sense now!" smile. He put his nose up to Naira's and whispered, "Don't you see? We should be saying that right back at him because....we're the storm." He said, pulling back.

He didn't believe in any of that bullshit. THEY were going to be the storm. The force to be reckoned with. That was nonsense that someone pulled out of their assholes to scare Naira.

(This post was last modified: Jan 03, 2013, 04:54 AM by Tenzin.)

 

We're the storm... The words bought a solid smile to her face. Of course he was right. They would be a force to be reckoned with, yet still the feeling prevailed. The scent on the one who had spied on her... the memories it bought up... She shook her head to clear it of the nonsense, they had a job to do, it was now or never.

"Well are you ready to go? We still have others to gather." She said, a light shining in her eye that hadn't been there on their last encounter. It was time for her to resume her rightful place, and it was time for her children to be reunited with their actual parents... or at least one of them. She still hadn't found Rhysis and had hoped to at least return him to a little of his sanity before she let him near the children.

Now was not the time to dwell on that though. She was almost certain Tenzin would have more questions for her, and she was eager to have them out so they could be on their way.