Red Fern Forest Chamber the Cartridge

@Uziel
Backdating to 1/1/14.
Early morning, cold and overcast.

Baleful eyes took in the landscape - the monochrome world opened up before Deneb, rolling away in uneven hills and tangles of dark woodland. In the distance, partially obscured by cloud, an angry mountain reared its head, looming over the entirety of the vale. The landscape was vast - the hoary brute surveyed it from the top of a small hillock before setting off, a self-assured spring in his step as he padded across the snow, his snowshoe-like paws leaving regular imprints on the crust. This was a land which seemed to be full of possibilities - and one possibility in particular appealed to Deneb. With winter in full force, it seemed unlikely that even his supremely foolish brother would continue travelling on in during the starving season. At the thought of his brother, a distasteful curl formed at the edge of the man's jaw. Albireo was a blood traitor, and Deneb considered him dead to him. All he had to do was find him and actually finish the job. It was this which had proved difficult, as the former king tracked his fallen kin across endless miles, the season changing around him as they passed. It must be drawing to a close now... a sane wolf would find himself allies, perhaps a pack, in a cruel winter like this. It was the best way to ensure survival. It was also what Deneb was banking upon - that Albireo could not run forever, and now would be the time to close the distance, to end this long hunt. That was not to say Deneb was above such petty concerns as survival - the whitish brute knew that as relentless as he might be, mother nature was even more so. The icy bitch appeared to be in a particularly bad mood this winter - Deneb had seen little sign of prey since entering the lands, and those trails which he had stumbled across lead to nothing. Thus he was left in a similar dilemma to all his mortal kin - survival was paramount. Other priorities must be shifted from the forefront of his thoughts for the time-being, no matter how much it rankled him to let Albireo have even one more day of peace than was necessary. In order to find the man, Deneb had to remain alive, and that was exactly what he intended to do. A fire burned in his eyes as he entered the mist-shrouded woodland, gliding like a spectre past the blood-red ferns, where they peeked out of the snowdrifts. The bloody hue appealed to his current mood, bringing a smile to his jaws that looked for all the world like a child's innocent elation. "Speech,"

(This post was last modified: Jan 14, 2014, 06:30 AM by Deneb.)

He slid beneath the lofty boughs of the crimson trees with surprising stealth. Large strides carried him over great distances without exerting a lot of energy. A light snow was falling and the temperature was bitingly cold. Without the thick pelt, the agouti male would most likely freeze to death. The weather was most unpleasant if not accustomed to it. Uziel was born in a northern climate so it wasn't much a big deal for him. His fur insulated him from the light zephyrs. The only problem was that there was a shortage of food. The herds had all but vanished into thin air. Uziel could detect the faint scent of a herd of pronghorn but time had diluted the integrity of the distinct trails. A large wolf like Uziel needed to feed often and a lot. The lack of fresh meat would result in physical atrophy and ultimately his starvation. It would lead to the starvation of many. Lone wolves might be able to scrap together a living until the deer returned, but they would have to compete with packs who would not feel remorse when eliminating loners for the sake of the group. These trying times would create a dog-eat-dog world. Only the strong would survive, and pack wolves drew strength from each other. The man was born to a pack so he understood the guiding mentality of the hordes. Ultimately they would do whatever they had to keep each other safe. Vagabonds and derelicts would be irrelevant. He needed a backup plan in case prey remained sparse for the months to come. Time was of the essence. But what options were there? He wasn't interested in joining a pack right away. There weren't many job openings for a mercenary with a propensity for excessive aggression. Uziel wasn't the easiest wolf to get along with and those that did find some redeeming qualities were probably just as tasteless and crude. Point being, he was screwed. Uzi glanced around at his vicinity. A fine layer of white powder covered the ground. In the distance the mountain loomed over mere mortals like a towering god. Mist blanketed the land in gray tones and dreary cold. He clenched his jaw pensively. Wandering listlessly was burning precious energy he could not afford to lose. A temporary den would suit his needs for the time being. It would only be used for a few days until he could get a game plan in motion. Before he could begin the search, he caught wind of another presence in the area. Immediately freezing where he stood, the brute sniffed the air and listened intently to pinpoint the other wolf's location. He turned slowly to get a complete panorama of his surroundings. His fire-colored eyes stared with unwavering resolve. The man's tail stood upright in attentiveness and his ears twitched with every minute sound. Anyone who walked up on him would be met with a cutthroat stare. No one snuck up on Uziel and got away with it. He was prepared for anything that walked out of the fog. "Speech." Think

@Uziel

One would not be blamed for thinking this damnable winter had driven the living from this land - at least, this particular corner of it. Deneb forged through the snow, coal-black nose sifting the breeze for any sign to the contrary. Balefire eyes scanned the parchment of white, but it was unmarked; no creatures had written the story of their passage here. A bird flitted from one distant columnar trunk to the next, giving the only flicker of life to the dead world besides the spectral wolf himself. Or perhaps not... a new scent availed itself to him, drifting on an eddy of cold air. Another male wolf was somewhere, and somewhere close. Ears standing to sharp points upon his head, Deneb scanned his surroundings. Then a half smile haunted his jaws, and he headed off toward where the scent seemed strongest on the wind. Information was a valuable asset, and allies even more so. It behooved Deneb to play nice, joining in the the social game in order to accrue all of its benefits. His paws crunched lightly through the snow, carrying him until he spotted the figure. "Greetings," Deneb stated evenly, halting with his stance and pose neutral, for the time being. Waiting to see how the other would react, the off-white male studied him - he was a mammoth of a specimen, certainly larger than himself, shrouded in a scarred pelt of tan and grey and white. Perhaps he ate everything around here, Deneb thought to himself. Not someone Deneb felt like picking a fight with. In fact, this looked like the kind of guy you wanted to have on your side in a fight - ugly and mean looking. Right now, Deneb meant him no harm or disrespect, which he made sure to show in his stance and the angle of his lux plume. The other man's banner was raised high, and Deneb was fine with that. Let him think he was running the show. Deneb just wanted a few words. "Do you travel these lands alone?" He smelled as much. Deneb watched carefully how the behemoth would take such a direct query, but both of them could benefit from sharing information, resources. Deneb wondered if the stranger was bright enough to recognize that, or if he was the bite-first-and-think-later type. "Speech,"

(This post was last modified: Jan 14, 2014, 06:30 AM by Deneb.)