little lost girl

@Phineas

The storm grew thicker, heavier. The weight of the snow began to wear upon his already tired and hungry body, but they pressed on. The scent of the heiress and her kidnapper was fading fast. With each snowflake that covered their tracks the hope of finding her grew dimmer; but they pressed on. Rhysis didn't know these lands, everything was new to him and the topography was hard to make out beneath the icy blanket. Not that they had time to sight see; finding the pack's daughter was a top priority, and if Rhysis wanted to remain within the pack, he had to obey orders. It was just unfortunate that at the moment, those orders meant trudging through chest deep snow upon frozen paw pads, on an empty stomach whilst looking for some royal brat who decided it was a good idea to wander off with a stranger. Had he ever really known his children, he hoped that they would not be so damn stupid.

Slowly the land changed around them. Unbeknown to the male the land was changing from grass to water. The loch having frozen over some time ago and was now buried beneath the snow. It wasn't until he reached a more central point that he heard the ice beneath him grown. Instantly he stopped in his tracks and looked to his temporary leader. The tracks moved across the ice. Not knowing the area he had no way to determine just how large the expanse of frozen water was, nor how thick it was beneath the snowy ground. "Do you know this land? How far does the water stretch?" he then asked, looking towards the white wolf who was his expedition buddy for this particular trip. The idea of falling beneath the frozen water, having your breath stolen and drowning beneath the ice wasn't very appealing to him and he was pretty sure any such order would be met with mutiny, but he'd give the guy a chance to come up with a sensible plan.

Around them the trees surrounded the lake, outlining the waters edge. However he had not seen the ground, for all he knew the entire place was a lake of ice or it was just a small pond hustled within a meadow. The tracks lead forwards, straight across but the groaning of the floor beneath him caused him to doubt the path. Though he did not know it, the lock was vast and towards the centre the ice was very thin; the weight of one of their larger figures would no doubt caused the ice to shatter and drag them beneath the surface. The tracks and scent were fading fast - moving around the loch would waste precious time and they might never pick up the trail again. It was a tricky situation.

Looking to Phineas, he paused and caught his breath as he waited patiently for their next move.

Whenever I think of this thread and their lil' mission, all I can think of is this: your princess is in another castle..

There was no time for him to be beside himself in worry – there was no time to dwell on the simple fact that his daughter had been stolen right under his nose by the one wolf he had denied a home this winter. Of course, this entire situation only reiterated his decision, but now the ebony wolf had placed a large red x above his head. Phineas was seek and destroy mode, and as he prowled the lands, his anger was only fuelled as the storm washed over them, burying the tracks they had begun to follow in yet more snow.

The scent was beginning to fade with the whirlwind storm. Beelzebub was a fool to think he could run forever, but the longer the male escaped Phineas’ grasp, the more danger Hypatia was in. Thus far, they had found no trace of blood or sign of a scuffle, and this was what gave the regal Glen wolf hope to cling to.

The alabaster male was drawn from his determination when Caleb spoke to him. His swarthy companion spoke, drawing him from the dim fog that clouded his brain as he focused on nothing but finding Hypatia. Only then did the creak of ice signify where they were, and with a grunt, he gave a shake of his head. “No. This whole side of the land is a shit hole,” he rumbled, his eyes narrowing as they scanned the terrain around them. It was impossible to determine – the entire territory was cloaked in pristine and untouched snow, while drifts of wind and flurries made vision poorer. Yet with a nod to backtrack, he began so. “They wouldn’t have crossed this though – it’s not thick enough. At the pace they're moving they would have fallen in,” he decided, leading them back the way they came. They would need to determine a new route and escape the clutches of a frozen and watery death.

lmao. too true.

The scent was thinning. It was becoming harder and harder to determine which path they had taken. All he knew was they had gone across the lake, whether it had been over the ice or around it, they were running out of time. The snow had already covered any tracks that might have been left, all they had to rely upon were their frozen noses and before long they would lose the scent altogether.

He nodded in response and backtracked a few paces before turning to follow the white male. They hadn't conversed so far. Rhysis was not one for small talk and it seemed Phineas was too preoccupied to say anything more. It worked out fine for him. Unfortunately Rhysis hadn't had the chance to know his children well enough to worry about their safety. The only time he had felt the hurt of their loss was when Lily vanished from his care after he chased Naira into a storm and became separated from the land he called home. He had left her hidden within a tree, returning hours later to find all traces of her washed away. It had broken him in two, shattering his logical mind with an explosion of emotions he hadn't been able to deal with. Perhaps Phineas was experiencing a similar feeling. Were he a more friendly sort, he might have offered him solace, but working on method alone told him that the best thing to do was to press on and find the girl, not give his captain false hope. He couldn't predict the future after all.

"I've scented no blood so far; no traces of foul play." he uttered in his thick southern drawl, thinking aloud for a moment as his legs, aching from the journey to the hunt, the burst of speed when taking down the dinner he had to leave behind and the run to this place, pressed on though the snow. "Why would she have left with a complete stranger?" he then asked, speaking louder so that the alabaster male would hear him.

SoW is such a groupie.

(This post was last modified: Feb 03, 2014, 09:50 AM by Rhysis.)

A lynx has left behind the remains of a deer. +5 Health

As they turned back, heading a different direction, the swarthy male spoke aloud exactly what Phineas questioned himself. A non-committal grunt escaped him at that point, his eyes narrowing against the snow as he looked upward. “I don’t know what she was thinking,” he concluded, worry and aggravation both apparent in his voice. “Clearly we’ve kept her far too sheltered,” he decided in the end, his stride maintaining pace. Torn between embracing his daughter once more or throttling her for not using her senses, the Argyris male only knew that the knot in his stomach would not be settled until she was home safely.. where she belonged.

Despite the storm, the scent of blood came to him then. Panic flushed over him instantaneously, though logic would be summoned as an afterthought as he realized it was only a deer. Swinging his muzzle low, Phineas trailed off slightly, seeking the remains. Every precious second they took kept him from his daughter, and yet continuing on without some form or nourishment could very well mean their death, Only when the scent became stronger and he began to swipe at the frozen ground did he uncover the remains – his eyes gleamed as they shifted to Caleb before he bent down, his teeth working at cutting off a chunk of flesh for himself. Once done, he shifted away from the carcass, allowing his companion to eat. He did not speak that the quick ease of their stomach could not be lingered upon – given the hastiness of the situation, Caleb would know.

He might have replied something sarcastic, but he held his tongue. Now was not the time to break character, though he was finding it harder and harder with no where else to climb in the ranks and his need for power and to lead. Rhysis always had to be the best, having taken the place as second above Alberio after a rather pathetic scuffle, if you could even call it that, the next target would have been their pale leader. On the one hand, being King was his life ambition, something he believed was what would make him whole, on the other hand, he was rather enjoying his position and the praise that came from his hard work being a lowly second. Until he decided which path he wanted to take, he would continue to play the loyal subject and do as he was told. Perhaps when the snow vanished and they had full bellies, he might change his mind. Time would tell.

Instead he offered a grunt and trailed after the leader. His long legs consumed the snow with ease, but he felt tired and stiff. It almost brought him to smile when they detected the scent of blood. It was food, not the girl they hunted, and he was probably more excited to have found that then the child. Phineas changed course towards the meal and he followed like an obedient puppy. The boss was going to feast and he rumble in his stomach brought him back to his previous thoughts. He needed to eat and if Phineas took all the shares, he might have to do something about that...

On a knife edge, he watched and waited as the white male took his share and moved away, offering what was left of the creature beneath the snow to himself. He released a breath he didn't realise he was holding as he moved forward and lowered himself to the snow. Like a starved savage, he engulfed the remains quickly, almost choking on the large, frozen chunks he took. They wouldn't have long to eat; their mission was to find the girl and the longer they took the less likely that would be. Though he would have liked to consume everything left, he took what he could until he felt full and rose once more. In silence, he looked to his leader and waited for instruction. A mindless drone, a robot waiting for coordinates; pushing the thought aside, he waited patiently.

He relished the meat within his jaws – perhaps sadistically, with the notion it was the remains of a predator that often harbored itself a nuisance to his kind. Unbeknownst to Caleb’s dark thoughts, the ivory male instead felt the raw edge of hunger ease away.. knowing it would only last an hour or two before his body would remind him it was far from the intake it required to maintain strength and endurance.

His muzzle lifted as he swallowed the final remnants to what he had considered his share. His figure shifted, his eyes watching as the ebony male did the same – withholding the desire to lash forward and take the last morsel. He would need his companion and highly regarded Second to maintain his own strength if they were to successfully bring Hypatia home.

With a quiet nod, the regal once more continued on their journey, his pace slowed greatly by the depth of snow. Hours would come and go, and still the party would come up with no trace of her. His heart grew heavier with each passing moment, his anger and rage shifting to worry and fear – the realization that he may never see his daughter again not settling well on his mind. Finally he would call it – deflated and empty, Phineas Argyris led the way home, where he would break the news to his mate that Hypatia’s whereabouts were unknown – perhaps it was time they had the pack scout to cover the entire area.. and in turn, the girl’s whereabouts.