Spectral Woods Stuck

Hoping for @Triell, here, actually! or @Spieden ... She's around the borders of OTB so any OTB wolf to save Kite from her active imagination would be gr8! 

The woods were... eerie. Kite was not a fan, to say the least. Were it not night she might have enjoyed the place and even discovered useful herbs but that simply wasn't the case. The forecast was cloudy, the night was young... and as she looked up, the clouds showed no sign of letting up. The hoot of an owl could be heard in the distance, and it startled the tawny woman. She ought to be old enough to let go of ghost stories, but the Storm Plains wolf were chock full of them. Kite never could recall them, especially when it was time to tell them, but as she wandered through the wood, she felt she could recite one verbatim aloud right now—

It was a dark and dreary night. The naked branches around the scout of... Cricket Grove, the narrative read, but her own brain filled in the space with ...Secret Woodlands rubbed dryly against one another, creating a clacking ruckus that was near-deafening to the traveler who could hear nothing else.

Damnit, she was on a mission! She could not get distracted by dang ghost stories... but, what was that? Was that... CRRRACK. A loud SNAP in the wood caused all to go silent, Kite coughed loudly, to fill the quiet. There really had been a loud snap... what had been the cause? Kite pressed on all the faster, looking over her shoulder and hoping to arrive to Oak Tree Bend sooner rather than later.

(This post was last modified: Apr 11, 2015, 12:38 AM by Kisla.)

@Kite Lol hope grumpy Spieden works...

So are we made just to fight

Normally the Coho woman was more of the "early to bed, early to rise" type. But in the once comfortable den, sleep eluded her. Thoughts spun, and the nape of her neck tingled as if she were constantly being watched. If she couldn't sleep, she might as well do something, and Spieden headed off into the approaching night to give her forest home another once-over. Her patrols had become frequent, since now monsters apparently lurked at their door, but really she was just trying to get some space between herself and the rest of the pack.

Spieden told herself she didn't mind that Nayeli was back... after all, Nayeli had never lifted a paw against her. Nor did she mind the Stormwright woman was pregnant.... After all, Spieden had no interest in bearing a litter of fuzzy little leeches herself. But if she didn't mind, why did she feel so apprehensive at it all? She found herself on edge, always checking her back and listening in on conversations she knew she had no need to hear. Her parents had been too trusting, never expected their "trustworthy" pack to turn on them. Spieden had no intentions of being so foolish. Even Nayeli's tale of captors lurking just outside the pack's bounds was now earning Spieden's paranoid scrutiny, how much of it was true? Her trust with the pack steadily built up over the past months of her reign was steadily crumbling. It was hard for Spieden to shake the feeling that the ex-alphess would surely want her position back at some point... And a little voice said that certain members would be all-too-happy to help her. Whether it would occur through an outright challenge, or more insidious mutiny, Spieden did not know.

Spieden paused as she neared the edge of the territory, fire-bright eyes surveying the spectral forest, watching shapes materialize and dissolve in the evening haze. It almost seemed like someone was out there, but who, and why? She watched for a few minutes longer, nearly convincing herself it was nothing when a loud snap rang through the forest, a voice barking out shortly afterwards. Spieden's lips lifted, a soft growl creeping up her throat as her tail brushed over her back. She prowled forward, ears panning and nostrils flared to the wind as she searched for the source of the noise. A tawny shape stood out from the inky shadows, carrying the acrid scent of a stranger.

"Who's out there?" She shouted, stopping with broad shoulders and plush hips squared in a defensive stance.

yay thanks!

Kite moved throughout the land without true regard to whether or not she was heard. She was not in hiding... and did not think of the potential threats out there. If there was a malicious wolf in the world, Kite had never come face to face with one. She had been told stories, but Kite learned her lessons the hard way: by living in them. The Tainn still looked over her shoulder every now and again to be sure that there was no one else around her, but by scent, sight, and sound alike... there was no one nearby. Kite could smell the scent of pack near; it was only a matter of time before one of them patrolled the area she lurked around without intent to draw any closer.

And her nosiness, it would seem, had payed off. Another heard her, and Kite waved her tail as she moved into a clearing. It was enough of a distance from the pack lands the other lived within, but Kite was still deferential. The Tainn had desired to go to the Bend but didn't think it wise to come any closer than where she already was given the season. Kite herself had given into the season already, and waited for her heat to end before striking out with Nina's consent to establish some relationships with other packs.

Kite herself wanted to help Nina. If an alliance with another pack might give her peace of mind, so be it. Kite's ears flattened atop her head and her eyes averted. Me! Sorry, she starts, tail twitching at her heels, I am Kite Tainn, of Secret Woodlands. I have come at the request of my leader, Nina. She had wanted me to request an alliance with your pack... The Bend. Kite had used you in the general sense of the word, not knowing Spieden herself led it. Do you think you could relay this to your leaders...?

A young deer has been separated from the rest of its herd. Hunt Opportunity

 <3 eeh I love Spieden.

Shred it all to pieces, my sanity and reason

The darkness did not mean sleep for the Tainn. Daylight felt more safe, and it was under a cloak of black and winking stars he traversed the Bend. Why he hated to think he was on high alert, he wouldn't fool anyone by saying he was taking it easy. Hardly. That didn't seem a luxury now. Patiently he was waiting for them to come for blood for he would surely give it.

The veil of night did not speak of any seekers for a time. Still he kept watch, to and again stopping to shift his ears against the stillness. Why these woods seemed to "speak" like sacred grove had, he was not sure they would tell him of danger. About the third standstill there seemed to be something, a scent of something familiar teasing his nose. What in God's name was that? There should be no such thing. They were on the other side of the mountain and no on "popped" in for visits. They might as well have lived on the edge of the world.

Wary, he tried to figure where this wolf was, they seemed quite farther. Spieden's trail stood out, drawing away from the borders. With a pull to his brow there was no question why she would be out patrolling. He wasn't sure how close he was behind her. It was only a break of wood, a strange cough, and a soft growl to find out.

Black mane wildly danced atop his spine, and above his shoulders. The stretch of his muzzle crinkled, to reveal his pointed canines. He did not hesitate to trot from the ghostly timbers with a rough growl leaping from his throat. While his red-yellow eyes pinned on the girl, he made sure to come to the side of Spieden rather than behind. The stranger looked out of place here, rather innocent compared to the company he was excpecting. Swiftly, she got to the point. Triell wasn't sure what piece of information he should do with first. Dark expression softened to some degree, but his hard stare remained with his bristled hair.  "That would be us. But, why after all this time does Nina wish an alliance? We have been here some time now and my scouts were there not long ago with no word. Did she think my brother's child should ask?" Cause he did not know the names of Ruiko's children to know she was not. Tainn meant something, but would it be enough?

are you with me through it all?

@Kite

so are we made just to fight

Spieden watched warily as the tawny she-wolf moved respectfully forward into the clearing. Her dark brown tail lowered slightly, just enough to keep it level with her back but still tense and stiff. Her uneven ears flicked towards the sound of fast moving paws over ground coming from behind her, hackles beginning to instinctually raise in alarm. She shifted her weight, turning and look and lips lifting slightly until she heard Triell's now familiar deep rumble.

Glancing sideways, she watched as the inky black male tread up alongside her before shifting her attention back to the wolf before them who had begun to speak. Spieden was thankful that Triell was the first to respond, because Spieden was a bit caught off guard by the question and would only have ended up saying something smarmy about being asked to relay this to her "leaders".

The beige-toned female had been straightforward with her reasons for coming, but even then Spieden found herself unable to understand. Secret Woodlands? Nina? Names spoken with such conviction that the Coho wondered if she should have heard of them before. As far as she knew, they were the only pack around until the mountains. From East or West, this Woodlands wolf must have come quite a ways to seek an alliance with a distant pack.

"Where the hell is Secret Woodlands anyways?" Spieden asked brusquely, adding on to Triell's interrogation, directing her question towards Kite with a slight tilt of her large head.

:D

 

Another wolf came along, and Kite averted her eyes from him, too. But he clarified that she had been correct in her destination (which was a relief, to say the least), and she was glad her nose had not led her astray. There had been a time where she mixed packs up... but, that had not been here. His question was warranted, given the quiet of the Woodlands. And so too, was Spieden's query. The land wasn't named as such for nothing. It truly was a hidden gem. 

As for his question, Kite would, again, get into it. "I'm not good at making long stories short, so I'll do what I can..." pause, and she looked to the duo as though begging for some semblance of patience. "I am the Woodlands Scout. Nina had wanted me to go to some of the packs a while back, but I had to leave the Woodlands with my mate for a while due to a family matter. She knew I had to go, and let me." She grimaced, not wanting to think of the death of her family member. If they asked, she would tell them. She was sure they did not care for the trivial details. "In my absence, a lot occurred. I intended to come back and then visit you all, but I've come right away. I'll be honest with you, tensions are high. Two of Nina's wolves broke pack law and bred when she had told them not to. They could have left from the get go to form their own pack, but instead, did that, and then decided to leave." Kite was displeased with that decision; as a wolf, if the leader said no, you obey. Her own circumstance Nina had accepted; Kite and Mirren had intended to create their own pack, in time, but given the situation, moved to help Nina instead. Nina accepted the total package: Kite, Mirren, and whatever had been conceived between them. 

Kite did not know about what had happened with the Downs, and so could not even include that. To her knowledge, the only tensions were with Iopah and Koda. She now looked to Spieden. "We're in Northern Eden. It's a bit of a hike. The Woodlands have always kept to themselves. But since this betrayal, Nina thought it was time to make some bonds with a respectable pack like your own...." Something came to her, then, and she looked to the darker wolf, Triell. "Wait, what about brothers child? I... I wasn't born here," she clarifies, her warm eyes averting. 

Shred it all to pieces, my sanity and reason

There was no disagreeing with Spieden's added question, it mattered all the same. Especially as he wouldn't make an alliance without her agreement, and if it started with where it was so be it. Why he could explain, he was interested what the agouti female would say as it occurred to him that the earth toned woman had not set foot in the west, and did not know of all those there as he had. Though even with Drestig and Jessie's scouting he wasn't sure he really knew more of that place now. It all seemed in the past.

The young lady was clever and quick to do to her best to supply a worthy and honest answer. She seemed sincere in her expression and the manner of her tongue. It was in the mention of four wolves going against Nina's wishes did he hear the real reasoning for this. There could be some trouble, and Triell had enough of his own and he wasn't reaching out for others to help him. Yet, Nina had been a little more than an acquaintance to him, and she had been a loyal member of Ruiko's pack. Was it enough to justify an alliance? What did that actually mean?

No interruption he kept his lips sealed tight, trying to think of this in a better light. Maybe, Nina did just want to know another pack was on friendly terms, and that didn't seem so bad. "I suppose I have thought of Nina as a bit of a friend after all this time. I can see why she should like to be on friendly terms with us. But what does that mean? I doubt I can offer her much for protection or food over there. So I guess if we came in contact with other Woodlands wolves and they were in need we would aid them and vice versa?"  He was thrown when she could not meet his eyes, when admitted she was not born here. "I am Triell Tainn, and I assume with you using it as your surname it would mean you are Ruiko's child as there are very few of my family. So if you don't mind me asking why do you have it?"

are you with me through it all?

@Kite @Triell Whoooo boy sorry for the delay on that one, guys!

so are we made just to fight

Spieden listened with a neutral expression as the scout informed the leading pair of the Woodland's pack's troubles. Spieden couldn't help but raise an amused brow, holding back a bitter laugh at hearing just what those troubles were. What Spieden would give to only have to deal with breeding subordinates! Instead she had a pregnant ex-alphess in her ranks, in addition to the band of deranged, kidnapping rogues stalking their borders.

Triell gave word to Spieden's thoughts, indeed she too wondered what aide they would even have to offer a pack so distant she hadn't known of its existence until this moment. She didn't really know what to make of the request, turning it over in her mind as she let Triell do the bulk of the talking.

It was all very odd, and just a little bit suspicious. To come all the way over the mountains to make an ally just because their subordinates had bred. She would have figured the issue was fully resolved seeing as the offending members had left. It seemed like such small potatoes to risk sending one of their members all the way across Relic Lore for. And why them? She supposed there was some familiarity between Triell and this Nina, and some sort of family relation that the scout didn't even know about when she came here. But that still didn't quite explain it. Had they already made enemies with everyone over there or something? And if that was the case, did she even want to take on all those enemies as their own? And as Triell had said, there was very little help they would be able to offer.

"I don't get it. Why are you all the way over here asking for help? There aren't any packs closer to you over there? Why us?" Spieden probed in her usual terse tone.