Larkcall Lowlands hunted by scavengers

All welcome. Whitestone is visible maybe a couple miles in the distance :)
Forward-dated to 22nd of June.

The rain pattered down as the thunder rolled only from his chest, a warning met by the yapping of the three coyotes. Craw had found the day-old caribou carcass first, most of its flesh already gone, but the order of events didn't matter. If he had come across the three of them already feasting, the decision would have been the same.

He hated coyotes.

One of them jumped forward with an antagonistic yelp, slender jaws snapping on air, skittering backwards just as quickly as Craw met the aggression with a lunge of his own. He could tell they were hungry, much hungrier than himself, who had no real need for the scavenger's opportunity... save that he would let the meat benefit his own before he would feed his damn rivals. Another of the chattering vermin danced a little too close and he bristled and snapped at it, but there were three of them and only one of him, and every time they drew him towards one of them another had the opportunity to sneak closer to the caribou.

At this point, it was just a matter of principle. It would have been easier to just let them have it, because there was no way they'd let him eat in peace, and they were proving to be a little too fast to be grabbed. If one of them made a mistake and let themselves be snared, then he'd only have two to deal with, but they were being too cautious. They probably had young to feed. The thought fueled his murderlust.

It was going to come down to - was Craw more stubborn than they were desperate?

(This post was last modified: Jul 01, 2016, 07:37 PM by Craw.)

Sif was, quite frankly, amazed by how the region he had entered was the spitting image of the land he had once lived in and perhaps even wanted to rule by birth right. If it weren’t for the lack of mountains in the distance, replaced by rocky hills and crags, he might have thought he’d actually stepped back to the Rocky Mountain pack lands. Yet, there was the distinct lack of scent markers that spanned the miles and miles of land that the pack had laid claim to. The stiff grasses beneath his paws and generally rugged landscape was a treat to the hardy man, good spirits allowing him to move his bulk into an open jawed lope. Auds remained upright and alert, heterochromatic gaze sweeping but otherwise he seemed utterly relaxed.

Until he heard the unmistakable high yips of coyotes. Little gremlins they were, and very set on a goal if it came around to it. Nostrils flared as he veered toward the sounds, curious as to what the hubbub was. Maybe they were just fighting over a carcass as usual, the distinct scent of rotting flesh permeating the air. Still, watching a dog fight would be more entertaining than the past few days of travel he’d had to endure. Popping over the hill, he was floored a man skeletal only in color but powerful in build fending off not just 1 coyote but 3 of the mutts. Whether the Russian knew the man or not, he couldn’t allow them to charge him like that. Picking up speed, the hulk barreled down the hill into the fray. Many would have snarled or given some sort of battle cry, but Sif was skilled in assault. It was what he’d been trained for, preened for in fact. He knew that the best tactic in any situation was the skill set of surprise. A peppered black form was seen in a flash, coming at one of the coyotes from the side. So focused on the skeletal man it was, it didn’t notice the bull dozer until it was too late.

Sif smashed into the smaller mammal, a high yelp cut off by loss of breath as it was flung by his heavy mass. He wasted no time in his business, bearing down on the animal and pinning it to the ground. He dodged around it’s snapping, slobber dripping jaws as it attempted to fight back. A rocky growl finally rumbled from the mammoth’s throat, lips peeling back to reveal sharp canines. At that moment, it seemed, the coyote had realized it’s mistake. It’s eyes widened and ears pulled back as the man swooped in, jaws wrapping around it’s throat and clamping in a vice-like grip. Muscles flexed beneath his wiry pelt as his head jerked from side to side, a snap finally heard as the dog’s neck was broken effectively. It was done for, eyes rolling back into it’s head and body relaxing. He released, turning and wiping his tongue over his gray peppered jaws to relieve it at least in part of the blood that covered it. Hackles raised menacingly as he loomed near the carcass, mismatched gaze leveling on the coyotes as if to say “I’ve done this to your friend, I can do it to you too”. A deep, snarling bark exploded from the man’s chest in hopes to further terrify the creatures.

Having already been at this for a not-insignificant amount of time - Craw's stubbornness settings were quite high - all four of them were quite comfortable with the 'status quo' that had been established. If anyone, Craw had thought that it might be another Whitestone wolf to relieve him, perhaps venturing out here to see where he had gotten to and why he was taking so long to get back. He'd only meant to be gone for part of the morning, and that plan had evaporated with his refusal to let his actions benefit any stinking coyotes. It would have been the easy thing to slink away and leave them to it.

Of course, he hadn't chosen the easy thing, and instead had spent far so long dancing dangerously with the three scavengers that when a fifth party appeared, it took all four of them completely by surprise.

So settled into the ritual of lunge-retreat-twist-snap-feint, it was a few long heartbeats before he realised what had changed - and stared at the heavy unknown wolf stood on top of one of the yapping vermin, just as the other two coyotes stood and stared, jolted out of what had previously been a frustratingly repetitive pattern. Where this was a nasty surprise for his irritators, though, it was a most happy one for Craw, who recovered his senses a little before the coyotes had a chance to. Having all stood and watched the visceral and efficient killing of one of the lesser canines, Craw's attention flickered to the coyote nearest to him as the grey-pepper black wolf began to move off the fresh corpse and towards them again. As the stranger bellowed to intimidate them, Craw lunged, and for the first time his target did not have the wherewithal to jump away in time. His jaws clamped around the lower hind leg of the nearest coyote, who yelped in pain and alarm, but did not have time to twist about before Craw twisted his upper torso to the side, a strong neck and shoulders yanking the coyote straight off its feet and landing on its side on the wet grass.

With an eager snarl of his own, the crushed femur still caught in his teeth, Craw jerked it about to elicit pained and terrified sounds from his victim before pouncing upon it. Before the coyote could wriggle away, he grasped it firmly by the back of its neck, just below the skull, and pulled its head back and up to the very limit of what its spine could handle - before slamming it roughly into the ground, nose-first. The coyote's struggles lessened for a moment as it quivered and whimpered, and Craw took advantage of its stillness to deliberately tighten his grip around the bone of its neck, crushing it. The coyote's body slumped in a wave, from its tail up to its hindquarters, frontquarters and then head, and, feeling the life leave it, let it drop limply to the ground.

Up to you what the third coyote was doing in the meantime and whether it escapes or not x] thanks for joining! @Sif

Phone post after getting my wisdom teeth out, let's see how this goes lmao

Sif watched as they seemed to still and stare at him in utter shock, a part of him wanting to crack up in a belly shaking laugh. How stupid they liked, and utterly vulnerable at that. Then, it unsurprisingly to him it seemed the skeletal wolf was the first one to regain his senses. He turned on the nearest coyote and the Russian watched as he grabbed for the leg, a solid 'crack' resonating in the air as the thick bone was snapped clean. A wretched howl was the next thing to echo into the distance before it was chocked off as the man pinned it down, incisors sinking into the back of its neck. He watched with disapproval as the wolf seemed to toy with the dog before the kill, and Sif couldn't help but think that Mother, whom embodied mercy, would not approve. A final Yelp came from the animal before it laid still, it's neck being snapped just as its friend's had.

The peppered man's attention turned to the remaining coyote, and he could see in a meet glance its plan. The animal, while prideful, was not completely stupid. It backed up, baring its small teeth and looking between them and to the bodies of its companions, before turning and bolting. The man relaxed, rolling his powerful shoulders and snorting in the direction of its retreating hind end.  "Zhalkiye sobaki," he rumbled. Turning his attention to the man he gave him a brief look over, finding no obvious injuries on him. "Coyote annoying, think they on same level as wolf. Pah!"

(This post was last modified: Jul 01, 2016, 12:57 AM by Sif.)

There is a moose carcass that has been scavenged by coyotes nearby. +15 Health

SoW you are so close but it's a caribou and Craw got there first, get it right

The coyote's corpse fell to the ground as Craw looked up to see what had happened to the third, only to witness it make the only sensible decision it could. With the peppered juggernaut making his threat all too obvious, the skinny dog turned and fled, and Craw licked the hints of blood from his lips as he watched it go, mostly just to savour what it symbolised. It was so satisfying seeing those three finally dealt with. A shame that he hadn't been able to do it by himself, but unsurprising, and he was at least thankful that his patience had not worn thin. It would have been deeply ungratifying to concede the carcass to the dogs.

Strange words came out of the juggernaut's mouth, bringing Craw's attention back to this timely comrade with fresh interest. More recognisable language followed - and offering a message which brought a harsh, appreciative bark of laughter from the spider - but with that same unusual accent. "I keep having to remind them," he grinned, rolling his shoulders to ease out the tensions there after a long stalemate. Craw glanced back at the dead caribou he had been so intent on protecting, and then back at the peppered stranger, twitching his snout towards the meat. "With thanks. Enjoy."

As it turned out, he wasn't actually that hungry. Funny how things went sometimes. It had more been the principle of the matter.

A rousing boom of raspy laughter came from the skeletal man, sounding much like the hiss of a snake in Sif’s perspective. A grin formed on the Russian gladiator’s frosted maw, appreciating that the man could find good humor in his words. A sense of humor was always welcome in the man’s heterochromatic eyes. While he preferred, or rather had been trained, to show little in means of anger, disappointment, or any of the stronger emotions, amusement was not one of those emotions. "I keep having to remind them," and to this the man gave a deep, baritone, hearty laugh of his own. Oh how he knew that well himself, having fought off the scavengers a fair amount of times in his youth himself. His laughter ceasing, the man made a motion toward the carcass that had caused the entire debacle. There wasn’t a whole lot of meat left on its decaying but edible bones, truly enough for one of them. But, from looking on the male he could tell the other was well-fed. And, for the first time in the situation he was able to discover something else. Scents, not his but definitely wolfish. A pack. He was from a pack. And Sif was not, and rabbits were certainly not enough to hold over his hulking frame. So, who was he to deny the invitation? Spasibo he said with a dip of his head, moving to the animal.

Sif bent his head as he settled next to the fallen beast, ripping his teeth into its flesh and pulling off a chunk. He tossed it back, knowing full pieces would fill him faster. Pausing between bites, he turned his mismatched gaze back on his battle mate. “How you get in middle of lesser canines in first place? Meal good for me, but sense pack on your body. No need for scavenged meal,” he asked idly, taking another bite. This time, he chewed, swallowed, cleared his throat. “Apologies, names given between companions of battle polite. I am Sif Mikhailovich,” he introduced, giving a grunt and small toss of his head.

Bonding over mutual disdain of coyotes was something Craw could throw himself behind. Both sturdy wolves laughed at their lesser relative's expense, and as such Craw was only pleased to be able to offer the remains to the peppered man, finding his unexpected and unusual company most welcome.

The word may have been foreign, but the gesture of gratitude was universal, and Craw nodded in approval as the stranger moved to claim his prize. If there had been more meat available, he might have thought to summon the rest of the pack to enjoy it, but its meagre offerings were part of the reason why he had not done so in the first place, and chosen instead to kill time trying to kill coyotes. As the stranger ate, Craw settled down on his haunches, feeling flushed and warm after all that exertion. At least he'd had the opportunity to finish one of the bastards. Hopefully letting the last one flee would prove beneficial; spread the word - you're not welcome.

Content to sit and scratch behind the ear as he waited for the loner to ease a little of his hunger, for Craw was hoping for the opportunity to talk more, he saw the loner glance towards him and turned his head to meet his dual-coloured gaze.

That strange speech struck him again, though he did not remark upon it nor judge it badly - it was just an oddity. He understood it perfectly fine. "Craw. Good to meet you, @Sif," he rasped, thinking that the long name sat nicely in the juggernaut's accent. By way of answering the question, he glanced at the meat, the corners of his mouth twisting as though it brought fond memories. "I want to... discourage them from thinking this tundra is theirs. Don't want to make their lives any easier, even for a scrap like that." For Sif's implication was right, it was hardly a grand prize to war over. Craw might claim one of the femurs for himself, though, for he missed having a whole, solid bone to chew upon.

His attention flickered back onto Sif, ears pricking up. He could have been more pointed in his choice of question, but chose to stay conversational and let Sif interpret it however he pleased. "You were just passing through?"

The man, quite the opposite of Rue, seemed to perhaps understand that he was simpler in concept of the English language. He spoke with words that were easy to configure, but then again he might have just been a simple conversationalist like Sif himself. He was finding that he quite liked the man, who seemed to have a level head and a strong body. Two traits that he found respectable in another wolf. Large, rounded auds swiveled to catch his explanation of why he had decided to go for the coyotes instead of leaving them be, finding the answer suitable. A nod bobbed his head in understanding as he finished off the last chunk of meat. Then, he grabbed a bone from the foreleg, giving a good tug to free it of the already mostly decomposed tendons with a small ‘pop’. He allowed himself to settle, jaws parting over the bone and with a few good bites he was able to break it clean, yellowing marrow sliding from the hollow middle. Sif had been taught to never waste a meal where it could be found, and marrow, he found, was good. “That good idea, lay total claim to territory and area around. Be bully, not bullied. Make for strong pack.” he rumbled.

He couldn’t quite tell how to take the next question that was phrased, but Craw had yet to give him any reason to think it was anything other than curiosity. “Yes, passing through. Been to many places in these lands, though this most favorable. This same sort of landscape I grew up in,” he replied, breaking the bone again to reach more of the marrow hidden inside.

sorry for the wait, been needing a short break recently, but joining-themed threads are very high on my priority so I'll try not to hold this up <3

He hadn't needed the loner's approval of his reasons, but was satisfied to receive it nonetheless, in part because it was always a pleasure to meet someone of like-mind. The situation wasn't quite so simple, of course; in the business of pack leadership, encountering an unaffiliated loner with compatible values opened up a whole new branch of opportunities.

Whitestone was in no short supply of the large and strong with himself, Wraith and Capable among them, but Craw had been raised to value power. The term 'guardian' had been something he'd learned later in life than, perhaps, was normal, because his father had always referred to the role as warriors. Murdoc had not been one for passive or reactionary aggression. As Craw watched the juggernaut eat his earned scraps, he reflected on those few lessons from his father that he actually found valuable.

"Me too," he wheezed, glancing out at the tundra, its low rolling hills and tall pale grasses. Even Whitestone, in the not-too-distant distance, pricked at his nostalgia, though none of the high plateaus from his childhood had been nearly so well-formed or so grand. It was less bitingly cold here, less barren. He would not have wanted to simply duplicate what he'd once had - the idea was to do better, always better.

The act of recruitment was a curious thing. For some reason, Craw had generally been more distrustful of the wolves who came knocking, looking for acceptance, than those he encountered by chance and without motive. Perhaps it was because of those early days, when his father's pack had been tiny and weak, those wolves he had enlisted despite being able to promise little. Perhaps it was because they had been his wolves, whereas the ones who came later, who had crawled snivelling up to the borders once the pack had grown in power had, ultimately, chosen his father.

When he looked at Sif, Craw saw Mittani and Roosemooth and Angharad.

"Are you interested in staying?"