Silvertip Mountain I'm past being hungry

Zaria wasn't feeling well. The girl was very emaciated, hence why she laid down. All her bones were sticking out. As a working mother she had stuffed, badly. Only her own determination not to fail made her push on and on. It had been unhealthy and the female was feeling the effects now.

It didn't look pretty, the summer heat wasn't helping. Zaria was not as pretty as she once was. She sank down in the cool mud of the water bank, partially in the shadows. She laid her head down, eyes closed. In this moment she was seriously doubting she was going to survive this.

Zaria is not doing well :O

Hunting had proved fruitless after three separate attempts but Niita was determined to find something. Luck seemed to be on her side, depending on how you viewed the situation, when she came across the carcass of a groundhog. It was hard and stiff, a carrion crow had pecked away some of the meat, but it was food. 

With the dead creature clasped in her jaws, Niita had begun to head back towards her usual sleeping spot but stopped in her tracks. Zaria was lying out in the heat, her form somehow thinner than before if that was possible. Was she dead? The Beta didn't appear to be moving at all but as Niita got closer she could see that Zaria wasn't dead yet. 

Laying the groundhog down within Zaria's reach, Niita nudged the russet woman gently. "Zaria? You should eat. I know this isn't the best but it's food." Niita murmured with a grimace, knowing the meat wasn't very palatable at all.

The former queen had dozed off and on. Her body was tired and worn. When the nudge came the female did not even growl. She opened her eyes a bit and noticed there was a white wolf next to her. She was not sure if she knew this female, but in her mind, which was groggy already she wanted it to be Fitz. Slowly her brain altered her visual input that it was Fitz in her eyes. It was probably the lack of food that she was kind of hallucinating the things she wanted to see.

With her being constantly hungry the female didn't even realize that she was still hungry. Fitz was back! Or, no. She saw Fitz now, so that probably meant that she had come to him. She was where he was. On the mountain, in the sky. Zaria rested her eyes once more, feeling some kind of peace. She missed that bastard, leaving her, how dare he! But now Zaria was with him she felt better. Her body felt warm, though in truth it was probably from over heating. She was only a shadow what she had been before. There was someone who had broken through her self-centered personality and without him she had been lost for such a long time, it felt good to return to him. With one last deep sigh she was at peace, back with Fitz, her other half, where she belonged.

Aww sad! Sorry to have her dying on you, but she had been emaciated for too long <3 R.I.P Zaria.

Zaria didn't answer, and when she closed her eyes Niita assumed she had only passed out. She nudged the former Alpha a bit more forcefully, trying to rouse her when she realized that the russet wolf wasn't breathing. With new vigor, she shook the woman; trying to get her to rise. 

"Zaria, you can't die! What about the pups? They'll be crushed.." Niita trailed off as it soon became apparent that her efforts were in vain, she was speaking to a corpse. 

Unsure what to do now, Niita sat by the dead Beta for a few moments before coming to the conclusion that she should call Steady. He was the Alpha, he knew Zaria, he would know what to do now. Niita raised her head and howled for @Steady as loudly as she could, filling the howl with urgency.

Steady had been walking the territory, looking for both trespassers and food, should either happen to be nearby. Today wasn't his lucky day, and it was about to get a lot worse. Niita's urgent call reached his ears and he abandoned his stroll to run to her. He wasn't expecting what he would find, though hindsight would tell him he shouldn't have been surprised.

He came to a sudden stop at the edge of the clearing, his gaze first on Niita, then turning it to the lifeless body of his Beta. Steady stepped forward, coming to Zaria's side, his nose sniffing her, as if he could't quite believe it. It was a few moments before he lifted his muzzle to the sky and called the pack together. His softened gaze turned to Niita. Niita, can you go get the pups, please? he asked softly. 

He opened his jaws to grab Zaria's scruff and pull her from the mud and into dry soil.

Impromptu pack meeting! This is Mandatory! Each round will last 7 days, or when everyone replies, whichever comes first. If your wolf does not attend, Steady will take that as their departure from the pack. Even if you miss the first round, get a post in later, and your wolf is safe! @Krypton @Phocion @Ezekiel @Anita @Makui @Reiko @Odette @Stoic (@Chaska If he can get here, great, but I know he's injured so he's exempt from this meeting).

Giving them all some time to get there, Steady sat back on his haunches, and waited patiently. When all who were going to be there arrived, he spoke. This famine has cost us greatly. As of today, we've lost at least three to starvation, possibly more, though I choose to believe Mason is out there somewhere, he began, his gaze moving from one wolf to another. As your Alpha, I have to do what is best for this pack, and allowing you to starve yourselves isn't it. Each of you has been dedicated to feeding the pups, and I appreciate that. He paused, his gaze moving to Fitz and Zaria's pups, unsure how they would take what he said next. He looked back to the adults. Zaria gave her life to these pups, feeding them, defending them, living for them... and dying for them. Now, she'll give one last time to all of us. 

With that, Steady lowered his head and sunk his teeth into Zaria's dead body, ripping flesh from bone. Knowing it would be harder for the pups to see, and do this, he took the chunk to them, laying it at their paws. They may hate him for this, they may never forgive him, but he was only doing all that he could to keep them alive. He looked to the others. Eat, he commanded. 

slight pp of @Odette and @Stoic that I can edit out if it's a problem

Niita was confused as to why he wanted the pups, considering that their mother lay dead in front of them, but she only nodded and made her way to the den. Ducking her head inside, she called out softly to Odette and Stoic; asking them to follow. 

Returning with the children in tow, Niita sat with the pack and listened to Steady's speech. Sadness cloaked her frame, though she hadn't been here long nor had she been close to Zaria. It still saddened Niita to lose a pack member, she had respected the former Alpha.

The end of the speech made her head whip up so fast she thought she might have broken her neck. They were supposed to eat Zaria? Seeing Steady tear a chunk of meat from the fallen wolf, bringing it to the pups and laying it before them, Niita felt her stomach roll with disgust. At his command, she edged forward and tore off her own piece. Closing her eyes, Niita tried to pretend that it wasn't Zaria she was eating. Somehow that helped her with the guilt of eating her pack mate.

RIP Zaria <3

Ezekiel had heard the howl from Niita, it sounded urgent but it had been for Steady not him. So he thought he better stay out of it. He'd continued to nap in his den under the dead tree until he heard Steady's call. With a tired sigh, Zeke pulled his weary bones up to stand. With a quick shake of his fur he began towards the cause of the howl, wondering what this could be about.

When he arrived, he couldn't be more shocked. There at Steady's feet lay Zaria, the earthy tones female was dead. Starved most likely, but he emaciated look. Sadly and silently, Ezekiel sat down and flashed Steady an apologetic look. He hadn't known Zaria and had only met her once, so he could only imagine how the pups would feel, and how Steady felt now. He waited patiently for the rest of the pack to arrive, and then his alpha began to speak. At the end of his speech, Steady took a bite into Zaria's flesh. Eat. He commanded, lying a piece at the pups paws.

Ezekiel stepped forwards to eat after those in rank above him, not taking much from the carcass, for he didn't need it as much as some of the others. He sank his fangs into her still warm flesh and pulled out a chunk, glancing to Steady to make sure he wasn't stepping out of place. Once he was done he sat back to let the others take their fill. As he waited he silently mourned and thanked Zaria for what she gave to them.

She had been wandering the lands for quite some time, newly accepted to the pack, Reiko had made it her first priority to familiarize herself with the outlay. The howl came in and she could barely recognize it as Steadt's, her new king, or Alpha's call as they call it here.

Trotting to where the meeting held, the young snow capped woman was emaciated, but still well. Perhaps it was just her high metabolism that kept her tiny. 

Walking on the meeting the first thing she saw was the fallen female. Without thought she gasped as pain hit her, immediately shrinking on the spot and lowering herself in respect for the newly passed. She was a pack member... She could smell it's. The famine had taken someone under her joining. 

"Is she the mother?" Reiko spoke as low as possible to Ezekiel, the one she felt more at ease with among the growing crowd. She kept her body low, barely wanting to attract any attention as she walked in. Not wanting to insult anyone, she was curious and kept her tone as low as possible. Her heart felt heavy, even without knowing her Reiko grieved. She refused to eat the body of the fallen woman, preferring to starve instead.

The boy watched from the shadows as the wolves devoured his mother. Peice by peice she became unrecodnisable, a corpse of someone he once knew. His whole life he had been surrounded by death. Everyone was gone. His Father, his sister, his brother and now the Mother he had come to adore. He sat trembling as they dug into her flesh, ripping her apart as if she meant nothing to them. For once in his life, the boy was terrified to his very core. Would they eat him too? Frightened thoughts invaded his mind until his throat began to tighten, making it hard to breath as the chomped on his mother. If he died too, would they tear him apart? He did not want to be eaten, they had gotten his mother and now there was nobody to protect him. Stoic would have to protect himself. Stumbling over his own feet, the boy ran. Tears swelled in his eyes as tried limbs rushed as fast as they could away from the scene. He could not watch.

At long last, he was alone. Away from the family of beasts he had once felt safe with. He wanted his Mother. All at once, he could not contain it. He sobbed, tears streaking down the furs of his face to his the ground below; one after the other. The stubborn boy had never wailed to much before, and had never dared to do it infront of his sister. Otherwise she most likely would have seen him weak and sit on him again. But she was gone too, and he now begged for her to return so he could give her one last hug. "Addie... Sol..," Between sobs he called for them, burying his head between his paws. "Mama..." He looked to the sky, as if searching for her within the clouds he knew she could be. But he wanted her back. The boy was still just a boy. And all boys needed their Mothers.

stoic exits.

Makui arrived quickly, hauling his thin frame down he mountain. He had taken to spending much of his time at high altitudes, simply watching the view and occasionally hunting when prey caught his eye. Of course, most of it went to the pack, the pup, but Makui ate a small amount as well. He sat, his eyes growing wide at the emicated remains of Zaria. His immidiet though was to the pups he had spent so much providing for. What would be of them? The tiny little things could not take care of themselves yet, he knew that well.

Steady gave his speech, a long winded one who's end had Makui frowning.

There were a number of reasons he would disobey his alpha today. First and foremost was that it was simply wrong. Cannabalism was a measure that Makui was not willing to resort to under any circumstances, no matter the scenirio. Two was that the pups were here. They were just about to watch their mother get eaten. Did anyone live a perfectly normal life after watching their mother get eaten by their friends and family? The answer, was no. The third reason Makui neglected to touch the flesh was because there was so little of it. The higher ranking wolves would eat, they all needed food, and if Makui were to have his share that would mean less for the rest of them.

He shuddered the slightest when Steady placed a chunk of the children's mother at the little girl's feet. Yep, that was probably not going to be emotionally scarring at all! He did not notice, however, the other pup, the one hidding in the shadows. He did not notice him flee. With a heavy heart, Makui strode to the carcass and stood alongside his packmates, making as if to eat the carcass but really just moving his maw.

Reiko is doing her own thing now!! Sorry, if steady gets angry that's okay with me in OOC!!

 

Not wanting to eat her fill on the fallen member, Reiko watched others come. The one that struck her most was the young pup who seemed struck in greif. He ran off and without thinking Reiko follwed. 

Once she found where his scent stopped she called out.

"I won't harm you..." She said softly, almost begging him to come to her. "I won't force you out either, but I am here to grieve with you." 

Fatigue hit her, the young snowy damsel laid down on her belly and patiently keep him company for as log as he needed. Steady would be upset later, she knew it. But the young one needed help.

No.

At first Odie didn't know what was going on.  What was happening?  Why did everything seem so sad?  And then Steady told her... time seemed to stop.  It wasn't over though, her Uncle asked everyone to eat her Mother.  Canabalize her.  Odette's eyes widen with terror and she stumbled back a few steps.  This hd to be a dream - no even worse a nightmare... but it wasn't.  This was the heart crushing truth of reality.  Then Odie watched as some wolves did begin to eat her Mother.  "Mommy."  Odette breathed, but now it was too late, her Mother turned in a bloody heap... a corpse.  Then her Uncle placed meat from her Mother before her.

Odette ran.

At this very moment she knew that she just had to get away.  Away from this place.  Away from Silvertip Mountian.  Yet she was only a pup and so she could never make the journey on her own.  So with that she knew that she had to find Stoic now.  Never had Odie ran so fast in her life, not even noticing that Reiko had gone after her brother already, yet fear of death could drive you.  Death was powerful and now it was moving the pup on a search for her brother.  She had to find him.  Then they had to leave.  There was nothing left for them here.  Not even Uncle Steady.  No one cared.

Oops!  Was typing during Reiko post.  Changed mine.  Odette will appear exit here, so this will be the last post from me.  R.I.P Zaria :( <3

Ooc: quickie post on my phone

krypton heard the call of steady and was quick to run over and see what the lay down was. Her heart dropped in the pit of her stomach when she could see them feasting on the fallen body of Zaria. Her stomach threatened to give up, and won. Acid left in Krypton's body, landing near her paws.

the gamma stride forward after collecting herself, thinking it was best to join them. Although it pained her, she had to do what she needed to survive and help her family. Claiming a spot on Zaria, she quickly dug in and ate what she could.

others were there, though she paid no attention to them. What mattered was surviving. And that's what she was planning to do. 

Finishing her meal, krypton made her way around to each of her family mates and embraced them, hoping to relinquish some hope to move on and keep the family together.

Sorry for the late response!

Anita heard a long howl, but not the kind she was used to. It sounded much more solemn, and sounded like a howl of mourning. The she-wolf walked towards a gathering of pack-mates with reluctance. She could tell that whatever the situation was, it wasn't good. By the time she got there, the area reeked of death.

Anita scolded herself for arriving late, but her mind moved to somthing else much more apparent. Steady had commanded for the pack to cannibalize the mother of the pups. Anita tried not to recoil with disgust, and couldn't place the exact emotions she felt at that moment. It was probably something along the lines of horror and despair. The pups must be taking this very badly...poor things. 

Being one of the lower pack mates, her turn to take a portion of the pup's mother was near last in line. Most of what was left didn't seem to be significant, and Anita couldn't bring herself to partake in it. I have to do this, it is Steady's orders. She walked up to the corpse, taking a chunk out. She dropped the foul meat, leaving it on the ground. Anita watched with sympathy as one of the pups ran off. The she-wolf needed something to take her mind off of what had just happened.

Cameo from his den

 

Steady sent out a howl. One that urged Chaska to stand, and he tried. But his injured leg needed to heal, so he stopped himself and instead listened to the call. His ears fell, his face showing despair. So that was it. All that was left of Fitzdutiful's legacy was his pups. No mother, no father. All they would have was the pack.

"Peace be with you both" he murmured aloud from his den, then sent a mournful howl out as a response. Now they were together, wherever the dead may go. That's all he thought on it. And despite all the sad happenings, he was happy for them. And he mentally swore to protect their children till his last breath.

Only post from me

Something was wrong; he could sense it as soon as Niita let out her howl. With a shudder, Phocion answered the call, striding across Silvertip's mountainous forest with giant strides until he reached the others. His stomach dropped as he found the pack wolves surrounding a dead, dusky brown body--Zaria's body.

The small white wolf let out a mournful cry at the sight, his voice despondent. He had not known Zaria well, but he knew that she had been a noble, imperious wolf, a warrior princess, fit for glory. She was with the angels now, a beacon of light in the stars. The famine had ravaged her body tremendously; she had given all her strength to her pups. And now she was gone.

His belly further clenched as he realized Steady was feeding the pups their mother's dead, cold flesh, and he lowered his head, feeling incredibly sick. Still, that was the way of things. Phocion padded slowly to the old beta's corpse and touched his muzzle to her forehead, breathing in her scent for one last time. Peace be with you, Zaria, he murmured, a quiet prayer, his breath ruffling the fur on her head.

He looked back up at Steady, the leader of this rag-tag group, and nodded, a lump in his throat from sadness. He could not look again at the sight of Zaria's chunks of flesh laying on the ground, potential meals for their children. "Do what you must," Phocion said quietly to his alpha, head lowered. "I will hunt some more." Gathering his own famine-emaciated body, he lunged back into the trees, away from that gruesome scene. Just one more wolf the famine had taken from them. . .and what a wolf she had been.

If another round isn't needed, this can be the last one!

Edit: No time frame, no posting order.

He knew it wouldn't be easy on anyone, whether they knew Zaria or not, to feast upon her body. They all knew she was a valued member of the pack, a former leader, and mother to the next generation. But, Steady knew Zaria would not want it any other way. She valued life, and even in her morbid way, would do whatever she could to keep them alive. Steady was doing his best to allow her to live her legacy one last time. 

Some ate, some didn't, nor would Steady force them to. It would be on them if they didn't take the meat offered, and perished because of starvation. Maybe they weren't there yet, but he knew some of them were approaching dangerously close to that line, and he didn't know if he could handle one more wolf dying. 

His heart broke as Odette ran, his ears flicked back on his head. He turned to go after her, but second-guessed himself. Her mother had just died, and what she witnessed was not easy for an adult, let alone a pup. For now, he would leave her be, assuming he could find her at the den later on, with Stoic. Steady hadn't seen him at all, and guessed he had stayed behind at the den. 

He picked up the chunk he had laid at Odette's paws and gulped it down. Zaria would provide nutrients for the ones who ate, for at least another day. Later, when he allowed himself to feel, his heart would break over this day. But, still, he knew he was simply trying to do what was best. 

When all had finished, Steady would take Zaria's bones, and what was left of her body, and bury her next to Fitz, where she belonged. If there was an after life, he hoped they were together.

Some members of the pack ate, some didn't. Ezekiel did feel bad for cannibalizing the former beta, and scaring away her pups, but he was hungry. He didn't care what the others thought of him now. At least he wasn't starving anymore. He dipped his head to Steady and the others and silently whispered, Thank you Zaria. May you rest with your family forever. With that he stood, stretched his legs and headed back towards his den, where he would quickly fall asleep. He hadn't slept well in a while, it's harder to sleep when you're hungry. Now he could sleep with a full stomach and a heavy heart.

Zeke out~

last from me, R.I.P Zaria <3

No matter how much Niita wished it weren't true, she couldn't help the fact that the meat tasted good. She wouldn't be making a habit of eating other wolves but in her hungry state any meat tasted good. After she had finished her chunk of meat, Niita paused to murmur a thanks to Zaria for allowing them to live another day.

As Niita left, she prayed to her ancestors to reunite Zaria with her family, hoping that they were happy in the afterlife. She asked tthem for forgiveness, she was doing what she had to do to survive.