Redhawk Caldera mayday! mayday! this ship is going down

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The morning was chilly, frost touched the grasses under foot as Regi headed in a random direction. He had no idea what he was doing with his life, which up to this point had painfully summed up Regi's life so far. A lot of aimless wandering. He'd lived in Donnelaith and then wandered back to Venia Dei only to find life back in his natal pack well ...not what he wanted. As much as Regi loved his mother he didn't want to have to spend the rest of his life taking care of her. Arachne couldn't help her child-like disposition towards life and Regi knew that but there was something both taxing and heartbreaking about realizing that he'd became more mature than his mother would probably ever be. That somehow he'd became the parent and she the child. She'd done the best for him she could and obviously she must have done something right when she raised him but the best wolves suited for taking care of her were in Venia Dei. Muninn was better at it than him, had more patience then him, but then again Muninn was her eldest brother and since his grandfather (Isi's) death had been taking care of all his younger siblings.

Part of Regi felt guilty but another part of him believed (as he had the last time) that he'd done the right thing for her. Leaving her to someone who was much more qualified as opposed to an adult who ….despite his best (or were they?) efforts couldn't seem to get or keep his shit together. Once more he found himself in Teekon Wilds, wondering how long he could stay this tour. His steps slowed to a halt when he began to near a scent borders, leaving more than a respectable distance between them and himself, his golden gaze sweeping the territory within the borders. He still had no idea what he was doing, but what better way to throw caution to the wind other than to just dive right in, head first?

He tipped his muzzle skyward and let out a howl to announce his presence upon the borders known. He adjusted his posture to be half submissive and half neutral, waiting for someone to come and greet him.

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Kaizer followed the noise in a stiff trot, his body tense as he recognized the tone as inherently male. He'd be damned if he let anyone else think they had a better chance with Fox than him, and it unfortunately set the tone of his trek towards the border beneath a chilly sunrise. Eyes scanned the premises upon arriving, pressing his ears forward as he spotted the large, dark scar marring his view of the horizon. He was large, an intimidating figure by normal standards, but Kaizer— under the assumption that this brute had arrived to dampen his chances on being top dog— was not to be deterred, and his approach was decidedly aggressive.

He set his toes on the line of Redhawk's borders, and set the (admittedly) stunning male with a blazing expression that demanded further submittance. And in knowing that the stranger's call would have likely attracted others, he was prepared to chase the wolf away if he did not cow to the newest member's heat-infested ego.

Whether it was to clear his mind, or to perhaps run into Raven again, he answered the call of a stranger on their borders. It was not his job, not his place and certainly not his rank to accept strangers into Redhawk, but it was time to stop whining and to start working. He still felt broken, out of place, but he did not care as he crawled out of his own home that was far away from everyone else's. It was not only because here he could look for herbs in silence, but also for the clean water he sometimes needed for healing business. The caldera was a gold-mine if you knew where to look, and luckily he did.

At the border he saw two males - Red Ear and the loner who had called for leadership. He did not know the name of the male that was apparently a part of their pack, but he was not interested in that at the moment. He had hoped Raven had come to the borders, but it seems even luck was letting him down. Both guys towered over Trick, and yet he approached with a high tail - his spotless obsidian coat cleaned and his head tilted up to look at them a tad better. He let his eyes trail over the dark body of the loner - young, but he had balls not to fully submit. Trick could appreciate such an act of self-confidence, but Red Ear was not so fond of it.

Bright, green eyes trailed over the male's trademarks and finally rested on his eyes - testing to see if he would submit, even if it was just a look. Good morning - Red Ear, stranger. He greeted them both with a small nod, but did not dare pull away his gaze. Perhaps it looked a bit silly - such a tiny, peculiar (but handsome) creature almost demanding some submission from the colossal wolf, but he did not give the tiniest of shits.

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The approach of the first man was aggressive, which served to confuse the Frostfur-DiSarinno who hadn't done anything to warrant the aggression, as far as he was aware. There was plenty of distance between him and the borders and all he'd done was call for an audience. Keep your cool, he reminded himself taking a step back and lowering his posture, his gaze flitting to the second male that approached who held his gaze. The desire to let it rile was strong and he swallowed back the copper taste in his mouth. The fuck? He was just here to seek an audience not be bullied into submission. His nostrils flared and there was a slight twist to his lips. The fact was: he was outnumbered and realistically he couldn't take them both on at one time should they attack. He lowered his body further, ears slicking to rest back against his skull. He might have been confrontational by nature and sometimes lacked a filter between his brain and mouth he knew when the odds were decidedly not in his favor and his instinct to preserve his life was (thankfully) much stronger that his instinct to fight back when he was cornered. Maybe if he had nothing to lose ...but he was not yet that desperate.

“Listen, mates, I don't want no trouble,” He told them in a peaceful tone. He'd gotten himself into plenty of trouble over his almost two year span of life and in this moment he really didn't want any trouble. “I just want an audience with your Alphas, s'all.” Looked like he picked the worst pack to decide to join if the two males challenging him for what he thought to be nothing more than calling for an audience with their leader(s) was anything to go by. Admittedly, right now, he was regretting his choice a good bit.

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Seven days had passed since her body had first cried out for Peregrine’s embrace. Seven days had passed since his body had been put in the ground. She was, more than likely, on the tail end of her week of need, but that made it no less intense when she caught a whiff of three males in close proximity to one another. She was drawn to them like a moth to a flame, her body pulling her toward the trio with flared nostrils, rigid steps, and fiery hairs on end.

Fox caught the tail end of the loner’s words, asking for an audience with the alphas. Funny, she thought, considering there was only one. Perhaps Kaizer had convinced the rest of the pack otherwise. She strode past the other two, coming close to the dark wolf with a scrutinizing gaze. He was, at the very least, being respectful, and for that she could not fault him. ”Well? Here I am,” she said expectantly, her attention primarily on the newcomer, but her peripheral vision not unaware of Kaizer and Trick.

The large brute began to strip himself of his neutrality, displaying a level of submission that Kaizer was much more satisfied with. Another caldera wolf had joined him, but he did not dare relent his gaze from the magnificent loner before them. Had he come at a different time of the month (lol), Kaizer would have been far less demanding, but as things were with Fox still in heat, he would be damned if any male sought to compete with him on that venture. Yet, as the stranger spoke, it dawned on him that perhaps he had not been lured here by her scent -- though this felt next to impossible to him -- but rather with the intentions to join. His own posture, rigid and complete with flagging tail, did not ease, but his lips covered his teeth.

He might have commanded the younger male to speak then, but Fox arrived at just that moment, still wafting and tantalizing as she were. Kaizer's back prickled, and spurred by her presence (though he didn't move), the air around him changed dramatically. One wrong move from either male, and there would be a fight.

There was no emotion on Wylie's face as he looked at the other, the Caldera wolf next to being ignored. It was not often that he could play the dominant one, and he really needed a boost of self-confidence. He felt shitty, and the rest would know soon enough since when Trick felt horrible, he did horrible things. He smirked when the other finally let go of his act of neutrality, submitting so that Trick could relax. His expression softened, but for the rest not much changed - only as the loner spoke did he raise an eyebrow. No trouble? Well, that was no fun now, was it? Trick chuckled that came out as more of a purring noise. 

Just as he was about to answer, the scent of Fox mixed with the sickening scent of her heat came closer. Trick, however, was not one to fall victim to it (Mostly) and moved not when she approached. He would never even want such a dumb partner in life anyway. He needed someone to keep up with him and his wit, and Fox was definitely not the one. Trick could not help but notice how Red Ear seemed a bit tense. Enjoyable. But, Trick knew he could never win a fight with a wolf almost two times his size and was not in the mood to challenge him. Trick fell back a bit, lowering his tail to a height that was below his alpha's and more on the same height as Red Ear - a little higher, but not by much.

Just in time. His honey sweet voice rang through the air and he chuckled. It was obvious he was still dealing with the death of Peregrine in his own gruesome ways.

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As if on cue a fire kissed woman came into the view, her figure breaking through the trees. Her scent was tantalizing and Regi's nostrils flared as he drew it in. It stirred awake otherwise dormant desires in him and he understood the “red ear”'s — as the dark pelted man had called the aggressive man — aggressive approach. It all made sense now that the fiery alpha was before him. She was in her estrus cycle and that told him all that he needed to know. He struggled for a moment with whether he should be flattered that he was seen as a “threat” or not. Now wasn't the time to dwell upon it for the Alpha had addressed him and was no doubt expecting a response.

Salmon pink tongue slid across his jowls before he spoke, “I was wondering if you had a spot for me in you're pack, ma'am,” He admitted. “I'm strong, I can fight and guard the borders, I can hunt and I'm good at scouting out territories and paths through them.” He did not come without skills, neither did he come unprepared to rattle them off. Regi had the advantage of being built like a heavy hitter. He was not habitually as fast as someone less bulky than him but what he lacked in speed he made up for in force. As his words hung in the air between the four of them his gaze did not waver from the Alpha, though the other two male's did not go ignored. Though their presences felt largely unnecessary to him — did she really need them to handle her job? — they did not seem to have any intentions of leaving anytime soon, Regi freely assumed and so he tried to focus mainly upon their fire-kissed alpha.

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Fox continued to ignore Trick and Kaizer both, her focus on the silver-marked male in front of her. He spouted off skills left and right, many of which were already covered by her more-than-capable wolves. She had no use for scouting outside of Redhawk Caldera, considering she rarely ever left the damn place. Still, adding another capable wolf to her batch would do nothing but help her in the long run. With her children on the way, the pack was going to need all the help it could get.

"Prove it," she replied, glancing briefly to Kaizer, then to the newcomer. "Fight him." Fox stepped back, allowing the newcomer and Kaizer to have at it. "Trick, you can help me judge." She was not necessarily looking for who won this fight, but how they fought one another. It would also give her a good look into Kaizer's skills, something she had yet to see.

At Fox’s command, the taut bowstring was loosed, and the ordered soldier hardly hesitated. She hadn’t even turned to Trick before he was springing forward, hoping to take advantage of both the outsider’s presently crouched position and the element of surprise -- because Kaizer certainly hadn’t been expecting her to decree that they fight! -- in his initial attack. Should this fail, and the silver-touched male rise too quickly, Kaizer would stop short, bank right, and aim to sink stinging (not blood-drawing) teeth into the male’s hind-quarters.

Threw in two moves, Harleen, just to give you more to respond to/make things go faster. You're welcome to do some PPing

Trick had to contain himself as the other spoke of his skills. The only thing he was missing was knowledge of herbs, and he would be the perfect little subordinate for the not-so-bright Fox. Luckily it was not his way - rather that of some other heel-licking guy. Trick did what he had to do, the rest was all him just being him. He took his place, submissively, next to his alpha, ready for some action to say the least. He was not offended by Fox not choosing him to fight the newcomer and nodded sincerely.

He watched as the fight begun even before Fox called out his purpose here, and felt a twinge of jealousy bubble up to the surface. If only he could fight like that.

Tacking on an ending since Regulus is inactive now.

As soon as Kaizer lurched forward, the stranger balked, then sped off. Fox looked on with disdain, watching as he disappeared into the wilderness beyond Redhawk Caldera. Well, good, she’d managed to dodge the bullet of not only a coward but also a deserter. ”Let him go,” she ordered both Kaizer and Trick, in case they got any ideas of chasing after him. Once she was certain he wasn’t coming back, she nudged both of her comrades in silent thanks before turning toward the rendezvous site. Soon, she would need to begin preparing the den.

Kaizer stutter-stepped giving chase, called back by Fox's decree that the non-combatant be set free to find his own fair distance from this pack, without the coercion of a chase. Kaizer snorted, his tail bushed and flagging as he watched the dark figure disappear on the horizon. Once sure he was gone, his fur fell flat once more and he then turned to flay his riled energy by throwing himself into a quick hunt.

He was surprised to see the fight suddenly end and to see the first quite bold man run for freedom once more. Trick wanted to follow him, wherever he was going, to see if there was something better there - but knew better. He was needed here, even though the others didn't realize that, and he sighed as the three Caldera wolves were left alone. He accepted Fox closeness, a bit tense, and nodded to Red Ear before running off to see if he could find some herbs that he could perhaps dry before the true winter began.