Wapun Meadow a hellish glow of hot orange
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#1
All Welcome 
he had followed the wolf wordlessly, yet when she stole into the thick of pack territory he slipped off and made for the meadow. around him tired and worn out snow still clung to the grey-colored earth. overhead the sound of shrill goshawk cries.

he picked his way through snowcrusted basins, guided by the scent of water. the territory rose and fell and then spat out in the center of it a frozen but active creek with its bank rimed in translucent sheets of ice. the path was worn down by pronghorn tracks and the banks bore splintered sinks where their hooves had punctured the ice and their soft muzzles had drank deep of the black water within.

he was alone as he stood on the bank. he lowered his muzzle and lapped at the icy water as the wind whipped shrilly around him.
all the world will be your enemy
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#2
A bleak wind tore across the stretch of land with a whipping polar touch. Just as soon as it had come, it was swept to further reaches and beyond. Nothing moved with it, save for the rusted hairs along Tadec's neck and shoulders. The coywolf scoped the area heedfully, then trekked forward atop broomstick limbs. He was ever thoughtful of his hunt. He imagined that he should be the first to find the elusive beast. Still, not even the remainder of a scent lingered on the brush of wind. Frustration bubbled inside of the moonlighter, but composure was his key.

Picking each step away, Tadec swung his muzzle toward the sound of crunching snow beneath the foot of a larger creature. A tall, leonine specimen stood out against the backdrop of grey and white. This beast of magnitude was bent over in drink. The unfamiliar brute was long-limbed and powerful. The thief stood, rigid... alert. Ears swung and swiveled wildly atop his narrow skull before focusing on him and all of his grandeur. Tadec was enthralled.
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#3
he supped from the rustling water with deep thirst as he kept his gaze trained around him. it was unfamiliar and desolate territory and he would not be caught off guard by any of its denizens. his ears rotated sharply ahead as he watched a slender creature approach, rake-thin and long of limb with a smoldering gaze affixed firmly upon him.

he did not like the proximity, nor the intensity behind the stare. slowly he lifted his dripping muzzle from the water and lifted his lips, his bright tongue pressed firm against revealed teeth. until the creature made its intentions known, he had no interest in being overtly friendly.
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#4
The striking coyote paused in his quenching and turned leafy green optics to rest on Tadec. The proximity would have made anyone nervous, and so the spindly thief was not surprised when the other's lips peeled to reveal a row of teeth and curved canines. The half-breed shuddered against the glint, but held his ground. His limbs held him fast to the earth as he lifted his tail and twitched the tip to relieve any unease the other male might have conjured. Tadec was not to be feared and he did not wish to steal from this creature; he only wanted to admire.
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#5
the male did not understand the other's reasons for being here; having drank his fill, he lifted his stilt-like legs from the ground and moved off in an ambling walk.  the stranger offered no words -- not that it would have mattered, for they would have fallen on ears incapable of understanding. he did not the subtle cant of the creature's tail - a motion that was answered only by a slow blink of his moss green eyes.

he pulled himself around the bank and stopped a few feet from the creature, his thin muzzle held still as he attempted to scent out any recognizable stamp on the animal. drawing no markings he could identify, he pulled away and silently began to return to the heartland.
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#6
Some part of Tadec's pride was crushed as the coyote turned from him. His heart thrummed with a swift jab of chagrin, and he averted his gaze with a frown. Perhaps this other was uninterested with the wolf who stared at him with burning optics. The moss green of the coyote's gaze drifted away and he turned to vanish. The thief did not believe that he could just let this one go. He waited in place for a short while before lowering his skull toward the earth with a few sniffs, and followed after the stranger's scent. The spindly length of his limbs allowed for him to follow with ease, but he was sure to hold some distance so as not to spook the other male away. Tadec knew that it was more likely this creature was feral to the point that he would not speak a shared language, but the coywolf would never have forgiven himself if he did not at least try.
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it seemed ich'aak had more than one shadow committed to him that day. wordlessly he turned back once and glimpsed the intense burn of his follower's orange irises -- he made no move to quell tadec's behavior, yet he did not encourage it either.

he paused once to scent the air again and the scent of ptarmigan rifled through the cold wind -- ich'aak turned and stalked carefully through the thicket, his muzzle skimming the snow as he followed the scent of prey on quick limbs.
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#8
The smoky figure trailed after the coyote for some time before he felt out of place. While the silent creature moved on, Tadec paused and drew his head upward, watching for a short time before he found his limbs moving after – slowly – but still in pursuit. He was afraid that he could not chase for much longer in some instinctual fear that the other would react aggressively and punish him for his folly. The thief did not want to lose sight of his rare find, so he slunk 30 yards from the dark male’s heel.
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while ich'aak kept a long ear turned back on his shadow, he did not mind the company -- he remained neutral, trailing here and there on small steps of his slender paws -- the duo carried much this way until ich'aak came upon the scent of turkeys.

he slowed to a stop and lifted his needle-thin muzzle to the air, quietly assessing his surroundings. in the distance their warbles sounded and he briefly looked to tadec -- a silent invitation -- before he made carefully in the direction of their calls.
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The two slender creatures moved together for a short distance. Tadec felt pleased that the coyote would allow him to follow for the length of time that he had. His smoky limbs carried him skittishly in pursuit, but he was careful to remain respectful of space. When he would inch closer, the fire along his shoulders would rise against his fearful nature before he would put enough space between them to ease the troubled beating of his heart.
 
The warble of turkeys brought his lengthy ears to attention and he glanced toward the coyote with an expectant stare. There was a silent invitation; the thief accepted and hunkered himself low to hunt with his comrade. A swift nod ushered the other male forward. Tadec would assist however he could.  
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he glanced only once behind him to make sure tadec had followed - he was unaware of the male's trepidation, but perhaps it was for the best -- the male had a history of rash outbursts, and oft close proximity was the thing that ushered it.

he folded his limbs carefully and stalked forward, head held stiffly straight and ears painfully pressed forward. there was a small band of them, all drab of color and stepping about in light, nimble steps despite the bulkiness of their stature. ich'aak watched them hungrily, fastening his gaze on a female that strayed towards the fringes.

he swung wide and positioned himself carefully in front of her -- and when he felt the time was right, lunge suddenly from the leaf-litter and winter-battered briar with a snarl and teeth swinging.
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#12
In truth, the thief believed his happening upon Ich’aak to be nothing more than a dream. He knew that the dark coyote Inlé had often wandered through the barrier to speak with seers. Tadec did not possess the gift of the veheer, but he knew that the black coyote would present himself when he was needed. He was quick and sharp, and he carried with him the stories of his people so that he might share a life with those who were willing to be cunning. The hunt with Ich’aak was symbolic of many things, but it carried with it the winds of change.
 
Tadec circled wide and made himself into an ideal position to block the nild from fleeing into the fringes. Once the dark creature lunged for their prey, the thief steadied himself and waited for the bird to beat her wings in an attempted escape. With a snap of his teeth and bristling coat, the coywolf blocked her path and made for a secure catch between the fangs of the coyote hunter.
all the world will be your enemy, Prince of a Thousand Enemies. 
and when they catch you, they will kill you. but first they must catch you; 
digger, listener, runner, Prince with the swift warning. 
be cunning, and full of tricks, and your people will never be destroyed.
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#13
he burst like an apparition from concealment, his hungry eyes on the bird. she froze, a high warble of alarm moving her throat -- and with a flap and a flutter spun round. her escape was cut off by the coywolf, and she faltered on long limbs, talons scratching into the earth as she skipped into a long-legged sprint with wings flapping.

he fell upon her and she sunk to the ground in a scream -- with a shake of his head he snapped her neck and her movements slowed to a still -- for a moment her limbs still worked in a running pattern before they too stilled.

victorious, ich'aak turned to his comrade with the turkey tufted in his mouth: in silence he met the male's gaze for but a moment, dropped her body there, and retreated into the woods.
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#14
On nimble paws and with a swift snap of his jaws, the coyote had downed the bird. It relinquished its life with a strangled warble before its limp frame swung from the predator’s mouth. The hen’s limbs jerked one last time and then ceased all movement. The death of the bird did not phase the hunter; she would not have been the first of her kind to fall against the sharp knives of the stalker.
 
The catcher of the kill turned to Tadec with a mossy green stare. A burning feeling began in his toes and flourished as he felt it stretch belong his spindly limbs and upward toward his chest. At last, the fire reached his skull, and the coyote dropped the bird against the earth before turning and slinking away. The thief followed him with a quiet desperation – a pining for the means to understand this, his kin – but he said nothing. After several long moments, the crow drew his skull and yipped into the evening air a word of gratitude for the dark jaguar. He collected the bird and vanished into the darkness himself.
all the world will be your enemy, Prince of a Thousand Enemies. 
and when they catch you, they will kill you. but first they must catch you; 
digger, listener, runner, Prince with the swift warning. 
be cunning, and full of tricks, and your people will never be destroyed.