Wolf RPG

He and Nanuk were out patrolling the borders. She was drilling him on this Inuit as they wandered, going over the basic vocabulary he'd been practicing. He was starting to get the hang of it, or at least, he was starting to understand the basics. The simple words she'd given him were coming more easily than before and he was having to think less and less about them each time they were iterated. His progress was still slow, but he liked to think he was getting the hang of it. Something was always better than nothing.

In their wandering they caught the faint whiff of blood upon the air. Immediately they silenced and pressed forward, drawing towards the scent until they spied an injured moose in the distance. Female. Slow. Mm. And savory. He bumped shoulders with Nanuk before giving her a signal to wait and stalk. It was time to get his mate out of her den and back into action. Even if it wasn't much, a little bit of exercise would do wonders fight off the thralls of her late stages of pregnancy.

He'd be back.

Departing from the area he ventured back into the Spine and let out a series of short howls to summon his mate from the depths of her caverns. Upon finding her, he circled back, encouraging her from the shadows to cover herself not in mud, this time, but blood. This sport was far more up her alley. No doubt a reprieve such as this would do wonders to make her feel more alive again.

With some additional encouragement, they set off towards the borders and rejoined Nanuk who was diligently stalking and marking their prey. He exhaled with a puff of air between his nose, just enough to catch the white bear's attention as he hunkered down beside her to watch. Perhaps this time, they'd finally fell a moose. It was about time they stopped letting these things escape.

Tonravik was summoned from the den. It took very little encouragement; by the time she had been called forth, it was later in the day and cooling down some. She had all of the desire in the world to hunt, but the pregnant female had to first take care of the instinctual priority to find her whelping done. This found, there was nothing to stop her from participating in normal activities; she did not show, and her cubs were well protected. She could hunt, unhindered by the cubs within. This was not so stressful a task.

She moved beside her mate, ear-to-ear with him, whiskers twitching as her nostrils drank in the scent of their prey. Moose, again. They were difficult prey, and they had proven that twice over as they had failed to bring one down. There had been none that had such an injury as this... not at the time. The herd was a fit one, well fed by the greenery of their land, and strong for it.

But here one was weakened from bloodloss and its travel... her tail lashed behind her as she mirrored her mate, the movement natural and easy. Her muscles rippled beneath her glossy furs. While they were unkempt and were as wild looking as she was, her pregnancy had brought a sheen and thickness to her fur. She was no more prettier for it; in fact, the leader was all the more irritable. The heavier coat called for snow. The heat was suffocating. But for now, in the cool evening that approached, she suffered through it in an easier fashion than she would in the heat of the day.

The alpha female watched her beta with apt interest.

Her focus had sharpened in his temporary absence, tracking the cow while she hung back out of sight and scent. The pale creature had been working on her patience lately and this was yet another good exercise in it, as were her lessons with Iqniq. As displayed with Kingumut, she had a short fuse and knew, as Beta, she needed to learn some form of tolerance. Some. Kind of. It was a difficult thing for her but the fact that she enjoyed Iqniq's company helped. A lot. 

Her ears twitched, hearing the approach of her fellow leaders, gold eyes tearing form their intended quarry to glance at the two. With their careful steps, the moose had no idea of their intentions and so, to keep such silence, Nanuk's chin inclined the slightest bit in the direction on a side still downwind of the creature. It was not a motion of dominance but suggestion; to ensure the takedown of this plentiful meal, the three of them would need to be careful of their positions. 

In the quiet, her stomach growled, enticing her attention to turn back to the moose as she moved on her own, sure that they could communicate in such silence that they could operate together without discussion.

Nanuk was still ever focused on the task at hand. That injured cow would not last for long, not now that all three of them were tracking and stalking it across their lands. Iqniq caught the white wolf's suggestion and nodded. Downwind. Staying downwind would be good. They didn't want to spook the moose too soon, but it appeared to be very much on its last legs. Forcing it into a run would either boost its will to live, or bring it down that much more quickly. A gamble... Tempting.

He brushed past both females, moving with the stalking silence of a predator as he positioned himself on the far side of the moose. Still downwind. Still close, but far enough to fill in a few holes in their guard. With the three of them, they might be able to drive it towards the mountainous slopes of the Spine, slow it down, cause it to stumble... something that would drive it into their jaws.

Iqniq hunkered down. His eyes flickered between his company, watching and waiting for some sort of signal to give chase. This moose would be theirs. He was sure of it.

As her mate followed her beta's suggestion, Tonravik's remained where she was. They all were in decent positions, and Tonravik stood in a low-crouch. The moose was thus far oblivious, and she saw what Iqniq did. She was still downwind, and her tail was rigid behind her as she took a step forward. The alpha female could smell its blood, and could note the tiredness in its movements. This hardly meant it would be an easy hunt, and there was plenty of danger involved even still. But with the three of them combined, it could be done.

She inched forward slowly... but looked to Nanuk and Iqniq. The Gamekeeper's own ears twitched, and now she gestured toward their quarry. It would begin when they moved; Tonravik would linger as they herded it toward her, toward the Spine.

With her fellow leaders now in position, Kroc eyed the injured creature with a hungry sort of glint. Swining her path wide, she circled around to eventually mirror Iqniq's position. Only now, she was upwind of the creature. As it became aware, and more alert, the white Beta gave the signal for the others to ready themselves and then charged with a loud snarl, startling their large target into a gallop. She avoided a kick or two before snaking in and aiming teeth at its haunch to further spur it towards Tonravik, Iqniq surely on the herbivore's other side.

He hunkered down, waiting, and then Nanuk was off. Iqniq sprang from where he hid within the foliage and pressed forward with a growl to further ward off the moose and drive it towards Tonravik and the Spine. He'd snarled, but he had a feeling his presence was enough. The moose picked up his head and lurched in the direction they'd chosen for it, but it was already wounded and slow. It wouldn't get far.

Nanuk jumped, lunging for a flank. Iqniq was on the other side, harassing at a shoulder while he was thankful this moose was female and therefore did not have antlers. He nipped at it, drew blood, then moved in for it again as the moose continue to try escaping.

Tonravik drew closer and closer, quiet as she did so. It struggled already... and would struggle moreso. It was easier to take down than anticipated. An easy hunt was a rare one... but one that went appreciated. Her Beta snapped at the creature and so too did her mate. In time, they were able to goad it near to her. The alpha female sprung out from her cover and joined in as it struggled forward. She drove in from the opposite side; her mate was on one shoulder, and Tonravik went for the other. That first. Her fangs drove into its flesh and tore... and then released.

She was quick to drive forward again, this time going for its throat to pull it down with her. It was sluggish in its movements. The takedown was not at all difficult. She gripped and hung for a moment, before it lowered its head, relenting, giving up. It had no more fight in it at all.

As expected, the two wolves drove the creature towards the third part of their trio, who waited with jaws prepared to rip and tear. All at once, as Tonravik surged forward and met with the cow, the metallic tang of blood filled her nostrils. Quicker than most hunts did, this one ended, the moose falling to the ground as it gave in to its fate. 

She stood back now, as Tonravik and Iqniq both had first choice, effortlessly acknowledging rank, even if it was just the three of them right now.

This hunt was over before it had started. The moose had been worn down to its last legs and no longer had any fight left in it. No sooner had it realized Tonravik was before it, than the moose sealed its own fate and gave in. The leggy creature succumbed to death. After all of their previous dealings with moose, it was about time they had a stroke of luck. Here it was. Finally.

The moose fell. It breathed its last and now it was time for eating. He joined Tonravik at the moose's underbelly and moved aside to let her have better access at the liver. He went for other things, consuming his fill before he stepped aside to let Nanuk have her turn.

When all was said and done, they could drag this corpse back inside their rim, add its bones to the Pukulria, and save the rest for whoever of their own required a bite.

The trio fed, and the victory was a sweet one. Her restlessness abated to nothingness as she ate her fill, her mate eating alongside her. Her fill was greater than normal, her hunger having grown a great amount in thanks to the lives within. When finished, the beta would eat... and together they would bring the meat to the pack so they could be fed, too. Her lobes swiveled atop her head as she looked around them, scouting tiredly for any that might come and try to take this from them. Their end would be similar to this moose: swift.

Tonravik chuffed to her fellows, and readied herself for the haul of meat to the rest of the Spine.

Each of them ate their fill in the cow's meat, her belly satisfied in a way that a rabbit or other such morsel could not accomplish. In turn, this also placated her usually nasty mood a tad, letting her be a little more amicable in the coming days. And then the cycle would start all over again, as per normal life. When they had all finished, Nanuk's teeth latched into the carcass' hide and, with Iqniq (seeing as Tonravik was pregnant and letting her strain her body was a no-go), she dragged the thing back to their pack lands to allow the others to feast on their kill as well.

Thread fade.