Wolf RPG - The darkness lays on me

Anyone welcome, i'd prefer Jinx though as he will be following her and he is on the search for a queen...
Late Evening~

Red Eyes peered from the encompassed trees, while heart beat a tattoo in the brown furred beast. Saliva dripped from a maw covered in the blood of a former meal. Sin Eyed gaze took in all that was around, while silken nose of black smelled the other wolves that inhabited the outskirts of the place. They all smelled the same, much like his former pack did. If you could call it a pack. He however, had always smelled like the queen, his queen.

Large paws walked silently as he moved from tree to tree keeping quiet, staying hidden the very thing he was trained to do. Scarred and tattered ears swiveled and swayed as he listened to the wind whistling around and for any scurry or foot fall. The Queen was dead, he needed a new Queen. His rustic pelt matched the trees and he was able to skitter from one to the other, tense and vigilant, waiting and watching.

New Queen, New Queen...the mantra kept up a constant rhythmn in his feverish mind. Demon Queen....

Her preparations were nearly complete. Soon, Jinx would quit this place, and find solace elsewhere from the haunting recollection of her aborted babes. At times, she pointed the finger at the red-furred yearling that led the pack, but more often she reminded herself that Fox had meant her no harm that day. It was the callousness toward the Beta she disagreed with, but she would never say it aloud. In choosing to go elsewhere and lead in her own right, Jinx meant Fox no harm, but she wasn't naive enough to dare hope the spitfire youth wouldn't take it personally. It was the way of their breed, but nevertheless, it was never looked on favourably when someone dispersed.

Still, this knowledge wasn't sufficient to suspend her purpose. She made her plans anyway, and meant to go through with them anyway. Swiftcurrent Creek had served her well, but she knew now that remaining here to uphold Lethe's vision wasn't the life she was meant to lead. She was destined for greater things... Or so she told herself.

But still she roamed the borders, bound to them by habit and duty, for she hadn't left yet. She still upheld the values of the Creek, albeit they were aligned with her own (for the most part). And she still approached newcomers as a representative of Swiftcurrent Creek, though at times she saw value in the wolves she came across, and yearned to whisper of her plans to them. She refrained, for the most part... But not always.

Jinx was the first to see the slavering beast at their doorstep. He was large, built like a wolf who had worked hard all his life, but in his eyes was a strange vacancy she couldn't identify. Saliva pooled in his jaw and trickled from his lips. For a moment, she imagined she was seeing a wolf whose soul had been taken by Sos, their body nothing but a husk left to wander the world with no purpose at all. Her imagination didn't stop her from carrying herself forward and curling her tail over her spine to flag it dominantly, taking her place as Swiftcurrent's Beta.

"Halt," she called out, unwilling to allow the skulker to disappear before she could question him. "Why are you loitering here?"

Tattered ears and battle scarred face turned to look at the one in front of him. A smile of wolfish delight lit up his features as he saw a femme of beauty undeniable. A new queen for the once slave of the queen. Vacant eyes took her in for a moment as he forgot his place.

Realizing where he was and what he was doing he hit the ground and rolled to his back submitting himself completely. Speaking in a voice raspy from ill use, he spoke but five words. "Demon Queen. My Demon Queen. He lay on the ground looking up at his new found queen as the voices in his feverish mind quieted to a slow hum, changing in pitch and content "command me command me."

Red eyes were glowing as he waited for the new Queen. He had not chosen her, he knew she had been put there for him to be chosen. She had been waiting for him, just as his mother always said. She told him the queen would always find him always he could go no where, do nothing be nothing she would find him and when she was taken away and he was lost she had found him again just as his mother had said.

She was almost ready to drive him off, so strange was his transformation from hulking, drooling beast to submissive, delightful subordinate, but her ego would not allow her rationality through. It swelled with the passive submission he offered, and she stepped forward to engage him, sniffing his underside and deeming his display adequate in one way or another. It was the words he said that truly sold her, however, for while Jinx had absolutely no idea what he was referring to, she had always loved the opportunity to pretend to be something she wasn't.

"Yesss," she hissed, rising above him in a fashion she thought the strange, servile brute might find appealing. "Demon Queen, that is I. Tell me, what worthy beast seeks out the demon queen?" She could play this role, drawing on her voodoo knowledge, her ego, and of course, her cunning. Jinx might not have been the most intelligent wolf around, but she knew when and how to be crafty. Whatever Sitri was looking for, she wasn't it, but that didn't mean she wouldn't manipulate him into believing she was, so willing was he to believe it.

Of course, if it turned out to be some sort of freaky fetish, she would be quick to put an end to it. Despite their tension over what had happened with Haunter, Jinx knew she belonged to Lecter. For now, the selfish Kesuk would play along, keen to be worshipped as though she was some sort of demon queen in reality.

Ferdie Von Pelt carried his fresh caught goose, the birds were returning the the area and made plentiful game if one was patient enough to catch a bird. He had no den the bring the bird to to eat so he was looking for a quiet place to lay and enjoy his catch. Soon though he came up upon a wolf, He did not notice the second at first glance just the white female, she was not the Alpha but her scent and stance bespoke that she was close in rank here, He had not yet met this wolf though he knew her scent well.

He took three steps toward her planing on greeting her and offering his catch to her, when he heard a male voice and froze mid-step. His gaze snapped to the ground below the femme finding it occupied by a groveling wolf, his hackles raised of their own accord something about that male made him leery.

Ferdie’s head scanned the area he was now at the loss of what to do, The beta seemed accepting of the male so he had no need to defend the femme. Something just screamed ‘wrong, wrong wrong’ to him. Should he just wait until they left or just offer the beta the kill as he had intended to do so that he could get a better look at the male. He had stood there much to long to make pretending not to have noticed them and continuing past an option anymore.

Ferdie continued to stay put, his tail dropped low, if they wanted to ignore him he’d just quickly leave but if he was looked upon or acknowledged he’d have to draw closer to them so as to not be rude.

Sitri's red eyes blazed as the queen pulled herself to her full height, he smiled his wolfish smile again and said in the gravelly voice full of ill use, "Sitri just Sitri am I. Before he could say or notice anything else he smelled blood and then he heard very quiet footfalls. Swiveling his ears listening for the area apparent for the sound.

Blank Red eyes snapped towards the other wolf and his eyebrows lowered and he spoke two words, Shadow skulker. That was all he was not being rude nor anything not that he was really capable of such feelings he was just letting the queen know that there was another there standing looking on. The voices in his head increased in volume in pitch Control control follow orders, warned control

He shifted his weight and began to pull himself up from the position he was in, refusing to be that low when there was another not as high as the queen near, he would keep a submissive body, but he would not be completely submissive now that there were three.

"Sitri," she repeated, unsure how to proceed in this role but pulling on some gut instincts. "Yes, the spirits told me you would come. I am glad to see you." In truth, she knew nothing of him, but it was easy to play pretend, especially when he was giving her something so vague to go off of. But soon they were interrupted as the dark-furred brute identified a watcher, and Jinx turned her head to see Ferdie.

She had never met him one-on-one, but she recalled his name from the spring festival. "Ferdie," she acknowledged, beckoning the man forward if he chose to come forward. "This is Sitri. He will be joining us." She sincerely hoped Ferdie would take his leave before she did, merely so she could whisper to Sitri her secret plans to quit the Creek well out of the male's earshot, but for the time being he was welcome. "Did you need something?" she questioned the man, noting the goose corpse accompanying him but saying nothing about it. She swivelled an ear to show Sitri he still had her attention, but her gaze remained on the Creek male.

Both stared at him now, he felt very much the outsider even though they were members of his home pack. Strange he thought to himself, but to far was the point of escape stage left now. He wondered if the other male wolf would be jealous of the gift he was to give the beta female. Is was then he realized he did not know her name, no one had spoken it around him and he had never spoken directly to her, or about her. It irked him that none of the wolves of this pack shared their names. He knew but 4 wolves by name, actually 5 now his gazed passed fleetingly over Sitri, then dismissed him for the beta he wanted to earn the favor of.

Ferdie Von Pelt did not creep forward, he walked toward the female with a lot more confidence then he felt, he certainly didn't want to be attacked, the other wolf was about his size and looked like an experienced fighter. One on one Ferdie might... might stand a chance of defense but if the pair attacked well he'd just count the moments until last breath.

Ferdie set the goose at her paws, oddly they were different then her body like someone had taken feet from another and gave them to her, for what purpose would remain elusive, or perchance they were natural he had seen to many strange things to discount either plausibility. He nudged the goose a smidgen closer and backed up one step to offer respect.

"I wanted to offer this to you, I have not seen you around but I know you are close to the alpha and so I wanted to show you my respect" He offered her a smile and swayed his tail slightly. He glanced at the male and quirked an eye brow, the male may have been offering himself to the beta

but Ferdie having no idea her plans had offered his loyalty to the pack and therefore in his mind his loyalty to her and something more tangible to nourish her body and keep her healthy. He felt rather proud of himself, hoping the beta would forgive his actions at the pack meet, He hated this somber cloud over the pack and he was bound and determined to break it.

He had no idea he might actually be making Jinx mad in front of Sitri by inferring there was another wolf higher then herself

Sitri like always was watchful. He did not move more than a fraction of an inch as his queen and this other one spoke. He knew she would find him, she always did her and the demons. They always found their demon brethren always, he shouldn't have worried for no leader for nothing.

He frowned at first as the male brought food, but the other soon gained a semblance of his favor when he gave it to the queen. She would need nourishment, it would soon be spring, hunting and fighting would become normal as they always had been and she would lead.

The voices began to quiet in his head as he was now near the queen again, she always quieted the demons she had placed there always. He knew it was to control him, make him more her's he belonged to her mind, body soul. The demon, the skulker the red eyed one all monikers he had carried in his years of service.

Ferdie's explanation was satisfactory, and his gift accepted graciously. Jinx had never really been into taking food from other wolves, at least not her pack mates, but the occasional offer tickled her ego in a way that mere obedience couldn't do. "Thank you," she said gratefully, with a much lighter air than she had carried at the festival. The pack had lightened up a lot since then. It had merely been bad timing for Ferdie, though truthfully, Jinx scarcely remembered the pack being frustrated with him at the time.

"Perhaps you could take a message to Lecter for me? He lives on the edge of the territory, skulls everywhere, can't miss it. Tell him there is another wolf here who could benefit from learning a little of his shamanic art. Perhaps later, we can talk, get to know one another a little better." Because Ferdie had been respectful up until now, and because Jinx wasn't always a complete ass, she sought another way to shake his presence long enough to give Sitri proper instructions about her plan to found another pack elsewhere. The easiest way, and probably the most useful for him, was to send him off on an errand, with the promise (whether she meant to keep it or not) of catching up with him another time.

Jinx certainly didn't mean any ill to Ferdie. He had done nothing wrong, and was in fact an asset to Swiftcurrent in more ways than one. Unfortunately, her immediate plans did not include him, and so she had to be rid of him.

Ferdie had not yet learned the outlying wolfs name and had not yet found a tactful way to introduce himself to the wolf the beta femme named as Lecter. Quite frankly he wasn't sure he had wanted to meet the other wolf, he seemed strange from a distance.

The beta mentioned 'Shaminac arts', perhaps that was why 'lecter' seemed so different, perhaps that wolf wasn't as bad as he looked. Ferdie nodded, not used to being a messenger boy but being fleet of foot; he wanted to make amends for the fiasco at the pack meet. The others may have not remember his actions he was not something the pack members were even prepared to think about, but it had stung his pride and left an emotional scar he meant to heal some how.

"I'll howl when the message has been passed along, ma chère" Ferdie gave her a name since he had nothing else to call her by but this suited him just fine he had been giving all the wolves in the pack nicknames in his own mind since clearly not many wanted to share their own names willingly. However in saying this; he meant he would not return once the message was passed along, it never occured to him to just howl the message to Lecter, he was going to go straight to the wolf.

He turned; scented the air, and finding Lecter's scent, which was particularly easy, off he went at an easy lope

Sitri's ears swiveled as he listened to the other two speaking. He took the time to shift his eyes around and gather intel on the outlying area. Lecter his ears flicked forward a fraction of an inch. Another name, another favorite of the queen it sounded like, he would have to meet this one, find a common ground.

Tongue swiped at a scarred muzzle as the blood and gore from his former meal dripped softly onto the ground. He had yet to clean his muzzle or fur, he would presently. Shifting his paws yet again he watched as the other male ran off. He turned red eyes to the queen. "Any orders for Sitri queen? The quiet tones of his scratchy voice fell loud on the quiet night air as he waited for any and all orders she would give him and he would do exactly what it was she asked no matter what it was she asked.

She watched Ferdie go with a grateful grimace, knowing it was unfair to the male to send him away but unwilling to risk her plans. When she was very certain he was out of earshot, the Beta turned back to the red-eyed brute, who presently asked for orders. Her ears swivelled around to survey her rear as she took a step nearer the newcomer, pitching her head lower to indicate what she was about to say was important.

"Soon, we will be leaving this place for another. Be ready when I call. In the meantime, blend in, learn what you can. Speak of this to no one." That seemed like a fair enough order. On second thought... "The man I named before, Lecter, is a friend to us. Do not speak of it to him, but know you can trust him. There is another... Ira. You will meet him in time."

Twitching her ears, the Beta straightened and pulled her lips back into a tight wolfish grin. "No other orders," she said, feeling the power of those words coiling in her chest.

Sitri's right ear went back as he listened and he nodded his head at her. "Will obey you. He looked around again and put the names Ira and Lecter away for another day. He was on a mission, time to blend in learn what he could. He was not good at blending in, he would have to sneak and snarl, that he was good at.

Gonna fade here. :D Thanks for the thread!

"Good," she said smoothly, pausing only once to add, "you may call me Jinx if you prefer." Demon Queen stoked her ego, and she would hold it close as a private title, but it wasn't her name. It would appear strangely to Ira and Lecter for some stranger to be calling her Demon Queen in their presence, after all. Without further adieu, the Beta stepped aside to invite Sitri into their (temporary) home, then chose to walk with him for a short time before parting ways. She had no doubt the beast would find some way to fit in with the Swiftcurrent wolves until the time was right.