Sakari had skirted around the great mountain at the heart of the hinterlands, scenting the presence of many wolves in the area. It was a pack, no doubt. She would visit later, to see what opportunities might show themselves.
She did not expect to come upon evidence of another pack so nearby, and yet... the markers at the opening to the valley were unmistakable. Sakari moved along the bank of the river, which formed a natural border for the strath in addition to the scent markers laid down heavily on its banks.
The girl continued along the riverbank. The afternoon light fell upon her inky pelt as the river brought her out of the cedar woods.
gonna backdate this to like 2/27/22 so she can be present lol
The time was drawing ever closer. She would give birth soon, she could feel it, almost like a second sense.
It was probably just instinct though.
Patrolling the borders one of the final times she'd get before eventually going into labor, the Warmaiden came upon the small ebony girl with an analytic stare.
"This is the home of The Saints. I am Fury, the Warchief. What can I do for you?" She rumbled. Her tone was not unwelcoming, but it warned against the potential for any funny business to occur.
Sakari's movements became more guarded as she emerged from the safety of the trees. Mountains framed either side of the swatch of land she traversed, indicating that there was only one way in to (and therefore one way out of) the valley. If she ran into trouble in there, the options for escape would be limited.
Speaking of trouble...
A large, ivory someone moved toward her, and Sakari stiffened, prepared to bolt. The size of the woman and the scars upon her pelt indicated that she could flatten Sakari with one paw-swipe. This was not a wolf she should mess with.
Except..
Do you know a big white woman? Nyra?
A snatch of old conversation came to mind, rooting Sakari in place. If this was Nyra, then there was an opportunity here.
What could she do for Sakari?
"Oh, well.." Sakari tilted her head, considering. The woman-who-was-possibly-Nyra seemed peaceable and yet guarded, indicating to Sakari that she would not be easily fooled. "I suppose I was just looking for information about the area, if you have the time. My name is Sakari." The woman would not know it, but the offer of her true name was a rarity.
"If the Saints have a Warchief, does that mean you are at war?" Hopefully it wasn't too intrusive a question, but Sakari was deeply interested. Wars were good, for people like Sakari. Lots of opportunities.
Fury's lip twitched at the edge with a ghost of a smile.
"It's just another title for 'Alpha' here. Though the name of Saint is rather...notorious." She replied. The Warmaiden's ears were at attention, listening for any movement in their surroundings.
She couldn't not be cautious. Especially while pregnant and dually with so many who want her head.
Notorious, huh? Sakari figured as much, if there was a woman a whole world away who was interested in the whereabouts of this big, white woman.
"So it would seem. I ran into a woman in the taiga who searched for a 'big, white woman..'" Sakari's eyes drifted over Fury's form. She truly was gigantic, so much so that Sakari had almost missed the fact that she was pregnant.
There would be pups, then. And the Saints had enemies. Perhaps this was why these Saints had tucked themselves so far out of reach, back here on this strath.
"..The woman she sought was called Nyra, though," Sakari added, watching Fury's expression.
Fury's gaze glinted with interest at this information. A woman in the Taiga who searched for...a big white woman named Nyra.
Her.
Who she used to be, anyway.
Fury kept this fact close to her chest and well out of sight.
"Doesn't trying a bell. We're a militaristic pack, but we've been keeping to ourselves. Haven't met any strange faces around, except for you." She said in turn. A lie, in small part, but a necessary one for now, she felt.
The pack kept to itself, but it was somehow notorious? Sakari sensed a complicated backstory. Again, she wondered if the Saint's chosen location was a retreat of sorts. Obviously their policy of keeping to themselves was a new one, if they had managed to become notorious.
Fury was quick to dismiss Sakari's information about the woman searching for Nyra. The waif could not tell if she spoke truthfully or not, but it was clearly a subject on which Fury did not intend to linger. Sakari would not press. She was still acutely aware of their size difference.
"I see." No strange faces in the area, huh? "So does that mean that the pack at the mountain are associates of yours?" Sakari pointed over her shoulder with her muzzle, indicating the Nimbus Summit.
Fury glanced the direction of the Summit. She'd been there before, but not at all recently. There weren't scents when she and Arashi arrived...
Interesting.
"They weren't there when me and mine came to settle within the Strath." Fury answered, expecting the reply to hold an obvious negative.
Hopefully nothing came of this other pack sharing the area...
"We didn't always keep to ourselves. It's a recent development, given the notoriety. There's been war, disbandment in the past. And now I'm piecing things back together." Fury eventually said. Her cold yet steady gaze held the silent question of recruitment. Was that what Sakai wanted?
The unspoken question hung between them. Sakari waited, to see if an offer would be extended. If Fury showed anything that looked like eagerness or desperation, Sakari would have the advantage.
But no. Fury was far too clever (or experienced) to tip her hand, it would seem. The silence stretched on, and Sakari finally broke first.
"I'm not a warrior, Fury," Sakari admitted, flicking her tail in a dismissive gesture. "But maybe there is some way I could be of use?" Sakari's intelligent gaze flicked quickly to Fury's belly, and then back to her features. Fury would pop soon, and the last thing Sakari wanted was to get stuck looking after a bunch of squalling infants. She would try her luck at getting an assignment outside the Strath, at least for the time being.
"I could check out that new pack for you. Get myself in, have a look around, talk to some locals, report back." It was her usual line of work: obtaining and selling information.
Fury allowed the silence to drag until the maiden broke it. After all, it was her, not the wardog, to approach.
The waif admitted to not being a warrior. Fury's expression didn't change, save for the approval in her amber gaze.
"I will allow you to pledge to my pack. There is a place for every talent among The Saints. Even spies, and those who prefer to stick to the shadows." Fury responded, assuming Sakari preferred that line of work.
It was the truth, one she'd known as long as she'd known the title of Saint itself.
"As for the pack on the summit, I don't want trouble we're not ready for by having you infiltrate them. If you wish for an immediate assignment, I will send you on my behalf to let them know we're here. Let them know I am due to deliver my pups any day now, or I would have also showed." Fury allowed a pause in her words for the mission to sink in.
"Also extend the invitation for their alphas to come meet me personally, when they are able."
Best to discuss possible alliances face to face. Which would probably be difficult with her watching over her children in the days to come. But if these neighbors were well-meaning, they might understand why Fury was inviting them to her instead of coming to them on her own paws.
They'd have to wait and see.
A dip of her muzzle would be her dismissal, if Sakari wished to leave immediately. If not, then it would be an invite to ask for further details if needed.
She would not receive the extended assignment she requested. Sakari did not allow her disappointment to show on her features.
"You got it, boss. I should be back tonight." Run a quick message, earn a meal. That was easy enough. The spying work that Fury mentioned intrigued her, but there would be time to ask about that later. Judging by the bulge of her womb, Sakari figured that Fury had other things on her mind right now.
She was dismissed with a nod. A small, secretive smile flickered across her features, a beat before she dipped her own chin in farewell.
Sakari melted back into the shadows of the Cedar Sweep.