drakon stepped into the cold waters of arrow lake, blood blooming from where the redfern wolf stepped like a grisly flower. a few shallow defensive wounds stung at the touch of water, but the warrior ignored it. the scene was painted clearly enough; a half-eaten corpse in the background, blood from both wolf and prey smeared across the ground. but drakon's wounds had come after the hunt.
beyond the abandoned meal, the body of a wolf twitched in its final death throes. some unfortunate soul, some poor bastard who'd been too hungry to care that he was risking his life against one far healthier and younger than himself over a scrap of a meal. drakon felt no guilt. the older wolf's death had been necessity. there were no rules in the wilds.
east of the canyon, narrow stone gave way to a resplendent lakeshore.
it was the sort of place that might draw claiming. germanicus had become aware now of mereo's status as no longer alone within the sunspire.
and so he was cautious.
blood drew a flare of the eagle's nostrils. there was both prey and a wounded wolf, riddled with teeth marks. germanicus knew the scene at once.
his eyes searched for the perpetrator and found him: a rangy, hardbuilt male of layered hues. the imperator drew to a stiff halt. "hail. you are far too close to my claim and you have killed." but he did not advance. the roman was silent with command for the other to answer.
a voice interrupted the methodical cleaning of his wounds. eyes of molten gold lifted to find the source, settling on a dark wolf who held himself with the unmistakable bearing of one who led others. his words confirmed as much.
ah shit, sorry. didn't notice any packs nearby,
he stepped out of the water, wary but neutral in his posture. with a gesture in the direction of his dead foe, drakon added, a thief. or, he would have been, had i lost. but i guess i'd be pretty suspicious to find a dead rando in my backyard and some scrappy lookin' motherfucker soaking the blood off in my lake. look, you want me gone, i'll get lost. give me a direction that leads away from your pack and i'll fuck right off. i'm a fighter, but not a shit-stirrer.
at least, until someone really pissed him off.
the boy was unobservant, foulmouthed, and sloppy.
these things could be forgiven granted his age. but as the ticks and gasps of the dying wolf went on, germanicus found it untenable.
the boy admitted to being a fighter. the eagle could see the carefulness in the stranger's step.
mereo would always embrace such. germanicus chose to test the boy.
"dispatch him." he jerked his chin toward the expiring creature. it was an order and a blunt one. the way the young wolf reacted would tell germanicus many things.
dispatch him. drakon stilled at that, rendered speechless for a moment as he studied the man. his gaze followed the gesture to the dying wolf, and in the span of a single heartbeat he considered his options. he could tell this guy to fuck off and find his own way away from the pack. he could... attack him? no, fuck that.
or he could just get it over with. the dude was suffering, and he was just going to die anyway. it made sense.
so he did as he was bid, wasting only a second on his hesitation. blood ran down his forelegs and paws as he moved toward the dying wolf, leaving crimson pawprints. his teeth closed around the other's neck with an iron grip and two violent jerks, crushing his airway on the first and breaking his neck on the second. it was done.
it was only to end his suffering, he told himself after, but he knew it didn't matter. he'd been given an order, and he'd obeyed... and now he waited for the next, if it was to come.
the stranger was efficient.
the imperator approached and looked over the body, then back toward the younger man. "next time an attempted thief sets upon you, sever one of the large arteries in the wrist or the thigh. the death will be swifter and easier than that."
he looked around the place, at the blood and churned earth, at the red stains in the water.
"the pack to which you are so close is mereo. it is a strict training ground for soldiers with opportunity for promotion and outside missions." he stood in the mien of a centurion with arms crossed behind his back.
"if you are not in search of a home, head east until you depart the mountains. this will put you in sight of a valley, and beyond that, the taiga."
the alpha approached and spoke words of advice, and drakon went very still again. this time it was with the dawning realization that the man before him was... sort of a badass. what even was an artery? he thought it best not to ask just yet; the alpha wasn't done speaking. instead he accepted the advice with a dip of his head, a show of gratitude and respect for one with more experience than himself.
mereo. a training ground for soldiers. honestly, it sounded cool as fuck. depressing, probably, but cool. and drakon was already pretty depressed, so why the hell not? he could use a little more discipline in his life anyway.
and if i am?
he ventured. what does mereo expect from prospective soldiers?
"obedience and hard work. you will have the right to choose a wife inside mereo. but first and foremost you would be a soldier."
germanicus stood down, his posture moving toward one more relaxed.
"you are able to kill. i would want to know if you can take orders." the yellowpaint eyes tested the boy.
a soldier. with a wife. ha. drakon wasn't much one for obedience, hard work, or wives, but maybe some of those things could be helped. others could be set aside. he needed a change, and maybe this could be it.
if he could take orders. he wasn't certain that was within his range of ability, not after the life he'd lived, but he could certainly try. i can,
he said with a confident roll of his shoulders, stepping away from the dead wolf.
but i have one more question. what does mereo fight for?
that was the purpose of soldiers, wasn't it? there was no way he'd fight without knowing why.
"mereo was formed from a war. we stand as a buffer between that outcome and the flatlands. but we may be prevailed upon to fight. when and if that day comes, i will expect no less than fullest bravery and utmost loyalty to whatever cause i give you."
the eagle preferred to speak so directly. the scruffed young wolf before him could be a fighter, or he could remain a wandering opportunist.
but if he chose to stay, then he would change. he would be shaped.
the man's response was more than a few words long, but none among them were the ones drakon was looking for. he was, at least, able to guess at the answer he wanted. so - mereo fights for peace?
drakon sounded amused by the concept, but approval glinted in his eyes. the question was largely rhetorical, and he didn't wait for an answer. alright. i'll do it. name's drakon. there's one thing you should know about me. i've spent most of my life alone. there's a lot i don't know. but i'm willing to learn.
"yes. we are ready to rise to keep peace as well."
the boy spoke and the eagle heeded.
"learning is a stipulation to live in mereo. it does not matter how quickly you learn, only that you are able to be educated."[/b]
he stood to one side, expecting drakon to follow as he wheeled about and strode back toward mereo. "solitude is a virtue. but it is not in practice among these soldiers."
wrapping this up!
drakon was faintly relieved when the man didn't seem disappointed by his admission. instead he took it in stride, laying out the expectations for drakon very clearly.
i can work with that,
he said, already well aware that this would be a big change in his life. as they walked, they spoke only a little more. drakon finally got his name somewhere along the way. germanicus. what a weird ass name.