Everyone's welcome! Just kind of threw this out into the bloodbath of threads competing for attention to see who would join. Planning to use this to get me started on my way to Gamekeeper. ^.^
It had been a week or two since the young wolf had joined Redhawk Caldera. She had done a fair amount of hunting, but winter was closing in on all the wolves of Teekon Wilds, and prey everywhere was becoming scarcer. So Somnia had decided to venture outside of the borders for the first time since joining the caldera wolves. So her first (and only) destination for the day was The Heartwood. Her logic was that a place unoccupied by a pack would have more available prey. Plus, the forested area would provide more food, and shelter from some of the light snow for the rodents Somnia hoped to bring home.
She had got up at the crack of dawn, leaving without telling anyone. Somnia planned to be back before nightfall, so she doubted anyone would notice her absence. Maybe a comrade guarding the borders might notice her scent leading out, but any worries of her leaving Redhawk Caldera would be diminished when she was back before the next day. She would have to leave the Heartwood a bit before evening struck to meet her deadline at a gentle jog, but it didn't worry her.
After a long, uneventful trot to The Heartwood, Somnia got down to business. Scenting the air, she pushed aside the smell of moldy leaves and tried to detect prey. Out of a couple different rodent scents, she singled out the freshest; a rabbit. Somnia stealthily tracked the rabbit, trying not to be louder than the sounds of nature in the forest. Finally, she caught sight of her goal. Her goal caught sight of her. They were off, just like that. A game of chase that was life or death.
Somnia kept her attention on the rabbit, a brown blob bobbing up and down through the debris. An intuitive sense of grace came over her, deftly dodging the trees and other obstacles without even realizing they were there. A mixture of leaves and snow flew by in her wake. It took forever, but happened in a single moment. Somnia had won.
She grabbed her prize by its broken neck. Now she only needed to catch a few more before she had to start her journey home.
Hope you don't mind this fool. :)
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Kadezj knew what happened to sick limbs festering with infection. They grew inactive and frail with disuse, the sickness spread, and then they were gone. Sometimes the limb, if you were lucky. Usually the self. Without a store of herbs or healer to tap into, the nomad could only rely on his instincts to help his body heal, and today his instincts told him to keep moving. Limping on the leg which had the worst of it, the hybrid wove his way deeper into the Heartwood, where he had been staying since he and Justice had arrived in this valley.
It had done well by him so far. It's close proximity to the lake allowed for him to keep his wounds clean and his thirst slaked, and its dense foliage was a blessing in the high winds of late. They howled and shook through the trees like a clarion call, and obscured the finer sounds of the forest's teeming life. But while the sounds of the wind blended things together, the scents it carried were distinct.
Death flooded Kadezj's nostrils with a rush into his chest, and he felt his body lurch with desire to taste the newly departed flesh. Turning, he put his muzzle to the air, following the fresh kill. Its killer came to him on the same wind, and he began limping in that direction. Perhaps it was time he befriended the locals - now that they had something to offer him, that was.
Somnia was trying to catch scent of another victim when she caught the scent of a wolf. She could tell that the wolf was a male, and that he was older. Oh, it also seemed to be coming her way.
Defensively, she stepped over her kill, preparing to defend it should it be at stake. Her posture wasn't aggressive, but it was clear that she was making an attempt to protect what was rightfully hers. Somnia hoped that she wouldn't have to fight the stranger for her rabbit. She was more of a peaceful being, who would rather clash with words than teeth and claws.
It was still a possibility that the stranger might not even come near her. Even so, she focused her eyes in the direction of his scent, scanning for any wolf-like shapes hidden by the undergrowth.
His gate was checked by his impeding injuries, but he still managed to move softly through the forest, disturbing little as he went. He could feel saliva welling between his teeth and pooling over his tongue as the scent of the kill grew closer to him, and his hunger was not extinguished by the presence of a female wolf guarding it.
Her piercing eyes came into view between the trees and judging by her stance, she had little trust in the movements of the forest not to take her prize from her. Against a scavenging coyote perhaps her catch would be well defended - but Kadezj was only half coyote, and he could not take a meal from someone by force if tried at the moment. He could rely only on his wits. Dropping his ears to the sides of his head and lowering his skull, he limped forward to a stop, tail waving lowly behind him.
"Apologies for the intrusion," he stated, keeping fair distance. He held up his injured leg from touching the ground and so stood three legged, his weary and tired body hopefully doing most of the talking here. His ribs were highlighted with every deep breath he took, his fur pulled tight against them in disarray. He would have to appeal to the wolf's empathy before anything else - and see if this valley really were full of the fabled "good-natured" canines he'd only heard of in fairy tales.
A half-coyote, half-wolf was the scented being. He limped into view with a fairly respectful attitude. He had his tail low and his ears against his skull. Along with the apology, as well as the injuries. The wolf kept his distance, making no move towards her food. Somnia relaxed her defending posture a lot, although she still kept her eye on the injured wolf.
Her sympathy immediately went out to him. His injuries must of made it hard for him to take care of himself. Though because of said injuries, Somnia didn't view him as a threat for her food. If he dared to fight her for it, even if he had more experience, his injuries would give her the win. If he tried to steal it without a fight, she could quickly catch him before he got far.
Somnia almost wanted to share with him, to make his life a little bit easier, but she restrained herself. This was food that would help her pack through the upcoming winter. If prey was scarce, they needed all the food they could get ahead of time. But how would this wolf survive the winter? How would she like it if she had to starve because she couldn't hunt? Delaying her empathy, she decided to gain more insight to the situation.
Somnia accepted his apology with a slight nod. She also introduced herself, hoping that the wolf would do the same. "My name is Somnia. I come from the nearby pack of Redhawk Caldera."
The dim light inside the forest played with the gray and white contrast of the female wolf's features as though she were flitting in and out of existence. If truth be told, it was hard for Kadezj to discern what was a play of the light and what was the impact of fever on his brain. But she appeared for the most part clear, and he had to trust that the shifts in her body were relaxation, and not a musing of his mind.
He did not change his own position, but his ears twitched as she replied, and already the warrior's heart was confused and intrigued. She did not seem hostile in the slightest, and while not every chance meeting with a stranger turned to violence in Kadezj's past, they certainly were not cordial. He decided it would indeed be best to play along and adapt to this style of interaction - at least while there was fresh meet around.
"Ah, a local. I have been wanting to see one for myself," he confessed, knowing that truth was a valuable tool to any discourse. "I am Kadezj. I roamed far south of here, once upon a time." He extended his had forward slightly but did not lift - sniffing at the air and inhaling the tender aroma of death.
It was a civil war between personality and common sense. Somnia had empathy and sympathy inculcated into her, as it had helped find common ground in past situations. But, her common sense was telling her that this wasn't the time for that. Why waste food on this wolf who she'll probably never see again? Kadejz was already injured, and death was a possibility for him. After all, he couldn't hunt for food in this state. She thought he would likely starve to death.
That was where she caved. The thought that this wolf could starve, while she could've done something about it, was overbearing. Knowing that she might regret it later, Somnia asked, "You want half?" After all, it couldn't hurt to give him half a rabbit. She could hunt for more, and she would just pay for it in her share of the pack meals. No harm done to the pack, just a penalty for her.
Somnia started ripping the rabbit into two not-so-equal halves.
Kadezj licked his lips, and could not suppress a smile. While it at first fled to his lips in a rush of triumph, he turned its appearance into one of gratitude the moment it flitted over his features. He tipped his nose to the ground, a gesture of thanks at her kind offer, and even shifted on his toes as though he were impatient to rush upon it. In truth, he knew he would not starve out the winter. He had Justice to his aid. But she was not around, and she was but one wolf - she did not have the benefit of a pack to keep her healthy, and she too would wear down if she were to keep hunting for the both of them for much longer.
This was a gift he was not about to let lie. As Somnia ripped apart the rabbit, Kadezj lifted his eyes again. "If it does not inconvenience you much," he agreed, "It would be dangerous of me not to accept your offer," he said in the closest language he had to a thank you. He wanted to appear humble, despite thinking only with his stomach and feeling minutes from pouncing on his half and devouring it in one bite. Instead, he gently lowered his haunches, careful of his injuries as he did so, and waited for Somnia to complete the separation and offer him his share. "This Redhawk Caldera, what is its territory? Do you roam much?" he asked, realizing in addition to food he stood well to get information from this stranger.
Somnia finished the separation, then stepped forward to give one half to Kadezj. After dropping the meat at his feet, she stepped back to where she was previously standing. Somnia had seen his gesture of thanks, as well as his smile of gratitude. His speech didn't affect her, as there were others she knew who had weird ways of speaking.
As for the questions, she answered truthfully. "Redhawk Caldera, it is a dormant, topless volcano to the southwest. As for the territory, it is fixed. Although the members are allowed to roam outside the territory. Some, like me, primarily stick to the territory without venturing much. Others spend just as much time outside the borders as in the borders. What about you? Do you have plans to stay in The Heartwoods?"