Wolf RPG

Dante had noticed Koda's absence around the plateau and quite honestly was a bit relieved.  He wasn't sure how to handle the man and his ideals.  He hadn't trusted himself to respond after the hunt, hearing the parting remarks spoken.  He in no way agreed... Quite the opposite.  Even in his birth pack, one of his father's captains had been a female, and she had been the most capable tutor he had ever had.  The game master's flagrant disrespect angered him greatly, and he needed to have a cool head to decide what could be done about it.  Normally, he wasn't one to besmirch a wolf their beliefs.  But when those beliefs belittled another of the pack and caused turmoil within the ranks, something needed to be done.

With a low growl of irritation at his own inability to deal with this, Dante set himself to the task of digging a new cache nearer to his den.  He wasn't sure if they needed one, but the labor of clawing at the frozen ground was oddly satisfying and allowed for a clearer mind.  He had found out as much when hollowing his den, but now that that task was complete, this seemed the second best excuse.

After the strange, disfigured wolf fell out of sight by the lake, Saena kept on running. She ran until her legs burned and then she ran some more, unable to keep the image of Honey Badger's hollowed remains from flitting across her eyelids. Even as fatigue grabbed her muscles and forced her to slow, Saena didn't dare stop for rest. She had to get home, she had to warn them what lurked in the north.

When she laboriously ascended the plateau's towpath and struggled into the forest, Saena wanted nothing more than to collapse and sleep for a day. She couldn't do that, though. The news she brought was too urgent, so she made a beeline for the Alpha male's den instead, ignoring her legs' protests and the danger of them buckling under her and sending her flying.

She was fortunate enough to find the ash male not far from his locale. She approached him quickly, still panting heavily for her long and tiresome run and the way her heart continued beating hard even though the threat was gone for now. "Dante!" she said, stopping and letting her tail come to rest at her hocks. "I need to... to tell you something... really important," she panted, at last allowing herself to slump to her haunches and relax a little.

Thus far successfully tiring himself out, but unsuccessfully distracting himself, Dante continued to dig regardless, a sort of pensive silence overtaking him. His mood was a bit sour today, so seeking out company was not high on his list of desires. It seemed that instead it was he who would be sought out.

When Saena came flying up, despite the fact that she was in no way a source of his testy mood, he was careful to check himself. Irritation just for being interrupted or approached was something that didn't happen often, but when his mood was like this it tended to occur. This was forgotten the instant she spoke, however, her urgency informing him just as well as her words that the subject is important.

"What is it?" He asked, immediate concern lacing the tone.

Dante responded with concern and possible worry, for which Saena was grateful. This was a situation of grave importance, after all, though not graver than her need to breathe. She sucked air in greedily, choking off any potential words, for nearly a full minute before being capable of speaking again.

"There's... hoo... there's some sort of mutant wolf... in the northern foothills... that's been eating wolves," Saena said between heaved breaths. She was relieved to feel the familiar easing of tension on her lungs and diaphragm with each heavy breath. Her ears flickered nervously on her head as she glanced apologetically away from him. She could only hope that Dante wasn't judgmental of what seemed to be a gross lack of fitness. After all, she was a little plumper than your average wolf and the way she was breathing now suggested she was very not-athletic, which was far from the truth, but easy to believe.

Unfortunately, the lessening demand on her lungs brought more attention to the fact that her hip and thigh hurt... and that was when she remembered that that thing had bitten her. Turning her head to glance at the wound, she felt her head swim at the sight of her own blood dried on her pelt, and the angry redness of the slash.

"A few weeks ago, I think, there was a dead body near the pack with its... guts eaten out," she said as she forced herself to focus back on the Alpha, feeling a little green around the gills from observing her wound, "and it was done by a wolf's teeth. Now, I was scouting up that way, and was charged and attacked by some kind of... mutant!" Her ears fell further back and a shiver crawled up her spine. "It was some kind of wolf, but its ears were plastered against its head and it had really short fur, and huge jowls, and it... it came at me like it hated me or wanted to eat me or something.

I needed to... to warn everyone. To not leave the pack if they really don't have to. This thing... it's a monster, and it's been near here before, and who knows if it'll come back."

He patiently waited while she regained her breath, listening as she spoke between huffs. He drew no judgements, for he really had no room to talk. He was a rather crap runner. Instead he thought on what she said, surprised and definitely growing more concerned as she went on.

Still.... "What makes you think it is the same creature?" Fighting was one thing, but to eat one of their own kind?" It would make sense that some sort of mutation would be required, but this was not always the case.

"In any case, we'll have to be sure to pass the message on. Whatever it was, it is obviously dangerous. You should have Blue look at those." If the creature had something wrong with it, they would need cleaned. "Sooner rather than later."

"We'll need to look to our borders even more, then," he said thoughtfully. They couldn't allow the creature to trespass should it try, and judging from Saena's injuries, it seemed to have no love for its fellows.

"I dunno," Saena admitted breathlessly. It was true she'd sort of scapegoated Warthog. A wolf with that thick body and that menacing face could be the only suspect in her mind. Maybe Warthog hadn't done anything to raise suspicion, but her appearance was enough. "The attack was... malicious. I can't think of any reason someone would want to kill someone else just out of the blue like that. I hadn't even seen her before she was trying to jump me." After all, Saena said some pretty crappy stuff at times, and might've been more understanding if she'd done that first.

"I'll go to her soon," Saena promised, though she was loathe to worry her Aunt with these concerns. It was more likely the teen would clean it with her own tongue than bother Blue Willow about it, but she couldn't let Dante know that. He would think she was irresponsible. "I can ask Pura to guard the borders more closely, and when this has healed a bit, I can get word to the other packs... Stavanger Bay, wherever Fox came from, and even the Caldera if I have to." There were many, many more packs than that, but they were the only three that Saena was really aware of.

"Make sure Valtyr isn't the one guarding the borders, not alone at least," she said abruptly, then let her face soften. "I think he'll want to, but he's not ready... and I don't want to endanger him." Ironically, if someone had said this same thing about her a few months ago, she would've argued til she was blue in the fact that only she could say when she was ready. Saena was more protective of those in her pack, though, and though she couldn't put a finger on it, she knew she didn't want Valtyr exposed to this, not first-hand.

Dante nodded consideringly. "It's definitely a problem if they are willing to attack without cause like that. It means they are unpredictable, and particularly dangerous for it." Anyone could be a target if that was the case, so outriders should take caution when leaving. He'd try to spread the word.

Trusting that she would do as she promised, he let the matter drop. Instead he nodded once more to her plans. "I would feel better if you would take another outrider with you. We can't afford injuries and two would be better than one should you run into it again. In fact, I'd feel better if all outriders paired up for a time, when possible." If it was lurking around BDP's borders then no use risking it. He didn't doubt them, nor would he force them to abide by it, but he didn't want wolves out of commission who did not need to be.

"He'll be with Pura or myself, likely. He's still learning." Dante wasn't fond of the idea of him guarding on his own either, not until the alpha could measure just how prepared Valtyr was to defend against an intruder. They didn't come often, but they did come, and it was always better to be prepared for the worst.

She was at first loathe to agree with Dante to take another Outrider with her—as if anyone would willingly tag along with her and let her take point on anything, she acidly thought—but she hushed her inner thoughts and tilted her head down. "I will try to do that," she promised. As far as Saena knew, there was only one other Outrider in the pack, and she wasn't exactly reliably around. It would be some time before the juvenile wandered back into the wilds, anyway.

She nodded, relieved, when the Alpha agreed to keep Valtyr close. Though he was probably very capable of handling things on his own, Saena feared for him all the same. He was shy and reclusive and quiet, not at all an outward individual; she worried for the trauma he might endure fighting at the border, yet the pack would need his aid going forward. Soon he would join the adult ranks as well and prove himself, but for now, the Blacktail remained protective.

"I'll let you know if I spot it while scouting on the borders," she said, making it clear she didn't plan to go outside the pack's borders for a short while at least. Their pack had the advantage of a high vantage point; she imagined that, in the course of her weatherwatching or scouting, she would be able to see Warthog if she was anywhere in the flatlands.

He'd known his request wouldn't be a popular one, even with an adult wolf. With Saena it had the added bite of perhaps seeming as though he thought her incapable, in need of a 'guardian' so to speak. That was by no means the case. He knew she was fine on her own, but even adults needed to take precautions when there was known danger in an area. "Thank you," he replied, relieved and thankful for her easy acquiescence. It was fully likely she may ignore the request, but he at least knew she was aware of his wishes.

He was also glad she would be sticking around for a while, for it would give Blue Willow ample time to ensure her injuries were treated and healed correctly. He hadn't liked her wandering so soon after the hunt either. Such feelings might have been seen as overprotective, and they had surprised him initially when he realized that he held them. Ever since rising to leader of the lands, though, he'd felt responsible for those who dwelt in them. This led him to more caution even than usual, and also more extremes of emotion than he'd had to hold in a long while. Not since Tarin had he felt such anger at the thought of another harming those around him, and it was a strange but welcome attachment.

"Likewise. I'll keep my eyes open." He would be sure to inform her as well if he saw them, for she had brought the tip and therefore would undoubtedly hold interest in another sighting. It was likely the whole pack would know, though, for any such intruder would be met with forced defense.

Dante was right about Saena having interest in future sightings of the mutants, although her interest had little to do with the dogs themselves. She fancied being in the know, especially within her own pack, for admittedly selfish reasons. That aside, she was also an Outrider, so knowing the goings on of the neutral territories was also important for her work

"Thanks, Dante. I'm gonna go have this looked at." Indicating her stinging leg, the girl began to step through the trees, noting that the limb had become quite stiff. Wincing, she mumbled a quiet farewell to the Alpha before pushing further into the forest in search of the resident Healer.

He watched her go, giving a farewell of his own, but remained a moment longer.  Though he did not want to worry overly much, of course his mind went first to worst case scenarios.  Absolute worst would be that the creature had others with it, a pack of it's own. If it came to a fight, they had many strong defenders who could doubtless turn them aside, but the priority would need to be keeping the children safe.

Strategies flowed through his thoughts as he slowly began to wander on, tactics on how to best use their territory to their advantage.  They were ideas he had explored before, but idly, and now he dove in with more gusto.  Before there had not been an immediate threat or need, but now there was a hint of one, and that was enough.