Katrina and Styx — the dominant pair at the head of Neverwinter, as it were, for to Jinx they were nothing more than that — had taken what she had said of her voodoo knowledge, and made her a Surgeon. The Kesuk probably should have been honoured to be considered useful so early in her pack life, but it was almost a slight upon her name and her God to be given the task of saving lives rather than taking them, as she was better trained to do. However, the girl had graciously accepted, and shortly following her inception into the pack and her brief meeting with Kerberos, she had set out to begin stocking her own private cache in the event anyone ever needed her aid.

She had always hated using plants, much preferring to use stones and incantations for her magicks, but plants had their uses, and many of them were good ones. Today, the lithe woman was seeking the commonplace bracken fern, whose spores were toxic, but granted the wearer of an amulet inset with one a form of invisibility. Not true invisibility, of course, but stealth and protection; the Loa wove a cloak of concealment around the wolf bearing the bracken spore, and that wolf was then protected from prying eyes.

It was practically a necessity for a raider, she believed, and Jinx was absolutely a raider first and foremost. Neverwinter was more peaceful than she might've liked for a rogue pack, with their adherence to the rules of parley, but that didn't mean she couldn't sneak around like she always had. She had been an accomplished Headhunter, and that wasn't about to end now.

Jinx was well-versed enough in herblore to know the fern would grow best on a decline, and so as the sun peaked in the sky to signal noon, she made her way to a depression in the Wilderness' forest that led down to the bank of a wide river. She didn't pick her way down to the shore proper, but chose to hover about halfway up the slope, and it was here she pressed her snout to the earth and breathed deep, seeking out the telltale scent of the bracken fern, which persisted by releasing chemicals (hence the telltale scent that she had learned early in life) to inhibit competing plants.

It was quiet here, save for the rumbling of the river as it tossed over its banks and smashed haphazardly against rocks. It was the kind of river that brought some faint, almost irrelevant nostalgia of home, for in some places its turmoil left foam curling on the surface, reminiscent of the sea itself. The gentle whoosh as it thundered along was the only noise to accompany her search; even the birds were silent here, and the hum and whir of insects was almost inconsequential. The tranquility of the riverside was unlike any she had ever experienced, both at home and here in this new land.

Perhaps that was why a sudden disturbance in the form of a sploosh was so startling to Jinx. Her head whipped around suspiciously as her gaze darted up and down her leg of the river, finally locking on a wolf's head protruding from the water. It might've been a normal thing, if the wolf's head hadn't been pointed right in her direction. Months as a loner had put the lean Kesuk on edge one too many times for her to be at ease with a stranger coming toward her; true, the packland was at her behind and she could turn and flee for the security of Neverwinter, but the thought of running was also shameful to her. Her ancestors never would've run, never would've depended on the safety of others, and neither should she.

It became blatantly clear the moment the amazonian Blackthorn exited the water that although Jinx and her were more-or-less evenly matched in height, the odds were heavily stacked in the Gunner's favour. Turquoise was both longer and definitely heavier, so a battle would only ensure that Jinx emerged the loser. It took only a moment to size the other woman up and determine that this was the case. However, she couldn't help herself fixating on the other's stark black markings, and wondering why she hadn't been born with a beautiful blaze upon her snout, or ears lined with ebon, although she was grateful her spine wasn't adorned in it. It was probably cool for your back to make you resemble a snake against the snow, she thought, but also probably a dead giveaway.

Regardless of the certainty of her defeat, the Kesuk very nearly squared off against the other wolf in case of an attack, until a called greeting surprised her. She had almost expected the other woman to be angry with her for some reason, but then again, the former Mambo wasn't exactly used to being approached directly. Often she stumbled upon others, or they stumbled upon her, as was usually the case in forested settings, but she had brilliantly misinterpreted the Blackthorn's approach as being… Well, purposeful. The Surgeon's head lifted an inch or so with confusion evident in her eyes, especially because Turquoise's manner and choice of words was entirely innocent and left Jinx scrambling for a more appropriate reaction than she had been prepared to give.

Uh... Thanks. They're not as cool as yours. There was a faint awkwardness, almost disorientation, in her response, as if Jinx didn't really know what to make of any of it. She supposed Turquoise might take offence to her hesitance, but felt it was easily explained away as previous loner nerves if brought into question, even if it was actually just the yearling's raw suspicion. Up close, she could see the brilliant green-blue of her new companion's eyes, and was almost reminded of her mother, but Nanuq's had been much icier; the pack Gunner's were prettier, definitely. The almost-familiarity of the colour, however, was even more disarming than the woman's greeting had been, and between that and forgetting her manners, she merely blurted, Yeah, I'm the new Surgeon… How'd you know?

It was so weird, being in another wolf's company after all this time. She had seen Kerberos not terribly long ago, but Kerberos wasn't a stranger. She had only briefly met with her leaders, something Jinx would likely need to rectify in the coming days — even if she was unsure how she'd fit into the pirate-themed pack, she knew avoiding her superiors wasn't the best way to go about proving herself to anyone — so they scarcely counted, either. Turquoise was the first wolf she'd shared conversation with that wasn't technically her wolf, as Kerberos was, in many moons, and she was uncertain how to proceed.

Luckily, the Blackthorn female was quick to carry the conversation herself, and Jinx found herself grateful for that. Fitting name, she pointed out, perhaps obviously, before tacking on the first polite thing she'd said so far: it's nice to meet you. I was beginning to wonder if maybe the crew was… Well, a ghost crew. But then again, Kerby wasn't a ghost, but when her only other "shipmate" in sight had been her former Mariner, then of course it would set her mind wandering.

She had been considering asking what a Gunner did, having no concept whatsoever of guns or shooting them and what they might signify, and even started with, What's a G- but Turq beat her to the punch and requested Surgeon knowledge, which sent a flutter of nerves through Jinx's tummy. It's like a Medic, I think, where I come from. I'm a Mambo where I'm from, so I know lots about what to do with plants, but… Never really used them to heal anyone before. Her lips quirked to the side as though she was a little ashamed of her inexperience with being a Medic, but it couldn't be too much different from being a Mambo; she just had to use her powers for good and not for evil, which was a tough concept.

I'm looking for a certain fern, she explained, throwing her gaze around her as though looking for an example but turning up empty-handed. I can't find any here though. The spores bestow the power of invisibility if you make them the core of an amulet… But they're also toxic. That probably wasn't a very comforting thing for a Surgeon to say, so Jinx quickly cleared her throat and tried to change the subject with, so what's a Gunner do, then? I've never heard of that rank before.