I've been running from Saul

@Kaname @Tiarnán

Long had the Silvertip Mountain Alpha sat idle upon the crags of her home, awaiting some grand signal from God that it was time to act. Neither Sos or Atka had been to her in visions or dreams lately. Ordinarily this would have unnerved the mambo, who more than anything desired communion with God, but of late it gave her some much-needed relief. She had little time to spare for religious concerns, which told her she would soon need to figure out her wolves' specialties and put them to earnest work in their respective fields.

Today, Jinx decided it was time to abandon her vigil on the mountain, at least temporarily. She would die upon these slopes, she knew, but it was time to get out and get some fresh air. The best way the warrior wolf could think of to do that was to raid a nearby pack. Blacktail Deer Plateau and Horizon Ridge were the obvious choices, leaving her to decide which one would be most suitable.

She couldn't scout them by herself, so the female tilted back her head, summoning the first two wolves who came to mind: Kaname, the unusual male who claimed to be one with the shadows, an assassin, and Tiarnán, the wily warlock. Jinx thought they could complement each other in the field, and decided they would be the ideal candidates for her plans.

The dark wolf crouched, hidden by the shadows of the trees and the bush. His icy gaze was locked on the oblivious doe who nibbled on the springy grass. His lean muscles tensed as he leaned forward, ready to sprin-

The doe snapped up, hearing a howl from the mountains. Kaname cursed his misfortune and leapt, trying to catch it unawares. The doe, now alert, saw him bursting out of the bushes and fled. The dark furred wolf growled and turned his attention to the howl. It was a summons from his alpha, to him and another wolf.

Your alpha calls you, Kaname. Are you going to ignore her? Do you want to be killed? The ice-blue eyes rolled in annoyance as Itzal spoke. If it means being away from your condescension, then yes. he growled before running off to meet his alpha's demands.

Since his inception in to the mountain pack, Tiarnan had done little else but feast upon their caches. At first he was taken by a ravenous need, inundating himself with whatever was exposed to him. Rooting through the soil in those first few hours had been tedious, but worth it. The boy gorged himself on week-old carcasses, many which had been previously gnawed upon and held little sustenance. He ate, he slept, and he ate again. For a day or so, Tiarnan tried to rebuild what he had lost.

It was during one of his stuffed snoozes that the sound of a howl reached him. As soon as he was coherent the boy lifted to his feet, his eyes still clouded, but wide and wild. The call demanded his attention. Tiarnan sprang in to action after a few confused seconds, covering a substantial amount of craggy ground with his long legs. When he came upon the white woman he almost didn't see the other that was there - nearly careening in to him in his haste.

The boy did not make a sound. He slowed to a halt, adjusted his footing so that he wouldn't slip upon the shale, and waited. Ears pivoted towards both wolves but eventually, all of his attention focused upon Jinx.

Both wolves were prompt in answering her summons, and silently the Alpha admired them as they arrived. Kaname was the larger of the two, possessed of more bulk and grit than the reedy Tiarnán, but the yearling had a certain serpentine grace in his build. His legs were spindly but his bearing was smooth and quiet. Though she didn't know either of these wolves terribly well, she was satisfied with her decision to send them on this mission for her.

“I have a task,” she explained when both wolves had assembled themselves in her presence. She took a few steps closer to the edge of a nearby ledge, fully expecting them to follow without her needing to beckon to them. Her gaze cut across the flatlands below, seeking the coast, but Horizon Ridge was hidden by miles of deep forest. “A small pack resides on the coast, led by a wolf who knows little of leading. I mean to take advantage of this to secure our pack some of their sea bounty. I need you to infiltrate their lands and assess the situation so I can best decide how we may proceed.

You may handle this mission however you choose. I would, however, advise you to run if they discover you. You are worth more to this pack alive than dead, and worth more yet healthy rather than injured. Do not lead them here if you must run. Lead them to a river, and lose them in crossing it.” It would be difficult for any trailing wolves to figure out where the two had gone if they went into the river and emerged elsewhere, and Jinx planned to use that to throw off any would-be trackers. If, by some stroke of luck, one of the Horizon Ridge wolves managed to rediscover the trail and find their way here, then the pack would have a small party with the unfortunate soul's body.

When form of his alpha soon rose into his sight, the dark-furred wolf slowed his run down to a trot and finally stopped not to far away from her. "Alpha." he said, giving her a nod. Not soon after his arrival, his packmate, a smaller wolf, a yearling, came in response to Jinx's call and almost collided into him. Luckily for the both of them the yearling got his footing and slowed down to a halt, sitting and waiting in anticipation.

The white alpha had a task for him. Beckoning them to a ledge, she detailed her mission. A pack nearby the shore, was weakened by it's inefficient leader. The ever cunning Jinx wanted to raid the territory, taking advantage of their weakness. He and the yearling were tasked with scouting the area for weak points for the pack to exploit. Kaname gave a little smile. This was one of the jobs he enjoyed: espionage.

"I suggest that we split up and survey each side of the territory separately, then meet up here to give our reports. That way we can cover more ground at a faster rate, as well as finding multiple access points. And if one of us is discovered, there is the chance that it will distract some of the wolves into investigating, giving the other a chance to escape." he said, eyes gleaming.

The boy did not know how useful he could be for.. Whatever it was that Jinx had planned. But he had arrived swiftly, so as not to bring her wrath down upon him. The gathering was small - there was the giant, and there was an adult male who sported a dark coat and a rugged physique; not someone he had met before. As Jinx outlined her plan, Tiarnan did his best to listen - but the majority of the words made little sense to him. She beckoned them to come closer, to peer over the edge, and it was in this moment that the boy caught a little understanding. Her motions referenced the flatlands, and for all the yearling knew, nothing lived there. He hadn't encountered any pack wolves when he was travelling, but it was entirely possible that fate had intervened to keep him safe from yet another aggressive horde of wolves.

While the youth peered over the ledge and studied the natural paths beneath him (more entertained by the shale of the mountain and the potential cairn he could build from their bits and pieces) he heard a second voice and jolted his head back from the precipice. Wide ears fanned either side of his head at first, but then they caught the voice as he pivoted to peer upon the other wolf. He spoke too, and a certain fervor welled within his words. Something had him excited, which made Tiarnan a bit nervous. What was he being told to do?

His eyes roamed from the enthusiastic man to the giant woman, then to the horizon beyond them - where the goal had been set - and gradually, he came to a few conclusions. That there was a pack down there, most likely. That their leader would only request strength and speed if she intended to use it. A scouting mission? Tiarnan pondered, but remained silent in his assumptions.

What little understanding Tiarnán could take would have to suffice, for Jinx was much too dull to realize he was struggling to keep up with the fluent wolves and much too uncaring to slow down for him. Kaname gave instructions as well, leaving Jinx to sit back upon her haunches and smile mischievously at the pair of them. Horizon Ridge would suffer prey losses in days to come at the hands of the Silvertip Mountain pack, and that thought made her giddy.

“Go,” she instructed, dismissing the two to prepare for their mission, still blithely unaware that Tiarnán had no idea what was going on. “Prepare yourselves. Make haste for Horizon Ridge in the morning.” She now fixed Tiarnán with a gaze and then motioned to Kaname with the simple word, “follow.” She did remember suddenly that his grasp on words was shaky, but she didn't understand the extent nor did she really care to reiterate what she'd already said.

He would learn by being thrown face-first into the midst of the pack and finding his own way. His challenges were unique, but Jinx wasn't the kind of wolf to hold anybody's hand, even a poor druidic foreigner who didn't know their language.

It became aware to Kaname at this yearling was not fluent in their native language. The confusion in his eyes was not from a lack of understanding the mission; no, Jinx made that quite clear. It was because the young wolf did not know what they were saying, not one single word. The assassin was always intrigued by the different languages spoken in different regions of the world. He had met many in his travels that had an accent in their voices, be it from the region or a second language. But he had never met anyone who only knew one foreign language. It obviously made communication quite hard. Do not get angry at the boy. He does not understand. This can be good for you to learn to teach others. Itzal whispered.

Jinx turned to the foreign yearling and spoke the simple word follow, gesturing to Kaname. The dark furred wolf nodded to his alpha in understanding then tossed his head at the yearling. "Follow." he repeated, giving Jinx another nod of acknowledgment before walking off, occasionally turning back to see if the youngling understood the word.

Posting a quickie so this can get archived.

They walked briskly along the mountain, with Jinx occasionally speaking and the other wolf responding. When she turned and cast her gaze upon him, Tiarnan's stomach knotted as if to become a solid object, weighing down his core. The leader spoke a few things, short and quick words that he caught upon - repeating them in his mind as he picked up the pace. When the other wolf then spoke, commanding him to follow as he descended the mountain, Tiarnan acquiesced without a word. It was better to listen and learn right now anyway. As the pair departed from Jinx's company, the boy still felt the heated feeling of eyes upon him; it lingered as they worked their way along, until finally both beasts were loping along in tandem towards the horizon.

[exit]

She watched them go with approval in her eyes. Soon, she would place her paws boldly upon Horizon Ridge's claim, as she once had so long ago... But this time, she would do it with the intention of seeing them suffer. Kaname and Tiarnan would be instrumental to the success of this plan.