Ankyra Sound Had to have high, high hopes for a living

i’ll yell @ myself later for not catching up first but i couldn’t resist

Songs were sung that day, neither carrying positive news. The thought of the woman that had brought him to meet other children no longer being in charge made his stomach twist in a way that he was not familiar with—fear, perhaps? He wondered if things would change, if life would be different from this shift in the ranks. He looked to the uppik with uncertainty in his gaze and she seemed to understand, as she landed—briefly—upon his back and preened the young boy’s nape. Although it was not the same as the endearing touch of a mother, it comforted him all the same, for he knew with the sentiment came memories of the north, of ancestors he’d never known.

Soothed at last, Aningan nosed his companion, insisting that she return to her hideaway. Once she’d gone, he redirected his nose towards the earth and began his search for @Caiaphas, the worry returning and growing in the pit of his stomach.

it would do little good to lie low, and caiaphas knew that. she gritted her teeth and changed nothing about her daily routine - so that the rusalkan gang could see the dethroned siren still held her head proud, still had something of worth that could not be stolen nor cut from her.

she was rubbing her shoulders along the rough bough of a sequoia when she saw aningan in the distance, his shoulders hunched and nose down. even a tree, scarcely sentient, could have detected he was looking for someone - caiaphas assumed that someone to be her.

she chuffed and pulled her form from the rough embrace of the sequoia, noticing the worry that darkened aningan's features. while she said nothing, she approached him with the same warmth she approached any of her children, snuffing along his nape in greeting before pulling back and gazing upon him expectantly.

Salt, brine, ocean air... so many scents flooded his nares, some he recognised and many that he did not. He kept at his search, his attempts at picking one scent from a collection of many making itself out to be impossible—but the notion of impossibility was but an idea of the conscious mind alone. As the siren’s approach broke the silence that surrounded him, Aningan lifted his head just in time to see her face before it vanished against his nape, and he realised that perhaps his senses were not as bad as previously suspected to be.

But that wasn’t the point of his being there, he could test his limits at any other time.

As Caiaphas pulled back and met his gaze, his mind was swarmed with, perhaps, a hundred different questions. “Koven?” he asked, gaze intensifying as he focused on her expression. “Ânniaven? AullalikKen?” More questions swarmed in his mind and poured out through his gaze, all directed at her—until he tore his eyes from her face and redirected it towards her form. He circled her once, then twice, before settling back down in front of her.

“What happened?” he finally got out, his tongue returned to one better understood between them. “Who is he?” And why was he suddenly at the forefront of the hierarchy?

aningan was quick to burst into his natal tongue, a habit she supposed would likely die alongside him. the words were nothing she knew; patiently, caiaphas waited for his circling to be done, and for some sense of normalcy to return to them.

once aningan delivered a once-over, his form seemed to quieten -- and easily, he slipped back into the tongue they spoke on the mainland. caiaphas leveled a heavy sigh -- he was owed an explanation, but she was in little mood to deliver one.

"his name is firefly." she began, her gaze tracing his so that she could ensure he was following. "he has been with us since the start. you must understand, that in rusalka we do not blindly follow a leader not worth following. we make our own leaders -- some will rise to the top, and some will fall. it is all part of the circle, and in allowing this kind of hierarchy, we prevent stagnancy and enforce powerful rule."

she knew next that aningan would likely question how - or why - she had lost. "in the end, i was not as powerful. such is the way of life - the strong stay on top, and the weak are trampled. if you are smart and weak, you can avoid such trampling."

Although she explained, he was not satisfied with the answer. For perhaps the first time, the boy scowled; he was not against the workings of the pack, only against the woman being displaced. “Âha tagga,” he muttered, gaze averted. As he thought, he maintained a tight frown across his lips. What could he do? What was he physically able to do? His options were limited, that much was clear, but he wanted to do something—he had to do something, to help in some way. She had provided him with a home when those of the same blood would not even search for him and, for that, he would always owe her.

When she spoke again, his head snapped up and he watched her, brows scrunched together—that was it! “Then I’ll get strong and make him the weak one,” he declared. “And I’ll make sure you never get hurt again.” A child’s crazy dreams, man.

caiaphas' explanation had been lackluster, and unsurprisingly, aningan did not agree with the fairness of the world. he was still so young -- sometime, he might realize the utter indifference of the world and how rare it was for things to be truly fair. for now, all the sylph could do was shrug her narrow shoulders.

"yes, you get strong, and someday maybe someone will come for your crown too. as long as you are ready." she smiled proudly, pleased to see such defiance and sweetness in aningan. "people will always be there to take things from you, remember that."

Others existed to take things away from him. The lesson seemed a familiar one though the words had never been strung together that way. He had observed it, to an extent. It was evident in the way that his mother had deserted him in favour of his siblings, taking from him a family. It was evident in the way that, even before that, he’d been taken away from his paternal family, the life that he could have led stripped away.

It wasn’t fair.

“I won’t let them,” was yet another declaration made. “I won’t let anyone take anything from me.” Not him nor her, nor anyone else that he cared for—never again.

no, life was not fair. the siren watched as emotion rimmed behind the snowbound boy's gaze; there was a turbulence to his expression she did not ignore. there would always be wolves to take from them, and there would always be wolves in which to take from -- in caiaphas' experience, she preferred being the latter subset.

"that is good, but not realistic." the siren growled, hedging the boy with a knowing look. "you will find that life is out of your control, and will do plenty of things to you whether you like it or not. all you can do is be ready for them."

Even with his certainty, she disagreed. His face fell and expression soured, disbelieving of her claim. Surely, if he did everything right, no one would be able to take something away from him, right? Perhaps she misjudged him, he thought, and believed him to be incapable of defending himself. Yeah, that had to be it. Which meant that he would just have to prove her wrong, one way or the other.

“I’ll be ready,” he agreed then, assuring her whilst his conclusion was kept to himself. In time, Aningan would show her that he could control his life without any problems. For now, however, he would keep quiet about his innermost thoughts and factual opinion (something his writer is laughing at him for, in all honesty).

caiaphas could detect the faint twinge of doubt that darkened aningan's pale features: he did not believe her. she would not contest further -- there was little point beating a dead horse, and so often words were wasted when experience and time would cure all of whatever convictions they held. she offered nothing but the ridged shrug of her thin shoulders, deciding then there was little use riling the boy further.

"best to prepare yourself for that moment, then.." caiaphas offered cryptically, and in the next second swung a slugger of a paw his way in a rough initiation of surprise spar time.

whispers hope u don’t mind me using this thread to try out the new/old but revised spar method kek
HP: 20/20 — Roll: 7

When around the woman, he never had his guard up; he trusted her and had not once gotten any bad vibes when around her. So when a paw swung out to thwap him, he wasn’t the least bit prepared for it. His body jolted upright, surprised by the sudden contact, whilst shock was scrawled across his face. But, in a matter of seconds, the shock was wiped away and his tail was waving behind him, eager to contribute to the game. He started off in a bowing stance, thinking, before leaping towards her with the intention of knocking into her with his shoulder.

rolled a 17 so i think  that means her HP is now 3?? LOL

her downswipe hit home; oof, that will leave a mark! no surprise, given it had come with no warning -- yeesh, caiaphas is rude.

aningan's reaction left a little to be desired; caiaphas vowed to sharpen him, to practice with him so that he might someday become a formidable force to be reckoned with. in a lurch the tall boy speared towards her, and nimble as she was, she was not so fast to get out of dodge. he hit her full on, sending her flying like a little bowling pin.

skidding in the sand and leaving long gouges with her thin hocks, caiaphas regained her footing and rallied. with a slow lurch she picked up speed at a canter, bringing her body towards aningan and then at the last minute swerving away -- a quick nip aimed at his hock as she flew by.

HP: 10/20 — Roll: 9

As she tumbled he followed after her, part of him wondering if she was okay and the other part eager to continue. But as he moved, so did she, and the nip to his hock became so much more; the pinch startled him—he hadn’t figured out what she was doing at first—which, coupled with the momentum behind his body, had catastrophic results.

First, he fell.

Then, he rolled.

And finally, he slid.

A loud yipe spilled from his lips and, by the time he was back up on his feet, his left hindlimb was pulled up and touching the ground only about every other step. Even more determined to continue now, to prove that he was capable, he pushed off with both back legs just enough to jump towards her, paws outstretched and jaws wide, aiming to grab onto the same shoulder he’d previously knocked into.

well i suck - i never saw this one so far down on our threadlog. i'll wrap up - it should be enough posts that you can still use this for a trade. <3

there was no denying there was fire in aningan's blood; his northern traits were a boon for him here, for he was powerful, decisive, and swift. caiaphas parried what blows she could, received what blows she could not, and countered his moves with growing interest. he was a quick learner, and a brute to boot -- with some sharpening of his skills, he would likely be inimitable.

a good footsoldier for her cause, the crone thought wickedly.

after several more dances, caiaphas announced she was tired and suggested they go hunting for food. it would do good for aningan to sharpen his fighting by hunting, and truth be told, the old witch was growing more and more feeble, and soon would be overcome by aningan's strength.