Blackfeather Woods send help

"Oh dear me.. I strayed too far I believe." Quite a horrific place, the lavender maiden thought, as her very existence seemed to be hidden away within these darken woods. A hood covered from the bright sky, and an eerie silence was around the area. She had thought, to perhaps explore the neighborhood, and familarize herself with those around. Curiosity went a bit off, as she saw the blackened trees from far away, almost far enough she thought, to be miles and miles away.

Close though, just beyond the body of water. Sadly now, she entered, and seemingly got lost within these woods.

It's a bit too dark, isn't it?

you are melonii. it is your birthright.

it is empty, now, or as empty as the place can be. she knows the wood will never be entirely empty; the crows, the ravens, the ghosts. earlier, she'd seen a glint of steel fur, seen a pawprint at the entrance to one of the tunnels. she had found bones, small and large, and fresh. 

she hears the murmuring, and adjusts her course duly. she knows these trails still, remembers running them with scylla. it does not take her long to find the woman, and feel the burning rage that comes with her presence here. there is little logical basis, that she understands. she'd left here long before, the pack disbanded. there are no more borders, no more trespassers. but her mother's body lies here.

"get out." the words are grating, spat at the woman as she approaches, stiff-legged from the side. her mother's bones. the empty wood. she snarls, lunging for the woman's ear. should she land a grip on her target, or anywhere along the woman's face or side, she would whip her head from side to side in an attempt to deal as much initial damage as possible.

Soleil was definitely not expecting hostility within the woods, but she was glad her guard was up due to the wariness the rather dreary woods had given her. Little time was give to even dodge the other's attack, and if words were unspoken, most likely she would've been hit. While perhaps soft-minded she wasn't frail enough to get caught, "Oh my gosh," she couldn't help but let her words slip out from this random encounter!

"I'm sorry? Is this your territory?" She backed far away from the maddened lady. There was no smell, nor' borders or signs of wolves being active, so the assumption was the place was a simple land of hunt. However this unprovoked attack seemed other, and by the gods, Soleil definitely desired to bail if the other continued. Maybe it wasn't a smart idea to try and engage conversation with someone trying to harm you.

"yes," she girl claims, snarl etched deeply into her features. she does not allow the woman to increase the distance between them, stalking after her. fury swirls, loss and grief a dull undertone. again, she moves, this time with little warning. she snaps for the woman's face, wanting desperately for the feel of flesh beneath her fangs, for the woman to fight back, for her to leave this place along with all the others that did not belong.

"Well, uh, okay, i'm sorry for intruding." While the other seemed to hear her words, she did not care for what was spoken. Even Soleil understood that this one oh-so desired her to leave, and she really wasn't up to fight for no particular reason. The other seemed much younger then herself as well, and could only assume she was perhaps guarding the place. While mentioning if it was her's, there was no signs of belonging. A lie, but yet not? Then she was greeted with a snap to the face, and more and more did she back up, feeling quite cornered.

Again, the warmly orange and gray wolf had no desire to fight one so young, without a reason to back. She only gave quite an awkward smile to the younger wolf, and once more apologized, "I'm sorry for intruding, it must be important to you." Her body turned, and while feeling a bit of grievance, started to leave these woods. 

Then again she was lost, so maybe she was going deeper while being chased by a crazy child. She was definitely going to get chased if that was the case, and was so ready to run like hell. Send help.

I was going to make Astara’s journey to BFW a RO, but this seemed too good to pass up!!

with the crone departed astara had left @Merrick, deigning to journey south in the storm’s lull. he was distant as of late, and something troubled the blackbird’s sleep; something that cast a long shadow all the way home.

relmyna.

she had never found her mother’s seeing stone - not after that bastard had stolen it from her. so she returned to blackfeather for something else— something potent with the witch’s (and her own) blood to act as conduit to merrick’s malevolent god.

faint whisperings rose the moment astara reunited her teeth around the delicate ivory of her mother’s pelvis — rejoicing or lamenting, she could not tell. they seemed distant, indecipherable — as if they had been left alone far too long in the void. astara listened, and heard nothing save those tangling voices. as she made to leave she realized not a soul seemed to occupy these woods. it was a grim realization that struck astara like a gong. her home was abandoned — in ruins — it was good then, she had designs to bring her mother elsewhere.

leaving then, astara heard the scuttle of feet on snow, accompanied by the spit of hardened voices. intrigued, she drifted closer — the arch of her mother’s pelvis held in her jaws still. a yearling — no one she recognized — was pursuing the form of a surprised agouti adult; if astara was not so occupied, she might have derived joy from participating in whatever torment was in store that day.

I <3 astara sm

the other is swift, slippery, and her jaws clack shut on air. growl of frustration leaves her, and the woman is talking again. as soon as the woman turns away, however, Hela realizes her advantage. "coward." she lunges forward, seeking to grasp the woman's tail betwixt her jaws and wrench her back towards her, utterly intent on sinking her fangs into the woman at least once. 

she begins to hasten her pace, and whether or not her initial tug was successful, the girl would not rest until she'd tasted the interloper's blood. she'd attack whichever part of the woman was nearest to her without rest, anger making her seem near tireless. soleil is decided unlucky in that hela does not notice the other woman, as focused on the interloper as she is; the appearance of a third trespasser would have been jarring enough to have her pause in her pursuit.

"I do not have a reason to fight you-" yet, anywho. She had made the mistake of turning her back, thinking it would be safe to walk away from the situation. Sad to say Soleil had a lap of judgement, as the cost came with her tail. It had been grabbed, and bitten painfully so that the lavender one yelped out, and instinctly fought back to the one that had attacked. Her head immedietly turned around to snap back, no longer carrying the smile of warmth and awkwardness, but of dismay and pain. 

A desire to go home, as it was a mistake coming to these horrible woods. Though fate said otherwise at it literally stopped her by the tail, and she had no choice but to fight back the younger one. She couldn't deny, she really was a coward, fighting was not a strong suit. Even though she snapped, her eyes filled with remorse and the snap was weak, a bad-attempt at a warning as she felt a warm, and watery touch fill within her lilacs. It hurt.

the scene astara witnessed might have been bemusing, if she was one prone to bloodsports. she was — but not without merrick. he would have liked this; astara longed to be reunited with him immediately.

it appeared her presence was not noted. now was her chance to take what was rightfully hers and leave — but a morbid curiosity in how this little spat would play out rooted her to the spot. presently, it seemed the woman’s defenses were halfhearted — futile — and the little demon that sped towards her tail appeared positively hellbent on savagery.

with nothing else to do, and a long road ahead of her, astara sat primly in the snow and watched with a callously bent half-smile; the pelvis still hanging grotesquely from her jaws. 

if she was lucky, there would be only one survivor. which meant for someone like her, with no demonstrable qualms of cannibalism, that there was a possibility of a warm meal ahead of her.

satisfaction burned as her grip finally landed and the woman turned to face her, albeit with dismay writ across her features rather than the anger she was accustomed to. it did not matter, not now. the woman's half-hearted warning snap was received with a snap of her own. this one, however, lacked any sort of warning and instead drove straight for her face, seeking to grab onto her muzzle or whatever the girl could get a firm grip on. intuition, that prickling scent of being watched, arched along her spine, but was ignored, for now. she was otherwise occupied, and the feeling of being watched was all too familiar within the dark wood.

She was far too preoccupied to even notice another's presence, lest it be to a calling out to a possible savior. Unfortunate that neither were the heavenly salvation she so desired, a savior. For now she had to be her own savior. Soleil felt unsuited, and new to what had begun from the youngling, a fight she never was in, or thought to be in. Her tail felt like it had a fire burning, but a cold relief from the release of the other, only to another latching at her shoulder. What a thankful avoid of the face and neck, the brutal of all- but still too close for comfort. Her heart was beating. 

This was horrible.

While internally screaming, she had to break free, somehow! A more firm attack Soleil placed, but still hestitation, she didn't want to hurt them. If possible she desired to strike onto her neck, preferably right at the scruff of the neck in a hope to waddle this gal away from her, and flee with haste. Though there was a slight vexation coming from her chest, feeling injust in the situation, for the golden and gray one didn't know why this had to happen, or what reason to be attacked. It felt fustrating.

skip me until Astara is acknowledged!! <3

rather than break up as most scuffles did, this one continued. astara’s gaze tracked the carnage, admiring the tenacity of the youth, and discouraged by the lack of survival instinct displayed by the adult. if she did not fight back hard, and soon, the dark cub of the forest was surely to be her maker.

as if privy to astara’s thoughts, the she-wolf finally fought back. wishing for any sort of killing blow, astara watched like a slavering hyena — waiting for the snow to clear so she might pick a meal off of the hapless loser.

the girl fed off the woman's hesitancy, burning with self-righteous fury. she had trained at the art of battle since her mother's death, learned to strike hard, fast, and without remorse. she woman grasps for her neck, the movement uncertain, reserved. she does not avoid it, but tightens her own grip on the woman's shoulder. when the woman seizes the fur at the base of her neck, hela moves. 

she is young, but inherited from her father is her height, which lends her an advantage here. swiftly, she wrenches her weight towards the size, jerking her muzzle and the woman's shoulder simultaneously in an attempt to topple her. should she be successful in her attempt to throw the woman onto the earth, she would work to keep her there—her motives evolving from dealing damage relentlessly, to defeating the woman clearly in a way she'd never been able before, not with seasoned mercenaries making up the bulk of her pack.

Soleil was unaware where this one grew up- but much different then her own experience. She moved like a warrior, despite one so young. Though, she could not see the other as an enemy, and despite the fustrations she held, they were swallowed, and regret crawled up "I do not want to fight you." Her jaw unhinged and released, but even before the release, the other was quick to move. To take her teeth, was a desire to beheld. The other despite young, was far thicker and built more of a guard then herself, for the lady was lean and slim, built as a runner, not a fighter. Swift she could be, but little meant in this moment- and all in use for the other. 

But she remembered, she didn't want to fight. Soleil felt the pain, her tail bitten, and shoulder wounded- still grasped within. Freshly wounds, but they were not battle scars, because this wasn't a battle. Her body toppled down, for a struggle was not given except the time of landing. She tried to limit the angle enough to cause minimal damage, but still, the other was pressing her side against the cold wintery ground, "I am not fighting you."

So she says but Soleil also really doesn't want to die y'know.

the woman is beneath her, and the girl shifts as quickly as possible in order to keep her there, throwing her weight across the girl's shoulders. her muzzle is drawn back, lips curled to reveal pale fangs, gimlet stare boring into the woman. and yet—

"I am not fighting you"

growl slips out, low and frustrated. anger mounts, then ebbs, and the girl remains still. finally, after a long stretch of silence, she shifts, stepping off of the woman. a final snap to her face, quick and violent, and then she withdraws. "go, then. don't come back." she does not understand. surely, trapped as she had been, some instinct out to propel her into action. it had not. she turns, features contorted, and it is only then her gaze lands on the woman.

dark fur, empty eyes—she seizes, muscles tensing as she stops still. the woman's eyes are indigo, not empty. heart resumes to beat, and she exhales, gaze immediately narrowing again. in this moment, the woman is forgotten. gaze drifts to the bone held tight, and hackles prickle before noticing its age. it can't be hers, then. "who are you? what do you want?" her lips curl back again, still on edge, gimlet stare defiant.

anticipatory hunger turned to disappointment as astara watched the yearling pin, and then release, her victim. astara hid the bite of reproach in her gaze — there went her meal. 

now the attention was shifted to her. instinctively, astara’s spine straightened under hela’s heated gaze. if the girl planned to turn her hostility astara’s way, she would be ready. 

at the girl’s question astara lifted her lips, showing teeth between bone as she pressed the pale pelvis to the snow, and placed her paw upon it. she had no way to answer — not verbally — and Hela would have to settle for silence, or divining.

A demand to leave, and she was to agree. To leave the blackened, and gloomy place and not to return. Danger lurks here- and she hadn't enjoyed what was recieved upon entering. Wounds, both physically and in heart, she would have to retreat outwards with a limp. However... There was still a dilemnia, Soleil was lost. If she knew where she was, the golden and gray wolf would've gotten herself out with a snap, but she did not know where was the exit in the dark world. Signs of light was lost, and so was her direction.

Thus, a random direction she go. A peek back to the not two- and did not want to prolong further interaction. Two young ones, but both were not warm wolves, they were hostile as the forest. One attacked and the other remained in silene to her pain. While she wished to speak and to hear, not all would return the favor. So she went in a random direction, in the hope it was the way out. Soleil really had no idea how to leave, please send more help.

the woman does not answer. hela's brow furrows, glare settling on her features. somewhere behind her, the woman turns and runs; the girl acknowledges this (and the fact that she is likely running in the wrong direction) with a flick of her ears. hopefully, the girl would encounter the poison glade, or tumble into the ravine, and take herself out of the gene pool. 

"you came for that," she guesses, motioning at the bone. there is a spark of familiarity, one she can not place. but no words come from the girl, and hela is too impatient to try any other method of communicating, nor will astara's silence answer her questions. her auds flick, a silent "why?" she does not entirely expect any answer to.

you came from that. astute little girl, astara noted with a curve of her lips. she bowed her head once: yes, i did.

that rested firmly between her paws -- the slender arch of the mother that had bore her. how astara missed relmyna -- but she carried her mother with her always, in more ways than just blood. she had consumed her flesh once, and made altars of her bones -- and now, she was exhuming the priestess to bearclaw, where new spirits would come to rest among her bones.

why? was the unspoken question. astara had learned to read well the features of others, and blinked slowly as she considered how to answer. perhaps the girl would understand herself, if she grasped the motherbone and felt the voids' malcontent whispers.

loathe to give up her trinket, but knowing the ferocity the girl was capable if she did not, astara rolled the bone gently towards hela. it circled once in the snow, leaving a thin trail of its progress as it went -- and then clattered softly into the pale snowpack.

the pale bone - a pelvis, she thinks, on close inspection - rolls lightly towards her through the snow. she steps forward to nose at it, taking in the scent, brushing her muzzle against the surface. had she been steeped within the lore of the wood a little while longer, perhaps, she'd have a better idea of what was expected of her. perhaps the empty-eyed wolf she saw in those fractured moments between wakefulness and sleep would be more than a simple nightmare. 

it feels important, certainly, and despite what the careful trail it's left seems to indicate, has a certain weight to it she can not quite name. auds flick, and carefully, she rolls the bone back toward the woman, understanding, but then, not at all. she watches her a moment longer, the wordless woman, and then nods carefully and turns on her heel, understanding her curiousity will never fully be sated and instead choosing to focus in the interloper; who's trail was definitely going in the wrong direction.