Sunbeam Lair But I don't read those things anymore

for @Diesel
early morning, 15 F, windy and overcast

He was immensely grateful that the weather was getting colder; it was what he was made for. His thick, northern coat no longer felt stifling as he patrolled, and the occasional gust of icy wind felt nice as it lifted the top hairs of his coat.  

This morning, he had started at the most norther part of the canyon and decided to move out past the borders to spread his scent around the area in case a stranger got any ideas. He also wanted to make sure no one was lingering too close to the canyon.

So far, things had been quiet.

She fucking hated the weather. 

Her coat got thicker, sure, but it meant fuck-all when the winds sliced trough it. Mint-breathed God was blowing in her face as she advanced trough the mountains, stumbling over her feet, with only her fever to keep her warm.

When she spotted a wolf in the distance, all she could think was not again. These bastards seemed to breed like mice and in just a couple days they went from a novelty to an annoying fucking fixture of the territory. Besides, most of her interactions with them went poorly.

Still, the feverish, exhausted, thinning dog had nothing else to do except await her doom, so she barked at the stranger.

If she was lucky, he might kill her before the infection did.

He heard the bark and froze, glancing around to find the source. It didn't take long because she stood out like a sore thumb against the winter-painted mountainside. She was the strangest creature he had ever seen. She smelled similar to a wolf, but she looked nothing like one. 

He continued to look her over, his gaze shrewd and icy. The canyon is claimed, Kallik told the stranger. You'll have to go around if you intend to cross the mountains. He could smell the sickness on her, which didn't bode well for her. Being in the mountains, in the winter, while sick was a deadly combination. But he was hesitant to make that his problem. There were still only a few of them in the canyon. The soldier wasn't sure it would be wise to waste resources on the stranger, whatever she was.

A soft "fuck" was breathed by the dog, turning into a warm mist quickly torn to nothing by the wind. Every geographically valuable inch of the land seemed to be claimed by these prick-eared pricks. Still, she wasn't about to prolong her journey by avoiding the wolf territory. A blurry idea formed in her feverish mind.

She sized up the canine before her. He - she was pretty sure it was a he - stood taller than she, as every adult of his kind seemed to. His coat was pallid gray, and she envied the thickness of it, but did note the powerful musculature beneath it. Absentmindedly, she flexed her own muscles, which had begun to thin from lack of nourishment, but her breed's genetics refused to let them shrivel so easily. 

Most notably, he seemed well-fed and cared for. Scents of others mingled in his fur, assuring her that it was his pack that claimed the land ahead. 

Yes, the idea had thicker outlines now.

She did note how he looked at her, the icyness not shrouding the familiarity of the gaze. Her jowls were pushed up by a smile. "What, never seen a bitch like me before, huh?" She teased, somehow managing to wag her meaty tail.

The auxillary's expression remained blank and unreadable as she spoke. But her crude words did not tell him whether or not she would heed his warning and avoid the canyon. 

He had fallen deeply into his role as soldier; he allowed it to numb his feelings and his empathy, especially for those he did not trust. He didn't care if the strange woman had tried to make a joke, nor did it matter if he had never seen anything like her. At this point, she was a bothersome distraction from the many miles of patrol he needed to do today. 

There is a valley just east of here, the northerner told her, choosing not to answer her question. It was not claimed last I checked. You can find an exit from the mountains there. He would be kind enough to tell her where to go, but he would not allow her in the canyon. So he stood there, a statue of ice to ensure she altered her path and ventured away from their territory.

Well you a tough guy, Diesel thought, but knew not to voice it. She recognised his type. Junkyard guard dog who knew only how to bark at anyone who passed by. An absolute killjoy in every conversation. The smile melted off her face in an avalanche of loose skin.

Instead, her eyes adopted an intelligent sheen - not too bright a gleam for the dull-minded mastiff.


"Say, mister, that group of yours, how long you been here?" His suggestion for an alternate route went unacknowledged. "Cause I think I'd have heard about it. Didn't think there was supposed to be anyone in the mountains."

She ran her tongue along her muzzle, which was a short journey for the muscle.

She was persistent, he would give her that. And she seemed to better understand the weight of her situation, or at least he assumed because she had traded her smile for a more serious expression. But the question she asked was none of her business, and he would not share any valuable information with her. Instead, he studied her face with careful interest.

For a bit, was all he would tell her. Who told you there was no one in the mountains? he asked. What if she was a spy from the Saints or had just run into one of them. Maybe not, but he was interested to know who had told her that the mountains weren't claimed. He would like to report the information back to Germanicus.

Like opening a can with no fingers, that's how she'd describe talking to this guy. He seemed intent to not trust her, but she could have assumed as much.

Motherfucking doberman of a dude.

The mastiff shrugged. "Just some pups, north of here. They told me most packs are past these uhh, Sunspire Mountains? But no one's marked any on the tips as their own, least that's what they thought."

She chuckled, mirthless. "Tho I guess they weren't wrong, you guys live in a canyon after all."

she cracks me up btw

Do these pups have names? Did they tell you what pack they're with? He needed more information than she had given him. But it did seem that whoever had told her of the mountains hadn't ventured into the center lately, or they wouldn't be telling strangers that it was all unclaimed. Mereo had been thorough in their patrols and in claiming the borders. There was no way anyone could get within a few miles of here and not know it was claimed. 

The canyon was theirs, but they were also possessive of the mountains around it, which was why he had bristled over her the fact that someone had told the the woman no one was here. 

He only lifted an eyebrow at her need to point out the unimportant distinction. A canyon I'm still not going to allow you to pass through. He let a frown pull down his brows for a moment. Why are you here, anyway? He asked. The mountains are the last place you should be when you're sick.

Goddamn man, do I fucking look like I cared to remember? The mastiff ground her teeth. The Bad Cop shtick only works when you've got a Good Cop too, you prick.

It took so much energy not to speak her mind, that when she finally parted her lips she thought she'd cuss out him, his pack and each individual twat that shot them out.

"Some fancy name, some Sah-feek or something." She muttered instead. "Dunno, wasn't at my best then."

If thunder rolled now, she'd have assumed God was applauding her self-control.

And the interrogation continued.

"What, can't a dog pick her place to die?" She'd have contested his raised brow with her own, but the missing chunk above it barred that from happening. "Seriously though, mister, I'm tougher than I reek. I was looking for a place to curl up for a few days, maybe find something to eat, just long enough to fight this." She lifted her chin as to briefly show the gashes in the skin left by the white giantess. "Will make a nice scar when it heals, I'll tell you that."

He didn't recognize the name, but he would be sure to ask Germanicus about it. Alright, was all he said in return. 

She was looking for a place to stay while she healed—her real reason for being here, even though she had just joked about looking for a place to die. Did she have to make everything a joke? 

He released a put out sigh. It's not up to me whether or not you can stay. That is the imperator's decision. Kallik looked her over, eyes roaming over the place that would scar. You will be of no use to Mereo while you're sick, but if you would agree to join and be one of its soldiers, maybe the imperator would be more willing to let you stay. Why was he even entertaining the idea? Probably because deep down under all the layers of ice, there was maybe a little compassion.

Bad Cop got the message. Hurray.

More importantly, he didn't outright shoot her down. There was hope she'd be allowed in their little canyon clique. A jowl twitched from the smile she stiffled, but the dog managed to maintain a neutral countenance (as neutral as her drooping facial anatomy allowed), even nodding solemnly as the male explained the joining process.

Mereo. Soldiers. Imperator. She thought she was asking a pack of wolf wussies for charity, but these dudes sounded tight as hell, unless the titles was all they had to them.

Not that she had the option to doubt. Anywhere out this cunt-freezing cold would be good enough, for now.

"Oh, I can be real soldier, mister. I wouldn't have gotten these wounds if I wasn't a fighter, and I went through a bit of obedience training, too." For example, I can fetch slippers on command. 

She dipped her head. "Take me to your leader."

And out this awful fucking weather.

it made more sense to have germanicus join this thread since they're close to the borders anyway

She did have the massive build to be a useful soldier, assuming she survived her illness. He had no idea what obedience training was, so he said nothing, only offering a slight frown in response.

I will call for him to come here, the auxillary said. Then he turned and sent a call out to @Germanicus, howling long enough to ensure it traveled over the canyon. 

When he turned back to the stranger, his face was an unreadable mask. Now they would wait.

the silver eagle was not far from kallik's call.

he stepped toward them and halted. the yellowpaint gaze was also unscrutable.

inside himself, germanicus recoiled. more than pagan. dog. "in the end, what is the difference?" it was a good bit of roman humour. he said nothing of it.

"i am imperator of mereo. i expect the auxillary who greeted you today has ended our need for small talk." 

within the wild mountains, he felt he had come back to himself. "you are wounded and reek of fever. who battled you?" his voice was careful. but she was measured, both as stranger and as not-wolf.

There was no saving her hide from the biting winds just yet. Diesel had to act unbothered as the haunting call - heard for the first time from up-close, triggering a discomfort bred into her bloodline - echoed over the mountains, then wait in place, hiding her shivering, for the recipient to appear.

Bad Cop wasn't some company. His demeanor infuriated her, but she too could hold a poker face. They waited in silence, with her occasionally licking away the drool pooling in her jowls, else it turn to icicles.

Finally the man of the hour arrived.

He was dark and athletic, with a kind of hard-assed look about him, having more dominant airs despite being shorter than the grey male who greeted her. That was as much as she could infer at a glance, for the wolfish form and face were still alien and too similar between individuals to her.

When he spoke, she lowered her head.

When he asked who it was that put her in such a sorry state, it rose so he could get a good look at the scabbed over wounds of her neck, and that missing fold of skin above her brow.

"Some she-wolf, sir." The honorific seemed befitting, although she felt as if she was groveling. "First and biggest wolf I've ever seen. Tons of scars, like life chewed her up. Beat me up good, but I added a couple more to her collection." The bitch smirked.

Germanicus didn't keep them waiting long; the auxillary was grateful.

Kallik had already obtained the most useful bits of information, so when the imperator began to speak, he didn't have to ask any of the initial questions; they could just get right to the point.

He had intended to let the shadow know of his suggested bargain with the injured dog, but it was put on hold as Germanicus asked about the woman's wounds. She told him she had been attacked by a large wolf. This news piqued the northerner's interest, and he waited quietly for the imperator to gather more information from her.

a large woman who was scarred.

germanicus did not look toward kallik. but he expected that they both might be interested in this information.

as it were, there was the matter of this one's wounds. "we have no medic in mereo. you will make do with what tactics i have learned on the field. or you have the option of traveling to akashingo, in the flatlands. the queen there knows more than i and may treat you."

"if you remain, you will be an auxillary. and i will expect you to be ready for training in a very short time."

germanicus laid his terms before her. he looked at her heavy jaws and waited for the woman to concede or demur.

Diesel nodded as the hard-ass-in-charge spoke of his pack's... lack of a medic? Wolves had that? The female licked away a persistent string of drool hanging from her jowl. As far as she knew, medicine was the domain of can-openers. A wounded stray would either grit their teeth and wait to get healthy, or whine at and nuzzle against any passing human in hopes of being taken to a vet. Diesel believed in the efficiency of the former.

"I'll survive on my own." The feverish dog shrugged. "Just need rest and food, someone to lick my wounds. My body will handle the rest." And she wholly believed that.

Although, the mention of a "queen" got her curious. What kind of arrangement did this pack have?

"And yeah, give me a week or two and I'll be ready for, uh, soldiering, sir." 

Kallik thought two weeks was generous. He had a feeling she would not be given that long. If she was as strong as she was implying, then she shouldn't need that much time, and he didn't think the imperator would allow her to have it. But that was for her to find out; she would get her rude awakening, and then they would see how worthy she actually was. 

The auxillary had nothing else to say, and unless Germanicus needed anything else from him, he would turn and continue his patrol.

last for me! feel free to reply again/archive <3

"one week."

two was for layabouts. he would evaluate her in seven days' time. for now, he nodded to dismiss kallik and jerked his head toward diesel. "come with me. we will treat your fever now."

he too turned, moving toward the sluggish snow-melt at the center of the redstone mazes.