Sawtooth Spire Pita Republic

Things were quiet since the storm, in her world anyway. No noisy parasites to keep happy, most importantly. No, her priorities were patrolling and keep intruders out of their newly, officially claimed lands, and their caches filled. Speaking of caches, her mind went to the one she'd accepted recently. Pita. Had he met @Iqniq yet? Probably not. SFB was basically haunting the entrance of Tonravik's den. 

Without much more thought put into it, she loosed a howl, summoning the both of them (@Wicked). As a new member, he needed to meet at least one of the Alphas and considering one was still in the beginning stages of her new role as Mama Bear, her bff was the obvious choice.

When a voice summoned him from deeper within the territory, Wicked hesitated only for a second. Disregarding his misgivings, he abandoned his current patrol and began to climb the mountain for the first time. He kept his entire body low to the ground, his eyes and ears open for any signs of other wolves. But he made it to Nanuk's position without crossing paths with anyone else.

He approached her, still moving low to the ground. Submission did not bother him. In fact, it came naturally and he offered it up willingly. Despite her gruff behavior at their initial meeting, Nanuk was an enormous improvement over his uncles. And though she had rubbed him the wrong way ever so slightly, he wouldn't dream of harming her, even though he had spent roughly a year fantasizing about killing his former Alpha and Beta—and had, moreover, carried out his plans. And then some.

What's up? his expression seemed to say but Wicked's tongue remained motionless in his mouth, waiting for the Beta female to speak first.

Nanuk's howl pulled him from his ever diligent task of den guarding. Tonravik's concerns over nearby wildlife had led him to scouring the area with a fine tooth comb and eliminating any threats in the form of land animals. Eagles and such? He was earth bound and therefore powerless to do anything about them, but he imagined the cover of trees helped considerably. Also, so too did Tonravik keep that den well guarded and the pups were well out of sight.

Nevertheless, a howl lured him away, sparing a few moments to see what it was she wished to show him. He'd heard rumor of a new wolf within their midsts, accepted by Nanuk herself. The male's voice had been among the claiming call of the newly established Sawtooth Spire, but he head yet to put a face to the wolf within. Had yet to do much of anything really. Why, even his desire to investigate Arverk's disappearance had been put on hold when the puppies were born, but he had to trust Arverk's instincts when it came to survival. He had to trust a lot of the pack with this scenario, but he could put the time aside to greet a new face.

He gave a quick chuff to Tonravik to inform her of his temporary departure before he traversed the territory to meet up with their resident polar bear and... from the looks of it, a wolf who could have been her own pup, now grown. "Nanertak?" he asked, forgoing introductions given his confusion. Bear cub? His inuit was not strong enough to form complete sentences, but in this he felt the singular word brought the question across. He'd not pried into Nanuk's history... but it was a possibility...

Pita showed up quickly enough, his submission noted, appreciated, and moved on from. If she irritated him, she'd never know. She'd also not care. It wasn't her job to make sure everyone was shitting sunshine. She registered his look though and waited a moment before answering. "Introductions." Simple, easy, and fortunately they weren't left waiting much longer. 

The red furred male swept in and poised a question that made her half choke, nailing him with a look that was part incredulity and part who knew what. "Hell no." She snorted, hot air forced from her nose as she shook her head. "The name still fits you." He would know what she was talking about, because obviously his head was full of shit if he thought she had any spawn. 

"This is Pita. Our new, resident pain in the ass. Or Wick, as he called himself. Whichever." Nanuk's nicknames had never been cute or pleasant. They were just signs that she acknowledged someone. She grinned through, focusing on one then the other. "Pita, this is Shit for Brains. You might want to refer to our Alpha as Iqniq, though." No doubt, Iqniq wouldn't that one passed around. But after that question? The name was fair game. And they could keep it between the three of them.

"Ah," he said aloud even as another wolf strode onto the scene. Wicked's hindquarters dropped to the ground and he maintained his unassertive posture. The newcomer said a strange word, causing the yearling's ear to flick, then the pair of leaders began to converse between themselves. He listened, a bit nonplussed at first, when he eventually realized they were bantering. His eyes narrowed slightly at the explanation behind his nickname, though he cracked a smile when he realized that even the Alpha hadn't escaped Nanuk's crude labels.

Taking the Beta female's advice to heart, Wicked glanced in the Alpha male's direction and said, "Good to meet you, Iqniq. It's actually Wicked," he shared with a casual roll of a lean white shoulder blade. "Sorry we haven't met sooner. Nanuk informed me of the trade requirements, so I've been staying near the borders." That wasn't the only reason, though he didn't think the other one would matter much to the leaders.

Without looking directly at Iqniq, Wicked studied him. He couldn't help but draw comparisons between his former Alpha and his new leader. He'd known Iqniq for all of four seconds and already Wicked much preferred him. So these new leaders were a bit primitive and rough around the edges. He could handle that. They had no reason to hate or abuse him and he wouldn't give them one either. Neither party would bring harm to the other. To the contrary, this was the beginning of a beautiful, symbiotic relationship.

The polar bear's comments brought a snort from him. He laughed, mostly to himself as she became defensive and adamant about this wolf having no relation to her. True, he was a fair bit thinner than than Nanuk. Their builds could not compare, but when genetics were tossed a pot and mixed up a bit, the results could be a little bit of anything.

His laughter quieted as Nanuk began the introductions. PITA. Pain In The Ass. Now it was his turn to sigh as he realized the new kid hadn't escaped from her wise cracks. "Nanuk," he said firmly, snapping attention to her name before his lips split into a smile. "You can't name him 'pain in the ass'." He found it amusing, but the name wouldn't be long lasting. They'd come up with something better.

He turned to Pita, or Wick – no – Wicked, as the wolf fully introduced himself and explained what he'd been caught up to speed on. Good. He knew the trade requirements. Now for his personal rule. "I see you've met Nanuk's sense of humor. Iqniq is preferred." He tipped his head in her direction. "She's the only one who gets to call me SFB." It was their thing; a name that had rolled over from when they'd first met in the wilds while he was still a lone wolf.

"No need to apologize. We've all been tending to our own tasks." They'd all been busy. What mattered, was that they were finally meeting now. "Nice to meet you. Thank you for patrolling our borders so quickly." It pleased him to hear this wolf was already helping out. The kid had spirit.

"You know about our required trades..." he prattled, rolling through his mind to figure out what might also be important to fill him in on. Oh, right. Since they were already on the topic of names, why not? "If you explore outside our borders, you're welcome to go by your original name. But here? Every wolf gets a blank slate. You start over. You create a new history. With that, Nanuk will attempt to come up with a more acceptable name for you." His gaze trailed to the beta. "Come on, BABs. You can do better than Pita." Boss ass bitch.

sorry for the weird. super tired.

"Says you." The quip back was thoughtless and easy but it was also good natured, for Nanuk anyway. Iqniq had kept SFB and now, Wicked would keep Pita. That was just the way shit worked. Besides, she tended to be rather horrific with names when it came down to it. In relaxed situations, fine but anytime she had to think on the fly, the names she gave came easiest to her. She didn't expect anyone else to use those names and would continue calling them that at times. Not always, but still.

Introductions went back and forth and the polar bear half paid attention, formalities thrown out the frickin' window at this point. She did hear that Pita had been patrolling already and approved silently, in her head. He'd been a good find, apparently, since he was already on the ball. A brief mental note was made; she'd need to spar with him at some point to get a gauge on his skills but that could come later. 

Right now, it was Name Game time. Great. Leering at Iqniq, she gave a pointed yawn in his general direction, opening a amber eyes to peer at the other. His pelt was much lighter than her own, without making him look dainty. He looked like... "Ittukanak," (birdshit). Another jest, one that the Alpha would understand but made her ridiculous grin no less ridiculous. For Nanuk, this was a form of play and if they participated, more power to them. 

"Then you're both full of shit." Something oddly like a laugh left her, sobering a little more as she shrugged. In reality, she took the name seriously as she, herself had only just recently had the Inuit moniker bestowed on her but Nanuk was also tired of the stern quiet of the mountain lately. Even Echelon's presence was scarce right now and she needed something. That Pita handled it so far was a good sign. "Obviously you don't like the name I gave him. That's your problem. You name him."

Iqniq took the time to address him directly and Wicked bobbed his head to acknowledge his Alpha's praise, the corners of his lips twisting into a smile. But his leaders seemed stuck on this whole naming convention and continued their quip war back and forth. He really didn't care what they ended up deciding, Pita or otherwise. Wicked wasn't his real name, just a self-assigned moniker he'd taken when walking away from the (literal) ashes of his former life. His identity was fluid for the moment.

"Ittukanak," he chimed in after a moment. "I like that one," he said, oblivious to its meaning. It just sounded like the others', with the hard k sound at the end. It was an improvement over Pita anyhow. "What language are these in, by the way?" he wanted to know. He knew a bit of Latin because of his former home's ranks but otherwise knew little else besides the common tongue.

He turned an ear towards Nanuk, but effectively ignored her. Since her quip was her own version of pouting over the fact that he'd spoiled her fun in assigning this wolf a pet name that stuck around forever. She could keep it between the two of them, but he was not about to introduce this wolf to the rest of the pack with her snarky name.

Generally speaking, it was Tonravik that handled a majority of the naming. A few moments with a wolf and she knew what to call them in her own tongue. Iqniq had been learning. It'd been a slow process, but with Nanuk as a teacher he knew what words she'd tossed together in order to create her attempt at a new name for the wolf before them. Bird and feces. She'd literally smushed those two words together to make up a new one.

He snorted as the currently nameless wolf spoke up. "No you don't. That one means birdshit." He looked to the white beta. "Nanuk, I revoke your naming privileges." He had no intentions of letting this wolf walk around as an inside joke he didn't understand. There weren't many who knew the language, but if Echelon got a hold of that one... he could only imagine. "Inuktitut," he replied when asked what tongue they were speaking. "Or Inuit." He thought about it and realized what they were really saying was a blend of both. "A mix of both tongues." They were similar enough.

Alas, the task of naming this wolf fell on him. He looked the wolf over and spoke out loud to allow Nanuk to chime in with her more vast vocabulary of the Tartok tongue. "Well, let's see. He's white. Very white. A little black around the edges... But definitely still white." He pondered for a moment before continuing. "Like snow. Ice. Frost, perhaps?" He glanced towards Nanuk. "Kanik?"

Sorry for the wait!

She laughed again, this time an outright sound rather than something more suppressed. While her intent was not to be malicious or portray him as a fool, the white bear could not help but be amused that he liked the name she gave him. Iqniq was quick to enlighten him on both his name and the language they spoke, which was fine. If he was to be a part of everything here, he would need to learn eventually. 

"Iqniq, don't be racist. You can't just say someone's white or black." But she evaluated the wolf in question, nodding after a few long moments. Frost. "Kanik it is." It fit, that much was obvious. Whether or not he would fit not just the name, but the pack, well. He'd make it work if he wanted it to.

No worries!

Iqniq informed him of the name's meaning and Wicked wasn't quite sure what to say about that. Anyway, the Alpha and Beta continued conversing back and forth before settling on an actual moniker: Kanik. It was evidently Inuktitut (or possibly Inuit) for frost. Rather than share an opinion again, Wicked looked to Nanuk to see if she thought it worked. She threw another joke in there, then assented. So he would be Wicked, also known as Kanik.

He considered himself more fiery than frosty but he wasn't about to raise a fuss. He really would have been fine with Ittukanak, honestly, or even Pita. Anything was better than his former name, which he'd shed like snakeskin as soon as he'd left behind the decimation of his birth pack. It was actually kind of ironic that he would only drop it even as everyone who held it against him ceased to exist.

The yearling forced himself to focus on the present, not the past. "Hi, I'm Kanik," he joked, showing the leaders his acceptance of the alias, "but you can call me Frosty the Snowman." He didn't feel very confident in his ability to joke around with these two yet, so more soberly he asked Iqniq in particular, "You mentioned exploring outside the borders. Is that common? Leaving the territory?"

The name was settled upon and the new wolf, now Kanik, quickly settled into his new name. A grin spread onto Iqniq's lips. Oh yes. This one would fit in quite nicely. Once they warmed him up a bit and he figured out his boundaries, he was certain this wolf would be an excellent asset to the the pack. Maybe when the pups were grown, they'd bury Frosty in snow and make him a real snowman.

Ears swiveled as Kanik asked a question about exploring. "Depends on the wolf, but if you've got the itch to explore, go for it." As an outrider, Iqniq liked to keep tabs on neighboring packs and other happenings in the wild. Exploring and piecing parts the rumor mill together as he learned things from other travelers helped with that. "The first rule of Sawtooth Spire is: You do not talk about Sawtooth Spire. The second rule of Sawtooth Spire is: You do not talk about Sawtooth Spire." Easy enough. "We keep to ourselves. If you choose to wander, conceal your scent. There are no secrets here any outside wolf needs to know about."

It seemed simple. He'd had no trouble with it when he'd wandered outside, but with the pups so young, his current responsibilities were far more closer to home than the wanderlust within that reared its head every so often. Which reminded him. "Nanuk already told you that we require all wolves to be trained as warrior and wardens?" He glanced towards the polar bear confirm whether or not she'd informed him. "If you spar with your pack mates, keep your bites soft. If you inflict injuries on your peers, you'll receive a matching mark." The wolves of the Spire were to remain strong. They did not to be crippling their own.

He pondered for a moment. Was their anything else this wolf needed to know? "Anything you want to add?" he asked, glancing towards Nanuk.

She fell silent as Iqniq filled him in on the rules of the Spire, nodding here and there as she agreed with his points. The flame-colored leader asked her input now and she thought about it for a moment, remembering the lesson they'd had to teach the Plains wolves. Would the imbeciles find them here? Perhaps, perhaps not. Either way, their lives would be forfeit should they near the borders of the Spire. 

"Kill any trespassers and let none get close. Use whatever violence you feel necessary to force them back. Outsiders are not welcome here, by our invitation or otherwise." If he followed their instructions, the newly christened Kanik would be golden. The wolves here were a loyal bunch and she'd not let any go instructed incorrectly. In the Spire, it was give your all or forfeit your life. If he was a true survivor, this would all come pretty naturally to him.

Iqniq did not seem to mind if his wolves came and went as they pleased, though he laid down a very explicit set of ground rules. Wicked listened carefully, making note of everything his Alpha had to say, even though he knew it was all rather a moot point. He had never been much of a wanderer. He had rarely ever left his prior pack's domain and now that he'd found a new home, he didn't intend to stray from the spire either.

The note about sparring was significantly more relevant, as was Nanuk's comment about executing trespassers. He nodded to both superiors to signal his acknowledgement of all they'd said. There wasn't much to add, though Wicked did let them know, "I am a guardian and hunter at heart and these duties require me to stay close, so I won't be wandering away much. And I will keep in mind to only bite prey and trespassers but never pack mates," he quipped with a tiny smirk.

He lapsed into silence again, wondering if they had covered everything they wanted. He wouldn't leave until dismissed, though as he'd said, he was here to protect and serve. Wicked was already eager to get back to the borders. Actions spoke louder than words and he looked forward to proving his worth. Besides, he was still more comfortable sticking to the outskirts for now.

He'd covered a bit of it, but as always, Nanuk filled in the gaps. That's right. The zero trespassing policy. With everything and their new borders he'd almost forgotten about that one, but true to her guardian spirit, it wasn't something Nanuk could so easily forget. Or ignore. He grinned. "That's right. Attack first. Ask questions never." Oh. And one more important thing. "And, if you do spot an intruder, howl to alert the whole pack. Don't try to handle it yourself." If for some reason they took Kanik out, someone else needed to know something was amiss before the trespasser got too far.

In true fashion, the wolf continued to seem bright and capable. Words were wind until proven, but the confidence that radiated from the wolf seemed to suggest he had the talent to back his claims. Iq nodded to the wolf. He'd prove himself in time, but this was an excellent start. Still... "If Nanuk continues to call you Pita, you're welcome to make true on that." Polar bear needed a good nip in the ass here and there.

He fell silent. The new wolf fell silent. He half expected Nanuk to say something to break the awkward silence, but if she didn't? It seemed as though they were done here and all had their own duties and obligations to tend to. "Well then, it was nice to meet you Kanik. I'll see you around." He nodded to the both of them before drifting off. Perhaps he could find Tonravik a snack between here and the whelping den.

-Iqniq exits-

Kanik specified that he wouldn't be wandering and Nanuk nodded, accepting this too. Her mind was already on going back to her patrolling, something she did religiously. She might have shot back with something snarky had she not been getting up to head off; as it was, she looked at the newcomer for a moment before flashing a grin. "See you around, Pita." With that, she moved off towards the borders, though he was more than welcome to join her on her patrol if he wanted to. 

Nanuk exits!

Iqniq made a few last remarks, then drifted away, presumably to check in with his mate. Nanuk took her cue to leave too. "You heading to the borders?" Wicked guessed, rising and trotting behind her. He was tempted to make good on his Alpha's joke by giving her a big ole bite to the rear. Maybe in time, he would feel more comfortable messing around with them in turn. For now, he kept his teeth to himself. "I'll shadow you, if that's cool," he added, falling back a few meters and letting her lead the way back to the spire's outermost fringes.