Arrow Lake first confluence

Not joining, but NOT trespassing either. Amsu is at the borders hoping to speak to Stigmata!

In his explorations of the areas surrounding Redsand Canyon, he had found a place taken over by a pack. And the smell had seemed… familiar. Some wolf or other that he knew was here. Not of his own family, but a wolf met recently. A dark male who had been kind enough to him. Someone who had spoken to him of finding his own home, settling down with a diaspora of others. @Stigmata had been his name, if Amsu remembered correctly. He did not wish to the join their ranks, for he still held hope of creating his own pack, but he did want to make friends with this group, for he intended to make his home in the canyon below this place, and he knew others could be territorial of the areas surrounding their own home. Levelheaded but hopeful, he tilted his head back and called for his acquaintance.

The call was for Stigmata, but the sylph was the first to answer, her piercing eyes calculating as she openly studied the richly-hued male. Ketzia moved with feline grace—even when unsure of her new home, or where she currently stood in the eyes of her comrades, the she-wolf dwelled little on that and focused at the task at hand—making herself useful.

Her tail arced higher—enough to reveal she was of this land and that he should respect her loyalty to the wolf he called to. As she closed more distance between them, the ivory dove halted a respectful pace between them, her slender muzzle tilted in the man’s directions. “He will be here shortly, I’m sure,” she purred, her tail now flicking idly through the air. “Who are you?”

sorry for the wait!

"amsu!" stigmata called from nearby, inadvertently answering a question he hadn't heard. he was surprised to have heard the call for him, but tried not to dawdle in answering it - no matter how self-important he felt. besides this, the wraith was beginning to truly feel the winter season for what it was, causing him to grow more and more energized with each passing day; his newly minted crown only serving to inflate his already overblown ego.

he pranced quite animatedly to ketzia's side, giving her sleek shoulder a well-meaning nip before turning moonsilver eyes and a commander's attention on the sunbaked caller. "i see you have found my home," the wolf rumbled bemusedly, looking the male up and down almost speculatively. had he come to join then? stigmata asked nothing further, unwilling to assume, and knowing the rather straight-forward amsu would let the reason for his presence be known without prompting.

*cry* sorry for the wait.

A woman approached, one Amsu did not know, but he bowed politely to her all the same. “Amsu,” he said in answer of her question. “Amsu knows of a wolf called Stigmata and he was surprised to find his scent so strongly here. He merely wished to come and say hello.” The desert-dweller’s tail wagged behind him in a friendly manner. 

Soon, Stigmata himself appeared, and seemed happy to see Amsu, which made him glad. ’I see you have found my home,’ the dark one rumbled.

“Yes. Amsu was crossing the mountains, as he was when you first met him, and smelled your scent here. He came to say hello.” Amsu’s tail continued to wag. “Does this mean Stigmata has settled down?”

Feel free to skip over Ketzia unless she's addressed---otherwise, she'll remain quiet in the background.

Ketzia shifted her lissome form, her finely arched brows lifting as the man before her began to refer to himself in third person. Amsu, he called himself, and the Aquilifer found her tongue pressing to the roof of her mouth in mild irritation to the man’s mannerisms. He was a friendly sort, and the cream dove was willing to quell her prejudices of his intelligence until she remained in his company for a time.
 
Before she could respond, the guttural voice of Stigmata brought certain relief to her as he sidled up beside her, greeting the stranger with warmth, and her with a casual nip to her shoulder. Out of forming habit, her muzzle tilted toward his warmth, trailing the fine dark fur of the male before she pulled back, allowing him his visit with the desert creature that apparently was on friendly terms with Diaspora’s General.

"we will not remain here, but this is our territory for now," stigmata told the agouti druid, glancing over his shoulder to catch ketzia's resplendent expression, and to silently reassure her to decision to remain, before turning his muzzle back towards their guest. "have you had any luck on your quest?" he asked, interested if only because any progress made by the lone wolf would be of concern to him, considering it seemed amsu did not intend to leave the mountains any time soon.

The woman remained silent as Amsu and Stigmata spoke, but Amsu gave her a smile to show that he was still aware of her presence. He nodded as Stigmata explained that they were here for now, but would not remain. When he was asked about his own quest, he hesitated. Here was the moment of truth, letting Stigmata know that he wished to take the canyon right below this area. What would he say? Would he tell him to leave it behind—that the canyon was too close? Amsu took a steadying breath. He was not one for war, and war included verbal disputes.

“Amsu has found… a place he thinks might be suitable for him, and any who might follow…” Another breath. “But it is… close to this place.” He gestured behind him with his muzzle. “Below you is a canyon full of red sand and red rock. It reminds Amsu of his desert home and he has fallen in love with it. He was hoping… He was hoping he might make a home there.” Amsu cleared his throat awkwardly. “If he did, he would be sure to tell his wolves to hunt away from your home and not to bother you. Amsu is not a war-wolf. He only wishes to feel the sun on his face and perhaps to nap in the shade on hot days.” 

This was the best speech he could do. Now he waited, with large pleading eyes, much like a child, for Stigmata’s response.

stigmata, who before had been standing rather casually, perked up slightly as he detected amsu's hesitance to bring up whatever it was that fluttered in his breast; and as the wolf told him at length, the general could understand the male's apprehension. he knew where the canyon was, and though as a dark-backed wolf he wasn't partial to such places himself, it was in his realm, and useful or not amsu sought to take ownership of something that stigmata thought already belonged to him.

at least he'd had the decency to ask. and the general didn't see much worth to the canyon himself...

sandraudiga had already made up his mind, but without a change in expression or looking away from the imploring sun-seeker at his doorstep, he quietly beckoned "@Ketzia," and flicked a tail to draw her closer. "what would you make of all this?" he asked her to weigh in on the stranger's request, still observing amsu in the process. "mind you, i have only met amsu once before now, and though i think him to be a rather kind and honorable sort of wolf, fit for diaspora even, i cannot speak on him with any actual certainty." she would need all the facts, if herself, if he wanted her honest opinion.

She still found herself distracted by the mannerisms of their visitor—his speech drew a gentle look from her, and she could feel a wave of disappointment within her breast at Amsu’s request—Amsu, a name that was now burned in her mind forever, for the many times he repeated it.

Stigmata drew her closer, her name uttered from his lips instantly pulling her gaze upon him, and her tail flicked idly at her hocks in a quiet debate. The territory was nothing but red sand—nothing she had been impressed with, and in truth would hope to avoid. But that wasn’t necessarily the worry—to her, it was whether Amsu’s wolves would follow his law and keep from their hunting ground. Or, if the man himself would keep his end of the deal.

Her gaze washed over him, intrigue lasting only a moment as she considered it strange that a wolf of the desert would choose a location surrounded by higher spiraling peaks that welcomed the cold.

“If a pack settles there, it blocks our path to a lake and other resources from one side of the mountain. Which areas are you looking for your wolves to hunt? What will happen if the herds migrate within our territory?” Her smoky voice lifted to be heard, and she cast a look to her dark General, believing he wouldn’t mind that she sought more specific answers before offering her thoughts.

Amsu was very nervous as he glanced between the two wolves, listening to their words. He had hoped, perhaps naïvely, that they would simply allow him to be neighbors with them without a second thought. It would not be so easy. He thought very hard about his answers to Ketzia’s worries. He understood them from a logistical standpoint and was determined to make sure that Stigmata and she knew that he did not intend to steal resources. His would be a sanctuary pack, not one full of piracy.

“Amsu was hoping to become allies with this pack,” he began, gesturing towards the rest of Stigmata’s territory. “This way, your wolves may pass through the Canyon if they need to without suspicion. Amsu is not looking to steal resources from anyone. He knows what hard living is. Before coming here, he lived in a desert, a place much like the canyon. He does not need much to survive.” The golden wolf paused, trying to find anything else to say to assuage their worries. “Amsu hopes to create a sanctuary pack, a place of welcome, not of strict borders. Amsu… He came from a place of war, and left to create a place of peace.” The male sighed, shaking his head. There was nothing else he could say. If this was not enough, then nothing would be.

conservatively, stigmata absorbed both the justified concerns of his companion, as well as their visitor's supposed solutions. he had no confidence that such a pacifist could succeed in enforcing any rules he might think to impose on his wolves, but  stigmata felt secure enough in his own position that none of this particularly bothered him. if anything, a deal like this could only mean potential allies, and any foreseeable cons were negligible at best. but he was glad to see that his mountain imperialism had rubbed off on ketzia, and it secretly thrilled him to know she was reluctant to have neighbors not strictly of diaspora.

"i need time to consider your sanctuary, amsu. and the rest of my wolves must have a say in this as well," he finalized at length. "in the meantime, you may stay in the canyon and gather followers, undisturbed. should there be dissent among my wolves over your presence, then i will come to you personally and we will.. renegotiate at that time." almost instinctively he glanced towards ketzia to gauge how agreeable she was to the decree, but he was also entirely confident this would be the best way forward for now. amsu wouldn't hurt anyone trying to dig his roots in the canyon, and if he became a nuisance - which was highly doubtful - then things could be handled diplomatically. most likely.

Sorry for the wait! I figured since I've let this run away from me, that we could basically have a deal like "as long as you don't hear from me, we're fine" kinda thing since I doubt anyone will have any strong disagreements towards this. I'm gonna check in the pack chat, but yeah, as long as DA doesn't come knocking on your door, you can proceed as planned, Fira.

Skipping Ketzia to close this. Hope you don't mind.

Amsu listened to Stigmata and nodded his assent. He did not mind these conditions because he understood why they were necessary. "Amsu understands," he said softly, bowing his head to show that he was not angry and intended to respect Stigmata's words. "He will go now. If there are problems, Stigmata and all other Diaspora wolves are welcome to come to the canyon to discuss them. Amsu hopes he will be any trouble for you." With a last bow, he got up and walked away.

[Exit.