Chimera Fields Drawn beyond the lines of reason

@Alison

With his time away from Rusalka, Vengeance felt free once again. No longer did he have to bow to a constant change of leadership, to hold back for the sake of keeping a place among strangers that he didn't even enjoy in the first place. Slowly he was gathering a small following, and eventually, he believed that one day, the group would claim land for their own, a base so to speak to gain work and recognition. For now, one follower, in particular, caught his attention.

Alison. The one with a temper as fiery as her pelt. I wish to create a pack, Alison. He began, speaking to her over his shoulder without breaking his gaze on the field of flowers ahead. Where they stood, the tornado's path carved a green line in the colorful field of flowers. Of all the followers currently, I see the most potential in you. With one eye, the man looked over his shoulder, ruby eyes landing on the female in question. 

But I need to be certain of one thing. Would you attack without reason, given the task.

Time had been passing fast since the girl was recruited by the hulking man, yet her pay off has yet to rear its ugly head. Today was just like any other, the man traveled and she followed. Sometimes it was in silence and sometimes he spoke briefly, she learned she preferred the silence. There was something dark about this man yet her desire to follow still burned strong. Today the man spoke.

"I wish to create a pack, Alison."

That was genuinely a surprise, she still didn't see pack life as something fit for her...however with Vengeance at the wheel who knew what exactly that entitled. Like the beast, she had kept her eyes forward only raising them to meet the red orbs once he mentioned her potential.

A frown carved it's way onto her face as he asked if she would attack with no reason. In all honesty, it's not like she hadn't before, at least not with good reason. Killing was a bit different. She never had reason or motive to kill someone, but there was a first time for everything...

I suppose that matters...Why? What's in it for me?

Ruby eyes scanned the fields from where he stood, searching for something in particular. All the while, he kept his attention on Alice as well, listening to her questions... She was quite fitting for what he had planned, already asking what was in it for her should she follow his order so soon without a true pack behind him to rule. 

A pack has ranks. he began, amusement filling his voice and expression. Don't you wish to be above them all? I need to be shown you are capable of leading by example. Finally, he spotted something that was frolicking in the fields, a small bright white figure that bounced around in the fields of color, almost looking as though it was looking for something among the flowers. His gaze refused to leave the figure, following it with every movement it made, studying the snowflake as it danced in the heat of summer. 

Mercenaries. They have to attack without question, do a job no matter their morals. he gestured with a nod of his head at the white in the field, waiting for Alison to take notice before continuing. Kill her, and I promise a high rank.

Vengeance answered with amusement, something new from him. When he questioned her of her worth, that she must prove herself, the fiery girl's eyes narrowed. If it meant securing her power down the line she had no issue with whatever task he provided.

What he wanted took shook her only briefly. His large skull motioned to a girl in the distance, rather small and young. It was very likely she was an innocent by the way she danced and looked among the flowers as if she came from a fairytale. Alice could only remind herself that things were different in the real world... it was a kill or be killed world, for she too had faced the fangs of unexpected attackers except she survived.

Ice meeting blood, Alison held her gaze as she nodded making a deal with the devil himself. For when it came to morals and survival, she'd much rather stand with the one who could easily take as he pleased. Without needing any more prompt she rushed out into the clearing with a fearful look as she glanced back toward the shadows where Vengeance stood. 

Once she was withing earshot of the snowy girl she cried out, Please—! I need help, he's going to kill me! She let her voice crack as if she was in real distress as she skidded to a halt beside the smaller girl. Her goal was to get her to look back, perhaps even see Vengeance, all she needed was the distraction. Something for her to not run before she even made it to her. If the poor girl fell for her act, she'd lunge. Her fangs bared for the girl's scruff.

The field of flowers was vast, with so many different plants and flowers that she could ponder over bringing back to the den to continue to build that garden - it was nearly perfect, but would it ever be done? It almost seemed like she would never stop working on it, or at least finding new plants to add to it - provided that they could stay alive in Kaistleoki's location. 

She paid no mind to the figures in the distance, to be honest, she didn't even notice them - even if she did, they weren't bothering her (for now), and continued to study the flowers all around. It wasn't until the reddish woman frantically ran over did Reiko's attention get drawn. 

Help? Without a word ushered, Reiko's ears perked as she looked over to the looming figure in the distance. A giant of a wolf that could easily tower over the two of them. He was terrifying... she could barely see his face from this distance, but his presence, the calm so eerie it made her skin crawl. 

Don't worry, quick c-- She couldn't finish her words, turning back around, it all took seconds and a flash of pain rippled through her, immediately drawing out a loud yelp from the agony. She had every intention to help this woman, and yet here she was, being attacked herself! Confused, hurt, she could only manage to think one thing; run! Was this woman and that man a team? Kicking up dirt as she tried to grasp at the ground, she made her attempt to flee her attacker, using what Ira had taught her, the training, to run as fast as she could.

It all happened so fast, but all according to plan. The girl took her bait looking to the man in the distance giving her the opportunity to clamp her jaws down at her neck. Obviously, the girl's next move was to run, to which she could only hope she outmatches her in strength. Chasing her down would just be a hassle.

Trying what Vengeance had once done to her, Alice attempted to pull at the girl's scruff and throw her to the ground. She would not be able to achieve lifting her off the ground as the beast had, but hopefully, her attack would still act as a stun should the white girl go down, thus giving her the chance to top and pin her while she moved in for her next attack.

She was confident in her ability to outrun her assailant if only her paws would touch the ground. Once again she yelped in pain and in surprise as the woman didn't let go of her scruff, giving her that precious time she could have used to escape, but instead turned her weight against her and eventually found herself hitting the ground in an unforgiving thump.

For a moment her cries for help, unable to formulate words but instead just pure instinctual cries to reach to the heavens, searching for someone, anyone to come to her aid, had gone silent as her head spun once she hit the ground. What was she to do now? Her training with Ira hadn't gone very far, she didn't have much to go on to be honest. She had tried to use her speed, and it failed. Now she could only defend the best she could, drawing herself inward, trying to protect her soft underbelly and neck by using her legs and paws as a shield, pushing if possible against the reddish woman. 

With her weight on top of her, Reiko found herself completely useless to do anything else. No matter how much she tried to wriggle herself free, she found herself simply still sitting there, on her back, with that woman hovering over her. For once... she feared for her life. But why? What did she do to gain such attention? Was this truly just a case of the wrong place... wrong time?

To her surprise the girl went down and even better (or worse) she wasn't fighting back. Instead, she cowered, shielding what she could of her vulnerable body parts. There was no easy way to get to her neck or stomach, so Alice opted for injury that would slow the girl down. Spots like her leg or sides were now targeted by her fangs to try and start a bleed or prevent her from outrunning her should Reiko break away from her grasps.

The cries ate away at her slowly, it was unfortunate especially for someone so young, but she wouldn't have to suffer for long. She could end this quickly if she managed to get past her guard. Not to mention if she didn't finish this soon some passerby might hear the cries and come rushing in to rescue. The last thing she needed was a knight in shining armor.

At this point, she almost felt numb, as if the pain, something that wasn't all that familiar to the gentle-natured Reiko, was a little too much for her to handle. Legs, sides, it all stung worse than the sting of bees when she would go hunting for honey to help out the injured. Please, stop! She said finally, attempting to reason the best she could despite the situation. 

The attacker wouldn't stop, she had gotten the win, Reiko was no match for the woman and attacking back would only make the situation worse (or so she believed). Instead of snapping and biting back, she began to kick, as a human on a bicycle, kicking and clawing to try and force some distance between herself and the terrible teeth that came down on her over and over again.

Once again the small girl's cries fell on deaf ears, but now she was trying to distance herself. Flailing limbs as she kicked and shoved only made it more difficult. Eventually growing tired of the resistance, Alice adjusted her paw attempting to slam it down on the girl's throat.

Through a hissed breath she leaned in, Shut up, sit still, and I'll make this fast.

whelp, whomever is supposed to join to come help her, do so at anytime |D

Everything hurt. She should have done more spars with Ira to prepare herself for a day like this, the world was so cruel and even if she had tried to prepare for the worst, she was still no naive and underprepared. Even as she pressed up against the ruby woman's undersides, the woman once again found her way to get above all of Reiko's attempts to defend herself. This time paws pressed against her throat, silencing her cries and all she could do was struggle to remain conscious. As black dots filled her vision, her strength wained as her paws lost their touch against the beautiful assailant. 

Could this truly be it? Without a family of her own to miss her while she was gone? It truly felt like a waste of a life...

Ik mista is kinda away atm and Jean is a secondary. Do you wanna wrap this thread up or I can have Alice wander off :thinking: I know this is going towards pack formation too. Leaving this vague for you to decide! I can edit too

Her paw connected with the smaller girl's throat effectively silencing her. Without the worry of cries or pleas, Alice sought to finish this and move on with her life. She had other things to tend to then deal with this girl and rather disliked the idea of outright killing someone. But in the end, she only cared about her reward. Her fangs sought the flesh near the white girl's throat and with little struggle left she would surely meet her mark. Even if she left now the stranger would surely fade away soon due to bleeding out.

a commotion drew the moonspearian from his meandering hunt, for the sharp cries that rose above the timber had spooked the herd he had been casually stalking. arcturus was not a man fit to senseless integration in a strange scenario, but the keening way these cries echoed in the deadwood had his fur standing on end. 

arcturus had every intention of scoping out this troubling scene (and possibly not even intervening at all), but as he bent down under a screening of fern, his eyes widened in recognition. before him, pressed brutally to the ground, was the pale she-wolf that had jovially evinced play from him a month before. arcturus felt a chill in his veins, his throat tight — but he stepped from the wormwood and threw back his muzzle, a summoning howl (more warcry than song) pressed from his throat. if @Dirge was nearby, perhaps he’d hear it — but arcturus’ howl wasn’t meant to summon instant backup — it was meant to communicate that there were allies in the weald, and that he was not alone. 

HEY! arcturus bellowed towards the mahogany she-wolf, his gums curled and teeth bared. what the FUCK do you think you are doing? his sharp gaze latched from her to her silent (and terrifyingly large) companion. what was he to do? he wasn’t capable enough to take them both on at once (maybe not even capable enough to take on either one of them at once! but they didn’t know that, right?). his best bet was to appear grim and powerful (tall, dark, and fur bristling? check!) and hope that these degenerates would think he was not an easy target— and maybe believe that he likely had backup. let her go. his unflinching gaze settled on allison with cutting ferocity, willing her to believe he was very pissed, and ready to throw some serious punches.

The height of summer drew out the best times to hunt. The days were still long, the weather decent and warm, and the herds roamed whatever open expanse they could manage. Dirge was out there more or less on a fetch quest for @Hydra—who had been gracious enough to free him from being mouthed to death by their children—and had gently been following in the wake of Arcturus. Knowing her brother was out there would make the task of finding a tasty morsel to bring back easier; he doubt there being too many other reasons for why the swarthy yearling would be out there.

An intervention, however, was not among them.

He heard the sharp call of summons and at once dropped the notion he was out there to hunt for the time being. It was not a social call and intuition led him to think the worst, that their idyllic stretch was coming to an end. Like an echo chamber he relayed the call and answered in the same stroke, wondering if perhaps he could stir out others—@Jarilo, @Lyra, or @Alya even, whoever else may have been roaming so far on such a nice day—and headed onward towards Arcturus.

tags are for visibility here — feel free to powerplay him arriving in your next response if you'd like, lauren.

A howl came from the woods and soon more followed. Her time was running short and unless Vengeance planned on intervening there was no way she could take on multiple "heros". A growl rumbled in her throat as one burst from the tree line with his own snarl. She released her grasp on the white girl, turning to fully face the male that quickly approached her.

It was only one who showed his face, as things stood currently, she was not overly concerned. It was the pack that worried her. One alone would never stand a chance against an organized group. Until his packmates showed, she would stand guard, fur on end as she snapped at the air to try and ward off Arcturus. None of your business. If you were smart you'd turn around and forget what you've seen.

Not one to ignore a pair of howls like those, the sterling Ostrega was easily lured abroad in pursuit of a good trail after his packmates. Knowing Arcturus and Dirge both had cause to raise their voices was good enough for him, and this close to home, Jarilo was perhaps feeling a touch overeager to lash back if anyone dared overstep right now. Times had been delicate on Moonspear. They would take no chances.. and he knew none beyond would earnestly measure up to their cunning anyway.

His approach narrowed and ahead he heard Arcturus, then smelled the strangers more clearly not long afterward. Dirge, too, he glanced over on his way to investigate the scene. While Jarilo was not as coming in as outwardly imposing as his tall and dark younger brother, or seeking to draw the attention to himself just yet, he hoped that his presence would help say enough--that it was wise to heed him, or else there may be more to it. Jarilo was that backup they wanted, and he was not feeling much like hesitating as he lurked off wide to his brother's side, his hackles up and tail arcing as he assessed the situation.

Jarilo did not know what exactly he was looking at, or who the pale wolf was, but pinned his sights on the growling female first of all--daring her to even chance it with his lips curling into a silent snarl.

possibly just a cameo to say he's lurkin basically maybe

Reiko will just be out cold from here on out! Feel free to power-play her completely! My plan is for her to feel obliged to join Moonspear at the end of this thread~

He stood to watch the whole ordeal from a distance, only creeping closer step by step as the little white one grew louder. There was a chance that others were lurking nearby, and that Alison might need a hand should anyone decide to be a hero and investigate the sounds. He kept a keen eye on the surroundings, only getting close enough to intervene should anything come barreling out. 

Surely enough, a dark figure came to challenge Alison's claim on the life of the pale female. Closing the distance between himself and Alison, she let go of her grasp of the snowy one, and he curled himself around Alison lazily, somewhat protective as more of the packmates of this knight came rolling in. 

Forgive her, we were mistaken this young lady for someone else. Now at a closer glance, I'm embarrassed to say that this was all a terrible case of mistaken identity. Unsure of how many of them were lurking around, Vengeance chose not to fight his way out of this one. Despite the excitement of it would be intoxicating - they had other things to attend to for the moment and needed to be in tip-top shape to protect their soon to be claimed lands... They didn't even have a healer just yet, none that he knew of, to take this opportunity to its most pleasurable option. Please, extend our sincerest apologies to the lady when she wakes up. Despite the kind words, the man was lacking in much sincerity. Clearly, he had the ability to talk things out... he just didn't have much experience to make it believable. 

Softly he nudged Alison for her to follow him in an exit, toward the direction of the Haunted Woods.

Surprise was one way to explain what the russet woman felt. She had not expected the hulking monster to defend her, surely he would have left her to fend for herself just like the rest of his tests. Instead, he wrapped around her, shielding her should the newcomers go through with their attack. Vengeance gave his weak apology before nudging her to follow. An icy gaze rested on the black male who approached her, but she too would turn to leave, her expression not at all sorry. Perhaps she did belong with the beast.

ah -- if arcturus was smart. he was not necessarily dumb, but he wasn't clever enough to not put himself in this situation. he didn't have much to reply with, for most of his normal cheek had been replaced with an undercurrent of panic.

oh thank god for reinforcements; arcturus was probably one second away from being killed by these warriors -- what was he thinking, standing up to them like that? no time for second guesses -- he puffed his chest as heard dirge's howl, nearby and coming closer.

if he was a more cocky individual, he would have smirked (not knowing how close his hide had been to becoming butchermeat) -- but arcturus wasn't necessarily cocky, and so, his gaze rested in horror on reiko. she was more than scuffed up -- the sight of her drew his blood to boiling, and he transfixed alison with a furious gaze.

before he could say much, dirge arrived -- jarilo a shadow tailing him; this bolstered the young beta's confidence, and so his tail flagged above his hips as he listened incredulously to the leviathan's meager explanation. who even mauled people like this? arcturus didn't have much time to ask that before the pair was off, though not before alison had delivered a look that could have beheaded him.

he watched them stiffly, and the second he could see them no longer he rushed to reiko. "holy shit," arcturus muttered, nudging her still form. "please wake up." looking to dirge and then jarilo helplessly, the beta's expression became one of worry. "i know her -- we sparred." it was a feeble explanation, but hopefully one that was strong enough to elicit help from his packmates; after all, she was not some random (and he her white knight) stranger to arcturus.

The scene he happened upon was not the sort he wanted to see; Dirge bristled with the anticipation of something far worse, though it was trying very hard to conclude itself just as swiftly as it began. It was the leviathan brute in the middle of it all that carried a tarnished silver tongue and just as Arcturus had, Dirge saw through it keenly. A sneer split his features as they made to exit stage right, but the flash of teeth was there and gone.

"How convenient," he murmured quietly, but there would be no chase.

His gaze lingered in the wake they made in their departure for a spell, only broken when Arcturus made for the she-wolf where she stayed sprawled and not moving. The churlish words off his lips earned a turn of his ear to be caught on another passing note—Jarilo, lurking—and he closed in the distance almost too casually for the situation in a slow, curious manner.

The rise of her chest was faint, but at least she wasn't dead. Not yet, anyway.

The feeble explanation only summarized what he needed to know—he called for @Lyra.

That particular head of the Cerberus he knew had some know-how of healing, but whether or not she would hear them was another matter. If she wasn't in charge of a certain quartet of would-be tyrants and knaves, there was no telling what she did in her off time. He didn't track her nearly like he did Hydra, nor did he possess much more than a basic sense of how to tend to his own wounds. These certainly did not fit that bill, not at a cursory glance.

His gaze rested on Arcturus then.

"Can you tell how bad it is? If Lyra does not come, perhaps we could move her somewhere safer."

He had loomed closer, then finished the distance once it seemed nothing would really come of it here and now--the pair made their retreat, leaving with that said. One last glance to Dirge then Arcturus went to confirm that they were not going to rush for the offensive over it. Jarilo scarcely knew what he had come upon, really. Was it something they ought to get tangled in? It all seemed awfully suspect to him, and to have no bloodshed over it just made it a nuisance then. He lashed his tail and stepped closer to the agouti alpha.

Following after Arcturus, and now looking upon the fallen wolfess in full, he narrowed his eyes over her fresh, angry wounds. Do you know where she's from? Looks bad, he offered his opinion as had circled around her opposite his brother, and nudged her with a snout to see how responsive she was anyway. Who they hell even were they..? he lifted and jerked his snout in the direction they had gone, scowling in distaste. No stranger to violence and its likes, their willingness to admit such a mistake to strangers such as them bothered him. The was going on out here to have them mistake her for.. whoever else? None of it sat well and he wanted to get Hydra's thoughts on the matter soon, as default to help round his own back out.

After the call for Lyra, Jarilo concentrated briefly on watching her breath. Slow, but present. Best bet is closer to the mountain.. Anything Lyra has to help with is there, anyway, he sighed, again, but different that time because he didn't really like the sounds of any of it honestly. This one he left up to Dirge and Arcturus. They were not a sanctuary in practice, and he definitely didn't know this girl--but they had the resources, it was after a fruitful summer, and maybe she needed a safe landing? Still.. on principle, he felt they shouldn't just ditch her, unless they knew where to take her instead.