Noctisardor Bypass mary's child

Backdated a few days or so!

A buoyant trot was subdued into anxious quietude as Thade reached a border he had expected to still exist. He was surprised to find no trace of his father here, the land he had battled for, and it seemed that any familiar scents remaining had long-since faded beneath a dusting of spring snow. Impossible! There had to be some mistake. Surely, it was his nose failing him; for this was an absence beyond his belief.

His eagerness turned cold, rearing into panic, as he began to charge through the Bypass and howled desperately for Mahler.

A call for Mahler.

Mahler, Mahler, Mahler.

Sequoia wished she’d never met him. She wished her children would come home. She wished she could search for them.

Her leg would need more time. She still couldn’t put more than an ounce of weight on it without stumbling and writhing on the ground in pain. So for the most part, she kept her rear left left tucked to her belly. Hunting was nigh impossible, so scavenging and asking for help had been her only sources of food. It showed in the outline of her ribs.

They’ve all gone. Left without a word, she said. Sequoia would spare him the details. He probably wouldn’t even care to hear them.

He saw a wolf limping towards him, and Thade turned to her with concern in his eyes. The closer she got, the more worried he became. Did the wolves of the Bypass all starve to death? Is she the only one left of them?

He recognized her as one of Rivenwood, from the brief moments he had seen her at the crusade to take the Bypass from its previous owners, and maybe in passing during one of his several returns. They had never spoken to one another directly, but he felt soft to her out of sheer remembrance for her unique coat pattern. Her words sent a chill through him, however.

She's lying, his inner voice insisted. That didn't sound like his father. But what evidence did he have to refute her claim? Mahler clearly wasn't here, and unless he could find the Graf's bones rotting in this place, it stood to reason that he had abandoned the post.

The whole pack left you here? Who did she mean by "they"? Why?

She knew why Mahler and Wylla had left: Laurel. She had an inkling as to why Laurel had left: her children. But as for Druid and Witch, Sequoia truly couldn't say. She could only hope that Laurel hadn't convinced them to join her on a suicide mission to Ursus. Sequoia didn't think she would ever know, because she didn't think she would stick around here much longer. It wasn't safe.

Mahler left with Wylla. Laurel probably left to try and get her children back, and I don't know about my daughters: Witch and Druid. It was only then that she realized the face she was looking at was vaguely familiar.

You used to live here, didn't you? This wolf had left, too.

Thade felt his heart fall into the pit of his stomach when the dappled she-wolf mentioned that Wylla had been here. He almost didn't hear the rest of her words. He just wanted to grab her, and shake her, and demand to know where they went. But he had to remind himself that this wolf wouldn't know; she had already said they left without a word.

He looked on sadly as she finished saying that her own daughters were among the missing numbers of what was once Rivenwood.

He didn't want to leave her, too.

She seemed to recognize him then. Yes, he answered softly. My name is Thade. I'm, uh, I'm Mahler and Wylla's... son? It came out sounding more like a question because he really didn't want to say it. He didn't want to make things more awkward than they already were. I'm sorry, came the immediate followup.

The sootbadger squirmed in place. Do you, I mean, would you be okay if stayed with you, for... for a while?

Mmm, she said. A spawn of Mahler and Wylla. So she had been with Mahler before.

Do what you wish, Thade, she said. It’s clear I can’t chase you away. Sequoia was through making decisions for others. She needed to look out for herself now. If her children were alive, she had to live for them.

If you stay, I could use some food. Wouldn’t hurt to ask, would it?

Her acceptance of him, though begrudging at best, was enough to tame a few of Thade's wild nerves. He was still anxious to say many things and get to know Sequoia, but he would not get the chance. Not today. And unfortunately not after. He was primarily concerned with her wellbeing, and fortunately for Thade, she would save him the trouble of having to awkwardly ask if he could feed her.

Y-Yes, of course, he readily answered. He was happy to serve, and it would give him time to come up with a way to ask her the questions he'd had for Mahler. I'll be back as, as soon as I can. He would indeed return, rabbit in tow for the ailing she-wolf, but he bungled his attempt to drum up conversation and found himself unable to ask her anything of importance.

He passed the time by attempting another hunt that night, without success, but he managed to provide her with a couple of fat gophers for breakfast early the next morning. Though, it was not long after this that he found himself alone.