Overture Downs winds of east

The scent was faint but unmistakable—rich, earthy, tinged with the musk of wild caribou. Morwenna's silvered eyes scanned the horizon, her ears swiveling to catch even the softest rustle of the vast wilderness around her. Each step forward was calculated, her body low to the ground, moving in harmony with the terrain. She had been tasked with watching the Saatsine chieftain, @Sun Eater.

This was not the first time she had taken on such a role. Diplomacy, she had come to realize, was as much about patience and perception as it was about words. And the Saatsine were nothing if not deeply entwined with the rhythm of the caribou's migrations. To find Sun Eater, she needed to follow their lifeblood.

Pausing to test the air, Morwenna caught the scent again, stronger now. The tracks she had been following—hooves pressed into the soft soil, scattering leaves and underbrush—were fresh.

As she continued along the trail, the trees began to thin slightly, opening into a sparse clearing. She slowed, her senses sharpening. If she were lucky, Sun Eater would be near. And if not… well, she would keep tracking. The winds carried more than just the scent of the caribou—they carried possibility. And perhaps, they carried him.

beautiful was the valley where the saatsine had come to rest for a time.

each morning sun eater woke in a new place; each night he at last lay himself down on a different sentinel's point. his wolves killed and ate, and pelts numbered swiftly beneath the tree where they draped.

this meadow moved in gentle rolling, wide boughs brushing the caribou man as he wended between them.

always inexorable, the caribou paths he padded now, and it was in the wake of his herds that he found the silverstar.

tail flagged to announce him, but otherwise sun eater was only defined by his own natural confidence, letting shadows fall across him in barred light as he traveled adjacent to the swiftcurrent wolf.

The rhythm of heavy steps drew her ears first, the distinctive sound of a presence she had come to recognize. Morwenna turned, her silver gaze landing on the approaching form of Sun Eater. His movements were deliberate, the flag of his tail held confidently above him as if he carried the weight of the valley on his shoulders with ease.

Her own tail began a gentle sway, a small sign of her happiness to see the chieftain once more. She dipped her head in respectful greeting, her voice steady yet warm. Chieftain, she addressed him, her silver furs catching the sunlight filtering through the trees. How fare the hunts?

Her gaze lingered on him, observing the way the wilderness seemed to bend around him, as if acknowledging his presence. It was a rare thing, she thought, to see a wolf so attuned to the life and death of the land.

"saatsine eat fresh meat each day," sun eater grunted, his remaining eye offering an contemplative trace to her more expressive features. "you come for me, morwenna?" he asked, almost forming the words in lanzadoii.

while his features did not shift from closed thoughtfulness, sun eater knew it was his responsibility to hold in suspicion her uttered intent to return.

a fierce wind rose then, gusting through the trees, lifting his dark hackles into a line of silhouetted knifework.

Morwenna tilted her head slightly at his words, a quiet hum escaping her as she considered them. Yes, she replied simply, her silver eyes steady upon his single one. I came to see you and ask if you’d hunt with me.

Her tail gave a soft flick, brushing the air as if to punctuate her request. The wind that stirred between them tugged at her fur, carrying with it the scents of the valley. She didn’t flinch, holding her ground beneath the chieftain’s contemplative gaze.

Has your clan been fed today? she asked, her voice lighter, though her intent remained clear. I thought—perhaps—you’d show me how the Saatsine do it.

perhaps it was only masculine vanity which sent his teeth glinting in a fine smirk. "they eat. right now, they hunt." he did not need to fell every caribou to return to see more chunks of flayed red flesh and its networks of quivering fat, nor to see a new skin draped firmly by his industrious sister.

"i hunt with you."

their gazes met for a brief moment before sun eater turned away, back to the paths carved in snow that had begun to pile along the base of several trees.

His words reached her ears, his voice low and edged with confidence, as sharp as the glint in his eyes. That smirk—whether it was pride some twisted plan, she couldn’t say—etched itself briefly into her mind. It suited him.

Morwenna's paws fell quietly into the indents Sun Eater left behind in the snow, her steps deliberate as she followed him closely. She watched his broad shoulders move with purpose, the command of a chieftain evident in every stride.

She wondered if he saw the purpose in her, the need to contribute, to prove herself. She would not falter, not now, not under his watch.

Her thoughts wandered to the pups—Violet, Buckthorn, Suzu's brood—all those young, vibrant lives. Because of him, because of this hunt, they would eat. Their bellies would be warm, their strength renewed. The image of their laughter, their satisfied fullness, tugged at her aching heart, and a flicker of gratitude bloomed amidst the cold that encased her.

And then, she faltered if only slightly. Falling a few steps behind, for a heartbeat as her thoughts shifted, unbidden, to the shadow of her father—a towering figure of stern discipline and unreachable expectations. She had spent her youth chasing the faint glimmer of his approval, her every achievement met with either cold indifference or a curt nod that spoke of obligations met, never affection earned. She hated him for it, and yet, deep in the recesses of her heart, she craved that same steady presence—a male figure helmed in undeniable masculinity, someone whose approval could mend the fractures she bore.

 Sun Eater, with his resolute stride and the certainty in his words, reminded her of all she had once sought. Perhaps, if he deemed her worthy, she might quiet that restless longing, if only for a while.

experiencing morwenna's eyes upon his back was a specific pleasure. she was suited to following, careful in her approach and watchful of him, but she did not sign fear.

more apparent then that she had come out of interest. he meant to know whether it was solely her own — he wanted to picture if she stepped behind her own leader with such assurance in her gait.

when had she come to dwell beside the creek? why was she not there now? much to glean; no mate, no children. only herself, only they now and their wheeling shadows against the snowy ground.

when her step seemed to subside, sun eater turned a glance upon the swiftcurrent woman in dogged appraisal. he knew not the memories which plagued her; the caribou man chuffed to recapture morwenna's attention, gesturing toward a cluster of young bulls.

"another dies. he try take older man cows. not go well for little bull," sun eater laughed. his pleasure was not for the death itself, only the irony: that in pursuit of life had this downed animal found none.

Morwenna startled faintly at the sound of Sun Eater's chuff, his low sound drawing her sharply from her spiraling thoughts. She blinked, the haze of memory dispersing as she found herself beside him, her silver eyes tracing the powerful lines of his frame, the deep warmth of his presence anchoring her. She followed his gaze, her attention settling on the glistening young bull that stood boldly before an older, seasoned rival.

The scene was almost too poetic, its layers unfolding in her mind. Was this a metaphor? She dared not entertain the thought too deeply. Her gaze flickered briefly to Sun Eater, observing the faint humor in his posture, before returning to the bulls. They circled one another with a rhythm that spoke of both experience and inexperience.

The cows, she murmured, her voice low, as if afraid to break the fragile tension of the moment, will they reject him?

Her words were both a question and an observation, her curiosity piqued. She studied the younger bull again, the sheen of youth unmistakable against the scars of the cows nearby. This was not her world, but Sun Eater's, and in his presence, it felt rich with meaning she sought to understand.

"no. if he win," sun eater stated, his own eye upon the jostling display. loud clacking resounded for their ears, evidence of the bulls' matched strength.

at least for now.

carefully he stepped around them, moving ever closer as the rutting focus consumed their minds in entirety.

first blood was drawn by the younger male, a fact which surprised sun eater but did not displease him. the older combatant was larger, with more heft to him. but with either death came fresh blood for the saatsine.

old bull bellowed as he was gored; a river of scarlet spurted from his shoulder, cut artery weakening him in gouts even as he bellowed defiantly.

as if only just seeing the wolves, young bull rumbled low in his chest, ceasing at once the last and fatal charge he meant to thunder down upon his opponent.

dominant calling gathered the harem. not a cow spared a glance for the wounded male as they ringed their new leader in desperate panic, running behind him in long leaps.

caribou hunter met the eyes of doomed creature and sun eater lunged into a hard run.