Emberwood the die is cast, pt.2

such an original title @Basilie

His jaws had clasped, snare-like around Basilie's throat. Something warm had oozed from where his teeth had scraped past her fur and felt skin, the liquid running down his teeth and into his mouth. It felt good, as if Dovev had finally gotten something in return after these months. And fate knew that this tundra beast was all about revenge.

How simple it would be for the arctic wolf to apply just an ounce more pressure onto her jugular, feeling the vibration of her speech reverberate up her neck. Dovev twisted his head roughly, stepping back as he let go.

What? You're not going to fight back? he questioned curiously, but anger was welling hotly in his eyes. Some Roman she was. But Dovev was reminded how Shadow had simply turned tail on Scim and he, instead of standing up to fight at their confrontation.

Fight back? Hah, She chuckled, but the laughter was curtailed by his grip. The sound of her voice was more like a wheeze. I will give you no satisfaction. It was a promise - if this fool was going to terrorize and murder strangers, who was she to stop him? She had fallen prey to his little trick, and now was paying the consequences. He had indeed tricked her. Led her in to this predicament and now, with her blood staining the frosted ground, she would have to find a way out of it.

Murder a stranger, go ahead. And then, if @Scipio were to find her body, he would be proven right in his assumptions. That she was a weakling, a bastard, a Greek - hardly leadership material. Come on you bastard, if you're going to do it, do it. Basilie thought, hiding her terror at the prospect of a shortened life deep, deep down within the steel cage of her heart.

Dovev paused, the biding look on his face briefly replaced with an unsettled frown. The male had no qualms about leaving her dead body to freeze in the cold nights. But this was no border skirmish; it was something that had to do with Dovev's personal emotions. And he wasn't one to let his heart rule anything.

Believe me, I would like to, the male growled, but he shifted uncomfortably. It didn't seem right to berate her when Basilie's defenses were so obviously down. Perhaps this wouldn't be the moment where Dovev could reclaim some of his mind's focus on finding ways to sabotage the Bypass- let this female find her way down there and see what sort of ruckus this meeting would cause.

The rumbling in his chest continued, but Dovev didn't move. If the bicolored female wouldn't put up a fight, then he guessed he had to live up to his part of the bargain.

There was nothing she could do but wait. It was more excruciating than being in a true battle; she wanted to thrash wildly, to escape his grip and snap her teeth in his face. To tear and tear and tear until there was nothing left but a bloody pulp where his face once sat.

But she couldn't do that. She had to sit and keep herself calm until his conscience took over - if that were possible. She sucked in another breath, feeling a bit light-headed from the stress and the tightness upon her neck. Let me go. Her voice held no pleading tone, nor command, and it was dwarfed by the sound of her next inhalation. I will not fight you.

Until she had recovered from this ridiculous situation. To let her rage flow freely would be the greatest gift he could give - but not one he would likely relinquish without some urging.

Slowly, the male released his clasp, jaws closing shut as he stepped back with ice frozen in his gaze. A small huff replaced Dovev's growl, a misty puff of fog escaping the male's jaws. He looked dissapointed and resigned that he wouldn't get his wishes, but there was no use in killing her. Basilie's family would never travel this way- the Creek territory literally stood in their path.

Why did she not fight back? Up north, it was considered a slap in the face to turn away from a challenge, however twisted it was. Dovev had assuaged the female, poking and prodding her into battle, but she had denied it, even when his jaws scraped her neck. He had thrown his glove down, and she had stepped over it.

It dawned on him then that this female perhaps was a little too clever for her own good. By not dueling him, Basilie had saved herself countless wounds that might hinder her progress- but she had let Dovev carry through with his part of the bargain. She had tricked him into thinking he would get his revenge, when pride and logic stepped in Dovev's path and prevented him from killing her in cold blood.

Fine, the male chuffed disgustedly. What do you want to know?

@Dovev I forgot all about Scipio! (In regards to your question below). Sure we can wait for him. My bad. @Scipio

What did she -- what. This man was a mindless fool. It was he that decided there was information worth sticking around for; how was she supposed to know what to ask? Was this a further trick? He had released her throat, thank the gods, but she was still not free of him.

The woman loosed a derisive snort in his direction, then took a fresh breath. Her tongue felt raw and her throat ached from his pinching grip, even though he had stepped back from his assault. Calling his bluff had been a dangerous move, but it had worked.

I want to know everything. What the hell do you think? There was no avoiding the anger now; even if it meant they became combatants once more, Basilie could not curtail the ire as it spilled forth from her. How do you know of the Romans, for starters? Are there others here? Basilie did not know what to ask, so she asked the first things that came to mind - and each syllable dripped with fury.

are we expecting scipio or no o:

Her breath was present in his upturned ears, and his eyes, drawn to movement, watched her neck suck in air to her torso. The sky was cloudy and growing still and dark, promising the beginning of freezing rain. With gray eyes, he kept his attentions trained on her as his body straightened and pivoted slightly into a better defensive position.


Anger seeped into the loner's voice, but Dovev found that was to be expected. He guessed she would try to conserve her energy by not fighting him, but there was probably alot holding her back. And Dovev wanted nothing more than to coax the female into battle; however, it looked like it was not likely.

They've set up camp close to my pack's territory. His eyes locked on her. How do you not know more? Are they not your kin? Dovev only knew so little on Roman culture. From what he had pieced together, the male thought they were more of a family than a way of life.

This will be interesting

The stupid pack duties had kept him from leaving to explore for too long and despite the warmth, comfort and safety he received, he did not like being in a pack he did not plan to stay for too long. The halfbreed was a good tracker and he knew with time, he could easily locate the position of his brother's pack, and he would have already reunited with Hadrian had it not been for his joining with this Plateau pack and his stupid precautions. Damn them to the pits of Tartarus.

Fierce green eyes flashed dangerously as he moved deeper into the forest, his face was emotionless though, none of what he was feeling showed through. And then he smelled her scent, why the hell was she still lingering around these areas for Neptune's sake. Didn't she want to bring honor to their Father's name. Great dad he was, it was obviously no surprise that his bastard sister would want to bring honor to their awesome abusive dad's name.

Keen sea colored eyes spotted his sister soon, with the white beast that stunk of that pack which Hadrian had left. That pack which the large bulky bear-like wolf that insulted his brother resided in. Scipio was downwind of them and blended in effectively with the colors of the forest as he listened to their conversation. The agouti bastard nearly laughed when the large white male replied to his sister's question about Romans, "How do you not know more? Are they not your kin?"

He emerged then, expressionless, though his vibrant eyes flashed dangerously. "If you want to talk about Romans, sir, I would appreciate it if you actually understand what Rome is and who Romans are before you go around spitting opinions of Rome and not facts." he came to a stop beside Basilie.

"First of all, us Romans hail from a mighty empire call Rome. Not all Romans are kin, we do not practice incest," at least not often. "Rome is large and vast and our family is but one of the millions that hail from Imperium Romanum. There are so much more Romans out there who are unrelated to our bloodline. Just because we hail from the same Empire does not mean we're all related or that we hail from the same piece of land." The halfbreed shrugged, still expressionless. "Just thought you should know."

They've set up camp close to my pack's territory.

Well, it wasn't much to go on, but Basilie's attention was locked-on. The brute's following question was met with a huff and a roll of her eyes; she would have responded with more, but a familiar figure came bursting out of the forest depths - rounding upon the two of them. Scipio. Basilie was simultaneously thankful and irritated by his appearance - believing she could control the situation, despite all the evidence against such a claim.

Then again, Scipio was a good beast to have on her side; he answered any questions that this white wolf had, saving her from the task. Just because we hail from the same Empire does not mean we're all related or that we hail from the same piece of land. As her brother shrugged, Basilie glanced his way, hoping to catch his eye; but there was no shared look. He was intently watching the pale beast.

So, Basilie piped up next, with her spirits revived. Now it's your turn to answer our questions. How many are there, and who is their leader? She was intent on finding Hadrian - just as Scipio was - but they had their own ideals, their own plans for their sibling. Although it bolstered her ego to think that Scipio would stand beside her now, she knew it wouldn't last unless he made it last.

ok sorry for late reply so much goin on >.<

He was loving the whole reaction of the pair, who were apparently related. The new arrival lined up against the ebony and ivory female, and both their faces had a certain stoic, arrogant glaze, as if Dovev was neither worthy or admirable enough to be in their presence and speak to them of their Roman-ness. And he didn't mind that. Perhaps this was a good enough excuse to take his leave, for Dovev could clearly give less than an ounce of his mind to thinking about these two character's family values.

At least the female was a little more level headed. The whole situation could easily have gone awry if she had announced to her cousin or whatever that she was feeling threatened. Dovev was now up against two, and he knew when to take his chances and when to not. Their impending fight would surely cause the arctic brute to sustain considerable damage, possibly life threatening.

Sounds fascinating, the male replied with a heavy dose of sarcasm dripping from his tone. With pale eyes, Dovev's gaze flickered from the male to Basilie, then focused as his ears flicked.

Aside from the neck grasp Dovev had successfully tacked onto Basilie, their agreement to exchange information could only be extended so far. Dovev had no personal gain from answering the Romans, and now that he was outnumbered, killing one of them was likely impossible. Thoughtfully, his mind wandered briefly as his tongue floated along the tip of his gums. After a moment, he decided to respond to the best of his self interest.

Obviously I wouldn't know how many of them there are. Do I look like a member? His tone was one of retort.

Their leader is Shadow.

Dovev stepped off to the side, away from their confronting direct stance, and into thicker grass.
This was fun. But I'm not going to stand around all day and compare notes with you two- I have no reason to study about the Romans.