Totoka River (IC joining) knights and kings and beasts and shit

IC joining, all from WGI welcome.

First light filtered through the emerald leaves of the River's nearby trees, striking eyes of the same color as they squinted against the sun. He had always thrived among the trees of the forest, so how he found himself here left little mystery. It had been a risk, relocating to an isle harboring unknown prey, but the Wilds had favored him so far and the once-king decided to push his luck further. The gamesman would never grow his skill without different beasts to hunt, or fish as it appeared. The challenge appealed to his competitive drive, but the landscape was foreign and he would need to study it a while.

Nevertheless, the weary hunter was content enough to have found his current nest in the cool grass, a watcher's distance from the River, with the dew still clinging in beads to the early morning earth. Wet rock, moss, and mud filled his great lungs, and he heaved a steady breath into the serene seclusion he found himself in. The wind kicked up again, though there would have been a better breeze near the busy shoreline. It was the only bit of relief from the already warm day, and the hunter lifted his head to thrust a pointed nose through the breeze that leaked between the gatherings of trees near the River.

A strange scent brought the reflective predator to his feet, as rusty hackles bristled with excitement. Sweet, warm smells of earth and grass baking in the early sunlight filled his nose, and he sneezed them away to pinpoint the scent that attacked his senses. Drawing in another hefty breath, charcoal nose fluttering and working hard, green eyes rushed open and pupils shrunk as the clarity fell atop his racing mind. That was wolf stench, not quite border markings, but it was too close for comfort. Had he been that tired and wreck less that the hunter, distracted, had bunked down in known territory? Gathering his wits and senses, the black backed ginger wolf prepared a sort of mental toolbelt, before thawing his lanky body to move. It had been some time since he'd been in the company of others, but the brute of few words was determined to seek out the Isle dwellers nearby before they retrieved his head for trespassing.

Taking a final deep breath in, what started as a low rumble in his chest, rose through great pipes and crooned through the fresh new air. Strong and steady, though not long enough to merit a leader's summoning, Dagger kept his howling brief in declaring his presence and seeking out others. Now he waited, deciding to stay put near the River. No sense in a high speed chase, he would face the natives and state his business, if all went well. As his call died down to a whisper, Dagger shook his mighty body, ridding his fur of debris and calming himself. Issuing a massive yawn, the early morning light grew longer and bathed his slowly pacing body in gold. It was going to be hot.