Ocean's Breath Plateau sun-worshipper

he dipped his muzzle in greeting to the other wolf as he approached, silently grateful that he was moving away from the tree. he spoke of ra, once more, and aditya wondered how much the god had in common with his hari. but the subject shifted, and he abandoned thoughts of religion, smile growing wider.

neither, he replied. i have come to claim this plateau for my own, my family. and anyone who needs a place. there was no malice or misgiving in his voice; without scent markings along the border, the man couldn't have known he had stumbled upon a territory in the process of being settled.

his eyes flickered to the flames—'coaltree,' the whisper came again—and then he looked back at the young man. my name is aditya, he introduced himself. and you? do you wander, or seek a home?

he smelled of other wolves, but perhaps he had left them. had adi been there more recently, he would have recognized, perhaps, the aroma of the island upon the stranger's pelt—but as it was, he was blissfully ignorant (for now).