every breath he takes eternity [QUEST]

Many changes were occurring in Ankyra Sound, changes that were both unexpected and welcome. Perhaps Kevlyn's interaction with those of the pack was limited and so his experience was lacking, but to know the strange male who had stood in the cavern that first day was gone was a relief as much as knowing Aktaie was gone was concerning. He'd not known Nishu, never got the opportunity to know him, but he could tell intuitively even at his age that Nishu was not a model specimen. Kevlyn's preoccupation with appearance and obedience was growing by the day, such that he was beginning to rank wolves in his mind not only based on their status, but also their perfection... and Nishu had been neither handsome nor obedient, so he was lowly in the Ostrega's mind. Aktaie was another matter, though only because the females seemed to have revered her.

Although she was the queen, Caiaphas was admittedly low ranking on his list as well, if only because Kevlyn found himself captivated by the sharp coat of Eos more often than the chimeric and sharp aspect of the pack's Alpha female. Tethys was also a nice-looking female, but didn't have as many points in Kevlyn's imagined system of specimen perfection as Eos did, if only because she was also bland (everything about her was dark) and angular.

Spyridon was the only model male, given Greyjoy was sparse. Since Spyridon was also something of a role model, Kevlyn made attempts to make himself a model specimen as well in hopes of one day standing out as much as the Epivitoras did. Unfortunately, his impending growth spurt was making that difficult: he was fatter than ever, his paws and ears broad and ungainly. Though he groomed himself as much as possible, his fur still stuck up at odd angles along his neck and shoulders, owed in part to his genetics and in part to its half-coarse, half-downy quality. Perhaps the only handsome thing about him presently was his eyes, which had brightened in the past week and were beginning to show hints of their true gemstone turquoise near his pupil.

Nevertheless, Kevlyn continued to exist and his opinion of himself was not hampered by these negative features. He thought himself somewhat superior in ways to other males aside from Spyridon himself, though he was not even three months old and certainly not qualified for anything.

He was in the middle of a beauty rest (he needed a lot of it lately) at the edge of the grotto he and Larus frequented when Caiaphas summoned the pack. Without waiting to find out if his fellow Spawn was nearby, the young male sprang to his feet, blinking sleep out of his eyes, and padded quickly to Caiaphas' chosen meeting point.

He dared not look at her as he approached, but muttered a quiet and reverent, "Queen," as he entered her presence. As befit his station as a male and uninitiated Spawn, Kevlyn found a place near the back of the grotto where he would remain unseen and of no importance, though he would be able to witness the ritual in full, something his curioisty craved very much though he would never say it. He didn't dare to give himself the comfort of sitting and instead played the part of a standing gargoyle, facing but not looking at the pack's wily Alpha and scarcely even swaying in place.