Haunted Wood You think you know somebody

Nightjar's very first step outside the borders of Redhawk Caldera was done solely in the interest of his pack. It was no desire to wander. It was no curiosity. It was the line of duty that brought him to the edge of their claim and finally beyond it, and there was no exhilaration to accompany these steps. The broad-shouldered young warrior wasn't excited about leaving the lands he called home. This was evident in the grim set of his jaw and the fire hidden in his cold silver eyes.

Some wolves had decided to try to stake a claim on the caldera's doorstep and it was partly his job to disrupt that attempt. There were no holds barred here; they had authority to kill and Nightjar, being nothing if not an instinctively territorial beast, would do just that if necessary. But for now, the imposingly large timber wolf padded heavily among the trees, following the scents of wolves to places where they were strongest and replacing the budding pack's scent markers with his own splash of urine. He was ever alert as he did this despite his deaf ear. His eyes were sharp, his good ear was straining, and his sense of smell was keen and ready and he was aware of everything around him. They would be very hard-pressed to sneak up on him.

And if they did somehow manage it, they would find a fighter waiting for them.

Lusa was not happy about the presence of these Caldera wolves, so the fact another one of them were on her turf would infuriate her.

 She had been marking the borders when she saw a pelt flash through the forest. There was a note in the back of her mind to make the markers heavier.

 The midnight wolfess followed Nightjar, her body invisible amongst the darkness. She decided not to show herself, only examining the younger wolf's movements. It made her sneer with annoyance. It was such a pain in the ass to stake claim here, especially after the dilemma with that Peregrine.

 She stayed melted amongst the shadows until the bastard decided to mark his own scents on the land. Her land. That made the female snap. She came into view, teeth bared and aiming for any part she could grip onto. She wanted to show the Caldera wolves that they were not some doormat.

Nightjar's actually a bit bigger than Grim. ^^ I updated his profile with his approximate full  weight but he's meant to be slightly larger than Peregrine, who is slightly larger than Grimnir!

For a while, Lusa was hidden to him, but even the stealthiest wolf was unable to make themselves silent and stay that way forever. An alert and well-trained warrior was no easy target for any sneaking wolf, and eventually the instinctive male clued in on being followed. It wasn't a sound she made that tipped him off, but the sensation of being watched and the stillness of the spooky forest around him. Whoever it was, their efforts were too focused, too predatory, and that gave them away.

So when Lusa burst out of the shadows, Nightjar was already mid-turn and met with her a snap of his own jaws. She was naturally smaller and pitch-black, with cold blue eyes, but he didn't notice anything beyond that. He wasn't one for noticing things except the instinctive. She was ready to defend her territory with teeth and he was ready to kill her for being too close to his. It was important to stamp out this nuisance of a pack before it started. The caldera wolves would never tolerate someone so close.

So he barreled forward, aiming to grab and rip anything he could. He didn't care what it was. The point was to maim her and any limb could do that.

She knew better. Leaving the caldera was risky in and of itself but sneaking behind enemy lines in her condition was downright imbecilic. But when Wildfire saw her brother heading that way, she couldn't resist the temptation to follow. Nightjar could surely look after himself, yet she wanted to have his back. So she hobbled along in his wake, maintaining a distance of perhaps three hundred yards even as they entered the spooky woods next door to the caldera.

The youth genuinely didn't intend to get herself directly involved in combat today and, if confronted, likely would have fled the scene. But when she heard an altercation break out ahead of her, she unthinkingly scrambled forward as quickly as she could manage. When the young she-wolf burst onto the scene, it was just in time to see her brother barrel toward his small, black-furred assailant.

Just like she had been unable to resist following him here, Wildfire could not hold back from joining the fray. She didn't have time to wonder whether her interference would anger her brother or if ganging up on the enemy in an already unfair fight was cowardly. The small Warrior thought of nothing but blood as she pitched herself at the stranger's flank, trying to get her off her feet so Nightjar could pin her and tear out her throat.

She missed the blow, instead a pain blossoming at her shoulder from Nightjar's teeth. She growled, barely feeling the blow, for the excitement of battle had coursed through her veins.

 The dark furred female was going to lunge, but the appearance of Wildfire stopped her. She had to dodge the red furred female, which stopped her from attacking her brother.

 When the smell of Caldera rose through the air, Lusa became outraged. She wanted to rip these two limb from limb and show those bastards that the Haunted Wood wolves were stronger than they thought.

 Lusa ran deeper into the territory, giving her a chance to howl for @Grimnir, @Hayde, @Iris. The alpha wanted these two dead  by any means necessary. Maybe that will show the Redhawk who they were dealing with.

Grim is on his way! (I wasn't sure where to add him in at :x hope this is okay)

So this was to be their new home? Grim sniffed among the trees and brambles, trying to decide if it was better than Blackfeather. A small pang of sadness stabbed his heart. Blackfeather had been his first pack. Even though wolf had betrayed wolf within the pack, it had been where he belonged. He loathed leaving them, but there was nothing he could have done about it. If he would have stayed, a few dead bodies would have been the result. This new place they had called the Haunted Wood. Grim expected it to be darker than his old home. He would make it so. He wanted rumors to reach out about how much more dangerous the wolves that lurked in these woods were. That meant tearing into any wolf who approached. Blackfeather knew how dark he was already. Now he had to teach the other packs of the Wilds. 

A sudden sound broke into his thoughts. Grim erected himself, tail raised. Lusa? Teeth broke beneath the surface of his lips. Was this the beginning of his lessons? Excitement mixed with anger at the thought. Voices whispered hungrily in his ears.Intruders must die, they laughed. Blood, they demanded. Grim would happily fulfill their wishes. His furious snarl twisted into a crazed grin. His paws leaped forward, beating against the ground as they weaved around trees and through bushes. These wolves have made the mistake of stepping into the Wood. 

As he ran Grim's old personality shifted into focus. He didn't want to immediately kill them. What was the fun in that?  Play with them, the voices advised. Teach them pain, they growled. Images burst into his mind's eye. He would pounce on the stranger, teeth sinking into their back as he drug them down beneath him. Then he would hold them there, let them gaze into his blood-lust filled eyes. He would tell them they would feel the pain of the Haunted Wood and dig his bite into their shoulder while tearing at their belly with his hind claws. Let them bleed out slowly and have them realize their dreadful mistake. But he wondered how many of them there were. Not that it mattered. With his little killer there, she would make another suffer. Once he was done with the first he could move onto another. Or perhaps he could have Lusa hold one and let them watch their companions slowly die while feeling completely helpless; unable to help them. Then they could let the surviving one go back to it's pack and inform them of the beast that rule this wood.

His blow connected, though he wasn't able to get much of a grip, possibly due to Lusa pulling away to avoid Wildfire's attack. Contrary to his previous reaction to Wildfire's involvement in his wardening, Nightjar was glad to see her. Chasing these imbeciles out of the caldera's vicinity was definitely a group effort, and the more wolves present, the easier a time they'd have. He didn't fault her for putting Lusa out of a range, either; she'd simultaneously made it impossible for the elder wolf to counterattack him.

When Lusa turned to beat a retreat into the woods, Nightjar lurched after her, but came to a halt when she howled on the run. Even a downright idiotic wolf knew better than to run deeper into enemy territory with potential reinforcements on the way, and Nightjar was more in-tune with wolfish nature than most. Getting himself surrounded in pursuit of Lusa was detrimental to the health of his pack, and would probably end up with him killed. His one-track mind spurred him onward to fight some more, but he heeded his instincts and drew back.

From here, with a few seconds to spare and make a decision, he turned his eyes to Wildfire. She was smarter by far, and a much more promising tactician than Nightjar himself. He was like a cleaver, happy to go in and attack willy-nilly, but he knew in this situation it wasn't smart. For once, charging in wasn't his go-to. Consulting his smarter sister was a better idea, and he turned to her for guidance.

If ganging up on a rival was cowardly, then the black she-wolf was a much bigger coward than the pair of youths. She darted away even as she called for backup. Wildfire felt both piqued and afraid. Her amber eyes flicked to her brother's face even as Nightjar looked to her for guidance. Perhaps if she hadn't been partially lame, she would have stood her ground beside him. But her sprained ankle and worsened coordination could get them both killed. It just wasn't worth it.

"We should go," she said to him. "We'll get them next time," she added, moving nearer to Nightjar and bumping her smudged snout against his muzzle. It was part apology, part camaraderie. "Come on," the svelte young she-wolf said, casting a wary glance over her shoulder before she began to hobble-trot back toward the edge of the forest.

She did not hear the lumbering of the two younger wolves after her howl, making a grin cross over her maw. Good thing these wolves had brains, or else they would be dead. She looked out over the trees, seeing Grimnir's form approaching. There was no time to greet him. There was one thing on her mind: kill the Redhawk trespassers.

 Lusa darted back in the opposite direction, saliva flying from her mouth and eyes icy cold. Her small barks and loud growls rumbled through the air and intensified when she saw the two falling back. Her speed rose, eyes locked on the two with intentions to kill.

He had spotted Lusa running in the opposite direction, but when she found his large form she changed direction and started heading back the other way. What was she going after? Golden eyes searched into the distance as he took to following her lead. He could just spot the red pelt of a wolf. So there were intruders. He bared his teeth in a snarl, intent on scaring them off or attacking if they didn't run. Which he hoped the intruders would stay and fight. Grim was eager to sink his teeth into fur and flesh, but if they ran at least they knew they were wrong for coming into the woods. He wouldn't have to worry about Lusa gaining any injuries as well.

Nightjar whined a quiet agreement and began falling back with Wildfire. She was a bit slower than she probably would've liked, so he took up the rear guard position. It was unlikely that anyone would come from the front to attack them, as it would require trespassing directly into caldera territory, which went against the nature of any wolf but those defending their claim. He thought they would make it out safely, but the rumbles coming from the wood indicated otherwise.

They were at the edge of the trees now, directly in the area between caldera and wood, and Lusa was now visibly in pursuit of them. Unwilling to let Wildfire be harmed, Nightjar turned with a heavy snarl, but instead of barreling forward with the intent to fight her one-on-one, he did what any pack wolf was hardwired to do when in close proximity to their land: he howled. Like all his howls, there was no specific message, but its purpose was a summons. If this woman and whatever back-up she had coming wanted to brawl, they could do it in the in-between, and they could do it with the entire Redhawk pack.

Wildfire and Nightjar had just entered the thin strip of no man's land between the territories when the sounds of pursuit rose behind them. She turned to glance at her brother, who quickly whirled to face their foes. She peered beyond him into the trees, squinting at two shapes—one the black female, the other a brownish stranger—running swiftly through the brush, heading straight toward them. Despite her paw, she shifted to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Nightjar, unwilling to let her brother face their enemies alone.

While she squared off with the approaching adversaries, her sibling tossed up a howl for backup, not unlike the black she-wolf. Wildfire's ears fell back, waiting for an answering call or, better yet, the sound of footfalls as her pack mates arrived to assist them. Meanwhile, she braced herself, anticipating a full frontal attack from the pair of rivals.

But none ever came. Perhaps the howls had caused them to wisely reconsider. For all the brother and sister knew, they vanished back into the background of Haunted Wood. By the time a few of their comrades appeared to assist, the threat was gone. An extra patrol was called for this area of the borders, headed by Nightjar himself. Wildfire left the Wardens to it and hobbled away to the rendezvous site.

Edit on 12/16: since this thread hasn't received any replies in over a month, I concluded it. :)