Noctisardor Bypass fibonacci sequence

As per her usual, she had been out scouting the area for signs of prey and predators alike when the snows began to pick up. At first she worked with it, but eventually, visibility decreased enough for her to not want to be out in the open anymore. With a frown carved firm, she headed up the waterway back towards the Bypass.

On her way in, she could still make out the thin peaks of the landmarks that framed this place at least--which, they were taking some getting used to, though not entirely in a bad way. Something about the snow-capped corridor certainly seemed to resonate with her mood; a part of her wondered if this was going to feel like an awfully long winter.

Since it was quiet, snowy, and she didn't seek a fresher trail towards anything yet, she decided to loiter near the edges of Noctisardor. It never hurt to help mark their presence with a bit of traffic, and she may as well keep an eye out for anything interesting too. She didn't feel like stowing away yet.

Any chance we could bump this to the present?

Kaertok continued to roam across the Teekon Wilds in search of Raleska. Sugar Glider and Isi were on his mind, too, but they were not the main reason for his wandering feet. He did not know how Raleska would receive him, but he knew he had to see her again. She was, as far as he was concerned, his aokkatti. If she rejected him, he was not sure where he would turn next.

The Tartok wolf attempted to calm his mind, sticking his nose to the ground rather than be in his thoughts about Raleska. He spotted a wolf up ahead, which was always a potential lead, and he trotted forward with purpose. Not until he sensed the faint markings did he slow, and when he was within earshot, he gave her a soft woof to announce his presence and offer a greeting.

Lol, I just realized you play Jomyo. Here I go running into all your toons!

The scout kept the going slow, alternating between keeping her nose down low, and then up scanning ahead--neither of which was telling her much right now besides that there was little to see. When she felt motivated enough to give it a whole pause, she stopped and shook some of the snow flurries off her outer coat, then finished with a soft puff of a sigh. This much let her notice a lone presence headed this way, so she stayed put to watch him come closer. She had nothing else major to do right this second and little to lose in letting some stranger engage, assuming he wasn't here to bring violence outright.

Hi, she said back as a low chuff first after he had woofed her way. That already kept the initial concerns quelled. He didn't smell affiliated either, that she could tell, which was low risk in her opinion--and probably meant he wasn't angry neighbors coming to sniff out some new traffic in this swatch of the wilds--although it was still not impossible. You out here with business? she asked, all neutral presenting and with a very small just curious tilt to her head after she spoke.

:D yup! and yeah present is just fine by me

She greeted him pleasantly enough and gave him the typical “what’s your deal?” response. That was a-ok with him, of course. Now that she was closer, he noted that she did seem to smell like a group of other wolves. Perhaps they didn’t have a solid claim here, but it wasn’t nothing. It caught his attention, and he wondered if this pack might suit him better than the one he had rejected for their child leader.

Indeed I am, he replied. Learning from his last mistake, he put his primary objective before asking about the pack, although he would certainly do the latter if and when his question was answered. I’m looking for somebody. Her name is Raleska, and she once ran with a pack on the coast known as Rusalka. There was the case of Sugar Glider and Isi, but Kaertok thought it best to start with one before he moved on to the other two.

Right now, Jomyo didn't feel like she had a lot to back up any claim higher than this current, easy neutral she appeared with so she was not going to come across too forwardly too soon--not without getting half a read on the situation first. They had only just reached this piece of the wilds, and between the few remainders of the Lost Creek, she knew their numbers were slim, likely a little scattered to the winds right now as they all hunted and attempted to resettle. Again, best to be.. mindful.

Never heard of her, she shook her head, adding an apologetic huff. And not familiar with the pack, either. She could recall no detail about them, even if his telling they were from the coast gave her something to narrow it down with. They were not one Arbiter had mentioned to her, and neither did she know them from her time more south in the Teekons. Hope all's good with them. I haven't seen it for myself yet but, I'd heard the going got a little rough on some of the coast after the earthquakes, she mentioned, withholding most expression on the matter to watch how how this very vague news may sit with him. If he wanted to know more, or glean the finer details, she was probably not the best source; hers was all word of mouth trickling back this far inland and maybe, Rusalka's stretch of the coast remained unaffected. She had no idea.

Another non-lead, but that wouldn't discourage Kaertok. There was still plenty of ground to cover, and he was certain that he would eventually come across somebody who both knew Raleska and could point him in the direction of where she was now. All it would take was time and patience, both qualities that he had honed over the years. His lips pressed together, and he nodded, glad for the information anyway.

It did, he replied, letting silence fall between them for a moment.

This place, is it yours? he asked. She hadn't the posturing to make him think that she was going to chase him off right off the bat, but he also had a feeling this wasn't no-man's-land. It was somewhere in between; perhaps a new claim.

She kept to her steady expression, though a curious turn of an ear caught his confirmation about the coast, she assumed. While not a lengthy sort of detail, any firsthand experience could prove valuable; she let the silence settle there a beat, but edged in a question of her own: You see it for yourself? Any answer to that would tell her how much else she ought to ask, but first things first, she did owe some explanation on why she was here.

Not exactly, she answered first. Not mine alone, she breathed, stepping back a length so she could pivot herself appropriately towards the landmark that shielded the place. Her stance stayed neutral, not bothered; so it seemed. The wolves formerly of Lost Creek were in a strange spot of flux right now, but she was an adaptable sort, and it didn't bother her as much as it probably should--wintertime considered. We were a small claim by a creek just south a ways and we've headed up here tracking for prey mainly, and to put some space between the neighbors too, she explained, hence her lack of outright aggression, or a formidably marked borderland to state this for them. 

Things were still new, perhaps a little uncertain, but they were taking it by the day. So far, so good, which I suppose may turn into something more steady with time. Believe the place is called Noctisardor Bypass, she pointed up, implying the area gained its name from the landmark. That was how she understood it. Do you run with any pack now? Or does your search keep you busy? the scout asked as well.

Kaertok nodded. He had not dawdled there, but he had seen what he had needed to see. Trees had been torn from the ground, the coast was a mess, and it was not a place he wished to spend any length of time. It was no wonder Raleska was no longer there. He only hoped that she had made it away safely. He had to believe that for his own sanity. If she hadn't, all this searching was for naught.

She explained a bit more about this place, specifically how she related to it, along with the other scents he had picked up here. He now understood why it had been strange to him at first. Not quite claimed, but not exactly unclaimed. The name Noctisardor Bypass sounded vaguely familiar, but he chalked that up to him growing up around these parts.

None for now, he replied, Although if the right opportunity presented itself, I'd be a fool not to take it, provided I could have the freedom to continue searching for Raleska. This was his way of easing into the question of whether or not that sort of thing would be welcome here. He wasn't even sure what he would do when he found her. He just needed to do it. He needed to let her know what she meant to him.

She didn't approach too stealthily.  She was, after all, just doing a patrol -- a rather casual one in fact, since until they were sure that the deer really did frequent here, there was no point putting down a permanent border.  There might be somewhere better, and until resources were plentiful, wasting the energy wasn't a good idea.

Still, she wasn't too keen on just leaving borders open -- they needed to protect what resources they had, and even though her children were near adult size by now, they were still children in need of protecting in her eyes. Voices were up ahead, and since she recognized Jomyo's voice, she took her time, hearing the last bit about finding Raleska, whoever or whatever that was.  She kept walking forward, clearly visible, coming to a halt a comfortable distance on the edge of the conversation.  Arbiter's posture did tell that she was a leader here, but it was still casual at the moment -- she wasn't called, and he had been stopped before the borders, so she didn't feel the need to come barging in like a freight train.   Rather than making assumptions, she waited, gave an inquisitive glance to both Jomyo and the strange man, and would see what would come of it.  If she was needed, she was here, if this was some personal thing or something else mundane, she could continue on her work.

As she nodded, that was well noted, then, about the coast. It didn't particularly surprise her, and since she didn't have any specifically relevant questions to it (their pack was awfully far from it and they had bigger matters at home), the subject faded away in favor of others: here and now. He didn't seem outright opposed to any of her explanations so far, and judging by the mien he carried with him, he wasn't completely hopeless..

She returned the glance to her leader, who had joined them vaguely enough. Jomyo had nothing major to concern herself with there at the moment, so towards the wanderer, she went on. Makes sense. I think I joined this group with a.. similar situation, she mentioned through an easy nod, relating, but watching him carefully to see if he expressed any interest too. Her loyalty was theirs while she was here, unquestionably, but the scout wondered if inevitably, elsewhere would pull her away more. So far, she had been able to be comfortable--all things considered. And I keep a lot of freedoms as a scout, mainly. It's worked out well for me, she said. Even if lean times kept her on the hunt more often than anything lately.. scouting was still her biggest cornerstone, and she trusted her leaders to leave her those freedoms because she could travel sanely on their behalf.

If you had any interest, we definitely would have nothing to complain about another able hunter.. she edged in with a light chuff to go with the suggestion. He looked like he could feed himself, anyway.. hence the guess, but she understood wholly if his searching had to lead him elsewhere. But, hope you find her.. wherever she's gone to, Jomyo added.

Another wolf approached them, which he could only assume was another one of the group, based on the similar scents. Not only that, but she held herself like a leader. It did strike him as odd that she didn't speak or add anything to the conversation, but perhaps there was nothing to say. Or Jomyo here was being tested or observed for future interactions. Whatever the reason, Kaertok gave the second wolf only a passing glance before returning his attention to Jomyo.

Hearing that Jomyo was a scout as well was useful information. Two sets of legs were better than one, and if they were both out searching—even if Jomyo's was less targeted—it may help him find Raleska sooner rather than later. Not only that, but it would give Kaertok a home base to come back to and rest up, and a location he could start giving to those who might want to find him later and bring any information to him.

I think that would work well for me. Kaertok turned his attention back to the other female. Jomyo here has been telling me that you could use an extra able-bodied wolf. I can offer that in exchange for the freedom to keep searching for my friend, if that works for you. My name's Kaertok Tartok. What are you calling your group?

Writing posts at 2am... Good idea/bad idea? :thonk:

What sort of leader would Arbiter be if she didn't trust her underlings to handle some things? No reason to interrupt if nothing was wrong. Besides, at least right now she had no reason to be particularly more suspicious than usual, so this all seemed very everyday to her.

In fact, in Arbiter's eyes, perhaps Jomyo was the perfect one to have greeted him -- she was a fine example of what Arbiter was fine with allowing.  Wolves willing to travel might find others that could bolster their ranks, and being willing to give them freedom meant perhaps they'd have more respect for Arbiter's time than those that just vanished without a word.  It was a risk, but was not everything?  Besides, she seemed to have done a fine job here -- Arbiter was interested to see how her plans formed once spring was imminent. 

The conversation between them clarified a few things.  Raleska was a person, and Kaertok hadn't directly asked to join, but his conversation had swung that way in the end.  She wouldn't fault a wolf for being opportunistic in that way, and from what she could see just in this meeting, he seemed to have held his own through these early winter weeks -- better than some, she imagined.  Arbiter nodded her head.  I am Arbiter. And for now at least, I call it Legion. The only thing that was certain was that it was silly to call the pack Lost Creek Hollow if that wasn't where they were located.  And indeed we could.  With winter here, I imagine it would be mutually beneficial.  When you travel, I do require that you keep us up to date with when it would be.  I'm tired of wondering if someone needs a search party versus someone gone of their own free will.  A few wolves in mind from that, some more negatively than others.  Sarah.  At this point Arbiter might know that she just plain bailed and still was likely salty about it, but if not then she still wondered what had happened to her.  Okay, her brother had been gone as well, but her opinion of him flipped about as easily as the sun crossed the sky -- he hadn't been around long enough for her to feel as though she could rely on him.

It turned out that his interest was real enough to have him want more with just this much, and this gave the conversation perfect opening for Arbiter to take the head of it--which Jomyo gave readily when it was right. The new claim was still awfully fresh and honestly, she was still learning how it was to be herself. It made this opportunity good in more ways than one, so she was best suited to a firm nod to back the leader's words and sentiment.

She was glad this had turned out favorable so far since he seemed like a sound-minded sort, and they needed the likes of such to help bolster them through winter--she had no need to sway her leader against him, and instead, he had done pretty well at first impressions for her. Plus, now knowing what she did, and if he was going to ally with them, her own travels could be put to use for his search too now that she knew him and had a name to work with. It never hurt to be an extra set of eyes and ears on the situation.

To her, it seemed mutually beneficial for them all. She stayed quiet and watchful, letting them go back and forth with the official sorts of things; she had helped get it started, though, so that was plenty until the conversation called upon her again.

Arbiter introduced herself (and the group known as Legion). She also requested that he inform them when he took leave to scout, which seemed more than reasonable to him. He didn't always do that, but he informed when he could. He had always told Tartok when he was leaving, and he had told Raleska. Heck, he'd even told Takiyok after he had challenged her (and she'd refused to step down). Hadn't he done the same for Stormrift? Most of these were mere blips in his history.

Understood, he replied, dipping his head. I made plans to meet back up with another wolf in a few days, but once that is done, I will return here and start putting myself to work and meeting the others who are with Legion. He glanced again to Jomyo, who had been quiet, but not unnervingly so. Is there anything I can do for the pack while I'm on my journey? Recruitment came to mind, even though Kaertok was not typically that sort.

See, these were the sorts of wolves that Arbiter could get along with -- reasonable, logical.  Basing themselves in reality certainly helped.  Reality did not care about kindness nor other floaty things like that.  Get a few more like them and perhaps she could tolerate having a few of the more oddballish ones like Ibis around.  After all, here he was, pledging membership for only a few moments and he was volunteering to do work while completing his own goals.  Efficient.  If you find another wolf or two who you deem worthy, feel free to inform them that we are recruiting.  It seemed reasonably likely that based on Kaertok's behavior here that he would be at least a reasonable judge of what would be useful.  He, after all, had done a good job at presenting himself -- if it had been a much more slapdash meeting, perhaps she would have tacked on a few more requirements to it, but now she was more curious to see what he'd end up bringing.

Other than that, where your travels take you, see if the prey is returning there. There have been positive signs here, but I don't trust it until I know the same is happening elsewhere. She looked to Jomyo, Technically, that goes for both of you. If it is improving, as soon as we have the chance, we're taking a large kill, filling the caches, and celebrating that the events of these last few months have finally broken.  Her words were somewhat irritated at the whole thing -- but much as you might hate a pebble in your shoe that you can't quite get rid of, they were still here in this state of not-quite-recovery.  Arbiter desired to be on the path of getting on track as soon as possible.  It would decide if here was where they would stay or if they needed to continue moving.  She wasn't fond of moving again, honestly.

The situation before her between Legion's leader and the new recruit continued on smoothly, needing little input from her when Arbiter was just as clear as necessary--and frankly, the scout thought it was the best source to hear it from anyway. Being less centered in the spotlight let her simply soak up the information that passed around, which was certainly fine by her as her glance followed the volley of words--curiosity tagging right along with it.

None too surprised by any of what she heard, the Eizokusei gave her own small nod. She had been west of here, and a short ways north all to mixed review. Winter-weather aside, she wanted to trek out for longer stretches.. but with the pack still re-establishing itself, she did not like to go too far all at once. Maybe now with two reasonable sorts out traveling around on their behalf, they could get more ground covered. All seems more hopeful than it has been, she mentioned, mainly aimed at Arbiter--for although the signs were small, even this new face was a good step for them, she believed

Nevertheless, she would see what else Kaertok had in response to that much and leave the depths of getting to know him better for the times to come--perhaps hunting, patrolling, and ranging alongside him soon. She was satisfied with this much so far, so pried no further. Instead she waited for a more natural conclusion to come, and unless needed here or elsewhere, she would likely continue her prowling here on the outskirts--he didn't seem like the type to need a lot of babysitting, anyway, so she did not worry.

I'll close after a few days, or either of you is welcome to close it up! It can count toward the Legion foundation stuff. ^__^

Kaertok filed the notable things away, and he would do his best to keep an eye out for things that might be helpful to the pack. Even though it was not yet solid, he felt better about this leadership than any he had in the past year or so (sans Tartok, of course). Perhaps things would work out here, even if he was unable to find Raleska. Then again, he couldn't imagine him ceasing his search all together. Finding her was still at the top of his priority list, and it would remain so until he managed to track her down (or die).

He once again let his eyes linger on Jomyo when she spoke, even if the hopeful statement wasn't directed toward him. Both of these wolves seemed level-headed enough. I look forward to meeting the rest of the group when I return, he said. If I want to make it to my rendezvous, I should get a move on. The Tartok wolf waited just a moment to see if either of them had anything else to add before he set sail for the west.

Progress, that's what this was.  The main thing that Arbiter saw as a flaw in this little plan was that if he found a wolf far from here, they'd have to travel all the way back..  Well, anyone who showed up would be very determined and interested, she supposed.  She'd cross that bridge when they came to it, if they did.

She nodded to Jomyo.  More wolves were promising, as were some of the trails she'd seen. She hoped that soon things would return to normal. Whatever you find, when you return, let myself or Terance know. We'll be working on making this place more of a home while you'e gone.  It was technically to both of them. There was still much to be done -- dens to find, caches to plan, the whole nine yards assuming things didn't suddenly turn south.  Right now, though, once they had dispersed to go their own ways, Arbiter had a patrol to complete -- making things like home.