Bramblepoint königinklinge

compelled, elated, harassed, confused; he pointedly left diaspora and the sum of it behind for a foray down into the lands below the mountains.
sun wheeled in white skies; mahler found himself farther than he had wanted to be, and prowled into the cold shadows of a thick firth.
he would not be able to return until morning, but then, mahler surmised with a stab of bitterness, takiyok could lead in his stead. was that not what ketzia had said?
he remembered this place from the last time he had been so close; a smile curved his lips to think of fierce queen @Hydra. how would she consider his coursing now?

The time was returning. 

It was something she could sense; something likely all could sense. Again things would change; Hydra sighed at the thought of it. This year, things would be different than the last. This year, Hydra would make sure there was no doubt as to what was expected. She would not again suffer from anothers indiscretion; they would be held responsible, through and through. With winter being as it had been this year, she suspected at the very least it would be understood. Waste not, want not—was that not the way of things? 

Perhaps she was thinking of it wrong. But the way it sounded in her mind soothed her enough to find peace. 

In any case, the words of Dragomir resounded within her head; she had wanted to inspect the place for signs of others staying here, but the remnants were threadbare. It did not seem like any were here, at least not now; perhaps the group had been simply passing through. As to that, she could not be sure—but as she moved around the bramblewood, that was how it seemed and smelled to her. One scent seemed to linger more than the others, but it was not so very longlasting that she perceived they had been here for a great amount of time. She decided already she would return with him to further inspect. 

The Queen prepared to return to her homestead when the familiar gradient of Mahler came into view. Given pause, and curious for his presence there, Hydra's ears pressed forward with interest. General, she hummed from afar; keen as their ears were, she did not doubt the strong man would hear her. In case he was simply passing through, she said nothing more but for that, watchful and not at all aloof. She would welcome his company; he had not been the unpleasant sort, the last she had seen of him.

he found the trail of quail in their covey; he would have flushed them from the spruce had not the peppered scent of hydra wreathed proudly.
commandingly, he mused, compelled to abandon his hunt at once and present himself for the scrutiny of her cool gaze.
"queen."
mahler paced proudly toward her, aware of his imposing height despite the withering of a hard winter. when last they met, he had been within her land; now they came upon chance as equals.
but the weald was perhaps the hunting extension of moonspear, and mahler would heed the unspoken.
lavender stare glowed with a pale amusement as the gargoyle awaited hydra's word.

He greeted her in turn; she did so like to hear her proper title acknowledged in such a way, unphased though she might appear. Hydra had accomplished much, and strove only ever to accomplish more. With the Nightwalkers, it seemed attainable; it was no idle fancy, but something she had built. Her brick and mortar had started by tooth and claw, but Alya's words came to mind. 

Friends. She could do with those. And Mahler, a kindred spirit, might yet become one. Two conquerors, two kingdoms; who else might understand her ambitions better, except for Vengeance? Vengeance. Her sister might not like to hear it, but Hydra had come to enjoy him too. His savage sentiments and ways tapped into what had always existed within her, but that had rest idly for a time. Before Spring came to be, she owed him a visit. 

And yet, such a notion was difficult for her to follow through with. Again she thought of Dragomir, of her words to him: you choose who disappoints you, at least when you arrived to a certain point. Hydra was of the mind that she would simply rather not choose. Rid others by proxy of the ability to even get the chance of hurting her ever again. Life was better, for her, that way; easier, too. To grant others the opportunity to disappoint her, to hurt her, seemed a terribly foolish thing to do. 

She would so hate to be fooled twice.

As Mahler approached her, Hydra took in the full stock of him; if he faced the hardship of hunger, his thick winter furs hid it well enough. He was a handsome man, this General, strong and solid in look. Larger than she remembered, but then the last time she had seen him he had taken care to mind himself given where he had stood, then. Now, though, she could better see him for what he intended to be; as the sun dipped in the horizon, its splintered rays fractured in such a way around his head that the silver tips of his skull were, for a moment, dipped in shadow and sun both, splintering into something of a crown. 

A weaker woman might have swooned, but Hydra was no such thing—Queen in name, in deeds, in spirit. She was a woman who could appreciate, and wonder at, the craftsmanship of creatures as fine as he—as Dirge! How fortunate she was to be in a world where she could witness both; how unfair it was that she was a principled woman to only be able to claim one! Ah, well; she had no regret there, and did not think there might come a time that she ever would. 

You look well, she drawled in earnest as the proud shape of him was near. How have you fared this Winter? Diaspora? She inquired, wanting to know the truth of it and hoping he was doing as well as he looked.

hydra — regent of shadows, commander of the darknesses which had built her from sable and pitch. she was a powerful wraith; if there was fear in hydra, she had no way of showing it. he wore largesse, but the queen wore the bearing of one who had led war.
"we suffered as much as anyvone," mahler answered truthfully; there was no merit or worth in pretending otherwise. "but ve vere able to rally, and now diaspora prepares itself for children."
onward would life march, onward the parade of birth and of death, and this year, mahler would be at its helm.
"moonspear appears to have fared vell also," for surely hydra in her well-fed motions and regal bearing had carried them all the same through the famine toward spring.
hydra had not the soft-limbed beauty to which many were drawn, but it was to her fierce and cunning loveliness that he found himself most drawn: the knowledge they were they to spar, the queen was well his equal.
dangerous now, the words that tempted the tip of his tongue, but  there was time enough for them to be said when mahler and she had ended their pleasantries.

Hydra was pleased to hear it, though swallowed a sigh to remember what was to arrive in the coming days. Moonspear, too, would—as with the rest of the Wilds—fall into the days of childbearing. The only peace of mind that came with it was that Hydra would be able to truly exercise her place as head bitch; this time, she would stress the she-wolves in her ranks out of heat unless they had a mate within the ranks to help them rear the cubs to come, and they had spoken with her of it. At present, there was only one other who would be given the privilege once asked. 

Antares, Atlas, Vega, Osiris, would have more siblings than they could count for it; Dragomir, several more cousins if he had any wish to claim kinship with them, himself. She thought only respectfully of the mercenary father he had once had, given what little she knew of him. Hydra had elected to believe he was a man of his word. 

Mahler's observation was not missed; Hydra offered him a savage grin as she revealed, we have fought hard to do so. On more than one occassion had she had to fight for their meals, given the climate; each and every one, they had won with her direction, united in their effort to survive, thrive, as best they could in these terrible times. The worst of them seemed over; the scent of prey was returning, and not quite so scarce as it had been. Difficult to find even still, but the worst seemed to be over; time would tell. 

Children, he had said; Hydra was at once reminded of those that would seek to harm them. I must warn you, Mahler; there are three wolves in which I know of that have come to harm children in recent months...  There is Merrick, and Astara, and Caiaphas—the last of which I have also heard referred to as Blackhead, or Seawitch. Merrick has brought to an end who I believe was once the husband of the woman Aurewen, she informed readily; Hydra had no idea that Dragomir and Isilme were born illegitimately, and would never think it even were Mahler to say to her, he was no husband. Of course he was not; lightning had struck, effectively putting to an end each and every one of Aurewens commitments except the ones she made to herself,

Andraste. 

Her first act of shedding from one skin into the next was the General himself; the mercenary had the good fortune to not be made a cuckold of in his final days, at least. Aurewen had not done it—Andraste had! As to that, Hydra's contempt was only for the woman (terribly); Mahler had baptised her sufficiently, though in a most unholy way. The womans Heavens, blessedly, closed their eyes to this. 

She detested the twice-named woman. Her saving grace was that in the end, she had been brave enough to help Hydra seek those that had come to harm young Dragomir. If there was anything else good to be found in her, Hydra awaited the day that she would see it; though she would never hold her breath for it. 

Merrick also was the one whom hurt Dragomir, as Aurewen... Andraste, now!, told it. The last I knew, they had been traveling together; though they escaped my Wilderness before I could kill them, she drawled, irate for it. That breeding season and the days of child-rearing would likely come before she could act on her wrath...! I will not have them harm my children; I will kill them, should I ever meet them. But they, those three, do not know that I wish this... and so I ask for your discretion, so that I might keep the element of surprise on my side. And should you meet them first, I would not mind your teeth at their throats, she drawled darkly. However it was done she did not care, so long as it was done. Make them bleed. Make them suffer, as they so enjoy making others do.

Hydra would do what it took to keep her children safe; with that, by proxy, she protected the rest of the young within the Wilds. 

What she would not do to those three monsters! And what she would do? It was unspeakable; unthinkable. All violence paled in comparison to the massacre her mind made for them; they deserved nothing less. Not my children. Never my children. A mothers nightmare was her children coming to harm; a mothers dream was doling out the justice deserved for any who dared contemplate cruelty toward her brood. 

Hydra's dreams were different than most, granted. But her own sweet dreams were made of this.

mahler was an analytical sort, and gleaned many impartialities from hydra's impassioned words. firstly, the woman andraste seemed of some particular account, though he was not sure in which way. secondly, he found intrigue in the way that hydra had brought the dove to his attention.
thirdly, in the talk of these roving child-killers, mahler saw the queen's canny invitation to her side once more. this was not the first time hydra had so beckoned; titillated, the gargoyle gave a nod.
"i vill be upon alert," the general assured, though with some bitter amusement, mahler wondered what hydra would make of his own ambitions.
stigmata had sought to make of the entire sunspire a vassal state to diaspora. mahler sought to create his own ranks of fierce proud children who might make this a reality.
both eternally masculine.
both eternally selfish.
perhaps it was growing within mahler that he did not care if he was accused of such. he knew himself and his mind; he knew that despite his requirements he lead diaspora, he would love every child sprung from him.
and perhaps hydra did not care if she was castigated for selfishness. the regent, like himself, was generous wherein merited, and cold otherwise.
then, that, the root of the attraction he found for her. mahler was not afraid of hydra in a mortal way, more acceptant of her ability to deal damage in singular and terrible ways.
and so he trod close to the firm boundaries of the relationship they had created calmly between them: "i have considered your offer to become allied, hydra," mahler murmured gravely.

Had she been aware of her words to be considered anything else than what they were, truths delivered and that the simple heart of it, Hydra might have been more choosy with them; as it was, she was an honest woman... certainly to a fault, for she cared not who the honesty inflicted. If they could not take the truth provided, that was their own cross to bear; she would not lie to any, as it was simply not her way. But if one were to deduce she did not like the pale woman that lightning had seen fit to smite... well. 

The Stormcloak only had herself to blame; Hydra hoped the wretch found a way to right her wrongs against those undeserving of them. She was certain she would live to regret it, if she did not. Or maybe it truly was possible to simply let go, to forget—but Hydra did not think so. 

Hydra was pleased to hear he took her words seriously; and she took his rejoinder as evidence that he was a smart man, though this she had already supposed. The Ostrega matriarch listened on, ears pricked forward as he spoke again; his next words were met with a slow blink, as she drawled, wondering aloud: I do not recall us speaking on such a thing, She felt this was something she would not have forgotten, had she done so; and yet she did not resist in the idea of its existence, and for this Hydra did not argue the point further than the remark. It must have been something the General of Diaspora desired; Hydra, frankly, was flattered. 

It made sense, with their similar ambitions. Two leaders of different domains, allied from afar; the shadow they two could cast together was one Hydra saw the appeal in. And so she offered him a look that spoke of her interest in the subject, drawling as she drew her head upward, let us speak on it now, then—tell me, what have you been thinking, Mahler? The Queen was rapt as she waited, lending him the near-entirety of her attention. The rest was for their surroundings, Winter having sharpened the softer edges of her; it had made her always at the ready to act if it was needed.

his surprise revealed itself in testament to his great interest. what she had not uttered, he had assumed; the chagrin of it might have stifled another man, but mahler took it in stride. "perhaps an allusion is vhat i heard," he murmured apologetically. but she had made no move to dissuade him; it was mere commentary, and the gargoyle seized upon it as an invitation to explain himself.
hydra attended him now, raptly, and the general found hesitation within himself. a slippage of the tongue could ruin forever her opinion of him, or grant them both a long-lasting bond suitable for both their encampments. for a long moment he was silent, choosing his words carefully.
he did not wish to speak upon andraste, not now — it was enough that his alliance with her had come between all he wished to do. when he parted ways with moonspear's monarch, he would seek out the fey sylph. for now, mahler granted his companion as much focus as she gave to him.
"i consider it best if ve made a blood-pact between our regions, queen," he ventured. "you have a king, else i vould offer myself for your consideration." a pause there, not lengthy enough to be notable unless hydra wished it. "i vill have sons and daughters in diaspora this season. vhat are your thoughts upon a potential betrothal, to be fulfilled in the future?"

She heard the pause, though did not contemplate an answer to it; for Dirge had yet to disappoint her as King, husband, or father. His political alliance through seed was not at all an unwise one... but she suspected he did not simply mean to share his seed with just her, either. Would he, to combine their nations...? A question she might ask were her own mate dead or gone otherwise, but the thought then and there was a passing one more of political fancy than anything else. 

Her answer was immediate. I quite like the idea, she admitted, the combining of two powerful nations through blood... Hydra's ears flicked as she contemplated. My season last year was late; I suspect it might be so this year, too, with the stress of the famine and my own children still being young as they are. Perhaps when they are old enough, we might arrange a time for them to meet, she considered. A play-date, so to speak. So that they could both vet their children to see who was most suited, and strong enough, for them. Hydra hoped, quietly, for one of his daughters to have the brilliant lilac sheen of their father—for one of her sons to look upon, forevermore. If their children were anything like their parents, the match would be a brilliant one... Hydra truly did enjoy the thought.

hydra took no note of his brief lull, and mahler had his answer. a bit of disappointment crept into his craw, but it was the foolishness of a desirous man. he put it swiftly to rest, refocusing himself instead upon what it was the jet queen said. an alliance between children. a wry twist of his lips. "i vould like that."
it happened in his mind then that this was not a decision to be made without the input of others, but mahler too stuffed that concept into a heavy lockbox. he was general of diaspora. any choice he decided would be final, and in that he had begun to revel. 
of her heat hydra had also meandered, referring to it in a casual way that mahler had not expected. but he sensed no ulterior flirtation in it, and so only gave a nod. "perhaps in autumn?" the gargoyle suggested.

If things were different, perhaps she would have entertained the thought; as it was, his thoughts had caused a different sort of stirring within her. Alliances through their blood; she had blood of her own, and perhaps she could arrange a betrothal or two from them if she found any worthy of it. Hydra knew of very few other packs she desired such an alliance with through children past... 

Perhaps @Terance and his cubs, though, with the Hollow. Nikai and Alya solidified their bond with Easthollow, but perhaps from her latest litter something else could be forged too. Hydra nodded as he suggested a timeframe, thinking that a fine time. Autumn, then, she accepted with a smile. Will Aurewen be the mother, then? She inquired; in this, she had no qualms. Dragomir had become her own pride and much of her joy, along with the rest of her cubs. For her own fickle ways, she had made brilliant stock... at least in her son. Despite her personal vexation with the woman, her children had no part in that... and she knew as it was that she and he were bonded.

he had not been expecting the question, but shifted only within. mahler surmised it was not an inappropriate question; hydra had seen how he and aurëwen
andraste 
comported themselves upon her mountain.
the gargoyle rolled one heavy shoulder. "if she vishes it." in truth he had no idea of andraste's continued interest in him, only that he must seek a mending.
"you do not approve, hydra?" the general rumbled, a beseeching note in the thrum of his voice that bid the nightfall queen drop her veil and speak freely.

If she wished it? So there may not be children, if she does not? She asked next, intrigued. Hydra was a perceptive woman, though was unaware of his grand scheme. As for her own approval, she was pleased he asked as much (yet understood it likely made little difference whether she did or did not). His tone was noted, and Hydra was, as she ever was and would be, perfectly candid. 

It was easy enough for her to detach from her first brood; if the children wished to make a claim near the Spear in my efforts to take the Wilderness and make it my own, at least she would not interfere in this, she drawled. She was a pragmatic woman. Hydra had raised Dragomir once the mercenary had died; personal feelings aside, Hydra was able to recognize that as of yet her genetics provided no fault. He was strong, sturdy, loyal where she was not... there was Isilme, who had disappeared, though with Mahler as the father he would at least know and share their proclivities if they did have an inclination to wander. It was not the wandering that was the problem, it was the never returning; she would not subject her children to the disappearance of what was to be their future bride, or groom. 

It mattered not to Hydra where they struck their claim; for her children to rule a portion of Sunspire's domain alongside Mahler's would please her equally. They both had a pleasant stake in this, expanding their dynasty and its reach. Hydra considered her other children, too, then... though her maternal instinct while they were still not yet old enough to join the hunt kept her inclined to wish them close for now.

hydra was unassuming and yet wickedly perceptive. mahler found his discomfort mounting as the sleek warrioress took the opening provided to provide him with a profile of andraste already known. for a long moment, it seemed his lusts would be the end of him. "it vill be more contractual than ... vhat vas before," the gargoyle murmured softly. "vhy not ally vith courtfall vhile it is so close?"
reasoning provided, mahler nevertheless dipped his head in acknowledgement of that which the woman had said. the fey regent's unraveling was well-known: with a father named and present, he would not allow his brood with the fairy to go adrift as her first had.

Contractual, she drawled, interest evident. And do you have... other contracts? She posed then; for if he could breed one, he could breed more under the premise of contract. Not that Hydra minded it; it had no bearing on her. Of course, she would prefer those legitimate to him through mateship; her interest had never been with bastards after all. There was no judgment in her tone, only curiosity; Hydra saw his chessboard, and admired it openly. It was easy for men to find a foothold in building themselves an empire; not so for women. 

But Hydra had men that might be willing to work the way in which Mahler did in the name of alliance. Hydra did not think lust had anything to do with the merit behind him... and for whatever reason, it seemed his fire toward Andraste had cooled. Or perhaps it was just the opposite. In any case, she wondered how it would all work. Would the women be alright with caring for their own cubs independent of a man, or would he be involved and immersed in their lives? 

She had no desire to be a man. It seemed a messy thing, dealing with other women who might not understand ambition such as their own. At least she as a Queen could make her own way without such troublesome quarrels as that. Empires were made with blood, were they not?

"i do." if hydra wished their details, mahler would provide them. but she had not asked after them; her gracious mien was clear even in her curiosity. there was little chance she was not recording all of this in some sort of mental ledger, and he could not fault the sable queen for it.
even if, the man thought honestly, he felt rather scrutinized, open to hydra's gentle prying. 
a wan smile to his lips, a cant to his muzzle. "diaspora must have its general back," mahler murmured reluctantly, for he truly enjoyed the majesty of the dark regent's presence. it was uncomfortable, somehow, discussing matters of blood and seed with a woman, though she was his equal, and mahler had always seen her so. he sensed a judgement, or perhaps assumed one — either way, he chafed beneath it, and wished to be upon his way.

She wondered at that, but asked no further for now. When the time came she would likely desire only the legitimate of his brood, as that was what she would be giving him in turn, was she not? Or perhaps they would all be illegitimate bastards; that idea displeased her greatly, but she did not linger long on it. She would think more of such things later. 

I will not keep you any longer then, General, Hydra drawled, playful for but a moment as she feigned her disappointment in him needing to go; but she understood, of course. She had her own Kingdom to return to after all, and would need to speak with her mate on the idea of this. Hydra would watch him depart for a time, politely so, before taking her own leave.