Redsand Canyon turn one misstep into bonemeal

Glaukos came across the trail of @Germanicus but it was not his scent alone. It grew stronger beneath the crossing of red stones, tangled with one he did not know, and so he thought to follow it; but he heard voices drifting with the frost and decided to turn away.

He knew the canyon well enough after living within it with the Saints, then living alone and challenging himself to the study of its paths before winter hit. Now, with snow blustering across the higher reaches and the shadows becoming frigid even on the brightest days, it looked totally different and as such, confused him.

The boy meandered. He found another trail and followed it, wondering if he would find @Kallik among the caves. Perhaps the other auxilia roamed the Sunspire or the Vale, patrolling alone. It seemed the small battalion of warriors was fractured.

Kallik preferred to be alone most of the time. It had been how he spent his days before Mereo, and it was a hard habit to break. He just felt most at ease when he didn't have to worry about interacting with someone else.

He had started to descend down from the sunspire and into the valley. Since finding that stranger outside the borders the other day, he had been more diligent about making time to explore outside the canyon. 

A patch of ice made him slide a bit as he moved, and he stopped once he had caught himself. When his heart beat at a more normal pace again, the auxillary began to move once more, now carefully watching out for any more slippery patches that might send him rolling down the mountain to his death.

There was almost no sound within the canyon corridors, until there was, and it resounded from every direction.

It was like the scrambling of a squirrel up a tree, and as it caught in Glaukos' ears he moved to find it. There weren't many trees within the heart of the canyon and so the sound was out of place.

When he emerged from a cleft of shadow it was to see the silver figure of Kallik righting his steps, taking his time to cross a patch of black ice.

Glaukos said nothing, only snorted.

The snort made Kallik turn. Glad that was amusing for you, he snapped back at the other auxillary. A hard expression further showed his annoyance at the reaction. He seemed more like a child then, taking pleasure in someone's misfortune—someone whose team Glaukos was supposed to be on. 

He was getting too mad about this. Really it meant nothing. But Kallik would continue to dislike the other man until he gave him a reason not to. 

He was busy, so he turned to head back in the direction he was moving before. He took his responsibilities seriously, and he wouldn't let frivolous things distract him. He had no idea if Glaukos would follow, nor did he care.

Never seen someone forget how to walk before. Glaukos commented dryly as he lurched along again, striding across patches of snow that had been crushed under-heel already.

When the other wolf turned to leave Glaukos made a point to follow. He gave the white wolf a wide berth in case of further blundering, and decided to himself that they could patrol together. Glaukos wanted to know more about this other auxiliary — but he wasn't about to ask anything outright.

Kallik rolled his eyes at the comment but did not give the other auxillary any more evidence that the comment annoyed him. 

Despite the tension between them, Glaukos still followed, which he thought was odd. Enough so that he slowed and looked over at the beast. Did you need something? he asked. Surely he wasn't interested in patrolling with him. Kallik wasn't the best company for even those he got along with, so he wasn't sure what was expected from this interaction.

They walked together for a few metres before the pale wolf turned, regarding Glaukos, who became disinterested in the manner of a cat playing keep-away with his eyes. When the other guardian made his comment one of Glaukos' tattered ears turned to catch it.

He grunted. No.

There was some tension in the air that they likely both felt. Glaukos hadn't made it any better with his cajoling, and he wasn't about to apologize. He didn't really know why he followed the other boy.

At some point in his life, Glaukos had had a brother. That brother was now long gone; dead more than likely, vanished otherwise, written off as yet another soul who had chosen to abandon him. Friendships were not something Glaukos knew how to form or upkeep; but a working relationship? Maybe.

Patrolling. He uttered after a second or two, as if it required thought. ...So? Get a move on. Don't trip.

He met the other soldier's words with another roll of his eyes, but didn't stop moving. If Glaukos wanted to patrol with him, then so be it. It would help to have another set of eyes.

He said nothing for some time, just inspected rock and plant, marking what needed refreshing. Aside from the earlier rudeness, the other auxiliary's presence wasn't so bad.

Have you explored the stone passageways on the northern side of the canyon? he asked. If not, he thought it was important to share. But if the man patrolled as much as he did, Kallik figured he'd at least seen it.

Glaukos could be difficult around other people. He knew better than to trust anyone. His skepticism of the average person extended to Mereo and its own hierarchy — the general included; despite the agreement he had established with the elder wolf, or perhaps in spite of it, he was on higher alert around Germanicus. Kallik was closer to his own age and shared his status as auxillary, and Glaukos did not know how to treat that sameness between them.

The easiest thing he could do, which came quite naturally, was to keep silent and do the work. He could study the land, mark it where necessary, while also studying Kallik. He wondered sometimes if Germanicus preferred the silver-clad boy soldier, but ultimately the approval of some geriatric wasn't something Glaukos desired.

Glaukos ruminated as he performed his duty, only pausing when Kallik's voice broke the quiet. He gave a grunt, eyeing the terrain. No. He answered grimly, like before. This time at least he had more to offer: I have passed it before. It doesn't have many smells. But that had been many days ago.

In truth, he just didn't want to venture deep in to the passage, or anywhere confined; but Glaukos wasn't going to share this idiosyncratic fear with the other wolf. He abhored this weakness in himself.

The silence didn't bother Kallik; he was perfectly comfortable with no words and only work, and it seemed his fellow auxillary was as well—something they apparently had in common.

Glaukos had not explored the passageways. I have followed some of them, Kallik told him. Some of them get too small to get through, though. He remembered the one he had explored with the imperator with an inward shudder. 

We could find something new to explore if you'd like. Perhaps it would be something they would both enjoy, and it would give them more time to learn each other. He stopped to lift his leg on a gnarled, leafless bush, continuing on when he was done.

He was not interested in being sequestered underground with only Kallik as company. In fact Glaukos would not go down in to such extremely cramped spaces even if a willing woman beckoned with her heat-riddled body; nothing could entice him to patrol those passageways.

That said...

Hearing that this other boy had been down there and exploring, doing his duty to a greater ability than Glaukos ever could hope to perform himself, agitated him.

If you can't fit your tiny ass through those caves, I can't with mine. Glaukos remarks with a huff, but then goes quiet. He does not want to issue an outright challenge to his fellow auxiliary (or go crawling inside the earth like something dead or dying) but he dislikes feeling weak.

Kallik slowed his pace to turn his head and scowl at the other auxillary. He couldn't go five minutes without finding some way to insult him, and that agitated Kallik. 

I am not tiny, he answered as he turned away. You are just freakishly large, so everything seems small to you. The northerner's size wasn't the odd thing here. And I guess that means I'm more useful than you. A low blow, but he felt Glaukos deserved it, .

Glaukos snorts. He doesn't bother listening beyond the boy's petulant response.

He is amused to have gotten under his skin so easily; it makes him feel powerful. If he can poke and prod and even slightly unmoor those around him with words, he could keep them at an arm's reach - and thus keep himself safe.

Kallik says something about usefulness and earns a deeper scoff from Glaukos. Great. Go be a meat shield for your master then. He sneers. I've already fought in one war. What've you done?

Top that, ass crack. Typical boys being boys, and all that. Measuring stick and all.

Kallik hadn't ever fought in a war, but he had suffered other traumatic events. He would tell Glaukos none of this, though; the jack ass would probably find some way to make fun of him for it. 

So he said nothing, and expected that the other auxillary would interpret that however he wanted. 

He was quiet as they walked, whether or not his fellow soldier said anything else. It wasn't until he heard the rustling of something just ahead of them that he showed any emotion at all. The auxillary stopped and looked in the direction of the sound, his nose working overtime to suss out the scent of whatever it was. 

Then he saw the flash of a grey, bushy tail pop up from behind a grouping of large rocks. A fox. With a glance to Glaukos, he sprinted off towards the creature, set on catching it and ripping it apart.

The only answer that Glaukos recieved was silence as the boy turned away. Hah! So he hadn't done anything at all yet; that made his claim of being more useful moot, according to Glaukos. Had he known the troubles that Kallik had really gone through in life perhaps they'd have found some similarities. Instead, silence.

That was fine with him.

Something moved ahead of them and drew the attention of Kallik, then Glaukos when he was finished mentally gloating. They shared a glance before Kallik tore off after the thing; Glaukos was slower to respond and lagging behind a few paces, as he was large but not fast like the silver boy, though he held the same intent.

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He felt Glaukos behind him as they followed the trail of the fox. The scent filled the auxillary's nose and filled him with the violent urge to to make the trespasser pay for its crime. His muscles were well honed to this type of work; his stamina was substantial. Kallik would not give up until he felt the fox's bones crunch between his jaws. 

The trail led them along the borders and then out of the canyon, but he refused to give up.

His persistence would eventually pay off when they followed the creature into a shallow thicket—clearly a hail mary  for the trespasser that would he pay for with his life.

Kallik slammed into the small opening with clawing front legs and snapping teeth. He searched in the darkness by feeling only until he finally felt jaws sink into flesh. The auxillary pulled back immediately, dragging the screeching fox out by one of his hind legs. The bone had snapped during the struggle and kallik felt the muscles and tendons starting to pull apart. 

He whipped the fox towards Glaukos, hoping to deliver the trespasser right into his fellow soldier's jaws.

Mature Content Warning

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Kallik managed to follow the fox with some ease, at least until its path terminated in a thicket that Glaukos could not reach.

He watched the silver figure of the other auxillia until a red bolt of fur was thrown his way, kicking, screeching - and then Glaukos was vying to grab at the lithe little body, clamping down on its belly as it came within reach of his teeth.

The fox curled around his face and desperately tried to claw at him. He felt nails digging in to his brow, a foot kicking at his lower jaw, and a writhing head snapping for release. All it took from Glaukos was a firmer bite and a quick thrash, and he dropped the fox hard against the earth.

It wasn't quite dead yet but it didn't rise to fight back again. Its belly had been partially opened and made to spill, fumigating the area with all manner of once-internal smells.

It seemed promising that Galukos would finish off the intruder. The fox fought back but was no match for the giant jaws of his fellow soldier. The creatures insides spilled onto the ground, and its struggle ceased. It still lived though.

Kallik wasn't sure what the other auxiallry was waiting for, but he saw no reason for the fox to suffer unnecessarily. So he wrapped his own jaws around its neck and clamped down. The trachea crushed easily between his teeth and then the creature was no more.

Kallik moved to kill the thing.

In the interim, Glaukos grew bored. He was sticky with blood and panting from the exertion; but the patrol was not yet finished. He'd go one way, leaving the other auxiliary with the carcass, and maybe they'd split up or maybe they wouldn't... Glaukos didn't pay much attention.

The thrill of the kill came and went, and he went back to work.