embrace this chance (Mandatory Pack Meeting)

This is a mandatory pack meeting! Anyone who fails to show (won't get the EXP), will be demoted to the lowest rank and unable to be promoted from it for two weeks as an IC consequence. Please let @Thistle Cloud reply first! The three young babies ( @Charon, @Liyani, and @Levi ) are not required to attend but can if they want. @Mordred , @Ranger , @Krikor , @Goldrinn , @Onyx , @Mercury , @Gunnar. The first round will end Monday, November 3rd.

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It had been too long since there had been a pack meeting, the last time being back when Pump was still alive, and the land slide had nearly destroyed their home in Horizon Ridge. That had nearly been a year ago now, and it was beyond time he gather the troops and speak with them. Too many things had happened whilst Ragnar had been gone upon his Outrider trip for him not to address everyone upon it. Before this moment Ragnar had felt no need to hold one because Stavanger Bay had been doing well, and wolves hadn't just jumped ship, or offed themselves before. All Ragnar knew was he and Thistle now had three foster children to take care of. Which also meant, not that there were any couples asides from Thistle and himself at this point, that he was going be much harder on couples breeding. If, he allowed anyone but him and Thistle to breed at all. Given, Ragnar wasn't even sure that it was going to happen next year for Thistle and him as it was — he had no idea what kind of shape Stavanger Bay would be in. He was no Seer, after all. All Hallow's Eve drew nearer and while Ragnar had something fun planned for the pack he was in no mood to hold a festival even if the All-Father himself demanded it. Ragnar was rarely disobedient to Odinn, fearing his believed descendent's wrath more than he feared anything else in the world, but at this moment in space and time Ragnar had to focus upon his priorities. Upon his responsibilities as the Jarl of this pack.

The scarred Scandinavian drew in a sharp, deep breath and let it out as he moved easily through the darkening forest, shrugging past the thick tangles of branches of ash trees, weaving through and around them with ease until he found the very heart of the forest, where the he felt the heartbeats of his Gods the strongest. It was the spot in which the Lodbrok felt the most ethereal power from his deities and so it was, naturally, his chosen place to call upon his faithful and loyal to discuss the happenings within their pack, and also push for what he expected of them. So far, none but Thistle and himself held trades within their ranks and while he understood it took time and dedication so did being in a pack. With Winter within touching distance there was plenty of trades that were needed. Sometimes, sacrifices needed to be made for the better of the group. Ragnar had been so close to earning his Counselor trade but he had sacrificed it in the favor of perusing the Gamekeeper instead because in the long run, Gamekeepers were what they were in desperate need of.

Ragnar's steps slowed as he reached the spot, feeling the hair at the back of his neck prickle with anticipation. He could feel Odinn's presence and knew that during this ordeal that the All-Father was judging him. Weighing how he handled this as the Egyptian God Osiris was whispered to weigh the hearts of men. It was the same principle and though Ragnar should have felt afraid, and worried: he didn't. Tipping his head back, towards the bare canopy and moonlight night sky above he let out a howl, calling the wolves of Stavanger Bay to him, giving no chance. If any did not show, they would have to deal with the consequences of their insubordination.

I'll add more to this, but I wanted to get it up so others could reply

It was strange lately not to see Verinne or Julooke and it hurt her pretty badly. She did however heed the call of her husband and ran towards the sound of his call. The children would be coming after her, so intent upon their own adventures lately, they were hardly ever around when she was. It wasn't a bad thing, just meant they were growing up and would soon leave the nest so to speak. Dipping her muzzle to the ground she came to her husband and gently nudged his shoulder and licked the side of his muzzle.

A pack in itself was a powerful thing. Wolves united as a whole being. They fought for each other, fed each other, protected each other. It was something that very few things could break apart. On this day the male had been wandering along the borders making sure no wolf had trespassed. When Krikor heard his mighty alpha's call to rally the male halted everything he was doing and ran. The swarthy male as of lately had been doing his daily chores. Protecting his new pack's borders, then hunting, making sure the cache was filled. There were many pups in the Bay, and they needed to be well fed if they were to grow stronger.

Running with the wind the male came to the forest in which his alpha's call originated from. Slowing his pace to a light jog the male approached the heart of the forest. Emerging from the lanky trees the salt and pepper male greeting both of his alpha's with respect. With a head dip to Thistle and Ragnar the male took his place a few feet away from the pair. The male breathed in the chilly fall air, taking in his surroundings. The ebony wolf stayed silent and waited for his remaining pack mates to join them.

Ranger heard the call and came running as fast as she could, she jumped from rock to rock, though the as she landed it sometimes jolted her she ran and ran, she came to a sliding stop and bowed down in respect to her alpha. THis was her first meeting and she was ready to listen to what was going to be said, she paid very close attention to everything around her

When Ragnar and Thistle had made way to the meeting place, Charon and his siblings had been herded along too. While there was little for them to do there, they couldn't stay behind in the den all alone, and Charon had come along in a bewondered state; he had never before had a family outing with all the wolves in the den before; Ragnar, Thistle, and Gunnar and Mercury, and his siblings. Charon followed, docile and seemingly content to come along, although he still felt rebellious on the inside about the whole thing.

This outing seemed like fun, however, because Charon was an adventurous spirit and while he prefered adventuring with his family — his own family, with Ma and Da — he still savoured the adventure. When they waited and Ragnar called, Charon sat quietly, looking around and taking in his surroundings.

Charon sat and looked around, occasionally wrinkling his nose because of an itch or scratching behind one of his ears with a paw. He sat alone, distancing himself from the family (though if one of his own siblings would sit next to him, he wouldn't object; he just didn't search for the contact himself) and looked around. As other wolves arrived he felt a little self-conscious, not sure what was going on or how to behave.

Carefully he queried, "What?" to Thistle and Ragnar, not sure why they were gathering. He hadn't seen the two first wolves to arrive before, and suddenly felt unsure as he sat all by himself, bashful in the face of new adults.

Gunnar had followed behind his parents like a silent shadow. Keeping an eye on the new little foster siblings he had. He felt sorry for them, and he wanted to make sure they were as adjusted as possible. After all they had some serious changes, and being and advocate against all change he knew all to well their unhappiness. He too hated change and it drove him mad. He settled down near the small male Charon, he didn't push his presence on the pup. More or less just sat near in case he did want a friend that wasn't a true sibling. Then he turned slate gray eyes towards his father and mother.

Onyx heard the call and jumped. She didn't know if she should go. Three reasons. She found Ragnar scary. He had told her to start a trade immediately, and she hadn't. And lastly, she remembered the Wheeling Gull Isle meeting she had attended for Alpha Ypres. There had been a big black wolf assigned to kill two wolves who hadn't attended. Then there had been a wolf wolf who half her face was twisted and furless, among other wolves she didn't know. But she decided attending was for the best, even if Ragnar scared her.

She hurried to the source, and it was not long before her long legs carried her there quickly. They were strangely long, like a spider's. She sat at the edge, behind two little wolves who seemed to be pups. They scared her the least and so she would sit near them. Onyx looked towards Ragnar and waited to see what he had to say.

The knight looked up from his spot on the seashore, hearing his Jarl's deep tones in the rallying cry. A meeting, it seemed, was being held. The former king found it strange that he did not have someone else to call meetings; back in Albion they had criers who had been specially trained to have long, loud calls that rang for miles. But he rose and answered the call nonetheless, eating up the ground in a matter of minutes with his long, lean legs.

He was one of the later arrivals. Many of his packmates were already there, eyeing their Jarl with varying emotions, mostly curiosity. Unfamiliar with most of his packmates, the Dread Knight sat towards the edge of the group, close enough to hear his Jarl's voice.

Round two! As usual, please let @Thistle Cloud reply first. This round will end on Tuesday, November 11th. For the sake of everyone being able to get in a reply there is no posting order. @Mordred , @Ranger , @Krikor , @Onyx , @Gunnar , @Charon .

One by one they filed into the meeting area. Charon caught Ragnar's attention when the child appeared on the scene, sitting a distance away from Thistle, Gunnar and himself. The distance didn't exactly surprise Ragnar, and the scarred Northman didn't take it personally. He remembered what it'd been like after Eitri's death, which had been hard enough. Ragnar couldn't imagine the pain that the three remaining Ostrega children felt losing both of their parents and finding themselves in the foster care of two strangers. Not entire strangers but he and Thistle were not Verrine and Julooke. They never would be, and even if the children never loved them Thistle and him would do what was right by them, for their sake just as much as it was in honor of their parents' memories. The Jarl did not call to the Ostrega child to move closer, instead, keeping a watchful and protective eye to him nevertheless.

When Ragnar was confident that the entirety of the pack had gathered he prepared himself to speak. Breaking bad news to the pack was a necessary evil of being the one who led them. There was never an instance when being the bearer of bad news was ever a pleasing thing, but someone had to do it. They had to be made aware of what was happening within their own pack. They needed to be prepared for the harsh winter that was coming their way. Their resolve was not done being tested, Ragnar suspected. Life was rarely easy, and it was hardly ever all rainbows and shining gold. Reality was bleak, cold and harsh. If anything, his culture had set him up with an understanding of that from an extremely young age. Ragnar allowed the silence to settle for a few moments, his icy Caribbean gaze sweeping across each of them in turn. “There is much that we need to discuss,” Ragnar began. For a second he had thought about thanking them for coming but saw no need considering he hadn't given them an option in the matter. “As you may or may not have noticed there has been a sharp decrease in our numbers,” Ragnar had no intentions of sugar coating anything for them. “To accommodate this drop in able bodies those who remain will have to put in extra effort. I can promise you that I will lead you through the oncoming winter, and through these hard times but we need to stick together now more than ever. Thistle and myself have stepped up to the plate and we ask that you do the same. I can't tell you it'll be easy, but we will get through it. It will get better.”

"As you may or may not be aware, we have lost two lives. Verrine and Julooke Ostrega are deceased and Thistle and I have taken in their remaining children as our wards,” It was hard to speak of it, but it was necessary. “If anyone has any leads in the disappearance of their fourth child, Kevlyn please come seek us out immediately,” Ragnar wasn't sure if it was right to assume the child was deceased or not, but without much of anything else to go on he felt it was better to assume the absolute worst. “Thistle and I's daughter has gone missing, as well. Our son, Mercury has recently left in attempts to find her.” He didn't mention Nerian, if because he assumed she abandoned them and didn't want to talk about it. “We need volunteers to hunt and patrol the borders,” Ragnar told them, knowing that for some of them neither was an ideal trade. Ragnar didn't mind it even being temporary, but until the winter passed they needed to be up on their game. “If there are any concerns, feel free to speak up now,” Ragnar encouraged before the stoic Jarl fell silent, sparing a glimpse at Thistle to see if she had anything to add to what he'd said.

Thistle too watched as the child stayed away from them and it hurt a little bit. She did however understand, she would not be very happy if she had been him either to lose his parents and a sibling all in one fell swoop. It wasn't kind and it wasn't fair.

Thistle did not say anything at first but then she did speak up Some of you may not agree with healing or try and heal yourselves. I ask that if you should become sick or wounded even if it is a small thing you think nothing of, come to me immediately. We are small on numbers and it would not bode well to lose anymore to sickness or wounds this winter. So even if you see something as trivial come seek me out anyway, there is no harm in asking. She said nothing else and just simply looked out over their small numbers. At the mention of the ostregas, her heart gave a terrible tight palpitation and she wanted to howl to the very sky. But she remembered what Ragnar had said about Valhalla so she kept quiet about it. It was not fair that Julooke had overcome different obstacles including child birth and an attack, and still succumbed to injuries. It wasn't fair at all.

Krikor had not known any of the wolves who had died due to injuries. He had not known how they even died and if there was a threat to his life lurking around the Bay. He doubt this but he now made himself a mental note to be more cautious around the territory. The sat and pepper male understood that he would have to pull his weight and many others during this winter. He would have to hunt mulitple time a day if he were to keep up with all his pack mates and their efforts. He wanted to prove to Ragnar that he could pull his own in these harsh times so when softer times came he would be trusted.

Nodding his head in response to all of Ragnar's words the male continued to listen contently as his wife spoke up. Krikor acknowledged her warnings of injuries. There was no doubt in his mind that he would come to her for help if he needed it. Death was the last thing the handsome male needed.

Although Ragnar and Thistle did pay him attention by looking in his direction, they did not answer Charon's question. He didn't like that nobody would tell him why they were here, but decided to shrug it off. Gunnar joined by his side, and Charon looked at him. He wasn't quite sure what to think of his denmate yet, since the two hadn't spent much one-on-one time together yet, but he didn't resist Gunnar sitting close to him. An adult sat behind them, he noticed, and Charon was about to ask Gunnar the same question he'd asked Ragnar and Thistle when Ragnar opened the meeting and started to speak.

Charon remained silent as Ragnar and Thistle spoke, even though he didn't really know what they were talking about. He didn't understand all of the words, but he did understand when his parents were mentioned, as well as Kevlyn. "Kev?" asked Charon, with a sadder intonation than he realised, in no particular direction, wondering what it was Ragnar said about Kevlyn and if he intended to bring Kevlyn back home. The child looked around inquisitively, hoping that someone would be able to answer his question.

He had only seen one of the wolves once before his passing, and he was greeted with hostility. Granted, he was quite close to his children, but he did not get a good first impression. He did not feel anything for him and the other wolf besides that, only for the children left alone in the world: one missing, and a few of the Jarl's as well. It was a sad time for all.

He spoke after Thistle Cloud did, concerned about the missing children. He had an idea of where to look for some of them, but he wondered if his Jarl would heed to his idea. He cleared his throat before speaking, his words directed at Ragnar. "My Jarl, has anyone asked the neighboring pack for information on the pups? It would be a good place to start..."

Gunnar said nothing he just listened. He was happy to just listen, and keep an eye on the littlest members of the bay. He was almost a half grown man, he needed to be more responsible for others. It was only the right thing to do. He listened ot his mother and father and a small pang of grief hit him at the mention of the two adults. They had been his playmates and the thought of Julooke being dead hurt a lot.

She listened as he spoke of his concerns. Onyx thought it was so sad that the children were orphans and that two children were missing, as well as one other had gone after one of his siblings. But then again, Onyx had been orphaned when she was four months old. She turned towards Thistle Cloud Loðbrók to hear what she had to say. After that she spoke up quietly. "I wanna hunt. I'm really, really good at hunting..." She said, her voice was very quiet already but it faded as she spoke. She loved hunting and, amazingly, rarely missed a catch. But by the time she knew how to hunt Winter had almost been over. All the hunting she'd done was mostly in the easy seasons, perhaps it would be harder soon...

Round Three — Last Round. I'll be archiving this and handing out the EXP for it, on Tuesday, November 18th. No posting order! @Thistle Cloud , @Mordred , @Ranger , @Krikor , @Onyx , @Gunnar , @Charon .

Ragnar was silent as Thistle took the proverbial floor then, speaking in regards to her main trade, and that if there was anything that might raise concern to come seek her immediately. “Also, if you wish to learn anything about healing you should also see Thistle. We are thin on Wardens, Gamekeepers, and Healers. They are the most needed during the winter months,” Ragnar spoke to them, knowing that he would expect them to help out regardless of if it was what they wanted to do or not. They all had to do things that they necessarily didn't like — it was a part of life. It was quiet then, whether because of the grim atmosphere of the meeting in general, or because no one had any questions for them. Except for Charon it seemed, who inquired as to his missing brother. Ragnar's gaze flitted down to the ivory child, resting softly upon his foster child. “He is ...missing, Charon,” But obviously, Charon had came to understand that. Or at least understood it in one type of context or another. “We have tried to find him.” But Ragnar did not hold much hope, and at the moment, did not have the wolves to spare. Mordred brought it up, moments after Ragnar had thought it, the Jarl's attention going to the dark coated man who spoke. Ragnar did not want to say aloud what he feared, at least not in Charon's presence. That he suspected Kevlyn dead, just like his parents. “No one has searched them, but his trail vanishes into the Sea.” Which did not leave much for the imagination to conjure. Ragnar did not come right out and say it but the implication was there, subtle in the hopes that Mordred picked up on it without Ragnar having to go into detail.

Ragnar's attention went to Onyx next as she spoke up, expressing an interest in hunting. “Good,” Ragnar spoke simply. He had not forgotten the basis on which he had accepted her into the Bay, but she had been contributing and seemed to be loyal and so he saw no reason to act upon his threat. All he desired from them was to contribute. In any way that they can. “A good place to start, Onyx, would be to check the caches each morning and fill the ones that are looking bare.” And Ragnar would check them at night, before his last patrol for the night. He was willing to rearrange his schedule for them, so that there was some kind of order to their routines.

“If there are any further questions or concerns feel free to come to Thistle and I at any time privately,” Ragnar spoke then, figuring it was as good a place as any to end the meeting. After all, there wasn't much else to say to them. They knew Winter was coming, they knew the Bay was thinning out. There was no sense in being redundant. The thin numbers meant they would all have to take on extra work, that was all. “You may go,” Ragnar, however, intended to stay until the last member left the clearing.

Onyx watched and listened as her Jarl addressed the pup in front of her and a grey-black-white-ish adult guy. Then he told her where she could start, which helped a lot. She nodded fast and noted it in her mind to do so. Then he dismissed them. Onyx got up and nodded politely to Thistle Cloud Loðbrók and Ragnar Loðbrók, before she began to walk away from where they had gathered. She would indeed work towards that trade, even if it took the next year. She couldn't give up on being further accepted as one of the pack members. She wanted everyone to be proud of her. When she had caught her first gull Raven had said she was proud of her, and it had felt great. She wanted that great feeling again, and to get it, she would go hunting. A lot.

Charon understood little of all the things that were shared. He did understand that Kevlyn, ma and da were gone, but mostly because they were gone. He didn't really know all of the things that Ragnar said about them and wondered, but didn't know how to ask or show that he did not fully understand. Charon tilted his head when Ragnar spoke to him directly, following his query, but he did not get much more information. Kevlyn didn't just appear out of thin air - he still wasn't here.

With a tiny sigh that showed his lack of understanding, Charon looked at the ground and just sat and waited for the meeting to end. When wolves started to leave Charon just sat there and waited, and he would go home with Ragnar and Thistle at the very end of the meeting, where he'd wonder about his parents and Kevlyn and hope they'd all return soon.

The salt and pepper male was too new to the pack to have any standing on the issues that presented themselves. He would for now just listen to whatever any of his packmates had to say. He nodded to his alpha when he spoke about needed certain trades inside the pack structure. He could take up any of those roles. Krikor would prefer to be a gamekeeper or warden. The warden trade would prove to be most fit for the inky male. He enjoyed interacting with wolves, and the warden trade would allow him to do so.

With a slight head nod Krikor acknowledged his dismissal. Trotting out of sight the male continued on with his day.

The sea was a cruel mistress, like nature, it give and took. It might have taken the child, Kevlyn, but there was still a chance. At another time, he would ask his Jarl about actually going to the female-run pack, but now was not the time. Not in front of the children. Now that he was dismissed, Mordred nodded, thinking about how he would achieve the trades Ragnar suggested, Gamekeeper and Warden especially. He trotted off towards the mainland, heading towards the borders. He had much to do.