Phoenix Maplewood Invasion

Scarlett blinked when she saw a small flash of dark fur. Desna? The mother instantly snapped back and grabbed her child by her scruff to drag her back. Then she saw Nanook and rushed to fetch her too. Scarlett was covered in blood and instantly the guilt settled over her. That anger wasn't normal. She realized the female was dead, they killed her. Scarlett gulped. She couldn't scold her children since she couldn't justify her own actions.

"Where is Sesi?," that was the fist thing that came to her mind. She hoped the little girl wouldn't have seen this. She wasn't too worried about Nanook and Desna but little Sesi might have freaked. What if she ran off? Scarlett tried to herd her two youngsters away from the body. "This is what happens when you go onto claimed packlands," she explained to them quickly.

She wore the gore of her victory proudly. It'd been a while since she'd had the opportunity to properly defend anything, but the lingering adrenaline rush was something quite exciting. She shook herself, feeling somewhat frisky for the first time in a long while.

Reek asked a question. It was meant for Saena, but she felt the need to answer anyway. The blood from the carnage was the most prominent scent, but beneath that... "Pine needles," she thought... and mixed with it... "And grass." The long, sweet, rolling kind of fields. She glanced between the alpha pair. "What does it mean?"

I'm not sure if Kiara was ever officially part of BDP since this is her first (and only) thread and she didn't have a rank, so I'll reach out to Starr and co. and see what we should assume re: that! This post order is sort of free for all now I guess, as long as everyone gets a chance to post!

Saena's grip on the youth's throat was iron, even though Kiara's body wrenched sickeningly against her teeth under the brutality of her pack mates. Most of them clamoured in to get some piece of the trespasser. To say she was proud of them for defending their home like this would be an understatement, but her eyes shone with it, a furious sort of pride that would forever define them from this moment onward.

The wolf's life eventually left her. When her head grew suddenly heavy and limp, the alpha spat out her neck and stepped back. Only then did she realize her grip was so tight that her fangs had pierced the skin in a few places. The wolf's stomach and flanks were torn apart as well. Vega lurked on the outskirts, no doubt as drunk on the scent of blood as the rest of them, and Saena appreciated her vigil. Had another arrived in this one's stead, it was Vega who would have spotted them.

Reek's voice cut through the haze and the alpha swung her head slowly toward him, spotting Scarlett and her young moving away in the process. Smell? All she could smell was the tang of blood and the sweet sap of their maple trees. But she had a gamekeeper's nose and blood was one of her favourite scents. It was Citali who identified it, having a nose for plants, and that was when Saena's brow furled. "South," she declared, "there are pine trees in the south and along the mountains, and the flatlands are where the best grass grows." But what could that mean regarding this wolf's identity?

There was the slightest idea forming in her head, a memory so long ago it seemed that she scarcely recalled it in the heat of the moment, but presently she didn't make the connection. She stepped forward to breathe deeper of the corpse's fur, hoping that she could catch it as keenly as the amazon and that would jog her memory.

My turn? IDEK. Sorry if it's not!

Vega’s ears flattened as the voices of her pack mates drifted forward. The shredding of flesh and gargles of the now deceased wolves had desisted, and the ebony she-wolf cast a cold gaze toward the wolf who had been so foolish to not only trespass on to claimed lands, but challenge the leadership within it – dominance was a very natural aspect of life.. but did they not think that the wolves who lived here would also protect their home?
 
As the rather homely looking male questioned the scent of the wolf, Vega regarded as a few of her pack mates offered their opinion of it. She stated nothing – her own nostrils were filled with the scent of blood, and she would not barge her way between everyone to get a closer look at their intruder. Instead, she remained vigilante on the outskirts of the gathering, her gaze drifting from her pack members to scan the length of the borders for any other possible intrusion.

No clue what the order is, just wanted to move this closer to the archives!

Both Citali and Saena bent over the corpse to examine the scent, but neither were able to peg anything discernible. She could have been from anywhere, as there was only a vague recollection of the scent she carried. Like a distant memory just out of reach. He sighed and looked to Citali. "It probably doesn't mean anything," he grumbled. Saena provided more context and Reek nodded in agreement, however, the knowledge did little to help the wolves of the maplewood have any vindication.

But still, there was the matter of the body to attend to. Part of Reek wanted to let to corpse rot near the border as a message to others that intended on waltzing into pack land, but the fear of drawing in other predators made him decide against it. "So, uh—" Reek awkwardly paused, "who wants to handle the body?" He would volunteer himself, but moving a corpse wasn't a one wolf job.

This'll be my last post here. Sorry to keep this held up, guys. Feel free to make final posts and archive it or keep it going as you wish! If no one else replies I'll send it to the archives next Monday.

The scent remained in her mind for a long while, not easily shaken for its familiarity but not answering any questions. The wolf was from the south, but seemed unaffiliated with any other wolves. Probably for the best; the last thing Phoenix Maplewood needed was a war on their hands. The alpha female would've gladly met any opposition with a righteous explanation of the situation, but she'd come to learn that those in the south were both unpredictable and unreasonable. She had no reason to hope they would listen to a word she said.

"I need to go clean up," she declared quietly, mainly for Citali and Reek to hear. She lifted her snout higher to survey those gathered, the blooded warriors of the maplewood. She was proud, but what they'd done, while necessary, wasn't exactly enjoyable. "We can take care of the body later if you guys need time to rest or calm down," she told them, and then with a final sweep around to nudge each of the wolves who'd come to the aid of the pack's borders, the alpha female headed back inward. The stench of wolf blood followed her, and it was with an urgent need for a bath to scrub away the evidence and the smell both that hastened her step.

To the archives!

It was decided that they would deal with the corpse later, Reek didn't object. He still felt the jitters of the kill, and figured it would be a good idea to calm down before proceeding. Looking down, he could see he was matted with the blood of the kill, and while Reek was usually caked with something, this easily surpassed his usual level of nasty. He would need to be cleaned thoroughly.

Seeing his wife take her leave, Reek followed closely behind and left the others to do what they may.