Broken Antler Fen Flawless.

Set shortly after this. For @Praimfaya.

Their venture back to Broken Antler Fen was quiet, contemplative. Dacio dwelled on his wearied thoughts: Vercingetorix and the fate of his family he'd fled Drageda to save; the status of Rusalka, absent its leader; what her proximity could mean for Roangeda's future. He didn't like to admit that Blackhead made his skin crawl, but he had seen what she was capable of. What she could be capable of. He would peer over a peppered shoulder here and there, only to be sure that he and Praimfaya were not being followed.

"What do you make of Blackhead, then?" Dacio's focus turned to the girl when they were within their own borders, content to be upon their kru's own turf once more. His pale gaze lingered on her silver features and a dark ear cupped forward, eager to hear how the future Wanheda might handle this complicated situation.

as the pair cross the threshold back into roangeda, praimfaya feels the tension that has anchored itself in the set of her shoulders lessen; though she knew that dacio would allow no harm to befall her she found herself trusting the rusalkian less and less. a part of praimfaya had thought that perhaps dacio and opalia were holding onto an old grudge that they should let go of but from what conclusions she's drawn on her own of rusalka's leader she no longer thinks that. there is something about the sharp woman that praimfaya finds herself distrusting and with that the need to avenge blodreina's undeserved title as natrona among what few were left of the dragedians.

dacio breaks the silence then, and she turns to face her seda and klikalida. blackhead, he calls the sharp rusalkian crone. i don't trust her, praimfaya speaks the obvious first. but her fixation with verx's daughter has me uneasy. praimfaya admits after a few quiet seconds. isilmë and her brother, dragomir ...they're my friends. they're bloodkru. i want to make a small trip to kaistleoki and make sure they're safe. let them know this woman is looking for isi for some reason.

and a thought occurs to her then:

should she have lied? said that she was verx's daughter? if it would protect isi from this woman's weird fixation on her would it not then be worth it? she does not voice this aloud to dacio afraid that he would largely disapprove of the wild and reckless idea as it pops into praimfaya's mind.

She didn't trust her, naturally. It always left a sour taste in his mouth to think of how the black-crowned sea witch had managed to gather so many followers to her. Dark magic, perhaps? He'd never been a believer of such, yet the sterling yearling could draw no other conclusion.

He'd felt little concern for Vercingetorix' brood, who were surely safe at their mother's flank and secured by the ranks of whatever pack the family had found themselves in. Praimfaya called it Kaistleoki, and he clenched his jaw at her suggestion that she make the trip there to determine the wellbeing of her friends.

"She will not be far from us," the Klikalida grumbled, not at all liking the idea of his young ward venturing beyod their borders with a monster on the loose. "Even if she did believe that you are not who she thinks you are, she won't give up so easily."

He frowned. Dacio did not wish any harm to come for his former comrade's children, but he felt unwilling to put Praimfaya in danger to prevent it. "I don't doubt for a second that she would wait, knowing we would wish to warn them. If we go now, we would lead her right to them," he informed, certain that ttis particular dog would not sacrifice her bone so easily.

dacio brings up a point that praimfaya had been stubbornly trying to avoid: that it was likely the rusalkan crone wasn't far from them and would probably be waiting. it was a thought that has occurred to praimfaya prior to speaking her desire to see for her own two eyes that the woman was lying and warn isi. still, she is impatient. she does not want to wait and risk prolonging the lurking danger she assumes isi is in. in this, she is truly blodreina's daughter. patience had rarely suited her mother well. but praimfaya knows that she cannot be so reckless — regardless of how appealing the idea was. she couldn't risk her life or the life of roankru.

a small huff escapes her: a surrender, an admittance that he is right and a subtle way to communicate that she is not necessarily happy about it. unhappy about it or not does not change the fact that dacio is right all the same. praimfaya is quiet for a moment, thinking through it all. namely, the problem she sees is the sea crone herself. we could just kill her, praimfaya suggests. it sounds like an easy solution, a simple fix... but then that tactitian's mind of her recalls it ( too late ) and her brow furrows in thought. — but that wouldn't necessarily solve our problems with rusalka would it? she asks quickly after, almost to herself ( though dacio is welcome to chime in! ).

kill one leader and another one appears, right? she lets out another small huff and stares at a tree over dacio's shoulder, wishing she could make it combust or bend beneath the weight of her gaze. what should we do? about rusalka, about their leader being so near them, about her fixation on isi.

His pale gaze was scrutinizing, studying the girl's face as she frowned and furrowed her brow. He half expected her to reject his suggestion, throw that tantrum of epic proportion he'd been waiting to see, but she did not. Praimfaya instead breathed out her defeat with a quick huff, likely the most childish reaction he would receive from her. Dacio tilted his dark muzzle upward slightly, proud to see his ward keep her cool despite the potential of danger looming ever nearer.

"II's definitely tempting," the silver yearling said in regards to killing Blackhead, even mustered an amused smirk. For so long he'd yearned to feel that awful old battleaxe pinned beneath him, taste blood on his fangs as he pierced that vital artery that coursed her throat, feel her sigh her dying breath on his cheek. To slay her would be glorious, but Praimfaya was right: more would come, and the vicious cycle would continue.

His expression faltered as the dream faded, and he got right back to business: "I will go to the lake she spoke of," a sharp look to the aspiring Wanheda then, one that communicated she would not accompany him on this mission. It was absolutely out of the question. "We don't know if they've set a trap there, but I'm not willing to risk putting you in danger to find out."

He would look for Vercingetorix alone, and was unwilling to llisten if Praimfaya wished to argue - she would simply have to trust him. "When I return, regardless of what I find, we will make plans to visit Kaistleoki to warn them." A quirk of a brow as Dacio looked at her, keen to hear her input.

to praimfaya's surprise, dacio does not seem put out by her initial suggestion — despite that it was on a whim and not thinking about the consequences of what would happen if they went after the rusalkan crone. killing her might sew discord among their members but as she'd spoken moments later: it didn't really solve the issue. if they wanted rusalka gone they'd have to go after more than their leader. they'd have to hit them collectively. blodreina, an accomplished tactician had taught her that much. to think about both the small and the larger picture because each was equally important. war is an art.

praimfaya is drawn out of her inner thoughts — regardless of how briefly she's allowed her attention to wander — when dacio speaks that he will visit the lake the crone mentioned. her lips part to speak: she was confident that blackhead was lying, true; only to snap shut with an audible click as he shoots down any intentions she's had of going with him, making it clear that she is to stay here. for a moment, the aspiring wanheda feels herself puff with indignation — is she not the commander-to-be? — but she has named dacio her klikalida for a reason and she knows that she must continue to trust him and though she doesn't want to: she must listen to him as she did blodreina. she is not wanheda yet.

at the mention of a trap, praimfaya cannot help the flutter of worry that blossoms beneath her breast. she is sure dacio is plenty capable but the thought of him being injured or captured sits unwell with the worlida. that sounds ...fair. praimfaya finally manages in a soft sigh of defeat ( there was a lot of those today, apparently ). worry beats against the cage of flesh and bone in her chest again and she draws in a breath, wondering if she should tell him to take aleks with him. two was better than one but in lieu of accidentally offending him she doesn't. dacio is a warrior ...but, praimfaya reasons to herself, that doesn't mean he's invincible.

if what she says is true, the terse draw of praimfaya's lips confirms that she does not believe it to be so. what should be done about the easthollow wolves? what do you know about them? are they capable of taking down verx? she doesn't necessarily wish for another enemy when rusalka is still very much at large but if, and to praimfaya that's a big if, the crone was speaking the truth then easthollow would need to be another issue addressed.

Blackhead made his skin crawl and ruffled his feathers like no other could ever be capable, and the strong possibility that she may be lurking in the shadows had him on edge. With a deep frown he considered rallying the kru in days to come, share with them the knowledge of their enemy, encourage them to strengthen their guard. Each and every one of Roangeda's wolves worked tirelessly, but efforts would need to be increased if they wanted to stand a chance against Rusalka's sea witch.

"I know nothing of Easthollow," the silver Klikalida answered, loathe to admit that he'd lived a sheltered life on Drageda's cliffs. A guardian, Dacio found little need to venture beyond their territory and he did not acknowledge the local packs (if there even were any) besides the one that set camp directly up their ass. "Blackhead could be right about Verx, but I don't think there's any truth behind that claim. It might be worth a visit, hear what they have to say. They may be willing to help us." 

Dacio rolled a shoulder, unsure if his young charge would appreciate the suggestion that they approach this unknown pack without assault. He could appreciate her fury for Vercingetorix' assumed death, for he'd experienced it himself at her age - but there was more to being a commander than rushing in with one's assumptions.

the news that her klikalida knew nothing of the easthollow wolves pushes her lips into a terse, contemplative line. she isn't exactly fond of going to speak with accused murderers when neither of them know what to expect from them. dacio, however, seems to feel that the rusalkan crone had been lying about their involvement. you may be right. praimfaya allows, but the problem was ...the crone had spoken the truth about verx's death. i don't want to trust anything she says but she'd been telling the truth about verx's death. and that was enough to draw praimfaya into a web of uncertainty.

perhaps they will, praimfaya contemplates, her brow furrowing for a moment as she thinks. i still want to go to kaistleoki first. she hopes to find her bloodkru there, figuring that she will go there and find them safe and warn them of the rusalkan crone ...and then she could turn her sights to easthollow.

Fading this one.  :)

It seemed Praimfaya was learning quickly: that the sea witch was capable of honesty, yet cunning enough to spit lies in the next breath. Dacio was certain that, if Vercingetorix was truly dead, it would be the doing of no one but Rusalka dogs.

"Then we will," he said with the hint of a smile, hopeful to bolster her hope. Dacio didn't particularly like the idea of venturing too far beyond their claim to go asking questions on some strange pack's outskirts, especially with Winter fast approaching. He would do it for his Worlida, however - anything for her.

He dipped his speckled muzzle to the aspiring commander then, eager to be on his way so that he could return swiftly with the answers they needed in order to decide their next move.