Lost Creek Hollow One chance

Possibly @Flicker or @Jomyo?  And since I saw the post, maybe if @Mink is coming back?

A few more had vanished. Was it because it seemed like maybe the quakes were tapering off?  Now it was safe to do so so they ran for the hills?  Arbiter wasn't sure.  There were still a few she needed to check in on.  It had been a while.  By now Flicker should be well healed.  Jomyo should go deliver messages now that it seemed slightly less likely things were going to get much worse unexpectedly.  What happened to Mink?

She'd have to go out looking for recruits again if some stayed scarce.  But for now she wound her way through the interior of the territory, searching for a sign of the ones she hadn't spoken to.  Winter was coming, and the forest was cold even under the noonday sun, but perhaps that was because there were plenty of clouds and then bits of trees preventing it from warming the earth too much.  She didn't mind -- Arbiter was bred for harsh conditions physically and mentally.  It was just too bad that she wouldn't be quite as impressive as she normally would be if food continued to be so scarce so soon in the season.

Out of breath and limping terribly off the leg he had previously sprained, the lithe creature came bounding as best he could towards the territory limits and then surpassed them, stopping only once he was over the invisible line to sprawl upon the dirt and lament his terrible, woe-filled luck. His hind limb was aching, with a scrape and deep gouge to the attached hip. Still, Mink had made it this far! He was pleased with his perseverance; but as he lay there panting and gathering his wits, the sound of movement - and the scent of Arbiter - drew his attention, forming an invisible eddie of worry around him. 

This moment was unlike the last; he had vanished long enough for scents to fade off his lustrous coat, and worse than that was his lack of an offering! His attempt to hunt further afield had ended in disaster! Not a fish, not a bird, nor even the most pitiful of field mice did he bring! He took a few deep puffs of the boggy air and forced himself to his feet, limping along each time his injured limb made contact. He would seek out Arbiter! He would tell her of his goal, of his failing, and hope wildly for the best!

It wasn't like anybody was going to be particularly stealthy hobbling around in a hurry.  She heard him well before he registered on other senses, and assuming the worst, she moved to intercept with a bit more of a hostile attitude than otherwise she might have had.  With food a good deal scarcer, she felt it was far more likely some fool trying to make a run for a cache than it used to be.  Nobody should be hobbling right now either.  She whipped towards the origin of the sound and started towards it to intercept, ready for trouble.

When she busted around the last clump of foliage and spotted the brown wolf heading directly towards her, there was a kind of sketchy second or two where things might go pretty bad. Fortunately for him, it didn't.  Entirely.  It took her a moment to recognize him, but there were those fleeting few seconds where it seemed like she'd quite happily end him before she matched up his description with those given by Terance and Spook, plus a vaguely familiar scent with who he might be.  Her crinkled muzzle relaxed, as did the fur across her shoulders.  Apparently he really had been gone a while.  She eyed him quite suspiciously.  What's happening?  He was in a rush, after all, and came from who-knew-where.  And seemed to be hurt?  If that didn't potentially come with impending disaster, what did?  The Arbiter-bomb was still armed and active though.  Where had he been?  Was he just coming back because the outside world was harsh and unfriendly?  At least if it turned that way, his limping would make him easy to catch.

Arb! he puffed, not meaning to shorten her name (Grandmother always said that it was rude not to use someone's full name!), his ribs undulating with frenzied breath after breath, but he was smiling at the sight of her and aside from being a little tense, a little more ragged, his spirit was undimmed. Sorry, I, I went looking further afield, he had to stop and take a few deep breaths before he could continue his explanation. The wound on his hip was pretty deep and seemed to have started leaking fluids now that he was stationary, streaking his brown coat with a rusty red. I was hunting! Not much is out there, and its getting colder, but... I found a trail! I followed it for a day, but I wasn't the only thing tracking food.

The smile faltered from his face. The glimmer of mirth and good cheer for having company again, friendly canine company, became something more tumultuous as he recalled the event. So, I had been following this trail a while, and it seemed stronger by a little pond -- so I stopped there for a bit. Had a drink, checked for fish -- started off again, but there was a big thing! I mean, it wasn't a wolf, and it wasn't food, but it was bleeding and it was big, and it came after me! He went a little bit manic as he explained this and his eyes, usually drooping and sleepy looking, were wide and bright. It shrieked at me! And then it tried to grab me, but maybe it was too starved, because I made a daring escape. I only worry that I brought it trailing back here. So I... I took an extra day or two and went the other way. Just in case. I'm sorry!

The mania petered out as he deflated, emphatic even in his movements as he puddled before her.

Arb? What.  In all honesty it was probably a good thing that he didn't give her too long to dwell on that before starting to explain himself.  Mink must have gone pretty far to have been gone this long.  And in the few seconds pause it also gave her a chance to look him over and see that the injury wasn't just something beneath the skin.  But before she could comment on that, that was when he really got going.  She hadn't remembered Terance or her son going on about how ramble-tastic this guy was, sheesh.  It was like he was channeling Pike but without the biting.  But through all his words she remained as cool and calm as ever.  

What shrieked? Most of what she could think of certainly didn't fit the category of "big."  Add in the category of "not food" and then all she could think of was stuff like bears and cougars.  Maybe cougars could shriek, but certainly they shouldn't be much of a mystery, right?  The only other wildcard were those weird creatures that showed up that one time, but Arbiter didn't exactly think of them as big when she was nearing their size.  Whatever.  They could play 20 Questions to figure it out later, right now she had a far more obvious matter to discuss, You're bleeding.  Do you know how to care for the wound?  She needed healthy wolves in the pack, not ones that might bleed out and/or get infected.  Not with this hunting, not with these numbers.