Redhawk Caldera they came from behind

Set directly after https://wolf-rpg.com/showthread.php?tid=46643

Eljay heard the call and it sounded rather urgent. He rushed to make this way towards @Niamh and by the time he arrived, Phox had just left. Eljay could smell blood in the air and Phox' scent lingered as well as... Was it Reyes? The caretaker frowned, trying briefly to piece together what happened before his attention was taken by Niamh's situation.

What happened? Where are you hurt? he asked with wide, surprised eyes. He hoped it was something different than the scene was telling him, but his heart was fearful.

After Phox had disappeared, Niamh had passed out, succumbing to the shock that set in where her adrenaline left off. When she heard a voice again, it was soft and fearful- and she startled into consciousness, teeth bared in a silent grimace. She was still curled into a tight ball- as though she might somehow safeguard her unborn children from another attacker- and she unfurled only slightly when she recognized Eljay. 

"Eljay," She responded weakly. "Where is Phox? Is he back yet?" She asked with slurred urgency, casting a vague yet wild glance around. In doing so, she revealed the source of her pain- a foreleg swollen into an almost unrealistic shape around a clear set of puncture wounds left behind by Reyes' fangs.

It seemed worse than he thought; Niamh started into being awake. Had she passed out from blood loss or otherwise? His eyes widened in shock as he drew near and saw the swollen leg. What happened?? he asked in horror and he drew closer. In response to her question about Phox he shook his head. No, I don't know how long ago he left but I came as soon as I heard your call. What is he doing? Hopefully getting something for the wound, though Eljay wasn't sure if Phox knew enough to know what to bring.

He hesitated to call Fennec too, but then remembered Niamh's lack of trust in her from behind and he didn't want to make the patient uncomfortable. As he approached Eljay lay down in front of Niamh and inspected the swollen leg, gently sniffing and licking away blood to try and see the actual wounds.

is it clear yet that Niamh is pregnant or is it something Eljay doesn't know yet and can't be seen well yet?

In my last thread I established that she's lost all the fur on her belly, and her nips are showing signs of swelling, but she is not showing around the middle. Her other symptoms are enough for her to have made the conclusion that she's pregnant.

She turned her sombre gaze back to Eljay and took note of how utterly dismayed he was when he saw her leg and her heart sank. A broken leg was basically a death sentence, or so she thought, which made a sob catch in her throat. If she died, the puppies would die too. 

She couldn't be sure, then, how much time had passed since Phox had left, and before Eljay arrived, but she was beginnig to feel cold. When Eljay came in close to inspect her leg she reached out to try and grab a mouthful of the fur of his ruff and pull him closer. "Cold." She said with a shudder. 

He'd asked about Phox. "He's hunting Reyes down. Before Reyes can get to Towhee, hopefully" She said. She looked down at her forelimb. "It just feels...Like a block of ice from there, down" She indicated.

As Niamh pulled him closer, Eljay instantly moved in close. He didn't notice the subtle signs of pregnancy just yet, as the swollen leg was a far more worrying symptom of anything right now. Eljay moved to lay beside Niamh so that he could hopefully keep her warm with his presence.

None of the words she spoke after that first one made sense to him. Phox had gone to... Hunt Reyes? What on earth was going on? Weren't they a pack?

What? he said in between licking the wound, his voice filled with shock. What happened with Reyes? Did.. did he do this? Eljay's voice was completely shocked, as he couldn't believe it. And he wondered... How did she leave him? How... Is he hurt, too..? Eljay asked, his words careful as if he was walking through a room filled with porcelain that he was afraid to break. Then he continued to clean the wound, while worrying about the underlying damage.

"He did," She confessed. Anxiety stalked her, and a bit of her residual spite returned. "He came at me with insults, out of the blue when I asked him to hunt with me. Then aggression and insubordination- I tried to make him submit and apologize- an' I even gave him a warning first- and then he did this." She explained, her wavery. "And I'm pregnant Eljay- and he knew, it and-" She thought of losing Primrose, and it was enough to send her over the edge, sobbing. "He went on and on about taking my place." She cried. "It's not going to be safe to raise my babies here, if they survive this," she whimpered, defeated.

When Eljay asked if Reyes was hurt she growled. "He should be, by the time Phox gets him. All I did was bite his shoulder tryna get him to submit."

Niamh told a story that reminded Eljay a bit too much of the story of how she and Reyes met. He always presumed they'd made up after that, but he supposed they must have not? Eljay frowned and said, Aggression? What'd he do? I mean -- before you uhm, grabbed him? Even though Eljay disagreed with Niamh's brusque behaviour in this sense, he did think she had the right to be that way. She was a leader, after all. Reyes shouldn't have fought back. But what had prompted this?

Eljay froze visibly when Niamh said she was pregnant. What? And Reyes knew? Before him? And Niamh didn't even like him?

There was no time for Eljay's personal feelings, though. He was quick to bite back the sadness that made him feel -- a dark memory of last year's depressions -- and instead focused on the situation at hand. Why did you try to make him submit if you knew you were pregnant? He shouldn't have done this, but I... I think you should be more careful. I'm sorry, I know you.. realise that too. He sighed, not wanting to sound like he thought she was the one wrong. She knew how he felt about the incident with Fennec, too; knew that he thought she could be a bit too.. all-knowing, at times, and take things into her own hands and not think them through. Eljay didn't want to berate her, knew that was the last thing she needed right now, of course. He tried to be gentle. It wasn't alright that Reyes did this, no matter the circumstances, especially knowing she was pregnant!

Focusing on the wound, Eljay said, I have a bit of herbs left from when Maia... But I don't think I should leave you right now, you'll get too cold or pass out again. We'll wait with treatment until after Phox returns. There was clear worry in his voice -- what did it mean, all of this, his pack mates fighting? It was as if the world had gone mad -- while he continued, asking gently, What was the fight about..?

"Yes, aggression," She stated, exasperated now that Eljay was questioning her. She felt light-headed and stared off into the trees where Phox- who seemed to be the only one faithful to her now- had disappeared. What would Phox think if he heard Eljay question her, when she was there so vulnerable, with what she assumed was a broken leg and endangered pups? What she needed at that moment was reassurance and care- but what she got was complication and questioning. Niamh had been perhaps summed up best quite some time ago by @Quixote when he came to the conclusion that she was basically useless in a crisis. 

He seemed surprised by something- and she didn't conclude that he was surprised to find out she was pregnant. After all- she had been grieving and isolating since Primrose had been returned to them, and her heat had come and gone all in a flurry, and Phox had kept careful watch over her, after the incident with Whip. Afterwards, she'd spent the majority of her time hunting or patrolling and when she was doing neither of those, she retreated to her den. She hadn't even spent much time with Towhee; her world became tasks, Phox, and darkness. So when Reyes had seen her striding along with her bare belly  and perky nipples, he'd been able to jump to the conclusion- and voice it out loud to her in a way she found rude and insulting. 

But curled up as she was, it made sense for Eljay to be surprised. She and Phox hadn't joyfully announced that she was pregnant. This was her third time carrying children- so she hadn't felt the need to go and see Eljay for normal signs of pregnancy. She absolutely loathed that she'd lost all the fur on her belly, but...That was simply a vanity issue. It wasn't something to be concerned about. It was enough of a sign for her to conclude, and Phox too- but without informing the others, and in being as anti-social as she had been, she had deprived the others of the news. She thought perhaps Phox might've said something- but it hurt to confess that she was pregnant, so soon after finding her son dead, and having both of her daughters go off on their own adventures. 

"You weren't there," She stated almost absent-mindedly as Eljay voiced something that bordered on being an accusation. For a moment, she didn't seem to react to it, and she continued to stare off into the woods. But she turned her head back to look at him a moment later- as though his voice had been delayed. Her demure, vacant look was replaced- albeit temporarily- by a fierce snarl. "You're making excuses for a subordinate who attacked one of your leaders?" She snarled viciously, her teeth clicking together. 

He began talking about her wounds but the force of her shout had worn her out. She had no fight left to give, and flopped senselessly against him, eyes still half-open.

His apology seemed to fall to deaf ears as Niamh snapped at him. Eljay couldn't help but feel a little hurt about that. Neither Niamh nor Towhee had told him about their pregnancies, and now this. Did Niamh really think that he meant badly? I know, I'm sorry, Eljay said, ears falling back and his tongue lapping out to lick his own nose in signs of submission.

He felt hurt and belittled, but he couldn't let it show. Besides, there were more important things at play than his feelings. Niamh was hurt, and even though he felt the way he did, of course he would prioritise her health, Niamh? Niamh, stay with me, he said urgently, but he couldn't keep her awake as she flopped against him. Eljay sighed and he continued to inspect the wound, which did look like it might be broken -- which was bad news indeed -- and cleaned it, then stayed to make sure Niamh was warm.

She led @Rye to the borders, never once slowing or stopping as she began to climb. She wouldn't rest until she found the caregiver. She wasn't even sure Eljay could do anything for her, though if anyone could, it would be him. There was no saving the two dead pups she carried in her mouth, though perhaps there were others. Certainly the midwife would have some of the answers she desperately needed right now.

The Sovereign fully intended to go right to him, though they passed near the cave where she lived with @Reyes. Towhee paused, heart squeezing in her chest, and turned toward it. She paused in the cave's mouth, wondering if he was inside. Gently, she bent her head and set the dead pups on the ground. Heart in her throat, she called to her mate.

When he did not appear, Towhee thrust her head into the cave. Maybe he was just sleeping. But it was empty. She withdrew, then looked down at the pups again. She couldn't just leave them here for him to find. But she didn't think she could bring herself to carry them anymore. Quickly, she dug them a shallow grave beside the cave, carefully covering them before turning to resume her search for the pack's medic.

When she found him, at long last, Eljay wasn't alone. Towhee stopped and stared at Niamh's lifeless figure draped against him.

Rye followed closely not wanting to look like some straggler and raise alarm,
even though he fit the straggler look all too well. The smell of the border
was rife and put Rye on edge, his instincts told him to turn the other way as
it was not his land, not him home. Once they got past it Rye was able to better
ignore his instincts, although it felt like having his fur brushed the opposite 
way it naturally laid. A sickening feeling. Nearing a cave Towhee stuck her 
head in calling for someone, Rye presumed it to be Eljay or perhaps her mate but
no one showed. The female then hastily buried the pups and began her search again 
for the healer. Rye in tow, directly behind her.

Upon finding him there was a badly injured Niahm, her body scarily limp. Rye was beginning
to think he was a harbinger of bad things. The days events were already unabashedly
chaotic and depressing but it appeared things were only getting worse. His main and 
only question could be summed up in three words. 'What the hell?'






 

By the time Towhee arrived, Eljay was still shaking Niamh's limp body and asking her to stay with him. It seemed to garner no response, which was greatly worrying. Eljay frowned as he looked at Towhee and exclaimed, Towhee! Thank goodness you're here. He no longer felt like he needed to handle the situation all by himself. Perhaps Towhee was no medic, but she was a leader and she could take charge of the emotional backlash of this situation at least. She and Reyes got into a fight. Can you help me wake her up? He didn't recognise the wolf that was with her, and normally he'd address them; but right now he was focused on the situation at hand and decided to address Towhee alone. Pleasantries would come later. Eljay didn't notice that anything was wrong with Towhee yet; he was too tired and focused on Niamh to get anything done.

Her first thought was, Did Niamh miscarry too? But as her orange eyes roved over her friend, she saw the broken leg and winced. By then, Eljay noticed Towhee and Rye, though he seemed to ignore the latter as he begged Towhee to help him. "She and Reyes got into a fight," he said, then asked her if she could assist in rousing the Regent.

She took a step toward them, then stopped because her legs were trembling. "Reyes," Towhee repeated a bit slowly and stupidly. "Reyes did this to Niamh?" She took another shaky step, eyes now fixed on Eljay's face, demanding answers. "They fought?" Towhee didn't so much drop down beside them as lose her ability to stand and sink to the ground.

She'd momentarily forgotten poor Rye was there, why she was there, seeking Eljay's help. Niamh's broken body was quite the distraction, especially knowing Reyes had done this to her. Just yesterday, they'd become mates. Today, he'd broken their pregnant Regent's leg. Just like her own miscarriage, Towhee struggled to make sense of it, to come up with the why?

Assuming I can post, lmk if I'm wrong!

The broken leg was a nasty sight, misshapen and bent
grotesquely, it made Rye queasy and nearly spill his
lunch. Compared to everything else he previously saw,
getting sick over a broken leg didn't make a lick of 
sense to him. He looked away, swallowing hard as a few
bits came up with a fiery vengeance, scalding his throat
with his own stomach acid. Forcing composure Rye looked 
back towards the group, quietly listening as everything
unfolded. Admittedly he was a little slow to connect 
everything together, he was still trying to soothe his
burned throat, but it all connected; each dot finding 
its red thread. Nothing verbal was said but the look 
on his face was easily decipherable into, 'What the hell
is going on in this place?'. As Towhee sank, Rye decided
he should step up to the plate and offer any help he could.

"I'm no healer but I am willing to help in any way I can. 
Towhee is in no position to be running around, if you 
need something done let me do it." It wasn't a request,
it was a demand. Whether or not it would be followed is 
anyone's guess but even if Towhee absolutely had to do 
something, Rye would be right at her side. 

Quick note on Niamh's leg- I think I mentioned it in my last thread, but not in this one whoops! For reference, she has a fractured radius. Lots of swelling all down her leg which could make it look misshapen or broken. Niamh currently assumes it's broken and I'm 100% cool with others assuming whatever they want! :)

Not that Niamh had ever seen "Peanuts" or any of the Charlie Brown specials, but if she had, she might've likened the sounds of other voices to the sound that the teacher makes whenever they speak to Marcie. She thought she heard other voices, but she wasn't who they belonged to. The loudest one was familiar and it took her a few moments at least before she realized that it was Towhee. Her eyelids fluttered softly, and she ran her tongue over her teeth. Her mouth felt sticky and dry, and her tongue felt thick and heavy. Her head lolled to the side the way a toy doll's might. She shuddered, and licked her lips again. She wasn't sure what had been said, or what she would say if even even knew what had been said. The only thing she could really think to manage was a faint effort at saying "Phox." Second by second, she would become more coherent- but it would take her some time to be able to deal with everything that had happened.

Eljay couldn't really tell what was wrong with the leg; all he could do for now was provide herbs and clean it, the latter of which he already had. Towhee seemed shocked, which he understood. I don't know what it was about, Eljay admitted. He felt he knew very little, and probably about as much as Towhee did about now.

The guy who was with Towhee offered help and said that Towhee was in no mood to provide it herself. Who -- never mind. At my den -- Wait, he didn't know where that was, of course. Just... Keep her warm, I'll get the herbs. Eljay left his position at Niamh's side and just as he did, she seemed to come to. He stopped in his tracks and looked back at Niamh, waiting to see how she'd come to. Had he known precisely how special Reyes was to Towhee he might have told her he didn't know what shape Reyes was in, but as it were he didn't know enough about that.

Rye stepped forward and Towhee imagined he offered his help, though she was too dazed to look at him. Her glassy eyes remained fixed on Eljay, who confessed he didn't know the cause of the fight. He didn't mention Reyes's condition or location, which didn't bode well. Instead, he commanded Towhee to keep Niamh warm, then stood up to fetch some herbs. She could only blink dumbly at him.

Something made him stop in his tracks. Towhee's eyes finally tore away from him and dropped to Niamh. Was she waking? The Sovereign's gaze lifted back to Eljay, before bouncing to Rye. Just looking at him standing there, looking both determined and lost, made the horror of her own morning rush back.

Since the medic was still standing there, the Sovereign seized her chance. "Eljay," Towhee said, her voice brittle, "can you get me something too? Um." The words were hard to say, yet she forced them out. "I miscarried. I'm pretty sure I'm still bleeding." And there was a lot more to it, though words failed her after that.

Everyone is welcome to power play Rye when needed, and to skip him. He's far from useful right now! lol If he's spoken to I will of course write a response

Rye felt a little pathetic and in the way as everything swirled
around him. Chaos begets chaos, for now he would take a literal step
back and give Towhee, Eljay and Niamh room. His ears were perked and scanning
for anything from orders, general speech to new arrivals, if any where to
show. Passive but ready.

She felt Eljay slip away from her, so she shifted slightly, leaning her weight toward Towhee so she could settle near her friend's side. Whatever it was that Eljay said, it wasn't a complete thought- or it sounded like he'd changed his mind about something, and had decided to leave. "Don't," Came her request, with a vague tone. She didn't think it was best for yet another wolf to simply leave her there- but at least she wasn't being left alone. Towhee was there. She drew in a breath and was about to blurt something out- when she heard Towhee speak. 

She considered the words for a moment. The only word that hung in her mind was the word miscarried but she wasn't sure why Towhee had brought that up. She didn't quite catch the context- and wasn't conscious enough to realize that she was talking about herself. "Noo," Niamh pleaded softly, and curled back into a ball. Did Towhee and Eljay think she'd miscarried? The thought made her heart drop in her chest. Quietly, she tucked her chin against her chest, and began to whine softly in remorse.

It was really hard for Eljay to tear himself away from Niamh when she half-awakened pleaded with him not to leave. Perhaps that was what made him stop in his tracks for a moment. Keep her awake, he instructed, being vague on exactly who he was talking to, Rye or Towhee; it did not matter to him, as long as someone took the task upon them.

Just as he was about to leave, Towhee turned to him and only then did he see that she looked tired. Her voice cracked a bit when she said his name. Worry instantly shone in his eyes. His eyes wandered instantly towards her hind when she said she was still bleeding, then back to her face. Towhee... he murmured, his face struck with grief. He felt even more guilty now that he had felt so hurt about not being told about the pregnancies.

Eljay swallowed thickly and then nodded. I'll — I'll get stuff. I'll hurry. Eljay then turned away and started towards the Blackthorn den. Only halfway there would he realise he could've brought Towhee's friend to help carry more things, and that he should've checked to make sure that Towhee's bleeding was under control at least, but it was hard to think straight through all of the stress.

feel free to skip Eljay a few rounds or so as well; I'll pop in again at some point? :)

He promised to get enough supplies to aid her too. Towhee could only nod and watch him go, then slowly turn her attention back toward Niamh. She heard nothing of the other woman's murmurs, though she could see that she'd changed positions. The Sovereign shifted a little closer.

"Keep her awake," Eljay had said, so Towhee said, "Niamh, wake up and tell me what happened." Her voice came out particularly gruff, not that she knew it. "Niamh," she repeated wearily, pushing her snout against her friend's ruff, "wake up."

Even as she attempted to rouse the Regent, a couple realizations struck her. Towhee looked up at Rye and said, "Call for Phox." He should be here with his mate.

What about her mate? Towhee knew both Niamh and Reyes well enough to know neither would attack unprovoked... and that both had serious tempers. It took two to tango. He was probably injured too, maybe seriously.

Abruptly, Towhee couldn't deal with any of this. She lurched onto all fours and said to Rye, "Come here and keep her warm, please." The Sovereign knew it wasn't a good idea to leave an outsider with her wounded friend. But he'd called for Phox, so hopefully he would be here soon. Her brother knew Rye.

Assuming he did as he was told, Towhee took a couple steadying breaths and said, "I'm going to..." She'd almost said "the cave." But there were a couple reasons she didn't want to go there right now. Her heart clenched and she didn't finish her sentence, instead saying, "I won't be far. Come find me when Phox or Eljay get back."

She turned away and left, deaf to any protests.

I suppose everyones waiting on me.. Whoops 

Rye did as requested calling for Phox for the seemingly umpteenth 
time that day, the male had serious doubts Phox would show but hope
could never truly be taken away. After his call, he settled by Niamh, 
he wouldn't say it but he felt awkward trying to keep an unknown wolf
warm. He did want to speak up about it but Towhee had already turn and
vanished into the distance, now he was left alone with near silence and
his own worries. Rye wasn't sure if Niamh could tell just who took
Towhees' place but he knew he wouldn't be a welcome replacement if she was
to realize she was left with some random baboon. Regardless he wouldn't move
until Eljay, Phox or Towhee returned. 

She groaned as she felt the blunt end of Towhee's muzzle pushing into her ruff. She continued to try and work her dry tongue over her parched lips, and leaned against her friend. She worked her jaws as though to try churning out a reply, but Towhee didn't have the patience to wait for her to collect herself. "Reyes," She croaked, but her lips hardly moved, so Towhee might have assumed that Niamh had said nothing at all. She lifted her head when Towhee mentioned Phox, and she gazed off toward the woods. Phox wasn't there. Towhee'd asked this...Stranger, to call for him. "No," Niamh said softly. She was counting on Phox to hunt Reyes down and make him pay. But her plea wasn't soon enough, and the male- who was that anyway?- had already called for him. "No," She said again, a bit more firmly, but Towhee'd pulled away from her side. 

Calling for Phox would distract him. She didn't want him to hear Rye, and then assume something had happened with her. She wanted Phox to hunt Reyes down and gut him- and things weren't going according to plan. She growled softly as the stranger moved toward her at Towhee's bidding, but she had zero potential to cause him much harm. She felt grouchy as Towhee pulled away, and she knew that likely now, Towhee- without even knowing what had happened- was going to go off after Phox. She leapt to the conclusion that Towhee might intervene and stop Phox from killing Reyes. She wasn't sure why- but she had a feeling. Given the fact she'd already tried to get Rye to call Phox off the hunt, it was likely that she'd try and stop any other fights from taking place. 

She left, and Niamh drearily eyed the male up. He wasn't hard on the eyes, that was for sure. But she didn't know him, and she'd already been bitten once that day, and wasn't interested in trusting another stranger. "Go with Towhee." She said, and began to struggle to her feet. She wasn't comfortable staying here with this stranger- not after being ditched by Phox, Eljay and now Towhee. "Reyes is a threat," She gritted, as a warning, and began to limp away, slowly, with every intention of retreating to her den.

The female Rye was in charge of keeping warm, and safe, was now walking
away and expressing her own set of orders. As much as he wanted to stop the female
 he did not want to overstep and cause further distress for her. Her day
already brimming with pain, exhaustion and fear. His options were limited and his
approach would surely be met with resistance, something the male did not blame her for.
 Her situation was not far from his months before, injured and alone with a stranger,
forced to trust them and go against basic instincts but what else could he do. Niamh
was in no condition to be left alone but Towhee wasn't either. Should he stay and wait
for Eljay or should he go an look after Towhee as instructed?


He was torn between two wolves, two decisions. Go and ensure Towhees' safety or stay and keep Niamh awake. Fake (but plausible) scenarios bombarded his head like boulders rolling down a land slide, causing havoc in his mind. His thoughts began to tangle like vines fighting for sunlight in a dark and damp forest, for a moment he was oblivious to the world around him. Earthly sounds were replaced with the whirring of blood rushing in his ears, the sound of his heart beat as detailed as tree bark. His feet were poised to move his towards Towhee but his legs refused to listen to commands, instead only letting the male return to Niamh. His chest pulsed rapidly as his decision was made for him and he was at the females side, ready and waiting for her to fall. He looked at her with sincerity and spoke.


"I know we don't know each other but I gotta stay with you, you're wounded and on top of things, pregnant. I have faith Towhee will keep herself safe, so I have to make sure you are too." Perhaps this time things would be different, maybe this time it would end better. 

We can probably wrap this up, I think :)

As soon as she made to move, she realized that it was a bad idea. She couldn't put weight on her leg, but every time she took a hobbling step forward, the movement jostled the leg she tried to hold off the ground, making it ache and throb. She gritted her teeth against the pain and malaise, and didn't catch too much of what Rye said. She wasn't sure who he was, or if she was willing to trust just another male suitor of Towhee's- whatever this guy was to her, anyway- but he did make a bit of sense. Phox had told her to stay put. Eljay had told her to stay put. And now this guy was. 

"Fine." She said, and sat back down, before she carefully slid back down onto the ground. Eventually, Eljay would come back, and she figured he might pitch a fit if he found out that she'd gone against his orders. He was the pack's medic- and she was supposed to put her faith in him, and take orders from him when it was health-related. She settled her muzzle down onto her good foreleg and huffed. She felt completely useless- incapable of helping Phox chase Reyes out, and being stuck in one place until the medic returned. She also didn't like taking advice from a stranger but...He had a point. And as long as she told herself that she'd been the one to make the decision to stay put, then it wasn't like she was taking orders from some newbie at all.