Noctisardor Bypass Stuck In Deep

As it was for Malila, night was the perfect time for Wylla to get out of her head. She could stroll through the packlands with no fear of encountering an unsavoury face among the Rivenwood crowd. Not that there were many of those. She simply could not shake the suspicion that crept up on her any time she saw one of the pack's cubs, and there was the matter of Ciri, as well. Each day was a struggle with her own paranoid nature. Frankly, it was exhausting.

But in the night, Wylla didn't have to worry about that. Most of the pack was asleep in the small hours, so she could coast out under the stars with nary a care. That is, until she cleared a thicket and caught sight of not one, but two wolves in the adjoining field. Wylla hesitated for a second at the sight and scent of young Malila in particular, with her blonde-on-brown coat, but while Wylla was completely unfamiliar with Ciri besides that one brief and practically forgotten encounter, she seemed to remember the girl was darker.

The other wolf, a large and ungainly looking male with a thick neck and tufted fur, was equally unfamiliar, but where Malila's scent twined with those of other Rivenwood wolves that Wylla knew, Apisi's scent was devoid of any trace of the pack. The closer Wylla came to the pair, the more undeniable it was that this was likely not a packmate and the higher her hackles rose. It was possible that Apisi was a brand new member, but he should at least carry a trace of Mahler's scent if he wanted to walk safely among their number.

Better to act now, ask questions later, that was Wylla's opinion. If she unwittingly attacked a packmate, then it was his own fault for loitering around the territory without their signature scent on his coat. Ignoring the groaning protest of her stiff shoulder and refusing to let it hinder her, Wylla broke into a run and lunged silently for the intruder, aiming to place herself between Apisi and Malila in the process.