Redsand Canyon Boiling blood will circulate [2]

Warrior thread 2/5. Open!

There was nothing wet or cool about this canyon.

The lowest point, where he had slept, remained dry and empty. Sivugat could barely discern where wolf scent lay strewn about the place and he did not cross paths with anyone, not until he began to climb a path of red clay, up, up, up, and finally, he tasted something sweet upon the air.

Sivugat moved in his clumsy, eager manner towards the pooling water. Overhead the sky looked gray-blue and endless, without even a cloud. It was almost too much for him to handle; even though it was autumn the sunlight was harsh, and he was panting openly as he descended towards the surface for a drink.

Not sure if Arlette would make a good sparring partner but she is always willing to help

Arlette had noticed some new smells in the territory. It was reassuring that there were new wolves joining them as their numbers had been really low recently. So many had vanished, including her mate. She knew something happened to him. He would never leave her or their children. It made her realize with him being absent for so long that he might not be alive anymore. That hurt too much to think about though. So she would focus on the tasks she had within the pack.

When she noticed that a scent she didn't know became stronger, she decided to go look. Maybe say hi, welcome him in the pack. The small female didn't take long to find him by the water. Arlette chuffed in greeting. "Hello," she greeted, her red eyes taking in the panting male. It took some time to get used to, that was for certain. "I'm Arlette, the pack's healer." She decided to introduce herself.

He was a few laps of water deep when he felt eyes upon himself. Slurping his tongue back in to his head - but remaining hunched - Sivugat's shoulders bunched together, and he tried to listen, his one good ear pivoting, and watch, his eyes rising to trace the shapes mirrored in the water's surface. Something cream-white, but small. Not Nyra, then.

She moved with the same purposeful gait as the leader. The boy listened to her approach, heard the chuff, the words - and finally lifted away from the water to watch her properly. Across her face and neck was a network of terrible scars. His own wounds paled in comparison; but he did not gawk at them.

To Sivugat, those marks told him everything. That she was much like himself: beholden to someone here, nothing more than a pupil beneath Nyra, or a toy for those with power. Clearly someone - or something - had tried to tear apart the girl's spirit much like Sivugat's.

When she claimed to be a healer the boy's mind spun; he thought of the storehouse in Ursus, of Evien, and felt a twinge of some foreign nostalgia spark in his breast, before he suffocated it. There was no room for thoughts of the past here.

Aside from the brooding stare, Sivugat did nothing to warrant Arlette's continued presence. He wasn't ready to engage with anyone, much less someone on his own level, as it wouldn't benefit him in any way. So, unfortunately, he turned back to the water and dipped his head again, dismissive.

Arlette noticed that the male had looked at her but hadn't really talked back to her. She frowned at first. Not used to the silent treatment, but she had been used to the tormented souls that came to the Saints. They took in the ones that felt unwanted, or with so much trauma all they could do was fight and bite.

She watched as the other male as he turned away from her again, dismissive. Arlette watched him for a moment. She remembered when she didn't speak to anyone, speaking was just too hard. "If I can help you with anything, let me know. You are my packmate now and I will help you when I can," she told him and then offered a soft smile to him.

This one was not a warrior. He knew when he saw those scars: they were more a victim, and were Sivugat not exhausted from his ordeal, he would have set upon her with his teeth. Instead he listened to her speak and when she turned, glared daggers at her spine; wondering to himself if he had the strength to follow through with the desire. He turned back to the water in short order and let the healer go on her way.