Firestone Hot Springs You eat us up

Set around 11 pm! Forward dated 3 days from now. 
Sry it took me forever lol I said I’d get this out like weeks ago but I’ve been busy hehehe so here ya go for whenever you have time! <3
@Kukutux

Alduin traveled inland in search of any potential information that could benefit his mission. He’d been traveling for hours nonstop. He can’t sleep and when he does he dreams, so he decides not to. It frees up time to do more productive things like travel and scout for his mission.

Tonight he’s made it to the hot springs. He remembers them as a pup when he’d gotten lost all that time ago. So he strides along the steaming pools of liquid, watching a geyser or two blow into the air and sprinkle water everywhere.

The moon shines its sickly blue light upon the land. It makes the pools shimmer and gleam in the dim light. He’s used to the cold, but the heat emitting here brings him a the slightest amount of comfort.

So as he moves, his head remains level with his broad shoulders and straight back. His tail curls over his hip elegantly, bobbing as heavy paws take new steps forward. Bloody eyes are dark with mystery and trauma, though dulled over time they only truly show a few emotions. They’re constantly feral looking, primal in his lust for blood and destruction. He is the monster in the dark and he looks like it too. His dark, brindled pelt gives him an advantage in the deep of night. Helps him camouflage against the backdrop of shrubs and shadows. 

Tonight, the hellhound will move until he finds something. Anything to bring back to his brother — information, another wolf, anything. He’s not above dragging someone all the way back to Blackwater if they catch his ire. He’ll have to see who or what tests his patience tonight. And he’s excited for it.

moonwoman knew now that new life grew within her.

as before, the restlessness took hold. she wrapped her shoulders in fine doeskin and went out into the land around moonglow. the place of warm waters called to her. the breath of those had had once walked brought life to this place. even as the land lay under a white spread of silken snow, the land cleared to smooth bare soil when she approached.

the duck came to the first of these and placed her paws within the lapping water with a grateful sound of delight. reaching, pale teeth pulled the wrap from her back and she stretched until elbows had entered the pool. 

it was good to feel such things in winter.

but she was not alone. moonwoman's head lifted, catching the sheen of something like light upon bloodrock. she did not move, only watched, alabastrine ears cupping forward softly.

Large set paws carry him forth, his pace is languid but his body feels rigid and uneasy. The fruit of his travels, it seems. Sore and aching muscles bulging beneath his softly curling fur. Damn the salty sea water. 

But as he goes, he sees a glimmer of stark white by one of the pools. A wolf. They crawl into the water and stretch. His eyes squint and his own auds shift forward when their head turns in his direction. He attempts to lock gazes and he closes in at the same leisurely pace. His snout tilts up some as he goes, sniffing the air and attempting to take in their scent. He doesn’t get anything, perhaps he’s upwind. So he drops his head to the ground and sniffs there too, eyes still turned up to watch the stranger. Surely they’d see his unyielding gaze as he tries to catch their scent.

He doesn’t though. He even tries putting a memory to their far away face, but nothing comes to his hazy mind. So, he prowls closer and closer. Finally coming within ten or so feet, he toes the edge of the pool this she wolf sits in. Circling it like a predator to its prey. He’s deadly silent and hasn’t said a word, surely it would put the paler on edge. With his primal yet calculating gaze, a dark tongue flicks out to rasp over scarred lips, offering a peek of long, deadly teeth as he does so. 

His brows are pinched and his eyes seem troubled. He knows this wolf, but from where? How? How does he so easily forget faces? What’s wrong with him? It’s just every face he tries to remember meshes and fades. They’re all the same in his minds eye — foggy and distorted. His memory from young fails him often nowadays. It strikes a red hot anger in his chest. How does one’s memory just deteriorate like that? Was it the childhood trauma? Maybe. Was it an injury he sustained from his past that made him like this? Maybe. Either way, he has no fucking clue.

So he prowls around them for a few heart wrenching seconds, his aura is threatening and his eyes are dangerous. But finally he stops and stands still, gaze burning holes into the woman before him.

“Who are you?” He asks, voice a low rumble, but it comes out more like a statement. Almost as if he’s asking himself. “How do I know you?” He says then. His tone never heightening in question. Because he knows her. He knows he does. There’s a touch of a growl laced into his unforgiving tone. As if he angry at himself for not knowing. 

It’s because he is. 

His mind is deteriorating and he suspects it’s because of Banesteppe and his ghostly manipulations. But what can he do? 

.

the shadows moved to display a large wolf with a pattern held by very few. kukutux stilled in the water, watching as the half-familiar figure approached and slid their own massive paws into the warm pool. her jadestone eyes held no fear, for she would not show it to a stranger.

and he was not this. concern and then curiosity filled her gaze. kukutux watched the one she had known as alduin. there was a bad thing upon him. she saw it lurking in his blood-gaze as he circled. spine straight, the woman watched his reflection pass behind her and then at last settle across.

she lifted her own muzzle with a curious look at the haunted grate of his voice. "a river spat you up when you were a little hunter. i pulled you from the bank and brought you to moonglow to give you healing." how did he not remember? she wondered what had happened to the boy.

her small paw touched the water once more.

"the saints came for you." nyra. she chose for now not to speak the name. kukutux studied alduin. he was still young, not yet into his second year. but his face was hard and she saw the places behind his eyes. moonwoman was silent.

The pale she-wolf watches him closely, but he can’t really tell what’s in her gaze as she does. He can’t discern the emotions in her own eyes, but he’s sure she can see what’s in his. The silence is tense for Alduin. Even after he hears himself asking her questions, he wonders why he even wants to know. Perhaps he’s searching for a semblance of his old self in the foggy depths of his ruined mind. Little does he know, he won’t be finding anything anytime soon. His young, innocent self is but a long, lost memory to what he’s become now.

He searches his thoughts, but ultimately it’s her who offers him the requested information. Her voice rips him from his thoughts and his gaze becomes a bit more present.

A river spat you up…

With even just those words a flood of memories come crashing in. How come he has to be reminded in order to remember? What has Banesteppe done to him? He always finds himself thinking. He remembers it now. Waking up and seeing this same woman framed by darkness and rain. He remembers his time at Moonglow. He remembers meeting his Shadow after that.

That wave of realization is what makes his eyes widen just a fraction, the rest of his face seems grim. Mostly because of his own internal fury towards the dumpster fire that is his mind. A familiarity shows itself in red wine orbs, but they’re still just as feral as they were minutes ago.

The Saints came for you. She says.

“Did they.” He hums out deeply, a slight lilt in his tone shows the sarcasm that shines through. “Yes, they did.” He confirms mainly to himself. “Perhaps they shouldn’t have.”

He remembers his father finally finding him and scooping him up. Taking him away from the Shadow. Taking him away from the Saints — the canyon. His entire family left. No Saints. Just them. No Thyme, no Nyra, nobody else — just them. They abandoned them. Or at least that’s what Alduin thought back then and when age came quicker, that’s what he assumes still.

So he peers over to the woman who’s name finally shows itself in his memory. Kukutux. Yes, that’s it. He goes quiet. Should he thank her? What does he do? He’s no good with reunions. He’s no good at emotions. He’s no good at being normal. So, he doesn’t thank her even though he should. Instead, his mind turns single-handedly towards his mission. 

His subtle anxiety is present. He licks his chops once more, spotted ears shifting this way and that. He’s a mess. He’s all over the place. He even growls low in his throat, shifting to move out of the steaming water. He needs to move. So he slowly paces along the water’s edge. He doesn’t look back to the ghostly woman either, keeping his head level with his shoulders and his eyes in front of him. 

“Kukutux,” He calls lowly, peering over to her almost in question, hoping that really is her name. “I’m here on business.” He admits then. “I hope you have information.” It’s said not as a threat, but a statement, but with his gruff voice and tone it could be perceived as one.

The hellhound turns towards her then, slinking to her side of the pool and looming close by, staring her down with determination set in his eyes. An opportunity has presented itself. Perhaps she can help him.

“Information on Ursus.”

"i do not know the name of ursus." kukutux pulled away smoothly, not bothering to lift the skin from where she had dropped it upon the ground.

she was at once intrinsically protective of the lives she surely carried, and now she faced alduin, warning his sense of familiarity with a level look of her own eyes.

something was very wrong with the boy that she had saved. what kept calm in the woman's heart was her awareness that moonglow was within range of her voice, wolves ready to show how the village had earned its reputation.

perhaps the maternal nature that kukutux always carried showed itself now. "you are hurt where i cannot see, i think, alduin. where is your father?" she knew it had been another to come for the boy, but she knew also the name of the man to whose hearth he had been born.

alduin no longer belonged to moonglow. his voice shown with the threat he had not meant to make, and his hard body promised violence of some sort. she had not cared for his demand. she saved him once. she owed him nothing now.

kukutux was watchful, meaning to keep a gap of distance between herself and the anxious, growling child.

Sry for the long post idk where the muse came from lol :>

Her words ring through the silence of the night. The hellhound looks to her then, everything about her is calming — the way she carries herself and stands. He can tell she watches him closely though, Alduin finds it interesting. A prey animal only knows something is not a predator if they willingly turn their back on them. She has not let him out of her sights.

Which is reasonable. If Alduin were anyone else he wouldn’t let himself out of his sights either. He knows what he looks like, he knows how he acts, he knows what’s wrong with him. He can’t help it and he won’t be changing anytime soon either.

So if she does not know the name of Ursus, who would? Apparently that’s for Alduin to find out on a later date.

He hums lowly when she tells him this. It’s a mere sound of acknowledgment. She does not have what he wants. He can’t tell if she’s lying either. Even if she is, what would he do? She saved him from a freezing death in that River not so long ago. It wouldn’t be right to kill her for such little reward. It wouldn’t be right to kill her for many other reasons as well, but his moral compass is just as fucked up as his father’s, so what’s to stop him?

Images of his time at Moonglow pass by his minds eye. They were nice to him. She brought him back to health, the wolves there played with him and trained him. She saved him.

He stands there for a few seconds, his eyes would seem distracted for he’s lost in his head and the memories that present themselves. Only for her voice to bring him back to the present once more, only this time her words strike him much harsher than the previous.

You are hurt where I cannot see, I think, Alduin. She says, only for it to follow with another question: Where is your father?

Alduin blinks at her, tongue flicking out to lap at his chops and his eyes look away to the far distance. Her verbal acknowledgment of his state is only more confirmation that Banesteppe has him by the withers and he’s not letting go — he’s getting worse and worse. What will happen to him if this continues? Alduin hopes for death, but knows it will not come easy, for his blood is that of a fighter.

He cannot die. He will not die.

When he looks back to her his eyes are dark with knowing. “He is not here. No one is.” He says simply. 

The young brindle clears his throat and holds his unblinking eye contact for a little while longer. “I am ill — sick.” He informs her. “But there is no help for me. Except death.” He rumbles back as if he’s used to the idea.

:D

he was alone. kukutux felt her heart hurt for him. she did not know how to heal such wounds. she had tried before with another boy, but he had turned to a tupilak. it was one of her greatest failings and the duck was not eager to repeat it in another young hunter. 

alduin needed the guidance of a man.

she thought of aiolos, of her three daughters upon the spine. and of the life that grew within her. it was an instinctive protection that sparkled in her greenstone eyes now. but it was tempered with a mother's sadness and her worry. "bad spirits come to us when taboos are broken."

a blink. "there are three marks of taboo. tirigusuusiit. a thing to avoid. maligait. a thing to follow. and piqujait. a thing to do."

kukutux did not approach. but her voice continued. "tirigusuusiit. do not shed blood or eat meat for five days. let your hunger grow. fight with him when he shows his face. see what form he takes. maligait. go to a place of ice and ask that the wind spirit pull from you this bad thing. piqujait. make a sacrifice there, alduin. this is a healing."

there was nothing more to add. the moonwoman watched him solemnly.

When he discloses his low spoken information to her, he can see the subtle shift in her eyes. She tells him that bad spirits come to them when taboos are broken. These words mean little to him, but only because he does not quite catch their meaning. So he looks at her with subtle questioning in dark, fiery orbs.

What does it mean?

And she tells him soon after,

there are three marks of taboo. She begins. tirigusuusiit. a thing to avoid. maligait. a thing to follow. and piqujait. a thing to do.

He faces towards her, auds cupped forward — he listens intently. His eyes look young in his attempt to understand. When she’s done, his head tilts down a fraction in a nod for her to continue. She does and he listens, all the while wondering if what she says is true. If doing what she tells him to do will help him. Will Banesteppe disappear? Will he vanish with the wind, never to hear his conniving voice again? 

He would finally be free. Free of the shackles Banesteppe has put on him. Free to do as he pleases, but the entity has become such a relevant piece of Alduin’s life. Would he be able to live without him? Banesteppe likes to make him think he can’t, but he’s sure that he’d be able to adjust.

He’d be alone, but is being alone so bad?

So Alduin’s eye strain away from her own in thought, shifting to the clear night sky. He nods once more before looking back to her. 

“If it frees me, then it is a quest I will take.” He hums out huskily.

He’d move to walk a few paces away before looking back to her. “Is your pack still residing in the spine?” He asks, before he leaves.

kukutux watched him, eyes grown more gentle as his youth showed through. he was so very young to be so tormented. it meant that many hunters in his life had failed the boy. he had been so small and so terrified in her arms, wet from the river and alone.

but it was his torment that meant kukutux must deny him. there was no answer of assent to his question. "do not come back to the village. it is no longer safe for those who wore the name of saint."

aiolos knew all of them. it was he who had given nyra and her hunters a place to rest during their wounds. it was moonwoman who had offered the scarred one a similar healing, provided that she answer for her sins.

the sun man would not be so lenient again.

kukutux had given alduin a path to the spirit world. it was they who would choose now if the boy should be redeemed or left to his torture.

the jadestone eyes were soft. the duck turned away and moved opposite the young wolf, into the forests that climbed the sloped world back to moonglow. 

her ears tilted backward to see that he did not follow.

do not come back to the village. it is no longer safe for those who wore the name of saint.

Those words make him go still in his path to walk along now. His plan to visit the spine thrown away, but for some reason the words might just hurt him a little bit more than he thought they would. He knows why she says this — because of his sickness— but why? Does she think he will kill someone? She probably categorizes him in the same picture as his father now. 

Now that he’s bigger, he cannot be trusted.

So Alduin shamelessly stares at her when she says it. His eyes still seem so young, until the effect of the Moonwomans words really sink him. They’re always dark and feral, but he blinks a few times in spite of himself, unknowing that his gaze gets darker each time. Eventually his brows furrow, but besides that his face becomes a blank slate — absolutely no emotion can be found there as he schools his expression. 

He can’t let anyone see the hurt. 

So with that, he would clear his throat. “I understand.” He hums emotionlessly. “Farewell then, Kukutux.”