Into the Darkness [Closed]

[Deleted]

WARNING:  This will be a violent thread.

Muscular shoulders sagged, sullen, and the wolf’s head carried low as he searched for a scent, his dark nostrils flaring, testing the ground before his paws. First, Ophelia was lost. He would never again hear her lyrical voice, see her white fur, smell or touch her. She was dead and buried, many miles away from the land he was presently searching. And now… Now the family was split in two. Katari had vanished, the news of their daughter’s death too much to bear. It was as if the last fragments of sanity had finally shattered to pieces within her tortured mind, and not even her old comforts could consol her. Her invisible friend Ren was gone first. And then, just like that, she was gone as well, in less than a day following Ophelia’s passing. With each passing day spent without his mate, hope dwindled.

What do you tell a child who has been abandoned by their mother? Summit had no answers to their questions. He couldn’t offer anything but a sliver of hope he still clung to. He didn’t know if she was dead – and the thought was humbling as it was logical, given the she-wolf’s mental state. But if there was a chance she was still alive, Summit would keep looking. He didn’t care where he went, or how long it took. He had promised it, months ago, before the pups were born and it was just them:

”I will always find you when you lose yourself.”

His eyes stung as the words repeated in his mind, an endless, torturous loop. She was more than the mother of his children and mate – Katari was his best friend, his only friend. Summit and his pups searched the region of Aveline for weeks, but to no avail. They followed the direction of the setting sun, snaking along the banks of a river, until eventually, the grassy plains gave way to a dismal landscape, dreary and bleak. Even Summit found little to appreciate in this ugly place.

He had left his pups in a place he deemed safe, a little ways off and tucked away inside a hollowed log, barely big enough to accommodate the youths. They were not babies anymore, close to five months old and growing fast. He knew Everest would be a massive beast, even bigger than his father, but his youngest son was a gentle soul. Ren was hardly a small brute, either, and he was equally adventurous as his brothers. Arete was scarcely different in her restless nature, undoubtedly inherited from her parents; fiery, but still sweet. All of the pups had been affected by their sister’s death, and while Summit tried his hardest to ease the pain, it was all but impossible now that their mother had seemingly abandoned her family. All he could do was keep looking, keep reassuring that everything would be alright, when Summit was no longer convinced that they would be. His optimistic nature was waning quickly, with every passing night.

The sound of a warm wind rustling through the skeleton trees caused the brute to stop, unnerved. He took steps forward but something inside of the wolf told him that he shouldn’t proceed. He heard the faint sound of footfalls close by. Wishful thinking caused him to call out for the ghost: ”Katari?” But he realized the moment the name parted his maw that it was definitely not his errant mate. The white fur along his nape stood up on end, lip curling back in an instinctual growl.

words: 606

tags: Sabaoth also @ren + @everest + Arete

[Sabaoth]

It seemed as if in the wake of the previous General’s disappearance, Sabaoth was constantly busy.

It was not as if he was required to do the things that he did; in fact no one had even asked him to check on Acerbus’ borders, but here the giant was, strolling along through the dreary forest with head held high and nostrils working to detect any foreign scents. As it was, young wolves were beginning to make the swim from Ina’mos to Vor’asa in scores, and while they would not be expected to set foot within Acerbus, Sabaoth had walked the Aleisul Crossing early that morning, when the sky was still black and silent. It was not a particularly long journey, and he was thankful that the rock bridge connected Tas’alea to the mainland, for he was sick of swimming and appreciated the relative ease in which he could cross between the two Kairos territories.

It was early still, the sky a pale shade of blue but scarcely visible through the pathetic canopy of leaves. They’d began to grow again after whatever firestorm had ravaged the forest, it seemed, but they were sickly and wilting. Several times Sabaoth had heard Lleingas described as eerie, and yet the dark brute found that he loved the skeletal trees, the muted shades of brown, the remaining char seen upon trunk and bush. There was a bleakness here, a desolation, and if indeed the spirits of the restless dead did haunt these woods, then Sabaoth walked welcome among them. Heavy paws crunched noisily against the frail remainder of leaves that had settled upon the dirt, but Sabaoth was unperturbed by the noise, knowing that he was alone within Acerbus.

Or so he’d thought. The scent of another hit him suddenly, and Sabaoth’s steps faltered, coming to an abrupt halt. It was not the scent of one who belonged to Kairos; it was foreign and earthy, a plethora of smells from different parents of the continent, all mingled into one. And whoever it was, they were coming towards him. He did not move, standing hidden in the thick, bare brambles, pale eyes flashing with curiosity as slowly but surely, the stranger advanced. And then suddenly he stopped, faintly visible through the trees, coat as pale as new snow as the male looked around. He was not particularly impressive at all in stature, something that Sabaoth observed with a quirk of a white-dotted brow. He hoped for this male’s sake that he had not come to join Kairos; it would not be allowed when he stood eye-level to some of the mothers.

But then a name slipped from his lips, and it became clear that joining Goliath’s growing family was not one that the ivory brute had in mind. Sabaoth had never heard of anyone named Katari in Kairos, and with a grim sense of resolution, he realized that the stranger was trespassing upon Kairos territory. The uneasy growl that sounded in the others throat drew a deep, rumbling chuckle from Sabaoth as he partially melted from the shadows, scarred visage arranged carefully into a mask of cool amusement.

”Katari? I’m afraid there is no one by that name around here,” he said, solely for the sake of making it known that he now had knowledge – despite that it was only a name – of whoever the male searched for. ”But we have a bit of a dilemma, you see, because you’ve so very boldly crossed into territory that does not belong to you.”

His hot gaze raked across the brute, slow and scathing before coming to rest once more upon the male’s face. ”You find yourself in Acerbus, claimed by Goliath of Kairos. Surely you smelled the markers?” They were not as strong as those upon Vor’asa or Ina’mos, he knew, but still present after Goliath’s conquest.

TAG: @summit
WORDS: 640
NOTES: And so it begins >)

[Deleted]

There was no time to think twice. Before Summit could turn away, an enormous dual-colored menace made his presence known. The deep bass of the stranger’s laugh was startling – and infuriating, but Summit remained silent as the other appeared from the fog that clung to the area. Summit was a wolf known for his level-headedness and caution, but he was in no mood to deal with pushy pack wolves. The brute before him was of monstrous proportions, ungodly in size and bulk. The Arctic male had heard of the giants before, whispered rumors, and now… Now, Summit had never felt so small. He was by no means a small wolf himself, but he was heads shorter than the dark male. His eyes narrowed at the mention of Goliath, terrible thoughts surfacing in his panicked mind – what if Katari had come this way? What if she had been greeted by the same monster standing in front of him? What if, in their desire for more, the pack that claimed this territory had also claimed his mate for their own?

He could only imagine her terror, if that was the case. The ebony brute’s scarred face was a horror, undoubtedly a testament to the battles he had fought. He didn’t trust this wolf, or anyone else from his conniving pack. Something inside of him screamed to turn around, tuck tail and run. But if there was a chance that Katari had come this way, he had to keep going. His voice fell in timbre, glaring at the unknown warrior. ”No.” He spit out the single syllable as if it were acid on his tongue. Truly, he hadn’t been paying attention to the scent markers, and it wasn’t the first time he had strayed into unwelcoming pack lands. It was then that he remembered – he had been there before, met by another angry alpha, a brute who called himself Ryker.

Once, Summit had belonged to a pack. Once, he had hoped to join another one, to ease his loneliness and to have some semblance of family once again. Now, he held nothing but contempt for packs and the wolves who formed them, taking lands for themselves, making life more difficult for wanderers. Ryker had only been the first to earn the peaceful male’s disdain. Their pack laws shouldn’t apply to rogues. Summit belonged to no one.

He was too distraught to give a damn today. He was a wolf with a purpose he could not abandon. With a snort, he shook his head, gaze unwavering as he stared intently at the stranger’s cold blue eyes. ”Owning the dust beneath our paws is as pointless as claiming the wind. If I need to come this way, then why should I have to stop?” His snowy form hadn’t moved an inch since the unexpected arrival of the Kairos wolf, shoulders square and chest barreled defensively. In the back of his mind, the nagging feeling of doom loomed large. His pups close by, perhaps even on Kairos territory where he had told them to stay. Summit had to protect them at all costs. His honey hued eyes shifted away from the scarred beast for a moment to glance in the direction he had traveled. He couldn’t guess what the pack wolf would do if he found the innocent pups.

Summit would not allow that to happen.


words:  580
tags: Sabaoth and @ren, Arete, @everest

[Sabaoth]

If Sabaoth had expected fear or apologies, there was none offered. Had the situation not been so grave, he might have been impressed by one significantly smaller than himself offering such blatant insult, but instead only a twinge of rage stirred within him. While one might have called the intruder’s scathing tone and blunt disrespect brave, Sabaoth only considered it to be stupid. A growl sounded deep within his chest, his skin tingling as he fought the urge to raise his hackles. The anger was awakening within him, long-buried and not seen since his encounter with the timid Ethiopian bitch he’d found upon the Occasus many moons ago. No, his thoughts chided, as steely and firm as his gaze, which had once again settled upon the Arctic intruder. Not yet.

”Your silly sentiments are neither welcomed nor relevant,” he informed the male, his lips peeling away from his teeth in a condescending sneer as he took several menacing steps forward, chest burning as if a fire had been lit in the braziers of his ribcage. ”Despite what you may think, you cannot freely waltz into territory owned by others and wish away the claims placed upon their land.” It was clear to Sabaoth that this male had no deference to offer, nothing more than a waste of a brilliant mind tainted by foolishness. He had a duty to Kairos, a duty to protect and preserve that land that his brother had claimed, and the trespasser had already given him good reason to forcibly remove him from Acerbus – perhaps missing an ear or a paw to remind him of what Kairos did to those who were too bold. But the churning hunger that had been awakened within him, fueled by a scorching fury, did not want warnings or threats. It was a sickness, an infection that rotted away each tenuous thread of his sanity and demanded one thing, and one thing alone: blood. Rivers of it.

”If whoever it is that you search for – Katari – is as heedless as you are, I wouldn’t be surprised if she met a…suitable fate," he said, his tone sinister and laced with cruel amusement. He was poking at the brute now, trying to find a raw spot that he could sink his teeth into. Physical violence was a beautiful thing, but not quite so wonderful as what carefully placed words could do. Everyone had a weakness, and the intruder had perhaps offered him one: a name, a meaningless tidbit of information to Sabaoth, but clearly not to him. He’d crossed clear borders in his attempt to find her; whoever she was, she was important, and Sabaoth would aim his carefully placed barbs right at the fool’s heart. ”Such idiocy has no place in this world.” His voice was slow, deliberate, his meaning made clear by the leering grin aimed in the trespasser’s direction as the behemoth took another step forward.

TAG: @summit
WORDS: 485
NOTES: Figured one more post from Summit and then Sabaoth can snap >3 Had to have his anger build a little bit.

[Deleted]

Every word uttered by the large stranger felt like a blow to the stomach, keeping the ivory male glued to the spot. Summit knew he shouldn’t linger there, but the onslaught of emotions, anger and fear, overwhelmed his good senses. He could only glare in disdain as the scarred monster spoke down to him. But it was the brute’s comment about his mate that broke him. Summit had never felt such intense hatred before. He wanted to hurt the stranger – even he had his limits, and the normally docile soul bared his canines in response. ”You don’t know her at all.  No one does.” Each syllable hissed through ivory teeth, jaw muscles clenched tight. He realized now that he was growling, something so rare, it nearly surprised Summit himself.

Adrenaline coursing through the brute, he glared at the dark stranger, once gentle golden eyes burning with outrage. ”Who are you? Just another wolf with anger issues and a need to impress others. You’re the same as all the rest of them.” Except bigger… But Summit didn’t need to point out the obvious. He was in a tenuous position, and despite his outrage, the Arctic male knew his time was running out. He addressed the other with mutual contempt, head carried as high as he could manage. ”I’m not like you pack wolves.”

Though he was large for his breed, he had never been a fighter. The full extent of his combat experience was wrestling with sisters, when they were all still alive. He had also never been a father before. Everything was different now. It was more than irrelevant sentiment: it was his entire life, everything that held meaning in his existence. He had vowed months ago to live his life for his family, to sacrifice in any way that helped his babies. Nothing else was important anymore.

As the final word escaped, Summit took a wide sideways step, preparing himself to flee. He looked away from the marred expression of his aggressor to plan a swift escape. The fog seemed to be growing dense; though the sun was still shining, it was now tucked away, hidden by the grayness of the lands. The brute’s large paws catching the sharp rocks in his path as he turned toward the west, Summit intended to go back in the direction he had instructed his pups to remain. Katari probably wasn’t there, and if she was…. There was little else Summit could do for her now. He had to keep their offspring alive.


words:  428
tags: Sabaoth + Arete, @ren, @everest
ooc: Short post to hurry things along.. The pups can come in after Sabaoth's next reply!

[Sabaoth]

Every word that the ivory brute spoke fell heavily upon Sabaoth’s ears, the scorn and hatred flashing in his gaze igniting the fire within the larger brute’s chest. It had started as it always did, the rage: a low burn, a gentle stirring that swiftly flared and spiraled out of control. He could feel it now, rearing its great head like a cobra uncoiling, and he helpless to stop it. But as Sabaoth gazed at the disgusted expression of the small brute, he found that he did not wish to. The roaring was beginning in his head, the noise that drowned out everything, the edges of his vision tinged pink. He wanted to make this insolent whelp regret his words, and so he relinquished control, giving himself over to the building inferno within him.

It was almost physical, so great was the force of his resolve snapping. One moment he was teetering tenuously on the edge of sanity, and the next all rational thought faded from him, replaced by one word that thundered through his head, pulsed through his blood: kill. And, miraculously, stupidly, the brute turned from Sabaoth at the very moment that his control shattered like glass. Face contorting with demonic rage, Sabaoth was moving before he could register it, his massive body reaching the departing wolf in one long bound. Gaping jaws lunged forward, ivory teeth flashing a grim warning as his mouth closed over the neck of the brute, just behind his triangular ears, beneath the base of his skull. Sabaoth clamped down with enough force to make his head ache, but the pain was immediately forgotten in his murderous frenzy. He was manic with the desire to maim, teeth easily piercing flesh as hot blood washed across his tongue, and with each time that Sabaoth’s mouth parted only to clamp down once again, the crimson liquid gushed like a river around them. For all that Sabaoth knew some of his own could have been mingled in; in that moment he would not have known if the smaller brute was defending himself, if his own gargantuan form was taking damage. He was aware of nothing more than the body in his grasp, the hot spurt of blood across his face and chest, and the pounding in his skull.

After the lights go out in you

The final time that he grabbed the brute’s mangled neck Sabaoth held, shaking his head back and forth viciously, forelegs spread wide and claws digging into the dirt beneath his paws as he slung the brute like a ragdoll – or as much as he could. While the trespasser was significantly smaller than Sabaoth, his weight was still considerable, and in his right mind Sabaoth would have felt the burn of effort in his muscles from the effort of hurling the heavy body. As abruptly as he’d began to shake the brute Sabaoth stopped, putting every ounce of the brute strength coursing through his taut muscles into the task of throwing the ivory male from him. A laugh, half-frenzied and endlessly amused, slid from his maw as he advanced once more, one large paw slamming down upon the rib cage of the injured brute, perked ears reveling in the desperate popping sound of bones forced to their limits.

After your worthless life is through

”I will rip you apart,” Sabaoth told the brute, voice a low, sinister coo, as if he were speaking to a lover and not an enemy. He did not relieve the male’s ribcage of his weight as he leaned down, teeth gnashing closed on any inch of flesh upon the exposed side of the brute’s face that he could find, ripping, relentless as he flayed taut flesh from bone. And still Sabaoth did not kill him, nostrils flared wide to suck in the copper-scent of the blood that soaked into the earth beneath them. He would take his time in this, feeding the fire of his fury completely, indulging it to the point of gluttony. ”And I hope you die with fear in your heart knowing that if I find her, I will kill her, too.” There was no thought to his threats, no feeling, only a cruel intention to cause the brute agony in every way that he could. No part of him was safe from Sabaoth’s teeth; wherever there was flesh, no matter how delicate nor resilient, Sabaoth found it until the male’s fur, once as white and pure as snow, was drenched in sticky crimson.

I will remember how you scream

Sabaoth’s own pelt was equally soaked, the blackness slick with the trespasser’s blood, his teeth stained with it. His claws raked down the male’s side as he readjusted his position, his other paw coming to rest on the male’s ravaged throat, pressing down with slowly increasing force. Sabaoth had kept him alive for an impressively long time, he thought to himself, but it was the stench of impending death that made him shiver with anticipation, eager to watch the light fade from the male’s eyes. Sabaoth’s grin widened with the realization that his scarred face would be the last thing that the brute saw when his windpipe finally collapsed beneath the weight.

I can't afford to care

TAG: @summit + @ren @everest Arete
WORDS: 872
LYRICS + MUSE: Click!
NOTES: WOWEE I felt so bad writing this >.< 

[Deleted]

Their father had instructed them in no uncertain terms to remain where he’d left them while he searched for their mother in foreign lands. As it stood, Ren didn’t intend to disobey his father – not really. In fact if the young male was being honest, he was quite proud of himself for having remained stuffed inside of the fallen log for as long as he had, nestled close to Arete and Everest. They were five months old now, large but certainly not yet grown, and so the interior of a cramped tree was not exactly the ideal place to be. And yet they’d remained hidden here as the seconds stretched into minutes, the minutes into an hour. Finally Ren lost his patience. It had begun to wane and unravel the moment the stark white form of their father had disappeared into the trees. Too much had happened recently for Ren to be fully comfortable with parting from another family member; the loss of Ophelia still chaffed at him, leaving raw wounds that seemed to never improve. And then so suddenly his mother had disappearing, too, without as much as a word to her children nor her mate. For days they’d searched for her, wandering far and wide, hope blossoming and then withering in the young boy, now replaced by a constant knot of anxiety and confusion beneath his rib cage. He tried to remain positive – truly he did. He spent his days chattering away with his siblings, making up grand stories, dreaming of adventures…and yet it did not erase the unease inside of him, which was all-consuming now that his father was gone, too.

He was not really gone, Ren reminded himself as he wiggled out of the log, tumbling to the earth with a soft growl. He was just out of sight, searching for their mother, and Ren was no longer content to lay in wait. He wanted to help. He’d been unable to do anything for Ophelia, unable to save her or ease her suffering, and he would not stand helplessly on the sidelines again. He cast a glance over his shoulder towards Everest and Arete, stubborn resolve written clearly upon his features. ”I’m going to help look,” he said, and without waiting for any protest they might have offered, Ren started off in the direction his father had gone, suspecting that they would follow him, banding together as they always did.

He was no great tracker, and yet the scent of Summit was so familiar to Ren that it was easy to follow. Through the underbrush he went, false bravado showing in the confident strides of his lanky legs despite the way the eerie forest troubled him. Onwards he lead them, the scent becoming stronger, fresher, until at last the sound of his father’s voice set the young male’s tail wagging. He went to bound forward, sure that it was their mother Summit was speaking to. All he would have to do was clear the approaching underbrush into the clearing beyond and he would see them there, his mother and father, reunited and well.

There was a sudden noise, a distinct thump and a thrashing that gave Ren pause. The voice that followed his father’s was not Katari’s. It was deep and guttural, filled with a sinister anger that made Ren freeze, crouching suddenly in the midst of the brambles. A panicked look over his shoulder in Everest and Arete’s direction served as their warning as the young male’s ears flattened against his skull. ”I will rip you apart.” Something was wrong, something was desperately wrong. Ren could smell the blood now, thick and coppery, turning his stomach with the intensity of it, and yet still he inched forward as if possessed. He could not stop himself from parting a collection of leaves, could not stop his gaze from flitting across the scene that was unfolding, the ground wet with blood, the crimson-stained form of his father laying broken beneath the weight of what could only be described as a monster. He was doing something horrible to his father, obscenely chewing at him as if he were food, and Ren could not move in that moment, his breath hitching and catching in his throat as fear seized him. ”And I hope you die with fear in your heart knowing that if I find her, I will kill her, too.” Words, meaningless words, roaring in his head as the scarred brute stood upon his father’s throat until Summit’s sides rose no longer, until his eyes were empty and expressionless, just as Ophelia’s had been.

No, he thought, sure that this was a nightmare. He was still back in the log, still back in the caverns when Ophelia had passed, still nestled at his mother’s side long before all of this tragedy had happened, when they were all alive and happy. And yet no matter how hard he blinked, no matter how badly his lungs burned from the strain of not breathing, he did not awaken. The scarred giant stepped away from the body of his father, seeming almost dazed as he stared down at the body, as if he did not understand what he had done. But he did, of course he did, because Ren had heard what he’d said, he’d seen what the monster had done, and a wave of rage and agony so great crested within him that his body slumped to the earth, the leaves swaying gently around him. The monster did not notice; he cast one final look in Summit’s direction before he turned, leaving footprints made of blood that was not his own as he disappeared into the forest.

For some time, Ren’s body would not cooperate. His eyes were wide and terrified, unable to tear themselves away from what remained of his father. He had begun to breathe again at some point, his sides rising and falling in rapid movements, his entire form trembling. To think he’d resolved himself not to be helpless when he’d first set out to follow Summit…and yet that was exactly what he’d been. Worthless to stop the creature who had murdered his father. Powerless to keep the tattered remains of his family from disintegrating entirely.

A low keen slid from his throat as he stumbled forward suddenly, his tail tucked between his legs, his entire posture radiating terror. He was certain that if he just moved closer he would see that Summit was breathing, that his father was alive and would recover, but all that he saw was blood and bone and empty eyes.

Nothing of his glorious, loving father remained. Nothing of Ren remained either, the anguish in his heart shattering into emptiness.

TAG: @everest + Arete
WORDS: 1,116
NOTES: this really just broke my heart =(

[Deleted]

Don’t complain. It could be worse.

The words had become his mantra in the weeks since his mother’s disappearance, since his sister drew her final breath. His muscles ached as he moved slowly as he trailed behind his father all morning, golden hued eyes glued to the ground beneath his oversized paws. Everest was born last, but he was the largest of his litter. Father always said that Everest was sure to be a giant, even taller than Summit himself, but in his son’s mind, there was no one greater than his dad. He was the biggest wolf that he knew – albeit, the only grown brute that he knew. Their exposure to the world beyond their tight-knit family unit was admittedly nonexistent. His mother had whispered about terrible packs and terrible wolves, things she didn’t want her offspring to experience for themselves. But there would be no sheltering them forever. Today would be Everest’s first foray into the real world, far worse than his most terrible nightmares could conjure up. Today, everything would change forever.

At first, Everest was certain that Katari would return to them soon. How could she leave her surviving pups behind forever? She just needed a little time. But as the days turned into weeks, the young male was beginning to lose hoping, their mission unsuccessful, though they had searched for miles. He hadn’t abandoned faith yet, however, and while it seemed impossible, he clung to his love for his family. He wasn’t a little puppy anymore. But he still needed his mother. He wasn’t ready to lose everything he had loved about life before Ophelia died. His dad didn’t want to eat anymore. Everest couldn’t bring himself to eat when his father refused. He couldn’t stand to see his father this way, crushed, but persistent. Summit seemed unstoppable as the family scoured the grasslands. The masked youth felt guilty, but he didn’t know why. There was nothing anyone could have done to save Ophelia’s life. Those days were merely memories now.

Everest was an obedient pup, trusting that if his father told him to do something, it was the right thing to do. So he didn’t question the decision for Summit to press on ahead while the adolescents remained behind. The trio of siblings were now five months old. Everest was beginning to doze off when his brother’s voice broke the silence: ”I’m going to help look.” Casting his brother a look, he began, ”I don’t think you should – “ But the words tapered into silence as his brother’s tail disappeared through the small, rotted hole in the log. For a moment, Everest debated whether he should go or stay, but he was following on his brother’s heels within seconds. He couldn’t allow Ren to get into trouble all on his own.

The path was unfamiliar, and his fur seemed to stand up on end as he crept behind. The deep voices that he heard through the underbrush caused the boy’s heart to start beating wildly within his chest, posture shrinking as he found himself at his brother’s side. In stunned silence, Everest watched his life dashed away, with each violent motion; the fight was over before it truly began. Summit was no match for the much larger brute. The enraged giant’s dark fur was soon painted in crimson that was not his own. Blood soaked through his father’s snowy pelt almost instantly until the white wolf was little more than meat, sightless and unmoving. Too terrified to move, too scared even to scream, Everest saw the final blow. A sick feeling churned inside of him, bile rising in his throat before the contents of his stomach spewed onto the cracked earth below him. Eyes stinging with tears, he stared through the haze into oblivion. No one lived through a fight like that.

He wanted to go over, but he couldn’t bear to look at it – the motionless lump of flesh and life’s blood that had been his father only minutes before, rendered useless. Everest felt so small and utterly useless. The assailing brute departed the scene, abandoning the wolf he had destroyed for the scavengers, unaware that his victory had been witnessed. There were others present that didn’t belong there in the claimed territory. Instinct told him to run away, to gather up his remaining family before they all met a similarly gruesome fate, but his paws seemed glued to the spot, limbs quivering beneath his weight. If he left now, he’d never see Summit again… But he didn’t want to his father like that. He was too frightened to be angry, but the outrage would swell within the youth as he grew. No wolf deserved to die like that, especially a wolf as good and kind as Summit had been.

His body trembled violently as he turned away, breath hitching in his throat. ”Go.” His voice was a whisper. It felt as if his brain couldn’t piece together coherent thoughts, but he knew there was no use in staying any longer, foreigners in unfriendly lands. The smell of putrid blood and vomit assaulted his nostrils, threatening to make him sick again. ”Go now. We have to.”



words: 906
tags: Sabaoth @ren Arete
ooc: RIP Summit ;-;

[Arete]

Fortune did not smile on the little family as they once again continued their search for their missing mother. Not only were they lone wolves, plagued by danger at every turn, but they had also lost their smallest charge, their sister, Ophelia. She had never been strong enough to survive, not even if they had been part of a pack. The poor little thing did not stand a chance, and soon mother nature had come to claim her once and for all. Although the other sister, Arete, was smaller than her brothers, there was much more fight in her than her sister had held. She was stronger, more confident, and altogether healthier. And yet, she found herself exhausted as the small family once again trudged through the island in search of Katari.

Even though the young female loved her mother dearly, she could not help feel a mild bitterness towards her. Was it not enough that they had to lose a sister? But now they had also lost a mother. It truly was selfish of the adult female, but petty and immature of the young wolf to think of her mother in such a way. She knew there were things out of her control, she knew there were issues mentally with her mother that her father only danced around when questioned. She, herself, had been plagued by similar mentalities, but the difference between her and her mother was that she was sure that her imagination was just that, an imagination. However, there were moments when Arete was sure she was being followed, that another being was traveling with her and remained unseen by her brothers or her father. Refusing to give this unseen creature a name like her mother had, the female pushed forward in a small trot to keep up with her larger family members as they headed unknowingly into pack territory.

Like always, their father leaned heavily on caution and told her and her brothers to stay put, safely tucked away in a rotting log. It smelled horrible, and they were quickly outgrowing such small hiding places, but there was truly nothing to be said or done. Wedged tightly and deeply into the back of the log behind her brothers, Arete sighed heavily and nipped in irritation at Everest's bum, which had gotten much too close to her face for comfort. Soon enough, though, both males had muttered words to one another and left the security of their hiding place, and though she thought for a moment about hanging back and taking advantage of the solitude for a quick nap, she knew that there really was no other option but to follow. The three of them were typically stuck together like glue, traveling from place to place with their father and causing trouble for him whenever they could. But today was different. There was a solemn atmosphere in the forest as she followed her brothers silently, and the tone of the day took a darker turn as they finally came upon the horrible scene of blood that had once been their father and another wolf unknown to them.

The look of shock on both males' faces was mirrored on their sister's, though as each of them spoke and stared, the smaller and less powerful female lowered herself to the ground and tucked her petite form beneath that of Everest, her largest brother. It was a move that she made unconsciously, seeking the security of a brother she knew could protect her better than she could herself, but it did not last long. Scarred by the scene in front of them, the three had no choice but to leave their father to his fate. It was clear that they were in another pack's territory, and though Summit might have stood at least some sort of chance against any wolves in the area, they would each be destroyed quickly and without a second thought if they were caught as well. Trembling slightly from the shock of it all, Arete glued herself to Everest's side, hoping to feel Ren on her other flank as she turned away from the gruesome picture. They needed to leave, and they needed to do so quickly.

Words: 701
Tags: @everest, @ren, Sabaoth
Muse: high
Notes: n/a