Extreme Ways [Nashira]

[Lynker]

The great Amar had fallen.

Sad, yes, but it didn’t really upset Lynker much. It just meant that perhaps he could get his territory back, and finally enjoy some peace and privacy for once. Of course, there were still wolves around in the area, but the lands had certainly gone quiet lately, and the uncoordinated jumble of wolves that they seemed to be now wasn’t nearly as threatening as a pack in its prime. Silly creatures, wolves were. Didn’t know how to look after themselves without someone to guide them every step of the way.

Although… to tell the truth, he hadn’t minded being part of a pack. It was kind of a good feeling to work alongside other wolves, even if he didn’t feel he would ever understand them as well as he understood his friend Curse. He had tried though, and made bounds of progress since his bare literacy of a couple of years ago. It was a little disappointing that everything he’d learned about wolf customs would be going to waste now that the pack he’d been forced into had fallen apart.

A sudden forceful blow to his left shoulder sent Lynker sprawling to the sand, exposing his weak belly to the attack of the great brown bear looming over him. He was quick to regain his guard - using the momentum from his tumble the small black wolf rolled back onto is paws and spun to face his attacker, white teeth bared in a growl. Focus, Lynker! It was unlike him to drift off in the middle of a fight, not good discipline at all, he berated himself. His mistake had cost him the advantage, as the bear was already falling upon him, arms outstretched and long claws gleaming in the half-light.

Curse was at full size now, and as a result, the dynamics of their mock battles were significantly different to how they had been when both were cubs. No longer could they grapple headlong; even though Lynker’s forearms were developed beyond the strength of an ordinary wolf, the bear was still much too strong for him.

And so when the bear-raised wolf instinctively reared up onto his hind legs to engage in battle, it didn’t take long before Curse had him pinned to the sand. With a grin, the bear planted a paw firmly down on Lynker’s chest and roared his victory to the cold grey sky.

To an outsider, it must have looked as if the runt was in an extremely dangerous situation, with a massive bear able to crush him at any second, but the two had absolute trust in each others' ability to judge his own strength, and injuries were surprisingly rare in their seemingly violent battles. So the pinned wolf simply laughed and batted playfully at Curse’s forearms with his paws. “Fine, fine, you win! The great Lynker has been defeated.”
Smugly pleased, the bear allowed his friend to get up and shake off the sand from his fluffy black fur. “I’m getting stronger, aren’t I? My rivals won't stand a chance!" Curse chuffed. "Ready for round two?”

The bear had already dropped to all fours and was now charging towards him. Lynker waited for the hurtling bear to close most of the distance between them, then ducked to the right, sending his opponent skidding in the sand as he tried to slow his momentum. The black wolf was immediately back into attack mode, darting between Curse’s wildly swinging paws to aim soft blows at the bear’s face and shoulders. However, it wasn’t long before the bear regained control of his attacks, and soon Lynker was being driven back towards the wide expanse of cold blue water behind him, beautiful to admire on a typical day, but no help in a fight. He needed to get away, or the bear would have him trapped and he would lose again.

Narrowing hazel brown eyes, the tiny wolf feinted to the left, then as one great furry paw came swinging towards him, he ducked between the huge bear’s legs and quickly turned to leap up and grab a hold of Curse’s back, drawing a bellow of surprise from the bear. The great creature shook himself thoroughly in an attempt to dislodge the wolf from his back, but Lynker determinedly held on, long claws anchored deep in Curse’s thick brown fur as he was bucked around.

This was the life! Anyone who thought this wasn’t fun must either be a spoil-sport, or never have tried it. Well, he supposed it wasn’t often that a wolf had the chance to fight a bear without the fear of being mauled; his relationship with Curse really was unique. It was a pity that more wolves couldn’t appreciate other species – they would make such a great team if they all learned to work together.



.

[Deleted]

With a heaving sigh, the Mexican femme hoisted herself to a standing poise. Much had been gathering in her mind since Kiddo's disappearance, such as what was going to become of her father, the others and herself. Certainly she had kept her emotional distance from many of the other canines, but that did not mean that she had not enjoyed pack life. There was a strange sense of constant security that, although slightly foreign, was refreshing to her. Amar had given her a father - something she had never known; yet, it also fulfilled her only dream. A slight smile perched itself upon the lone femme's muzzle for a moment before her features became stoic once more. What was to happen to them all now that The Oriens was unclaimed territory again? Nashira feared that another group of wolves would run them out, the same as Kiddo had done to the femme during their expansion. That thought alone was enough to make strands of fur stand on edge. The wolves of Amar were strong, but without a pack would they still stand together to defend their home? The former subordinate did not know the answer to such a question.

As she wandered, her mind raced with thoughts of the future. She knew what she wanted to do, but that did not guarantee the support of the others. The day the former Alpha disappeared, the young Mexican had turned to Hadrian for support. Perhaps it was childish to seek advice from your father, but it was the first opportunity that she had to do so. The only option Nashira could see was to step up on her own and attempt to reform Amar. The resonating question in her mind, however, held her back. 'Would the others even stand alongside me as their Alphess?' The Mexican female was not known for being the most social and loved canine of Amar, rather she mostly kept to herself. Perhaps the others would see that as beneficial, since Kiddo had enjoyed calling pack meetings quite regularly. A momentary shudder raced down her muscular frame. She needed to talk to another wolf besides her father; yet, there was a twinge of fear about doing so. The last thing she needed was to be ridiculed for her attempt to hold their family together. If it even was a family anymore.

Paws carried her quietly across the terrain, mind wandering between all the places she had been. A part of her wondered if she was naive and stupid to have gone to such extents to find Hadrian. Was she a fool for struggling to fulfill her mother's dying wish and her childhood dream? Perhaps some would find it silly, but to Nashira it had meant the world. Reuniting with Hadrian had awaken a part of her that she had believed to be dead. Now there were endless possibilities in her life - if only she was willing to take a risk for them. She was bringing herself closer to the pool, subconsciously searching for a specific canine. The ebony brute seemed to linger in the area for a reason unbeknownst to her. Lynker had been one of the longest members in Amar, other than Hadrian; therefore she only believed it right to consult him about her idea. There was a chance that the idea had already crossed his mind, but for him to step up as Alpha. Nashira would not necessarily be opposed to such a thing, even though she hardly knew the male. He had been with the pack longer and the Mexican had a strange respect for how he seemed to mind his own business, much like herself.

It was then that sounds caught her senses and immediately the femme erected her ears. Her sense of smell was quite poor, thus causing her not to notice her rapid approach upon the two creatures mock fighting. Intrigue swarmed her frame and the femme moved stealthily behind some shrubbery, to keep herself hopefully unnoticed. For a few seconds she focused her brown optics upon the two males, she had snuck close enough now see them decently well from her hiding spot. The sight before her was strange, almost terrifying in a way. Nashira had yet to witness the bear and wolf fight, it created a slight sense of fear in her chest. What if he became angry and wounded the canine? Despite how skilled she wanted to believe herself, the femme knew that she was no match for the bear should it turn against them. Lynker seemed to have complete trust in the large beast though, for a moment her mind wondered how the two had formed such a close bond. Certainly this was not a normal occurrence between the two species.

As the fight appeared to be dying down, the femme carefully moved herself from her hiding spot. Emotionless, brown eyes danced between the two of them for a few seconds while she collected her thoughts. It always happened this way, she would freeze up right when she most needed composure. That is what pack life had brought her, a new form of anxiety. Smoothly she lowered her head in a gentle bow of greeting to the two brutes. "Greetings Lynker and - I don't believe I have caught your name," the femme's tone held a twinge of apologeticness at her lack of knowledge of the bear's name. "I am Nashira." She opted to extend her name as formality, something that the Mexican usually left out. Alas, they were no longer a pack and she wished not to bring these creatures' wrath down upon her. Truthfully, Nashira did not know what the Arctic male even thought of her; there was the possibility that he absolutely despised her, in which case this meeting would not go over well. She inhaled sharply, mostly to help ease the tension that she was experiencing. It felt as if it was lingering within the air, waiting for her to make one wrong move to snap. 'I have been through worse, I must stop this nonsense.' She had went through hell to find Hadrian and this situation paled in comparison to some of the others she had experienced.

The point needed to be made, and quick before they drew bored of having her presence around. "I apologize for interrupting, but do you have a few moments to spare? I was hoping that I could speak with you about something, Sir Lynker." The femme held her stance confident, yet of no dominance over the other two. Claws dug lightly into the ground, a nervous tendency that she desperately wanted to break the habit of. Her blood pressure felt like it was rising rapidly, heart ready to beat out of her chest. Despite the worry and endless negative possibilities, Nashira found herself remaining internally hopeful. This could be the beginning of something beautiful.

[Lynker]

Lynker laughed at the bear’s efforts to throw him off his back, adrenaline rushing through his veins every time the mass beneath him shook. An ordinary wolf would likely have fallen off by now, but the arctic had the advantage of having unusually long claws, sharpened by the habit of marking trees for territory, and as such had a better grip in the beast’s fur. But eventually the wolf couldn’t hold on any longer; his friend finally managed to dislodge him and tossed him to the sand with a triumphant bellow. Lynker rolled immediately to his paws, prepared to launch back into battle, when something out of place caught his attention and he stopped.

It was faint, but there was definitely a foreign smell lingering in the area. What was it? Curse had noticed too and had reluctantly sat down on the shore, aware that their playfight was over (but satisfied by the knowledge that he had pretty much won). Meanwhile, the small black wolf continued to stare into the forest, as if his narrow gaze would dare whatever it was to come closer. Then he recognised it – a wolf. Lynker’s lips instinctively began to curl up into a snarl. A wolf? In his territory?

Whoever it was was lucky that he hadn’t yet gotten around to renewing his border markings since Amar’s disbandment, or he would have had to have had a rather stern talk with them. As it was, he was still none too pleased, but he supposed they couldn’t have known, as the story of the earlier days of Amar didn’t seem to be very widespread. A good thing, perhaps, but if those former Amar wolves thought that this was still their territory he would have to show them that they were mistaken.

A she wolf slowly emerged from the undergrowth, and after a moment he recognised her as Nashira, daughter of Hadrian. His snarl faltered slightly – he wasn’t sure where he stood with her, but didn’t see her as a particular enemy. She didn’t seem to have trespassed on purpose; she inclined her head and greeted him, as if they were still packmates. The snarl dropped completely. He was not one to argue with someone if they didn’t act aggressively or condescendingly towards him, although he would never drop his guard completely in the company of someone he didn’t know well.

Lynker was still not familiar enough with wolf speech to be sure exactly what she meant by her inquiry that wasn’t a question, but he went ahead anyway, unsure of how else he could reply. “His name is Cursed Moon, but he prefers to be called Curse.” The suddenly shy bear only nodded, preferring to let his friend take the lead in the conversation. He was still rather uncomfortable around wolves, even though he was fully grown and would have easily been able to beat one in a fight. He’d just heard so many stories about them – his mother had always taught them that they were savage beasts to be avoided whenever possible, especially when they lived in packs. Of course, he didn’t see Lynker as a wolf; Lynker was his litter-mate, his brother.

The she wolf spoke again, this time asking the arctic if he would mind taking a moment to talk. And then… she titled him Sir Lynker. The bear-wolf blinked, clearly surprised at the compliment. No one had ever called him that before. Ever. It was very strange. The dark-furred runt had always been the outcast, the loner, never respected by anyone except for his animal friends. And now he was being called sir? Of course, he supposed it was likely just the manner in which she spoke to every wolf, but Lynker couldn’t help feeling a tiny bit flattered. After all, right now she wasn’t looking down at him with barely concealed disgust, as many of the other wolves he’d come across seemed to. To them he was a savage, not good enough for pure wolven society. But maybe, just maybe, Nashira didn’t see him like that… She had asked to speak with him, which meant she must value his opinion at least a little? Oh right, she had asked him a question. Lynker coughed, hoping that the pause hadn’t been too noticeable. “Yes, of course, that’s no problem. Me and Curse were just about finished anyway.”

“...What do you want to talk about?” he ventured curiously. He really had no idea why she would be talking to him of all wolves. They weren’t exactly close and since the pack was dissolved, she and he had no reason to talk about things like her warrior training or border patrols. That life was all over now, merely a memory in the past, and Lynker was perfectly content to stay by his pool and resume his simple life as a loner.

Although… it had been rather tiresome continuously warning wolves off his territory who couldn’t understand his bearlike border markings. And to be honest, he had received good food from the pack’s hunters. He wasn’t all too keen on having to return to his previous diet of fish and (if he was lucky) small rodents. The four year old supposed the wolves in Amar weren’t really all that bad, even though he’d never had the chance to talk to many of them. He couldn’t help wondering what might have been if the pack had stayed together, what friendship might have discovered if he’d had the chance to get to know someone from his original species.



.