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[Skoll]

For Lubomir! My guess is maybe she finds Lubomir before Skoll and he runs, or Lubomir sees her, armed and armored and obviously looking for trouble, and calls out that there's an intruder? The deep blue of the sky was just beginning to give way to the faint orange glow of daybreak, but Skoll knew that an hour was left to pass before the sun was fully in the sky. There was a light fog over the ground at the base of the mountain, a fair ways down from where he usually slept, and only a few birds had yet begun to sing. He had only just woken up, and would give himself a few minutes of lying on the dirt of the mountain side before rousing himself and beginning his morning practice. A chance wind brought a familiar scent to his nose. He looked down at his side...his weapons were still in the pack. Even if they had somehow slipped out during the night...the smell of oil accompanied the scent of iron that had carried on the wind. He rose, tying the pack to his waist, and securing the square hard-wood shield to his left arm. It might be nothing, but the hairs were standing up on the back of his neck, and someone with steel arriving in the pre-dawn hours did not ring friendly to his ears. He looked down, but through the fog he saw little. He began to descend down the mountain slope, unsure of who he would find. Inferni? It was possible that the coyotes were attempting a raid, but Iskata had told him that their leader was playing defensively, trying to at least buy enough time for his children to grow up before engaging in any open hostilities. The smell of coyote had also been in the air, and so he was now certain. It had to be Inferni. Well, if it was, and they wanted trouble, he would give it to them. He recalled the last fully armed battle he'd had defending borders. Himself against seven. He wouldn't be able to do that again. He had taken extensive damage in that fight, and besides, the darkness had allowed him to kill off three of his enemies before they even knew they were fighting him. He would have no such advantage this time, and Inferni would probably only send people against him who knew what they were doing, not religious fanatics whose histories mostly including brutalizing tied sacrifices. ~The lyrics are from the best song ever written.

[Lubomir Varg]

OOC: Takes place after the Deuce fight, so he is quite wounded.

Lubomir had slept away from Shadowed Sun, close to the lapping waves. It wasn't as bad as in the fight with Gabriel, probably because he'd tried truly hard to stay away from any wolves. He'd washed in the salty water, the stinging cold and salt making him wince and groan. But he'd got the dust out of his wounds. The last thing he needed was to have an infection from being an idiot. He had made a grave mistake in Twilight Vale and sometimes he wondered when they would come to haunt him. The female had known Tayui and a sinking feeling in his gut told him he might be in for it. Would they cast him out? Would they refuse to speak to him? His sleep had been fitful and soon, the early dawn woke him.

The first thought was that it was awfully foggy. And cold. He'd woken up wet, so perhaps another storm had hit during the night. He wondered, for a moment, how it had not woken him. Lubomir shook himself and slowly started walking back towards Shadowed Sun. He half-expected to be met by Pilot and Tayui telling him to move on. Where to? Labyrinth Glen? Would Ember's pack take him in, when they heard about his deeds? Or would they cast him out and never speak to him again? And what then? Go back? Never. He would not survive another crossing. Go to Gabriel and let him finish what he'd started? That too was a coward's exit. Perhaps Skoll would be on his side. That would certainly be an improvement. And a shot and staying in the pack. These were the thoughts that plagued the grey wolf as he wearily made his way back.

The scent hit him on the edge of the borders. Coyote. He froze, inhaling deeply, trying to make out the steely edge of it. It was not Asphyxia, or Gabriel, he'd remember their scents. Someone else in their pack? It could be. Perhaps the war Haku had spoken of would drag Shadowed Sun into the midst of the fighting. He squinted through the heavy fog and saw the figure advancing. His eyes widened. This was no Inferni coyote. This was some sort of war machine. His heart started racing and his breath came in short agonising gasps. Lubomir felt sweat break on his forehead and fear grip his throat. What was she, for her scent belied her gender? Some warrior from the dead? A creature of brute force and blood lust? He did the only sane thing he could do. He ran.

The ground beneath his feet was liquid as Lubomir ran deep into the packlands, howling. He didn't know if anyone was awake at this hour, but at least they could hear him. 'Intruder! In the pack lands!' His lungs burnt with the pain and fatigue and still he kept on running, hoping someone would heed his cry.

[Skoll]

The challenge, the command, and it'll begin next reply =) Let's assume that Skoll didn't mention in her in his story, but that he mentioned the wars. He was moving quickly through the territory when he heard Lubomir's call. He already held his knife firmly in his left hand, but now he drew his axe with his right. Calling out like that was wholly inappropriate unless violence was imminent. Lubomir had seen violence before, knew what it looked like, and so Skoll doubled his speed, sprinting to the caller. When he finally stopped, and saw Lubomir come running, he saw the woman trotting along behind him, the fog concealing the wide grin which he knew was there. She was more slightly built than he was, both because of her coyote heritage as well as her gender. She was a little under seven feet tall, where he towered at eight feet. Nonetheless, he knew that size would avail him little against the threat she presented. The shoulder-protection rested on her frame, jagged blades jutting up from each, as well as from the metal plates on her elbows, to deter anyone from closing inside the guard of her swords. He saw that she had now attained the same sort of armor on her knees. Her dead ears remained fixed on her head by dozens of stitches while her gleeful eyes met his as she approached, her twin short swords, each more than two feet in length, were gripped in her small, gracile hands. No. SteelRose. The sadist monster from the Four Pack War, she was at least a year older than him, he remembered from the war, but she didn't look it at all. She had loved to kill, especially those whose lack of skill made for easy prey. The single most insane woman from that entire conflict, and sadly, one of those who had survived. He had met her once before this, but after the conflict, where they had stood off, and she had decided not to kill him, though to this day he didn't know why. "Ah! Skoll!" she said delightfully, her eyes flashing mischievously as she gave a faux curtsy. "I thought I might find you here, I was hoping you had taken up the axe again, and you haven't disappointed me!" "What do you want?" he asked evenly, not giving any sign of his misgivings. He had made a point of fighting the experienced soldiers during that war, hoping to spare his allies deaths by more capable hands, but he had always steered clear of her. She had feared no one, save Sirius, whose immensity was not something that could be countered by her blades or her insanity. "To collect the fight you didn't give me last time, of course," she pouted, the musical tones in her voice mocking to his ears. "Since when do you fight people who can fight back? You always went after the weakest people in BloodScar." "Yes, killing was new and exciting back then, I didn't want anyone to..." her voice trailed off as her eyes searched the ground in front of her feet. "Ruin my fun." She began to approach, her hips swaying suggestively as her arms and wrists straightened out at her side, the points of her blades a hair away from kissing the ground. The bronze warrior shifted his posture into a defensive stance. The woman laughed. "You had the right idea, you know. I wasn't aware how boring killing could get. I would go in to every fight knowing I was going to kill them, they would die, and I would leave unsatisfied. I went looking for better fighters, people who could whet my thirst and not leave me wanting when I was finished with them. On my journey, I've found eleven warriors, the best in their region. I killed them, but it was so much more...exhilerating!" Her eyes flashed with insanity as she said this, her grin wide and gleeful. "I remembered you from the War and from last time, remembered that I hadn't finished my business with you. You killed three of the ten best soldiers in the war, four if the stories around these parts are true. You are going to be my best kill yet, my yellow-haired man, so don't disappoint." "Lubomir, this isn't where you want to be...she's like me, professional. Stay out of it, go wake Tayui or Pilot and tell them what's happened, tell them to be on guard until I give them the all clear." He turned his amber eyes toward her. This was bad. He wasn't sure if he could win this, given what he knew of her. His forte was unarmed fighting, he had learned to fight with the weapons he wielded now out of necessity. While he was well-rounded, SteelRose was a specialist. She wielded now the same weapons she had wielded before, and he didn't think she had probably ever fought without them. Her experience with human weapons exceeded his, and his training would be less useful because of the introduction of steel. What's more, she had metal armor, where he had only a wooden shield which only covered a little under a foot both above and below his forearm. The scent of oil on her blades was strong...she had come prepared for this. The battle would begin soon. ~The lyrics are from the best song ever written.

[Lubomir Varg]

Skoll. Shifted. Carrying weapons. The thought bounced off the insides of Lubomir's head and he found himself skidding to a halt, panting, his insides burning with pain and the wounds on him opening up to dribble blood on his fur. He took short breaths, to stop the pain inside, to make sure there was some sort of way around this coyote. And then, to his surprise, she engaged Skoll in some kind of banter. They knew each other, that much was obvious, and there must have been some sort of unfinished business between them. She was formidable, her armour making the grey wolf tremble slightly. He had never seen or heard of something like this, a creature whose pure purpose seemed to be destruction. The names meant nothing to Lubomir, though Skoll had mentioned a war between the packs. But not her, she must have been someone who did not feature in his tales. And he could now see why.

Before he could fully comprehend the meaning of Skoll's words he was tearing into the pack lands, drawing breath to call for Tayui or Pilot. And then Lubomir stopped. Running. He was always running. Away from his past, danger, fights, always looking to save his own skin. Skoll was going to fight this creature on his own. On his own. Lubomir growled to himself and started running back towards Skoll, all thoughts of warning the rest of the pack a mere haze in the back of his mind. 'Skoll!' He called out from a few feet away, his eyes locked on the female. 'I called them. I'm staying here.' He'd never lied to his friend before. But Lubomir could bet his tail that Skoll would turn on him, in his bid to protect the pack.

[Skoll]

Yeah, thinking he needs Lubomir, though Lubomir can give the call before Skoll is in trouble, in case Tay or someone wants to come in? The warrior turned his head back slightly, his eyes wide as the adrenaline flushed through his blood, his senses and reflexes becoming enhanced as his body geared up for the fight. It wasn't fear in his eyes, but a frightening intensity. He stood with wooden shield at the ready on his left side, war knife in his left hand, the blade extending from just under the shield, his axe held back poised to strike in his right. SteelRose stood, the same intensity evident in her own eyes, though an eery grin seemed to change the mood of her complexion entirely. Her armor rested on her shoulders and elbows, knees and two plates hung from a leather strap about her neck which provided protection for her chest and the top of her back. It wasn't as thick as some other armor he'd seen...he thought his axe could bite through it, though it would be hopeless with his knife. "I didn't hear anything! You make sure Tayui knows, damnit! If I fall the pack needs to know what's loose in their lands!" It was as he made this pronouncement that the coyote's smiling lips parted, her white teeth gleaming in the early morning gloom, and she rushed forward. Skoll's body was big, but it was not slow. His ear twitched, and immediately he jolted into motion, backward, away from the darting point of one of her swords. His upraised shield blocked the second blade as he brought his axe around in a swift arc--missing her left hand which had already withdrawn in preparation for another attack. He tried to make a feint with his dagger, but her swords were long and his knife, though long as far as knives went, was no match for her reach; she didn't even flinch, and her left hand drove the tip of her sword toward his face. Steel parted flesh along Skoll's cheekbone, and he again gave ground. Some instant, subconscious calculation in his brain knew that her next sword would collide his shield, and he pushed forward, knowing already that he was not rushing into her second blade, and swung the axe brutally into her body. Metal shoulder armor jarred, and a wide crack was cut into it, but only a meager amount of blood issued from the wound as she in turn backpedaled. Her right hand sword slashed a gash in his upper arm as she retreated, just above the shield. He paused for a fraction of a second before pushing forward, moving his body slightly to her left, presenting his shield more easily to her blades. Her right sword made a dull sound as it hit his shield, and her left-hand blade was prevented from finding his chest by the edge of his shield, refusing the angle needed to pierce him. His axe swept in, the spike flying as shrapnel from her left shoulder accompanied by a brief spurt of crimson from the hole in the armor, and she backed away as the bigger wolf rounded on her. The tip of her sword nicked the top of his snout as she did so, but his attention was riveted on her, and the minor pain seemed not to have registered. Even so, the maniacal glee in her eyes had not subsided, nor had her grin. She was enjoying this. She lunged forward, her right blade fouled by his shield yet again, and then batted away by his axe. It would have been easy to miss her thumb spiraling away into the grass if her sword hadn't jarred out of her hand in the process. Her left blade proceeded to penetrated his tricep a heartbeat later, causing excruciating pain as he followed through with the back swing. She avoided it easily. He jabbed with his dagger, now not having to worry about her right sword to foil him, and she gave ground. Enough ground for his axe to be brought back around again. It came in a wide arc, and stopped suddenly. Perpendicular to his forearm protruded the two-foot steel blade of her remaining sword. As his swing accelerated to its target, the tip of the blade had found his arm, pierced the muscle and driven to the radius bone, largely with the help of his own momentum. Right arm quivering, Skoll felt his fingers lose their strength, and his axe fell to the ground. He lashed out with his dagger, feeling the force drive the point of the knife through facial bone in her upper jaw and into her nasal passages. She jerked backward, taking her sword with her. The shock and adrenaline kept him from crying out when she wrenched the blade from his arm, but he hadn't quite had time to react before she slashed at his face, tracing a thin red line just adjacent to his right eye. Skoll lifted his shield and began to back away as she renewed her attack, holding his useless right arm off to his side and behind him. He had always wondered if he could defeat her if his life depended on it...she had been so fearsome in the war that he was glad that he had never needed to find out. His life depended on it now. He was losing. ~The lyrics are from the best song ever written.

[Lubomir Varg]

OOC: I keep holding all this up, don't I? Sorry for the slight psychedelic touch

They scared him. Fear coursed through his body. He tried desperately to reach into his beast, to call him out, but the monster was silent. Lubomir was alone, faced with Skoll and the coyote, their bodies so tense with the fight that he thought they might tip over with one light touch. He'd never seen two wolves so desperate for a fight. And he'd lied to Skoll. While his words rang true, Lubomir could do little to heed them. He gravitated from one point to another and finally tore back into the heart of the pack, yelling for the leaders. 'Tayui! Pilot! Fight! Intruder!' He skidded to a halt and listened.

Scuffling noises were coming from the fight and he teetered once more. Wait here? Go back? He'd never felt so powerless, never. He could do nothing for them, he was a coward and Skoll would die, leaving the female to pick them off one by one. He dug his claws into the earth. The fog was still sticky in the air and it made him all the more restless. With one turn he was running back to the fight, growling, trying to fight the fear and bile rising in his throat. Would Skoll be alive still? As Lubomir neared the site of the two fighters once more he noticed Skoll's arm. No. Ice cold, his blood was liquid ice and they would die and he'd never told Ember he loved her and Mew would be killed. His thoughts spiralled and for a moment he thought he would faint.

One-Eye came to him. He looked sober, worried, Lubomir had never seen so much concern written in his face. One-Eye was talking to him and his ears were filled with fluff, he couldn't hear a word. Frigg was there now. Beautiful Frigg. She was saying things to and he could hear her. About how strong he was. About how the coyote was a worthless fighter. About how Skoll had given him friendship. And how Lubomir and he had traded stories. That was something to be cherished. If Skoll died, Shadowed Sun might fall. And it depended on Lubomir. And couldn't he do the right thing? Wasn't he that strong? And what would Ember and Mew think? One-Eye nodded. Frigg faded. Vision came to his eyes in time to see Skoll backing away. Lubomir could do this.

Recklessly he jumped into the fray, sitting just to the left of Skoll, still in wolf form. Deuce's wounds throbbed and he winced, but he held his ground. No more running. Not any more. 'Hey, demon!' His cry sounded feeble. He drew more air and yelled louder, 'Coyote freak! Too tough to fight little wolves?' It was stupid. It was insane. It could get him killed. Skoll would scream at him for hours if he lived long enough for it. But Lubomir wouldn't back down now. He was not the coward from the Old Country. He was of Shadowed Sun and if Skoll fell, he would fall by his friend's side.

506 words

[Skoll]

I figure the fight will finish in my next post, that way you'll get a chance to have Lubomir attack her in your next post? He had heard Lubomir's call, and it relieved him. If nothing else, the other wolves would see enough to flee this place, at least until SteelRose left. She wasn't looking too good so far: she'd lost her thumb, her armor had been severely damaged on the left side, and she was bleeding into her sinuses. Still, he was disarmed of his main weapon, and his arm had been disabled. He heard Lubomir's introduction into the fight, and his heart hung heavy. He expected himself to die, but did Lubomir have to as well? While his face remained unchanged, focused on his enemy, SteelRose's attention shifted, so fast that while on the defensive he couldn't take advantage of it. Just long enough to note her new combatant and then back to the eight foot bronze wolf...the creature who looked so much larger and should be able to kill her...but that armor, and those swords...they were superior to his wooden shield, axe and knife. The coyote with the dried and sewn-on ears moved forward quickly, the tip of her sword coming at Skoll below his shield, while she threw her knee, the spike on the armor there leading, at the lower-set form of Lubomir. He did his best to side-step the sword, feeling it brush by his fur. He didn't see if she hit Lubomir, but he had recovered faster than she had. Pushing with his shield, he slammed into her left side. Crimson squirted from the hole in her shoulder-armor. She stumbled, but caught herself. Breathing heavily, she managed another of her smiles, though it was smaller this time. She raised her sword, but not all the way...the torn metal of her armor had dug into her arm with that last impact. "You haven't been a disappointment, Skoll, this is fun." Her voice had taken on a very nasal quality...the blood flowed copiously from her left nostril. She raised her right hand in front of her eyes and studied it. She wouldn't have been able to take her time like this if he were in a better position. "You seem to have hurt my delicate little hand, Skoll. It used to have five fingers...or maybe it's trendy to just have four? I'll make sure to return the favor so that we're both popular." Mockery, of course. She had seemed to lose some of her cockiness, but the ragged woman still seemed ready for another pass. "Are you alright, Lubomir?" Skoll was too close to SteelRose to take his eyes off of her. His knife was extremely dangerous when compared to claws and fangs, but her sword clearly had the advantage. If he charged her right now...he could kill her. The problem was that he would also die. He could let her run him through and get close enough to disembowel her with his knife. He would need to get in the proper mindset for that, though. "Lubomir, it would be best if you left. You're unarmed and unshifted, you're more likely to get stabbed than anything else." ~The lyrics are from the best song ever written.

[Lubomir Varg]

OOC: I have amazing skills at holding up threads. I have no excuse for this whatsoever D:

The smell of blood was overwhelming, intoxicating, sickly, sticking to his throat, making him gag. Never, in his worst dreams, had he thought of this. Fighting. For no cause other than a friend in need. For although Lubomir was a weak, pathetic fighter with little skill, he knew devotion. But now, despite the blood and violence, the fog refused to fall before his eyes. The rationality remained and it scared him. His wild, animal side could tackle this but he refused to do anything but that back and watch, chuckling to himself. This coyote amused him and he did not see her worthy of fighting.

With every brisk movement a renascent shot of pain criss-crossed his body, doubling his vision. Gabriel's wound throbbed violently and where Umbra had grazed his chest had barely started to scab. Deuce's wound were open and bleeding and he knew, in his heart, that she could kill him with one well-placed blow. That now he needed to stay strong and not be destroyed by the pain. Because Skoll needed him. Her shot caught him off-guard, but he managed to scramble backwards and only his front left leg was grazed, a new bleeding red flower spreading through his fur. In a daze, he remembered that Pilot did some healing. That he might help them both, if they survived. And then he thought of what it would be like to have the entire pack decimated by this crazy coyote, Lubomir and Skoll's bodies lying here in a tangled mess.

It was Skoll's cry which made him snap out of it. No. No tangled messes of broken flesh. He had promised them. Mew and Haku. He had promised them his friendship. He had a word to keep. No running. No hiding. No back down. 'If I get stabbed, I get stabbed here and now. If she harms me, kill her.' He had lowered his voice enough for Skoll to hear. 'And tell Ember she gave me the best days of my life.' It felt pathetic to ask for more. Skoll was a warrior, not a poet. But if he survived, Lubomir was certain the yellow wolf would pass on the message. He would. He had to. He turned his gaze back to SteelRose and snarled, baring his teeth, his first aggressive gesture without the animal to fall back on. And he shot a glance at Skoll. Lubomir needed a cue, a word, a sign to distract the crazy one enough to give Skoll an opening. He could only pray to Fenrir that their stamina would last that long.

[Skoll]

I power-played a little, though I can try to change it if you like. I just assumed that when Skoll said the proverbial "charge!" Lubomir would charge in with him? It filled him with remorse that Lubomir refused to leave. The wolf was sorely torn up by his own battles, he wasn't in any kind of shape for a fight of any kind, let alone a fight with a demon like SteelRose. When he gave mention of Phoenix's daughter, Skoll paused. Well, Lubomir couldn't exactly die then, could he? That family had already been devastated by the loss of two sons and a father...he didn't know Ember well at all, but he knew that he desired members of that family to go through as little turmoil as possible. "Then go," he whispered, taking the first step forward himself. "GO!" He sprang forward, shield raised against the scarred and smiling visage of the mad coyote. She took a stab at him, which he intercepted with his shield. She seemed to quickly change her focus to Lubomir, having not committed fully to her lunge she now sought to get rid of him before he could foul up the fight she had already won. It was as she briefly diverted attention, a quick maneuver intended to dispatch the unshifted wolf in a single moment, too fast for the large warrior to react to while taking working defensively with his shield, that the battle was decided. The old wolf had intended to die before he would let her hurt Lubomir. He had built himself up for it, prepared to forge past the next immense pain, to allow himself to be skewered and to move up the sword and deal her a fatal blow of his own...a suicide maneuver. This intent of his was something that no one else would know, it wouldn't be detectable by anyone not on par with SteelRose and himself, and something which he would never share with anyone about this fight. He had planned on dying here, but she failed to predict his offensive-stance, and so she spent the moment she would have had against a defensive fighter to attack her weaker opponent, a moment she did not have. The shield was backed by the momentum of his charge, and it easily pushed her sword-arm out of the way. As she bounced slightly off of him, his shield arm turned, presenting her with the blade of his fighting knife rather than the flat surface of the shield. Stab. He plunged the ten-inch blade into her belly, just below the armor on her chest. Twist. His wrist rotated, brutally wrapping her innards around the turning blade. The woman emitted a piercing scream, which seemed somehow more horrible than the others he'd heard. It seemed surreal, for the mad and monstrous woman to be experiencing pain the same way that everyone else did. Drag. A sickening sound followed the jerky motion of Skoll's arm pulling the blade across the coyote's belly, its path curving sharply upward near the other side, creating a flap which allowed everything inside to flop out noisily. A shudder went through her body, a tremble that didn't stop even as she fell backwards rapidly transitioning from a brief sit to lying flat on her back. He looked down at her. Her eyes were wide, her mouth was wide open too, gasping for air. Her left hand was quivering horribly...Skoll kicked the blade away from it. He turned to Lubomir to see if she had done him any damage. A consistent and loud whimpering was coming from the woman, not something that was at all unusual. Her labored breaths were coming in sharp and pained. "Wow...that h--" she gasped loudly, "Hurts a lot. I s-saw it before, but didn't--" He heard her words, but paid attention still to Lubomir. There would be time for her final words after he made sure the heroic fool beside him was still in one piece. ~The lyrics are from the best song ever written.

[Lubomir Varg]

OOC: Yep, no problem with powerplay. Lubomir would definitely not hang around XDD ETA: Short post, sorry >_>

Lubomir let out a low malediction. This coyote would not die. And he could feel the last dregs of his energy seeping away into the wet earth, as if the fog itself had crept into his bones and dried them, making them brittle. He found himself panting, low gasping noises that made his throat hurt. He had to end it, one way or another. Thin tendrils of despair crept into his heart, cold curling fingers, thoughts of doom and death flooding his mind. Eventually, the scuffles of the fight became distant noise, though the monster obstinately refused to come out. When Skoll's voice broke through the haze, Lubomir reacted without allowing any more thoughts to cross his mind.

Her armour was tough against his good shoulder and the collision threw him completely off balance. It hurt. It hurt badly. All his bones hurt. And her shield hit his head, his eyes blurring and stars dancing before his vision. He fell over and waited for her blow. He waited for the cold lick of steel to pierce his side. And then nothing. He opened one eye, as if to check he was still alive. He was. So was Skoll. The coyote was dead. Slowly, painfully, Lubomit got up but his front legs gave way and he fell to the ground again. 'Is she... dead?' His own voice sounded strained to his ears and Lubomir thanked Fenrir he was alive. It came to him now. He was alive.

[Skoll]

Maybe now's a good time for Tayui to come in? He was relieved to see that Lubomir still lived, though he didn't seem to be in the best of states. After his amber eyes analyzed his comrade's health and ascertained that his life was not in immediate danger, he shook his head and turned his eyes back to the dying coyote. They had won...miraculously, they both lived. "She still lives, and she might still for some hours yet. I will need to finish her...but I will grant her final words, if she is in a state to give them." He rose from Lubomir and knelt before the fallen coyote. "Your days of slaughter are over, SteelRose. The wound you have taken is fatal." Though his words were victorious, his voice did not have that ring about it. She was going to die, and it was because of her pointless aggression. "I know that," she said, her legs bracing weakly against the earth. It was clear that a near maddening pain was coursing through her body. "I know both of those things...I opened lots of bellies in my time." It was strange to see this terror of a woman broken so. Even her musical voice was skewed by the blood in her nose. "I just..." Her eyes had been watering from the pain, and though she tried to hold them back, a narrow stream went down onto her left cheek. "Was your father a black-furred wolf, my yellow-haired man?" He was taken aback by the question...both by the irrelevance of the subject matter as well as the fact that she maintained enough spunk to still call him that stupid name despite the circumstances. If his father had been black in color, he might have assumed she'd known him, but he wasn't. Skoll was predominantly yellow, his father was gray and tan, his mother tan and gold and white. "No," he replied, "My father was gray and light brown, with a little bit of yellow that was a little darker than my coat." He paused after his reply, seeing the confusion on her face. "Why?" "Because I was just thinking...as I'm lying here, looking at my own guts, I miss my family. A black wolf came into the human house we lived in one night and killed them all...that happened a long time ago. I saw him...he was the most frightening thing I'd ever seen...and I remember now that he looked a lot like you. I thought maybe he was your father...he would have been too old to be you." She let her head fall back to the ground roughly...more of a jerk than anything. The pain had to be excruciating. "This takes a few hours, right?" "Or a few days," Skoll nodded, glad she had missed him wince when she described what had happened to her family. He knew who she was talking about. It wasn't a truth he wanted to deal with right now. "Yeah..." she coughed red ichor as her voice trailed off. "My sword is hard to do this with...can I borrow something shorter?" She indicated the blade in his left hand, and he nodded in comprehension. "I could..." "I'll do it myself, if it's all the same." Certain that she wasn't able to get up and do anything against himself or Lubomir with it, he handed her the blade. She took it up in her left hand, and studied it for a moment. "It's really nice," she said after a moment. "It looks like it stole the red right out of the rose...I'll name you SteelRose, and you can take the rest of the red from me to make yourself the prettier." She took the blade tip and ran it down the length of her right wrist with one deft stroke. Switching hands carefully and a little clumsily for the self-inflicted wound, she wrapped the four fingers of her right hand around the handle and inflicted an identical wound to her left wrist. She let her arms fall to her sides, and closed her eyes. "Only a few more minutes left," she said in a strange voice that was at once both child-like, and weary as any adult voice could be. She said no more, but Skoll knew that her consciousness still persisted for at least a few more moments. He had no parting words for her...it was a sad time, yes, but she was a monster. Despite her strangely honorable conduct in her demise, the world was still far better without her. Nevertheless...knowing that VoidFane killed her family made him wonder just how many lives his great grandfather had ruined. ~The lyrics are from the best song ever written.

[Tayui Aston]

    

When beauty was in season, Endangered by reason

     She had heard the howl. It had been some time ago, for she had been so far away. She was on the other side of the pack lands, and she had wasted much time simply getting there. It had Lubomir, proclaiming the existence of an intruder. She did not know if she would be able to help at all, for she was not a fighter- not in any way. The only scuffle she had ever involved herself in had ended in her defeat. Her brother had tried to claw out her eyes. Both were in tact, but somehow, it had stained the iris red. She had read about it in a book, but she could hardly remember why her eye had taken on the colour it had.
     Even so, the presence of the most dominant wolf in the pack was usually enough to scare away an intruder. She had never had to attack anyone all that seriously- what she had done had come naturally to her. One needed to strike with something that could puncture the flesh, be it their claws or teeth. She just hoped that she was not too late to help.
     As she neared the source of the howl, the smell of blood became stronger. A battle had occurred; she hoped it was not one of their own that had fallen. She growled, low in her throat as the strength of the scent continued to grow. “Lubomir.” It was not so much a statement as a question. “Skoll. What's this?” She turned her attention to what appeared to be a coyote lying in a pool of her own blood. She hoped for all their sakes that it was not one from Inferni.

[Skoll]

I was so gonna jump on that joiner thread, but you beat me to the punch XD Also, I saw you make another request for Tayui to learn to fight. We can still do that, if you'd like, I'm totally game for another thread in addition to this one. The big male turned his head toward Tayui's voice as she emerged onto the scene. Pain was beginning to leak into his wounds...the adrenaline had held most of it at bay, but he was beginning to feel nervous as that chemical seemed to drain away and the pain--especially in his right arm--began to grow. He thought he knew what she was thinking, though he thought attention to their wounds might be a more immediate than the possible political ramifications of this. He hated the fear that the wolves around here held for Inferni. If they would just join one another in ridding themselves of the clan, that problem could be easily remedied. "Not Inferni," he said flatly. "Her name was SteelRose, a warrior I knew of from a war that took place a long way from here, before I arrived in Bleeding Souls. She's a professional, like me...hence the mess." He indicated himself and Lubomir at this last comment. "I told him to stay out of it, to leave it to me, but he wouldn't listen. Just as well, we're both alive. I know I wouldn't have been if he hadn't stayed put after calling you." Now that he was talking about him, Lubomir didn't look so good. He should probably receive attention...it didn't look like he was in danger, but he looked very tired, and had slammed into him preparing for the killing blow, which--with all of his other wounds--probably took quite a bit out of him. "I apologize for being unable to handle her alone, Tayui. For now, Lubomir needs attention, clearly." Truth be told, he needed some as well, he'd received six wounds and his face was bleeding freely, but he didn't think his condition was bad enough that he wasn't ready for additional orders, or to hold back and explain the situation. It was possible that he was pushing himself too hard to compensate for his inadequacy before. It was his job to be able to handle these situations without anyone else getting hurt. In that regard, he had failed. ~The lyrics are from the best song ever written.

[Tayui Aston]

     Hrahhh :] And I'll PM you once I finish some of my other threads so we can hop on that!

A ghost in the system, and angel on the stairs.

     Tayui frowned, exhaling loudly as Skoll began to speak. Inferni. She had suspected it at first- for where else did one find a coyote baptised in such blood?- but it did not mean she expected Skoll to jump to such a conclusion (or think she might). It was troubling that he suspected it had been Inferni; the fear and paranoia that pervaded the wolf packs regarding the coyotes was becoming increasingly obvious. Even so, she was relieved to know that it was not one of them, for that would cause more problems than it would solve. It was even more reassuring to know that Skoll was able to ascertain the coyote's affiliation: none. A rogue coyote- more like a demon from Skoll's past. But the death of every demon came with a price. It seemed as though Skoll and Lubomir had already paid some of that sum with their wounds.
     She glanced over to where Lubomir was lying and felt her heart constrict at the sight of him. She would have liked to call him a fool, but from Skoll's testimony, it seemed as though he were more of a fool-saint, or a hero even. Perhaps a kind rescuer. “Will there be any more problems with any group SteelRose is affiliated with? She doesn't have anyone... looking for her, does she?” The last thing anyone needed was a warrior clan invading these lands, especially one this female was from. Skoll and Lubomir's ragged appearances made it obvious that SteelRose was a killer; a trained assassin. “As for wounds... the only one I know who can treat that that's still alive is Naniko. She used to visit Jaded Shadows. I don't know where she is now, though. We'll have to find her if we have any hope for Lubomir,” she replied with a grimace. The other healers she knew of were Acid and Shaeniire, but both were most likely dead now. She knew one was.

[Skoll]

Indeed =) "I think that Pilot might be able to help. I don't know for sure, but I want to say I've seen him messing with tools appropriate to this situation before. Anyway, he's probably headed here even now after Lubomir's call, so we should at least check with him first." He squeezed his eyes closed for a moment and clenched his jaw, fighting off the pain...he had taken some deep wounds this time...before meeting her eyes again. "I haven't seen SteelRose for a few years, but everything I ever heard about her suggested she was a loner. It's possible that she has a partner or something, many warriors travel in pairs, someone to watch your back, basically, but I doubt anyone would risk her company. She was eccentric in the extreme, not to mention brutally and maliciously insane...anyone who traveled with her would have a very high chance of being murdered on a whim...and I doubt there are many who wouldn't pick that up from spending a few minutes with her." He studied his arm after a moment, having wiped off his knife and replaced it in his bag. He needed to retrieve his axe, and then take Lubomir to go get looked after. "I think chances of someone coming to avenge this woman are low, Tayui. Let's worry about Lubomir, then maybe my arm, then we can talk about possible political ramifications. If you need, I'll follow her trail in the morning and see if it meets up with anyone else's anywhere near here." ~The lyrics are from the best song ever written.

[Tayui Aston]

A ghost in the system, and angel on the stairs.

     She was genuinely surprised to find out that Pilot had the qualifications to treat injuries as grave as these. She would never have suspected that he had enough knowledge in medicine to treat, well, anything; practices regarding such things always proved to be elusive to Tayui. She had almost no books on the subject, and knew too few to be able to learn. (Or perhaps she had some books, but simply could not decipher the cryptic words within). She had thought about it, but it had always remained as just a thought. Even though Skoll was certain Pilot would have heard the howl, it would be a good idea to warn him of the situation nonetheless. She lifted her head and howled for the other leader, asking him to meet them at the border.
     There was a period of silence before Tayui decided to address Skoll's last comment. “Even if you say the possibility is low, I'd like for you to scout out the area if Pilot agrees to it. If you're not fit to venture out, possibly into another battle, well... I'd rather you not become a sacrifice. Since we're waiting here, however, we might as well discuss such political ramifications. Is there any way she might have a lover? Kin that might avenge her death? Anyone that might know her whereabouts?” She paused, regarding Skoll intently. “No matter how long of a stretch it is, I want to make sure there will be no issues. She's not from around here; I don't know anything about her or what this means. I'll do everything to ensure the safety of this pack.”

[Skoll]

He worked past the pain of his injuries to give her his full attention, deciding to just let Lubomir rest until Pilot arrived. It occurred to him then that he needed to teach some of these people how to fight. He was now out of commission, and while a fighter who was merely proficient would have been inadequate to deal with SteelRose or someone like himself, it would pay to have a few part-time fighters around to handle less dire conflicts, such as those posed by lone Inferni coyotes. "It's possible, Tayui. There was nothing we could have done to avoid this situation, though. When I arrived on the scene, Lubomir was being chased in our own territory by an outsider, and outsider with a reputation for unprovoked and excessive bloodshed. I can't promise she was alone, but I didn't smell anyone else, and Inferni's scent wasn't there." He was flustered, both by his present condition but also because of her drive for answers. "It's always possible that someone was attached, but only three...soon to be four people know what happened here. For someone to avenge her, they need to know who killed her, and to know that they will need to ask questions. If someone comes around asking about her, we'll know, and we'll tell them what she did, and who killed her for it. If they remain defensive of her actions, they can either move into our territory and get killed by myself and anyone who cares to join me, or they can challenge me and I can settle it outside of Shadowed Sun." Fighters of her caliber were rare, if she had a companion of some sort, he doubted that they would be as formidable as she. He would be injured for a follow-up fight...but it was his job to answer it if there was a challenge, regardless of his situation. ~The lyrics are from the best song ever written.

[Lubomir Varg]

OOC: I know it took forever. I'm sorry for the hold up, guys.

Lubomir shook. His body was shutting down, he knew it. Fighting Deuce, then this coyote, had drained him to the point of exhaustion. Her last exchanges with Skoll, her manner of death, all eluded him. They seemed to pass beyond him and disappear into the cold morning air. He felt like the fog: light, floaty, ghostly white. He could feel his legs giving way, the earth felt so soft beneath his body, his mind shutting down to let in some kind of healing power. His monster, his fiend, opened one lazy yellow eye and grinned at Lubomir. 'You thought you'd play hero again. I wasn't there to save your ass. And what do you do? You charge at her foolishly and nearly get yourself killed.' Lubomir tried to reason with him, to say something, but any possible word he could exhale was just a dapple in the darkness. For it was dark here, dark, cold and lonely. Lubomir knew he's passed out at this point and that he was the prisoner of his other self, of this monster who came out as he pleased. Over which the grey wolf had no control.

Slowly, the edges of this world began to shimmer and he was soon in a green meadow, a green so beautiful and raw he knew he had to be dreaming. The Old Country had never been this green. He couldn't get up, so he simply lay there, until two wolves appeared on the horizon, moving slowly and gracefully, as if they were two feet from the ground, floating. Frigg. One-Eye. He should have known. He even let out a small groan. But they approached silently and soon stood above him and indeed they were floating, such beautiful creatures they seemed, so magical and aloof. His sister was crying. He could see that clearly. One-Eye looked almost over Lubomir's shoulder, to a point on his rump and his expression was blank, but with a hint of disappointment. Painfully, he looked down himself and saw the reason behind their looks: he was dying. Blood seeped from him and turned the beautiful grass a horrid dark red colour. 'You're dying. Brother. Wake up. You're dying.' Her voice. Lubomir quickly glanced at her. She was crying even worse now and One-Eye's expression had not changed. He was dying.

He thought about it. Here, in this haven he was destroying, he could be with them. With his sister and his brother-in-law. And he would let go. Of Skoll, his friend. Of Ember, whom he loved. Of Shadowed Sun, where he belonged. Of all he had achieved, of his great adventure. He could sleep, yes, and rest, and be at one with those he had loved. 'He will blame himself. He is a warrior. Would you like him to blame himself for your death, Varg?' One-Eye was harsher than his mate. He was also a warrior. If he lost one of his own, he would suffer. And Lubomir truly liked Skoll. So why do this to his friend? He looked at his sister and nodded once. She would understand.

When he came to, Skoll was mentioning more fighting. He blinked and picked up Tayui's scent. So she too was here. Slowly, painfully, he got up on all fours, steadying himself and trying not to succumb to the faint again. He was so damn weak, he knew it. He was out of the game for a long while. But if Skoll would push himself, who was Lubomir to act the coward? 'I'm afraid you won't be the only one fighting. You fight, I fight with you, Skoll. Lady Aston, I beg your indulgence for my lack of consciousness. I trust I have no missed much?' His own voice sounded rusty, as if he hadn't used it in a long time. In his head, Lubomir heard the monster chuckle. He chose, wisely, to ignore him. For now.

652 words. Took like 3 days to write it. Grah.

[Tayui Aston]

A ghost in the system, and angel on the stairs.

     She was being cruel. She knew this; Skoll's weary gaze was enough evidence for her. She felt bad to be asking him so many questions, ripping apart his mind when it had already been attacked. She knew she should stop, but the drive to continue was powerful. Just a little more, just a few more questions was what her mind told her. Her words would not kill Skoll, nor would they severely injure him like the rogue coyote. She could continue harassing him, but it would be for nought. She nodded, sufficiently pleased with his reply; she would mull over the implications later.
     “Thank you, Skoll,” she replied, her words coming out as nearly a whisper. They were faint, but they carried her determination. Although she doubted Skoll would hear it, it only mattered to her. That she had said it, or at least thought it. Perhaps she had not even said it at all.
     She would not allow any more harm to come to her members. They deserved that much from their leader. She frowned as she heard movement coming from Lubomir's direction. He groaned quietly. She watched him, glancing at Skoll quickly, then moved toward Lubomir.
     He moved, pushing himself onto all fours. Tayui refrained from growling at him, barking at him to sit down and stop this foolishness at once. But she contained herself; she knew that harsh words would not heal any injury. “If you are to even consider fighting in the future, you will sit yourself down. It cannot be helped that you lost consciousness, but if you try to push yourself, you will gain nothing.” She kept her words cool, free of the acid that nearly threatened to consume her. All she could feel was anger. First a rogue coyote attacked her pack members, injured them, hurt them, and then she hurt one of them more with her questioning. She would not stand by as Lubomir forced himself to move, thus injuring himself further. “However, a thank you is in order. Perhaps it is not appropriate for this sort of situation, but thank you, both of you. Your actions may have spared the lives of many others.” She knew she would hate herself if she did not bring her temper under control, for she was wavering between being cold and distant to rash and angry. She would accomplish nothing if she did not consider her words before she spoke, or her actions before she moved.

[Skoll]

Is this a good place to wrap up? Skoll nodded blearily at her thanks, before hearing Lubomir's interjection. Looking down at the sorry state of his comrade, his only response was the shaking of his head. He still had his left hand; that was enough to put up a fight. Lubomir lacked his training, lacked his experience, and lacked his discipline. If someone came looking to make them answer for the death of SteelRose, he would take the challenge alone...even if that meant simply keeping his pack mate in the dark. He was a professional warrior; that meant that it was his duty to lay down his life for others in the pack. If anyone died, it should always be the warrior first...as long as it was possible, his own life should be a shield to those he protected. This was not Lubomir's role...and it was something that most people did not understand. For someone who did what he did, it had to be accepted that everyone else's life meant more than his own, otherwise the protector would hesitate at crucial moments, ponder the idea of retreat or abandonment in the direst moment. Taking this life path meant acknowledging that much. "It is what I am here to do," he said pointedly, closing his eyes to keep his head clear through everything. "If I acted any other way, I would have been betraying you and the pack. Lubomir is the one who went above and beyond his own responsibilities today." In truth, he appreciated the thanks, but he hoped she would understand that she did not owe them to him. A protector was good only for this sort of situation; he had a place in the pack and the respect of his peers and leaders, so she did not owe him anything. He remained standing, knowing that it would be difficult to get back up if he needed to. He would wait for Pilot to get here and to receive instructions from him. ~The lyrics are from the best song ever written.