The Stripped Hunter [CAS]

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Eight months it's been since Malice stepped into the Valley. Eight months and still he hasn't come to understand what drew him here in the first place. Here, the seasons changed. The days passed. His prey squealed. Nothing quite seemed out of the ordinary, until one were to look at its canine inhabitants. Besides the fact that the wolves here shared in odd coat patterns, all he learned was that the valley is... different from where he’d come from. As it happens, that isn't entirely helpful.

In his time alone, he pondered the valley, and followed the odd scent of... something, while never staying in one place for long. A few weeks ago, he reached the western mountain, and here a restlessness bloomed within his breast. However, considering the season, and a desire to conserve energy, his body remained still upon stone he lay upon. A large boulder rest atop many smaller ones, and formed a few wolf-size nooks, one of which he called his own. Malice finally allowed a former injury to heal, and the once-hairless back right hock had regrown, now looking like an actual limb that belonged to him and not some abomination.

He watched a light flurry of snow sweep over the mountain, ears held sideways as he slowly blinked his eyes open to the afternoon light. 

[Cascade]

There had been much unrest in the valley. Stirrings of newcomers, packs formings and breaking apart faster than one could stop to consider their presence. The mountain's range abuzz with activity but lacking in all structure. Perjury herself lacked structure lately, ironic considering her unique qualities. So much time had passed without a sense of equilibrium that it made the alphess feel very uneasy. She liked knowing what was going on in the valley at all times, but lately even the machinations of the forest were too much for her to keep proper track of.

The caves were one place that Perjury seldom ventured. There were huge expanses of rock in varying states of erosion, but little soil for her to manipulate. It was one of the few places in the valley where Perjury could feel vulnerable, and on the rare occasions she did travel here she usually made sure that one of her pack members was accompanying her. She didn't consider herself a paranoid wolf, merely prepared for many dangerous possibilities.

Today, though, she was travelling alone. She needed to clear her head space and seeing all the same faces day in and day out was one of the things that was pushing her persistent headache into migraine territory. Coming to a stop at a picturesque ledge, Perjury allowed herself to take a seat, rest, and enjoy the view for the first time in a long while. It felt odd to her not to feel out a map of her surroundings; she held no power over rock, which was far too dense for her to manipulate. Thus, she had no ability here to sense the vibrations of wolves moving about the area. It was something that she had come to rely upon so much that she did not even think to sniff around for others who might be present.

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The incoming wind carried with it another scent, besides that of snow. His ears slowly swiveled forwards and sluggishly raised his head from his paws. He lacked the energy it took to be curious, but determined it would be wise to move soon. He lay still for a few moments  longer, head raising a bit further as a light snow blew past his little nook. An increasingly attentive gaze searched for movement of any sort, maw slightly agape in anticipation.

[Cascade]

Perjury's ears swiveled when a cold breeze finally brought a scent to her nose. She shuddered a bit as the biting air chilled her sinuses; although he winter coat had grown in, she was always a lean wolf and lacked a thick layer of fat to protect her from the cold. One of the reasons she had come here was so that the mountain might block chilly winds, but one nonetheless managed to wind its way through the craggy rocks and bring to her the knowledge that another was close by.

Some wolves, especially those of her ilk, would go on the defensive whenever they sensed another's presence, jumping to their feet and snarling a challenge to anyone who dare approach. Perjury took no such alarmist view on strangers, nor the idea that uncontested territory was hers and hers alone to occupy. "I see that I am not alone here," she said instead, a simple invitation to slip away or make an introduction, whichever the unseen stranger preferred.

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The voice was unexpected, and he tensed slightly at the sudden aural stimulation. He rose to his paws and fluidly hopped down from his perch, out into the open where it would be easier to flee if necessary. Thick, dark grey fur was in stark contrast with the bitter whiteness of the snow, and the bulk on his body wasn't just from fur alone. Alert, titian eyes squinted as he quickly scanned the crag around him. "So it seems." He shifted his paws until his eyes came to rest on a pale figure that blended with the falling snow. From the white fur that bustled in the cold wind, he made out a pair of eyes and a nose- another wolf. He faced her squarely, nose pointed up at her as he drew his ears forward. The base of his tail lifted slightly, but pointed downwards in an self-assured, but non-threatening manner. The silence thereafter would be hers to break.

[Cascade]

Perjury heard the response and turned towards the sound, a response from the stocky male who had apparently been sitting quite undisturbed until she had wandered in. She could not tell his alliance from just his appearance—very rarely could any wolf tell just from that. She herself lacked what many called "crazy eyes," a common and repugnant stereotype associated with her evil-hearted peers, and she could pass easily for a neutral were she not such a well-known figure.

Nodding her head in acknowledgment of his presence, she held her tail in a position suited to her status. Though she was not on the Frigid Plague lands and did not posture herself quite to the extent that she did on her own territory, she remained an alphess and presented herself clearly as such. "I am surprised to see another wolf at such an altitude at this weather," she shivered slightly as another cold wind blew through her fur, "Clearly it suits you more than it does me. I am Perjury of the Frigid Plague, to whom do I make this acquaintance?"

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The dark-furred male returned the light nod and made a small effort to relax as he stretched his fore paws out in front of him. When he came back up, he turned his nose away from her, and made a harmless, audible noise at her first sentence, reminiscent of an agreeable 'hmm'. He turned his ear to her as she continued to speak.

At the introduction, his eyes met hers one more time. "Perjury.." he tasted the name she bore, and opened his nostrils to the cold air as he formulated his reply. "You may call me Malice. And I represent..." he replies calmly, each word clearly projected as if he took pride in them. ".. myself." He finishes and points his nose off in another direction, though making sure to keep her within his peripherals.

[Cascade]

Perjury's interest piqued hearing the male's name, and she looked at him with new eyes. It was not usual for Goodie parents to give their son a name like Malice. Perjury also had a name that suited her darkness and she suspected, although based solely upon circumstantial evidence, that he might share her alliance. Good, if that bore true than there might be the possibility of getting along. "The pleasure is mine, Malice," she said.

"I cannot say that I have ever represented only myself, but I daresay I might have done a good show of it. Perhaps even better on a winter day like this. A wolf of my stature out in this cold doesn't seem like she would do very well in any frigid weather, let alone a frigid plague," she smiled, "But I am nothing if not a master of exceeding expectations, if only by pure necessity."

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In between the sounds of their voices bouncing back and forth, Malice remained idle and firmly planted upon the speckled stone at his paws. "So long as we do not end up at each other's throats, then yes, a pleasure this is, Perjury." The tip of his tail curled slightly, but relaxed as she seemed to remain calm. He watched her as she continued to speak, examining the way her skin over her muzzle moved. His ears pointed forward as he continued to decipher this complex being before him.

"I cannot say that I am used to cold, but plagues.. I have seen my fair share." Perhaps a weak attempted to humor her, and weaker still because of his rather sober demeanor. A sharp intake of breath later, and he turned the subject on its head, getting to more pressing matters that 'plagued' his mind. "It is uncommon that I am ignorant of scent markers, but the odd odor of this place may have thrown me off. I do apologize if I happen to be trespassing." he speaks slowly, ears swiveling outwards. "I will not fight for land that does not belong to me."

[Cascade]

"Tresspassing?" Perjury let out a laugh, albeit not an excessively cruel one, "Have no fear, there is no one who lays claim to this land. I am not even sure that it would be possible, and if it were then that day would surely spell ruin for us all." Fairly comfortable that Malice was not about to make a mad leap for her throat, Perjury walked slightly towards him to position herself in a patch of sunlight, grateful for the relief from the coldest air, however slight it was. "The mountain's magic is far too powerful to be tamed by any mere mortal. You'll be quite safe from pack squabbles here, and will have to travel quite a bit further south into the grasslands before you find yourself in any trouble with the Goods who inhabit the meadow." It was clear that he was a newcomer, and she wasn't above courtesy.

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Malice raised his head in surprise at the laugh. He let his tail comfortably droop behind him as the female moved closer, and he took a few small steps back to give the unfamiliar wolf some space. His curiosities definitely grew as Perjury continued her train of sentences, what with the talk of 'Goods' and.. magic? The look he gave her was one of quiet confusion. A single paw came forward as he tilted his head with interest.   "Apologies, but I do not follow.. I am not from around here, you see." An ear flicked in reaction to the cold blowing overhead.

[Cascade]

Perjury noted the bewildered look on his face, not surprised that one who was not aware of the territories might not fully know of the mountain and it's many unique secrets. "Yes, it is my understanding that our fair valley is a rare place. Perhaps the only thing like it in this world, although I am not traveled enough to know for certain." The alphess gazed at Malice with curious interest. There was a special pleasure in imparting common knowledge to one who was completely unaware, especially if that knowledge was as fantastical as this.

"If you have come from outside the valley, then there is much you do not know. There are special dangers here, so unimaginable to an outsider that they can not be anticipated. But there is are also great wonders that equally defy the imagination. This mountain is no mere mass of earth and rock, but a source of powerful magic that pervades the valley. It is a great power, great enough that many wolves have taken for themselves a piece of the power. Others, such as myself, have held one of those fortunate gifts since birth."

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The grey wolf shifted his paws and steadily paced to and fro in a short line as he considered the information he was given. Danger. Unimaginable power. Perjury's words were of the utmost enlightenment, and eased just an ounce of the stress that had been flush upon his spirit. He stopped in his tracks to face her again when he was ready to speak.

"This place sounds unique, indeed. It is unlike anything I have felt nor seen." His eyed blurred for a moment as he recalled a former life. "I come from the forests far east of here, where the wolves were not so..." he thought for a brief moment. "—colorfully painted. Nor did they possess any odd abilities to note." He slowly moved around the shewolf if she seemed all right with it, moving in a large arc so as not to seem like he was closing in. His eyes focused on her pristine coat, and he snuffled quietly to take in her scent. 

Malice moved back to his former position after likely getting a glimpse of her colorfully speckled back. "Interesting.." he mused to himself. He briefly gazed down the mountain side to the snow-capped trees far below. "Something enticed me here, and that's all I ever knew until now. Do you know what it could be?"

[Cascade]

Perjury allowed Malice to circle her, only slightly wary at the prospect of a surprise attack, but she didn't think it likely. She was always more comfortable with soil all around, but his body language was relaxed and respectful enough that she didn't feel the need to warn him away. He seemed puzzled, but interested in her coat, which Perjury knew to be unusual to an outsider. "You will see coats far more outrageous than mine if you choose to keep this place as your home," she said, standing at his mention of an enticing force, "And there is no doubt a reason that you found your way here. Perhaps even a reason that we met today. So close to the Power, you never know what is coincidence and what is fate. Tell me, do you affiliate yourself with any alignment? Does your heart overflow with cloying kindness, or does a certain darkness lead your conscience? We in this valley put a name to the forces that guide us. Perhaps the power is leading you toward your own kind."

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"The Power. Is that what you call it?" He asked quietly. The question may have been answered in the way that it was simply spoken about, but he always liked to be sure. His ears swiveled at the prospect of 'fate' and 'coincidence', two largely ridiculed parts of a vocabulary that didn't belong to him. Then again, this place was different. Perhaps here, these phenomenons came to life.

A subtle grin came upon his lips when Perjury finished speaking, and the tip of his low-hanging tail curled upwards. "I find it unbecoming to unmask myself so shortly after introduction." His eyes flashed with something noticeably sinister, however brief it was. "I was certainly drawn away from those unlike me, if you can gather anything from that." He continued to face her, standing calmly and keeping his distance. An ear swiveled outwards. "What of you, Perjury? How would you describe those considered to be 'your kind'?"