Velvet & Others

Dally coasted in low through the bare branches and frosted pillars of stone, gliding like a shadow beneath the canopy of the ruins. The falcon's path ended atop a statue, claws clicking against the weathered stone and lichen as he tilted his hooded head down to address the lioness laying below him. "Oracle Velvet." The raptor bobbed his dial, "I found her."

Velvet sat up briskly. The tone that Dally conveyed in those few words spoke clear to her, and caused the cat's stomach to knot with anticipation. "And?"

"She's dead." He watched a silent breath leave Velvet, the only visible reaction the big cat gave to the news. It rose like a cloud of mist between them, freezing into a thousand little crystals that glittered in the bits of sunlight that reached down through the trees above. Dally waited, then carried on to answer the questions he knew Velvet would ask next. "No sign of foul play. The only tracks around were her own. There were no injuries I could see, and no blood. A keener nose might find more information though."

The lioness nodded. Her ears lowered as she closed her eyes, and then raised them and turned from the bird. "Thank you Dally. I'll inform the others." She stood fully now and paced towards the central forum, crossing over the open expanse of stone floor where ancient humans use to gather. Here she stopped and called out in a series of deep roars, beckoning all Haunters to gather at her location.

Leomar and Tersek weren't far off when the call went out, the pair having been on patrol near the creek, with the Co-Lead discussing defense with the lion.

Oracle, Shadowstep, and Lupanare trekked in a few minutes later. The trio had been lounging in Dima's Temple, making use of the thermal heat in the area and enjoying some casual chatter before their daily patrol was set to begin.

Zanarah and Blackmist each entered separately, followed by Silver Fyre.

Cavan made his entrance from the Temple, moving with a slowed, faltering gait that Velvet took notice of. He squinted his one good eye, if it could be labeled as such, and bobbed his head as he tried to discern the location of his fellow packmates.

Erathi, Cedarwood, and Nightshade arrived at various intervals, each taking a place around the outskirts of the forum.

Quiilikahm

Click, click, click, click, click.

The rapid, uniform clack of Quilikahm's hooves, soft and subtle as it was, announced her presence before the tiny cervid rounded the last stone beam and popped into view. She stopped once to shake her coat, riding it of moat water, then carried on through the crowd.

"Leader Tersek." Quil dipped her ebony head before the wolf, and kept an eye out for his larger, feline half of the leadership. That greeting aside, the muntjac focused her sights on the lioness that had called everyone together. "Oracle Velvet. I've come across something that may or may not be related to Duality passing. At the very least, it would warrant further investigation."

The tiny deer paused and shook once more, this time flinging a few specks of ice from the course fur of her neck. "I scented human a mile from the lower road, at the base of our mountians. The tracks didn't go far, and didn't enter our lands, but the scent was familiar - it was Silver Fyre's former human."

Silver Fyre

Ruddy-eyed demoness stalked through the crowd of gathered Haunters to take her place nearer to Lupanare and her feline companions. She had arrived in time to catch snippets of Quilikahm's remarks, or least she was pretty certain she'd heard her name.

"What's this all about?" Silver queried, her voice respectfully quiet so as not to distract Velvet or the Leaders from whatever was being discussed up at the altar. "Did Quill say something about me..?" As she waited for an answer, dark eyes shifted away from the trio and began to rove the collection of Haunters, hoping to find Aizen among the mix.

Velvet & Others

Lupa turned her lean muzzle towards their newest member, keeping her words hushed, "Actually, yes. Something about your former master snooping near the edge of our territory." A subtle crinkle of her eyes spoke of suspicion, but cast no hostility towards the ebony hybrid. She had been a loyal and hardworking packmate thus far after all. "He's a keen hunter we know, but surely he can't track you, can he?"

Oracle shifted her weight and turned to fully look upon Silver Fyre. One small ear was pointed to her mother and the leaders, while the other was honed in on this private conversation. "I don't know much about the humans, but it does some a tad suspicious." Like Lupanare, there was no anger in her dark eyes, but a curiosity for what Silver might know about the sly man's abilities.

Shadowstep was currently looking away from the trio speaking, being more concerned about where the rest of the Haunters were. Some were likely out on patrol, too far away to make a quick appearance to the conference - she knew Starbane was out on such a mission - but it still made the big cat worry. They'd lost Duality already to a sudden a mysterious death, and Narimbi had been missing for over a day now. What if another Haunter failed to show up...?

Up at the altar, Tersek had nodded back to the little muntjac, while listening attentively to what she had to say. Hackles bristled at the news, and he glanced back at the defensive Cavan who'd finally managed to shuffle their way and sink back on his haunches. The old wolf hadn't heard what was said apparently, or he'd be in an uproar over it. Tersek then glanced about for Stacey, but not seeing her yet, spoke to Velvet, "Give them a few more minutes before you start, Velvet."

Like Shadowstep, Velvet was a little worried that only half their forces had arrived yet, and distracted acknowledged Tersek's orders. To Quil, she spoke in a voice laced with poison, "That creature will have to be dealt with. We can't afford to have a two-leggers discovering our domain; thank you for the update, Quilikahm."

Silver Fyre

Silver Fyre's dial sunk, her muzzle angled downward as a note of dread filled her gut. She closed her eyes momentarily and mentally went over all she'd divulged to Velvet and the others since casting Ethan aside and joining Aizen and his Family. She told them of the boomsticks, the various traps Ethan used, the quirks and strengths of each of his hounds, and his uncanny ability to find prey from long distances away.

Red eyes slid open and she shook her head, "I... I really don't know. He's very good at finding whatever prey he's after, but he does seem to rely on us to scent them out when we get close." If only she'd known of Rocky Road, the infamous 'King Lapid', she might have an idea of tracking devices. But that legendary fighter of Ethan's was before her time.

Velvet & Others

Lupanare frowned, nose wrinkling in thought. While one ear perked to hear the howl of her father, her eyes remained on Silver Fyre. "It's well known humans have a poor sense of smell, so it'd make sense he uses hounds to hone in on his quarry. If he's somehow managed to track us this far, what if we take measure to mask our scent, to fool any hounds he brings to our borders?"

Oracle turned to Lupa, interest lit in her gaze, "Not bad. I'm sure we can find a skunk or something similar to mask our trails in and out- or!" Her expression lit up as another thought came to her, and her dark almond gaze jumped to the little muntjac standing before her mother, "Quil has all sorts of herbs, I'm sure she can concoct something to wear in our coats, to cover our scents."

While the liger and the wolf discussed this, Velvet's already frayed patience had worn thin. She waited as Tersek had commanded, and after giving another ten minutes for the rest of the pack to show, she spoke briskly to Dally and Erathi, "Go scout the mountains and the lowlands, and try to locate the others. Make sure they are safe, and if you find them, let them know of the meeting." Now she looked to Tersek, who nodded and padded forth to stand beside her.

Velvet roared once more, this time commanding the attention of everyone present in the stone forum. "Shadow Haunters, I gather you this hour with grim news." The lion watched as her daughter's head jerked and she turned around, instantly quelching her conversation with Silver Fyre and Lupanare. The other hushed voices in the crowed quickly died away as well as eyes fell upon the Oracle. "Dally has located Sister Narimbi, and she is no longer among the living. We don't yet know what caused her death, but from here on out, I want everybody paired when leaving the Temple. No one travels alone, except for avian Scouts, and for the time being, Nightshade."

An uncomfortable silence filled the area, with Haunters sharing worried looks. No one dared speak though, leaving Velvet's voice to once again fill the air as she continued, "Furthermore, a human hunter, captor of Darkia, Aizen, Momo, and Silver Fyre, has been spotted prying around the edges of our domain. I want Cedarwood to scout the lower mountains, with Lupanare and Silve Fyre." Another pause, "Leomar, you and Blackmist will retrieve Narimbi's body once Dally returns and gives you a location."

Quilikahm

Once her message was delivered, Quilikahm scuttled back from Velvet and maneuvered through the throng on of Haunters, picking her way towards Nightshade in the back. Like a radar, one ebony ear was swung back to hear Velvet's new proclamations, and she wondered if she too would be assigned a partner in all of this.

Silver Fyre

'Narimbi?' Silver's auds flattened upon receiving the news. The white ligeress had superb camouflage this winter in the snow, and her hunting skills had been keen. Who are what could have taken out such a promising young cat? Not knowing the details around her death, it was hard for the hybrid to speculate, but following Ditaren's sudden death, it had her worried.

Silver Fyre flashed ruddy eyes to Lupanare when Velvet gave them an order. She stood and bowed her head to Velvet and Tersek, then looked for the chocolate-brown eagle that would be accompanying them. Several things were running circles in her mind now, but she'd wait until they were out on the trails before speaking her mind.

Tersek & Others

Tersek stepped heavily across the lichen-covered stones, moving up to the edge of the platform, where he stood a few whiskers ahead of Velvet now. The aged wolf, with his dual-toned eyes, looked hard across the gathered Haunters before he spoke in his low, commanding rumble, "If any of you come across any hint or hide of human, you are not to engage. Come to Senka or myself first. Our assault on the humans earlier was a necessary one to save our missing Family members, but I fear it may have turned their eyes more heavily upon us than I would have liked."

"Leader Tersek." Lupanare had shared an earlier look with Silver Fyre before now addressing her father, "Silver and I have an idea about the humans, something that could help?" She could see skepticism written across his grayed, scarred muzzle, but the elder wolf nodded and she continued, "We thought masking our scents before leaving the Ruins would help prevent the human's hounds from tracking us. Maybe skunks, or something made by Healer Quili could aid us."

Velvet smiled at this and spoke before Tersek could quite get the chance, "A fair idea. In that case, I want the two of you to help Quilikahm in that endeavor before searching the lower borders of our land. Cedarwood, you can follow them."

Tersek glanced at the Oracle but didn't argue. It was a sound enough plan. "Unless there are any further questions, you are dismissed." The co-lead eased back on his haunches as a slew of thoughts began to swirl in his mind, and Haunters began to disperse. Their numbers were slowly dwindling again, and this new threat of humans had him gravely concerned.

Quilikahm

Quili's unspoken question was answered soon enough with Lupanare's suggestion. The ebony cervid turned her petite dial and listened to the wolf and lion converse, while her mind quickly roved over the database of knowledge it had accumulated over the years. Almost distractedly, she gave Velvet an obedient nod, and after Tersek dismissed the short meeting, she plodded towards Lupa and Silver.

Click, click, click, click, click.

Large, dark eyes, almost lost against the soft sea of black that was her fur, stared up at the two predators. "I would suggest we try the Scar first. Plants are only now waking up from winter, so I'm not sure how much luck we'll have finding something that way. But we can check, and if that fails, skunk glands will provide a decent backup."

Silver Fyre

Silver Fyre remained attentive to Tersek and Velvet, nodding dutifully to both to show her understanding and willingness to help out with the tasks given to her. But when it came time for Quilikahm to scuttle her way, and bring up the suggestion of skunk glands, the wolf's ears dropped right along with her enthusiasm. "Glands? I really don't like hunting skunk. Can't we just befriend a handful of them, and have them cover our tracks when need be?" Red-tinted eye roamed from Quili to Lupanare and Cedarwood, hoping for some back-up on this suggestion. She'd come across the business end of a skunk once while hunting with Ethan, and no one had gone home a happy camper that day.

Lupanare & Others

As the other Haunters began to rise and disperse, Lupanare was turning to her appointed group, listening to what each had to offer, and weighing her own thoughts on each. "I'd say Silver's got a point, befriending a skunk or two would save us the annoyance of frequent hunts to replace used glands. Unless we find some that don't want to cooperate, then..."

"I can handle that." Cedarwood chimed in as he bounced their way, giant claws clashing against the stone floor as he moved in closer. The eagle bobbed his sleek dial, "Don't much enjoy their smell or taste, but I can dispatch a skunk easy enough. I just..." A slight shift in his tones, and a curious quirk of his head had Lupanare frowning curiously at the eagle. "..we'll we're out on this mission, would you three help me find something for Tracey?"

Silver Fyre

"We'll leave you to that task then, Cedar. Though hopefully we won't need to." Now she was feeling a bit better about their trek, and might have let her ebony banner wave if not for the reason of their expedition. She looked briefly to the departing pack, but didn't see Starbane or the others. Something in her gut clenched as she wondered if Narimbi's siblings had met her fate, and she could only hope Dally and Erathi found and warned the others.

"Huh? Oh yeah, of course." Silver returned an answer to the eagle's question a little distractedly, "Something shiny, or something like food?" The red-eyed wolfdog had dropped into a lope now, speaking to Cedarwood as she began moving towards the moat, and beyond that, the blighted land of the Scar.

Quilikahm

Little ears shifted one way and the other, listening to the canines discuss the skunk issue. "We can try to persuade living ones, if you'd prefer. I will leave the persuading up to you two." Really, she had no qualms about how they went about gathering these glands, though she herself would only be helping with the de-glanning of dead creatures.

After listening to the conversation switch to Cedarwood's love interest, Quil kept silent, and trotted forward to follow after Silver Fyre.