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Tyranis leapt from crag to crag, his expression alert as he made his way down the mountain side. Even though it hadn’t officially become his title-not yet anyway- Tyranis had taken it upon himself to patrol the borders  and check the packs markers. Raanee clung to him loosely as his long legs carried him over the steep drops and sheer cliffs of the maw. Momentarily he wondered why he had never thought of placing his pack on the treacherous terrain, especially when his motivation for taking the north had been to breed stronger wolves. “Not that that worked out either” He thought bitterly and sailed weightlessly to another  cliff. He couldn’t quite explain how he felt living on the Maw, something he hadn’t known before called to him know, a faint whisper on the wind that told him it was where he belonged. If he shut his eyes and focused he could almost make out the cadence of a voice, and hear the faint rolling syllables of words. Was it just the wind? Or was there something to Ruina and its demons?  

What was left of a dead goat lay exposed and mostly decayed in front of the grand entrance to Ruina's citadel, the den of the Demon Mother and the Apollyon. Two more rested outside, mostly old bones now scattered across the courtyard due to hurried steps pushing the remains of their meals around the dirt. It was honestly a mess, though Elias was making quick work to get each carcass off of the pack territory today. Of course, he meant to do the same yesterday... and the day before that. It wasn't hard to get distracted as an alpha.

He was running down the slopes of the mountain nearly on auto-pilot unless in the riskier areas of the pass. He almost ran right into Tyranis, only remaining a few feet from his son when he finally noticed him. His jowls clenched around the pack held within his teeth, old bones rolled in a fresh hide of a goat.. one that was hardly carefully cut and likely meant to be disposed of, as well.

He stopped what he was doing for the moment, dropping his neck and letting his square muzzle release the goat pelt at his feet. He rested a heavy foot on top of it to prevent it from rolling away and tilted his head to Tyranis. "I can see you have been getting to know these mountains." He grinned. Tyranis raced through here with confidence now, he didn't seem scared or uncertain of his footing at all with how fast he moved.

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He broke from his musings to address his father with a respectful bow. “Apollyon.” He greeted formally then smiled as he answered his father’s question. “When I was a year old I would train myself on Abaven’s rapids. Dry rocks are far easier to navigate than smooth boulders.” He said and glanced briefly at the pack of bones at his father’s feet. “Do you need help?” He offered but stood in place waiting to be given permission.

A faint howl caught his ears and diverted his attention. Something eerily similar to a wolf’s call but without any purpose whistled through the mountains. He released a breath he hadn’t known he had been holding, his body feeling oddly weightless in the chill mountain air. He looked to his father, a silent question playing over his features. Had he felt it too? Did he know what it was?

As Tyranis admitted to training in his youth around Abaven, Elias smirked. Training was how he had fought off the stress of things outside of his own control when he was a child. He would often wander into the jungle with Eliana and they would create their own obstacle courses, she much liked training away from the other Imps.

"These mountains should be a breeze for you then." He grinned, though he knew the dangers of their home terrain was nothing to underestimate, he was happy to see his son flying through with ease. It meant he was home, no longer feeling uncertain of where his paws rested.

Elias looked down to the rolled up bones in the horribly collected goat pelt, his talons scraping across it for a moment to unroll it and expose the bones within. "No, that's not necessary. I'm not too concerned with the mess we've created, dead bones are a sign of feasts- a healthy pack." He grinned. "So long as the carcasses are out before the maggots arrive, I'm satisfied... and rolling them up like this makes it easy to get rid of them, I can take care of it in the mornings when I set out for perimeter check." He was rambling again, wasn't he?

"What are your big plans for the day, Tyranis? If you're not busy, perhaps you could stroll the borders with me." It would give Elias a chance to explain more of their culture to Tyranis, as that was what his heart was really telling him to do. Tyranis developed the strength and aptitude all on his own, now he just needed a teacher.. and Elias was eager to mold him while he had the chance. He didn't want this one to become lost like some of the others, his demons were far too strong.

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“A healthy pack indeed.” He said with a wide grin, his own form had still been recovering from starvation and malnourishment, but with a healthy supply of meat at his disposal his bulk was slowly beginning to come in again.

He laughed at his father’s remark and answered; “No big plans for me I’m afraid. Not today at least.” His mind touched briefly on the red marked male he had met in the mangrove and the adoring looks he had given the young male, his cheeks flared, thankfully hidden by his fur but he remained as composed. He had considered leaving the pack to find him again and relive the playful encounter they had shared but weighing his father against Kai simply was no contest. “Consider me at your disposal.” He said as he stepped beside his father. He had made his decision, but he had been unable to hide the giddiness he felt just from remembering the strange stone colored male.

He waited for Tyranis to answer, although he suspected the man would be more than willing to take a walk with him. He grinned some, his paw that was still resting on the rolled up bones shifting slightly and causing a bit of clatter.

"I usually start off by heading to the burning mountain, checking on the levels of the fire within and then the altar that we have hidden." He wasn't sure if Tyranis already found the ram skull and dagger on a seat of goat and jackal pelts, but even if he had.. Elias wished to explain it further.

He lowered his head to pluck the pelt from the ground finally and took off with a bit of excitement speeding him down the mountainside. He had grown to love these mountains, reminding him so much of the single mountain they grew up beneath. Now they had three, and everything seemed so perfect in the air up here.

He raced to the mountain, partially testing his son's ability to keep up with him while a grin spread around the package he held tightly in his teeth. It took some time to get down the mountain, and once he did he had to trot across the flatter land and regain some of his stamina before hiking up the volcano. Traveling up the volcano was a different matter, the air burned there. He could not stress himself to the point of deep breathing, so he took a slow climb until he stood at the fiery gates of Hell.

He dropped the hide about three feet from the edge, which was as close as he dared to venture to that heat today. A kick sent the pelt rolling until it disappeared into the pit of the volcano and he finally turned to face Tyranis.

"Do you feel them here, Tyranis?" He smirked.

"In Ruina, we bury our fallen and the souls we have to offer to Apollyon here. The fire that burns in this mountain's core is a gift from Apollyon's heart, it acts as a gateway. It claims everything immediately in the name of Apollyon. Your grandfather was laid to rest on a mountain just like this.. as was your grandmother and.. many of your aunts and uncles." He stared into the glow of the fire on the rocks around them as he remembered each of their faces... sorrow full on his features for just a moment before it became masked once again.

He looked to Tyranis with a calm smile as he walked away from the mountain.

"If I die, Tyranis, it is very important that I be laid to rest here just as they were. There is a ceremony we go through... we prepare our fallen and gather to honor them. In Ruina, we devour the flesh of our fallen until only the skeleton they were built upon remains. By devouring their flesh, they strengthen us as we strengthen them and allow their souls to continue watching through our own souls. They appreciate it. Afterward, we give their bones back to Apollyon here so that they may run with him until they are brought back to us again." Perhaps now it made sense why he brought all the bones of their kills here. He looked up, through a sky full of ash he could still see the sun shining and it made him grin. Just as the sun broke through the ash in the sky, Elias would grin even when on the grim subject of death. He could feel it.. he could feel them.. and he knew that even when his time came, it wasn't over. He just hoped they would be proud of him when that time did finally come.

Tyranis listened intently to his father, keeping pace with him as his eyes roved over the sheer mountain side to the furiously glowing mouth as they drew closer and closer. "Do you feel them here, Tyranis?" his father had asked once they reached Mt. Vulcan’s peak. “I feel them everywhere in Ruina.” He said adamantly, his expression one of complete focus as his father continued to speak and explained the funerary rights of the Apollyon’s bloodline . He wasn’t sure how he felt about the thought that he would one day eat Elias, much less that one day he would be eaten himself. The idea of strengthening others had always appealed to him of course, it had been one of the foundations Dauntless had been built on but eating another wolf had always sat as sacrilegious in his mind. “It’s an honor reserved for the Praetor line.”He had thought, and his perspective changed accordingly. “I see…” He said quietly, his body language reflecting his contemplation. “Then our strength will live on. Passed from generation to generation with every death.” He reflected, mostly to himself although he spoke loud enough for Elias to hear.   Tyranis had never been exposed to religion, the question of what would happen to him after he died had in truth never occurred to him because his own mortality had seemed distant. “It’s comforting.” He said with a shy smile. “To know that when I leave this world I’ll live on in another form.” He took a deep breath then, letting the wind toy with his fur Speech, Thought, You