Toxicity had not washed the now-dried blood off her maw or pelt. She walked with determination- no stopping for little talks about plants or religion on their way home. She still smelled of Pestilence and wore her blood proudly across her coat. The trip was exhausting. She had been bleeding from Pestilence's initial attack, but it had since stopped. She had no doubt Calamity's paws were aching for relief and she promised that the two of them would soak in the shrine waters after this. When the duo came upon the pack lands, she called for Venom and perhaps Plague before quickly skirting to the building she and Obi were working on. She didn't want to be spotted by others, so she ushered herself and Calamity inside. Obi was there and moved to help, but Toxicity gently shooed him away, assuring him she was fine. He instead went to light some incense and spread furs for the group to relax on. He wrung and worried his hands together as he worked on his tasks, getting a few clay cups full of water and a few strips of dried meat for whenever everyone would show. Toxicity settled, motioning for Calamity to do the same while they waited. "Speech"

By the time they re-entered pack territory, Calamity thought she was going to pass out. The adrenaline had long since worn off but Toxicity still seemed to be riding high. She appreciated the silence on the way back, if only because the sound of her own thoughts were deafening. Did they do the right thing? Were the gods happy? Could Toxicity even ever truly know if the gods approved of what they had done? Were they also tainted by the Klein blood that ran through their veins? Was it hypocritical to demean mortals when they came from a half-godless union? If the punishment was suitable, what did that mean for Toxicity's role in the pack? Would she often be asked to judge others for their sins? What constituted a sin? Her head was spinning so quickly that when Obi threw down a pile of furs Calamity simply collapsed into it and waited for her heartbeat to slow to its resting rhythm. Eagerly she sipped from the cups provided and almost greedily indulged in the meat. There would be answers soon, she was sure of it. Someone would continue to guide her and put her on the right path. Whatever that meant.

-Before broke leg-

Venom didn’t expect her sister’s sudden call at the border, but her attention was swiftly garnered. Venom lifted herself to her paws and wouldn’t allow her sister to be kept waiting. Dual toned tail swayed at her hips as she made her way to the bamboo shrine that was being constructed. The Empress was impressed at the speed in which it was coming together. Her attention wouldn’t linger on the structure for very long as the scent of Toxicity and Calamity lured her inside. They would be back from the volcano by now, she was still unsettled that they had made the trip without her.

Venom ducked into the chamber and was confronted with the scent of Pestilence and the blood of her siblings. She squinted her eyes slightly as she settled herself down for the explanation that would undoubtedly be offered. Lowering herself into a sphynx like pose she looked to Toxicity as Calamity found her focus on the food that was offered. Dark ears swiveled to the door, waiting to hear Plague’s arrival.

At the call that rang out from his sister for their siblings to gather, Plague abandoned the training he was doing to go to join his sisters. Even though he had reintegrated himself into the pack after his lengthy time of training, he knew his work wasn't done if he wanted to make himself the most useful he could to their cause. He was still familiarizing himself with where he stood with his siblings and knew that it was going to take time and effort to rebuild his place among them, but he was determined to put in the work and at least show up for them when he was needed. He hurried to the structure that had been taking shape, slowing as he reached the entrance and slipping inside shortly behind Venom. His ear flicked at the scent of blood and noticed Pestilence's scent lingering in the mix, but his expression wouldn't change from its usual calm, focused state. His gaze flicked from Toxicity to Calamity to Venom and back again as he settled next to Venom, waiting patiently to hear what it was that was going on and what had happened. Talk

Calamity collapsed onto the cushioned furs Obi laid out and accepted the food readily. When Venom entered, Tox rose and she and Obi dipped their bodies in a sort of respectful curtsey, "Greetings to Empress Venom." Only after Venom settled did Tox do the same and Obi got back to work. He offered them each water and smoked meats. Pestilence came and also settled, receiving the same offerings as the others, although Venom's cuts were more carefully selected by Obi to be more tender and satisfying than the rest on account of her rank. Once everyone was present, Toxicity spoke, "Calamity and I return from the mountain which took our father nearly two years ago. I prayed for his guidance and for his grace in accepting Calamity back onto the right path. While I prayed, and while Calamity climbed, Pestilence attacked me from behind." Tox gave pause to evaluate her sibling's reactions and mental states. "While I'd rather not linger on her, I did explain once that if I met her again, I would be inclined to cull her. She gave neither of us an option. With Calamity's help I was able to reopen a wound on her neck and fall her off the edge of the mountain." Toxicity took a moment to drink from the water that Obi provided and he took the pause to burn some relaxing herbs over the low-coal fire in the middle of the room to help soothe the tension. "We broke her blood-bound sigil. She is no longer god nor mortal and her soul should be dispersed as such. I thought... to talk to our father about this since he died while fighting his own brother." "Speech"

Calamity's eyelids fluttered as Toxicity spoke. Now that her adrenaline had fully faded, she found herself nearly fighting to keep consciousness. Venom and Plague would be much more interested in what Tox had to say - after all, they hadn't bore witness to it firsthand. Every time she closed her eyes she saw Pestilence skitter over the edge of the cliff, saw the abject panic in her eyes... but she'd never heard the distant impact of her body on the ground. Gritting her teeth, Calamity's gazed flitted from eyes to eyes as she surveyed everyone's reaction to Tox's news. It was gruesome but necessary. Right? Breaking the sigil had felt fulfilling, in some sense. It provided a sense of closure. Even if she couldn't be sure that Pestilence had truly perished, her role in their lives was rendered null. Calamity greedily slurped down more water after Toxicity finished speaking and let the calming scent of the herbs crackling in the fire settle over her. ...talk to our father... Cala almost whimpered hopefully but bit back the childish noise. It had been so long since they'd seen Archon in their dreams.

Plague didn’t take long to round out the group, and as Obi carefully provided the Empress with her refreshments Toxicity began to explain why she’d brought them there. Venom smiled at both and gave Obi a thankful nod before her sister overwhelmed her attention. The Empress hid her emotions behind her stoic expression, taking in the details provided, and feeling increasingly disappointed. What she had was a potential clash with Fireside on her paws. While she didn’t know a great deal about them she knew that was where Pestilence had decided to live instead of with her kin.

Venom couldn’t deny the symbolism of it all, butu she felt the weight particularly hard. Venom remained silent as Toxicity finished, ending with the need to talk to their father. Maybe he was a good place to start, but he wouldn’t be holding the enemy back if they found out what happened to their wolf.

”While she was fallen, Pestilence was a member of a formidable pack.” The allegation of Pesto’s first move likely wouldn’t get them far. ”There were two of you, and you couldn’t subdue her and bring her back?” Venom was even toned, but her rising stress was revealed in the way her hackles and quills prickled at her back. ”What are you going to do to fix this, Toxicity?”

Venom yearned to speak to Archon again, but she lost herself with ease over the potential act of war her sisters just admitted to committing.

Plague gave a small nod to Obi as the spread was laid out dutifully in front of each of them, though he barely paid attention to the food that was provided. His attention was fully locked onto Toxicity as she began to describe the events that had taken place. His brows pulled together slightly at the mention of the fact that Pestilence had attacked her during the pilgrimage to the volcano, a tightening of his jaw the only other real sign of his emotions breaking past his otherwise firm expression. A flick of his ear joined the subtle reactions when he heard of the fate that had claimed Pestilence in the end. As difficult as it was to separate the fact that she was their sister from the difficult situation she had put them in he knew that something had to be done. Whether it was the right thing to do... he wasn't entirely sure. They were all just trying to find their path in this life that had been left for them, were they not? His emerald gaze shifted to Venom as she responded, her obvious concern at the situation visible in the rise of the quills on her back. Even though she kept her tone even keeled, he could see that she worried about what this would mean for them in the future and his dedication to supporting Venom as their Empress forced him to lean his support and opinion toward Venom. In the larger picture of their souls and lives as pieces of this family perhaps Toxicity and Calamity were in the right - but Venom had the whole of the pack to think about as well. The idea of conversing with their father, while appealing, was the last thing on his mind at the moment. With the attention returned to Toxicity again, he lifted his gaze from Venom back to their sister again as he waited to see what her response would be before he spoke his piece. At least from what he could gather thus far he didn't see a clean solution to any of this, but he was interested to see what Toxicity would think the appropriate response would be. Talk

Toxicity had voiced her opinion of Pestilence before. When Tox had said if she saw the woman again she would kill her, Venom offered no words or caution or warning. She had seemed to even agree that Pestilence was on the other side. So in no way had she expected anything other than support from her sister. When Venom suggested they should have captured her, Toxicity's ears fell back, but she held her tongue to allow Venom the respect to finish what she was saying. Wait... she was scared of a mortal pack? Tox's eyes shifted from Cala, then to Obi, then finally to Plague and Venom as her brow knit. "Fix this?" Toxicity echoed, her voice nearly cracking. She was tired, covered in blood and her own wounds from her fight. Her emotions were raw, but she had bid them off and stuffed them down for the better of the meeting. The feelings she herself held were complicated on their own, but she smushed any doubt down long ago. Venom's suggestion that she was wrong stirred her and she had to take a deep breath to soothe herself before speaking so she didn't just say whatever came to her mind. "If their pack allows their members to attack people from behind while they prey, then they are a threat to us anyway," she started, only the slightest roughness in her voice conveying emotion before her voice levelled off again. "I bear many scars from her. From the raid when she ambushed me, from another time before this. Now she attacks us on the cliffside of a mountain. I have no doubt she was trying to kill me and would have succeeded if Calamity had not acted quickly. Capturing her was not much of an option when she came after me first. By the time I had time to even realize who she was, her neck was already reopened." Toxicity took a long drink of water to gain composure. In reality she wanted to scream. Of course Venom wouldn't understand- no one would. She had made a mistake letting Venom in, she told herself silently. She let her into her mind and emotions and she turned on them and on their religion in favor of some random pack that might be angry- just like their mother. When Toxicity looked up at Venom, the sharpness of her thoughts shined through, but she blinked them away. "If I had died, or if Calamity had died, would you have raised your claws against her pack? If so, then we already have nothing to be scared of. If not then we are not even safe in our own pack lands." Tox continued,  "How many times would you allow me- or anyone in your pack- to be attacked before disposing of them? Or is it because my skin- not someone else's or your own- bears the scars of her teeth that you find it hard to find justification in her demise?" Tox shook her head, but the thoughts were overwhelming. "Or would you have just let u-" Obi's hand fell softly on Tox's shoulder as he placed more water in front of her. He could have done it without any contact, but he was willing her silently to hold her tongue. Tox cleared her throat, "I apologize, my nerves are thin from exhaustion." Her eyes met Venom's now steadily, "If they come after us, the offer me as retribution. If that keeps you safe, then the sacrifice is well made, Empress." The offer was genuine, but her heart was stirred, shifting its relationship with everyone around her to become more distant. Venom was her empress and whatever brief moment they had shared as sibling allies laid frayed at Toxicity's paws. She thought, for a moment, they could all be siblings again, that they could trust each other to have one another's back no matter what. She was mistaken. It was a stupid, naïve thought and if she wasn't punished by Venom now, she would surely remember to punish herself later for allowing herself to get close to others again. Siblings or not, they had mortal duties they wished to look after. How could they understand her and care for her and back her if they didn't even side with her after someone had attacked her multiple times? They couldn't. They were incapable. In this, she was alone... except for maybe Calamity- for that she would have to shield the antlered woman from harm. "Calamity only acted to save me, her scent won't even be on the body since she used her antlers."

Her eyelids had almost fluttered closed, but Venom's tone shot them back open. Calamity looked up from where she lay prone, eyeing the exchange between her sisters with furrowed brows. This was not at all going how she'd planned - how Toxicity had assured it would go. They didn't seem to have Venom's support at all. Her stomach curdled and it almost felt like she would going to return the blessed meat she'd ate back into the world. Although it had been some time - since puphood, really - Calamity's found herself completely tongue-tied. All she could hear was the heavy beating of her heart in her ears as she stared glassy-eyed at the scene before her. Thankfully Obi stepped in and calmed Tox, but that didn't seem to assuage the tension that was building in the shrine. This is a holy place. This is wrong. Cala's ears flattened and she turned from sister to sister for guidance. So much had changed in the past year. Deathbelle's liaison with her brother left her feeling wary of her mother, and then Venom's sudden ascension to power had come so quickly... barely any time at all to adjust. Plague held his tongue but his reaction seemed much more calculated than Calamity's. The antlered girl simply had no words at all to speak.

And at the very last, Toxicity defended her. Calamity's purple eyes shot to her sister and softened slightly, recognizing her words for what they were: an act of sacrifice. Whatever was to come, Tox was doing her best to leaven the blame off of her shoulders. Finally she willed her tongue to work, unsticking it from the roof of her mouth. "It was terribly dark. All I heard was Toxicity being ambushed. I acted to protect my sister. I only wanted to grow closer to you and to god," she uttered softly.

Toxicity’s headspace was far from aligned with Venom’s as she had originally assumed. All of this stemmed from her being left behind. The young Empress wasn’t sure that she had ever seen her sister become emotional, but as she spoke her reasonable concerns, Tox looked as though she was being personally attacked, again. Venom kept her demeanor, stoic, silent, and only her quills standing and occasional tongue flick would betray her inner thoughts. She wouldn’t interrupt her sister, but as she spoke on there was hardly any solution offered. Tox was far from concerned as Venom was. When her sisters were done speaking Venom would continue, glad for the clarifications given. With the tiny bit of information originally given, how else was she to react? Offer up a parade and a feast for killing the woman they had been born alongside? Was life so frivolous to Toxicity?

”Yes. Fix this.” She clarified, going back to her sister’s first words in return. ”We” She wasn’t about to cast her sister’s actions off as not her own. Even if she wished to martyr herself. ”Are responsible for the death of another pack’s wolf. With Pestilence’s history of attacking you we can not make the assumption that her pack was aware of the actions she would take.” Venom continued.

”I would very much assume that they would be doing the exact same I would be were the roles reversed. Had I received news that you had been killed I would be raising up every ounce of the Empire’s strength to overcome such a threat.” She assured her sister that no one would take from her without retribution. ”Had you not left without me, she never would have attacked to begin with.” And they were back to the root of Venom’s disturbance. She had been left behind. Even if Pesto had attacked first, that was Toxicity’s sin to bear.

”I’m going to have to take a couple of wolves to meet with the leadership of Fireside. Hopefully I can get to them before the news arrives without explanation.” Her own gaze turned sharp as she returned Toxicity’s hard stare. Her sister made obvious that she did not want to be trusted. Her actions were so much different from those words she’d once whispered. The words of hope that Venom had foolishly clung to. Hope that no matter what Toxicity would have her back, but as she fractured them, and offfered up herself as sacrifice, Venom was given the truth. ”When you act, those actions were made by me. We are one and the same and if you will suffer so shall I.”