The earth-toned horned wolf jogged along the landscape. He had explored when he was younger but now he was an adult and caught the sight and scent of details the younger side of him had missed. Soon Kotori would have his own pack and be spending more time at home making it just as he envisioned. Perhaps he would find new members, perhaps he would just find something new, and of course, he was always ready for a fight.

As he came close to the river the decision was easy to see. A bear was near the rio grande, most likely hoping for a meal of fish. The animal didn’t appear to appreciate his attention and turned around, letting out a hateful roar.

The horned wolf had fought enough bears that a roar was hardly a reason to be concerned, showing off his own fangs he headed towards the bear, stalking in a straight line, keeping the bear’s back to the water. If it went in the water would surely slow its movements. The other option was for the bear to attack first and Kotori had a great counterblow for bears that attacked first.

The bear lunged forward as it decided on the attack part but instead of swinging as fast as Kotori had imagined it tried to just charge right over the horned wolf. Kotori was forced to simply get out of the way as the bear roared as it turned. Well, shoot, apparently this bear had its own tricks. Looking at all the scars on its muzzle the wolf imagined it had won enough fights.


"Kotori Fatalis"

So this was Boreas, the man thought as he mused to himself. He had never been to the land, nor had his mother, though the family he’d been raised with spoke of the lands. A tale of an ancestor who had once held a pack here… it wasn’t a bad idea, Alaois thought to himself. Holding a pack in a land of soft hearts tended to run rampant. A small smirk played on his features as he padded along, his blue-green gaze shining thoughtfully as he padded along. He wasn’t entirely sure where his journey into this land would lead him, but he knew where it began. His loyalty to a fiery woman had led him here, away from the family he’d grown with, away from his aging mother, and Alaois did not regret it. He was an adult now and could no longer be held back by childish things.

Besides… better a would-be conqueror than the doormat of some great Empire, right? He had always been ambitious and felt he had been of the right mind to follow the Phoenix of War. She had proven her prowess before in conquering one Empire for the sake of her father… and he had joined her cause, aiding in feeling the opportunity to prove himself. One did not simply rise to be a conqueror themselves without a stepping stone on the path to success. But Calida was more than that to him… she was beautiful, strong… the ideal woman. But what was he currently to a woman of her caliber? A loyal follower? No, that wouldn’t do. He would need to do more. Be more. One day, perhaps, he would win her over, but for now, he needed to figure out how he was going to get strong enough to do so.

He had been wandering near the river, an unknown body of water, when he heard the hateful roar of some bear. Hmm? How interesting. The man quickened his pace as morbid curiosity washed over him. Who was being challenged by a grizzly? What had they done to earn its ire? Had they merely stepped too close to it?

It didn’t take long for the bear to come into view and, with it, came a horned stranger. With a flip of his head to get his bang-like mane out of his eyes, Alaois made a decision. The stranger hadn’t asked for help, hell, probably didn’t even know he was there, but the thrill of a challenge rose in Alaois’ heart. Why not? Fighting a bear would be a worthy first story for these lands, and even if it was beside a stranger, the man would not mind sharing the glory. He was ambitious but greedy he was not. There was no reason to fight over who would kill the beast, especially given the danger of such a predator.

“Here Teddy, Teddy!”

Now that its charge was over with and it had turned to face the first wolf he raced towards it. He snarled as he drew close, the bear aiming to run at him head-on next. The scarred creature wasn’t scary to Alaois though. He came dangerously close, leaping to the side as the bear pounced in his direction and tried to “hug” him. He lashed his tail back and forth as he lowered his head to align with his body and kept his attention on the creature. Maybe the two of them could take turns lashing out at the grizzly… whittle down its stamina and then take it out. Maybe he could use some of the claws or something as a trophy of sorts.

Kotori could be arrogant and sure he looked down on the majority of wolves he ran into but, that didn’t mean he was unable to drop the haughtiness to work in a team.  For the moment, in this fight, the two wolves were equally fighting to kill the beast.  Kotori didn’t have time to get a good observation of the stranger nor ask about his bloodline and he wouldn’t make assumptions.  After the bear was dead then Kotori could focus more on who the help was.  Still, a wolf that would charge into a bear fight could get at least a portion of respect.

The bear changed its target and ran towards the stranger.  Kotori lowered his neck, tilted his head so the muzzle pointed at the ground, and charged at the bear’s back leg.  Kotori’s horns punctured the bear's leg.  The wolf jerked his head up to turn the puncture into a gash.  He had gained the bear's attention, and as it turned from the stranger Kotori backed up.  The bear roared angrily as it swung a fist at Kotori and the wolf stepped away as the beefy arm went by, snapping his teeth into the palm.

The bear's attention was once more focused on Kotori, leaving the stranger an opening for the stranger to attack.

"Kotori Fatalis"

This was working well enough, Alaois thought. He had dodged the beast, thankfully, and had spun to face the grizzly once more. He remained calm, and collected, with no special tools or companions to assist him in fighting. He didn’t even have a mutation that could be used for battle as the stranger did, but that did not worry the man. If he could prove himself without such means it meant so much more. He drew in a breath, counting on the other wolf to take the opening to get to the bear and make an attack… as he did.

The other man must have hit a leg or something. He could smell the metallic scent of blood enter the air as he moved to circle back behind the bear as its focus shifted on the other male. Good, good. It was swinging toward the other aggressor, its heavy breathing, grunts, and growls filling his ears. Alaois growled himself, aiming to make a ballsy move. It would get the bear’s attention back on him but also put him at risk if he were to slip and fall off. Ah well, what was life without a little risk?

Alaois broke into a run and leaped for the bear’s back. His claws found purchase in thick fur as his jaws sought the base of the beast’s neck. He tasted blood a heartbeat later, the rich, metallic and gamey liquid running into his mouth freely. He clamped down hard, earning him a roar of rage as the bear made to rear up in an attempt to dislodge him. Alaois’s claws dug in as he kept clamping down, aiming to keep going until he cause the beast to shift, possibly paralyzing it if he was lucky. He wasn’t sure if he’d be able to hang on while it thrashed, but the man was going to do his damndest to do so.

At least with his jaws here the bear’s head was more in his control, and it was more interested in dislodging the wolf on its back rather than focusing on the other one that had just harmed it. They just had to keep going, and they’d have the larger predator down in no time.

—---------------------

Fought a large predator (Grizzly Bear) - 2 / 3

Kotori kept the bear’s attention on him, at least until the stranger made his next attack.  There was no doubt as to what had the bear's focus as soon enough Kotori had a good view of the wolf attaching itself to the bear's back.  Kotori didn’t rush in right away, pausing a moment expecting the bear’s only good option.  Getting a predator off your back and dislodged from neck takes all priority and so it made good sense for the bear to rear up and look away from Kotori.

Grinning, the earth-toned wolf ran in close, lunging upwards to bite the front of the bear's neck in his jaws.  He wouldn’t be able to hang on long considering how much easier the bear could rip him off but even a quick attack should be a large help.  The skin around the neck could only stretch so much and with two wolves playing tug of war with it the one Alaois should open sider and Kotori had scored a cut of his own as well.

Kotori let go quickly and ran back several strides as a clawed hand came his way.  He still didn’t have all the bear’s focus though.  It had got one wolf off but the other was still there and the bear’s blood was spilling quicker, making its situation all the more desperate.  The only question left would be if either one of them would be taking a new pelt home with them.

"Kotori Fatalis"

Holding on had become Ala’s number one priority for the time being. He kept his bite on the bear firm, though his jaws were starting to ache from being clenched so tightly. It was also getting harder to hold onto the ursine. The bear was trying everything it could to get him off only to have the horned wolf come in and give it another bite as well - one that would prove to be lethal in the long run. The bear tried to roar again, but this time the sound was more garbled, the sound of it starting to choke on its own blood.

It didn’t take much longer for the bear to start to stumble and waver. Alaois couldn’t hold on anymore and released his hold, a grunt escaping his lips as he hit the earth. Still, the damage was doing its job. The bear could barely stand on its own limbs and soon succumbed to the blood loss, falling onto the ground with a heavy thud.

Alaiois panted heavily as he stared at it for a moment before his gaze shifted towards the wolf who had initially been fighting the creature. “Looks like we’ve won. Not bad.” Ala drew in a fresh breath of air and licked the blood from his lips. “I am Alaois of Foi, stranger, and you are?” He wanted to know who he just helped kick a bear’s ass with.

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Fought a large predator (Grizzly Bear) - 3 / 3

Kotori kept a close eye on the stranger and the bear until it was obvious the fight was over.  Still, until the bear was down he remained silent.  Alaiois approached once the bear was done and Kotori nodded in kind, “I’m Kotori Fatalis.”  It was entirely likely the wolf knew of the Fatalis name.  Dad had done a good job in making the armada well known and his sister queen of the hallows now.  The horned wolf tended to expect others would know who he was by those details.  It used to be he found his pride in the family name alone but now he wanted more.  The family name still meant a lot but he wanted to pair it with his own personal successes that others learned to respect him.

Kotori nodded to the corpse, “Strong and burly but dumb like a lot of them, especially when they get angry.” The horned wolf noticed the bear was no longer showing any sign of movement.  Fully dead?  “So, will you be taking the belt or any other parts of it?”  Kotori hadn’t challenged the bear with a need for anything it had but he also wasn’t going to leave a corpse to let it fully go to waste.  There were ways to make use of various parts and it would be a waste to have the corpse rot as it was.

"Kotori"

Kotori Fatalis.

The way he spoke suggested the surname might be well known around these parts but unfortunately on Alaois names of that sort were wasted. He had not been within the lands of Boreas for long, after all. But perhaps in time, Alaois would come to know the different wolves of this land, and the bloodlines that they hailed from. His own, as far as he had been told, was more of a modest bloodline, and one that was presumed to be only his mother and himself, though his aunt Bellamy had never been confirmed dead or alive.

His gaze then turned to the corpse of the bear as Kotori brought it up. “Indeed. They rely a lot on raw power but the right strategy and endurance-filled creatures can still bring one down.” He stepped closer to the beast. “I was hoping to nab at least some of the claws, maybe some fangs… who knows, maybe even a bit of meat. Can’t say I’ve ever tried bear before, but hell, we killed it, might as well make some use out of it, eh?” He flicked his gaze back to Kotori.

“How about you? The pelt could make for a nice cape, armor to give someone else if you have no need of it.”