The world of Ardent had begun to settle down some, the uncertain chaos that had risen in the wake of the rise of the Syndicate ebbing away like the high tide into an uneasy normalcy. Their enemies had settled far across the world from them, and although they still existed as an ever present threat just off in the horizon, it gave Artorias time to breathe and plan the Hallows' next moves. Though he had been able to keep the old Ashen Empire together in the new Ardent Coalition, there were still unaligned packs that they could perhaps sway to their cause with a great enough show of diplomacy. The Lord of Cinder sat in the council chamber, staring down at his map carved into the table and studying each of the pack effigies with careful deliberation. Amber eyes rested on Raiders Hollow. His talks with Modesty had been enlightening, but regretfully had bore no fruit just yet. Their war with Polaris came first and foremost to them before any considerations of joining the defense alliance. Understandable, but still disappointing.

Artorias' gaze turned then to the other neutrally aligned packs. Hemlock, Tojo-kai, Insomnia, Avalon... Artorias did not know Corbie of Avalon well, but he knew enough of the pack's tenets to know they would not be joining in taking up arms to defend anyone else. They stood staunchly by their neutrality. Hemlock had a positive relationship with the Hallows, as did Tojo-kai; perhaps with enough time and effort they could be convinced to join the others too. But Insomnia... Artorias breathed a sigh and stared at Insomnia's effigy. Insomnia had been a curious pack since their inception. They had spawned from the death of Habari, a part of the Ashen Empire, and Artorias had seen them as threats ever since.

But in the years they’d existed since then, they’d shown no signs of aggression or hostility towards the Hallows or their allies. They’d kept to themselves, reclusive and secretive. It gave the Lord pause to wonder if they were actually as much a danger has he had presumed Medusa and her lot would be… Chewing on his lip as he pondered the board before him, Artorias rapped his claws on the edge of the table. What to do, what to do… Hopefully Bramble would have some insight to offer when she arrived. Corbin should be returning with his daughter any moment now…

"Artorias" | "Carpathian" | "Corbin" | "Eira" | "Argent"

Stay busy, keep focused.

The words ran through Bramble's mind as she patrolled the outer edges of Wildberry Grove. With Bristle soaring over the tree tops and Berry firmly nestled in her scruff, she at least had some company for her morning stroll. Well, it wasn't necessarily a stroll when she was also decked out in her sharpened metal tooth caps and thick wool cape worn over her shoulders.

Since the threat of the Syndicate, Bramble's worries had heightened. Tate was missing as well, but word back from Tojo-Kai had settled her stress there somewhat. If Hattori was not worried for Tate then Bramble would try her hardest not to be either. It still hurt her heart as she wandered by their meeting place tucked at the far eastern edge of the grove. Every time he wasn't there, her hope would fade a little more.

Keep focused, stay busy.

Her mind burst through her sad thoughts, trying to steer her from anxiousness and stress. If she kept the Hallows protected, they would have nothing to fear. As she rounds the edge of the grove, moving westward, she looks up to hear Corbin lighting upon a nearby oak branch. Pausing for a moment, smiling at her father's raven, Bramble wasted no more time following the companion back toward the castle. Keeping a steady, but hurried pace, Bramble hoped she wasn't keeping her father waiting for long.

Entering the council room with a soft clearing of her throat so she wouldn't startle Art, Bramble easily makes her way toward her dedicated seat. "What may the new Lord of Cinder have in store for me today?" Bramble speaks fondly, her eyes bright and cheerful, an easy mask to display when in the company of her dad.

table coding by bunni ♥

As if right on cue, into the room flew his corvid companion to alight on the back of his chair, with his daughter following closely in tow. Bramble scurried into the council chamber with a soft noise to announce her presence. Artorias' amber eyes lifted to meet his daughter's with a welcoming smile, watching while she hurried over to take her place at her assigned seat. It almost made the older brute laugh to see how attached she was to her role and how seriously she took her job that even in an unofficial capacity she still retained her formality and sat at her seat. Art would never chastise her for being too enthusiastic about her work, of course, though it did amuse him. Bramble looked up at him, cheerful and sunny, but Art could sense the edge of nerves to her. He could see a lot of himself in his not-so-little girl anymore.

"First, the Lord of Cinder commands you to do some deep breathing with me," he instructed her. Art then moved around the table to sit beside Bramble and closed his eyes. "Breathe in..." Artorias drew in a deep breath, holding it within his lungs for a couple moments. "And breathe out." He exhaled, letting some of the stresses weighing on his mind escape his body. "Again." One breath after another, Artorias guided Bramble through the deep breathing. He didn't want to see her so stressed or on edge, and meditation had been a tremendous help in his life to keep himself balanced.

Once they had finished their calming exercise, Artorias opened his eyes to look at Bramble again, offering her his warm smile while reaching a paw over to rest on her shoulder. "Relaxează-te, dragă fiică. I know what troubles you, but you cannot let it run your life. Stay calm, stay in control of your nerves. Nothing will ever harm our family." Art patted Bramble's shoulder, hoping to have offered her some comfort from her worries. But now to the matter of why he had asked her here. Turning his attention to the map, Artorias considered the Insomnia pack effigy again. "Let me pose a thought exercise to you, Bramble. If your enemy does nothing to harm you or cause you to distrust them, and if they've shown themselves to not be a threat, are they still an enemy?" A brow raised over a fire-kissed eye, looking to Bramble while letting her consider his philosophical question.

"Artorias" | "Carpathian" | "Corbin" | "Eira" | "Argent"

Bramble's ears perk up and her brows lift in surprise at Art's first command. Watching as he moves around the table to sit beside her, she too closes her eyes right after he does. Whatever her father said, Bramble would not defy him. Inhaling deeply, she focuses on the breathing exercise. Holding her breath at the top, filling her lungs as much as she can, her brain begins to ease. Exhaling slowly, the worries seem to dissipate with it. Breathing in and breathing out a few more times in sync with her father, the edge that threatened her nerves was soon gone.

As they are finished and her eyes open to meet his, she smiles. This time it is genuine as he places a paw upon her shoulder. His words mean everything to Bramble and she takes it to heart. Just like him and the rest of their family, she wants nothing but good things to come to them. The threat of evil on their doorstep plagued her, but perhaps she should meditate more if it would help. "I promise to try my best, Tati," she says quietly, meaning it seriously. Bramble knew Art wouldn't tell her things just to get her to forget about things.

Once he pats her shoulder and turns his attention to the map, Bramble is quick to look as well. She finds that he looks upon the Insomnia effigy and one of her brows raise in question. Why them? Her question leaves her pondering an answer. She even lifts a paw to tap at her chin, leaning back in her chair while she glances around the map. Looking from effigy to effigy, she wonders why any of the packs would be considered their enemy - minus one, The Syndicate.

After a few moments of thought, Bramble finds something to say. "Why are they considered an enemy in the first place?" She poses, moving her own vibrant turquoise eyes over to Artorias. "Perhaps the reason they were once considered an enemy is no longer a valid reason to hold against them," Bramble continues in a thoughtful tone, not wanting to sound overzealous or too confident. "Can relations not ever be mended once enemies are declared? It might be foolish to believe a once enemy could ever be your friend, but wolves do grow, mature, and sometimes change. So maybe they deserve a chance?" She continues to look at her father, curious to see where he was going with this.

table coding by bunni ♥

Artorias was pleased that Bramble acquiesced and followed along with him to the deep breathing exercises. He didn't want his children to stress over the problems of an alpha, nor did he wish to see his child walk down the path he had when he was her age. It was a parent's job to make their children's lives easier, not harder. With that part done, the pair of Carpathians turned their attention to the pieces on the map table and to Artorias' philosophical question. Art gave Bramble all the time she needed to gather her thoughts, to mull over the dilemma and come to her own conclusions. He wanted to hear not only the take of his Envoy, but of his daughter and the younger generation as well. Part of what made the Hallows so uniquely strong was its collaboration between wolves of all different kinds—be it age, race, creed, or history.

When Bramble did speak, she expanded upon his question with some of her own. Why was Insomnia considered an enemy? Can relations ever be mended between two animus packs? Artorias admired Bramble's openminded approach to the question, and he would give her the answers and information she sought to make a rationalized decision. "No, it is not impossible for groups who were enemies to become amicable or even friendly. It is difficult, but not impossible. As you said, wolves and circumstances change." Artorias walked around to the other side of the table, now facing Bramble directly and positioning himself closer to the Insomnia effigy in the west. It was time Bramble learned the history of the Hallows and Insomnia.

"Before you were born, the Ashen Empire was at the height of its power. There were four packs under their banner—Ashen, the Armada, the Hallows, and Habari. Habari was led by Empress Venom's cousin, Recluse Klein. A lesser known branch of the Empire, but a part of it nonetheless. One day, one of their slaves escaped their bondage and challenged Recluse for Habari, a notion never before seen or heard of in Ardent." Artorias paused, perhaps for dramatic effect, as he lifted the Insomnia effigy, looking it over before meeting his daughter's brilliant turquoise gaze. "That slave was Medusa. She beat Recluse in fair combat and took control of Habari and turned it into Insomnia." Artorias set the effigy back down on Insomnia's lands, his expression darkening as he looked down upon it on the table. "That alone would have been fine... but it was what Medusa did next that made her an enemy of the Ashen Empire. She banished Recluse from the pack, but enslaved her entire family in turn, refusing to let any of them leave and taking them prisoner. She took Recluse's home and her family from her, then cast her out into the cold."

Artorias drew in a deep breath as he remembered that day vividly. Medusa, laughing and gloating over the beaten Recluse, taunting her as she took her entire family away to be imprisoned. Recluse's wails, her cries to her children that she would save them. Why hadn't he acted then? "I swore on that day that the Hallows would be a refuge to any of Recluse's family that wished to flee their bondage and that we would help reunite their family, but I did not act directly against Medusa. I could not. It wasn't my place to start a war on behalf of the Empire. But Venom never gave the order, never allowed us to seek retribution against her for destroying a part of the Empire. So... we just let it go." It still brought the Lord of Cinder great shame to admit that he had been sidelined and done nothing when he saw an obvious injustice unfolding right before his very eyes. He could understand why Ember was so incensed by his tepid response to the Syndicate. "Insomnia flourished in the aftermath and Recluse ended up dying alone and never seeing her family again. And that's where we land today—the Hallows and Insomnia still at odds over a fight that occurred almost three years ago."

And now they came back to the matter at hand. Artorias slid down from the table and moved around toward the northern end of Boreas, picking up the serpent effigy of the Syndicate and studying it with disgust. "In those three years, Insomnia has never bothered the Hallows once. They've lived in their own existence, content to be by themselves. I saw them as a threat back then, but now that I've seen what a real threat looks like, I wonder if perhaps it's time we changed with the times as well." Amber eyes moved over to his daughter then, looking to Bramble for her take on the matter. "As Envoy of the Hallows, and as my daughter, what do you make of the situation, Bramble?" He was asking for her pure unfiltered thoughts on the information and history she had been given.

"Artorias" | "Carpathian" | "Corbin" | "Eira" | "Argent"

Bramble, of course, listens intently. She soaks up every word her father has to say, taking note of all the details as if each one were pertinent to the story. Which, inevitably, it all would be. Watching her father walk around the table to position himself closer to the Insomnia effigy, she is eager to hear the complicated and sordid history between the Hallows and Insomnia. What he told her was compelling as her turquoise gaze met his fiery opals, quite at awe at Medusa's feat. But the tone was quick to change, his expression darkening and Bramble leaning in closer to drink up the story.

She could not help but to gasp at the news. To banish a mother and enslave her family? The idea was quite horrible, but if Medusa had once been a slave, Bramble could imagine why that had been found as a suitable punishment. What comes next is also a surprise to Bramble. The empire had done nothing to help Recluse? How could they have been considered allies if they were not willing to seek retribution for the fallen alpha? Bramble's ears fall backward, her brow furrowing as she studies the map. And now... the empire had fallen to pieces while Insomnia still surged with life. Perhaps it was a show of what they had done wrong.

Once Art has shifted toward the Syndicate effigy and posed the question to her, her demeanor brightens. A determination settles in her gaze as she leans over to grasp the Insomnia effigy in her paw. "I say it is about time we make friends. Clearly Medusa is a strong and tactile wolf if she was capable of accomplishing such feats alone. While we may not need a new empire, we do need the coalition. If The Syndicate ever decides to march to our doorstep or anyone else's, we need to be prepared. It wouldn't hurt for me to go up there and have a chat with Medusa," she looks at the effigy before placing it back in its spot, gaze lifting to Artorias.

"Everything here seems situated. I don't suppose my absence would be harmful?" Bramble questions, head canting as she hopes her father will agree to let her go on her very first Envoy mission.

Bramble Carpathius

table coding by bunni ♥

The trait Artorias most admired about his daughter was her pensiveness. Bramble was seldom one to act rashly, to make snap decisions and to instead consider all sides and perspectives of a situation or challenge—a quality that could not be said of many of her siblings. It seemed most of the Carpathian children had taken after their sire's impulsive initiative. Artorias gave Bramble all the time she needed to consider the facts before she gave her insight, and he was glad he did so. When Bramble responded, it was with a confident and well thought out objective. The Hallows would need to get on good terms with Insomnia again. If Medusa had survived this long without losing her pack, she must've been doing something right.

"Then it seems our thinking is aligned," replied the Lord of Cinder with a cautious nod. His gaze moved back to the Insomnia effigy. The chaotic pack had not made themselves a danger or enemies of the Hallows, but knowing how recklessly Medusa had proceeded in acquiring her domain did give Artorias some apprehension about sending his daughter up there to parlay with her. But who better to do it than his levelheaded Envoy? "Then it shall be so. Go to Insomnia and entreat with Medusa. Bring our apologies for the animosity as well as a gift you find suitable to present her with—barring any Carpathian steel." Artorias wanted to build bridges with Medusa, but he would not arm her with his family's precious weapons.

At her question of her absence, Art looked to Bramble with a soft smile. "Harmful? No. This is what you were born for. But I will miss you every day you're gone, Brammie." A little bit of tenderness from the Lord of Cinder, who loved his children with all his heart. Coming round the table to Bramble, Artorias opened his arms, a silent request for a hug from his daughter. "This will be your first official mission as Envoy, Bramble. I know you'll represent us all wonderfully. I'm so very proud of you."

"Artorias" | "Carpathian" | "Corbin" | "Eira" | "Argent"