The beast had thought he spotted something peculiar during one of his patrols, and it turned out, as he finally cleared a small string of peaks at the base of Mount Volkan, he was correct. The stone formations were something of a curiosity to his singular eye. Intricate, carefully designed, and massive--or it had been, back in its day. Gaze traced edges of rubble as he paused to give it his full attention, lip twitching thoughtfully and revealing the tip of a weathered canine in the process. What was this place? Had it been an arena of sorts? A tribute to someone once great?

He scoffed and continued forth through the ruins, dipping his head to brush his nose over a carved stone that passed him by. Tattered ears swiveled about atop a roughened skull, alert in case of any company who decided to join him, but for now he remained at least halfway relaxed, content with these few moments of stillness while he had them.

""

table by Lowin art by kolokolchek

A few days had passed since he had been washed up on shore and then patched up by the Valhalla Alphess and thought the glowing woman claimed to not be very skilled at healing, he felt nearly one hundred percent now. His black and tan coat was no longer crusted in dry sea water and his stomach no longer flipped and threaten to empty itself into the ground before him. He was in that woman's debt and he would surely see her again but for now, he would explore this new land she said was named Boreas, and try to get his barring before he found her once more. He headed north-west from the bay he had washed up on, slipping around clear borders of packs along the way and quickly making his way past them. He took in the sights and smells of the earth and so far everything seemed normal until he caught glimpse of a strange set of rocks in the distance, the way they sat causing him to pause. The stones looked nothing like he had seen before and curiosity got the better of him and his dark paws shifted direction and head towards them. He took a second and glanced his blue eyes towards the sky and sure enough, the female red-tailed hawk circled above him high in the air. The raptor thus far never left him and he now got into the habit of tossing the bird a chunk of his kills, much to what seemed to the Hawk's delight.

Drachen couldn't help the saw he felt as he drew closer to the ruins, the massive rubble obviously made by something and for something grand. Perhaps some sort of tribute to a great leader? Some mass grave? A God? A snort left his earthen nostrils as his long dark legs carried him slowly deeper into the ruins. His oceanic blue eyes scanned over the strange stones, completely engrossed until he heard the Hawk's shrill scream from above and the wind shifted and carried a scent to him. Drachen paused, his obsidian ears twisting and turning while his earthen nose lifted into the air and breathed in the scent on the wind. It was another wolf, male by the scent and close. The Vaekhal male shifted his weight from side to side slightly as he decided whether or not he wanted to stay or leave but in the end, curiosity and perhaps a bit of stubbornness kept the black and tan male in place. Casually he continued weaving through the rubble while his deep blue eyes scanned for the frame of another wolf, just barely noticing the soft scrap of talons on stone as his hawk landed above him. He glanced up at her and noticed her staring in one particular area behind the stone at his side so he rounded it and saw the other wolf he had scented on the wind.  He was a massive beast with his earthen coat riddled with scars that even Drachen was kind of curious about how the other male acquired them. Drachen observed the scarred male for a moment longer before calling out just loud enough to be heard over the distance "An impressive sight." Drachen shifted his dark face towards the strange stones briefly before returning his sharp gaze back to the other male.

Perhaps he was a fool for stepping foot here, but Mikko figured if the haunted house hadn't killed him, surely everywhere else was harmless--even these odd ruins and that field of shrapnel that smelled vaguely of death. Whatever had happened in all these strange places, it must have happened far too long ago for him to need to worry about more than the crooked tail he'd received from the spirits in the house. None of them had reached him all the way in Habari; he had little reason to believe anybody else was at risk.

A twitch of his nose, the faintest of prickles down the length of his neck. Someone had eyes on him. Mikko slowed to a halt in the middle of the field, patchy pelt blowing in the flatland wind as his own gaze skimmed his surroundings. When it landed upon a hawk in the distance, his eye narrowed irritably, his mind jumping to the bird that had followed him from the haunted house. It was hard to tell from so far away, particularly with hindered vision, whether this was the same one, but the question answered itself as different movement caught his attention in the corner of his eye. No. This was a lookout, and it had just alerted its owner to Mikko's presence.

Fortunately, the stranger didn't look much of a threat. More than anything, really, he looked curious, though Mikko was about as keen on reliving memories as he was on getting into a fight. With a flick of a tattered ear, he caught words on the wind, and he turned to face the other brute more fully.

"Strange, to say the least." Crooked tail twitched with the phantom feeling of desperate tendrils stretching and breaking it apart. "But...impressive...as long as it doesn't try to swallow us alive."

""

table by Lowin art by kolokolchek

Drachen watched as the other male turned towards him in response to his voice, giving Drachen a full on view of the brutes marred face and missing eye. What poor hell has this soul been through he thought to himself but kept his face passive, mildly curious about their surroundings. The stranger responded, his words caused Drachen to tilt his black and tan face slightly and his tan brows curl together. What made this man think that a few scattered rock would eat him? Drachen scanned the ruins around him, his oceanic blue eyes looking a littler more closer than before but saw nothing out of the ordinary. His blue gaze flicked up to the Hawk perched on the ruined stones beside him and she looked unconcerned as she preened her earthen feathers. Surely the bird would make more of a fuss if there indeed was something that was a threat. A soft snort from his earthen nares before he turned his attention back to the scarred stranger. His long dark legs carried him a few more steps closer to the other male so that his voice would be more easily heard but not close enough to invade his space. Drachen did not feel like getting into a fight so soon after Aurielle had patched him up from nearly drowning in the sea.

"Do you know what would have made such a structure? I have not seen anything of its like before. But then again I am new to these parts." Drachen rumbled in his soft spoken tones, again casting his blue gaze around the ruins. The air somehow felt different here and it prickled the back of his neck. Perhaps the stranger's unease was rubbing off on him, normally he was not so superstitious. Lightly, the Vaekhal male shook out his pelt and flatten his black fur on his neck as he pushed away his unease. "I am Drachen Vaekhal by the way." He introduced himself, turning his face back to the stranger. This scarred male didn't seem to be irritated by his presence too much and so far his body language seemed neutral. Hopefully this male would have more information about this new land he had washed up on.

They observed each other for a time, but ultimately it was the stranger who decided to approach. Mikko raised his head at this, loosely standing his ground as eyes and ears casually followed the other, whom he allowed to decide what distance should remain between them. It didn't go unnoticed how his head had tilted at his words. In fact, the brute knew he likely sounded insane--hells, he already looked the part. He let it go, though, caring little about potential bad impressions. So long as this one wasn't here to carve his initials into his hide, he could think whatever he wanted.

Broken gaze drifted, once again, to their surroundings, but at the stranger's question Mikko merely shook his massive head. He'd never seen such places back home; even the most magnificent places he'd witnessed were carved out by nature itself. "As am I," he rumbled through a quiet sigh. "My traveling companions and I only landed here last season."

A blink, and he turned his attention back onto the other in time to hear his name. Drachen Vaekhal. Brave of him to give his full name, but then again, Mikko wasn't out to make himself into a creature to be feared. At least, not by the likes of him. With a single nod, he committed the name to memory, allowing his own to pass through taut marred lips. "Mikko." Not Romanov. Not Xanthos. Just...Mikko, for now. The rest was on a need-to-know basis.

"So," he continued, monotonously,, after giving Drachen his own turn to absorb his name, "what brings you to strange lands?" Did he have restless feet? Or was he, too, hiding something that he was trying to escape?

""

table by Lowin art by kolokolchek

The earthen male did not seem averse to his approach, if anything seemed a bit weary, even still Drachen did not come any closer to the stranger and left several bounds between them. The stranger shook his head, stating that he too was new to these parts and had no idea what the ruins were or how they were made. Drachen was slightly disappointed in this fact but his face remained neutral, if slightly curious. Perhaps Aurielle knew about these ruins and who made them, he made a mental note to ask her about it later when he saw her again. A soft "hmm" left his throat as he turned his attention back to the stranger. Companions he echoed in his mind, absently scanning the area around them looking for said companions but they were alone. Finally the other male gave his own name, Mikko, and Drachen did not miss the fact that Mikko only gave his first and not his last. Perhaps the male was running from something and did not want to be found. He could understand that, he was doing the same, though he did not care if his half-brother found him. Gods save that bastard if he did.

A black ear swiveled toward Mikko as the large man continued the conversation, asking him what brought him here, whether that was to the ruins or to Boreas, it was not clear. "I just arrived a few days ago and have been wandering ever since." He replied in soft tones, harmless and unassuming. He didn't feel the need to mention Aurielle or the other female even though they only help him after he washed up on shore. Aurielle was an alpha, never the less, and he knew from experience that packs usually had enemies somewhere and he had no idea of how known the Spirit was around these parts. Luckily her scent had faded from his pelt after he washed the dried saltwater from his fur. "I've been trying to find some landmarks to get my bearings and this..." Drachen nodded his dark freckled face toward the strange stones "Seemed like a good as any place to start. A soft chuckle rumbled in his tan chest. "Do you know of any other distinct landmarks around here? Or some packs?" He asked Mikko, hoping to at least a few more landmarks to get an idea of where he was before he headed west.

Mikko watched the other male's eyes drift away from him, scanning the area as if he were expecting others to jump out from hiding, but the brute simply waited for him to conclude that they were, in fact, still alone. They're not here, he wanted to tell him, flatly and almost protectively, but instead he swallowed the words, thinking it wiser to let him figure out for himself. That way, there was nothing to give away, nothing for him to latch onto...just in case he was someone he needed to worry about.

Eventually, though, Mikko's company turned his attention back onto him. He advised that he was a rogue, fresh to these lands without any sort of destination on the horizon, and inquired about some sort of direction he might take from...well, wherever they were. The beast's jaw tensed with thought as he inhaled the beginning of a quiet sigh. He'd been lost, too, at one point, and Habari had taken him in, even if just on the basis of Shiba's good word...and this male certainly didn't give off any of the same vibes he felt he did himself. Perhaps he wouldn't be committing too much of a crime by pointing a fellow wanderer in the right direction. Finally his breath left him. "I know of one," he offered.

"Just south of here, on the volcano and in the forest behind it. They call themselves Habari." He looked over his shoulder, briefly, to glimpse his new home before turning back to Drachen. "If not for one of theirs, I wouldn't be here. But that's all I know." There was the pack his sister was supposedly in, but that wasn't for Mikko to give away. That was for Acciona to share, whenever she decided she was ready.

""

table by Lowin art by kolokolchek

Drachen waited patiently, silently, as the Mikko seemed hesitant to answer his question about the local packs, his dark ears rolling forward as he caught the soft sigh of the other male. Drachen subtly took in the stranger's scent again, the smell of other wolves characteristic of a pack, though faint, clung to his pelt. Why is he so hesitant to mention his pack? Drachen mulled the question over in his mind as the winter breeze danced in his black and tan pelt. Finally Mikko spoke, giving him the barest of information about a pack called Habari that took him in. By the tone Drachen wondered if their situation were, in fact, very similar and Mikko had been helped by this Habari pack much like how he had been helped by the Spirit of Valhalla. Drachen did not press for more information, the tone of the other male giving him the sense that he did not want to talk more about than he already had. In reality, Drachen did not care too much about learning more about the pack than to really get the since of where it was in relation to him. At least not until he had paid ff his debt to Valhalla. "Thank you for the information." he replied genuinely. Even though Mikko didn't give him much information, Drachen saw no reason to be rude about it.

Silence then passed between them and Drachen flicked an ear as he scanned the ruins once more. He wasn't sure what was making the other male so reserved, maybe it was just the man's personality, but Drachen was growing sort of bored and wanted to walk around the ruins more. "So... Do you want to explore these ruins more?" He asked Mikko with a raised tan brow as his dark face returned to the other male. His words were welcoming but his soft spoken tone hinted that if the other male was uncomfortable and wished to leave, then he would take no offense to Mikko's departure. He was perfectly fine with observing the ruins by himself and then moving on with his journey to the west.