They had decided to go north, to search for Odyssia, but Rhaegath was far from happy about it. While he understood the necessity of it, he despised this trek through the snow. It seemed like the farther north they went the more his toes felt like they were going to freeze off any minute. His genetics hadn't prepared him for the bite of the wind that sliced through his fur like a knife. He had no idea how anyone could decide they wanted to be here, but they obviously had dandelions in place of a brain. This. Absolutely. Fucking. Sucked. If he didn't have so much respect for the older woman and their goal here he would have said fuck it a long time ago and gone as far south as he could. His breath came out in a puff of clouds as he snorted in annoyance. He was positive Zosime was feelings just as miserable as he was. Neither of them appreciated the freezing temperatures. He could only hope they found Odyssia soon before they both turned into walking wolf-cicles. This was NOT how he pictured himself dying. Not to mention he was too young to die anyways. He had a lot more fights he wanted to win and places he wanted to conquer before he could even allow such a thing like the cold to kill him. "Alright, fuck this. It's too cold for this shit." He grumbled with a loud snarl. Golden eyes peered around for a brief moment as the snow beat down on him. Everything was gray, white, and every shade of "fuck this" that he could imagine. It was snowing so badly that he could barely see in front of him. He padded forward a few more steps and finally spotted their salvation. A cave. "Come on, lets get the fuck out of this blizzard." His teeth chattered as he led the way towards the opening. It was just light enough at the opening that he had to pause halfway inside to look at the walls. Strange drawings adorned them in a weird pattern. He could discern certain shapes that appeared animalistic, but overall he couldn't make sense of them. He looked away and continued further in the cave. He was far more interested in warming his frozen ass than staring at a wall. Maybe when it wasn't ice age 2.0 he could come back, but at this rate he was convinced it would be cold outside forever. He traveled farther in to the point where he could at least feel a better temperature difference. Between that and the wind not slicing in to him every second he was beginning to feel better already. He could at least feels his toes again. He'd just sat down to relax when a a rock skittering across a hard surface caught his attention. He glanced towards Zosime and rose slowly to his feet with his head lowered and his lips wrinkling back into a snarl. He had just enough time to growl lowly in warning when a deafening roar echoed through the cave. "Fuck." He muttered as his fur stood on end. It sounded like a bear, but definitely not a bear he'd ever encountered before. He stood at the ready just as a giant creature came barreling forward out of the darkness. It was just about the largest beast he'd ever laid eyes on and he'd seen plenty of beasts. It had to be at least 9 feet tall of it stood on its hind legs. It rushed forward, moving with surprising speed for a creature so large, and swiped a massive paw towards them. He dodged to the left, just out of reach of its claws, and glanced towards Zosime. "Looks like you might be getting your bear coat after all." He joked half-heartedly, before steeling himself. The large wolf, dwarfed in comparison to the bear, lurched forward with his teeth bared and ran head first towards the cave bear. With his horns pointed towards its right shoulder, he skewered it quickly, shoving his horns in as far as he could get them, before ripping free. Blood dripped down his horns curves and spewed from the bears opened wound. It let out another deafening roar causing his ears to ring in such a confined space. If Zo was going to make a move, now would be the time that he had the thing distracted. ooc: Feel free to power play Rhae a bit. Word Count: 739 Walk, "Talk" Think

North had not been her favorite decision they had made to date. What the fuck had they even been thinking, she was cold and her still pup thin coat did nothing to aid her in keeping warm. her ears were so numb she figured they had fallen off long ago. She wasn't normally touchy feely but damn if curling up with Rhae didn't sound like fucking paradise right now. She was lagging behind slightly, probably enough for Rhae to notice, he didn't really say anything about it though. At least he had his adult guard hairs at least, but Zo really had fuck all for defense against the snow. The further north they went the worse the weather got as well as the worse her mood got. If she wasn't so loyal to Odyssia she would of, like Rhae, said fuck it and went as far as she could get south. She Swore under her breath as she almost toppled into Rhae's ankle as he stopped. She was no fucking help right now she was sure, so she sat there while he looked around. Her face had to be affixed in a permanent glare by now, as she sat there doing her best to hide her shivering but her teeth clattered and had to give her away, This stupid fucking blizzard was going to be the death of her yet. Though she hated the idea, since going out in a blaze of glory in a bloody battle was a much better option. After his exclamation she huffed a breath of air she meant as a word but she was pretty sure it came out as an unintelligible grumble. Who ever came up with the thought of winter she was going to skin alive and let them see how it felt to have nothing to guard them from the horrid cold. She couldn't even feel her fucking tail. As soon as Rhae started moving again she willed herself forward towards whatever salvation he had found. <>"I-I-I-I t-think m-my t-tail f-fell off R-Rhae." Her words were said through chattering, clenched teeth as she followed him towards the cavern of salvation ahead. And as they came upon the cave Zo didn't even hesitate. She didn't care about the cave painting or anything right now, she just wanted to go in curl up and get warm. That was her plan anyway. That was until as she was sat there trying to warm up slightly there was a sound. The skittering rock she saw skitter past caught her attention first and she moved her gaze to Rhae as his gaze caught her. His one warning and word caught upon her cold numb ears as she watched. From deeper within the cave came a, well a fucking giant of a bear. She jumped to her feet as it swiped at Rhae and he dodged it. In the moment as he did so she was slightly frozen in place. She had never seen a bear let alone one so close. But then again she was still just a babe, she had only barely even egun her fighting lessons and as such it was no wonder she froze for a second. Luckily Rhae was much more used to actual battle and he thought on his feet. She was a dwarf n comparison to this bear, in fact she was sure if made her look like a new born babe if she stood next to it. As it roared at its pain and such Zo shook herself from her stupor. She rushed forward forgetting many of her defenses no doubt but she had yet to actually fight before. It had all been words drilled into her head of defenses to set and how to place her weight. But to hell with leaving Rhae to fight alone, that just wasn't going to even be a possibility. She pushed hard with her back feet and launched herself, kicking off of Rhaes back as he probably went in to attack the bear as it swung at him again. Though the mouthful of fur and the blood she tasted told her she was spot on. She had launched up the bears torso from Rhae's back and latched onto its neck, though from the way it was shaking and roaring she new she hadn't hit its jugular. With all its shaking and her inexperience she was dislodged as a paw came up and swiped her. A yelp came from her throat as it slapped her to the ground in front of it. Fuck that had hurt, and she was sort of dazed. word count: 768 Total: 1507 ooc: feel free to pp zo a bit too Strut my stuff "Hear me roar"

Rhae was quick on his feet and the fatigue and chill from traveling fell away as he focused on taking down this new foe. He kept track of Zosime's movements by following her with his ears, but that was all the attention he afforded the girl. She had yet to put any of her lessons into an actual situation, but it seemed like they would be advancing her training a bit more today. Assuming they came out of this alive that is. He wasn't so sure that a yearling and a pup could take down a mammoth bear, but dammit he was going to fucking try. If only because he didn't feel like dying today. As much as he joked he hated her, he didn't want to see her die either. She was about the closest thing to actual family that he had left. He felt her as she kicked off from his back, a move that only a smaller wolf could accomplish with a wolf as large as him. He braced himself against her weigh as she launched herself at the bears neck. A small victory for them as she tore into its neck, but it was a short-lived one. The bear roared in pain and raised a massive paw to slam her into the ground. His blood ran cold as she yelped, but their fight wasn't over. "I know it hurts Zo, but you've gotta get up." Were all the words he afforded her before launched forward once more. Leaping forward, he moved in between Zosime and the bear and managed to catch its attention once more. He came at it head on and used his antlers to, once more, drive upwards towards its skin. He managed to catch his right horn in the left side of its neck as well as get a solid bite in on its left shoulder. He ripped and tore for what felt like only a millisecond, before the bear's paw was heading his way. Not wanting to end up like his companion, he tried to side step to the left, but wasn't quite quick enough as claws dug into his right side. Grimacing with the pain, he moved a little farther away as the bear tried to follow him with its attention fixed solely on him. Once he was sure Zosime was on her feet again, he called out instructions to her. "I'm going to keep it distracted." He dodged another swipe sent towards his face as he led it a little further towards the back of the cave as he kept turning it away from Zo. "Get on that rock over there and jump on its back. There's a spot where the spine and cranium meet. If you can bite hard enough into that..." He dodged yet another swipe and backed up a little more into the cave. "It should at least paralyze him. From there we can rip its throat out." He tried desperately to remember the words Mortar would often drill in to him. He'd gone so long trying to forget the male that he found his voice hard to remember at times. Still, he could only appreciate the combined training of the Spartans and his father in this situation. Mortar had taught him how to be strong and not give in in the face adversity. Even if the male's way of doing it had been fucked up, Mortar had learned how to harden himself and not give in when the going got tough. Seeing as they were stuck in this situation, he was going to do his best to get him and Zo out of it alive, but he was sure they were going to come out of it with some cuts and scrapes. They would certainly need a healer after this. It was really a shame they'd decided to trek this far north. If they hadn't they wouldn't have been stuck in this predicament. It only furthered his resolve that he would need to start sparring with Zosime on a regular now. If they were going to travel together he needed a companion who could hold her own and she needed to work on her strengths so that she wasn't surprised like this again. Of course being under a year didn't help her case either, but that wasn't her fault. He led the bear a little farther past the rock she instructed her to hop on. He tried to peer around the bear, but instead was forced to jump back as the bears claws grazed against his chest. If she could jump on its back and bite it where he instructed then he was sure he'd have a clear shot for its neck. Not to mention it would keep her clear from the monsters paws. He wasn't entirely sure how many slaps she could take. Word Count: 808 Words Thread Word Count Total: 2315 Walk, "Talk" Think

She was stunned for the briefest of moments, pain shooting through her skull. Damn she was gonna have one hell of a head ache if they lived through this. Her ears were ringing and the words Rhae said were like he was speaking through a tunnel to her. She sat up quickly as he put himself between her and the behemoth of a bear. Her head shook as she tried to shake the pain off. She would have to do a physical check later if she lived through this.

Rhae pulled the bear and she watched as she got back up and rolled her shoulders effectively tensing her scruff up and making the hair there stand on end. She didn't have to have a billion brain cells to see where Rhae was going as he shouted out the plan. If she missed her mark he better have a better exit strategy, because gods damned if she was going to let him die here today. She watched and bared her canines at the beast waiting, as soon as it was out of her way and in a better position she narrowed her gaze. Her feet pushed off and she rounded for the rock, leaping from it as she had before Rhae's back. She landed squarely on the beast's shoulders, her claws digging into its skin to gain a firm hold. Her jaws aimed for the base of its skull as she landed. Her canines sunk in deep and she heard and felt as the massive bear roared its anger and pain at her bite.

Her Jaws clamped tight on it and her eyes scrunched shut as she felt it start falling. It was working! They were winning! As it hit the ground a shock passed through that she hadn't prepared for. The impact and her own effort had her still puppy canines unprepared for had her yelping in a moment and she jumped back. Her mouth hurt like a bitch, enough that tears were brought forth to her eyes. She tasted blood, not just the bears either. Her mouth was a big bloody mess at the moment and she was also panting from the adrenaline. Her eyes looked to where Rhae had been last, hoping he was finishing the job. Her tongue ran over her mouth and she stopped shocked at that. One of her canines was jagged and felt busted up.

Her shock lit up her face. How was she supposed to be a warrior without perfect teeth?!? The thought that these were still only her baby teeth had yet to occur to her.

"Speech"

word count: 434
Total: 2749

ooc: for clarification her right canine is busted about halfway up, its still a baby tooth tho so its not permanent

Rhae was faintly pleased when she shook her pain off and got to her feet once more. He waited, playing cat and mouse with the bear as he did so, for Zo to get into position. She wasted no time and, when the bear was in the right spot, launched off the rock like she'd done from his back. She landed perfectly, doing her best to cling to its back as her teeth found purchase at the back of its skull on its spine. He supposed their one saving grace was that the bear was rather thin from the lack of prey and didn't have a lot of protective fat. Her attack had obviously worked. He launched forward and bit into the expose flesh at the jugular and dealt a severe blow. Blood gushed from its wound and seeped into his mouth as it began to fall. As soon as he felt like it was going to completely drop, he jumped out of the way as it crashed to the ground. He made sure it wasn't going to be getting back up again before glancing to Zo to see if she'd made it off. She clearly had, but not without her own wounds. He stared open mouthed at the girl before a rumbling laugh escaped him at the look on her face and the damage done to her tooth. "Oh this is pure gold, I'm never gonna let you live this down. Zosime, the half-toothed wonder." He chuckled. "Don't worry, it'll grow back once your adult teeth come in." Walk, "Talk" Think

Her shock had to be written on her face. As she sat there shocked that maybe her whole career of being a spartan warrior was over she was met with an irritation beyond belief. His raspy laugh, had her eyes narrowing on his visage. A low rumble of a warning growl exited her maw as she bared her teeth at him. Puppy teeth were sharp and he was this close to finding out how sharp they could be.

His words did little to soothe as well. The insult was out in the air and she wasn't letting him have the pleasure of insulting her after she just helped him slay a massive over grown bear. He was lucky she hadn't turned tail and run, leaving him to deal with the beast alone. "Yeah? And I bet your future wife would be proud to know you have me to thank for your life right now." she gave a smirk at her own insult. It was a prod at his own strength and pride.

She stood from her spot though instead of instigating more between them and moved to broad the bears shoulders  and then peel back its lips to examine its canines. A hum of though passed through her. A glance at Rhae and then back to its bloody maw. "We need a skinning knife.... I have an idea for this thing. We could use its pelt to make us both some armor, and a weapon for you from its skull...." she looked up to Rhae then with a smirk on her face. He would love what she had planned.

"Speech"

She bared her teeth at him and a brow rose in amusement as more laughter escaped him. Her warning growl did nothing to phase him as he eyeballed the angry fluff ball clearly enjoying the fact he'd ruffled her feathers. Her insult didn't mean jack-shit to him either. Another guffaw left him and tears threatened to roll out of the corners of his eyes as he banged one of his paws on the stone floor. This girl had jokes today! He could have probably taken on the bear on his own. It would have been sketchy and he probably would have been a lot more mangled than he was now, but he was smart and willing. That bear would have died one way or another. Even if he'd had to have found a way to collapse the ceiling on top of them. "Yeah right, as if I'll ever have a wife. If it helps you sleep at night, toothless." He said with one last chuckle before getting himself under control. It was rare he ever laughed, or hell even smiled, but in this case it was well deserved. After months of picking on each other he'd just found a way to one up her until her tooth fell out and her adult teeth came in. He was going to enjoy every moment of it. Her train of thought shifted and he glanced towards the bear as she explained her plan. He wasn't going to pass up on the opportunity of armor and a weapon. "Hang on a second." He padded towards the back of the cave, ignoring the screams of protests his wounds gave, as he headed for a particular spot. With his nose to the ground he sniffed around for a moment before he found a jagged piece of rock he'd nearly stepped on earlier as he was leading the bear back further into the cave. Snatching it up in his jaws, he trotted back to Zosime and dropped it at her feet. "Will that work as a knife?" Walk, "Talk" Think