"Talk" Walk The weight he had been feeling weighing him down lately while he'd been trying to revive the pack he had stolen felt like it had been lifted off his shoulders since he made the lone decision to let go of a dead pack. He didn't feel the need to constantly try and push those who didn't care to keep the pack going, and quite frankly he was glad to be rid of it. He could always start fresh later under his own decisions and new rule without expecting others to cling to the old stuff. Regardless if that's what the others had been doing or not, it was over and done with. He didn't care what happened or who claimed what he left behind but it didn't matter anymore. Now he could focus on his own shit, and his kids as well. He'd been trekking the lands, and the Red Forest was one such place. He'd been tracking a whitetail deer through the forest, its tracks fresh in the snow but uneven as well. It was likely injured, and he could tell by the way the tracks looked that it probably wouldn't last over the next few days. Hopefully, he could find it and bring it down, maybe prep it for the winter season and use its pelt and parts for trade. WC: 222

Celosia didn’t like being so untethered. Her relationships with her family and packmates had never exactly been well developed, and with her father giving up the pack she had a feeling that her siblings would grow even more distant than they already were. She had grown somewhat apathetic since her father vanished, things she used to put so much effort into falling to the wayside. While he was away, she had fought, and lost, her first battle. She hadn’t known who to go to for training, and was admittedly uncomfortable admitting to anyone how lacking she was in her training. It was easier to fight strangers that didn’t know who she was, but seeking out strangers to fight, and likely lose to, seemed even more unappealing.

As she trekked through the woods, she caught her fathers scent. Having yet to have any one on one time with him since his return, she figured now was as good a time as any to try and get some training in. She approached quietly, quickly realizing that he must have been tracking prey, a deer from what she could tell, and she wordlessly fell into step beside him.

417 / 2500
"Speech"

"Talk" Walk He was focused on tracking down the deer, so when his daughter fell into step beside him, he was surprised, to say the least. He didn't say a word though, instead, he nodded to acknowledge she was there as he proceeded to advance in search of their intended target. The tracks led deeper into the forest, though the further in they went, the more strange things seemed to be. Their surroundings seemed eerily quiet under the cover of darkness. Almost as if there was nothing alive. The only thing he could hear was his own heartbeat as it seemed even the steps from him and his daughter appeared to be muted. It was then he realized, too, that he swore he saw a faint glowing up ahead between the trees, though he wasn't sure what it was. He paused, signaling to his daughter to stop as well while he tested the air for any scent or sound of what might be ahead, but of course...he was met with silence. "Something doesn't seem right..." He muttered as he waited another moment. He kept his eyes on the faint glowing ahead, but it did not seem to be moving much from his point of view. "Follow me, and stay quiet." He whispered before moving forward again. The crimson male crept forward at a slow, steady pace. More so for the fact he wasn't sure what to expect, if anything. Things had been strange in the lands this winter, and he'd treat this as being part of that. As they neared the trees where he saw the glowing, he stopped in his tracks. No more than a few, short yards ahead, he spotted a grizzly bear munching on the deer he'd been tracking. But it wasn't just any sort of bear he'd seen before...this one was glowing. It's beady eyes glowed a bright, piercing green and it's fur was a dull variation of blues, greens, and purples. Blood spilled from its mouth which glowed the same color as its eyes. He thought perhaps they'd be able to slowly and quietly sneak away before it noticed them, but as the bear pulled a chunk of deer off, it noticed them. Shit! It stopped and stared at them for a moment before dropping the meat from its mouth, its eyes squinting against the dark as it started to step towards them. Ignis issued a warning growl, which seemed to set the bear off. The beast bellowed at them as it rose on its hind legs, spit and blood flying from its mouth. "Prepare to fight! He exclaimed to Celosia before he settled into a fighting stance. WC: 858/2500

Despite the strangeness that had settled over the lands, Celosia felt comfortable in the darkness that seemed to have grasped Boreas. The shadows and the moon ever present and making her feel somewhat at ease in this new, uncharted territory of being on her own. That didn’t erase the unease that came with knowing that this was not normal, though. Something was off, and if she thought too hard about it she was sure it would get to her, so instead of doing that, she ignored the oddness of it.

Her father was quiet at first when she joined him, and they tracked the deer in comfortable silence until a strange glow caught their attention. The silence had gone almost unnoticed by her, until it was broken by the sound of his voice. Even though he spoke quietly, it felt too loud in the still night, disrupting the air around them. Her unease grew, and she nodded as he told her to stay quiet. Usually she’d have some sort of comment, or maybe an eye roll at the paranoia, but something told her to keep her mouth shut. Like there was some unknown beast lying in wait, and the sound of her voice might summon it to them. It was a ridiculous and embarrassing thought that she would never voice aloud, but it was there regardless.

As they continued on, the feeling of dread only grew, her mouth going dry, brows knitting together as the bear came into sight. For a moment, she didn’t quite know what she was looking at. The scene didn’t make sense. The bear glowed, while seeing another predator eat was no new sight to either of them, something about this felt wrong. The color of the deer's blood was unlike anything she’d seen before. This wasn’t like the odd colors of her family, or the blue wolves that had been Incendium, nor did the glowing feel like it was anywhere near the same as her horns. Some might consider her unnatural, but that was different. She didn’t know how, couldn’t explain it, but it was.

As the bear's gaze landed on them, there was a moment where it felt like the ground had fallen out from underneath her. There was a long, horrifying moment where she hoped, prayed even, that it would turn away. She was usually always up for a fight, but she didn’t want this thing to touch her. At her fathers command, she mirrored his stance, bracing herself for impact.

Time seemed to slow down, stretching on as it reared up and roared, fluids flying from its gaping jaws. Her lips peeled back from her teeth, her nub of a tail sticking straight up as well as all the fur along her spine. Still, she was small, and the easier target of the two wolves, and when the bear came charging forward, it was aimed for her. A paw swung at her, but she managed to dodge to the side in time to avoid injury, at least for now. With a lunge, she shot forward, dipping past the side of the bear to try and split its focus, force it to choose if it wanted to defend against her larger, more experienced father, if it wanted to take out the easier target.

WC: 1,408/2,500
"Speech" || Thoughts

The ghoulish bear advanced on them, snarling and roaring at the two crimson wolves. Ignis was ready to fight, the pair mirroring each other's stance. The pair were almost like twins, barring the horns his daughter had. Hackles rose along his spine, his own bunny-like tail stuck out as much as was able while his lips peeled back to bare his fangs. He waited for the bear's next move, watching to see which of the two it would choose to attack. He was sure Celosia was capable of handling herself. Was sure that the rest of his children were capable of handling themselves all just fine...but his protective instincts would kick in, especially in a situation against the unknown. He wasn't about to risk losing one of his children to a predator...Celosia was his only daughter. She was important to him. There was no way in hell he was going to let some weird mutant bear take her from him. Not tonight. The bear roared and charged towards them, though he realized that its main target was his smaller daughter. It struck out with a paw that Celosia managed to avoid, but she soon dove towards the bear's side and caused the bear to turn its attention to her. With a snarl, Ignis pulled himself out of the mild stupor he'd been in after seeing such a strange thing and leaped into action. While Celosia distracted the bear and tore its focus from him, the larger male aimed to grab its left hind leg in his teeth. He wasn't sure if this creature had poisonous blood or if there was something about it that could harm him, but he didn't exactly stop to think about any of that. He just wanted to make sure it wouldn't be able to get to his daughter, consequences to himself be damned! Teeth punctured flesh, the pungent taste of bear blood on his tongue as he used his bulk and size to drag the bear's leg out from under it while vigorously shaking his head. He could hear the roars of pain coming from the beast as it attempted to turn on him, but Ignis moved with the bear and so far, managed to largely avoid its claws as it tried to reach him. As the bear tried to drag him, Ignis would dig his paws into the ground in an effort to keep the bear locked in place. Though he didn't expect the bear to kick him in the face with his other foot, sending the crimson male to buckle to the ground for a moment from the pain. His forehead bled from where the bears claws had caught him, but Ignis wasn't ready to back down. The bear started to advance on him now, limping towards him after the damage Ig had already done. At least the focus was on him now instead of his daughter...she was fast enough to hopefully get in and out without getting hurt...Tonight, it was them or the bear. WC: 1,910/2,500 "Speech"

Art by Naiterion

If she had been fighting with anyone else, she very likely would have fled as soon as the bear's attention was drawn away from her. It would have been humiliating, but it would have been an instinctive, gut reaction. As much as she boasted about how strong she was, how capable, she was still just a young girl at the end of the day. Facing up against the unknown horror was not something she ever could have anticipated, and she was not willing to put her life on the line for many people. Her father was one of the few. Despite their lack of a close relationship, despite the feeling of abandonment she’d had when he left, her loyalty to him hadn’t wavered. Her loud confidence often served as a way to mask her craving for approval from those she admired, and she hadn’t been exposed to many she could view as a role model.

With the bear's focus suddenly on Ignis, she had a lot more options, but no real clue on what the best one was. She frowned, shifting in place as she debated,warring internally. Go for the other back leg? Jump on it’s back and grab the scruff? Was that even realistic? She knew she couldn’t just stand on the sidelines, though. This was the experience, the opportunity to learn from her father and make up for some of that lost time. Not only that, but it was also a chance for her to prove herself to him, and to herself.

There was a sudden shift in the scene that would cause her to act, though. The bear kicked out a leg and caught him in the face, sending her father to the ground. She cursed herself quietly for not having made a move sooner, watching as the bear began to advance. She dove in then, acting on instinct, ignoring the overwhelming thoughts in her head that made her question each move. It was already weakened in one spot, and maybe it was a stupid move, but she launched herself towards the paw that had just been released from Ignis’ grip.

Her teeth sunk easily into the existing wound, and she clamped down as hard as she could, yanking back with all the force she had to rip and tear at the already shredded flesh. She was faintly aware of a roar coming from the creature, but the blood rushing in her ears drowned out all the other sounds around her. Her vision felt fuzzy and dark in the edges, focused in on only what was directly in front of her. Adrenaline coursed through her veins, allowing the thrill of excitement to wash away the feelings of uncertainty and fear. She was so caught up that she didn’t see the head swinging around to face her until teeth gripped the back of her neck. She immediately released her grip and just as quickly her body was flying through the air.

She didn’t go too far, but her body hit the ground with enough force to knock the air from her lungs. Shaking her head, she got to her feet quickly, zeroing back in on the bear. She could hardly feel the pain from the wounds on her neck, but the warmth of blood running down her shoulders was enough to let her know she would definitely be feeling it when the rush wore off.

WC- 2,477/2,500
"Speech" || Thoughts

The bear was advancing on him, but the crimson male was dazed after the kick to his head. Through the stars in his eyes, he watched as his Daughter seemed to try to figure out what to do. The sounds of the bear almost seemed like a far-off, muted echo, and he swore he felt like he was going to blackout. Not now! He screamed in his head. If he passed out now, the bear would kill him. He couldn't die now! He faltered back a few steps, trying to put a bit of distance between him and the bear while also trying to keep the bear's attention. His head bled. He could feel the warmth seeping into his fur and over his eyes. "Are you going to give up so easily? You might as well lie down and admit defeat again like the coward you are." Oh fuck...he was back. He hadn't heard the voice in the last couple of months. He'd gone...quiet...but now it seemed the voice had awakened once again and he wasn't sure what was going to happen. "Lousy time for you to show up now!" He retorted as he kept his eyes on the bear. He realized then, that Celosia was going in for the attack. She attacked the same leg had had previously damaged, his daughter seeking to worsen the wound and drag the bear's attention away from him while he recovered. He couldn't say he wasn't proud of his daughter. Though he had unintentionally missed out on spending time with them and being there like he should have been, she was doing an exceptional job! His thoughts were cut short, however, as he watched the bear grab the back of Celosia's neck and flung her away. Time seemed to stand still for a moment as he watched, waiting with bated breath to see if she would get back up. After what felt like an eternity, she did manage to find her feet. He let go of the breath he was holding, readying himself for another assault. "Are you just going to stand by and let this insignificant creature harm your child? You're stronger than that...we are stronger than that! Stop being a fool...if you give yourself to me, we can become stronger than you ever imagined. Ignis seemed to struggle with himself, and once again it felt like time had slowed down around him. He'd been fighting his demon for years...losing some battles, and winning others against it...but how long could he keep fighting it for? It was in his blood...his lineage...he didn't want to feel weak and powerless anymore. "Alright." "At last..." With a thunderous roar, Ignis felt his mind turn over, and before he knew it, he was charging at the bear. He was ready to kill this damn thing for harming his daughter, and it would learn today that it had made a grave mistake. He leaped on the bear's back, using his weight to push the beast's shoulders down before his teeth lunged for the back of its neck. The bear roared in pain as it twisted and turned trying to get him off, but Ignis' teeth were deep into the tissue. He shook his head, tearing the flesh and spilling blood as he kept an iron grip on the beast, forcing it's head down towards the ground. Crimson gaze flashed towards his daughter, a silent cue for her to go ahead and finish it off. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think