***I know that's not actually the lyrics, but I just thought it was funny xD

She imagined spring always influenced the amount of rainfall to some degree. Whether you be in a desert or a tundra, surely you would notice some difference. However, this was beginning to look like something she had never seen before, originating from northern territories herself. While it wasn’t coming down in sheets, the drizzle was consistent. It saturated her coat, influencing it to cling to her feminine frame. And based on what she was observing around her, the desert had a difficult time handling the influx of water as well. There was simply nothing here to soak any of it up- with only the weathered rock to guide it into channels that she was sure found their end in the ocean in one way or another. However, the current concern was the uncertainty of how long the channels would hold at this rate. If they filled faster than they could drain, she was sure it wouldn’t take long for the suddenly formed river to overflow. Then what would happen … she wasn’t sure.

Being unfamiliar with this particular territory, Cassiela began passively searching for higher ground. Not that there was much difference between the high ground versus the low ground in this particular area. She thought until she was more sure she wasn’t in danger, it would be good to be cautious. And in the event of flooding, at least a ridge might buy her a little extra time to get creative in her harrowing escape … whatever that may be.

With some effort, Cassiela hauled herself up an incline. It was no mountain by any means. But it did give her a generous view of the lands she had just traversed, as well as a clearer line of sight to the horizon where the river disappeared. There weren’t any signs of stress in the banks just yet, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t soon to come.

Azure had kept a careful eye upon the greyscale woman, eternally suspicious of strangers since the pirate's escalation upon Hanako. The rain was unfortunate, weighing his heavy coat down heavily and dampening any potential of catching the stranger's scent on the wind. He paced and circled, toeing carefully up and down inclines along the near-to-flooding river and hoping the wind might shift and give him a clue, but eventually he was forced to simply approach and risk the confrontation.

He came up on her with confidence, nostrils flaring against the onslaught of rain and managing eventually the hint that he'd sought. Valhalla. Not at all a threat, as far as Azure was concerned. "Greetings. My name is Azure." The alpha offered with a dip of his head, rain pouring down off his nose as he did so. "It's not quite safe to remain here, we might find ourselves in a flood any moment." If Valhalla's king found his wolf drowned and somehow discovered that Azure had been nearby, he'd never hear the end of it from him nor the lamp post who'd birthed him. "Allow me to escort you back to your plains - we could even make it a contest, if you're so inclined." Gesturing with his head south - through the scrub brush and cacti, across the dampened ground, Azure gently encouraged her to accompany him to safety.

"Speech"

As she pushed herself forward to find higher ground, she allowed herself to fall into a tunneled vision focused on the immediate ground before her. The rain drowned any scent that she normally would have been able to catch, and her chin tipped downward in an ill-fated effort to shield her eyes from the storm. It wasn’t until the strange gentleman was nearly upon her did she notice that she wasn’t alone. In the first split second of recognition, she expected to see Ardyn- catching the towering dark figure from her peripheral. However, as her emerald gaze lingered, it was clearly not the Ard Rí, but another massive brute instead. What is in the water here?

He immediately introduced himself as Azure. It was difficult to hear him clearly over the dull roar of the volatile ambiance. Yet, she would carry on with a simple introduction of her own. “Cassiela.” The ashen fae offered in turn- raising her voice slightly over what would be conversational to make sure she was heard over the downpour. Though, with his next statement, he merely echoed her earlier thoughts. She found herself nodding along to his words as he spoke. Perhaps he was more familiar with the area and knew how to navigate a little easier.

Part of her felt the implication that she should decline his offer. Insist that she could manage on her own. But even a gentle suggestion was ingrained in her to feel as a command. And she certainly wasn’t going to argue with him as the ground washed away beneath their paws. “Thank you, I appreciate it! But what contest do you have in mind?” She asked lightly, with an edge of humor to her tone. She fervently pressed forward in the direction that he had indicated, the water rolling off her back being all the motivation she needed to get going. “Who can keep their head above water longer?” Cassiela joked. Even so, if this were the case, he would certainly win.

The woman did not hesitate long, and while Azure would have liked to think it was simply a reflection of his natural-born ability to lead, the unstable ground beneath their paws and the onslaught of rain threatening to wash them away was a much more likely reason. The longer he remained, the heavier his pelt became. Bogged down by wetness that would make a race hard, but more fair as well. Evening the odds, or something along those lines.

To her question he gave a sharp bark of laughter, head shaking. "That would not be a very sporting contest." Azure mused. "Unless you're prepared to climb me, all I'd need to do is stand here for a few more minutes. I was thinking a race - a bit of an adrenaline boost to ease our way out, some fun found in this dreaded swamp." Since when did it rain so heavily in the desert? Lifting his nose against the rain he pointed out toward the plains where he knew this wolf to live. "First one to the plains?"

Azure vs Cassiela for Race
Round 0/?
Age: over 1 year
Size: Dire wolf
Build: Medium
Skills: Master Fighter & Master Hunter

"Speech"

The rain had all but slicked her coat to her skin, dripping in excess as quickly as it fell from the sky. However, that wouldn't stop her bout of laughter as she nodded along to the response of her earlier quip. “I suppose you’re right,” Cassi sheepishly admitted. However, she had to put a little more volume behind what she would naturally consider to be conversational over the dull roar of patter against the saturated sand. Even still, when Azure explained what he had initially intended, she nodded a little more enthusiastically. “Great idea!” She assured him. She knew the general direction of the plains … just not what lay between where they were, and where they were going. She supposed the best way to find out, was to witness firsthand.

Without any further debate, she settled her paws more deliberately into the mushy ground. Flexing her toes as to find some semblance of hold. “On three!” She called out over the rain. Cassiela tensed her muscles in preparation. Allowing plenty of pause to give the much larger brute enough time to do the same.  “One … two … three!” And with that, she launched herself forward.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -Cassiela vs Azure for Race
Round 1/2?
Age: over 1 year
Size: Small
Build: Light
Skills: Novice Intellect & Novice Navigation

It seemed she took well to the idea of the race, and while Azure did not have much experience in the sport... how hard could it be? His mother won races, after all. Was it really so hard to just run somewhere? Cassiela called out the start of their contest and Azure spread his toes, clawing the ground to find purchase to prepare to take off. Once she finished her count down, he sprung. Galloping across the soggy ground, feeling the discomfort of the rain as it poked angrily at his eyes and ears. Soaking his face, his fur, pouring into his open maw. This was a terrible idea. The Warlord had never been quite fast, working more off raw strength then anything close to agility. Azure was forced to squint against the weather, his muzzle wrinkling as he did so, tongue lolling out into a pant as he picked up speed. He was not about to lose to this Valhallan!

Azure vs Cassiela for Race
Round 1/2
Age: over 1 year
Size: Dire wolf
Build: Medium
Skills: Master Fighter & Master Hunter

"Speech"

OOC | I don't know if you do TikTok or not ... but this totally gives me vibes like that 'Ring of Fire' running trend. xD

If it were even possible, it felt as if though moving faster caused the rain to fall harder. Or perhaps, she was just catching more of it in her increased gait. It seemed no matter which way she positioned her face, visibility was very little. However, the impossible situation wouldn’t begin to stifle the laughter that escaped her jaw. This is ridiculous! Yet she pushed herself as hard and fast as she could weather permitting. That being said, she was not impervious to the treacherous course. As she hauled herself up an incline, she put too much faith in an outcropping of rock. When it took the brunt of her weight, it dislodged from beneath her footing. Cassi yelped as she scrambled to right herself, and luckily managed to keep herself off the ground. “Careful!” She called out to Azure- wherever he may be against the downpour as she returned to her top speed.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -Cassiela vs Azure for Race
Round 2/2
Age: over 1 year
Size: Small
Build: Light
Skills: Novice Intellect & Novice Navigation

The longer he ran, the heavier his fur seemed to become. Burdened by the rain and wetness and assaulted by the winds, Azure had decided that he was an idiot for suggesting this in the first place. The only bonus seemed to be that his racing companion was enjoying it, as he could hear a near-drowned out distant bout of laughter... immediately followed by a warning. Azure skidded to a quick halt as the ground before him began to fall, planting the paws on his left hard and pushing off of them to redirect his escape sharply to the right.

He managed to avoid the unstable ground entirely, but lost a lot of ground in the race in doing so. Hopefully Cassiela had recovered well from whatever had prompted the warning - though through the unrelenting storm he couldn't spot her at all. The plains were nearer now however, and Azure pushed himself to just keep running. Only a few more minutes before he was free of the misery that was the soaking wet desert river.

Azure vs Cassiela for Race
Round 2/2
Age: over 1 year
Size: Dire wolf
Build: Medium
Skills: Master Fighter & Master Hunter

"Speech"

And the winner is...

Cassiela

Azure was left in the dust! Totals: Azure : Speed Roll: 83 Stamina Roll: 88 Balance Roll: 4 Total: 175 Speed[83] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 83.00 Stamina[88] + 10% Bonus[8.80]: 96.80 Balance[4] + 5% Bonus[0.20]: 4.20 Total[184.00] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 184.00 Cassiela: Speed Roll: 96 Stamina Roll: 85 Balance Roll: 12 Total: 193 Speed[96] + 10% Bonus[9.60]: 105.60 Stamina[85] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 85.00 Balance[12] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 12.00 Total[202.60] + 5% Bonus[10.13]: 212.73

Just as the sand slowly turned into brittle grass, the rain began to slow. Chest heaving, she looked up for the first time since their mad dash to find the larger brute that she had lost sight of in the chaos. “That was ridiculous!” She called between breaths and broken laughter. Taking stock of where they were, the heart of the plains wasn’t far off. She had the desire to shake some of the water from her coat but repressed the urge as she knew it would be to no avail. “Thank you, for uhh … escorting me home, Azure. It is much appreciated.” She casually insisted. Yeah, the ashen fae could have made it home on her own. However, she was grateful for the company of a friendly stranger.

Now that things were beginning to calm down, she was able to absorb a little more details. “You have a pack scent,” she politely acknowledged. “I don’t recognize it. Are you from nearby?” It was simply out of curiosity. However, she supposed that if he wasn’t comfortable answering, she wouldn’t be offended. He certainly didn’t owe her anything, and Cassi knew that.

Well, Azure couldn't say he didn't expect the loss. Ever since he was a young pup still growing into his mutations he'd been slower than the rest of wolves his age, a downside he'd gladly take again and again in exchange for the strength and width of his paws. He slowed as they reached the 'finish line', tongue lolling out in a pant as he came up upon the winner. "Congratulations." The ghost of a chuckle touched his praise, brought out no doubt by the thrill of the race as well as her own infectious laughter. It was well earned - this wolf was fast.

Thanks typically made him uncomfortable and Azure gave a quick nod of his head to acknowledge her words. "Valhalla is the longest standing pack in the world, now. Always good to ensure friendships with those strong enough to remain." He replied diplomatically. It was easier to blame his good deeds on calculated decision, else wolves might think he was nice or something. Confirming her observation he continued casually, nodding once more. "I do." The words were winded, but his breath was slowly returning to him as he rested. "I'm the alpha of the Armada, to the north." More diplomacy - perhaps if Ardyn found out he'd offered a paw to one of his wolves, he'd be more willing to be friendly the next time they'd meet.


"Speech"