The quaking isn't contained to just one land in the north- the tremors ripple across the frozen tundra of northern Boreas. The Frozen Field is not exempt from the effects, the vast glacial field rumbling with the echoes of the quakes, roaring like thunder. The ancient glacial ice groans under the strain, cracking and splintering to eventually reveal a massive cavern beneath one of the largest glaciers.

Shards of ice litter the cavern's floor. The cave's walls are a mess of jagged glacial ice and frost-coated rock, which glimmer from the light seeping in from the fractured ice above. Trekking through it feels immediately dangerous; the sound of creaking ice echoes from the walls, though another sound can be heard deeper in the cave, where light struggles to penetrate. It's the sound of something moving, shards of ice clinking together erratically, a strange eerie chime that echoes up toward the cave's entrance....

Danger is imminent! Posting in this thread can cause minor or moderate injuries, up to minor/moderate maims, or other bad, temporary effects to characters. Only one character per player; characters involved in the deeper Shimmering Shore exploration threads OR the S.S. Antiox exploration threads cannot attend.

the city looks so pretty
do you want to burn it with me?

Battery didn’t have a fucking clue what was going on around him, but that was okay. The world was ever changing in his short time out of the cave and it was all that he knew. After fishing for that cod with that one guy, Battery was rather interested in the frosty north and what food it had to offer… he just hoped that it wasn’t full of worms or something equally gross. Was everything plagued with the nasty worm-gut?

Peacefully exploring and minding his own business, the ground began to shake and roar and a cave had appeared, or well, maybe it was there before but with the ice falling and the ground shaking, it only made sense. After living in a cave for longer than he could count, one would think he wouldn’t want anything to do with a strange, new cave… Battery was not like the others though, and curiosity picked and poked at him. What if there was something to eat in there?! The other cave had hallucinogenic mushrooms that were much fun, so maybe this cave would have something too!

Without much other thought, or any fear, Battery headed into the cave with a wagging tail and a smile on his face. What could possibly go wrong?

Speech ─ Think

─ by Skelle !

Kea was walking along the frozen field, trying to make his way to the lands that wolves said needed to be hunted. Had he taken a wrong turn somewhere? He’d heard about the odd prey animals, and their strange actions. He was supposed to be looking for a ship. Something large and metal and frozen and… what was that?

He froze as the earth started rumbling beneath him. Spreading out his paws, trying to keep his balance, and then just as quickly… it was over. Before him he could see a cavern had opened up beneath a large glacier. Something new to explore?

He took the plunge, trying to push aside thoughts of worms. Really, how often could that happen to a guy? And this was a place of ice. No fire worms here, no fire worms here, no fire worms here…



"Speech"

Why did she keep get lost? When had she ended up so far north? It was to help the animals... Those poor animals. So lost and confused, but there was no helping them. It was terrifying. What was happening to their world? Overwhelmed by the idea that she too could get sick, Gem continued north. Except, she wasn't entirely aware she was heading north. With the earthquakes that continued to shatter the ground around her, she kept getting lost. So lost, very lost. Even when the cavern opened up before her and other wolves were entering, she hesitated. Why go in? But as she looked, turning her wide eyes to cave, she felt the pull. The glittering ice, the dripping water, how it all refracts under the bright, red light. Beautiful in its own horrific ways. A gasp leaves her as she steps further in. Amazed and speechless, Gem forgets how frozen she is, how much her paws hurt. What else could be down here? Gem Klein

Gypsy had stuck close to Gem after their exploration together. She didn't want to be a burden to the young girl, but the old woman felt a sense of comfort in their familiarity. Perhaps she would find a pack or a band that would take her in as they traveled together... or perhaps she would just wander off on her own to die. What else was there to do when you were old and blind and alone?

As they traveled, the temperature dropped. The little old wolf was chilly and her pads felt frozen. She stuck close to Gem, sharing body heat with the younger fae. "What is this place?" Gypsy could feel the heaviness in the air and the thrum of the earth through her paws. More strangeness.

"Gypsy"

**Gypsy's past is full of some extreme abuse. Be warned.**

Indigo may enter any of Gypsy's threads as he sees fit.

Barghest prowled along the fractured ice, her bright eyes narrowing at the shifting landscape before her. With each crack and splinter underfoot, her claws flexed instinctively, as if preparing to dig into solid ground should it crumble beneath her weight.

She approached the cavern’s mouth, her sharpened metal talons clinking lightly against the ice shards scattered across the floor. As she listened to the strange, haunting chime of moving ice below, she felt the thrill of an unknown challenge, the restlessness in her soul craved answers.

A smirk curled at the edge of her muzzle, even as the air grew colder with each step into the depths. Barghest, never one to back down from a challenge, would gladly oblige. There were others here too, maybe she’d luck out and one of them would care to fight her in case this wasn’t as interesting as she thought it was.

""

With something amiss so close to her home, she couldn't help but feel obligated to inspect the happenings. Part of her was still getting used to pack life, and while she was grateful to be home, it was difficult to return to staying in one place for stretches at a time. Makara was almost grateful for the distraction, as she hadn't been able to settle in quite as easily as she might have thought. By the time she'd reached the Frozen Field, quite a few wolves had already gathered to see what these new tremors had unearthed. Of course, another cave. Makara paced at the entrance as other wolves quietly funneled in, drawn to the novelty of it all.

Could she risk being trapped underground again? But what lies inside... Her curiosity had always ruled her, and in the end, she was swayed by its whims again. Makara tentatively began her journey into the cave, keeping her eyes warily glued to the ceiling at the shivering curtain of ice shards. She adjusted her goggles, tightening them firmly by tugging on a long, loose tie with her teeth. If the fallen, shattered ice on the ground was any indication, it looked like they were liable to fall at any moment. She stuck to the cave wall, hugging the outside of it and steering clear of the others for now. For once, she stayed silent.

Speech

Walking across the vast tundra, Clove was following the rumors of sick prey animals wandering the abyss of the North. There were herds of diseased prey up here and that needed to be hunted, to preserve the health of the prosperous herds. Seemed simple enough. If they weren’t hunted, the disease would spread into the neighboring territories, and eventually, reach her home in Auster. And that was a risk Clove didn’t want to take- especially with Mother and Father’s newest litter. Now where was that boat…

The icy tundra started to tremble before she could move into the next territory. The first tumor was subtle. Almost imperceptible, as if the tundra was holding its breath. Then, the earth shuddered violently, a deep, thunderous rumble resonating from the earth's core. The ice beneath her paws buckled, cracked, and shifted with an eerie, ominous force.

Racing across the tundra, Clove catches sight of a massive cavern beneath one of the largest glaciers. It seemed untouched by the tremors- a source of safety. Other wolves were racing toward it too- and Clove fell in line with them, bursting through the entrance and stumbling into one of the cavern’s icy walls. Deep within the glacier, a dark, hollow silence emanates, broken only by the faint, high-pitched whistling of the wind.

Panting, Clove is catching her breath, and testing the space around her for any familiar scents. Ciaran. She can smell the male’s scent in the glacier, somewhere nearby. He must have come looking for the sick herds too. Driven by familiarity, Clove treks deeper into the cavern, following her pack mate's scent, hoping to find him before another tremor shook the icy world around them.

"Clove Carpathius"

Speech // thought // French

Dark paws dance over the tundra. Conserving her energy while looking back and forth to keep her mind active. There was nowhere to hide should trouble come find her. And so close in the north, she was sure trouble might try.

Then the world groaned and bucked and trembled. The ice shattered and shifted beneath her. Expletives in French fell from her dark maw as her mind reeled and went blank.

Her paws were running. They were running toward an opening in the towering glacier. toward people, toward something. Her breath scrapes against her lungs as her ears are pinned to her skull. Her bright violet eyes were wide in fear as she slowly came back to her senses. Other wolves were gathered around, and a strange tinkling noise from deep within pulled her curiosity to the forefront.

Her heart still rammed against her ribs but surely anything in here was better than anything out there?

Éldi's continued exploration of the north revealed more and more concerning finds. It seemed that the channels in the Shimmering Shore and the spikes near Glowshroom Cavern were not the only features to mark the lands of Boreas and Auster. Tremors and earthquakes continued through the region. As Éldi wandered across the frozen terrain he came upon a cave carved deep into the glacial ice. The daylight show bright blue through the ice but the deeper one went the darker blue it became. Sounds of ice clinking together made his fur stand on end but he had come here to explore and explore he would. He needed to bring Eltrys answers… if he didn't die in the process.

As Éldi ducked deeper into the icy cave he soon realized there were other wolves here exploring. Perhaps they had heard the rumblings in the north and came to investigate as well?

Ken was far from superstitious. He had shown that at the spike place, and when the earth started shaking again, he settled himself down clear of falling rocks and poured out a drink for himself and his bitches. He was well on his way to being written off when a familiar scent drifted towards the trio on the breeze. His tail started to wave and he rolled to his feet, stumbling strolling towards the gathering just across the frozen field.

"Sss-pur-LUNKing!" He slurred a little, smiling as he slipped down into the cave. "I love spl-king!" He chattered away cheerily to his cattle dogs, giggling a little as his voice echoed back to him.

"speech"

coded by NachoMumma