It was morning, autumn sun shining down upon the girl and the fox kit as they padded around one of the rocks that gave the territory it?s namesake. ?So many rocks... I wunder why?? Svetlana would muse quietly to herself. She had grown a little more curious about the world beyond the den and, with Korrin at her side, the girl was developing more confidence about exploring. ?Korrin thinks that mayhaps the great animal gods left them here. Perhaps the cat gods... They like to lay on rocks... Or maybe the snakes. Has Svet seen a snake?? The pup would look down at the fox, shaking her head. ?Uh-uh. What?s a snake?? She would sit down where she was, deciding she was tired again from walking, and the kit would lay in the grass beside her. ?Gross creatures. Scaly... Cold... Small... But they have a very bad bite. Can make a creature very sick. Korrin?s dad got bitten. Bite made him sick quickly and he died later that day.? The pup would frown as the kit explained, lowering her ears. They didn?t sound like good creatures as at... "Talk" "You" Think

A dark-coated wolf sprawled atop a large boulder in a field of boulders, ticked coat absorbing the sun as she slept seemingly insensible to the world. But at the sound of tiny voices below her, a sliver of silver appeared in either eye as they cracked open. Smoothly and silently she gathered herself into a crouch, ears flicking toward the sound and nose twitching as she tried to catch the scent. A fox kit, and a young wolf pup. One of Raisa's no doubt, since the Olympians had left for their own land. She had yet to formally meet the pups despite having attended their birth - she had in fact been avoiding them. Newly born puppies were tiny and looked breakable, and while Katja had excellent muscle control from long years of practice at more martial uses for it, she was far from comfortable around babies. From the sounds of it, though, the children were grown up enough to leave the den, and apparently deemed sturdy enough to wander on their own. She listened as Raisa's girl spoke with the fox about the rocks, then about snakes, and Katja decided it was time to make herself known. "It is said," she spoke as she rose smoothly from the rock to drop down mere paces from the young pair, silver eyes studying them intently, "that the snake J?rmungandr, the midgard serpent, will poison the mighty Thor in the final battle Ragnarok, that J?rmungandr will be slain, and taking nine paces then shall Thor perish." She spoke slowly and methodically, taking great care to make her English come through correctly, her even tone showing little of the passion she held for the subject. The pup was obviously Raisa's, appearing very little different from her mother, though the fox kit was an odd choice of companion for a pup with siblings. She cocked her head to the side consideringly. "Perhaps these boulders are the bones of hill giants, left here by their enemies when slain in battle." There was nothing in her face to say that she was trying to frighten them, and indeed she wasn't, but Katja was a viking, and saw no reason for these to be considered unsuitable stories for children. "Speech."

The voice of a strange would produce a frightened squeak from Svetlana, who immediately looked up at Katja with wide eyes. She didn?t know this woman... She wasn?t one of the ones that had come to the den. Ears would lower as she started to tell her story. Snake... Midgard Serpent? The girl really didn?t like the story at all... And death was something that was well, hardly suitable for a child. She spoke of both the snake and this ?Thor? perishing... By the time she mentioned the rocks being the bones of giants Svetlana had really decided she didn?t like these types of stories at all. A whine would leave her, lowering down to her belly. She didn?t want to think of stuff like this at all. Seeing Svetlana?s distress the fox kit would hop forward, fur bristling. She wasn?t even Svetlana?s size... Let alone anywhere near this adult wolf?s size... But all the save the little creature stood in front of the woman with tiny fangs being bared. ?Can you not see you are scaring Svet!?? After a little snarl she would glance apologetically back at her friend. ?Svet must not be comfortable with these topics... So Korrin asks woman to stop telling them.? She would return to Svetlana?s side, giving her a little nudge. The pup?s blue gaze looked to the woman, looking nearly on the verge of tears. ?There are no giants now right? Or snakes or surfents?? Her voice sounded scared. She didn?t want to meet any of these creatures. "Talk" "You" Think

Kass had been.... hesitant to say the least when it came to seeking out his siblings. He had to change that though so he started with attempting to find and strike a conversation with Svetlana. He came upon the scene with Svet asking if there were no giants or snakes or serpents now. "Of course there aren't any snakes or giants or serpents around." He piped up as he made himself known, the scents of herbs clung to his pelt. The strangely marked boy sat down about 3 lengths from Svet and looked at the adult. Why was this woman scaring his sister as such? What right did she have to scare the princess? That was what he wanted to know, but he was going to be a Sola, not an Ebon so why ask Ebon questions? Kassander than piped up again some sort of explanation. "They are just stories Svet. Even if there were giants and snakes and serpents, they are long since extinct." He went on to tell the wolves present as well as the fox kit who seemed to follow his sister around as her best friend. He had to admit he admired his sister to have such a close companionship with the fox, it was her best friend. Who was his best friend? Elsa? No, she was his teacher and he wasn't particularly close with any wolf else. Part of himself longed for a best friend, but he had a feeling he would never get one. "Talk" "You" Think

The pup's fearful reaction was strange to her, so used was she to viking pups who'd been raised on such stories - and far more gruesome at that. The tiny fox kit who leaped to the child's defense acted in a much more warrior-like manner, she noted approvingly, though Katja narrowed her eyes at the disrespectful little beast. "Reizend kleine biest kind," she rumbled at it. "Well you would do to hold a still tongue if you want to keep it. An empire's child needs be not fearful and must learn such... but you are no empire's child, fox." She turned her silver eyes back to the wolf pup, Raisa's child. "It is on Jotunheim that giants survive, child, not our realm. Long ago did the Aesir assure that. As to J?rmungandr, the serpent does be a sea serpent - far unlikely is it for you to meet such, unless you swim far beyond a wolf's ability." The appearance, and entirely false words of another of Raisa's pups cause Katja's ears to twitch in annoyance. This impudent heretic child dared question her beliefs? Did their parents teach them nothing of the proper behavior of a leader's children? She drew herself up as she stared down at him and spoke coldly, "Stories they may be, but no less are they true than stories of your birth. Could you claim it untrue, simply because remember it you do not? Do you deny the story of your mother's birth, because it was that you were not there? Do you disbelieve the story of your mother's creation of Ebony?" She paused to let that sink in before shaking her head dismissively. "Tcha, perhaps it may be a child of this land cannot understand. But one day you will learn, son of Raisa, that it is better to not speak than to so thoughtlessly claim knowledge you have not... Ihr blut ist nicht genug, um ihnen einen prinzen zu machen." "Speech."

The black ticked woman would speak, rumbling first as Korrin, which hardly pleased the beast. The black fox kit would puff out her chest, pinning her ears back as she growled in response. ?You do not scare Korrin, woman. Korrin cares not if Korrin is the child of an empire, but she will not allow Svet to be scared by woman just because Svet is. Woman can not simply expect Svet to be without fear.? Svetlana wouldn?t say anything as her companion continued to stick up for her, again with the courage of a beast easily twenty times her current size. Though she would nudge Korrin, trying to get her to stop, the pup honestly hoped she could learn to be as courageous as her friend. The woman would explain about the giants then, though she was still using more names not familiar to her. Then Kassander would show up saying that those things didn?t exist. They were just stories. She would frown more. Why make up such scary stories? But the woman was speaking again, this time seeming more annoyed and speaking coldly. She would frown... She didn?t really like that this woman was scolding them all... But... She seemed to be wise in her own right. Svetlana would lift her head, though her ears were still lowered some. ?You sure knows a lot, ma?am.? Head would tilt to the side. ?Yur not from here, huh? You say a pup of this land... So... Where are you from? You know stories and names that are strange...? Korrin would scoff at this. ?Tales of old and no more. Such things are not running around the world now... Even if years and years ago they did.? The fox would mumble, ears flicking with her own annoyance. "Talk" "You" Think

Kass listened as the woman went on to tell him that he knew nothing and that he was wrong. His fur bristled slightly at the notion, clear irritation in his eyes. "You're wrong. I know the story of my mother founding Ebony because they have facts to support them. Your story has no facts and nothing to support your claim." He stated matter-of-factly as he had been taught to in his lessons with Elsa. There were strong scents of lavender, ergot, arnica, black hawthorn, and hellebore clung desperately to his pelt. He sat up proud as a prince should as she gazed with a stone cold look at the woman. "Even if these silly fables were true, Svet did not ask to hear a story from you." He pointed out once more, seeking more knowledge in a sly and cunning way. The crescent-backed pup waited for her to offer some sort of rebuttal to the argument. ?Yur not from here, huh? You say a pup of this land... So... Where are you from? You know stories and names that are strange...? His sister's voice rang out and Kass managed to swallow down the strange protectiveness he felt for his siblings. He might keep his distance but he didn't want anything ill, including nightmares, to strike them... unless it was Valeriya. He closed his eyes briefly as he drew in another deep breathe. Kass rested his rump on the ground, his paws digging into it deep. He watched everything that was going on. "Talk" "You" Think

Mwhahahahhahaa?. the council was converging. Their master plan unfolding like the darkest of flowers, to unlease massive serpents upon Ebony! Little did they know that the greatest spy in Alacritist, Sigmarr the Stealthy, lay in wait just behind a boulder. He was a stealer of secrets and the inner most thoughts of the soul. These he would bring to his mother the Empress so that she could visit her wrath upon those that would plot the destruction of Ebony! Sigmarr lay not far from his siblings where he'd previously been napping before the entourage strolled up. He wrinkled his nose at the squeaky, irritating voice of Korrin the little fox that was always following Svet around. No creature in existence was capable of ruining a nap like that kit. He'd been ill when his sister found the little creature and now he was thinking it was time to play? Grinning he was about to move when an adult spoke. Katja? the warrior. He froze and listened quietly. A grin tugged at his maw as he settled to listen to her speak of massive serpents and monsters. Stories he loved! What better than heroic tales and terrifying creatures. But then along came Kassander to ruin the fun! Like always! Whenever he'd just start enjoying himself someone had to come along and be a doo doo brain. Getting to his feet he barreled toward the group, tail up and fur on end to stop facing his brother with a growl. "Shut up Poopy-head!" he yelled at his Kassander. "You've never even been outside of Ebony let alone Alacritis so how do you know it's not true? You've never seen a bear but you know they exist. And so what if they're stories? I want to hear them so why don't you go take a walk until that rock falls out of your butt?" "Talk" "You" Think

These children were beginning to fray Katja's temper. Not easy to provoke to anger, she was nonetheless beginning to feel the teeth of it gripping her at their continued, blatant disregard for any form of respect for her or the gods. She bared her teeth at the little fox in a grin entirely void of any humor as it declared itself unafraid of her. She was seriously considering the ramifications of killing the pet of one of Raisa's children - exactly how dearly did they hold this foxes, these living symbols of their family power? It would not be a difficult task, the beast was smaller than a rabbit. Worse though was the little male, Raisa's child. "You will hold your tongue, child," she snarled sharply. Her eyes gleamed silver, cold and furious, as she stood over him and he dared say she had nothing to support her "claim" as if she were telling bedtime stories instead of speaking of the gods. "Indulged, you have been, spoiled by those who should know better. Your blood gives you no license to act the brat, not with me. So certain are you in your infinite, infantile wisdom that you will know no other truth, boy? Phah." She made a sound of disgust. The young female was speaking, though, and Katja pulled her attention from the fox creature to listen. "From long and far away am I," Katja agreed. "And strange it is to me to find wolves such as in Ebony who have no knowledge of Aesir and Vanir. Worse to find, those who treat them as lies." Her eyes slid sternly to the disrespectful boychild, but the fox's mouthiness went too far and Katja's temper snapped. Luckily for the fox, as it was black paw and not teeth that flashed out aiming to cuff the fox. The sudden appearance of a third of Raisa's pups did not stay the motion of Katja's paw, but she was quick to withdraw it once more as the motion was completed, failure or success, so she could turn to face the pup barreling toward them barking out angry words. So fast he spoke, and with the childish timbre of his voice she wasn't sure she could follow the unfamiliar words. She got the general idea, though, and found herself somewhat mollified. Not all the children of her new pack were unrepentant heathens, then. She remained silent, neither condoning nor condemning the child's hostile words - she would not interfere in a child's squabble. Vikings, and the children of vikings, did not have a carefree childhood for so long as these wolves seemed to... they were long past due for some discipline. She could not, and would not, completely dispel the righteous anger sending sparks through her gaze. But perhaps now she would not kill the fox. "Speech."

Kassander was about to defend himself once more when Sigmarr showed up and started to run his mouth off. Kassander's fur started to bristle along his spine as he rushed up, barely 2 centimeters away from Sigmarr's face as he hissed. "This is why I hate you and Valeriya." Cruel? Perhaps but Kassander rushed off towards Elsa's den where he could find himself with another lesson. "I'm going where my skills are appreciated and recognized." He said in a harsh leave as he plunged away from them all towards the stone den that held many herbs withing it's borders and nooks and crannies. He was a healer and one day he would be a Sola Master. "Talk" "You" Think

Vaeriya came onto the scene just in time to see her hairball of a brother insulting her and Sigmarr. She seemed to waver on the precipice between aloof and angry, but finally ended up rolling her eyes and scoffing. She minced up to his side and made to bump his hip with hers. "Aww, you're so sweet, Kassypoo." The firstborn looked around the gathering and grinned, forgetting about her irate litter mate almost instantly. "What's going on?" Valeriya didn't remember ever having met the elder among them, so the oldest of the young bounded forward, eyes bright and fierce and small teeth flashing with a bright smile. "Hi! Who are you? I'm Valeriya, and I'm the heir." The small girl was proud of this, as if she had had any control over it or even understood what all it entailed, and wasn't shy about professing it to anyone and everyone she met. Never mind the fact that the princess was more often than not mucking about among the stones than actually interacting with her pack mates or even her siblings. None of them seemed willing to adventure with her, or brave enough to go so far from the den. Well, except Sigmarr maybe. She turned to her favorite brother and gave him a broad smile. "Talk" "You" Think

Svetlana would glance at her brother, frowning deeply as he said that this woman was wrong. ?Maybe the facts just aren?t here for us to see?? She really didn?t want them to fight... Any of them. But it seemed her words were lost. Korrin wouldn?t move however, little gray orbs narrowed as the creature let a growl rumble in her throat. This wolf didn?t scare her. At all. Ears would pin to the little beast?s head, waiting, fur bristling as she listened to what went on. The black ticked woman would scold her brother then before speaking to her. Far away... But how far? Svetlana would flinch, and Korrin would give a snarl of defiance, half mingling with a yelp, as she was cuffed upon her scuff by the wolf. The little she-pup would shift, getting to her paws, just as Sigmarr would run out now, yelling at Kassander. She would lower her ears, a soft whine leaving her. She hated to see her siblings fight... More than anything. Korrin was moving further back from the woman now, eyes sparking with sharp anger as sharp, angry mumbles of words escaped her mouth, not that over the two boy?s fighting any of the two wolves could hear. Svetlana gave a soft whine, watching as Kassander finally started to storm off. Surprisingly the little black and white fox would spring from Svetlana?s side, glaring back at the black ticked woman. ?Korrin will not stay either, and deal with this madness!? The fox would blow out a snort before leaving. Svetalana would lower his gaze for a moment, guilt rising in her heart. It was her fault the fighting started... If she hadn?t gotten scared of the stories then Korrin and Kass might not have fought the Ebon Knight that told them. After a moment she would look up at the other woman, ears still lowered. [colo#EDE4DD]?I?m sowwy...?[/color] She would say softly. She honestly felt terrible. She would lower her gaze then. ?Its not that I dun believe I just... I..? She was what? Too weak to face up to things that scared her? ?I... Dun wanna be a afraid... And... Though I?m not comfertable with the stories of other times that you know... I do want to know more even still. Even if its not things we know... I believe its the truth, too.? Would the woman accept her apology? She didn?t want the woman to think she thought she was a liar too. Val would come in then too, though Svetlana didn?t look up or answer her question. "Talk" "You" Think

Sigmarr stuck out his tongue at his brothers back as Kassander threw yet another melodramatic fit. He thought he was so high and mighty and smart but he couldn't even be bothered to hang around with the rest of them unless he could be beating them over the head with his supposed knowledge. Well, Sigmarr had little intention of dealing with the other male and was glad he'd left. Course if he hadn't it surely would've resulted in a bout of rough-housing. It was then that his sister Valeriya appeared and Sigmarr breathed a sigh of relief. He was wondering where she'd gotten off too. He grinned tail wagging and then it finally dawned on him that Svet was upset. Her frowned before bounding over to her, reaching out to lick at her ear. "Don't be scared Svet! You really think one of those serpents would stand a chance against the full might of Ebony? You really think mom would let anything happen to you? HA! One day I'll become a great fighter and you won't have to worry. I'll protect you!" He flopped down on his hauches, ears forward. "Now, you were saying something about snakes? What about heroes? Are there any epic heroes in your land?" "Talk" "You" Think

Another of Raisa's children children appeared even as the first boy snarled hateful words in his brother's face and took off. Katja simply watched him go, narrow-eyed as she considered the best course of action - at the moment to simply let the boy go, but something would absolutely need to be done about his behavior. There was more going on there than simply a childish temper tantrum. Past a faint sound of irritation, she made no move to stop either him or the first girl's little fox pet as they both stormed away. Her attention turned to the young girl who had bounded up to introduce herself as Raisa's heir, Valeriya. An odd thing, to her, the passing of such a high rank as alpha to someone simply because of who and when they were born, but she'd seen odder in her time as a mercenary. She was a bold one, that was sure. "Katja Finnvi am I," she spoke in return to the girl. "Of the Ebon Knights and oathsworn to your mother." But the timid girl whose fox had left had much need of attention as well. She seemed to want to change her behavior, which Katja felt all to the good. "Time it can take," she spoke surprisingly gently, "to learn not being afraid. Once I did fear high places - now it is I do not, for I faced it and defied it." She cocked her head to the side and regarded the girl. "Understand you?" Whether she did or not, it was not Katja's way to coddle anyone and moved on. She leaned back to sit. "Good it is that you think not your way is only way." The remaining boy spoke up bravely with bold words, declaring he'd be a great warrior and protect her, then flopped down to ask for more stories. Epic heroes? "For certain," she informed him gravely. "Many are the heroes of my land, and among the gods are heroes to be found. Hermod the Nimble it was who did race nine days and nine nights to the land of the dead to try to save slain Baldur. Brave Tyr, the lawgiver, the warrior, who did make the binding of Fenrir possible through his sacrifice. Many heroes there are, yes." "Speech."

Valeriya grinned at the tall, dark woman. She talked funny, but that was okay. It made her more interesting by far, and Val loved that. "Nice to meet you, Missus Katja!" The little girl bounded forward, sniffing at the taller woman's forelegs to see if maybe she could even smell the place she'd come from. Unfortunately, the spitfire was met with limited success. She stepped back and grinned broadly, before dropping her front legs and raising her posterior straight into the air, tail a-wag. "If you're an Ebon Knight then you know how to fight, right? And hunt? You'll teach me, won'tcha?" The small pup scampered from one side and then to the other, in a mock feint, before tripping over her own paws and rolling about in the dirt. "Oof!" This did not keep her form coming up with a smile, shaking out her coat, grin in tact. Her ear perked upwards, distracted then by her sister's voice. Sure, Svet was a little timid, but that didn't mean Valeriya loved her any less. Her noisy fox was kind of cool, she supposed, but Val still liked her better when she was quiet. Not that she'd say anything, because as far as she was concerned it was good that Korrin made Svet get out of her comfort zone. Sigmarr was the best though, and Val broke out in a wide grin at his question. "Yeah, any lady heroes? 'Cuz faes can be heroes too! We're just as strong as boys are!" Katja would know, she was a lady knight after all. And she had to be strong too, to be oathsworn to her mother, whatever that meant. Val had seen the warriors her mother surrounded herself with, huge ones like Platinum and Sif and Vaughan. Huh, she realized. Most of those are lady knights... Well, that just proves my point. She congratulated herself for her deduction. As Katja began to speak, Valeriya made her way over to Sigmarr's side and hip checked her favorite brother gently, mostly a sign of affection. She grinned broadly at him, wondering if he would be up for some mischief after this lesson was over with. "Talk" "You" Think

Svetlana was still frowning deeply as her brother bounded over to her, giving her a lick on the ear. Her brother?s words were nice, and she knew he meant well, but, at the same time, she wanted to be able to fight her own battles someday... To not have to hide behind others. The black-ticked woman would introduce herself to her sister, and Svet would make sure to remember her name. Katja. It was a pretty name, and the woman was once more turning her attention to her. It would take time... And the woman spoke, saying once that she even had a fear... But she faced it and was no longer afraid. The pup would give a nod, ears lifting. ?Think so...? She would work hard... She would face what she was afraid of and learn to overcome it. The other woman was older... But in the end she was a wolf just the same. If she could learn to face her fears then Svet was sure that she could as well. She would listen as Katja began to explain about some of the heroes from her land. Valeriya would break in, asking about lady heroes then. Svetlana would prick her ears forward, asking her own question. ?Haves you gone on any ?ventures like that?? Her voice was still on the quiet side though. Tales of old heroes were cool, they were, but what was cooler was meeting a wolf in the flesh who could be considered a hero. "Talk" "You" Think