A Song of Ice and Fire

Marina looked with something akin to contempt up at the Warlord when he snapped his teeth in her direction. Ohh, so menacing... He was behaving today though. He knew he needed her, or another healer. It did make her wonder why he had called for her. Was this some sort of a test? Either way, he confirmed the existence of a birthing kit and fetched it for her. While Ignita wailed about something being wrong, Marina simply shot her an apathetic look. No shit something was wrong. The idiot had chosen to breed with a wolf almost three times her size. What had she expected to happen? Minding her bedside manners, Marina decided to bite her tongue and not mention how Ignita was likely not going to survive this ordeal. Not without some manner of miracle from the gods. It was what she deserved for having willingly fucked her way into the favor of the wretched tyrant.

But Marina's entire disposition changed when Basilisk made her a deal—save Ignita and their pups and she'd be given her mentagion back. The fae's paws frozen in shock, lilac eyes turning up to scrutinize the Warlord's expression. Was he fucking with her? No... he was desperate. Up until now, Marina had simply not cared whether Ignita and the pups lived or perished, but now there was something at stake for her. "I'll do what I can. But you may have already condemned her to death the moment you decided to spill your seed in her," she muttered, voice steady and stern, all business. It was a harsh truth, but Marina was not here to sugarcoat reality. Basilisk should have known better. If she died, this was his doing and she wanted him to know that.

Fortunately, it seemed Oleander had set the soon-to-be parents up for success. The birthing kit held everything she could have wanted for. Trillium, motherwort, alfalfa, ginseng, meadowsweet... All the essentials and then some were here. Taking up the meadowsweet and motherwort, Marina moved over to the writhing Ignita and sat down beside her, placing a paw on the painfully stretched skin of her belly, digits tenderly probing at her womb to identify where the pups were in relation to one another. "Ignita, I know you're in pain, but I need you to do exactly as I say, okay? Open your mouth, eat these plants." Marina held the herbs before Ignita's muzzle, knowing they would help ease the contractions into more manageable rates and soothe some of the pain. She didn't want to jump to the more powerful trillium just yet. Too much could prove fatal.

"The pups are making their way out. When you feel your muscles contract, push as hard as you can. Bite Basilisk if it helps, but don't stop pushing until the muscle spasms stop. If something feels wrong, tell me what you're feeling and we'll fix it." Marina shot a wicked look of enjoyment up at the Warlord. She hoped Ignita bit him hard. "Basilisk, fetch water, an empty bowl, and something I can crush these plants with." If Ignita lost consciousness during the birth, Marina would need another way to administer medicine without her actively chewing.

"Marina"