the mercy of my enemy

*Erani* · 04-08-2014, 03:14 PM

Erani

Erani padded easily along the edge of a tunnel mouth, one ear back to listen to Jinxx?s passage beside her. The young male had argued, and in the end, she had won the argument with one of those looks. So they were here, exploring the lands that the earthquake had opened to the surface. She needed to know if any of the underground passages reported by Erion and Alpine would be a danger to Valhalla, leaving a way open into the inner sanctums of their home. One thing was for certain. Valhalla would be prepared if Glaciem launched another attack.

Snowy shoulders rolled smoothly as she paused, looking over at the cross marked son she had begun to see as a son. She had made fast time for a wolf her age, and still had a lot of energy left. She cast the male a smile. ?Ready?? Whether he was ready or not, she turned and stepped down into the mouth of the tunnel, going slowly and allowing her eyes to adjust to the growing dimness. Eventually, all she could see was a faint glow far ahead. She made her way toward it, ears flicking back and forth to catch any sounds. The glow grew, along with a sense of heat and movement, and the faint sounds of sluggish boiling. Her ears perked slightly as she approached, her pace slowing as natural caution rode her movements.

She came out onto a ledge of stone, fur rippling in the hot thermals sent up by the roiling, sluggish river of liquid fire. Not fire? Stone. In this river, she could see the contours, see what this would look like if it were still. Her eyes turned, to seek out Jinxx. ?Quite the sight, is it not?? Soft voice was low, almost matching with the soft, slow bubbling of the hellish river below. Turning, she continued carefully. ?Keep well away from the edge, and one eye on the danger. If one of those splashes right, we could be in for a world of pain.?

A scent brushed over her nose, and she froze. ?Glaciem.? The scream of agony followed shortly. Now, Erani wasn?t a wolf who could turn away from someone in pain, no matter who it was. The cry was female. Isardis had a great deal to answer for, and if it was he in pain, she would have let him suffer, and called the price even. Politically, she would rather stay as far away from the northern enemy of Valhalla as possible, and undermine them with subtlety; helping the lesser wolves of the northern pack, as Cormalin had done; though he had done it from the kindness of his heart, and a need to get the female as far from Valhalla as possible, and as swiftly as possible; and befriending the friendlier wolves, yet never giving too much information. As a healer, politics had no sway over the kind heart.

She started forward at a careful trot, deep blue eyes seeking out the source of the agony. She found the female pressed against the wall, as far from the river of hell as she could get, licking at her burned paw. Her scent told a great deal. She was the queen, and Isardis? scent on her coat told a great deal about what was going on. The Ice King was ill, possibly from the injuries sustained during his fight with Seraphine. Erani felt no remorse for the male?s pain.

This was a two pronged boon, possibly. Politically, there could be a gain from helping the Queen. A peace treaty, at the least. An Alliance was too unlikely. The bitterness between Glaciem and Valhalla was too deep by now for the packs to merge strengths. From a healer?s standpoint, she would be helping someone in need.

Deep blue eyes held a hint of the feral ice about the edges as she gazed at the agonized female. To Jinxx, whom she hoped had made it safely with her, she uttered a soft phrase. ?Jinxx, Attend.? The Queens command to stand at attention. It was spoken with such a gentle regality, and yet as firmly as the stone under paws. ?I recall seeing a stand of Mullein outside the tunnel we entered. And Yarrow. Do you recall them? If so, please, fetch some for me. She?s in no condition to pose a threat at the moment.? Gentle directives, with the same penetrating stare that brooked no arguments. She was in the dual mode of Queen and Lead Theta.

Stepping closer, she studied the injured paw, using the light from the molten river to assess the damage. ?Glaciem Queen, I suggest you stay put.? No name was given, as yet. From her bearing, it was obvious what her status was.

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