He’d thought his next move over a few times in the last few hours, but this seemed his best course of action. Seeing Epitaph, if he was his half-brother or not, had cause Rhyme to feel more vulnerable than ever. He had Shaye’s blessing but his plan hadn’t come together until today. He didn’t know where the broken male had been taken after being torn from his mother’s side, but likely someone knew of his escape and a Hunter was being sent. Rhyme needed to take action.

With Epitaph in the care of Vail and possibly Solor and Spider he was going to seek out the warriors of the pack. Mostly the experienced wolves with the ranks were needed, but the younger wolves needed to hear what he had to say as well. If they wanted to be a warrior it was time to take their role seriously. This would be the grand test for all of them.

His tall form slipped through the grasses of the thickets as he made his way to the place where he had found Epitaph clinging to life. Here he would hold the communing of his warriors, and hopefully the beginning of an unstoppable force. Rhyme leaned back, his tail fur brushing the packed dirt trail that lined Abaven. He tilted his head and called out for those ranked as warriors and apprentices. As his call rang out and died off he returned to his poised state, his senses on alert in case the slave hunters had heard him too.

""

"Talk" Walk Ignis had been exploring nearby, though not near enough to have seen or heard the commotion at the borders from before. But when he heard Rhyme calling for the warriors of the pack, he was quick to jump to his feet and get there. He was an apprentice warrior, that meant he could show up, right? He wondered if they were being called for training, and the idea of that sent excitement surging through him. He had only really trained with Ace, but the prospect of training under someone else sounded exciting to him. Of course, he still felt a bit of wariness about the whole thing, but not as much as he thought he would. Rhyme seemed cool, and Shaye seemed kind. Surely he could trust them at some point, right? He just needed to get over the issues his father had created...and he hoped that would be soon. When he spotted Rhyme near the borders, he tried to approach with as much grace and dignity as a full grown, not so lanky adult. But he probably just looked dumb doing it. Still, he was the first to arrive and felt pretty proud of himself for it. "Heya Rhyme, what's goin' on? Are we doing some training?" He was enthusiastic, curious about what they were being called for.

After already participating in fighting training quite recently, Corvus was surprised when he heard Rhyme calling the fighters together once again. Was it normal to do training sessions so close together? He supposed it wasn't a bad thing, but in growing in here there really hadn't been much going on at all, especially not of such frequency. Not that he really minded - he'd just discussed with Peggy that he wanted to get better at fighting so he could protect his family. Particularly his parents and siblings and - well, Peggy too, not that she needed protecting though. Despite being surprised at the call, he wasn't entirely displeased, and his ears flicked curiously as he stood up and made his way toward the thicket. He was ready to dedicate himself to this, if only because the thought of another wolf or group of wolves coming in to take Abaven from his family again didn't settle well with him. No, he wanted to be ready to defend his family and ensure Abaven would never be held captive again. He wore a look of determination as he quickly loped to the group, a stark contrast to the normally glum look that the boy had taken on lately, eyeing Rhyme with a fair bit of skepticism as he drew closer. Ignis, a boy he'd seen around, was already speaking up and he was silent as he let him have the floor. Corvus had nothing to say anyway, he simply wanted to hear what they were all here for.

A howl for the fighters rose up over the packlands and Odysseus, after chucking the turtle shell he'd just found into his den, answered the call. He'd spoken with Rhyme just enough to recognize that he was the one calling. No doubt, given the recent events with the injured boy, this was about him and whatever was after him.

Odysseus paused on the outskirts of the gathering place to look over those who had beaten him to it. He knew neither of the boys who were there - something he'd have to fix soon - but both of them were quite young and the stoic male found that a touch alarming. Hopefully the more seasoned fighters were as slow to arrive as he was.

After nodding solemnly at Rhyme, Odysseus took a seat near the alpha. He sat ramrod straight and casually watched their surroundings for the arrival of others.

He had heard the call well enough, but he had a hard time trying to wrangle the fox kits into the den. Everytime he got one in, the other would run off, trying to get Ace to play with him. Ace wasn't taking the bait though, and he was starting to get impatient with them. Rhyme had called the warriors, and he took a guess as to what for. He heard about the wolf that had fallen at their borders, and he was in no means pleased with the way these kits were acting when he needed to be somewhere. "You two are really testing my patience!" He snapped. He had just managed to get both of them in the den, and the moment he turned around they both went running out like hens fleeing the henhouse like it was being raided by a...well...a fox. Growling with frustration, he chased after them and scooped up one in his mouth, and then quickly pinned the other one down. He picked them both up by the scruff and tossed them onto his back, crimson gaze eyeing them with enough intensity, it could probably wilt a flower. "You two better behave yourselves or I swear I will feed you to one of the alphas! I hear they like to eat naughty children for dinner," Both kits pinned their ears and tried to lie as flat as they could into his fur, watching him with wide eyes. "That's better...now be quiet and behave. I have to be somewhere important since one of the alphas is calling. So unless you want to be his dinner tonight, I suggest you behave." They both quickly nodded, and he set off to find Rhyme. It was an amusing thought to him. He couldn't imagine Shaye eating the kits, but Rhyme? Maybe. Maybe the man would even play along later should the kits decide to act up again, and that alone amused him more. It took him a few minutes to get there, but once he arrived he saw that Ignis and a couple others had already made it. He was proud of Ignis for arriving so fast. Or at least...faster than he did. He came and stood among the group, nodding to each wolf in turn. On his back, both kits raised their heads just a little bit to peek at those around them, though they mostly tried to remain as invisible as possible. "Speak"

Ignis came into sight first. Rhyme looked proudly at the boy, he didn’t hide his enthusiasm at all. Though he had a lot on his mind, serious topics and matters of life and death Rhyme could still find joy in the youth. He attempted to soften his expression for the boy. "Of sorts." Rhyme answered as Corvus and Odysseus arrived silently. He nodded to each in acknowledgement before Acere appeared with a couple of fox kits on his back. Rhyme returned his nod and took a deep breath. He paused for a long moment, waiting for any others to appear before starting.

He looked each in the eye as he started, feeling the familiar fear for his pack. He had to be strong and he had to take action. "I’ve asked you all here because the threat to Abaven comes closer every day." He and Rhythm might have gotten away with escape, but Epitaph had surely set off warning bells. They would not be happy about losing their property. "We need to be ready to meet it. You are Abaven’s elite force, the only thing standing between many of the wolves here and slavery. We’re starting drills today. Training our muscles, taking on patrols, practicing battle tactics" He listed off his drill activities. "Corvus, I’d like you to patrol with Acere, and potentially you’ll become his apprentice. Ignis, you’ll follow me." Peggy and Odysseus would be partnered together as well. "Epitaph was found in the thicket, I’ll want you to focus more heavily on this area." Rhyme was all over the place, though he was trying not to show his worry about recent events. He had to show strength, and be the fearless one for the pack. "Are there questions?"

""

"Talk" Walk "Of sorts," Okay, that was sort of the answer he was looking for. Tongue swiped out to lick his lips, a habit of his when he got excited. He waited for the others to arrive, whoever the others were. It didn't take long before an earthen toned yearling showed up, and Ignis recognized him after seeing him around a fair bit. Another, large male showed. One that looked quite fascinating and even had eyes the same color as his own. And then his uncle appeared with the two foxes he had rescued from the Maw. He knew more or less that this was a call for the warriors, and as he looked around and waited for more to show up, he realized...this was it. Really? He expected there to be more, but even after waiting a bit, no others came after his uncle. He frowned slightly, but then he turned his attention to Rhyme as he began to speak. He listened intently to Rhyme's words. Soaking it all in and storing it away. He would be patrolling with Rhyme, training with him. Corvus would be with his uncle, and he glanced briefly at first the earthen boy, and then his uncle who seemed to nod in approval. And Mr. Tall, dark, and mysterious would be training someone else he didn't know. He was okay with this. After all, if these were the only fighters in the pack, it meant he had to work twice as hard. And that was something he was okay with doing, too. His gaze turned back to Rhyme, the boy sitting tall and straight as he puffed out his chest. He thought about anything he might want to ask, but so far...it seemed pretty straightforward. But then again..."What do we do if someone comes sniffin' around looking for the new guy?" By "new guy" he meant Epitaph. And by "what do we do" he meant "can I rip 'em to shreds?" The prospect of getting in his first fight with someone who wanted to do bad things excited him. He'd get to be a hero! At least...that's what he thought in his head, anyway.

Corvus was still and silent as the others funneled in. His interest was only captured fully by Rhyme when he began to speak up, explaining that the threat to Abaven was growing closer. Corvus knew vaguely what he was talking about, though it wasn't really his business to pry further. He nodded at Rhyme's words, even if he thought Abaven getting themselves involved was.. questionable at best. Then again, the kind of things his father had told him about Abaven made him think his family had a penchant toward getting involved in things they didn't need to be sticking their noses in, but he wasn't going to be the one to mention that.. except maybe to Peggy when they were alone and out of earshot of the rest of the pack. Where was she, anyway? He cast a quick glance around to look for her, though his gaze settled quickly back on Rhyme. Today they were doing drills. Patrols. He'd go with Acere, and might become his apprentice. Corvus nodding, glancing toward the older white male with a curt nod. He had no questions, and glanced to the others, wondering what they could possibly ask. Ignis asked a question, which he decided was a good one, and he looked back to Rhyme for an answer. He didn't know what the hell he was really supposed to be doing by scouting, but hopefully Acere had some insight. Warily he padded over to him, sitting next to him in silence until they were ready to go patrolling.