The walk back to Armada territory hadn’t been a long one, and he made sure to make his pace an easy one. His newest wolf had shorter legs. Bast trotted along at her other side, the snow leopard walked with a spring in her step, and would grin at the girl if she ever caught her eye. She was always the sweetest in the Warlords party of three. Once they arrived at the border and stepped over, he would take her first to the communal area, as he always did. He would show her to the obelysk with the packs rules engraved across it, and the carefully dug fire pit near the large seating area. The cellar with their food stores and spare coats was just to the side of that, as well as an array of pre-made dens for those that had just arrived and had had a chance to set up their own yet. “Feel free to get settled, if you need a hand crafting a den, just ask. In two days, i’ll meet you here for your first lesson.” he instructed her. Ooc: Pack map -After your initial post, do you want Sirius to leave, and to do a short time skip and have me reply with my pup Mortis? "Speech"

Okay, so she'd be lying if she said she wasn't a little nervous to have the leopard walking right alongside her. But Bast was friendly, and Lala was soon at ease. The journey wasn't too far, and as they moved west from the willow grove, the trees thinned and the land flattened out to a wide stretch of grass and underbrush. She was surprised at the sudden sense of familiarity, though she wasn't sure if it was a good feeling. Her own beginnings had been in a grassland, her family preying on elk, mainly, and bison. What a feeling it had been, running in the open. She felt another, light pang, then shook it off with ease as they moved across the border and into the packlands--her pack, now.

These lands had their own quirks to them though, as she would soon come to learn. She listened quietly as Sirius showed her each part of the territory, ears flicking as she registered every new detail. She wanted to pepper him with questions, but she also wanted to run off on her own--really get into every nook and cranny of the place. And it would seem there would be plenty of time for both. "Right, okay. I'll see you in two days then!" Two days, Sirius had given her, before her training began.

---
{ooc: Sounds good to me!}

Sirius had told Mortis there was a new wolf settling in, and the pup was instantly curious to meet her. He always liked new faces, and would adore it if she was someone that would play with him.the young pup, not yet six months old, would give her little time to settle in before he would go to find her. His wings were partly unfurled, hanging easily at his back in a little humped ‘m’ shape as he trotted towards the border, found the scent of her, and followed it to where she was now. The sound of his trotting feet was hardly subtle, and he would call out the moment he saw her. “Hello!” despite his young age, he was still taller than her, well on the way to being a giant like his father "Speech"

The girl was rearranging her den for about the sixth time when paw steps found their way to her ear. Malalia moved past the opening to see a figure heading her way, a greeting delivered when they caught sight of each other.

The wolf was taller than her, but as he moved closer, she gathered that she was actually older than him. The boy looked so much like Sirius, save the blue tones in his pelt, and the pair of wings adorning his back. Real ones this time, she realized, laughing slightly at the deja vu.

“Hello—“ Wait. She spit out a few elk hairs, courtesy of her bedding. “Sorry, that was a little gross. So… hi. I’m Malalia.” She smiled brightly, tail swaying behind her. She hadn’t encountered another wolf close to her age in… ages. “You’re Sirius’ son, right? Boy, you look so much like him. I even thought he had wings when we first met—ah.” Her ears flattened a bit. “Sorry, I’m sure you've heard it a million times, huh?”

He blinked in surprise at her laughter, but didn’t think she teased him. He grinned back at her, curious at what she had found amusing. His eyes slid past her as he did so, admiring the den she had been working on. It always interested him how everyone seemed to approach den making in different ways. Some people like little cosy dens, and others great big buildings that took months to make. Mortis was a little more inclined to the little cozy ones, where he had to squeeze his wings to his side to fit in. it reminded him of being surrounded by family. She was a girl, but nothing like the ones he knew. He doubted his sister would call spitting out elk hairs ‘gross’ and he would be the one to giggle now. He assumed she didn’t have siblings if she thought that was bad manners. Or perhaps the pup just hadn’t been exposed to politeness yet. “Hi Malalia, I’m Mortis” he continued, stepping a little closer to her, tail swinging happily behind him as the curious pup gave her a sniff. “Do you think? I got mumma’s blues. One of my brothers is purple. Mumma said that came from her mumma” he rambled on. “That my dad has wings?” he asked, catching her words and looking at her in surprise. “Puppa doesn't have wings.” he clarified, in case she was confused on the subject. "Speech"

"Good to meet you," she smiled. Well, a purple wolf was certainly unorthodox. She thought briefly of the patterns that swirled in her own fur. The yearling was the mirror image of her mother--save for the eyes, and the jagged stripe of white fur that ran across her back. They were the only things she had received from her father, though for once the thought wasn't troubling; the man had passed long before she was born.

"You're right. I thought he did," she repeated. "when I first saw him. I was a little far away from him--turned out it was just his vulture, though. I'd never seen a wolf with wings before--well, before you, actually." She sat down, eyes sweeping over the feathered appendages. "I'm sure you can't actually fly with them, can you? But they must be pretty cool, anyway." Nothing she'd heard indicated the feature could support a wolf in the air--which was an awful shame, because how fun would that be?--but she was curious all the same.

The newcomer would go on to explain her first meeting with his father, and Mortis could just about picture the scene. His father, in the woods, Martial on his back. The pup had seen the vulture around his father so many times he took it for granted. He had never even thought of the idea of mistaking the bird's wings as being a part of Sirius. His wings shifted a little as though a breeze shook them, and he moved a paw in a fidget that could be almost nervous. “Momma said birds have hollow bones to make them light. A wolf has heavy bones. She gets a little upset about the subject, so I don’t mention it much. I… tried to fly when I was younger” he explained, a little subdued at the memory of his mother's wrath. He didn’t stay somber for long however, a bright grin was already on his face, and he bounced a little closer. “So what's your plans with your den?” he wanted to know. "Speech"

Her ears twitched at the small movement of his paw, and she almost frowned at the mention of his flight attempt. If there was something she didn't expect, it was... quietness about the subject, especially from the previously bubbly pup. Maybe he got hurt? But the moment passed as quickly as it had come, and the boy was back to his buoyant self when he asked after her den.

"For right now? Nothing fancy, just a hole in the ground." Well, that was almost true. The grasslands were not entirely flat. Where she stood, a tiny hill crested at about her shoulder, blades of grass bending to hang just over the entrance where the slope dropped off. Just across from it lay a pile of dirt, evidence of her digging. The cavern had begun as a rabbit warren, but the rest of the work she had done herself, widening the entrance, and digging down a short tunnel until she'd leveled out a main chamber. A spare pelt covered most of the floor, and in the corner of the back wall was a little nook for storing things. Inside, there was enough space for two of her, though the ceiling was a bit low.

"I think I wanna make it bigger, and it'll be mostly underground... but this should do for now. Anyway, I was going to look for chrysanthemums or marigolds later on. Keeps the critters away. And maybe some rabbit furs." She threw a cursory glance over the wolf. "Hmm... so, I think you can fit, if you wanna check it out." She was used to her own siblings barging in and out of her space; the yearling didn't mind the intrusion.

Mortis stuck his head into her den as he brought attention to it with his words. He was curious to see what she had done, and the little hill with its dug hole was almost familiar. If a lot smaller. “Neat! Our home is a little like that too, dig into a hill. It's bigger through, since dad needs a lot of room, and there's a stream near the door!” he described it happily, almost absently as he sniffed about. “Do I smell bunny?” he asked, little nose twitching in the air. She invited him in, and he wiggled through the entrance, keeping his wings flat to his back, and stomped about the small area. “Cool!” he said happily. “Dad has a stash of pelts for people to use if you wanted to grab something from the stores” he offered easily. “So what are you planning on doing in the Armada, anyway? I wanna be a warrior, like my Pa” His constant stream of speech was a ramble he barely seemed to pay attention to himself. His eyes were bright, freely and inviting as he moved about the small space of her home. "Speech"

"It used to be a rabbit den." She remained comfortably near the entrance as he investigated, snorting faintly with laughter once she heard him stomping about. "Good to know, thanks." Unsure exactly how much she was allowed, she'd only gathered the one pelt--and even then, she hadn't wanted to take without giving back, eventually. She made a mental note to stop by the stash to nose around for some rabbit furs. It would be so, so soft...

"You are? I'm going to be one, too. A healer-warrior, actually." Her tail thumped happily. "I picked up a few things from... from hanging out with the healer in my old pack. I've always had an interest in it--no real training there, though. But being a warrior, that was my dream. I always looked up to the ones in my old pack. I want to move like they did." It wasn't just the prestige, or protecting the family--their skill alone amazed her. It had been mesmerizing to watch them spar, anticipating each other's attacks, their own strikes fluid and sure. Slowly, her tail stilled, her eyes unseeing. It was a bittersweet memory. It was the most she'd talked about her former pack in ages. It felt a little strange.

She cleared her throat, quickly recovering face. "And I might be kinda small, but I still wanna kick someone's butt," she grinned. Hell, that would make victory even sweeter. "I don't know who'll teach me about healing, but your dad said he would train me in fighting. I'm pretty excited. Is he your mentor, too?"

Well, that explained the smell. He was curious about the idea of enlarging a rabbit den, and he wondered if the rabbit felt put out at having its home repurposed. Actually, it mostly likely went into her belly, he realised. He dismissed the thought, and moved onto the delightful subject of warriors. “What was your old pack like? Why’d you leave?” he asked, her answered only fueling him for more questions. He had so much he wanted to know. He didn’t catch the change in her demeanor, too lost in his own imaginings of great warriors, and being one himself one day. “Yeah! He’s my mentor. And I bet Auntie Io would teach you, she’s the best healer in our pack. She’s teaching my brother too.” he explained. His excitement continuously getting the better of him. “We should have a spar, just like Da’s been teaching me! And then if we get any oweis, we can go see Io, and you can see how she patches us up.” he offered, his enthusiasm like a freight train at this idea. "Speech"

That tight feeling had grabbed hold of her again, stiffening her limbs. Just as sharp and swift came the retribution from her own mind. Get over yourself, Mal, you're still like this? With quick shake, she forced her hackles to lay flat and tried to take on at least the semblance of composure. She stole a moment to consider her next words, and then spoke, her voice low and even. "They were... alright. We lived on flatlands a lot like this one, actually, and we had our quarrels like anyone else. My, um... my mother and two siblings were killed in a territory dispute. And they were the only family I had, so at that point, I just didn't wanna stick around. I was old enough to survive on my own, so I left."

And that version, while perhaps a bit vague, was largely true. Why lie and cause trouble for herself later? Still, she hoped the mention of death would steer off any more questions, though with such a curious companion she couldn't be sure.

Her shoulders visibly slumped when he changed the subject. "I would love to meet your aunt, then. And a spar sounds like a great idea!" Anything to distract herself. Rising to her paws, she bounded a few steps away and turned around. Malalia took up a defensive position: body lowered, ears flattened against her skull, paws spread evenly, with just a bit of weight held in her hindlegs. Still, her tail gave a friendly wave, and the ensuing growl was all play. "Ready?"

"Speech"
[ooc: Thanks for the table!! :D]

Mortis eyed her with quiet curiosity. He saw this time the pause, the raised hackles, and the shake she gave herself. She spoke a little about her past, and the death of some of her family members. He was burning to ask more, but the thought of losing his family... well, that just might be the worst thing he had ever thought of in his short life. He didnt want to imagine it, let alone live it. He showed a rare consideration, and kept his questions to himself.

She was quick to agree to a spar, and she bounded a little further from her den. It gave him room to clear it, and he popped out and shook his coat, and studied their landscape for a moment. This would be an interesting place for a spar. He normally did them down by the sea. Well, never one to back down from a challange... he set his own defenses, before happily charging towards her. He aimed to smack his shoulder into her to knock her off balance, and scrap a paw, claws sheathed, at her right forpaw.

Mortis Fatalis vs malalia for spar
Round 1/2
Age: Under 6 months
Size: Dire wolf
Build: Medium
Major Mutation 1: Wings Offensive
Mutation 2: Saber fangs - Offensive
Mutation 3: Feline claws - Offensive

Skills: Beginner Fighter & Beginner Hunter
Specialty: N/A

Her eyes quickly assessed the charge, and she forced herself to wait as long as she could. When Mortis was close, she gave a strong push of her hindlegs and darted straight and low, and on his left. She was lowered enough to miss the shoulder charge, though the pup's paw still managed to smack over her own. The force of her rush carried her through the attack.

Hopefully, he was putting all his weight forward with his shoulder charge. This in mind, she was looking to unbalance him. Darting in under his belly, she would attempt to explode up, standing on her back legs, and headbutt his belly, aiming to flip him head over tail. At the same time, her own left paw would bat at his hindlegs. If she managed the move, she would slam her paws back to the ground and rotate quickly to face him again, ready to dart out of the way.


Malalia vs Mortis for Spar
Round 1/2
Age: Over 1 year
Size: Medium
Build: Light

Skills: Beginner Healer & Beginner Fighter
Specialty: N/A

He might be just a pup, but he was well on his way to being a titan like his father. That, coupled with his wings, gave him a decent bit of size. But, at the end of the day, he was just a pup. He crowed with delight when his paw-attack landed, even if his shoulder-jostle had missed. He was distracted enough with this small victory, that he didnt realise what she was doing until she had already done it.

She was under his belly, crafty little opponent that she was. He squeaked, and his wings snapped out to give him extra balance and time. Meanwhile, he let his legs give way in an attempt to crash down, rather then tip over. He wanted to pin her below him if he could. His intention was trap her there. What he would do after that, was a mystery. He was still learning the art of warfare, and his attacks had a puppy attitude behind them.

Mortis Fatalis vs malalia for spar
Round 2/2
Age: Under 6 months
Size: Dire wolf
Build: Medium
Major Mutation 1: Wings Offensive
Mutation 2: Saber fangs - Offensive
Mutation 3: Feline claws - Offensive

Skills: Beginner Fighter & Beginner Hunter
Specialty: N/A

In truth, she had fully expected the move to work--she'd practiced it a million times, and getting a larger wolf to lose their footing was one of her better strategies. But of course, his wings, she had forgotten about those. Instead of tipping over, or even to the side, his lower half hovered for a heartbeat before it started to come down, along with the rest of him. She was under him already, and no, there was simply no way she was getting out from under in time.

So, she fell, smacking her own forepaws to the ground as her backlegs swung up. From there, she would attempt to kick out her hindlegs vigorously and repeatedly. Her aim was to jostle him enough to make room to wriggle free. Or catch him with a kick to his lower jaw or chest, stunning him long enough to escape. Movement was her friend now, but if he held on, she'd be trapped under his weight for sure.

Malalia vs Mortis for Spar
Round 2/2
Age: Over 1 year
Size: Medium
Build: Light

Skills: Beginner Healer & Beginner Fighter
Specialty: N/A

And the winner is...

MALALIA

MORTIS must give up by submitting, fleeing or passing out. Totals: Adjusted rolls: 20.25 10 68 88 MORTIS total is.. 130.38 Adjusted rolls: 46.2 15 60.9 14 MALALIA'S total is.. 136.1

There was suddenly pressure at his lower belly, in a sudden, violent motion. She bucked, and his weight had been forward in an effort to trap her. It left him unable to rebalance, and she threw him forward so hard his head smacked the ground and his teeth felt jostled enough to fall out of his lips. He saw stars for a moment, and was too startled to move. He stayed in an unceremonial lump on the ground like that, trying to process what just happened.

When he did get to his paws, despite being shaky, he was already bouncing around. “That was wicked, that was so cool! You're smaller, but man you're brave and strong!” he said, not at all phased that he had just lost.

When her legs connected with his belly, she could only keep kicking. And with a hard thump, Mortis fell to the ground. Her own rear paws touched the dirt, and she pivoted to face him once again, guard hairs prickling along her neck. But the boy just laid there, seemingly in a daze. She lifted her head. 'Did I....?' She'd never won a spar against a wolf that was bigger than her—tied and lost plenty, that was for sure. And despite his size, Mortis was still a good deal younger than herself.

Suddenly, the boy was practically vibrating in front of her, gushing about how cool and brave and strong she was. "I don't know about all that," she laughed. That's what she'd thought of her heroes—never, ever of herself, the baby, the student. There was so much she had to learn. Still, the rapid wave of her tail betrayed her happiness. Mal was a sucker for praise. Her own siblings would have fumed at the loss when they were his age—Serg especially—but Mortis was all cheer, and it was infectious, pulling the corner of her lips into a smile.

"Man, I totally forgot about your wings! That was smart using them to throw off my move. Good thing we're on the same side, huh?"" And she meant it, truly. She felt like she'd barely won, and if the boy grew to be as big as his father.... With a sigh, Malalia bowed forward, stretching out her forelegs. "So, whatcha wanna do now?" The spar had gotten her blood running, and she was itching to move. Maybe they could hunt, or.....

All at once, her eyes gleamed, and she skipped forward to boop Mortis on the shoulder, before whipping around and bolting in the opposite direction across the grassland. "You're it!"

"Speech"

Mortis’s tail wagged a mile a minute behind him, and there was a touch of reverence in his eyes as he surveyed. He had lost plenty of battles, sure, but most of them were against huge wolves! He hadn’t seen a small wolf move the way she had. He was super impressed.

He blushed a little when she began to talk about his wings and how he had used them. He had no role models to go off, so he had to make up moves as he went. He didn’t think he was using them to their full potential, so it was nice to hear she thought he was doing a decent job.

He was very much distracted by her much-wanted commentary on his fighting, and didn’t realise what she was doing. Not until she was already booping his shoulder, and taking off. “Hey!” he cried, but in delight, not anger. He leaped forward, and took off in chase. Of course, it also sounded like an entire stampede of buffalo behind her, with his heavy clumsy paws hitting the ground. Running always looked awkward on Mortis, his paws were still so big compared to the rest of him.