That Sea is just a Gambler at Heart

Dómari's tail wagged excitedly as he strode into the main denning area of Valhalla. He'd been out scouting and tracking prey movements and it just so happened that a herd of bison had wandered into the Vericona Plains. He didn't want to see this opportunity pass by the wolves of Valhalla so he tipped back his head and called for his pack mates to come and help him bring one of the animals down. He noticed that one looked unwell. The cow was constantly licking mucus from her nose and she was always at the back of the herd. If they were lucky they could run her down and have a fine feast before winter started in the next few weeks. The hide would also make a lovely lining for someone's den. He had his mountain goal pelt for a bed and though it was small he was deeply fond of it.

He was reared on his back legs, investigating the bee tree. The hive was beginning to settle into dormancy, now that it was late autumn. He could feel the bite in the air these days, and he was glad for his thick, plush coat. Domari’s howl brought him wheeling to the ground as he bolted toward the older man, tail flagging in the air in a hearty wave. When Domari called like that, he’d learned, a hunt was in order, and there was no way he’d miss it. He skidded to a stop in front of the older wolf, his characteristic grin glowing on his face. He was the first to arrive, too, and as he glanced around, he wondered if they’d get more than they had for the buck. “What are we hunting today?” Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

The lanky young man made his way out into the clearing where they usually held their meetings and things, a little bounce to his step as always. Now that Casso was beginning to feel a little better he had been taking his cousin out on the little patrols he had been doing to show off the pack's territory to him. He knew Casso would be leaving to go see his siblings soon, but Nolan secretly kind of hoped he would end up staying here in the long run. He knew it would make his mother worry less and it was kind of nice having another wolf that he grew up with around. They were just about to head out toward the border when he spotted Domari and Cairo together. He happened to over hear Cairo asking the older man about hunting and Nolan's ears perked with interest. He grinned and nodded Casso toward the pair. He knew how much Casso loved to hunt so this was perfect! Nolan trotted over to the pair with his less social cousin in tow, giving his pack mates a wide grin. "Did I hear something about a hunt?" He chuckled and glanced toward Casso as he continued, "This is Casso, he's one of my cousins that's visiting for a little bit. He's a great hunter!" He waited eagerly for Domari to tell them what he had planned. If it was anything like the last hunt they had done together then he was very excited for it! The last one had been a lot of fun and he was excited to get Casso involved in it so maybe he could convince his cousin to stay longer. "Speech"

Nolan had been so excited to show him everything about the pack that he and Baine had been living in that he couldn't bring himself to tell the younger wolf no when he asked him to go out on patrols and to explore. Casso didn't mind spending time with the excitable young man so he had easily agreed. If nothing else it at least gave him an excuse to get on his feet and work the kinks out of his muscles that laying around for so long had put there. His aunt had insisted that he stay bound to the dens for the first week or so of his time here so that the coyote bite on his leg had time to really heal, but sitting still was nearly as bad as death to the restless wolf. Now the injury had at least healed over enough that he was no longer concerned about it opening back up. The scar tissue would continue to form over time, but for now there was no reason for him to stay still and the limp in his step was completely gone.

He gave his cousin a curious glance when he led the way toward two other wolves, his dual-toned gaze taking the pair in as they approached. If he had to guess the brown-hued male was about his age while the more gray-toned male was the oldest of the group. He offered them both a small nod and a slight smile, though it was obvious that he wasn't nearly the talkative, friendly wolf his cousin was. He chuckled softly and smirked at Nolan at the compliment the younger wolf gave his hunting abilities and he gave a small shrug. "Well, I enjoy hunting at the very least." He'd never turn down a good hunt. That seemed like a much better use of time than aimless patrolling.

"Speech" Thought

Red was working on setting a rabbit snare when he heard Domari calling. He finished what he was doing carefully amd, stopping by his den to stash the remaining snares, he headed over to see what the older hunter had in mind. Two younger males he hadn't known, and Cairo, were already there, and he nodded with goodnatured politeness to them all. "Good day," he said cheerfully. "I apologize for my tardiness, Domari." It was interesting how quickly they had gone from Valhalla having no hunters when he'd joined, to enough of them to hold a pack hunt. He deferred automatically to Domari, not only because he had called them together but also because the older male had years more experience than he himself had. Red had no resentment for having any potential seniority taken from him with the other hunter's return to the pack - on the contrary he welcomed the change. He looked forward to the comradery of the hunt, with Domari leading them.

That Sea is just a Gambler at Heart

Dómari was pleased to see Cairo and Nolan answering his call. He was already familiar with hunting with both of the young men. Nolan brought his cousin with him and Dómari nodded in greeting to the young man. In addition a mottled man joined them. There was something in his face, a wisdom, that made Dómari fairly certain that this man was the 'Red' he'd heard so much about from Aurielle. "Not a problem, you're right on time. Thank you everyone for answering my call. There is a herd of bison grazing on our plains. One of the cows is sick. Together I think we should be able to take her down. I want us to take advantage of the grass and use it to get close to the bison. When we do I'll sound the charge and I want everyone to spring out snarling so we can panic the herd." They're best chance would be to get the bison startled and running. If the bison circled up to form a defensive barrier it would be much more difficult to take them down.

"We need to run them hard until that cow falls back and then we move in. Grab hold where you can to trip the cow up. Whoever's free or thinks they can safely maneuver for a kill shot could take it." He didn't want to name someone now as there was just no telling where everyone was going to be that far in the hunt and he was more of a fluid, wait-and-see, type of planner. "Sound good?"

Nolan was swift in appearing, and with him was a young man Cairo’s age that he recognized in passing as Aurielle’s cousin Casso. Nolan confirmed the guess a breath later and Cairo grinned at Casso, bi-chocolated tail wagging in open welcome. “It’s nice to meet you, Casso. I’m Cairo Adravendi.” Red arrived, and he grinned at the man. He’d built his first piece of armor with this wolf, and learned about fighting a wolf with mutations. He had yet to spar him, but he looked forward to the experience. “Hello, Red.” He gestured at Nolan and Casso, adding for the gold-brindled male’s benefit, “This is Nolan Adravendi and Casso, Aurielle’s cousins. And mine.” Domari got down to business and Cairo’s eyes turned to the older wolf, eyes widening a little as he said what they’d be hunting. He’s hunted moose with Aurielle in a large group, Red included, but he was pretty sure Bison were even bigger and more challenging. If they pulled this hunt off, Valhalla would have food for months into winter, maybe even well into Spring if they rationed it right. He listened intently, head lowering as he leaned closer, ears locked on Domari as he outlined the plan of the hunt. As He finished and looked to them, Cairo paused thoughtfully, then nodded. “Sounds good, to me.” He glanced to the other three, grin back in place. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Domari was quick to get to business, which was important on a hunt when you couldn't depend on the herd to politely stay where you left them. Buffalo! It wasn't something he'd hunted in a long time, not since his father was alive. Domari's plan was sound. The last thing they needed was for the buffalo to have time to decide to stand their ground, they needed to get them panicked and stampeding right away, and keep them running until weaker bison began to fall behind the healthy ones and they could pick their target. "My fangs aren't much good for catching and holding at a run," he offered mildly, not in protest but in explanation. Domari's plan was fine, it was simply Red who wasn't quite able to live up to the normal wolf way of hunting. "It would risk breaking one. But I can slash tendons and muscle at the run, and will try to stay out of the way of anyone trying to get a grip on her." He gave them all a faintly apologetic smile, then shook himself til his bristles clattered. "I am ready when you are, Huntmaster."

Nolan's gaze turned to the last member of their hunt that had come to join them and he knew this was Red even before Cairo mentioned his name. His look was pretty distinctive and matched Aurielle's description of him perfectly. It reminded him that she had suggested that he find Red to do some training with and he made a mental note to do that very soon. For now his attention was on the task at hand as Domari began to explain his plan to take down the buffalo he had been tracking. It seemed like a pretty straight forward plan, but Nolan still listened closely to make sure he got every detail. He was happy that they had a pretty sizable group for their hunt today. He'd seen buffalo before and knew how big they were, but he had never personally tried to hunt one. The band he had been raised in had hunted one before and he remembered his father helping with that hunt, but he had been too young at the time to help. He glanced to Red when he began to speak, giving a small, understanding nod when he explained that his fangs wouldn't be good for gripping on to their prey. "Maybe you and I can dart in tear the tendons on its back legs to weaken it before the others go in to bring it down?" he offered since he knew he was a much lighter build than the other males so speed was more his strong suit than strength was. He could certainly help grapple with it if need be, but it seemed like a decent plan for him and Red to take a few passing blows before getting out of the way for the others to do their work. "And we can focus on scaring off the rest of the herd too." He looked to Domari for confirmation and for the more experienced male to begin leading them toward their hunt. "Speech"

The scarred male sat quietly as another male came to join their party, giving him a small nod as Cairo introduced him and Nolan. Red, Cairo, and Domari. He wasn't sure if he'd need to know all of their names in the future, but it seemed helpful all the same to remember them. He listened with interest as they were told that they were going to be hunting a sick buffalo. The fact that their prey was already a bit on the weaker side dulled a bit of excitement for him, but buffalo was no easy target so he was still intrigued. He let Red and Nolan pass comments back and forth, but he had nothing really to add. As long as these males knew what they were doing then he was eager to hunt with them. It had been quite a while since he had done any kind of hunting in a group - not since he left the band he had lived in with Nolan. When it was clear the talking was done, he got to his paws and gave his coat a good shake. He glanced toward Nolan with a slight grin before turning to follow Domari when he began to lead the group to where he had seen the buffalo herd. Nothing got him excited more than a good hunt so he certainly hoped this one wouldn't disappoint.

"Speech" Thought

That Sea is just a Gambler at Heart

Dómari listened as Red spoke up about his fangs and Dómari nodded. He was glad the other man had said something as he really didn't know much about what it would be like to hunt with longer fangs. "Thanks, Red. That sounds good to me!" He nodded to Nolan and waited a moment to see if there were any other questions. "Alright, let's get started."

Dómari slipped into the grass, lowering himself as best he could. He wasn't really the right color to blend in so he stopped several times when he felt he was being watched. Dómari barked suddenly when he was as close as he thought he could get, the bark acting as a signal to charge. He shot forward with a snarl. Startled the bison turned and began to stampede. Dómari focused his attention on keeping them running as his eyes scoured the herd for the sick cow. He pushed the bison harder, fangs snapping at their heels as the racing animals ate up the terrain of the plains.

They were fanning out but at last he spied the ailing cow. She was falling further and further behind as the healthier animals picked up speed. He twisted his head as his fangs latched onto the back of her right hind leg. She flailed and kicked and eventually slipped out of his grip. He put on a burst of speed, seeking to catch back up.

Cairo listened closely as the others added their input, Red admitting his limitations, which weren’t surprising to Cai, having known Aurielle for so long. He nodded with an easy grin at the sabered man, glancing to Nolan as his friend spoke up. He hadn’t decided where he would be in the whole hunt, but he could make that decision while they were on their way, and see what opened up for him. He could help spook the herd, or he could join in the feat of bringing down the cow. And soon enough, they were in motion, Domari barking the charge. Cairo leapt forward, opening up into ground-eating strides, fathomless eyes scanning the herd as they startled into a run. The cow was falling back, and Domari made a bid, though the cow slipped free with a kick. Interference it was, then. Cai swerved in front of the cow and roared as frightfully as he could as he dove for her nose, snagging a hold and biting down. Suffice to say, the cow did stop, but he found himself getting slung around like a hide doll, clinging by his teeth to the bison’s nose. But hopefully, it would be enough for Domari to catch up. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Nolan crept through the grass behind Domari, keeping an ear turned toward the other three members of their hunting party so that he could keep track of where they were in comparison to him. He followed Domanri's lead and went slow and steady, pausing as necessary so they wouldn't alert the herd until it was time. As soon as the leader of their hunt signaled them with a bark, Nolan sprung from the grass with a loud snarl, using his long strides to quickly get to the back of the herd to start barking and growling at the bison to scare them off. They got the herd running and ran along side the cow that was their target. He primarily kept his eyes on the rest of the herd, making sure none of them tried to come back for their missing herd member. He saw a couple of them tried to deviate back toward them, but he stopped them pretty quickly with a particularly loud growl and snarl, running toward them for a moment to chase them back toward the rest of the bison. He glanced back toward his hunting party in time to see Domari trip up the bison with a bite to its back leg right before Cairo made a bold move to stop the bison in its tracks. He darted back toward the cow to help Cairo that was currently getting shaken around from the grip he had on his nose. Nolan ran in and jumped up to grab a hold of the bison near its jaw, adding his own weight and pressure to the cow's head to keep it from thrashing its head quite so much. They were still getting shaken a bit, but not nearly as much as Cairo had been before and the cow seemed to be struggling a good bit more to do so. "Speech"

The dark male settled in along side the other men that had formed the hunting party he was a part of for the moment as they moved quietly through the grass. He fanned out through the grass from the rest of the group, his eyes easily picking out the cow that was most certainly their target. It was easy to see why Domari felt that this bison would be a good choice for their hunt - at least in a logical sense. She was already hanging toward the edge of the herd so when they went running and snarling toward the herd she began to fall back from the others pretty easily. He noticed Nolan taking charge of keeping the rest of the herd away from the cow they were hunting so he focused his full attention on the task at hand. He hung back for a moment, watching carefully for an opening. Domari made the first blow, slowing the bison down enough for Cairo to make a move that was ballsy even by his standards. It was a bit reckless perhaps, but Casso had to respect the initiative. Nolan joined in soon afterword, reenforcing the hold that Cairo had and slowing the bison's jerking movements. He saw that as his chance and Casso darted forward, throwing his weight into the short leap as he reached up to latch his jaws onto his prey's neck. His teeth sunk deep into its skull and blood started to pour heavily into his mouth. With the three males gripping onto the cow's head and neck, it was being pulled more and more toward the ground. Its hind legs continued to kick as it made any desperate attempt to get away. Casso jerked and pulled on where he was gripping the bison's neck, widening and worsening the wound. It wasn't quite enough to be the killing blow, but it was more than enough to weaken it quite a bit. "Speech" "Mind"

Domari accepted his judgement of his own ability with gratitude and Red gave him a quick grin in return before they got back to business. He followed along grimly - for killing was a grim business, even when you were doing it to survive, because all life was connected, and shouldn't be a cause for levity - as Domari led them to the herd and they prepared themselves.

And then they were off.

He leaped with a snarl when the rest did, throwing himself among the herd before they could group together, giving chase to break them up whenever any of them seemed like they were going to stop and clump together.

Finally, the unhealthy cow bison lagged behind the rest, and they began to converge on her. Red continued to chase the herd for a while to be certain they would keep going and not turn back to help the cow, then he himself turned back to help his huntmates. They'd managed to bring her more or less to a stop as Cairo and the two new wolves latched onto her neck and face, so Red circled back to slash at her hamstrings. He caught one, and she kicked out at him, knocking him backwards before the leg gave out and she listed sideways. Luckily she hadn't been able to get a lot of force behind the kick, but it was enough to knock over, and he was left to pick himself up wincing from the bruising on his ribs, but ready to dive back in.

That Sea is just a Gambler at Heart

Cairo got in front of the cow giving Dómari the time he needed to catch up and he was grateful the younger man wasn't promptly trampled by the panicking cow. Nolan was quick to join him as Dómari snagged the cow's injured leg, jerking his head back to help destabilize her so she didn't just bowl right through them. Casso joined the front adding his weight and Dómari felt a surge of adrenaline. The cow tried to Red and stumbled as he tore at her hamstrings. With her loss of balance and the extra weight at her front she fell over onto her side. Dómari swiftly released the leg and bounded up to the front of the bison where the other hunters were. He swiftly sank his jaws into the bison's neck, just below the jaw line.

The bison flailed and Dómari thrashed his head, worsening the wound until at list the bison lay still. He held firm for a few moments longer before releasing his grip and licking the blood off his chin. "Great work everyone!" He sat down, panting heavily.

One by one, the cow was overcome by the wolves, and as Red slashed her legs and she buckled, Cairo was finally able to let go, diving right back in as soon as he rolled to a stop a good several feet away and clamping his jaws shut on her shaggy neck, letting his weight hang until the cow was truly down with Domari’s bite. He staggered a few steps back, tongue lolling as he plopped his haunches to the ground. He’d be feeling the effects later, but right now he was flushed with success, tail tapping the ground as Domari praised them. The pack would be well and truly fed for a long time with this. His eyes scanned the other three as he finally asked, “Any injuries?” Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think