With news of the upcoming practice raid against the Armada, Pestilence knew she needed some time away to clear her head. It had felt like in her short life already her path had shifted so many times, from a proud Klein-Abraxas to only a Klein at heart, from her goal set on achieving the high ranking of Daimyo, to knowing that her time there had come to an end. The news of an Abraxas alpha and his pack moving nearby at the meeting only further set her decision. As a princess of Ashen she could not be allowed to hate them, but perhaps joining Alarr in Fireside might help her to feel less constricted.

Having beaten Harbringr in her last spar the yearling had felt her training was coming to and end, and to punctuate that victory she'd decided upon hunting down and killing one last beast. In the season previous she'd stumbled upon more than her fair share of bears, though she'd not tasted their blood nor took home any trophies. She wasn't a pup any longer, and with or without help she'd prove herself powerful by finding an apex predator far from home. If only she was a better tracker. Pestilence kept her nose low to the ground, occasionally letting out annoyed grunts along with her loud sniffs. Had she lost the trail when it crossed the water onto the island? This sucked.

Thalia wasn't super excited about being here, but she knew that Eligos was on to something when he'd said they needed to spread their influence. The Abraxas needed to be known, to be respected and trusted to keep their word - and hopefully with that came a healthy dose of anxiety, knowing what exactly they were capable of. Thalia knew she wasn't quite there yet but she fully intended to assert her dominance over whoever she encountered, even if it was just in a mental way rather than a physical one. But firstly she just needed to get herself out there.

That was why, when she caught the hint of an unfamiliar scent, she decided to follow it. She'd traveled to the southwest coast beyond the ravine, and that was where the scent stopped. Her orange gaze lifted, finding the island just a short swim away, and she was intrigued. Why was someone so close to their packlands, anyway? Surely they were up to something - however nefarious or not it might be. It definitely struck her as something that should be investigated, regardless. Eligos would want to know of something going on out on the island, if it was anything at all...

Ignoring it seemed an impossibility now, and before long Thalia surfaced on the shore of the island, soaked to the core. Swimming wasn't her thing, far from it, but she knew the Path of the Shadow meant she'd need to learn to navigate terrain she might not particularly like. She wouldn't complain. Shaking out her coat hard, she finally spotted the outline of a stranger up ahead, and as she absently shook out her limbs one by one as she walked, she let out a bark of greeting. "Hello," Thalia forced out, clearly forced, and no smile quite reached her lips even as she tried to force one up. "What's it you're doing out here?"

Pestilence arched one brow above sharp purple eyes, observing the stranger's forced pleasantries and deciding they were below her. Her chest puffed out and she straightened to face the smaller girl. The scent upon her was familiar yet different enough that she could not label it. It began a hot stirring in her chest that she did not enjoy, and Pestilence decided it was her instincts warning her off. "I tracked .. something .. here from close to home." The yearling answered vaguely. While she was sure that whatever predator it was was a reptile, she'd not gotten a look at it during the hunt. "Figured I'd kill it, drag it back, leave it's corpse as a warning or something, y'know?" Whatever odd familiarity from this stranger Pesto felt, it was not a comforting one. Her words came across as almost a silent threat. "What are you doing here?" As far as Pestilence was aware no pack had laid claim to this island yet, and as long as it was free land she'd not let herself be driven off.

If Thalia noticed any familiarity in the stranger, she made no sign of it. Everyone was an enemy unless she knew otherwise, and even then she was wary. Maybe considering them an enemy wasn't so wise... but strangers were never friends, just potential acquaintances, or perhaps future business partners. Nothing more, as far as she was concerned. "Oh," she responded simply, not bothering to ask further what precisely she had tracked. She was younger than Thalia, and though she was quite a bit larger, wasn't necessarily intimidated by her - and her expression, unblinking and void of emotion, betrayed that calm demeanor.

At least, it was calm right now.

"Leave it as a warning to who?" Thalia was skeptically, but raised a brow in question. Her initial thought was to be wary of this girl, despite her age, in case she happened to mean she intended to leave it as a warning to Aerie. But why would she even do that? She likely didn't even know who they were. "I was just coming to check this place out. I'm Thalia Abraxas, of Aerie." They didn't intend to sit back and hide forever, but likewise she wouldn't say much else about her pack beyond the most basic facts. "Is that what you're looking for?" Somewhere up ahead, further up from the beach, she swore she saw a rustling of foliage and - was that a long tail, slashing against the sand?

Pestilence didn't really know what to say when the girl asked who it was she'd be warning. This was a perfect stranger to her, she had no logical reason to be threatening her even if there was something uniquely familiar about her scent. Her jaws parted to make some sort of vague reply, and then the other girl continued and offered her name. Pesto's hackles began to rise and she had to force away the growls bubbling to the surface. This was the first Abraxas she met outside of Ashen and outside of the blanket protection Deathbelle provided. Pestilence decided she would not return the pleasantry and reveal her own name.

Her jaws clamped together audibly, and she redirected her gaze towards the creature the stranger identified just in time to see the tail end disappear behind the brush. From the sheer size of it she knew the reptile must be huge and the island did not give it much room to wander off. If she got into it with Thalia right now as she wanted to, the thing might hear a scuffle and take the opportunity to attack. However she could not allow the Abraxas bitch to leave, either. Pestilence wasn't sure what exactly she might do to Thalia if given the chance - whether it was to beat the religion out of her or to prod further about this Aerie - but she did know she wasn't done with her yet.

With a quiet groan, she glanced back over towards the Abraxas. "It's bigger than I expected, would you mind lending a paw?" Each word was forced, and Pestilence struggled hard to keep her tone from becoming venomous. One step at a time, first the crocodile and next this stranger who bore her father's name.

Thalia cared less about learning this stranger's identity than she did about making sure the other girl knew hers. Eligos had made it clear that they'd make their names known in the world - they wouldn't hide away as they had in Auster. She intended to help fulfill the vision he had in mind for Aerie, regardless of the cost. Either way, her reaction at her introduction was mildly perturbing - Thalia hadn't been uncomfortable in the stranger's presence yet, but the way she physically reacted was strange. Was she angry? Had she heard of her family? Thalia's nose wrinkled in discomfort. She knew there were wayward Abraxas that had left the Empire to do their own thing, but she'd been young then and she hadn't quite understood... had they left a bad impression on outsiders?

Well, Thalia would have to change that.

Luckily for them both, the predator that Pestilence had been following grabbed their attentions. She didn't sound very happy to invite her along, but Thalia had never been the greatest with judging tone anyway. She could've been thrilled to have some company, for all Thalia knew; it wasn't something she spent long dwelling on regardless. "Sure," came her own answer, only slightly forced, without much emotion.. though that was typical of her. Her eyes narrowed as she started further up the island, away from the sandy shores. The vegetation here was quite luscious, more so than she'd expected from such a far distance, and she hoped the crocodile wouldn't be hard to take down.

She saw another glimpse of it through the bushes, and it became immediately obvious just how big this thing was. At least twice the length of her, it looked! Thalia clenched her jaw as she considered. "What's our tactic?" Thalia asked under her breath, the russet girl giving Pestilence a sharp look. "The mouth on that thing looks incredibly dangerous. We might want to stay toward its back."

It was difficult to trust that the Abraxas would not simply attack her the moment Pestilence turned, but even she was not so stupid as to assume that the hatred went both ways. After all, Pesto had done nothing to earn any sort of reputation outside of Ashen's empire and for all her hoping that the other girl was a cunning bitch who she could put to the ground, chances were that she as as normal as any other wolf she'd met. She tried to tell herself that maybe Thalia was just unfortunately named like herself, because after all she hadn't opened up with a sermon. At least, it'd make the coming fight a lot easier to focus upon.

The reptile did look dangerous, that much the two could agree on. Between it's teeth, it's tail and the length in between Pestilence herself did not know where to start. She creeped closer towards the bushes to take a better look, exhaling quietly as she considered. "It's got pretty short legs." The yearling observed. "I'll bet it's slow. I wouldn't want to risk going for it's throat, and it's underbelly isn't exactly reachable. I don't know what other vitals we could go for." It crossed her mind that she may have made a mistake hunting down a predator she did not recognize, after all bears were huge and frightening but at least Pesto knew where to attack them.

She looked over at Thalia and let her gaze roam along the other girl's body before looking back to the crocodile. Pesto was slightly larger though built lighter than Thalia was. "Maybe if you jumped on it's back you could get it's spine." Sure it was handing the likely most dangerous job to the stranger, but Pesto could tell herself it was a matter of who would weigh down the creature the best. "Unless you have a better idea."

Pestilence's wariness wasn't surprising to her; Thalia was normally quite rigid and jumpy around strangers, and even now she was content to maintain a safe distance. She knew nothing about this girl, and though Thalia had a stockier build, Pestilence was quite a bit taller than her. They might end up being evenly matched if the stranger tried to attack her... but why would she? Thalia wasn't the type to flee from a fight, she'd stand her ground, but surely it wouldn't come to that, right? For a moment she regarded her with narrowed eyes, though her attention soon shifted almost completely to the crocodile they were stalking. A sliver of her attention would linger on Pestilence, but just enough to stay alert if she tried anything foolish.

"And it's skin looks pretty thick," Thalia added, squinting into the distance. As thick as a wolf's coat could be, this thing looked like it had a much tougher skin than any wolf, obvious even from a distance. Pestilence offered up an idea - to have her jump on its back and go for its spine - but gave no indication as to what she would do. "I suppose that works. As long as I can actually sink my teeth in deep enough." Slowly she continued moving forward, trailing after the thing, though she paused before continuing. "And you'll...?" Her tone was unassuming, merely curious as she tilted her head toward Pestilence and tried to decide what Pestilence intended to do. Either way, they had to act before the crocodile got away, so Thalia began to lope forward toward it. At the last second she picked up her pace, concentrating as she dove straight for the unusual beast - jumping straight at its back and aiming her parted jaws at the center of its spine.

Pesto would have of course preferred that Thalia do all the work, but when the other girl questioned what her role would be in the attack the young Klein simply sighed and crouched, in position to assist in whatever way possible. After all, it'd not be a satisfying end to watch a crocodile devour the Abraxas girl, especially when Pestilence still had questions.

Thalia leaped forward and dove for it's back as Pestilence suggested. As she wrestled with it's spine, Pestilence circled to try and find an area where she could get herself involved. Unfortunately by giving Thalia the back, the only areas remaining to attack all left her open to it's massive and dangerous mouth. She weaved around, watching the croc fight against the wolf that rode along it's back. When it's head turned to try and manage a snap in Thalia's direction, Pestilence shot forward and sunk her teeth into it's eye. The reptile's pained flailing did not last long before it redirected it's attention to Pesto, and the yearling skittered away from the teeth as fast as she could manage. A sharp pain scratched at her rear leg, though she was still able to move it so she knew it was a glancing blow and not a full-on bite. "I can't really get to it!" She called out to Thalia, watching the crocodile intently for it's next move and wishing desperately she'd given herself the job upon it's back instead.

The stranger didn't reply, only sighing - was she annoyed with her? - and moving into a more tactical position. Thalia didn't dwell on it for long, almost glad to move out of reaching distance from her for a moment and focus on the crocodile instead. She had absolutely no idea what she was doing, but she was determined to put on a good show trying. Let this girl be in awe of her display of power and strength, let her know exactly who she was dealing with... even if it proved not very impressive at all. At least she was trying, which counted for something.

She hadn't anticipated just how thick its hide would be. The pressure she needed to exert was more than she really could, at least given her initial positioning. Shit. The yearling leapt backwards, away from the crocodile's suddenly snapping jaws, trying to align herself perpendicular with its spine. As soon as the crocodile spun around, she saw a flash of dark fur that suggested Pestilence was diving straight for the beast's face. Now that was a bold move, and it only further encouraged her to put all her might into taking down this damned creature who was thrashing hard beneath her jaws. Though she'd landed a solid bite on its back, it wasn't enough to sever its spinal cord like she'd been foolishly picturing in her mind. This wasn't some rabbit, some small prey animal... what had she been thinking?

Clearly Pestilence hadn't been thinking about that, either. She'd meant to take this thing on alone? Surely she was mad. Either way, she sounded panicked as she called out to her, the crocodile lunging straight for her again. Backpedaling again, she moved to dive further up onto its back this time. At least her weight was a hindrance to the beast, and it fumbled slightly in its movements, its jaws still snapping as it lashed out with its tail... slashing hard against the fronts of her forepaws in the process. "Careful!" Thalia winced, though tried to ignore the pain as she aimed her jaws for the side of its throat. Hopefully it was distracted enough that she could land a solid bite and really get some blood flowing... if Pestilence didn't end up a goner first.

The crocodile's movements were thankfully hindered by Thalia's weight upon her back and it gave Pestilence just enough of an edge to stay away from it's deadly snapping jaws. From the corner of her vision she could see the other Abraxas shifting around, trying to find purchase somewhere that could end the beast.

When Thalia reached down to try and access it's throat, Pestilence moved herself closer to the head to try and take it's focus. She remained as far out of reach as she could while still feigning enough of an attack for the crocodile to keep it's head straight, but if Thalia wasn't able to make a killing blow soon she wondered if it would be worth it to try and throw her weight upon the crocodile's face instead. Before she spoke she'd considered and rejected a half-dozen words, all variations of 'fucking kill it already!' though while Thalia remained a partner in the battle, Pestilence didn't want to be too rude. Now was not the time for insults or snaps, and instead she seethed a hopeful. "Can you get to it?" Her eyes never left the crocodile's teeth, using all her energy to keep it's attention upon her while keeping her limbs out of it's mouth.

Had Pestilence intentionally taken the more dangerous job? It seemed highly unlikely, but the way the crocodile was snapping its jaws toward Pestilence made her insistence upon Thalia taking this job suddenly seem quite foolish. Or brave. Though the former seemed more likely, given how she'd hinted at wanting to take this thing down on her own. Either way, she was mostly focused on her own task rather than what Pestilence was or wasn't doing. Hell, she could probably lose a paw and Thalia might not notice. It was hard enough to keep her balance on this beast's scaly back while she tried to go for its neck.

Everything happened quickly. One second the crocodile reared its head up, nearly causing her to lose her balance - her paws were scrambling to keep her footing as its head twisted to the right. Thalia saw an opportunity and took it, parting her jaws even wider to attempt a bite on the exposed side of the beast's neck. She hadn't expected it to thrash even harder as her fangs sunk in, surprised at how even its throat wasn't half as tender as she suspected. If she was any smaller she wondered if she'd have the sheer strength to penetrate its thick scales but somehow she found a way to, though she doubted she looked the least bit grateful doing it, trying to keep from being thrown off. It took an excessive amount of force but after some struggle she felt the creature growing limp beneath her; panting hard she finally released her grip, glancing over at Pestilence with a dumbfounded look. "I think... it's dead?" Hopefully, at least. Thalia was struggling too hard to catch her breath to properly investigate yet, as she slowly moved away from the creature and tried to steady her shaking limbs.

Pestilence was running out of steam and options, and her movements were becoming sluggish enough that the crocodile's terrifying teeth were able to get too close for comfort. She considered that perhaps it was stupid to invite Thalia to assist, though it never crossed the proud yearling's mind that if she attacked the thing by herself she'd likely be dead by now. Right when she was about to snap - to tell her hunting partner how useless she was - Thalia's bite found it's way through and the beast stopped moving beneath her.

Pestilence released a heavy sigh, slumping her shoulders and ending her distraction dance. Pink eyes remained sharp upon the creature in case it had one last movement in it, but she took the moment to breathe and relax. "Thank you." She offered, though her words were clipped. "I think you're right."

She stepped bit closer, lifting a paw carefully to prod at it's face and ready to back the fuck up should it lunge. Nothing happened, and she sighed once more in relief. "I appreciate your help." Pestilence wanted to take something back from it, a trophy of her strength. Would Thalia want to do the same? She waited, eyes upon the other girl as she waited for her to speak. If there was to be an argument over who deserved the spoils, Pestilence was ready. Any excuse to argue with an Abraxas was a good one, and if it turned into a fight she'd be equipped to handle that as well.

Shit. That had been a tricky feat, even given the fact that there had been two of them working to tire out the crocodile long enough for Thalia to seek the opportune moment to deal a potentially-deadly blow. And it seemed like they'd been successful? Still trying to catch her breath and regain her balance, she was glad when Pestilence moved forward to prod at it and see for herself. Better the other girl deal with this thing's wrath if it wasn't actually dead. Fortune for Pestilence, and probably Thalia too, it didn't budge an inch. Finally she allowed herself to exhale a breath of air she'd been holding in as she nodded at Pestilence's words.

"And I appreciate yours," Thalia said, keeping her tone pleasant and level. It wasn't lost on her that upon introducing herself, Pestilence had outwardly bristled, though the source of her agitation was entirely lost on her. Maybe she just had a shitty attitude, for all she knew. Either way, she was glad to back down from the crocodile, having never even thought of taking a trophy back home. She made no sign of aggression over their kill. "What was your name, by the way?" She hadn't given it before despite Thalia being upfront about who she was, so it only seemed fair. Or what she ought to expect, fairness aside. How else was she to report to Eligos who she'd met if she didn't even have a name for her?

Though she still noticed no aggression from the other girl, Pestilence couldn't allow herself to relax in the face of this other Abraxas. She busied her thoughts instead on what part of the creature she'd like to take home. The head would be very cool in her den, but it looked ridiculously heavy to drag all the way back to Ashen. It's teeth perhaps, and it's hide. Sparing a glance back to Thalia she moved towards the crocodile's head and lifted a paw to press against a large tooth, seeing how difficult it may be to rip out.

When her name was asked for, Pestilence considered simply not responding. It was either that or lie. Perhaps if she ignored the other girl entirely she'd simply leave. Though the aggression within her had not yet settled, and the yearling was not quite mature enough to hide such feelings. She wanted to rub it in the other Abraxas' face, to start a fight or something. "Pestilence Abraxas-Klein." She did her best to keep her voice somewhat even as her anger rose, though her words still came out with bite. "Your alpha killed my father on the volcano." Her lips pulled back to reveal teeth at the mention, though while still facing the crocodile the snarl was not directed in Thalia's direction. Without any idea on what kind of wolf this Abraxas was, she remained on edge and aware even with her back turned. If Thalia was as bloodthirsty and cruel as the others, she'd be prepared to defend herself.

Thalia was almost frustratingly oblivious to Pestilence's wariness around her. She was just glad that the creature had stopped moving; she wanted nothing to do with taking a souvenir from it, though she watched curiously as the larger female inspected it. What she was much more interested in, though, was her name. Eligos had pushed to all of Aerie that they needed to learn more about the world around them so that they may figure out how they could integrate themselves into it. To no longer live in the shadows, she reminded herself. Though the stranger not introducing herself wouldn't be the end of the world, it would be quite disappointed.

What she didn't expect was that she might be a Abraxas. Well.. an Abraxas-Klein, whatever that meant. Thalia raised a single brow, quite intrigued but recognizing the other stranger's sudden hostility that she hadn't quite noticed before. "Interesting," was all she said at first, unsure how else to respond. While it didn't come as a complete surprise that there were other members of her family out there - not everyone had returned to them once the volcano had erupted, and she'd heard talk of wayward family members spreading their nonsense throughout the lands. Hadn't the wolf Malleus fought been one of those wolves? Apparently he was Pestilence's father too. Huh.. how interesting. She regretted not paying more attention to what had happened back then, but she'd been admittedly scared and unsure - her parents had left, her siblings had disappeared, and she'd been alone and uninterested in the affairs of the world.

But now? She was regretting that she didn't know more. "God was angered by both your father and my alpha," she spoke with cold certainty, without the hard edge of someone who was trying to convince another of their side of things. This was simply reality for her - she believed it with every fiber of her being, enough that she'd gladly lay her life down for those beliefs. There was no convincing her otherwise. "And so He punished all of us. Even those who have never spoken the Abraxas name." And here they were now, working to rebuild and move the Abraxas family in a new direction. No longer would they hide away, but instead they would thrive in a new light, unafraid.

No assault came from behind, but Pestilence whirled regardless at Thalia's response. She barked an exaggerated and unimpressed scoff, her eyes narrowing and a gloved paw lifting to prod accusingly in Thalia's direction. "The only thing my father did wrong was trust in Malleus enough to meet him at the volcano. He was betrayed, and the disturbance of their corpses caused the volcano to erupt. Nothing more." Pestilence's lips curled upwards, her voice taut and cold. "Abraxas is a lie they tell you to keep you under their control, why can't you fools see that?" Unlike Thalia, Pestilence did speak with the conviction of one trying to convince another. Her whole life she'd tried to make other Abraxas' wolves see reason, that would not stop now.

She let out a rumbling frustrated breath, turning from the other girl to kick the dead crocodile in the face. A part of her had hoped that it was Archon's children only who had been corrupted with such a strong belief, that the other Abraxas of the world could see reason and take a fairytale for what it was. From the way she spoke, Pestilence knew Thalia was a believer. Logically that belief extended to all the others too, who presumably resided in Aerie with her.

Thalia was surprised at the way the other yearling seemed to react to this sudden shift in conversation - not that they'd really had much of one before. Though she herself had strong beliefs, they were meticulously crafted and she felt secure in them, against everything else. She knew the rest of the world did not believe in her God, nor in the divinity of the Abraxas name; that didn't take her by surprise, though she was disgusted with the thought. What did surprise her was how aggressive Pestilence suddenly seemed, scoffing and balking at her words. "What is done is done," she countered simply. It was impossible for her to reason that Pestilence's father had been innocent in all of this. The thought that Malleus had led him astray was a laughable one. They'd both wronged their God and they'd been punished for it, and weighing who had done more wrong seemed fruitless to her.

"And how do you know your father did not feed you lies, to keep you under his control?" It was a valid question, one she issued smoothly, though her voice didn't lose that sharp edge it had taken on. "Why do you care, anyway? I am a stranger to you. My beliefs have nothing to do with you. Nor did I have anything to do with the eruption, or your father's death." Disbelief was something she expected, something she'd been raised to know was inevitable when it came to wolves she encountered. Try as she might, they could not all be converted as her mother had been. She narrowed her eyes as Pestilence turned to kick the crocodile they'd taken down together, trying to figure out just why the other wolf had reacted so strongly. Logically, she understood - if she'd lost her father it'd be natural to blame something more tangible than a God, right? But another part of her couldn't quite wrap her head around it.

The easy way in which Thalia countered her aggravated the yearling even more. Her lip pulled back in disgust. "What's done is [/i]not[/i] done because Abraxas' name is still polluting our world." She argued in return, her annoyance clear. "My father did feed me lies to keep me under control, lies about this stupid God. It wasn't until his death that I saw the truth."

Thalia's next question was hilariously reasonable, and Pestilence's brows knitted angrily while she struggled to come up with a reply. "I don't know, I'm tired of people shoving it in my face." She was not blind to the fact that it was not Thalia but her that was doing the shoving. Perhaps this wolf was less upfront and aggressive about her religion then someone like Toxicity was, but she'd had enough pushing and prodding that the very name of Abraxas was enough to bring her hate to the surface. "You're one of them, it's enough." Whatever it was, it was way too late to turn back now. Pestilence was too young, too proud, and too teenager to apologize for overreacting.

How... interesting this had all turned out to be. Was Pestilence really so threatened by her very existence that she had to make it known? Wolves were strange, strange creatures at times and Thalia couldn't shake the feeling that with each season that passed, she was growing even more alienated from others. This particular encounter only made her feel even more disconnected. Why was she even upset for Thalia over something she had not done, something she had no control over? She was perplexed, though was growing increasingly annoyed as Pestilence continued to speak.

Still she struggled to answer her question, admitting she didn't know. "So you shove your distaste for Abraxas in mine, instead. Makes perfect sense." Pestilence hadn't seemed all that terrible before, even if their initial meeting had been strange, but it was hard now for Thalia to see her in the same light. She not only was a disbeliever, but someone who thought of her family as pollutants - that was enough for her. "Good luck with this stupid creature. Better hope it doesn't wake up," Thalia concluded, knowing she'd admitted she wanted to drag its corpse somewhere earlier. She highly doubted she'd be able to drag it across the water, even if she stayed to help, but Thalia's mind was decided. Not offering her another glance, Thalia twisted around and headed toward the water. Though she was tired and a swim sounded exhausting at best, getting far away from this woman sounded ideal. She might be blood, at least partially, but her ideals overshadowed any heritage the two of them might share.

-exit Thalia-