Manea wandered around the Stone Steppe, getting some air after being down in the hidden cellar with Irilyth sorting through some of the supplies and tinctures that they had uncovered after she sent Ricin looking for it. There was even more down there than she had originally thought so she figured they might as well take the time to figure out what they wanted and what they didn't. She moved through the open area around the ancient pillars until she found a spot with plush grass to rest. Her pregnancy was pretty far along now, probably over half way through at this point, and it certainly showed. At the very least the exhaustion that had plagued her for the first portion of things had finally passed and she was feeling better over all. Now it was just a waiting game and remembering not to strain herself too much as she often did.

While she was waiting for Irilyth to finish up so that they could head back to the island, she spotted a group of wolves on the other edge of the steppe—four of them from what she could see. The largest of the group with violet fur not too unlike her own of course caught her attention first, but she watched the lot of them curiously for a bit. Two of them, one with golden fur and one with white and tan, moved away to go explore perhaps while the other pair moved further in toward the stones. Her conversation with Alastor with her lamenting about not having skilled fighters and not knowing where to find them came to her mind and she hummed softly to herself. Perhaps she should take a more direct approach with her recruiting if she wanted to see any kind of change in her ranks.

She got up and walked—which ended up being a bit of a waddle—over to the pair, giving them a friendly smile. "Hello there," she said in greeting, keeping a comfortable distance from them. The male was even more impressive up close with a large mane that made him appear even more massive than he was and saber fangs poking from his lip. She would never discount the small woman his side though. She had gotten adept at spotting things like rounded feet from feline claws. Besides, some of the most fiercest fighters she had ever encountered were the small ones that could attack faster than you could react. Now that she was closer she could confirm that there wasn't any pack scent on their coats and was hopeful maybe she would get lucky today. "My name is Manea. I'm the leader of a pack near by called Elysium... I hope you don't mind me interrupting you." She settled back onto her haunches, giving her legs a bit of relief. "I'm currently on the hunt for strong fighters and I figured it wouldn't hurt to at least introduce myself to a pair such as yourself."

Manea | Temno | Ciemny

The quartet made their way through the world and Aslatiel was happier than she had been in a long while. Perhaps ever. Having her children, watching them grow, finally being able to be with Indigo after all this time... it was the perfect life. Winter was coming, however. Asla had been tossing around the idea of where they might be able to settle down for the cold season. Perhaps they could simply go down to Auster while it was cold. Or, perhaps they could find a cave to curl up in for the winter. If it had just been Asla, she would have powered through the winter on her own, but she had more than just herself to think about now. Soon enough her children would be old enough to venture off on their own. It would be best to have this winter together so that they could learn the valuable survival skills that would keep them alive.

As the foursome came upon an odd structure of stone, Arcturus and Satira split off to explore. Aslatiel slid her side against Indigo's thick coat, enjoying the feel of his bulk underneath. Being with him every day, she felt whole. She felt complete. Asla's mind had begun to shift and she thought of them more as mates than siblings these days. Did he think the same? She had yet to ask him. The scarred fae opened her mouth to do just that, but noted that someone was approaching. It was a large woman, purple in color much like Indigo. Large as well. Obviously pregnant by both the size of her belly and the all too familiar waddling walk.

The woman greeted the pair and Aslatiel dipped her head in greeting in return. Charcoal ears perked as the fae introduced herself as the leader of a nearby pack. Asla hadn't heard of this Elysium before, but she'd been off the grid for almost a year, so it wasn't surprising. Manea then explained that she was on the lookout for fighters for her pack. Interesting.

Aslatiel met Indigo's blue gaze for a moment, then looked back to the horned woman. "I am Aslatiel Indarra and this is Indigo." She would leave their relationship vague for now as it really was no ones business but hers and her brother's. Manea sat, so Aslatiel sat as well. "My children are off exploring somewhere," Asla waved a paw vaguely, letting the woman know that it wasn't just the two of them. "Looking for warriors, are you?" Again, Asla looked up to Indigo, very much wanting his input on the situation.

"Aslatiel"

There was still much healing to be done to the once great band leader. He was a leader no more, and most days his worth was put into question. But not when he was beside Aslatiel. The time they spent together helped to heal many of the wounds and fractures he harbored. Being so close to Arc and Tira helped ground him. He’d never forget that important piece of his life he was missing, but being there for his niece and nephew helped him recover his senses. Already he was emotionally recovering, he was no longer a blubbering mess. He wasn’t so sorry for himself. Indigo was a man again, not the ghost in a shell he had been.

As the two young wolves wandered off Indigo was left alone with Aslatiel, a time he cherished always. After thinking he’d lost her completely a lot of his priorities changed. He’d seen a lot of hardship to get him to be at her side right now. Before there could be any true enjoyment Indigo’s blue eyes were brought up to the presence of a stranger. Surprise crossed his features as he looked her over. She shared his coat color, but that was where similarities ended. Indigo was still the sweet man he always had been, but the sorrow had overwhelmed that part of him. Now he could show it again, and he would as the pregnant she wolf approached. She could obviously hold her own, everything about her screamed power.

Manea, as she introduced herself, told them about leading the pack nearby, but even more curiously that she was looking for fighters in her pack. Indy nodded when Aslatiel spoke up first and introduced the both of them. She questioned the alphess as she looked up to him. Indigo had never had any plan of joining a pack again. He didn’t have it in him to pledge to another’s cause. But he would follow Aslatiel wherever she wished, and being part of a pack would help them get through the winter with a bit more ease. But she seemed to care more about their prowess than who they were, would it matter when you were recruited based on your strength?

"Warriors to conquer, or defend what’s yours?” He followed, much more soft spoken than his bulk would suggest, but with a voice as deep as his massive chest.

"Speech"

Manea judged the reactions she got from the two wolves curiously, seeing the interest from the tan and gray marked woman as she explained herself and an odd expression that almost looked like sorrow in the sapphire eyes of the violet man as he looked at her. There was very obviously something deeper below the surface there that she wouldn't want to get into in the first meeting with these strangers, but it did make her wonder. The smaller woman introduced them both as Aslatiel and Indigo and Manea gave another small nod to each of them in turn. She smiled softly as Aslatiel explained that her children were exploring and she replied, "I think I saw them walking off a moment ago. You have beautiful children." She wondered to herself if perhaps Indigo was their father, but Aslatiel didn't make any indication of what her relationship with the larger man was and neither of the children seemed to have inherited his purple coloring if that was the case.

Leaving that mystery alone for now, Aslatiel asked to confirm that she was looking for warriors to which Manea nodded and before she could elaborate any further Indigo asked a follow up question of whether it would be to conquer or defend. It was a reasonable question to be sure and she could appreciate why the distinction might matter to him. "To defend what is ours," she replied easily. She had never been one to be hungry for power or war mongering in nature. If it hadn't been for her family she wouldn't have bothered with creating this pack to begin with. "Many of the fighters in my pack still have a good amount of training to do before I can feel confident in their abilities. Maybe if I didn't have another litter on the way I wouldn't be so concerned and eager to bolster our ranks, but since I won't be able to fight with my warriors for a while I'd like to find some extra paws to lend a hand." She looked between the pair, wondering if this would be of any interest to them. "I won't hold you to making Elysium your permanent home if it doesn't suit you, but having a few extra fighters in our ranks for a season or two while I recover and the others get more opportunities to train... I would be very grateful for that."

Manea | Temno | Ciemny

Manea complimented her children and Aslatiel gave a gentle nod and smile. "Thank you. They're very good children." Asla couldn't ask for better children. They were both unique, independent, and entirely perfect. She wasn't biased or anything, of course. Nope... not at all.

After looking to Indigo, he questioned Manea and both sets of eyes swung to the horned woman, waiting for an answer. She apparently wanted warriors to defend her home and had no conquering in mind. It sounded like an easy deal. The deal sounded better still after Manea stated that she didn't expect them to stay forever, which suited Aslatiel just fine. Joining this woman's pack for the winter would give the quartet an easy way during the harsh season. It would give Asla and her children a safe, easy last few seasons before they turned two and would be able to go their own ways. She wasn't nearly ready to part with her children, but she couldn't hold them to her forever.

"There will have to be room for four. My children are almost two and I'd like to spend an easy winter with them before they choose their own paths." Asla looked up to Indigo, leaning lightly into his shoulder with her own. "I don't want to force you into anything," she spoke. It would tear her heart out to be separated from her brother again, but if he didn't feel that this course of action was for him, she would understand.

"Aslatiel"

Manea certainly answered how he wished she might. He would have to really agree with someone’s vision to be able to follow them into a mission of conquering the lands. Defending her own family, especially as she was not fully able to, was a much more defensible position. Pun unintended. Indigo nodded as she explained, feeling similar to Aslatiel. Being given the option to move on if they didn’t fit was quite appealing, and as Asla said. It would be good to spend the winter with a pack.

"You force me into nothing.” He whispered to Aslatiel, refraining from offering his usual affections with the lady of Elysium present. "I would call your pack my home for the winter, and defend it as such.” He told her, feeling this already had Aslatiel’s blessing, and that was all he needed.

"Speech"

Manea's gaze shifted from one wolf to the other curiously until, judging their expressions to see if her offer was appealing to them. She didn't see any immediate signs of disagreement come to the surface and then Aslatiel spoke, saying that there would have to be room for four so that her children could spend the winter with them, keeping their family together until the younger wolves turned two. "Of course, I would never dream of asking you to leave your children without you," she replied easily and she appreciated the other woman's dedication to staying with the two yearlings for as long as possible until they were old enough to strike their own path in the world. The pair spoke quietly to one another for a moment, conferring with one another to make sure everyone was on the same page it seemed. Then Indigo gave her the answer she was looking for, saying that they would call the pack home and defend it.

"Wonderful, I'm very happy to hear you say that," she said with a grin, her tail wagging gently behind her. She had hoped to find one or two more warriors for her ranks and had more than filled that. If both of her children were fighters as well then she would be absolutely to the brim with warriors—at least for a time. Although she would have loved to know that these would be permanent additions to her pack, she would at least have the peace of mind she needed while she recovered from giving birth and would have some additional time to encourage the other members to working more diligently on their training.

She pulled herself to her paws as she told them, "Take your time and once you and your children are ready you can come to the land bridge that crosses over into Alias Island. I'll be waiting for you there. It's been a pleasure meeting both of you." She turned to walk off toward the island then after giving them both a thankful dip of her head, leaving Aslatiel and Indigo to gather the two yearlings and start heading that way at their leisure.

Manea | Temno | Ciemny