She liked it here. The trees were so massive that they defied all comprehension, giving her plenty to think about while she mulled over her sore feelings. Of course the meeting with her father hadn't gone the way she'd planned it, of course he had been angry. Makara felt like she could nothing right in his eyes, no matter how hard she tried... and well, maybe it was true that she hadn't tried that hard! Not yet!

Mak groaned, shaking her head furiously from side to side. Her pawsteps were muffled by her footwear, lending an eerie silence to her travels. Some animal noises could be heard but hardly any birdsong - she supposed because the trees were just so tall. She took a deep breath and stared up, angling to see if there was any visible sliver of sky. Nope. Nothing. Well, at least it was peaceful down here in on the dim forest floor. Makara edged her way to the nearest trunk and began to count how many steps it would take to circumnavigate it, just to give herself something to do. "One... two... three..."

Explored a new land 1/3

The warmth of summer has reached the icy grip of the northern lands, tempering the cold into a much more mild, chill. However, for the tropical born Keahi, the north will never be warm enough for her to walk around with the warmth of her polar bear armor. It has practically become a second skin for the red wolf, the plush fur lining acting as another coat for her own, too thin one. The added bonus of it being armor helps her in her travels as one of the Armada’s diplomats and that, along with the dagger in the special scabbard Ruga had made her, helps to keep her safe.

Today, the tropical wolf has decided to stay close to Armada lands, using this as an opportunity to familiarize herself even more with the neighboring lands. The massive red wood trees that grow in this place dwarf even the biggest predators and Keahi can’t help but be humbled next to them. A collection of moss and fallen leaves carpet the ground under the dark canopy, muffling her pawsteps and making this forest seem eerily dark and uninhabited. However, the red woman knows that this not true since there are signs of prey animals scattered about.

Ocean blue eyes scan the area in front of her and the tropical wolf sees something that has her stopping dead in her tracks. Keahi holds her breath as she tries to determine what she just saw. It seemed to be a ghost, a wolf pale as death and striped in blood had edged around behind one of the massive tree trunks, disappearing completely from her field of view. It had appeared to have some strange contraption around its eyes and bags on its paws! As the red wolf stands absolutely still, pondering what evil apparition she has found, a voice reaches her ears… and she realizes that the ghost is counting.

Dazed, the red woman stands there for a moment before gathering her wits enough to scent the air. If this is truly a spirit, there will be nothing but the smells of the forest and Keahi will flee back to the col as fast as she can. However, this is not the case as a familiar scent reaches her, telling her that this is not a spirit but an Armada wolf! Relief floods her as the tropical wolf steps forward once more, allowing the panic to stay behind as she releases a gentle bark of greeting to the stranger that is on the other side of the trunk.

Moving closer, the tropical wolf says, “Hello there! You gave me fright, pale one. For a moment, I thought you were a ghost.” A soft chuckle is offered as Keahi rounds the trunk to come into the stranger’s view, offering the young wolf a gentle smile as she appears.


"Keahi Mogotsi"

She was still feeling sufficiently cowed by her brush with Azure, so she tried to bite back a noise of disappointment when the scent of another Armada wolf tickled her nose. Was someone else coming to berate her? That would be just the thing, huh? But her eyes rested on a reddish wolf wearing a hulking polar bear skin. Mak didn't know her name off of the top of her head, but she knew she was well-travelled and shared the same rank as her mother. You gave me a fright, pale one. Makara tilted her head to the side, unaware of how spotting her in the distance might be a bit spooky. She flipped her goggles up to get a better look at Keahi - down here on the forest floor, hardly any light penetrated. It was dim enough - and spring was over, so the worst of her allergies were through - that she could focus without her eyes watering too badly.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to frighten anyone," she said, her voice hesitant. Mak always felt like she was walking on egg shells with most of her pack members, the weight of some collective disappointment like a millstone around her neck. The forest around them seemed to dampen all sound. If she listened hard enough, she could catch the faintest trill of birdsong but it seemed as if it came from miles above. Each trunk was easily two or three times her size from nose to tail tip. "Ah! I lost count," she grumbled. Perhaps measuring the steps around the trunk was not a very useful metric, but it would have made her feel a shade better to accomplish something. "My name's Makara. You're Armada too, yeah?" she said, shifting from paw to paw. Any second now she'd be reprimanded for not making better use of her time, not bettering the pack, not doing anything useful at all...

Explored a new land 2/3

Keahi rounds the tree trunk, stepping into the pale wolf’s line of sight and stopping a respectful distance away. The red wolf’s smile is easy, friendly and she watches with great curiosity as the wolf flips her goggles up. As the stranger looks around, the tropical woman ogles the contraption that had been covering her eyes moments ago. With an air of awe, she says, “Those are really cool. Did you make them yourself?”

The pink eyed wolf apologizes for frightening her and Keahi gives a soft laugh, waving a paw through the air as if to banish the other wolf’s worries, while saying, “It isn’t your fault, you did nothing wrong. See, I heard these woods are haunted and I caught a glimpse of this beautiful pale wolf disappearing behind a tree…” Her voice trails off, trying to show the younger wolf where her train of thought had been going.

A gentle breeze finds its way to them, softly ruffling the red wolf’s polar bear coat and making some of the fallen leaves rattle around them in protest. With the sound dampened in this huge forest, it helps to add to the eerie vibe she had felt moments before. As the wolf announces she lost count, Keahi’s brow crinkles and a small frown tugs her lips downward, her ocean blue gaze sliding over to the bark of the red tree. The trunk is thick and its base is huge, was she trying to count steps around it?

The pale one’s voice pulls her attention back and the red woman offers a warm smile, saying, “Yes, I am from the Armada.” Straightening up, Keahi says in her best formal tone, “Keahi Mogotsi, Diplomat of the Armada, at your service.” As she finishes, the red wolf gives a dramatic bow, while clasping a paw to chest for a special flourish. As her head lifts back up, a playful grin resting on her lips as she offers the girl a wink, adding, “What do you think? Too much?"

A soft laugh bubbles out as she allows her gaze to find its way over to the trees around them, truly awed by the scale of these ancient beings. Gnarled roots poke up through the earth, twisting into large knots before disappear back under the dirt. Thick layers of moss cover the roots, turning their bark from red to a muted green and white. Leaves cover the ground, creating a thick cushion, the older layers turning to mulch and feeding the dirt underneath.

It is amazing how everything works and, for a moment, Keahi gets lost in her own thoughts. Realizing she is still with Makara, the red woman snaps her attention back to the pale girl and says, “Sorry I made you lose count, Makara. Can I help with anything?”


"Keahi Mogotsi"

"Oh! No, they were a gift from my parents... Azure and Hanako. When I was younger and where we lived before... well, I'm really allergic to most things. Grass, dust, all kinds of plants. It was a real mess. My eyes would water and get gummed up, so they had these fashioned up and it helps a lot - but also living up here makes a huge difference!" Makara grinned, sucking in a big, pleasant breath of chilly northern air. "I love it up here!" She noted the thick, insulating coat that Keahi wore and bit her tongue a bit. Plenty of other wolves did not like the north very much. Makara laughed a bit as Keahi described the sight she'd happened upon - a pale wolf talking nonsense was pretty weird, after all. Wait, had she said beautiful? A weird, hot sensation spread up from her neck and across her checks. Mak blushed and shifted from paw to paw, her bright laughter turning into a nervous, awkward chuckle. No one had ever really complimented her before. It kind of made her want to puke. But maybe in a good way? If puking could be at all good.

The wind that rustled through the air cut the tension and brought her attention back to their surroundings. It was easy to become lost in this forest, surely - so many of the trees were so large you couldn't look around them. Some of their roots were the size of her torso. Makara cast her gaze around, taking in the few paths that had evidence of recent use. It didn't seem to be a particularly popular area for prey animals, and she could see why. There was no easy way to navigate the territory. If something pursued you, you'd just as easily crash into the base of a massive tree than you would evade your captor. Plus, the plush ground covering of moss could give way to the slippery wet soil hiding underneath. Not a good combo. Makara couldn't imagine how much more difficult it would get when the heavy snowfall came and obscured those huge tree roots. It was a broken limb waiting to happen.

At Keahi's lavish bow, Makara tried to bow in return and tripped forward a bit, catching herself before she fell face-first into the dirt. "No, no, definitely a good introduction for that title! Did you practice that? I can barely..." she laughed, demonstrating again how she nearly tipped over. When Keahi spoke again, Makara was once more caught off guard. Help her with anything? She'd never been asked that. Makara scuffed her paw, kicking up a small bit of leaves as she did so. "Um... I'm not sure? I've been trying to figure out what I want to do. Because I do want to do something. For the pack," she stammered out, her sentence structure terrible and broken. It was so hard to give voice to her feelings - it was much easier to chat aimlessly about everything else. "But nothing I do seems to be enough." For my father, she thought wordlessly. Her eyes were glassy but she blinked furiously and regained her composure. "So... what do you think needs doing?"

Explored a new land 3/3