Callie finds the humdrum day to day workings of what her parents and the castle wolves do to be extremely boring. The plains and the grove beyond are of far more interesting to her than the complicated rules of something called ‘manners’. Pleases, thank yous, and all that jazz are difficult for the young girl to remember and, now that her parents are trying to squish her tendency to want to bite everything, she cannot help but feel like a stranger inside the walls of the castle. At least, out here, under the maple trees that give way to fruit laden bushes, the young Carpathius pup is able to feel like she can truly be herself.

The bright summer day is a welcome sight to the small pup and she quickly moves along, eager to enjoy every moment of it to the fullest. Since Kipling has made it clear that he does not need her help, Caladia has begun to hang back more often and allow him to go do what he wishes… without her. The thought of her brother, who the pup adores with all her heart, not wanting her around makes the girl sad but, out here, away from it all, she tries not to let it dampen the joy of her day. The ground is soft underneath her small paws and the girl silently pads along, ready to feast on the berry bushes at the end of her trek when, suddenly, her right front paw steps into a puddle of something moist and sticky.

Shrinking back, the pup casts her eyes down to find out what exactly, she has on her paws and, what she finds in front of her, is a slowly concealing puddle of bright red blood. Mismatched eyes dart around, trying to figure out what left it but finds no evidence of wounded animals nearby. Stepping back up to the edge of the pool, Callie leans down and pulls the scent into her nostrils, hoping to try and identify the animal that left it. Immediately the memory of rabbits springs to the forefront of her mind and the pup is confident in her assumption that something wounded one but the creature managed to scurry away. Those little guys can be very fast.

Skirting the drying puddle, Caladia moves to resume her journey when another problem suddenly appears. Three coyotes are in her way and they move toward her, their eyes wide with hunger and lips pulled back to reveal their pearly whites. Now, they may be smaller than a wolf but, to a young pup barely a season old, these guys are huge. Tail tucks as the hodgepodge colored girl backpedals, attempting to put some distance between her and the hungry creatures. Pain suddenly flares to life along her scruff and the small pup does the only thing she knows how to do; she screams.

Small lungs push the air out in a series of loud, piercing wails that fill the forest and startle her would-be attacker. The pain and pressure subside and Callie quickly darts away, moving to put a tree behind her so that they do not take her by surprise again. Facing the group of four, she bunches up her scruff and sets the defense she remembers before baring her teeth at them. The creatures seem thin and more than a little desperate as they slowly converge on the pup, seeing her as a meal and nothing more. Panic flares in the girl’s chest and she suddenly releases a pleading howl for help.

Silva drips from the coyotes mouths as they stalk forward and the girl silently hopes that help will be here soon.



WC: 613
Total WC: 613 / 1500


"Caladia Carpathius"

Sitting still was difficult. Dusk had more energy than any wolf rightly should and she was constantly moving to try and burn that energy. The girl wasn't just hyper, her mind worked constantly too. She was smart but often her thoughts ran at a faster pace than they should and she was left with many questions and a muddled mind. Running was one of the few things that gave the obsidian child a break from the constant rambling within her skull. So run, she did.

Today Dusk was out in the grove. She'd been here before, but this place hadn't been explored as thoroughly as the lands closer to home simply due to its proximity. The weather seemed alright today so the young wolf ventured out early. She'd been napping beneath one of the many bushes, her belly full of freshly caught rabbit, when the piercing scream ripped her from slumber. Dusk rocketed to her feet, cracking her head hard on an overhanging branch. Stars flared within her vision and she grimaced, teeth flashing, before stepping forward away from the murderous bush. She hadn't imagined the sound, right?

The wind blew away from the girl, preventing any telling scents from giving her an idea as to what might be happening. She stood still, ears straining for any kind of sound and she thought the far off snarl of a coyote met her dark ears. A moment later, the sound of a young pup crying for help rent the air. Nope. She hadn't been imagining it.

In an instant, Dusk was running. The many shrubs and bushes grabbed at the girl's lengthening coat like claws, but she didn't let them stop her. Someone needed help and she wouldn't make them wait. Bursting into the clearing, the living shadow allowed her burning fire opal eyes to scan those before her. Pace never waning, the girl's brain added everything up and she was ready. A sidestep altered her course and Dusk ran headlong at one of the skinny coyotes. Her maw opened and was soon filled with blood and fur as she attacked the beast closest to Caladia. Dusk was the bigger of the two pups by a lot and she posed more of a threat to the trio of coyotes than small Caladia. They were already rethinking their plan, ears tucked and  postures demure. When their cohort was attacked though, they made up their mind to save it and came forward, intent on rescue.

Dusk couldn't protect Caladia against the other two if her attention was on only one, so the girl released her captive, the coyote falling to the ground before skittering to its paws and joining its brethren. The trio snapped and snarled, stalking closer. The ebony youngster showed her own teeth, her thick coat bristling. Stiff legged, she took a step towards them, proving that she wasn't afraid of their pomp and blustering. ""Caladia, are you okay?" She waited for the pup to answer before nodding. ""I need you to run, okay? Find my dad." Dusk snarled, leaping forward towards the coyotes, catching their full attention as her cousin ran from the grove and back towards home.

Now, Dusk remembered her conversation with her father. Don't be reckless, he told her. She wasn't being reckless this time. In having Caladia run first, she was giving the girl's smaller legs a head start. Holding the attackers off would be easy and she was pretty positive that she could do so without being injured. She wasn't attacking. Simply defending. The coyotes tried to sneak around and cage her in, but Dusk wouldn't have it. She had no problem delivering bites here and there. She rushed them periodically, keeping their attention well. All the while she was counting. Within her mind, she reached three hundred. That should have been ample time for her younger cousin to be out of range and hopefully closer to finding aid.

With an audible snap of her powerful jaws, Dusk leaped towards the coyotes, bowling two of them over while the third tucked its tail and got out of the way. She hit them hard, but never stopped. The wind worked with her now and she could smell Caladia's scent on the wind. Dusk followed the girl's trail just to make sure that she was making it safe. As she ran, Dusk could hear the brush crackling behind her as the coyotes gave chase. Not only that... it seemed that the calls of panic from the trio had attracted more. Three coyotes turned into six and that was way too many for Dusk to handle at once. As she ran, the girl released a choked howl, calling for help just as her cousin had.

As she ran, Dusk felt teeth snap the end of her long, trailing tail. The girl released a yip of alarm and leaped ahead, tucking her tail for a moment. A second coyote slammed into her side, knocking her off of her paws and the girl went rolling on the ground. Her shoulder hurt and she could feel the sting of a wound. Perhaps she'd cut it on a rock. She couldn't remember being bitten. Knowing this area since it was so close to the border, Dusk faced her attackers but backed up slowly, paws finding the worn trail that would take her to the clearing and the border. Once the area around her was clear and she could see all six attackers, the girl set her defenses.  Hopefully someone would come soon. Until then, she'd do what she could to protect herself.



"Dusk Carpathius"

WC-930 (Met)

Home was the last place anyone expected danger to be found. The Hallows was a sanctuary, its walls high and its borders well protected. But even the greatest of defenses was not impenetrable. Today would be a grim reminder of that rule. The Aegis was out amongst the Starlit Plains, helping to gather up piles of dry wood from the nearby forests that surrounded the Hallows in preparation for the coming Bonfire Festival. This was one of the pack's few big celebrations, and it was one that was dear to Artorias' heart, not to mention it would be the pups' first bonfire ever and he wanted to make it something special. With the summer sun high in the clear sky on a beautiful temperate day, the last thing he expected to hear was the terrified cries and urgent howls coming from the adjacent grove. The shrill calls snapped the father's head up immediately, amber eyes locked dead on the thicket of trees to the north with a steely focus. The sound did not ring like pups playing. There was a fear in those cries that struck worry into the dire brute's heart. Corbin had already flown off in the direction of the grove, and Artorias was quick to follow after, running across the plains as fast as his legs could carry him. One of those howls had been his daughter, and although Dusk was known for getting into trouble, that wouldn't stop the overprotective father from making sure his child was still safe.

Overhead, Corbin glided over the grove, darting this way and that until he spotted Caladia running out of the grove and Dusk surrounded by a pack of coyotes. The raven wasted no time veering back and shooting through the air like a missile back to Artorias. "Master Artorias! Coyotes, in the grove with Dusk!" Artorias' blood ran cold. He recalled how coyotes had savaged his brother when they were pups, and how dangerous they could be when pushed to their limits. "Buy me some time!" the Aegis commanded his companions, and both ravens took to the sky again, soaring ahead of him into the trees. Artorias pushed his muscles to the limit, sprinting harder and faster than he ever had in his life. The Aegis had Embershard strapped to his back as he always did, but wore no armor—he hadn't had a need to wear it while gathering wood. As he broke through the tree line, Artorias immediately began scenting the air, urgently looking for any signs of Dusk or the intruders.

By now, Corbin and Eira had arrived on the scene, croaking in fury as they dive-bombed the coyotes and scratched at them with their talons, causing just enough chaos to make a distraction. The coyotes, more irritated by the ravens than threatened by them, began to snarl and snap at the birds, hoping to score an easy appetizer to their main meal of lupine. But for all their efforts, Corbin and Eira couldn't distract all of the coyotes. There were just too many! And while three had focused on the birds, the others returned to Dusk, saliva slobbering from their famished jaws. One got brave and stalked closer to the girl, its muscles tensing while it prepared to lunge forward for the kill. The coyote's body sprung—and then immediately fell slack to the ground with a sickening wet thud as its face was cleaved from its neck, the skull bisected cleanly through to partially decapitate the starving predator.

Artorias landed between the coyotes and Dusk, snarling while clutching the bloodstained Embershard in his jaws. The Aegis had intercepted the first coyote's attack in the nick of time, leaping in to protect his daughter. Dark hackles raised on Artorias' back, citrine eyes blazing with a deadly fire as they narrowed and fixed upon the pack of intruders. Now faced with a full grown dire wolf, the coyotes suddenly seemed much less brave, the two facing off against him taking a couple steps back. Artorias squared off his stance, readying himself for battle while making sure he remained between Dusk and the predators at all times. "Stai in spatele meu," he instructed Dusk, using their native tongue in case the coyotes had picked up on lupine speech. Artorias held his ground against the snarling coyotes, growling back and giving them one last chance to leave. He didn't want to pick this fight with his daughter here, but he would have no qualms putting down all six of the canines if they chose violence.

The coyotes chose violence.

The two split off to try and encircle the wolves, moving in opposite directions around them. Artorias took a couple steps back to squarely position himself over Dusk, shielding her with his larger body. Without any armor, he was more vulnerable to damage, but nothing would stop the hellbent sire from protecting his pup. The coyote to his left lunged in and took a snap at his legs, which Artorias replied to with a downward strike from his sword. The blade gleamed in the sunlight that filtered through the canopy, but ultimately missed the coyote by an inch, cutting through dirt and grass. The coyote to the right took the opening its partner had made and ran in to land a bite to Artorias' thigh. The dire wolf snarled as stinging pain lanced through his leg, the coyote's teeth digging into flesh and muscle. Unfortunately for the coyote, this also left it vulnerable, and twisting his body around, Artorias brought the pointed end of his sword straight down through the coyote's eye until it burst through the other side of its head, turning the coyote's skull into a kabob and killing it instantly. With his leg freed, Artorias kicked the dead body away and withdrew his sword, now dripping with gore, and whirled it around on the third coyote. This one had the common sense to leap back, putting some distance between the combatants.

The other three coyotes that had been fighting with Artorias' ravens took notice of the fight going on then and abandoned the birds in favor of ganging up on the dire wolf and his pup. Facing a four on one fight, Artorias set his defenses and waited, nerves tensed and ready to react. A coyote ran straight for him, using sheer aggression as its tactic. Artorias growled and threw his weight forward, intercepting the charge with his shoulder slamming into the coyote, his greater size and bulk easily toppling the smaller canid over. The Aegis brought a giant paw down on the collapsed coyote's neck, pinning it to the ground while choking it to the point it began kicking and struggling desperately beneath him. Artorias held the fighting foe down, ignoring it for the time being as another coyote came for him. This one was smarter, feigning movements to the left and right to try and psych him out, but Artorias' enhanced vision and reflexes kept him on target, so when it did finally make a move in for his side, the dire wolf caught those snapping jaws with his sword, hearing the clank of teeth grinding against steel. Artorias countered the coyote's attack by jerking his head so the sharp edge of his sword cut back into the coyote's mouth, slicing deep into its soft palate before lodging there. It didn't quite kill the predator, but it had severed its jaw, and as blood poured from its wounds into its mouth and down its throat, the coyote collapsed and began to drown in its own lifeblood.

Three coyotes were down, but three remained. That number was swiftly cut down to two as Artorias reached down to latch powerful jaws around the head of the coyote he was choking. A quick jerk while pressing down was all it took to dislocate the coyote's vertebrae, and its neck snapped with a sickening pop and crunch, its body no longer spasming as it suffocated and falling still as the life left it. The coyote to his left once more took its opportunity to rush in and pounce the dire wolf, clinging onto Artorias' side as it sunk its fangs into his back. Artorias snarled in pain, but thankfully his denser coat helped cushion most of the bite. The final coyote joined its comrade, rushing in to try and seize an opening at the dire wolf's throat. Artorias tucked his chin down, guarding his neck as coyote teeth scraped over the side of his muzzle. Ignoring the biting at his back, Artorias turned the offensive back on the coyotes, snarling while he lunged with open jaws closing around the foreleg of the coyote at his front and biting down until he was rewarded with a crunch of bone. There was a shriek of pain, and Artorias grabbed the canine with his jaws wrapping around its head, shook it about a few times, and then tossed it aside like it was a rag doll. The coyote yowled and screamed as it thrashed about on the ground. It was only once it had landed did he realize that his fangs had pierced its eye in the process, half blinding the creature.

The coyote on his side, still relentless in his attack, had become more of a nuisance than a threat. Shooting a fiery glare back at the stupid cretin, Artorias bellowed and charged with all his strength for the nearest tree, throwing his side against the trunk with all his might to slam the coyote between the tree and his own weight. He heard the yelp, felt the coyote's claws and fangs leave his skin, and when he pulled away the lanky canine had collapsed to the ground, gasping and wheezing for breath. The Aegis glared down at his downed foe, feeling a sense of pity for the creature. Yes, it had only been looking for a meal, but it had made its bed when it chose to try to eat his family. Turning away from it, Artorias strode back over to the body that still had his sword wedged in its face, the coyote having long since drowned in its own blood, and wrenched Embershard from the corpse. Then, standing tall and dominant over the blood soaked battlefield, the wolf returned to the injured coyote. Artorias brought Embershard down with lethal accuracy, slicing through the coyote's neck to fully decapitate it and end its life. He then crossed the clearing over to the blinded coyote that was trying to limp away, whining as it fled. In most cases, Artorias was a merciful brute. But the last time he had shown mercy to an intruder, it had cost his mother her life. He would not make that same mistake again, and especially not with Dusk. Artorias caught up with the injured coyote and finished it off by driving his sword down through its back and chest, waiting until the body had collapsed limp before withdrawing his sword.

The grove was quiet now, a stark contrast from the snaps and snarls of combat that had filled it only moments before. Artorias was left breathing heavy, adrenaline pumping through his veins in such high quantities that he felt like his senses were amplified tenfold. Narrowed fire-kissed eyes swept over the field, counting out six corpses of six fallen enemies. None had survived and no threats remained now. The grass was splattered in dark red all over, and even parts of his blue coat were stained in blood, some his and most coyote. With each breath, Artorias could feel his heart hammering inside his chest, and gradually he began to come down from the high of battle. As his breathing steadied, he slid Embershard back into its sheath on his back, then turned to find Dusk amongst the carnage. At some point amidst the fighting, Caladia had appeared there as well, tucked up close by Dusk. The father's only focus had been protecting his daughter, and now his only focus was making sure that the pups were okay. Long strides closed the space between him and the girls quickly, and worried eyes were swift to begin scanning them for obvious signs of injury. "Are you hurt, Dusk? Caladia?"

"Artorias Carpathius" | "Carpathian" | "Corbin" | "Eira" | "Argent"

The coyotes advance on the terrified pup and, at first, Caladia attempts to make herself look big and scary. However, hunger is a powerful force and their empty bellies are too painful to be ignored. Realization slams into the girl and she shrinks back against the tree as she understands that they will not stop. Suddenly, a dark cloud appears, streaking across the ground to slam into the skinny creature closest to her. Surprise has the pup blinking rapidly to make sure she isn’t dreaming. From where the black ball stands, red appears to paint the ground and she watches Dusk attack the coyote, too afraid to move or make any sound.

Her cousin releases the coyote she attacked, moving back toward her and asks if Callie is okay and, a moment, the girl manages to squeak out, “Ye.. yeah.” Dusk then instructs her to run and find her father, Artorias. A part of the pup bulks at the very idea and she wants to argue against leaving Dusk alone with the coyotes. However, she knows that, in this fight, she is and the best thing she can do is find help. So, sucking in a trembling breath, the hodgepodge colored pup nods and uncertainly says, “Okay.” With that, Dusk draws the coyotes attentions and, without another word, the smaller girl slips away through the tall undergrowth.

Caladia runs for all she is worth, her short legs stretching as far as they can go as she races away from the danger in search of Artorias. Just as she breaks out of the grove and hits the grassy plains, the girl spies the large form of Dusk’s dad charging into the berry grove. Relief floods her body as Callie immediately turns around and she races just as quickly back to where Dusk fights. Since her legs are shorter, the pup arrives late to the fight and finds the huge dire wolf is already laying waste to the hungry pack. Callie does not watch the slaughter and instead scans the area for Dusk.

Finding her dark form, she quickly runs to her cousin and buries her face into the dark coat. Tears fall into the inky fur as she presses her smaller body into her older cousin, seeking reassure that her running away had not killed Dusk. The sounds of death continue from behind her but she keeps her face buried in the dark cloud’s coat, grounding herself from the terror of only minutes before. Silence falls in the grove and Callie finally pulls herself from her cousin’s coat and turns her red, puffy eyes up to Artorias.

He asks if they are hurt and she shakes her head in the negative, sniffling while trying to shrink backward as guilt wells in her chest. Would he be angry that she had abandoned Dusk to the coyotes? Sure, she had been told to run but she didn’t have to leave. Doubt knocks around in the pup’s head as she lowers her gaze and presses a little further into her cousin. Whatever happens, Caladia knows she deserves to be grounded.


"Caladia Carpathius"

It felt as though there was pure adrenaline in the girl's veins as she squared off with the smaller canines. Dark paws never stopped moving backwards as she neared the edge of the clearing. Once her tail touched the row of bushes, she had no choice but to halt. At least they couldn't come around behind her this way. Still, the odds were stacked terribly against her. Still a child, six against one... things weren't looking so great for the dark girl.

Ravens. Suddenly there were ravens. Dusk was able to peel her gaze away from the coyotes long enough to realize that they were her father's friends. That had to mean that he was on his way! All she had to do was hold the coyotes off until he got here. With the birds heckling them, the coyotes attention was divided, but it never left her for too long. Soon they had come to face her again.

With her stance set and her head lowered, the Carpathius child bared her teeth, snarling and trying to look as intimidating as possible. When the first coyote leaped towards her, the girl's muscles had tensed instinctually. Toes dug into the earth beneath her as she prepared to leap. A shadow overhead stopped her and fire opal eyes stared up at the figure of her father soaring over her head.

Dusk watched in awe as her father decimated the pack of coyotes. At some point Caladia had returned and the older girl draped a foreleg protectively over her, holding her close while her father took care of the last of the coyotes. Dusk was far from being a girly girl. The decapitation, evisceration, blood raining massacre was so terribly impressive to the child that, by the time Artorias was finished and came back to them, Dusk's tail was wagging a million miles an hour and there was a massive smile on her face. Her father looked worried and questioned whether they were both okay but Dusk barely heard him. "That was so awesome!" Hopping up, the girl bounced around her father in excitement. "The way you, swish, swish, swish. Off with their heads!" A giggle ended the girl's reenactment of her father's battle.

Now that the initial excitement of the situation was over with, Dusk looked her father straight in the eye. "I didn't take any risks. I saved Caladia and I called for help." Still, the child's long tail was swishing back and forth atop the bloodied grass as she went to sit next to her cousin once more. The danger was over, so there was no need for Callie to look so afraid. She patted the girl's paw with her own, then looked back to her dad. "I did good, right?" A proud, toothy smile was directed up at her father as Dusk puffed out her chest. In her mind, she'd done exactly what he told her to do after the little encounter with the caiman. She was waiting for her praise.

"Dusk Carpathius"

Out of all of his daughters, Artorias knew that Dusk was the most tomboyish of the lot. However, even that knowledge had not prepared him to see the little black soot ball of a pup practically vibrating with excitement with her long, whip-like tail lashing about the ground as it wagged furiously. Dusk had been thrilled by the battle, the coyote slaughter titillating her like a children's game. Still coated in blood, Artorias was afraid he would look a sight and startle the kids, but Dusk couldn't stop beaming at him despite his gruesome appearance and display. The small black puffball squealed in joy and exclaimed how cool the fight had been, bouncing like a bunny rabbit all around his legs while mimicking his combat moves he had been forced to display before her. Artorias' amber eyes blinked open wide, following Dusk's hyperactive movements around him. She was very clearly not hurt, nor was Caladia who responded in a much more timid manner by simply shaking her head. Both of them were safe. The Aegis breathed a sigh of relief. Too close... much too close...

With the high of battle passed and the adrenaline burning out in his veins, Artorias allowed himself to relax and slump back to his haunches, swallowing slow and even breaths to steady himself. He had been so, so afraid that he wouldn't get to Dusk in time, and had he been but a second slower, he might have found his daughter limp and lifeless in the jaws of one of those coyotes. The thought chilled the dire wolf with a fear the likes of which he'd never known before. All of a sudden, Dusk's mirth died down and she looked up at her sire with a dutiful seriousness in her matching fiery eyes. Artorias held his daughter's gaze while she told him how she had followed his instructions from their last conversation, how she had saved Caladia from imminent death and then called for help. Art just kept his eyes on Dusk's for a long moment, his eyes blank with confusion while his brain tried to catch up to what she was telling him, but as her words sunk in, a relieved smile slowly crept across the tall wolf's face and a breathy chuckle left him as he shook his head, baffled by the little puffball that was his child. Was this what he had been like as a puppy? Had he driven his parents as crazy as Dusk made him?

"C'mere," Artorias said and beckoned Dusk closer to him with a wave of his paw. When the little girl came closer, the father wasted no time scooping up his little princess in his giant paws and pulling her into a tight embrace, craning his neck down to nuzzle and lick her crown. Yes, he was very proud of her for defending her cousin without being reckless. But more than proud, Artorias was grateful that she was alive and unharmed. His children were his world. If anything happened to them, he would crumble. "Ce o să fac cu tine?" Artorias sighed, smiling down at Dusk with all the love a father could possess for his daughter. "You did very good, Dusky. I'm so proud of you for protecting your cousin and being smart with your safety." That was all Artorias could ask of his pups—be smart and make good decisions.

Another long lick of a broad pink tongue across the little black wolf's forehead would muss up her downy fur in a comedic fashion, drawing chuckles from her father before he released his pup. "Come, let's get you both back to the castle. You don't need to see any more of this." Art glanced back at the bloodbath he'd made in the grove. He'd send Mercury and Ezra out to clear the bodies once they got back.

"Artorias Carpathius" | "Carpathian" | "Corbin" | "Eira" | "Argent"