In the heart of the valley, not far off the ocean inlet, Aresenn stood with an unwavering resolve with the distant echo of a thundering roar. It was a sound that reverberated through the crisp air, sending an electrifying pulse down his spine. The call was unmistakable—a massive bear, a formidable beast, announcing its presence in the valley. Without hesitation, Aresenn answered back, his voice carrying a deep, resonating howl that echoed across the taiga.

For Aresenn, the call of challenge was an unspoken invitation—a primal dance, a test of strength, a duel that beckoned from the depths of the icy wilderness. With muscles tensed and adrenaline coursing through his veins, he set forth. He moved with the intent of a predator, navigating the terrain with ease- his senses attuned to every nuance of the landscape. The spring breeze whipped around him, carrying the scent of pine and fresh growth, as he closed the distance between himself and the unseen adversary. Hopefully, some of his bandmates would be around to help him fight off their competitor.

"Aresenn Praetor"

Absinth, still healing from her encounter with Rhazien, felt stir crazy by her rest in her den. She wanted so badly to wander out, but only just today her head had finally stopped its incessant dizziness and confusion. She could think again. She was back to herself, and fully set on returning to business as usual. One sadistic old man would not make her kneel to reservation. They hadn’t succeeded thus far, nor would that Saxe bastard. So. Absinth emerged from her den, a good half hour into her walk whilst testing her limits with the injury at her side, when Aresenn’s call rang out.

Fuck. She growled to herself, teeth biting at her lips as she wavered. Could she handle a fight right now? Could she stand to leave his call unanswered? No. Never.

Absinth shot forth, onward towards his call. Surely he would not be pleased with her appearance, but she would not be a damsel in distress. She was a predator, bloodshed in her veins, and a desire to rip something apart with her fangs. So as she burst out from cover, her eyes set upon Aresenn as he sought his quarry, she would smirk wickedly – her intent clear in her confident body language.

wormwood

Elysia was bored, always so bored. She really needed to make some friends. So far she’d really only spent time with three of her bandmates, excluding her brother. And in the two headed Sidi and she was at four. And even those interactions had been kinda brief. It was as if she was unknowingly walking in her mother’s footsteps, always secluding herself from her family.

Lazily she paced through the brush near her den. She was busy trying to at least remember the names of everyone sephrian had gathered that she had yet to bother with. And she was still drawing a blank to that when a familiar call cut through the quiet sound of nature that had echoed around her. Aresenn. A familiar voice and face. And a happy distraction from her own…incompetence.

Ears twitched in the direction his call had come from, and then her head drifted in that same direction. “I wonder what he could want this time” she spoke to no one in particular. Curiosity killed the cat, but it never seemed to kill her. So she turned on her paws and began to run in the direction she assumed she’d find the man of living fire.

Weaving in and out of the trees and bushes it didn’t take her long to navigate through her home. His scent tickled her nose and she knew she was headed straight for him. As his scent grew strong she slowed her pace to a jog. And then another familiar scent began to mix with Aresenn’s. Absinth. She could help but feel even more content now.

After all she was getting two familiar faces in one summons. Two faces she didn’t quite mind being around that was for sure. She slowed her pace again, now walking as she finally arrived. Spotting Aresenn’s brightly colored frame first and then the monochrome woman’s. “Absinth, it’s always a pleasure to see your pretty face” her tone flirtatious and warm as she let her eyes fall upon absi’s face, with a grin upon her own. And then she turned to acknowledge the one who’d called. “Aresenn”she dipped her head slightly in greeting.

Aresenn's intense gaze swept over the surrounding landscape, his focus unwavering as the familiar scent of his bandmates mingled in the crisp air. The distant sound of approaching footfalls and their accompanying scents alerted him to their presence even before they materialized in his line of sight. "Absinth, Elysia," Aresenn acknowledged with a nod, his voice resonating with a determined edge. "How nice of you both to join me." His voice, low and full of dry amusement.

He acknowledged their arrivals with a brief glance, swiftly shifting his attention back to the task at hand. The resonant roar of the polar bear echoed anew, drawing nearer, marking the impending clash. Aresenn's muscles tensed, anticipation crackling in the air as he readied himself for the inevitable confrontation. With a swift gesture, he signaled his intent, indicating for Absinth and Elysia to flank the beast from the sides while he took the central position to distract and draw fire. Each step he took was deliberate, calculated, a silent dance of strategy and instinct.

As the mammoth form of the polar bear emerged from the edge of the forest, its massive silhouette cutting through the fading light, Aresenn surged forward. His movements were fluid, a cacophony of controlled ferocity, as he lunged at the beast as it did the same with its own intention. As a devastatingly large claw swung to bat him away, Aresenn snapped in an attempt to grab the back of its forelimb.

"Aresenn Praetor"

As the monochrome fae drew closer to Aresenn, eyes seeking their next move – did the lovely Elysia emerge from the landscape of the Sound. She greeted her with a coy smirk, which was returned in kind. What good friends they’d be. She quite liked the malicious woman.

But now comes the hard part. With a smooth gesture Aresenn motioned them to each take a flanking position, and Absinth was quick to take the right. She darted her gaze between her two companions, tongue swiping out to lick at her teeth as she began to snarl. The bear was huge, but she was getting used to the nature of the big oafs. As Aresenn made his move, working to take hold of the bear’s massive paw in order to stunt its movements.

Absinth took the opportunity to surge forward for her own attack, targeting the bear’s right hind leg in an effort to work on rending its achilles tendon from its body. Her teeth struck true, a vicious shake of her head was all she needed to work a deep gash in - pulling back with a chunk of bear tendon and sinew she danced backwards to spit it to the ground.


wormwood

Their greetings were cut short as the roar of a bear sounded in their territory. Her hackles raised slightly, fur bristling. So Aresenn had a great reason for calling for people. A bear of any kind was a threat to her family. One that couldn’t be allowed to wander through their home. No. They would have to use that damned teamwork He had talked about for this.

It didn’t take long for Aresenn to take control of the team. Motioning for them to follow his lead by flanking the beast. She simply nodded, she cared little who called the shots on this. So long as she could sink her teeth into it and get her pound of flesh and blood. So when Absinth flanked right, Ely instinctively flanked to the left. Meeting the eyes of both bandmates momentarily to confirm she was ready.

This bear was white, and huge. But that was fine, that just meant more blood for her. She tensed her muscles in anticipation. Loading like a spring, she watched as Aresenn aimed for its paw and then as Absinth launched herself at it. It took her only moments to decide her course of action.

She launched herself at the bear’s side, jaws splaying as she aimed for its ribs. Teeth sank into flesh as her bite landed, Clamping her teeth shut she began to pull at the bear's side. Trying to pull its attention from the other two wolves momentarily to confuse it.

Aresenn grunted with the impact of the bear's forearm in his jaws- his snarling growls mere rumbles as he fought to maintain his grip. The massive creature roared in pain and frustration, its attention torn between the three wolves attacking from different angles- he felt the impact of the girls through the vibration of their victim's body.

With a swift motion, Aresenn twisted, using his strength to leverage the bear's paw and disrupt its balance. His goal was to create an opening for his companions to exploit. As Elysia sunk her teeth into the bear's side, Aresenn seized the opportunity, releasing the forelimb and darting towards the creature's exposed neck as it attempted to address the flanking assault. His jaws opened wide, aiming to clamp down on the vulnerable flesh. The bear, now under attack from multiple sides, struggled against the coordinated onslaught. Aresenn's focused eyes gleamed with determination as he sought to bring the formidable opponent to submission, using his weight as a counter balance to prevent it from turning.

"Aresenn Praetor"

As Absinth gauged their progress in killing the beast, she took note of their respective positions. Elysia was not in her view, but she could see the bear preoccupied with something along its other side - so it was safe to say the other woman was making good work of its ribcage. Aresenn was on the move though. He released the bear’s paw, shifting his target to the polar bear's throat.

She could see her opening. Like a flash she was lunging forward, muscles in her hind legs bunching up and releasing as she jumped onto the bear’s shoulder, sinking her teeth into the hide and allowing her weight to help Aresenn gain control of its movements. If they could throw it’s balance, the soft underbelly would be exposed.

wormwood

Elysia could feel the bear’s muscles straining to keep up with all three opponents' attacks. She could feel the way her bandmates pulled at it, because it would shift its weight accordingly. She didnt have a good visual on either of them until a familiar monochrome frame had launched itself atop of the beat and was attacking its shoulder. She needed to do more, help them more before the tides of battle began to shift out of their favor. Yanking away from the bear’s ribs, she pulled a jaws worth of flesh with her. Spitting it to the ground, as blood dripped from her jaws and a growl of pain ripped from the creature Elysia attacked again.

Refusing to let up, she now aimed for the front side of the bear’s left thigh. All while she slammed her body weight into its side, yanking at its massive leg hoping to unsteady its balance further. If they could just topple it onto its side this fight would end. She didn’t let up as she yanked and pushed simultaneously. Hoping now that one of the others would catch onto her idea and help topple this fucker onto its side. SO they could reach the soft, unprotected parts of it’s body..

Through the chaos of battle, he felt Absinth's weight shift to the bear's shoulder, forcing it to stagger. Aresenn maintained his own hold on the creature's neck, his jaws clamped firmly on its exposed flesh. The bear, now struggling with the combined assault from three different assailants, roared in frustration. With Elysia's relentless attacks on the opposite side, the bear's balance wavered. There seemed to be a critical shift, and with a powerful surge of strength, Aresenn shifted his stance to throw more of his weight onto the bear's neck.

The bear, unable to withstand the coordinated onslaught, succumbed to the loss of balance. Its massive form crashed to the ground with a thunderous thud, the impact reverberating through the taiga. Still clinging to his respective target, he fought to shift his position on top of the the bear as it struggled beneath them- ultimately pinning a large part of its upper body to the ground. With the polar bear now in a vulnerable state, Elysia's strategy had proven effective. Aresenn tightened his grip, preventing it from retaliating effectively. The trio now had the upper hand, and with a shared understanding, they could go for the kill.

"Aresenn Praetor"

From her attacking vantage upon the bear’s shoulder, she could see Elysia rip away a piece of flesh, spitting it away and shifting her focus to the beast’s left thigh. Her body weight slamming into it, pulling, pushing. Perfect. Absinth clawed at its thick coat, trying to kick at it until she had well and thoroughly tore through its skin. They would have it stumbling with every combined movement, chaotically pulling and tearing it in different directions.

And as it finally fell, Absinth lurched off onto the side Elysia was positioned on. Aresenn was still at its throat, crushing down on it. An anchor keeping the bear controlled, which Absinth was very much prepared to put to good use. She shot Elysia a wicked grin, before her jaws split open and she began to essentially drill her way through the ursine’s underbelly. It released an unearthly scream, it’s intestines beginning to spill out around her – bloodying her perfectly white coat.

wormwood

So this was teamwork? It was effective and efficient to say the least. Both Aresenn and Absinth had caught on to her plan. And it wasn’t long before they had it toppling over, just like she’d intended to have happen. She pulled back, her sides heaving as she caught her breath. She was smaller than this bear and her bandmates and this hadn’t been easy. Surveying the scene before she looked at Aresenn keeping the bear in check. And then she met the wicked grin of Absinth.

That grin was contagious and Ely felt a grin of her own slide onto her face. She watched as absi turned toward the bears stomach and began digging her way into it. The chorus of painful cries, tearing flesh and squishing organs was beautiful. She could have kissed Absinth for it. But instead decided to join the fun.

Slinking up alongside the Absinth’s frame, to let the woman know she was coming to join in, Elysia wasted no time in sinking her own teeth into the tender belly of the beast. Roping and tearing in time with Absinth. She didn’t care just how gory she would end up. In fact, she was so focused on getting through this bears stomach and intestines, nothing else mattered besides her and the woman beside her.

The bear could have taken its last breath and she wouldn’t have noticed. She was enthralled with the pace Absinth had set, the warmth of the blood that coated her body and the taste. Oh how she loved that taste of flesh and blood. It was intoxicating.

Aresenn grunted as the bear's cries subsided into eerie silence, the gory scene a testament to their victory. His grip on the bear's neck relaxed as the creature breathed its last. He cast a glance at Absinth and Elysia, their fervor in dismantling the fallen foe a mix of ferocity and focus. As the adrenaline began to ebb, Aresenn released his hold on the lifeless body, his muscles aching from the prolonged struggle. Only then did he register the searing pain across his chest, a realization that he wouldn't be walking away totally unscathed. Blood oozed from the gash, and he could feel the warmth of it as the sight of it was lost in his already crimson coat. "Son of a bitch." He acknowledged the injury with a low growl, but didn't want to alarm his companions.

"Seems I got a little too close," he grunted, shifting his attention from the scratch on his chest to the two girls already soaked in the Polar Bear's life force. "You ladies can finish up here. I'm going to go clean this up." He finished, dismissing himself from the pleasantly gruesome scene with the a final nod toward Absinth and Elysia. He didn't particularly need this today. But at least he was better off than the bear.

-Exit Aresenn-
"Aresenn Praetor"

Absinth was terribly absorbed in the act of eviscerating the innards of the bear, and like Elysia she did not particularly care if it had died yet or not. Pulling the delectable liver free she made quick work of consuming it, chewing it down as she nodded back to Aresenn, the blood of the bear masking his injury so that she did not notice it. If she had, she would have seen to assist him with it; but as it was she shifted her focus onto Ely and gave her a cheerful grin.

Oh. There was something else they could do with the beast. “Elysia, dear~ Ever skinned one of these fuckers?” She said roughly, a paw coming up to rest against the bloodied beast as she gestured to the fur.


wormwood

Ely just barely heard Aresenn’s words as she was far too caught up in her own bloodlust. But she pulled back just in time to see him walking away and as she was going to dig into the bear again Absinth addressed her. It pulled her attention away from the still warm innard of the polar bear. And she chuckled. ”I can’t say that I have” she glanced over at the blood stained fur of the bear now.

”though I’d love to learn, if you’re willing to teach me” she grinned. Learning to skin one of these would open up her world to so many decorating options. And she bet Ezekiel would love to have some more homey touches to their den.

Turning her eyes back to Absinth, she gave her all of her attention now. Waiting to see what new lesson she’d offer her.

“Good.” Absinth nodded, a pleased smile on her face. Now then, she turned to the bear’s carcass - to the hole they had torn into it. Wasn’t the prettiest thing, but it would do for a lesson. “Try your hand at helping me, if you feel up for it. You’ll want to spare more of the fur when you kill it, unless you want it to have gaping holes in it. But, it’s a preference.” The monochromatic woman joked, her paws feeling about the ragged edges of the wound, and she sought to hook a claw between the hide and the muscle. “First, you have to separate the skin from the body, I like to use my nails, but I swap between my teeth for pulling power. Just be careful not to shred it in the process.” She explained, pushing back the skin with a grunt, and then moving to clamp her teeth onto it and pull upwards with her jaws. At the same time she wedged her paws in between the two, clearing the connective tissue at the same time.

wormwood

Ely followed Absinth face to the torn and shredded flesh of the polar bear’s stomach. Inching closer to Absinth so that she could get the best view of this lesson She listened with keen ears. ”For you, I’m up to try everything” ely tossed back. As she watched Absinth’s paws, she mimicked the same movements, as she ran a paw alongside the torn flesh.

She watched Absinth hook a nail between the flesh and muscle and did exactly the same thing. ”Like this right ?” she wanted to make sure she was doing this right. If she was going to learn this, she would give it her best effort.

She watched as Absinth almost effortlessly began to pull fur and skin away from meat. Ely waited for Absinth to tell her she had done the first step correctly or not. She was going to take this step by step.

Absinth watched Elysia attempt to follow her instruction, and paused the work she was making an example of. Nodding to the other woman, “Yes. Now when you get far enough in for some leverage start pulling with both your teeth and claws. You’ll have to work to separate the two, because those muscles won’t let that hide go easily.” She said, pointing with a paw at the membrane-like tissue that stretched between the open space Elysia had opened up. She was willing to show the woman how to do this, step by step just as she seemed to wish. “Don’t be too shy, it’s hard to bite into isn’t it? It can handle a bit of force, just be mindful of how big a piece of pelt you want from it. We don’t have a knife here, so we’ll have to tear it with our teeth when the time comes. Always aim for bigger than you think you need, they shrink during the tanning process.”


wormwood

Elysia felt a bit of satisfaction when Absi confirmed that she was doing just what she should be doing. Nodding her head she listened as Absinth broke down the next part of it. Taking hold of the skin and fur with her teeth she made sure to get a tight grip, one that would hold and not pierce the flesh… hopefully.

Nodding to Absinth directions she began using her paws and claws to push at the membranes, all while trying her best to pull the skin up and away from the muscles.

Absinth wasn’t joking one bit, this was a bit harder than she expected it to be. And her medium size didn’t help her at all in this task. In fact it was kind of frustrating, trying to pull up and clear away the membranes when her body was smaller.