word count: 202

Ronan wasn't sure what to make of the sky, long stretching bands of purple and green- that for some reason or another sent the local wildlife scampering off into cover. Like it foretold of some danger he simply couldn't perceive. The night was too quiet because of this, no hooting owls, no barking coyotes or the throaty call of some herbivore he couldn't name. It was deathly quiet, even as he approached the shoreline the ocean seemed different from what he'd expected. The full moon was massive that night, full and bright, causing an extra-low tide, the sand dry and cracking where he expected water to be rolling back and forth.

Seeing strange lights back where he came from wasn't exactly unusual, but out in the wilderness it certainly felt...different. Almost disquieting, the unknown and the not knowing. The glow of his fur felt brighter too, as if responding to the streaks of colour above, basically making him a bright neon sign as he padded over the cracked sand.

With the world being so quiet, his presence would no doubt be all the easier to notice. His markings weren't doing him much favours either, but he'd never been the stealthy sort anyway.

table coding by bunni ♥

Marrow

Marrow wandered into the eastern territories, following the movement of prey, particularly white tail deer, into their rutting areas. It was difficult for her to catch one alone but she hoped that she could find one injured enough in battle to be able to take it down. She also hoped to modify some of the snares she'd learned about to try and create one that would work for a larger prey animal like a deer, but it would take some time. As such she set up in the east in a temporary den. Marrow settled in to get some sleep but soon woke as she sensed light. However, it wasn't the warm, golden light of the sun but strange streaks of green light undulating through the sky. What in the heck?

Marrow slipped out of her den, staring up at the sky. What was that all about? A big, weird comet maybe? She hadn't seen anything in her life that she could really compare it to. She'd seen falling stars but those were gone so fast. Maybe a rainbow? A weird rainbow stuck in the sky? She wandered down to the Delta, seeking a better vantage point when she noticed the blue and red wolf she'd battled a tiger wolf.

Marrow headed toward him, not bothering to announce her presence. Her pale coat practically seemed to glow as it reflected the light of the aurora. "Hey, what is this? What's going on with the sky?"

WC: 245
Total: 447

Coran's hunting trip had gone later than expected. He'd been out fishing in the eastern rivers and by the time he'd decided to call it a night dark had already fallen. He was debating whether to find a place to sleep or make the trek back through the night and sleep in the morning when the sky suddenly lit up with green streaks of light. The aurora! It was a beautiful sight but he couldn't help but feel slightly on edge, remember tales of the long night and the horrors that had followed. The deep dark that stretched across the world and the lack of the sun, the sky instead lit up by strange lights. He had avoided most of that horrible time and he had no wish to get entrenched in it now. Hopefully this aurora, bright and vibrant as it was, was just a once off event and not a harbinger of something to come.

Deciding that he should take advantage of the light he set out to travel back west, working his way through the delta when he spied the blue and red wolf he'd met on an island as well as the pale yearling he'd hunted an albatross with. Coran cleared his throat and called out in greeting. "Good evening. The sky is certainly something tonight."

WC: 220
Total:  667

word count: 213
total: 880

At least the two wolves were somewhat familiar, he wasn't sure if he was in the mood to deal with outright strangers that night. He regarded them with a side glance for a moment, they both had relatively pale coats and they had announced themselves readily so it wasn't a concern. He still had that uptight, wound up energy within him, an edge that was starting to lean towards the temperamental. Ronan did not like the unknown, after all the shit he'd seen and done he had to know.

"I'm not in the best mood tonight." He admitted, cutting right to the chase, his voice bordering on curt, but not quite stepping over the line. More of a misanthrope than most, he couldn't deny. "You two, fight me." He decided, already shifting into a battle ready stance, shoulders set, wings flaring out defensively. The floor was open for the pair to make the first moves, he'd react accordingly enough.

The sand was soft under paw, the skies colours bleeding out, a distraction if he dared to glance that way. All of it was distracting, the questions and thoughts that rattled around in his head. His focus could be sharp and cutting, right to the point, he was better than this. That he knew.

table coding by bunni ♥

Marrow

Marrow whipped her head around at the sound of someone else approaching only to see the pale, brindled man she'd hunted with a few times. She relaxed and offered him a smile. Like with Wendigo she'd started to associate him with food and food made her very happy. "It is pretty, but is it bad?" She was guessing probably not as neither one of the men looked worried or were looking for shelter but she still wished to hear a verbal confirmation that they weren't about to die. Thankfully, Coran, assured her and that made her feel better about relaxing and enjoying the night. Fall was a lovely time and the sky made everything prettier. The air was cool but not entirely unpleasant. Though the beautiful night didn't seem to be helping Ronan's mood.

The blue and red male stated his wish to fight and Marrow grinned, tail waving. "Ok, I'll fight, I'll fight!" She had pent up energy from the sky and the excitement of something new. Besides, she'd always been the rough and tumble sort. Marrow faced off against Ronan. As he set his defenses she would set hers. Her head and tail gracefully shifted to align with her spine.  Her chin tucked as her neck scrunched back, shoulders rolling forward in anticipation as her hackles stood on end.  Marrow shifted her limbs equidistant apart, just slightly wider than shoulder and hip width respectively, her weight shifting evenly across her limbs.  She her limbs coiled to lower her center of gravity, her toes splayed, claws digging into the moist soil for extra grip.  Her jaws parted, brows wrinkling to wrinkle the flesh of her face as her ears pinned tightly to her head, eyes narrowing.  

Marrow expected Coran to join in and she loved the idea of trying to fight multiple opponents. The dark skies would make the battle more difficult though the light above helped in some ways. Yet, the strange coloring made everything seem slightly unnatural. Coran's pale coat would be easier to identify and although Ronan was brightly colored, the darker parts of his pelt seemed to melt into the darkness.

Marrow took a deep breath and charged. She would attempt to approach her opponent head-on before her body shifted slightly to her own left as she attempted to come at Ronan from a forty-five degree angle, facing in towards the man's right shoulder.  Marrow sought to lance her left shoulder blade into the outer muscular portion of Ronan's right shoulder, right into the deltoid, hoping the combination with her forward momentum would cause the muscle to temporarily seize up and buy her an advantage in time.

Simultaneously, the white wraiths fangs would seek to mar the right side of her opponents face.  Her upper fangs seeking to pierce the flesh above Ronan's right eye while her lower fangs sought to hook under the corner of her opponents right-sided jaw.  She sought a solid grip from which she could control the man's head and maybe limit his ability to retaliate.

WC: 508
Total: 1388

Coran chuckled at the strange yearling's question and he shook his head. "No, its not dangerous that I know of though it is unusual to see it so bright at this time of year, and so far south." A flicker of worry crossed across his face but he hid it well. He knew of the long night, he feared the possibility of it ever coming again. Thankfully, the other man took his attention away for the possibility of a spar. Coran's initial thought was that it would be more productive to talk about whatever was souring the other man's mood but at the same time he understood need to get the physical toll of emotion out first before being able to really discuss it. Coran nodded. "Sounds good to me." It would be a good challenge to spar in such strange light. Instead of the usually steady light of the moon or the total lack there of, they instead had the strange, undulating like of the aurora.

He positioned himself off to the side of Marrow as the girl set her defenses. He quickly followed suit. Coran set himself, the weight settled evenly on all four of his limbs, his stance widened slightly for the balance, knees bending for better shock absorbency. His toes spread, thick nails clinging to the earth for better grip. His head lowered like a bull's to the level of his shoulders, tail rising to an equal level and his shoulders rolled forward to bunch his scruff in a protective roll over his neck, chin tucking toward his throat to protect the delicate area beneath his jaw. Coran's hackles rose in a spiky ridge along his back and neck, ears pinning back against his head. His eyes narrowed and in a moment the fight began, with Marrow springing forward toward Ronan. Coran debated who to attack but deciding against the girl he raced for Ronan's left side.

Coran charged for Ronan's left side, coming in perpendicular toward the man's left shoulder. His jaws raced out, seeking to grab the other man's scruff at the same time he threw his chest forward, seeking to slam it into the other man's left foreleg to try and unbalance him.


WC: 370
Total:  1758

Fighting multiple enemies at once wasn't exactly easy at night, but given how the light danced on their pelts, it was easy to keep them in focus if nothing else. He'd asked for a challenge, so he very well couldn't complain now that one was being given to him. Weirdly enough, the yearling seemed the more experienced of the two, her attack was two pronged, he had no trouble meeting her shoulder slam in the middle, his own muscular figure more than capable of bearing the brunt but the teeth to the face? That one stung a bit, enough for him to wince as she connected. Knowing better than to try and rip his head away, likely doing more damage to his own face in the problem, he had no issue with shoving his head right back at her. His noggin was plenty hard enough and a solid enough knock to the snout was enough to make anyone's eyes water, enough that she'd let go out of instinct more than deliberate choice.

Sensing the other wolf swinging in close, Ronan flared out his wing defensively, angling the tips low. Coran would lose an eye if he wasn't careful.

table coding by bunni ♥