Rot Gut Whiskey's Gonna Ease My Mind

Tarnish felt the boulder start to move as more wolves joined in til finally it was sent rolling toward the worm. It collided making the worm sputter and flail but they weren't close to defeating it, not yet. Was this strategy working? Tarnish was ready to get up close and personal with the worm but what was the best method of attack for a creature like that. Still, they were getting close. As more wolves attacked the worm seemed to grow in frustration and disorientation. A large arch of fire burst out from it. Tarnish scowled.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw his sister go for a long, conical form of rock before darting around toward the back of the worm. He kicked off sharply, seeking to join her, hoping his dark, shadowy form would help to hide him from detection. With a running start he built up as much momentum as he could before flinging himself toward the worms back. Obsidian claws unsheathed as he aimed to land below Siduri, planning to dig his claws in deep and let his body weight assist him in dragging long lacerations down its back.

Unscathed again! Well at least minimally scathed! The lashing worm beneath his claws scalds his pads and burns his whiskers. The fur singeing around every point of contact and he sneezes under the cloud of ash falling around them. He pries the hard shell from the back of the worm! He sees a bright female and a dark male approaching him with a sharp stone!

"Here!" He calls to them, offering a naked deshelled space for them to pierce the firey flesh of the lava worm with their stone! He rends the obsidian carapace free! Yes! Vict- A yelp of pain grabs his attention! Ganymede?!

Ultyr sharply inhales as he frantically whips his gaze around for his partner. The stormshine boy had his leg stuck!

Ultyr attempted one more massive swipe at the raw area under the writhing swinging worm before he pushed himself away. He didn't care about any of the others that had died or were injured. The only one he cared about was this boy. As close to his boy as they were going to get for now.

He leaped and charged toward Ganymede, he threw his hips over the boy and glared the worm down, protecting him while he got his leg free.
Once the leg was free he pushed Ganymede toward the edge of the circle of stones.

"Let's go! Let them finish it off! You're more important." He growled and swept his head under the smaller frame, and hiked Ganymede over his back. He carried him to the edge of the massive circle and beyond. He wasn't to let Ganymede get further injured.

pp granted

Raiders didn’t know when to leave well enough alone. She had been on the opposite side of the worm and one of the bastard kids decided to come over and talk smack. Bellamy fixed her with a cold glare, hissing between her teeth. “Gilgamesh passed up the easy opportunity for my blood. You'll find yourself working for it if you try - and losing some of your own in the process.” He had every opportunity to make her answer for the crimes she had committed against the Raiders, but instead he had been more focused on renting her to shoulder her pack. She may not have been an alpha, but she was still the pack’s founder. Fault could have still been found with her. And now she had given up everything to atone. If they wanted more they could shove that desire right up their tight assholes. Unlike the others who charged in, Bellamy hung back and observed. Fur bristled, stomach churning as lives were lost. There was no saving them… this worm was more dangerous than the lava worm she stepped against. Keeping alongside the back end of the worm Bellamy began working a sizable boulder toward its back end. The thing was pissed… as to be expected. Some of the Raiders were attempting to finish the beast off, and Bellamy could only hope the boulder would help serve as a distraction from them as she pushed it into the edge. With any luck, the beast would be dead in a few moments. "Speech," 'Thought.'

Their boulder method wasn't working nearly as effectively. Calliope watches as the worm perseveres, enraged and lashing out. Yet, the wolves who were attacking it directly appeared to be doing more damage than rolling the boulders at it. She worked to formulate a new plan. Standing just back enough that the words from Bellamy reach her, but faint. A humored smile licks her lips. Just you wait, old hag. Cal thinks to herself as her eyes flick to the woman before redirecting to the worm. They had bigger enemies to fight.

Watching her sister and brother lung directly for the worm, Cal knew she had to enter the fray. Though she's in immense pain, her vision is growing blurry, she pushes forward. If the worm could persevere, so could she. Leaping into the crater as the last unleashing of fire disintegrates, Cal aims to jump onto the worm beside Tarnish, near Siduri. Her teeth grab ahold of its leathery, slimy, gross skin as she tries to dig in her dull claws. Over and over, she bites at the worm. The more holes, the better it would bleed out.

Calliope Fallen

table coding by bunni ♥

Tide is bold and violent, ripping and tearing, taking hold of the spindly tentacle as best he can. What he lacks in mass, he makes up for in force. It's a vicious mangling, the tendril going limp after a long and fucked up game of tug. Though the appendage is limp and useless now, the beast only seems to double down in its rage. So Tide would too. Working in time with his older siblings, at least as best he can, the boy dives for the monster. What catches his attention over the din... dad's name? What was that gross old bat talking about dad for? His gaze flicks between Calliope and Siduri, but there's no time. Driving himself toward the worm, near Cal's side, he bites. A tiny, sharp, vicious thing he is.

Continuing his unrelenting assault, Kuroki surged forward again, aiming to use his eagle talons to cry off its protective carapace like armour. A rare growl passed his lips, frustration mounting at how tedious this was- how the thing just wouldn't die. But it had to, because it couldn't be allowed to roam free, he didn't even want to think of the destruction this worm alone could cause, let alone the others he'd heard whispers of. At the end of the day, it was either them or this fire breathing bastard- it was it or his family, ones he loved and got along with and others...he didn't quite vibe with but cared for all the same.

"Kuroki Tantō Ōritsu Abraxas"

He was trying so hard to reach Grue, but the world was against him. Clearly it was, why else would it shift beneath his paws and send him crashing to the ground as others fought and moved around him? Could they even see his tiny self with everything going on? His ankle twisted, painfully so, causing him to yelp as he fell but with the cacophony of roars from the worm and the others battling it, it was drowned out. If he was lucky, perhaps his twin had felt his pain, perhaps he would come running to him and save him, but even he knew that Gruesome was too focused on protecting the others, protecting him.

Terror tried to get to his paws, the pain in his ankle only growing. Was it broken? He didn't think so, but he certainly couldn't put any weight on it. He realized this and decided that getting to Gruesome now was going to be even harder than before. He debated going for safety instead, but couldn't bare the thought of Grue getting hurt any further.

Pressing on, he hopped along on one hind leg as he carried his right, his steps more slow and careful now as he moved around the others, the fire, and over the shifting ground. "Grue!" He called out to him again after seeing a glimpse among the crowd.

"Speech!"

Art & Code © Skelle/Witchdogtor DO NOT USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

The shock and need to protect his sibling, deafens Gru to the world around him as he seeks to send a boulder crashing down onto the thrashing fire beast. As he works, the angry worm lashes out and a spike of white-hot pain spears through his right ear and a grunt of pain is released from the boy. Rocks are tumbling toward the creature, his own is sent rolling down toward the pit and he feels a grim sense of satisfaction as the flailing creature falters. Suddenly, the worm is raging, lashing out at various wolves and causing the ground to rumble and move.

A sound, familiar and filled with pain and panic pierces through his bubble and Gruesome turns, wide, alarmed eyes searching for the wolf that is summoning him. He is suddenly acutely aware of the sticky substance that is leaking down the side of his face and the sharp throbbing that has consumed his right ear but he ignores it because his twin is calling for him. Finally, he spots him among the bustling bodies, his smaller half, hopping determinedly toward him.

Long strides carry him to his brother and Gruesome reaches down, tenderly gathering Rory to him before he continues to walking, taking the pair slightly away from the frenzied battle to a spot where they can talk. Blood leaks at an alarming rate from his torn right ear, the vascular tissue making the wound appear worse than it really is but his own pain is dulled because all that matters is Terror. Depositing his brother on the ground, he gently noses Rory and asks, “Are you okay?”

Even as he questions his brother, the taller boy is inspecting his twin, noting the leg that he had had hitched up and trying to determine, by looks alone, if it is broken. As the worm thrashes behind him, Gru knows that he has to get back in there and help fight but he is torn because he doesn’t want to risk Terror following after him and getting hurt. Yet he also knows that, to try and demand his other half remain here would be an exercise in futility and the best way he can protect him is by keeping him close.

So his mind is quickly made up and he lowers himself to the ground while saying, “We do this together.” A determined grin is on his maw as he waits for his twin to climb into his scruff, making sure he is safe while also helping keeping him off his injured leg. Once Rory is secure, Gruesome turns back to the battle and unleashes a sharp battle cry before charging back into the fray with his twin. Together they move to attack the worm.



((OOC: Permission to PP Terror given by skelle <3))


"Gruesome Nightwing"

Art & Code © Skelle/Witchdogtor DO NOT USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

Atoll let out a shrill, panicked shriek when the flames licked out across his cheek and left a fiery, aching welt in their wake. It was the first real pain he'd ever experienced and he was certain he'd never forget it. He whipped his head back and forth, realizing Kaira had disappeared from his side. "K-kai? Boggy? Shoal?" He warbled for his littermates, hot tears streaking down his face. "FUck! Fuck fuck fuck!" He seethed when the tears ran across his burnt skin, reigniting the singed flesh all over again. Wolves whirled around him, racing to attack the fiendish worm, others worked to try and throw rocks and dirt to bury it beneath the debris. Atoll desperately looked for his siblings again, but couldn't find them all mixed up in the fray of it all. With a sniffle, he grabbed a rock with his mouth and threw it into the pit where the worm writhed. "Take THAT, UGLY!"


"speech"

coding by xarae

It was the feeling of shifting rocks that alerted Ganymede that something was wrong, feet sliding and slipping before he went plummeting down deeper into the crater below. When he finally landed, a splintering crack echoed in his ears as searing pain raced up his leg making him retch for a moment.

He couldn't even focus properly on what was happening or how close he was to the worm itself, eyes tearing up as he fought down the pain. There were others just as hurt and still fighting, he wouldn't back down now just because of this. He’d dealt with worse- And suddenly there was a hulking shape blocking his view. Seems like Ultyr had noticed his accident, and the likelihood of continuing to help plummeted to the heated rocks blow too. Once he had his bearings and could struggle to his paws, he accepted being led away with a look back over his shoulder towards the towering beast. He hoped no one else died to it, that one of them was able to bring the creature to a halt before it found its way out of the pit.

"Let's go! Let them finish it off! You're more important." The words tumbled around in his head as he looked over his shoulder again, not wanting to leave the others to fight even if he didn't know them. The more there were, the better chances they had at killing it. And then suddenly there wasn’t ground underneath his paws anymore and he found himself over Ultyr’s shoulders, eyes wide in indignation at being carried as he flailed a little. "We should be helping, I'll be fine!" As if the pain wasn't scorching up his back left leg like wildfire, as if he was grateful he didn't have to put weight on it.

"speech"

"other’s speech"

coded by NachoMumma

No one followed her, no one. Was all she could think, how could she protect any of her siblings if they never heard her, listened to her, or followed her to safety? She whined, not wanting to leave the safety of the place she had so desperately and quickly cultivated. And yet she was digging out the breathing hole, making it wider, eyes on Atoll as she screamed. "GET OVER HERE ATOLL, IT'S SAFE OVER HERE. please." She didn't want anyone else to get hurt, she hated seeing people get hurt. Oh, my god, she never wanted anyone she loved to be hurt again. Kaira's eyes landed on a large wolf and a much smaller injured wolf that was thrown across the other stranger's back, and she whistled to them, trying to catch their attention. She could at least offer help to the injured one so the other could help the rest, he looked strong, and she just wanted her siblings to be safe. Whether or not they came over she slowly lowered herself back into the bunker she had created, so close to crying yet unable to. And all she could hope for was her Mama Recluse, she wished she was here, she wanted to hug her so badly. Mama wouldn't be mad at her, right? God, her leg hurt so bad. She tried to ignore it but each time she put even the slightest bit of weight on it, it burned, so incredibly badly. Kaira Imperialis-Klein

Everything happens so fucking quickly she can barely react. One second she's lunging toward the worm, aiming to grab hold of another tendril and tear it clean off the worm. It was wishful thinking, but how else could they take this monstrous thing down? Not that she gave a damn about anyone here, not really, but something like this wasn't just a threat to those immediately surrounding it. Anyone she cared about could be in danger, Not that there were more than a few wolves that met that criteria.

A tendril goes lashing out toward her, sending searing pain across her cheek. The force of the attack is enough to send her sprawling backwards, her head colliding with the ground with a sickening thud. The pain is abrupt and all-consuming, a white-hot flash of pure agony, before suddenly her world goes black.

Illusion's silvery eyes glinted, their manic gleam now carrying a soft spark of twisted amusement as she watched the worm, its monstrous form writhing under the onslaught of wolven kind. The flames that erupted from its maw danced in a mesmerizing display, to which her lips curled into a wicked smile. Really, she was enjoying this quite a lot. Around her, bodies stumbled and fell, cries of pain mingling with the roars of battle. A body squashed under rubble. A child crying out in disbelief. None of it mattered. Not the blood. Not the agony. Not even the fleeting glance she spared for Gruesome, his presence filed under ‘unimportant’ within her mind. The same went for the smaller twin brother of his—which she had to remember was her brother as well.

Her focus was solely on the beast before her. It's rage. It's fire.

“You’re putting on quite the show,” she cooed softly, just for her, just for the worm, her voice dripping with mockery and diabolical flirtation as she circled the edges of the chaos, her steps slow, watching, teasing. "Is this all for me? I’m flattered."
The flames surged again, a wave that licked at her fur as she darted closer. Her smirk widened, a soft chuckle escaping her throat. She let her eyes linger on the beast, as if tracing every curve of its fleshy body, every jagged and pulpy edge of its massive form, before tilting her head with feigned curiosity.

“Come now,” she purred, her tone velvet and venom alike, “Don’t go stumbling around like that. You’ll ruin your grand finale.” Her steps brought her nearer, dangerously close to its lashing tendrils, her body language daring it to strike her again. She reveled in the heat, the danger, the chaotic thrill of standing at the edge of destruction. Her destruction, or the creature’s.

She paused, her voice dropping to a hushed, sultry whisper. Nothing for others ears. “Let’s dance, shall we? Show me just how much fight you’ve got left, beautiful.”

Then, with a laugh that was half a snarl, half a sultry invitation, she lunged forward, taunting the beast with her recklessness. Defiance—challenge, a game to which she was savoring every moment of it. Jaws spayed as she took her first bite of the beast, taking it within her jaws and pressing her paws into its preexisting wounds to rend what she could, tracing nonsense with her claws.


"Illusion Nightwing"

Havoc was all but oblivious to the toll the worm was taking on the other wolves attacking it, lost as she was in a gleeful haze of adrenaline and carnage. Ichor dripped from her fangs, and fire reflected in the dilated pupils of glassy gold eyes, panting turning to a wild, unhinged cackle and she swiped her tongue across the gore that coated her mouth. The creature was weakening - she wasn't. She shifted her weight, moving her paws to coil muscles, claws digging in, and with her laughter edging into manic the Saxe scion through herself back onto the worm, slashing and slashing with the saberteeth that marked her as her father's daughter nearly as much as the laugh.

The chaos intensifies rapidly in the wake of so much injury, and so much death.

The fire worm lashes out violently, tendrils hot as coals sent flying in every direction, aiming to strike whoever they find first. The air fills with smoke and embers and the frenzied cries of so many who suffer and fight, the rocky ground littered with blood and ash.

Tarnish moves to jump, but before he can find purchase the worm lashes out toward him, striking hard and fast. A tendril strikes his back left paw before he can dodge the attack, and Tarnish realizes quickly his ankle has been shattered, and is sent stumbling.

The worm spins around, a plume of fire shooting straight out of its maw- it licks Bellamy's underbelly, causing deep burns there, and licks across the unconscious Kaija's neck, immediately causing bubbly burns to form. Bellatrix catches a fiery lick, a burn left on the left side of her chest.

Gruesome and Terror go charging into the fray, but almost immediately the worm sends its bulk forward and sends the two flying back. In the chaos Terror's right ear is torn from those lashing tendrils, and Astraios is sent pummeled back to the ground. His world goes black as his limp body is forced backwards.

The action sends a violent tremor through the ground, sending Ganymede tumbling from Ultyr's back. On the way down, his right front leg hits the ground hard, the bone fracturing with an intense flash of pain that nearly makes him lose consciousness. Ignis is sent stumbling as well, his back right leg twisting painfully in the process.

The worm is beginning to stumble, its movements sluggish and erratic as it tries to bat off the attackers who seek to worsen its already-severe wounds. More fluid spills out, and it lets out a gurgle of pain, embers sputtering up from its head toward the sky. Attacks continue and it becomes more confused, swaying from side to side as it attempts to focus on someone, anyone.

Illusion manages to catch the worm's attention, yet again. It leans toward her, briefly towering before sending its weight down. Try as she might, she can't quite dodge it entirely, and Illusion's back right ankle is shattered in the process, briefly trapped between worm and ground.

Deep gashes along its hide ooze hot, putrid ichor, spilling down its body. Its strength is quickly fading. One moment it stands tall, letting out one final roar of desperation, and the next it goes tumbling- hitting the ground with an earth-shattering thud.

(Siduri finds an item, Pup Mutation Pass; Atoll finds an item, Lucky Rabbit's Foot; they have been added to your respective OOC accounts.)

"I'm okay, it's just sprained," he said, shrugging off his injury as he assessed Grues. He was about to beg him to leave but before he knew it, he was on his back and being carried towards the worm from hell. Shit. Shit. Shit. This was not a good idea! He held on for dear life though, but it was cut short. Very short.

Suddenly extreme heat and the worst pain he could ever imagine surged through him and blood poured into his eye quicker than he could hit the ground from being thrown back. He landed with a hard thud and not without sliding a few feet given his light weight, but he was left a writhing mess as he pawed at his missing ear and the blood pouring into his ear canal, eyes, mouth, everything. He couldn't hear much around the blood pooling in his ear and the shock of it all, but he felt himself screaming violently as he panicked.

"Speech!"

Art & Code © Skelle/Witchdogtor DO NOT USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

Rot Gut Whiskey's Gonna Ease My Mind

Tarnish collided with the worm, claws grasping at its thick, foreign flesh. However, before he could find a solid purchase the worm twisted itself around, a long, sinister tendril launching out with incredible speed and power. It struck his left back ankle and he screamed as white hot pain seared through his body. He stumbled, falling from the worm and landing hard on the ground below. His vision was swimming, his mind reeling with pain.

Whimpering, he twisted himself around to look at his ankle and immediately wished he hadn't. It was bent in a terrible ankle, clearly shattered. Tarnish looked away, choking down the bile that welled up in his throat. "Fucking, shit fuck," he hissed through gritted teeth. He was far from the only one to be struck as numerous others sustained injuries, but their combined efforts eventually lead to the worm's defeat as it came crashing down to the earth.

Shakily he got to his three good legs. At least he wasn't terribly far from the Raiders stronghold.

Was it dead? An uncomfortable silence fell, thick as fog as Kuroki stared at the beast, brows furrowed as though expecting it to twitch back to life once more. As far as battles went that was....horrific, and though he'd escaped mostly unscathed-singed fur aside- the same couldn't be said for most here. Some weren't- he didn't wanna think about that, what he'd had to do. Maybe Hattori wouldn't have flinched, but Oki'd always had more heart, more soul to him.

He shifted his weight between his paws, licking his lips in a nerves gesture, not quite sure what to do with himself now.

"Anyone-I can help, can carry you if you need it."

One moment she is pushing the boulder, getting as close to the worm as she will allow herself, and the next there is searing pain. Bellamy bites back the scream that wants to escape her throat, her body crumpling inward as her belly is seared and scorched by flame. Her vision swims with the intensity of it all, her body stumbling. Shit! A grunt falls from her lips. Of course she’d get an injury like this. She couldn’t return back to the pack, not after all that happened, even with something like this. Her lips twist with a bitter smile. Would this be something she’d die from, because she wouldn’t get treatment? As if it wasn’t bad enough she was already acting strange… maybe it really was her time. The old wolf fell back, ears pinned as the Raiders managed to bring the beast to the ground. Her gaze shifts in the direction of Bellatrix, and though she worries for the girl she does not doubt the Norad princess would urge her back home just as her children would. It is best for her to limp off, before tensions with the raiders rise or the fae has the chance. Turning away from the beast, Bellamy sets her trail back further North, back to the ship, unaware that Bellatrix has already found her scent there. -Exit Bellamy.- "Speech," 'Thought.'