She wandered the dark corridors and crevices of the mine silently, frost still clinging to her blonde and black fur from the outside world. The darkness reeked of fire and dankness. Almost as soon as she wondered where the scent of mildew had spawned from a droplet of water struck the crown of her head, causing her to look up just as another droplet landed square on her nose. She shook her head and continued to move. She had heard stories of places like this. Places where demons and hell fire lurked. She feared no demon, and thought only of the prized trophy of tasting demon flesh, or of doting the black pox of marks said to be left by hell fire. She thought only with morbid possibility of victories achieved by no wolf. This was what her people called महिमा गर्न बाटो, Mahimā garna bāṭō, The Path To Glory.Dodge sat and thought of her home. The frigid peaks of the mountains, her training ground. She laid her head between her paws, sending up plumes of ebony dust and she sighed. Alacritis and all it's beauty resembled her home, but was a far cry from the merciless land generations of her family hailed from. No one is here to light the way

"Go and Wander." Said my heart.

...and so I would wander.

The woman could remember nothing but her name. Ellis Cathal. Memories of her childhood, of things she knew and cherished, memories of her friends, even her children were lost to the woman. A scare, a deathly scare had been placed upon her. She had stumbled and fell, cracking her skull upon driftwood that had been at the bay. What had happened before that was nothingness. What had happened after that seemed to be a blur. The woman was wandering, searching for the place she belonged. Something she knew was not right, but she couldn't place it. Ellis felt empty... hollow. She belonged somewhere... but where? Was it even here? Was she going in the right direction?

The north called to her. The winds upon her coat. The dampness. The cold and frost. It lead her through territory unknown, even if she had her memory. She was simply going where her feet lead her. Scent of fire would reach her nose, drifting out of some cave that seemed to be looming ahead. Ellis set herself towards it, yet something in the small femme's gut began to twist. A feeling of foreboding. A warning perhaps, to turn back and leave this place. Yet the woman pressed on until her paw hit the floor of the mine and the scent of another wolf greeted her. Teal-green gaze would search for the other beast, yet with her eyes adjusting to the light, along with the dust and all that was within, it was no easy task.

"Hello...?"




"Speech"

"Settle down." Said my heart.

...and so here it was I would settle down.

A snarlripped from her throat at the sound. Someone had dared to intrude on her in her musings and she was not pleased. She would stand and slowly guide herself to the mouth of the mine, tail at half mast and hackles raised. "Who goes there?" She all but roared, saliva running down her fangs at the thought of a coming battle. She stepped closer just enough to be seen in the dim light of the pit of darkness. She reeked of blood and war, of trepidation and triumph and yet she bore no scars to show it. To some it would be an acceptable loss, but to Dodge, it was only a sign of weakness."SPEAK!" she demanded,her pale tongue snaking out from behind her teeth to caress her gums. No one is here to light the way

"Go and Wander." Said my heart.

...and so I would wander.

What Ellis was met with was not the voice of some friendly beast, but what sounded to be a monster. A demon in the darkness. It was practically a roar that greeted her ears, and the small woman would shrink back, ears laying flat against her skull. What in the name of the wind spirits had she come across? Ellis wouldn't move, teal-green eyes focused on the shape that stepped forward enough for her to make her out. A wolfess, and one that seemed more than ready to tear her apart for so much as being at these mines. Ellis could feel her instinct rising, to run, but the woman would fight it for now. A sense of stubbornness perhaps, or the will to stop running away from everything... everyone? Maybe... or a moment of temporary boldness.

Ellis would find her voice, lifting her head slightly. "A Healer of the Valley of Great Winds, Ellis Cathal." The small healer would do her best to keep her nerve, but she was certain the other could smell that underlying fear scent she was giving off. She would swallow, teal-green eyes not leaving the form of the other. Her body was slightly tense, expecting an attack from the other who seemed rather... hostile. Something about the nature of this woman made her skin crawl. For a deeper reason, though Ellis could not recall it.




"Speech"

"Settle down." Said my heart.

...and so here it was I would settle down.

She huffed, satisfied by the answer and relaxed finding herself in the presence of a simple healer rather than some unknown assailant. Her rigid hairs smoothed and she edged closer to the girl, sniffing the acrid air around them. No blood or sweat, only fear touched her senses, and she found it disgusting. Still, she supposed an introduction was in order."I am Dodge of the line Garver." She muttered, anger fraying at her voice. Dodge despised weakness and the cowering lump before her made her nose wrinkle in disgust. Pitiful wolf that this Ellis was, she thought momentarily of running forward and ripping her windpipe from her throat, thankfully for this other wolf there was no honor in killing the weak. No one is here to light the way

"Go and Wander." Said my heart.

...and so I would wander.

The woman would ease her rigid stance, and Ellis would allow herself to relax as well. Ears would lift some, watching the woman as she came closer. She would swallow, allowing herself to relax, teal-green eye fixed on the other. The other seemed to hold a look that she was not pleased with her. Ellis couldn't imagine why, what she might have done wrong, but did not find it right to ask. The small woman would give a nod as the other introduced herself. Dodge Garver. The family name was not one that she was familiar with at all... at least not that she could recall. Her memories were still lost to her. Perhaps they were something that could be regained with time, but right now Ellis felt such a thing was not possible. But the anger that frayed on the edge of the woman's voice left her unnerved.

So the woman wasn't pleased with her. Her weakness perhaps? How she cowered, and decided not to stand? Ellis flick her ears back, lifting her head as she found something inside her rising. A switch that warned her of being weak, of needing to show she wouldn't simply be pushed around. Maybe she was scared, yes, and had no knowledge of fighting, but that didn't mean she would be bullied, right? "I'd appreciate you not looking at me that way, Miss Garver. I may not walk your path, but that does not mean I am worthless." Ellis would keep her voice level, finding strength to stand and speak to the one before her. She would need to learn to stand firm to all... and this was the first step.




"Speech"

"Settle down." Said my heart.

...and so here it was I would settle down.