The walk here had been a nice one, with Avalon and Dragon. At least he had tried his best to keep Avalon some sort of company, and the nervousness he felt was normal. He had never really joined a pack before, only met with rejection. Even Avalon herself was Wanted yet somehow he had to make himself wanted. Avalon had told him he would be tested, and he would be glad to do that. Vereux carefully stopped near the borders, putting himself at a stance that was neutral. He let out a call for the alpha, waiting patiently as he sat down. Looking at Avalon, “Even if things don't go well... I'll try and visit.” Vereux was simply preparing for the worst. His past experiences was causing that thought to pass by. Yet the one eyed male would speak some sort of confidence about himself. He had faith at least a little bit in his abilities. “I speak”

She walked along with him, her friend of course. Her son had tagged along, bouncing between them with a wagging tail at the prospect of having a new friend to play with. It was a short journey, and she moved with a sense of confidence that perhaps bringing someone to the pack that could potentially keep her company as well as help the pack, would help earn and keep her place among them. Slowly, she'd been learning to let go of the past. Arian wasn't coming back, and she couldn't keep herself buried beneath old worries. The need to help this male find himself burned strong, so she strode beside him and offered a smile when he spoke.

"You'll be fine. If required, just prove yourself. I don't see why he would deny you without a good reason." Nosing his shoulder to offer some sort of comfort to him. She stood and waited with him as he called for Valentine, Dragon sitting impatiently between them.

An unfamiliar howl had drawn him to the border. When Valentine arrived his gaze first went to Avalon out of curiosity and then to the rough-looking stranger. The latter he looked over with an appraising eye as he tried to get a sense of what kind of man the stranger was. He gave him a curt nod before his gaze once again roved between Avalon and the unknown. Between them Dragon was looking rather impatient. To the man he said, "Greetings, stranger." To Avalon he ventured, "Friend of yours?" He had a feeling he knew why the man was there. If he was right the man had a tough road ahead of him. Imperium was nearing capacity and Valentine would now more than ever be choosing his members with care. "Talk" "You" Think

If it was anything that Vereux knew it was how tight security could be in a pack. Once upon a time he had been a king - while it was to an opposing side of his father. Now though, he was determined to show his worth. He was hard working and dedicated, he listened well if he was taught correctly. As his single emerald eye scanned over the large man, he understood completely now why Avalon was where she was. “Yes - I'm a friend of Avalon's. My name is Vereux.” he introduced himself clear cut. Taking a dip of his head of respect. “I was told I would be tested in order to enter your pack, I'm willing to show my worth as well as work hard at training to show my potential. I want to be where Avalon is.” He stood simply. Vereux knew very well he wouldn't be able to best Valentine in a fight. However if he could show his worth through skills that could be polished. That would be something he'd enjoy. “I speak”

Valentine would arrive promptly, and Avalon waited patiently as she nodded to him. Before she could answer, Vereux had taken it upon himself to answer and speak first. Her gaze flicked from the half blind male back to Valentine, her composure steady as she sat and curled her tail around her paws, Dragon impatiently sitting at her side. "Yes, old friends if you will. He wishes to join our ranks, and I did tell him there was the possibility of being tested first." Her gaze fell steady as she spoke to Valentine, her alpha. She respected him, and she had no hard feelings concerning the way she had been brought within the pack. Valentine was indeed a man to be respected. "Valentine, I wouldn't bring someone to the pack if I didn't think them capable. Vereux is dedicated in his goals, a hard worker, and I believe he can do well here. While it isn't my place to accept him here, I thought I should just let you know. I'll let you see for yourself." "Talk" "You" Think

"...I want to be where Avalon is." At this Valentine snuck a peek out of the corner of his eye at Avalon. He didn't quite get a "old friend" vibe from that statement. The brute had too little evidence to really work with, but he could speculate. She'd just lost her mate and child. Could she really be on the rebound already? More importantly, was her willingness to vouch for this man centered around a need to have him close or a genuine belief that he was suited for Imperium? It was a troubling line of thought. "He will be tested." There wasn't simply a possibility of a test. There was a test. While Valentine had sensed enough potential in Avalon to want to bring her into Imperium's ranks she had yet to prove her worth. Unlike Cascade who had recently vouched for someone, Avalon's word didn't yet hold much weight. In time that would change. Valentine's gaze flicked to Vereux and he once again ran an assessing gaze over the man. "Tell me, Vereux, where do your skills lie? What rank would you try for? Imperium is nearing capacity. What sets you apart from any other potential new member? Why would you have me choose you over them?" So began the test. "Talk" "You" Think

Of course he hadn't meant it that way, already though his green eye would turn to search the larger male down. He could kill him if he wanted, Valentine was easily over powering him in stature, strength and probably intelligence. Would he even do a good job of selling himself, think Vereux. How would you present yourself to your father. “I mainly cast towards fighting and hunting, I also have dabbled in almost every skill there is. Navigation - Healing was a majority of my teachings when I was younger.” his ears flicked. “I have the ability to work ten times what any other wolf would have to.” Vereux said simply. Hard work and skill was what it took and if he learned fast that was easy. “I wouldn't be a waste of breath.” His tail twitched at the end. Was Valentine going to fight him? Vereux didn't think he would win, but he sure as hell would try to show all of his worth. He knew how to treat illness greatly - especially since he had been sick before. Now for once his experience was over riding his previous ability for things not to stick. He was determined to pass this test, because even if he didn't. It was only his life. “I speak”

Perhaps she had missed what Vereux had said...while it didn't go completely unnoticed, she didn't know what Vereux had meant by the statement when he said he wanted to be where she was. She shifted for a moment, keeping her eyes looking elsewhere as she felt slightly uncomfortable the more she tried to think about what he meant by it. She would push it from her mind, wondering what Valentine thought as she was sure he was thinking about the words as well. Avalon wasn't inclined to finding a mate so soon...not after her previous mate had upped and vanished. With that thought, she made a mental note to speak with Valentine about what she should do if she ever found the traitor. Yes...that was what she labeled Newol as. Not only did he toy with her heart, but her life as well. Now there were children involved, and it only infuriated her more.

She listened somewhat to what Vereux replied to Valentine, and she wondered if that would even be enough asides from the fact he would fight him to further try and prove himself. It wasn't her call. All she could do was bring her friend here and let him do the rest. For now, she would sit idly by while the pair talked.

OOC// go ahead and skip me for the remainder unless Avalon is needed or something.

“I have the ability to work ten times what any other wolf would have to.” Valentine's eyebrows rose at this. That was overselling it a bit. Quite a bit. However, testing such a statement would be hard so he had to let it slide. Aside from that Vereux had Valentine's interest. He had a hard time believing that the man was a jack of all trades, but perhaps he really did dabble in all of that. If it were true he could be of use. "You told me of your experience but you didn't tell me what rank you wish to try for." Truthfully he didn't need a jack of all trades. What he needed was an expert. The pack was close to capacity; right now he couldn't afford to settle for anything less than the best. If this Vereux didn't prove to be a good fit, Avalon or not, Valentine had no problem refusing membership to him. "Talk" "You" Think

Vereux had to be smart about this, and he knew already he was fucking up. He cursed to himself, the Armada had strong blood running through his veins. It was not knowledge that he lacked it was the motivation. He believed he sucked at most tasks, but what had he trained in as a child. He had wanted to fight but there was no use throwing himself into a field he sucked at. His green eye would look to Valentine. “A healer, any type that you need.” the end of his tail twitched. He would remember his training with his sister for sure. He was born of excellency. “I have experience in plagues as well, I can heal illness just as well as any wounds.” if he remained calm it couldn't be that hard in actuality. Vereux had something over others which was observing, he may not have tried it first hand. But perhaps this would be his way into imperium. And if he were to die one day it wouldn't be by their jaws.... he would make sure he had something to offer imperium. “I speak”

Healing? He hadn't been expecting that. Valentine had figured the man would be interested in a more physical role. If Vereux was "mainly cast" towards fighting and hunting, why wasn't he choosing one of those fields? Perhaps he needed a change. Regardless of the reason his choice had compounded the test ahead. Now he'd be faced with two tests, one to prove his ability to defend himself and his packmates with some amount of competency and another to test his skills as a healer. "Very well then. Imperium could use another general healer. Here they're called Medica. Before I have your skills as a healer tested I'd like to see you fight. Each Imperium wolf, regardless of their profession, must be capable of defending themselves and their packmates." He paused a moment to think about who he wanted to test Vereux and his thoughts drifted to one member in particular. Atreides Armada was old enough for an official rank in the pack. His sister and the majority of the wolves in his age range had already passed him up and claimed ranks, so it was about time Valentine got to see what he was made of. "I know just the wolf for the job." In a loud voice he called Atreides to him. "Talk" "You" Think OOC: So we can skip Valentine explaining the situation and whatnot I'd like you guys to start a new thread for the fight. I'll be using the scores to determine whether or not Vereux makes it to the next round of testing. Good luck, Riv!