The Warlord had noticed Stratum’s interest in the armoury. He was far from the expert that Ruga was, but the Warlord had crafted many of his own weapons and armour pieces over the years. Keen to build upon his boy's interest the Warlord pulled out some supplies. Wires, leather and the like. Enough to start some fundamental understanding of crafting.

This done, Sirius lifted his head and called out to Stratum. Wondering how much trouble the little wolf would have in following the sound of the call. Of course, Marshal was with him. The bird would always help guide him if needed. Settling in, the Warlord waited. Wondering where this interest might take his son in the years to come.


"Speech"

Ooh! Dad was calling! Somewhere within the Col, but not close by. Instinctively, he started looking for the dark shape of his father's flying companion, which was always circling overhead. If Marshal wasn't following one of his siblings on an outing, then the bird was sticking close to his father. The slow circles that the huge, dark shape in the sky was tracking around a specific spot on the cliffs across the valley meant that he needed to get a move on! Picking himself up from his resting spot in the grass, he scampered through the lush green that had come to cover the protected area at the heart of the Col. Every day that passed found the boy a little better at running about, and able to race a little further than the previous day. So he was only out of breath once he hit the edge of the greenery, and stopped to heave and pant for a few moments. Whoo, long run. When he was done wheezing, he looked back up. Marshal was circling lower than before, so he knew he was close. Now it was time to climb the paths up the cliffs and up to wherever his father was hiding. Bounding strides were coupled with a lolling tongue and a doofy grin as he made his way up the familiar switchbacks until he could smell a recent trail. Then it was just a matter of following the scent of his father to an open space about a third of the way up the mountainside. "Hi dad!" he barked, thin tail wagging excitedly. As he ambled closer, the blond boy noticed the collection of stuff by his father's paws. Curiosity sparkled in his gunmetal eyes as he closed in, making a beeline for the assembled piles of leather and metal. Oh yes, this was good stuff. Stratum knew exactly what this stuff was. It was.. well. It was the stuff that made weapons. The exact details were hazy, but he knew what he was looking at and what it was meant for. "What are we doing today?" he asked with a grin, lifting his eyes to the familiar ebon features of his father. The glee in his voice was unmistakable, as was the breakneck speed of his wagging tail. "speech"

The young wolf did a stellar job of tracking his old man down. The creamy zee-let bounded closer and the Warlord looked at him from across his collection of parts and grinned. He could hear the excitement in Stratum’s tones as well, and was eager to see if this was a task he and his son could bond over.

“Come here” The Warlord ordered, indicating with a paw for the boy to enter his reach. When the creamy pup did so, the Warlord pulled him into his chest, facing towards the scrap pile. He kissed the space between the bos ears, now conveniently placed within easy reach. “Before you we have components for any number of armour or weapon pieces.” He said, pointing to the wires, leathers, bone and numerous other bits. “You see this?” He said, lifting a paw to show the leather bracer he wore. “You could make something like this from what's before you, or you could make something entirely different.” He explained. “First, think of what you wish to make it. Keep it simple for your first project, and then we will scratch out a prototype in the dirt to ensure we know what it should look like”


"Speech"

He beamed at his dad as he ambled closer, and was quick to trot up to the dark furred giant when beckoned. Like a soft little ragdoll he let himself be scooped up into the space between Sirius' forelegs without a complaint, though he did make a soft gurgle of glee as his dad gently kissed his forehead. As his dad began to outline their project for the day, and the reasons for the pile of leather and metal that lay before the pair, he could barely sit still! It was so exciting! He was getting to build stuff, and he was getting to do it with his dad all on his own! No siblings to tread on their moment, just the two of them having fun together. He placed a paw against the smooth surface of Sirius' leather foreleg bracer when it was lifted into his view, feeling the sturdy material hold firm against his meagre weight. He wanted one of those too!

The notion of planning and forethought wasn't exactly ingrained into his little noggin yet, and the boy frowned lightly as he pondered what he might want to do with all of the cool bits and bobs that lay before him. He'd already tried spears with Vanta, and they were alright. Bracers like his dad wore would also be really cool... A quiet, thoughtful hum passed over his lips. He craned his head back to stare up at his dad with big, baleful eyes. "What about a knife!" he said with a grin, tongue lolling from the side of his maw. Something sharp would be fun, he hadn't tried anything like that yet! The stick spears were close, but they were for poking, not cutting. Maybe he could start hunting on his own if he had a knife!

"Stratum Fatalis"