It had been a minute since she had visited Valhalla. She was eager to see the big hairy man again, after all, she sorta wished she had all that fancy long hair with the braids and beads and all sorts of neat stuff he had wrapped up in there. But alas, all she had were bones and feathers, perhaps not as fancy but she could probably make it fancy if she really wanted to. She spotted the now familiar wall of Valhalla, and as she looked it up and down, her mischievous side won over. The scraggly woman clambered up and on top of it, head tilting back as she called for Ardyn or whoever, letting them know she was here. She had a couple of ideas in mind, hopefully something that would benefit both Insomnia, and Valhalla. "Medusa"

Ardyn Adravendi

It had been a while since the Insomnian alphess made her first stop by Valhalla, and Ardyn was busy tying off a cord attached to the sapling gambrel stuck behind the achilles tendons of the hefty buck deer he’d dispatched out of mercy. The deer had taken a wrong bet fighting a larger, more experienced stag, and come out on the losing end with a gut wound. Ardyn had brought it down with barely a struggle, and now it was time to hang it, cut the throat, empty the body cavity, and let the carcass drain before he processed it the rest of the way. He’d just finished hoisting the animal up and tying off the cord when Medusa’s howl reached his ears, and his head tipped toward the call thoughtfully. What might the skeleton-painted woman want, he wondered. His eyes flicked to the four lower legs of the buck he’d severed at the knee. Now, had Medusa been another wolf, he wouldn’t have scooped the four legs up in his jaws, nodding at Sädir to keep watch over the carcass, and trotted off to meet the alphess. But her odd way of talking, and the fact that she smelled like she regularly rolled in carrion, even if she’d done her best to tidy up before their first meeting, suggested that she might very well be the kind of wolf to be thrilled with severed deer legs. He spotted her on the wall. She wasn’t the first wolf to hop up there, nor would she be the last. He’d long decided it wasn’t worth it to chase off those who climbed up for a better look. As long as they didn’t go beyond the wall, he was fine with it. He offered a muffled woof of greeting as he pushed off with a powerful leap and landed on the wall with a blazing flick of his tail and tinkle of bells and beads. He dropped the legs at her paws and sat back, nodding in greeting as he said, “What brings you to Valhalla today, Medusa?” _____________________________________________________________________ Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Labhair an Sean-Teanga." ----  "Hear" ---- Think

She peered over the wall with interest, though mostly to "ooh" and "aah" at things sh ehad never seen before. Lots of strange pointy sticks that she did make quite frequently, only smaller versions to stick the heads of her prey on. Other bits and bobs, trinkets and gadgets that looked like they hurt, and others that looked to be useful! Valhalla had a whole wall and things to get up on the wall and sit at the wall and- well, you got the gist. She wondered if they made all of this themselves, or if it had always been here. Honestly, she knew very little about the packs of Boreas and Auster. The only one she had really known a good deal about was Habari, but there had been nothing really interesting about that one. Her attention was brought to the present when she caught sight of Ardyn approaching, and joined her on the wall. The pleasant tinkle and jingle of the bells and beads in his fur was music to her ears, and she made a mental note (that she was likely to forget until next time) to try and add some of those to the skeletal armor she liked to wear. What really interested her though, were the deer legs he dropped. She grinned wide, dual-toned gaze lighting up with intense interest, but that interest would be on hold for just a minute. First, she had alpha-y things to do! "Medusa has come to talk to Ardyn about trade! Oh and uh," She squinted in thought for a moment. "A festival! Medusa is thinking about a festival for Insomnia, fighting and food and anything anyone can think of!" There were other things she was sure she had come to discuss, but her mind kept wandering to the deer legs. "Medusa"

Ardyn Adravendi

He saw Medusa’s eyes lock onto the deer legs, and the sparkle told him he’d thought right. She was able to divert her attention to more business-like matters, however, and his own ears perked with interest at her mention of trade, and a festival. “I’d love to attend; there may be several in Valhalla interested in the fighting, especially.” He grinned, quietly including himself in that list. He turned to the subject of trade, asking, “What might Insomnia be in need of that can be traded?” Sharing the western region, Valhalla and Insomnia had much the same plants and animals, but perhaps Medusa had other ideas. Perhaps instead of items, the trade would be favors or services. That could be interesting… _____________________________________________________________________ Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Labhair an Sean-Teanga." ----  "Hear" ---- Think

Her ears perked and her infamous grin spread as Ardyn expressed interest in the idea of a festival! Good, good! That was one pack down, now maybe she could see if Avalon was interested! "Medusa is glad to hear! Insomnia will discuss festival things, and will let Valhalla know when it begins!" She had much to plan, though she certainly wouldn't be opposed to any help offered. She had the idea of some sort of fighting tournament, racing, maybe a story contest, other games, and a feast! So much to do! So much to prepare for! Especially now that Valhalla was coming! “What might Insomnia be in need of that can be traded?” Medusa thought for a moment and realized she hadn't quite considered it. Rue was back and forth training in medicine with Avalon, but it wouldn't hurt to also send her strange little child over to Valhalla for that too, right? Perhaps training sessions between the two packs could be worked out. "Medusa was wondering if Valhalla would want to do training together? Rue wants to learn more about medicine, she is training with Avalon, but isn't enough for her! Also, Medusa has other members that need to learn things that Medusa doesn't know how to do. Someone from somewhere said something about writing? Medusa doesn't know what that is. Oh, and maps? Medusa also doesn't know what that is. Ardyn knows a lot, things that Insomnia can maybe use?" She pondered for a heartbeat or two after before proceeding. "Oh! Medusa can probably teach things. Or...do...things. Like...well...if Ardyn is looking for others...she can find them." She gave a slight cough, another mischievous grin flashing. She was referring to bounties. Tracking down others if Valhalla needed that service. Did they have enemies? She didn't know. "Medusa"

Ardyn Adravendi

Ardyn flashed a grin at Medusa’s response, nodding in agreement. “I look forward to hearing word. Ours should be coming soon at some point.” The talk turned to business, and Ardyn listened closely as Medusa spoke, nodding slowly in thought. “We have connections with several Chapters of elite healers known as the Nomads. They also deal in trade. I believe most of our healers would be happy to share their knowledge.” A smile twitched across his lips as he added, “And my front paws make writing and drawing easy. My mother taught me to write, read, and draw, as well as architecture. I’m sure she’d be willing to teach others. She’d wanted to spread Valhalla’s script to other packs, in the event a message needed sent in written form.” His head tipped in thought, then he added, “As an aside, I’m always looking for chances to keep our raiding skills polished. We recently defended in a practice raid against the Pirates, but have yet to embark on an offensive attack in return. If ever Insomnia wishes to see where the defenses need improved, and vise versa, I’m happy to help. I’d also be keen on interpack hunts for large prey, with each of the packs getting half of the bounty.” He left off, letting her absorb, and her companions explain anything to her that she might have missed. _____________________________________________________________________ Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Labhair an Sean-Teanga." ----  "Hear" ---- Think