I'm going to forward date this one day, only because it wouldn't work for her to do it today. Alright. I'm assuming that everyone shows up when she calls them, let's keep this concise and quick, and stay to posting order for my sanity please. Whoever posts next, feel free to PP Talitha leading them out to find things. Round 1.
She remembered the face of her brother as he told her about the rocks buried beneath the soil -- he was angry, even if it wasn't evident to all. His horse was harmed. Well, the princess cared little for the hulking animal that her brother rode, and her anger in the situation stemmed from the fact that he was upset and that someone inside of their well-formed group had strayed and tried to hurt another member. Fights were different than such subterfuge, so much more obvious, less dangerous. One of the children could have been harmed.
So she took it on herself to find the rest, and knew that help was needed to do it. A call was sent out to find willing participants -- who came was both surprising and unsurprising. Enkiel, a stranger, Symera. She took a deep breath.
"A few days ago, my brother's horse was injured on a trail he uses to watch our borders -- we're going to find whatever other things there are that might hurt our members or otherwise, to prevent that tragedy." She was livid, outraged, but it was hidden in her eyes as she addressed the small party who would help her weed out other trechery. She was no intellectual thing -- she spoke pretty, but Talitha knew so little about practical things, and this would be a feat for her unless one of the present creatures understood them better.
Sure, the girl was still a child and quite a small one at that but did that make sure useless? Sure, she wasn't of any blood relation to the members of the clan but she had heart at least. She was young enough that she could be taught the ways of the place, she could be indoctrinated in their beliefs and religion. At her young age she had already developed a life long hatred of wolves. She could be new blood that was shaped and formed to carry out the old ways. She was young but she could be used, after all she had already been on her first wolf hunt. Sure, she was used as bait but she was allowed to take part in the kill once the threat had been disabled.
The female had no idea what the call was about but it didn't matter. The only way she would find out was to actually follow the sound of it which, quite simply, is what she did. It wasn't until she got there, among a couple of others, did she learn the exact purpose of the call. The female leader spoke and didn't seem intent upon turning the child away. She didn't know if she was just being overlooked or if she was actually welcome to join in.
With her head tilted curiously to the side the pup spoke up. "How do we know what to look for?" Normally she wasn't one to ask too many questions but well, she had to this time. The answer wasn't obvious to her so she had no idea what to be on the lookout for. She had no idea the way in which the horse was injured or anything. Hopefully the question wouldn't seem to be too odd. For all she knew this could be something the older members already knew about and so her question would come across as being foolish to them.
Aysun was still trying to scout out and familiarize herself with the lands of Inferni that were now her home. She had designated a few hours of her not so busy day so far to get to know her pack better. The howl had sounded not too far from where she had been exploring. She could tell the summons was of importance, though she knew not who it had come from. She had surprisingly yet to meet many of her fellows. It was a little unsettling really, but she had been forewarned she would not have a very warm welcome. Tattered ears swiveled at the call and being willing to learn and assist in any way she could she swiftly made her way to the summoner's side. The female appeared to be another one of the higher ups. Aysun was careful to remain as non threatening and inconspicuous as she could. Two others had arrived before her. Another unknown male and a young female. With senses alert she nodded slightly to her pack mates before listening intently.
The other woman spoke of sabotage, and although Aysun was new to the pack, this got her blood boiling. If she was going to belong somewhere she was going to defend it at all costs. By instinct she didn't take lightly to threats and conflict, so this news was troubling. Growling low she nodded but turned her head as the youngest of the gathered spoke up. "How do we know what to look for?" Aysun was impressed, her query was valid. Looking to the leader of the expedition (she still didn't know names) she waited for an answer. She assumed traps and other such trickery would be what their mission was to find, but she was unfamiliar with such things so she too would need a little guidance on what exactly to search for. She was ready and willing to go out on the hunt, but without knowing what to hunt, she was at a loss.
As usual, it was the ever-present need to gather plants before the first frost that drove Enkiel from the Guest House. He had little desire to socialize, little need for company (Sa’adat and Talitha’s children were more than enough) and duty to Ezekiel remained present. The horses’ feet required constant treatment, but they were slowly healing. This at least was progress…even though it sapped his supplies. A massive animal like Viggo required far more herbs than a coyote.
Talitha’s summons pulled him away from his task, though he went only once he had finished digging up the roots. Silent steps carried him towards the source, and upon arrival he frowned. There were two other with her; a child and a girl about as old as Ezekiel’s wolf-cub. As he sorted through his bag his dark ears remained perked and high. Only once the leader concluded did the jackal put his satchel to the side. Symera, Halo’s ward, was the first to speak.
“Earth looks strange if it has been turned,” he explained, kneeling. With one sharp-clawed hand he dug into the soil. It was patted back down, displaying visually what Enkiel understood. After all, he had done so himself on more than one occasion. “We should be careful,” the healer added. “The horse was badly wounded.”
Alright -- we get to start finding them now. There may or may not be quite a few, but we'll only detail a few of them just to make it go faster. Feel free to assume your character spots or sets off whatever you please -- having Enkiel around means that they can get medical treatment without making the thread stop. Mel provided me with this nifty list of traps (here) that can be scattered around. Minimal human traps, please. These should be Luperci made, for the most part.
Her mind was whirling with the possibilities of who it could be, who could have harmed her brother's mount, who they'd find at the end of the trail -- in silence, she hoped it was no one who mattered, but there were so few who mattered anyways. Impatience rolled through her, but not at the questions. Symera was right to ask, yet Talitha had no way to answer. Thankfully, it was Enkiel who spoke up, Enkiel who showed them what to look for. Enkiel, her intellectual cousin that she prided for what he knew. Despite her frustration, she offered the hybrid a faint smile before finding herself leading the trio along the familiar paths of the territory.
"Keep your eyes open for things that look wrong. Anything that looks wrong, understand?" Anything that she couldn't see, with her incapable mind. She was not the vigilant tracker or careful wanderer -- she was the impatient, fantasy-minded princess who used others for her own means, and use them she would. They would find what she sought out. They had to.
Symera was glad to not be scolded for her lack of knowledge. She had no dealings with traps or anything shady and underhanded. In her world things were black and white, entirely straightforward. Slowly she was learning that such wasn't actually the case. After all she was surrounded by hybrids, each of them smelling odd and strange to her. Greys were starting to mix into her thinking and she wasn't certain what to make of it.
The girl looked on as the demonstration was given. It would seem that she had to keep her nose to the ground and search out spots where the ground looked funny. That seemed like an easy enough task. Of course she would end up finding out that such wasn't really the case. It was only one thing to look for out of a multitude of things that could end up being off. Still the young female did not know this and so was quite happy to follow along to help on the search.
The pup had fanned out from the small group in order to look amongst the tree lined area. With how small she was she could easily slip through the underbrush that could tangle up the larger members. She was crawling through such places in search of overturned earth but found nothing of the such. What she did find was aggravating to say the least. Her small size allowed her to pass easily, for the most part, through the snare that was meant to encircle the body of a larger canine. She had somehow managed to snag a hind paw and had gotten it trapped. She gave a bit of a growl as she shook her paw, trying hard to get it unstuck. Of course that didn't work and she had to turn her head to chew at the loop of foliage that had fastened tightly around her ankle.
OOC:// Hope you don't mind, gonna hit two birds with one stone here. And I'm not sure if the traps are meant to kill, I can make the sticks not be there if that's the case.
IC:// Aysun noted the male's words and as soon as there were no more questions she dipped her head and split off to investigate the area. Her nose was keen, her eyes fairly keen as well, now that she knew what to search for she'd tread lightly. She went in the opposite direction of the youngest female and scouted through some foliage and open rocky areas. She kept her eyes out for scuffed earth , she would leave no area of her search radius unturned. She started by mentally marking off a space from a large boulder to a dead tree and so forth and began to comb the area in between. Frowning as she reached the middle of her search area, she spied a few small rocks clearly misplaced from the small impressions they had originally come from. She approached cautiously, neck outstretched, nose sniffing, eyes locked on the pebbles and displaced dirt up ahead. She stopped, her fur bristling as she spied a metal pointed prong just barely visible hidden in the sands. She curled her lips in a growl. Looks like she'd found something.
Carefully avoiding the trap she took a medium sized rock and dropped it on the spike. With a flurry of sand and a metallic clang the trap snapped shut, the metal teeth interlocking. The rock had landed on the trigger pad. The noise slightly startled Aysun sending her skittering to the side. And in seconds she found her feet slipping out from under her, the dirt and fallen leaves giving away under her paws, something sharp below slicing her across the ankle. Yelping she fell forward, scrabbling at the ground to get a hold as she fell into a deep pit (big enough for a horse, surely big enough for someone her size) lined with sharp ended sticks. Lunging a paw out at the last second she growled, catching hold of a stable tree root, digging her claws into the lip of the trap pit and panted, ceasing her fall. That was close. Glancing back behind her, she pinned her ears at the devilish trickery of the trap. Those spikes would impale and kill, if not seriously damage the victim. Hauling herself up out of the pit, she rolled to she side and remained crouched, staring at the hole. That could have been her life right there. Covered in earth, she panted, glaring at the offending trap before finding her voice and calling out. "I've got a nasty couple over here!" She shivered a little. "Be careful, I think this area's got more than this. Use my paw prints to find your way over, at least we know that path is safe." She then waited before moving to stand again and continue her search, unaware of the bleeding gash across her leg for now.
Sorry for the delay! And keep in mind, one person made these traps, so they are probably pretty spaced out due to fear of discovery. Word Count » --
Oddly enough, Enkiel knew little about traps. He recognized what disturbed earth might resemble, but what in the world could possibly exist beyond that? Hunting snares, like the types used against rabbits, perhaps. The jackal hunted so little that he had forgotten the purpose of such things. His methods were those of patience and luck—and a rabbit could keep him full longer than his larger cousins. Even Talitha towered above him. Still, his size was not what mattered today; it was his skill. Keen eyed after months of herbal gathering, he knew the majority of the landscape quite well.
The child trailed away from them while Enkiel rose, lingering close to Talitha. She was, as far as he knew, the most accident prone. However, it seemed that the others found the traps only twenty some odd minutes after their search began. A sharp yelp signaled from the newcomer, one that Enkiel’s dark ears rose to meet. Without a word to Talitha, he began moving even as the girl called out her location. It did not take him long to find her marks, or see what she triggered—there were two traps directly next to each other, one primitive and one man-made. He bristled. There had been traps like that used during the Dahlian War. One had snared a wolf in the burnt ruins to their south.
Yet his focus quickly turned to the girl, who had begun to rise to her feet. His red eyes narrowed sharply. “Stop moving,” he ordered, deep voice a rumbling command. Gingerly, he crossed to her side. “You are bleeding.” A glance was passed to the pit (terribly deep, even for Luperci work) as he closed the distance between them.
The small girl fought against the vine that had held her in place. Her attempts at simply just shaking it free had been entirely in vain. It was only after she had set herself to the task of chewing her way free did she finally make any progress with it. It certainly wasn't a course of action that she enjoyed. The taste of foliage wasn't a favored one in the least. The pup crawled as she chewed her way free. It took her a bit of time but eventually she managed to free herself.
She was careful as she moved forward from that point but she ran across nothing else like that which had trapped her. Actually she hadn't found any traps past that since she simply made her way over to where the other pack members were gathered. She had heard the voice of the female that she didn't know and so had made her way in that general direction.
She came up to stand next to Enkiel and watch him work, curios as to what was going on. "A tree grabbed my foot." The young female explained what she had found in the only way that she knew how. She had no idea what the trap was called, or even that it was a trap. All she knew that while she was walking through the trees her foot had gotten stuck in something. She had managed to free herself but still felt the need to explain where she had been. "What happened?" The runt made to try and slip closer so that she could see exactly what was going on. "Did it do that?" Of course her first thought when seeing the wound was to believe it was caused by a wolf. Who else would do such a thing but a wolf? Symera couldn't think of any other explanation for it.
Okay. I am so sorry about this; I was unnecessarily slow and I apologize whole-heartedly. If I'm slow like that again, please skip over me. I shouldn't be though. Oh, and Talitha's starting to wander away -- I figure they can each go find stuff in the next few posts, or do whatever they need to do.
She had turned her attention away from the others as they went about their business, acutely aware of Enkiel's lingering presence near her in their search for potentially dangerous creations. His concern went unnoticed -- how could she know he felt she was clumsy? Instead, her focus remained on the world around them until the sounds of her comrades drew her from her internal world. Blood hung on the air. Enkiel tended to the strange female. Talitha scowled. "Idiot. If you have to be catered to, why did you bother to come?" Her abrasive words were not unusual. The princess was simply cold.
Caring little about the welfare of the newer girl, she continued on into the territory to find extra traps set elsewhere for her precious, golden Prince, her Heir Apparent brother that she loved so dearly. His paranoia inflamed her own, leaving her worried for his safety as thunderbird eyes scanned the ground for things that were simply wrong, not taking notice of everything that could hide dangers.
We can go another round or two; Aysun has been dropped, so we can assume she just continued with them . Word Count » --
The girl submitted to his treatment. Enkiel knelt and drew a piece of soft leather, dabbing away the blood grimly. He saw no need for stitches, which pleased him. Doing so now would only slow them down. “It is not serious,” he offered, producing an herbal poultice he carried always. Delicate fingers took care to ensure the wound was covered before he wrapped it with a single piece of cloth. Pleased, he rose.
Symera had appeared, and he frowned at her explanation. Children were incapable of truly explaining things, but he supposed that a tree might have been a trap of some sort. “No,” he replied. “She fell.” The younger girl looked ashamed, and headed off to continue the search. Enkiel looked up and nodded to Talitha, who continued on. He followed, sparing a glance to the pup. Hopefully she wouldn’t harm herself further; one woman was wounded, and Enkiel suspected that Talitha might be wounded before the end of the day. She had a habit of such a thing.
Symera had been on the lookout for dug up earth and so had not inclination that foliage could be set in such a way to entangle her. Rather than recognizing it as a trap she had figured it to be a natural occurrence instead. Because of that she hadn't been too worried over it. It had only been a mild inconvenience and not one enough to really trouble her. It had only served as a reminder to watch where she walked in order to make sure that she didn't trip herself up like that again. She was still small and young so she still had the time to learn the proper way of things. At least she hadn't gotten herself hurt as the new member had.
A nod of her head was given as it was explained to her. The small pup eased her way around the pair in order to glance into the pit. "Stinky did it." The young female made a quick and biased decision. She didn't think that a coyote would look to hurt their own and so that meant that a wolf had done this. And well, she had previously met a wolf on these lands. It just seemed to make sense to her. She had already caught one stinky on these lands and so she immediately figured that it had been the one to do the damage.
When the others had decided it time to move Symera trotted along behind the small group, making certain to give the pit a width berth as she left its side. "Are we going to find stinkies now?" She called out to all of the adults ahead of her. She had already hunted one down with Halo and was clearly eager to do so again. In her mind they were responsible for all the bad things and therefore needed to be eradicated.
“Stinky?” Enkiel asked, the word falling at odds with his accent. He frowned and looked to Talitha, who shrugged and did not answer. Granted, the girl was Halo’s ward and therefore outside of the realm of things that the red-haired woman would toy with.
The older and younger continued on their way, and soon found Talitha. She pointed out a nearby patch of overturned earth, which Enkiel carefully watched her dig up. Another crudely made rock trap was presented, and working together, they pulled up the stones and moved them to a nearby pile. Satisfied with their progress, they continued on. Though they often slowed for one reason or another, by the time that evening came they had covered the majority of the trails closest to the mansion and caves. Talitha allowed them to conclude, and the group separated—though Enkiel and the leader were soon greeted by an irritable Sa’adat and the woman’s brood.
