All welcome. No more than 2, preferably. Set in Ethereal Eclipse. wc:302
Dresden didn’t know what to do beyond moving and moving and moving. He’d set his sights to the north and let himself drift forward for more months than he could recall. He didn’t want to think too much about how long he’d travelled or where exactly he was going. It dredged up feelings of homesickness that he learned he would be better off without. Wishing to have Lily and the girls in his arms wouldn’t bring them to him, just as it wouldn’t allow him back into Kobol. It only served to summon up heartache that hindered the mind numbing wandering that he’d prescribed himself. The male knew that he would have to stop his endless travel sooner or later, especially now that the air was becoming crisp with autumn’s arrival. Winter would not be far behind it, and travel for a single canine would become rather difficult.
The warrior had been traveling for the better part of the day, making his way through yet another unfamiliar forest. As the sun began its descent in earnest, Dresden pulled his steed to a stop in a small clearing with a nearby stream. The stallion, grateful for the break, snorted at the male and wandered to the edge of the clearing to graze once the male had dismounted. Dresden settled into building himself a small fire. Branches and dry leaves gathered, flint struck, and within a few minutes he had managed to stoke the flames to life. Dresden settled himself down beside the fire and untied the two hares that hung from his belt. They were the fruits of a successful hunt the day before. He unsheathed a dagger from his side and set to work on skinning one of the hares. He was certain that he could find a use for their hides.
Odessa had left Salsola, bathing fiercly to keep the scent of the borders away from the noses of any one she met. Her scarf covered the hand of Eris scarred into her back, she had taken all the precautions to keep her precious home a secret. Her task today was to find where most of the loners made their rest. This was purely to aid in searching for a sacrifice for Tezcatli. Not that she knew if one was due any time soon. But if one came she'd know where to find what they needed. And perhap that would go for her co-rank, and if she prooved her worth than she would hopefully be given a better rank. Odessa knew that the higher she clambered in the ranks the lower her chances of exile were. She would truly rather die than be exiled and most things she did were simply to retain her worth.
She moved with purpose through the trees, determined to find at least one loner. And perhaps she could inquire as to where most of them made their home. She would remember this and report back to Sirius and Eris, anything she could do to prove her worth would be done with the upmost care and dedication.
Skinning the rabbits was a familiar and easy task. Within no time he had finished one and moved on to the next. As soon as he finished the second one, he placed the carcass next to the other beside the small blaze and stood. He drifted toward the edge of the stream to wash both the pelts and himself clean. The male knelt down in the soft soil by the waterside and first rinsed his dagger clean before slipping it into the sheath at his side. For the next few minutes, Dresden let his mind wander as his hands moved through the cool, clear water.
With that task done, the warrior returned to the fire and set the cleaned pelts beside the fire to dry quickly. Icy blue eyes then turned to the skinned hares and he considered them for a moment. He would cook them, he decided. He approached Stranger so that he could rummage through the saddlebags in search of his meager collection of spices. As rare as it was for him to use them, his journey had been a long one thus far and the majority of his collection had already been put to use. Since he would cook the hares now, he saw no reason why he shouldn’t put them to use. He pulled out the small satchel of spices then turned to give the grazing stallion a pat on the neck. The horse ignored him, as usual. Dresden snorted and turned to return once more to his fire, but halted quickly. He thought he’d heard something out in the forest. Ears perked up and he listened intently, pale blue eyes searching around him. He eyed the stream for a moment, but dismissed it quickly as background noise; no, he was almost certain he heard the distinctive sound of footsteps in the forest. As he tried to pinpoint the noise, his hand drifted to the hilt of one of his daggers, reassured by its touch.
The mottled femme moved on forward, slowly becoming more and more aware of another scent. Male, and to Odessa this was slightly unsettling. Though she held her face. Her sheer want for face within Salsola fueling her bravery. She soon spotted the male through the forest scene, grinding her teeth before wuickening her pace. She was not going to appear with a lack of confidence, however much true that was.
Her scarf covered the hand of Eris wholy, she had already used her free hand to pull it lower and then feel for the bare flesh underneath. And she could smell herself, multiple unplaceable flowers' scents dancing together in the slight breeze. Odessa was safe, but despite that she would make her search as brief as she could with getting the information. She now regretted leaving Keshi behind. At first the thought of washing and scenting the Stallion seemed a waste of time, but now she saw that it would have perhaps aided her. The though had been brought to her mind by the unmistakable scent of equine. It was painfully unlike the scent of her trusty Keshi though.
Odessa first set her eyes upon the stranger, scents of rabbits and spices filling the space. His hand etched towards his dagger, one of a pair, almost making Odessa reach inside her bag for her own knife. Though it would be now match for a specialised dagger. Her's was a thin, yet sharp thing, use for only the preparing of herbs and other medical supplies. She stepped forward slowly, almost hesitantly and spoke,
The male continued his silent state of alertness for a few moments more, becoming more and more certain that something was out amongst the thick clutter of trees. Soon enough his suspicions were confirmed when a figure was close enough to be spotted through the flora. It was a young woman, alone from the looks of it. Her scent gave no hint that she had been traveling with another, nor whether she belonged to one of the various packs in the area. Dresden felt a little more at ease to discover this. The stallion by his side eyed her warily, snorting in slight agitation. The girl made her way toward him with slow steps, evidently as cautious as he was.
She spoke up with a single word of greeting. The warrior studied her for a moment, remaining silent. Icy blue eyes lingered on her face. “Hi,” he finally returned. He eased his hand away from the dagger. But he by no means let his guard down; he had been surprised one too many times by someone who did not appear to be outwardly threatening. He hadn’t seen another soul for some time now, and he was on edge. “Sorry,” he continued after a minute. “Wasn’t really expecting company.”
Odessa cast her eyes to the ground, interacting with strangers was not her forte, especially those out of Salsola. The horse owned by the male seemed agitated by her presence and she noted this with a mildly fearful glance towards it. It was nothing like Keshi, it had a sturdy build and when she mentaly compared it to the paint horse's gangly build she frowned. The pied gelding was strong enough to scare Odessa on rare occasions, and this brown creature was a beast.
Odessa shrugged. 'It's okay' she said, smiling hollowly as her hands knotted together fiercly. 'I was just running a few errands I've been meaning to do...' Finding an abundance of loners for Salsola's sacrificial benefits wasn't the nicest thing to come out with so she kept her true errands to her chest. If he inquired as to the exact errands, out of curiousity or hope to aid her she'd reply that she was searching for herbs. Which was partly true seeing as she was in fact searching for any medical supplies she could find while she tended to her true purpose.
The girl’s caution began to turn more to into something akin to shyness, her gaze turning to the ground. His dark bay companion seemed to be putting her on edge as well. Not that he could really blame her. Stranger had a rather fearsome appearance, and an attitude to go with it when he wasn’t feeling very friendly. “Errands, huh,” he said as he turned toward the horse. He reached out to give him a few reassuring pats on the neck. The stallion looked at him askance, gave another snort, and then moved to distance himself from the pair of canines. Dresden smirked slightly, shaking his head. That damn horse did what he pleased.
He shifted his stance slightly and hooked one thumb through the belt at his waist. “You live around here, then?” he asked, genuine curiosity in his tone. The wandering warrior was still very new to this region. He knew little about this place, but he could do to learn more. He had no idea how long he would be lingering here or if he would simply continue on his way. So he could stand to learn a little bit about the region to aid in his decision making.
If she wasn't shy and cautious enough, the male's question through her off course even more. 'Ummm...' she hummed quickly, her fingers intertwining with her sheer nerve. How was she supposed to answer this? She had told the trader she was a loner, but she couldn't figure out wheter to stay with her story or lie again. Which was better? More believable. A simple mistake could see her sent out of Salsola. She didn't have the same security netting as Salvia had, a mother who could influence the Boss. Although she was her Aunt through mateship, she still feared for the consequences of of a loose toungue.
She had to say something, and fast. The stranger would suspect a lie if she took her time searching for the answer. And she was short on ideas of where she could base her origin and current home. In the end she opted for the smae excuse she'd given the trader she obtained Keshi from. 'I'm, uh, a loner' she answered steadily, attempting to pull her head up and look at least a small percent confident in her answer. 'Myself and my horse travelled from...' as she got further intp her element she fiddled with the storyline. 'From over the mountain. I sometimes travel down here...' She laced her words with a smile as her words ended, confident she had done her work well.
Icy eyes regarded the girl steadily as she stumbled over her words in answer to his question. The slight hesitation halting her words as she spoke garnered a raised brow from the male. Whether her verbal stumbling stemmed from nerves or lack of an honest tale, Dresden was unsure. The girl had been seemingly hesitant and nervous all this time, so it would not have been all that farfetched to assume that it was just in her nature to behave that way. She made mention of a horse as well, though he saw no other equine than Stranger in sight.
“I’ve just recently arrived here, myself, from a close path to the mountains,” he said. The male had seen the looming silhouette of the mountains in the east, but had steered clear of them. The idea of directing the rebellions Stranger through such rough terrain did not tempt him in the least. “Guess you wouldn’t know too much about this area then, huh? Was hoping to figure out what to expect before moving on.” He shrugged slightly, eyes still watching the girl carefully.
'No... Not really' she agreed soflty, 'I, uh, I only really know to to get to the city'. It wasn't a lie therefore this part of the conversation seemed more tangible than the shaky words before hand. Odessa had been slow, almost reluctant, to venture anywhere away from the route she took to Halifax and back to Salsola. She was also hesitant to speak about her knowledge of the land, because all in all she was paranoid of loosing her home. As an associate she was easily removed from the ranks for any wrong doing, and hopefully, as she assumed, the higher you scalled the ranks the more useful and thereby irreplacable you became.
She had wished she had brought Keshi now, if not to ride, saving her own effort, but to twist her fingers into his coarse mane for reassurance. He was no looker, far from it. But his size was larger than Odessa's own and he trail of thoughts led her to believe that his mass would drive away any threats. But then again, any larger beasts she could have purchased would have done better. But this brought around a whole loop, she simply would not be able to control another one.
Indeed, the girl was apparently just as clueless about this region as he was. Though she did mention one specific place she knew how to venture to. A city. The thought nearly gave him chills. As fearsome as the tall husky seemed, he was utterly unnerved when wandering through the human cities. Smaller towns and villages less so, as they were often more rural and natural, often easily reinhabited by Luperci. The bigger cities, on the other hand, seemed to stiff and sterile… it was like walking through the graveyard of the damned. The Lords had cast down the humans for a reason, and Dresden saw no reason why he should root around in their lairs of corruption.
The warrior tried to look nonchalant as he considered it, but by then he was already beginning to frown. He tried to shake it off, fiddling with his belt for a moment before speaking. “Oh? A city, huh? It far from here?” he asked, feigning interest. Hell if he thought it would be a good idea to know, but at the very least he would know what area to avoid. Not like the city would be too hard to spot in the distance if it was truly that big. He didn’t want to seem unnerved in front of the girl, however, and so made no mention of his aversion to the concrete jungles.
Both appeared unsure of the region. While he from inexperience, her excuse was mere hesitance. When she mentioned the city, he looked unsettled, quickly trying to cover it with casualness. Odessa played along, 'Yeah'. Her voice was almost stoic now, she'd delayed herself too much already and she ready should have been off a while ago. But in mid conversation it was hard to shrug and leave. 'It's called Halifax' she noted, remembering what her mother had told her and what she had read on the beaten sign.
'It's a decent sized place, some parts of it are in better condition than others' she continued,'You can find some good things in there too'. Like the mortar and pestle. While chipped and cracked slightly, it was useable and perfect for her healing work. 'Granted you can find better natural things in more rural places' Odessa said calmly. 'Plants, herbs, excetera'. She crossed her arms across her chest, gazing around at the trees. It was something she found herself doing regularly. She found beauty in things that others wouldn't even give a double take to. Plants and trees were things of beauty to her.
Halifax. He tucked the name away in one corner of his mind. The likelihood of him heading out there was rather slim, but not impossible. Even so, the name could prove handy to know, especially when seeking directions from locals. The girl went on to explain a bit about the city, but continued on to praise the usefulness of rural areas. “Nature certainly has it’s own treasures,” he agreed. Fighting and hunting may have been his areas of specialization, but he knew that nature provided precious resources for those who utilized herbs for healing and poisoning.
He was beginning to feel a bit more at ease now. The warrior glanced over to the crackling fire he’d built up earlier, and the pair of skinned rabbits sitting beside it. Icy eyes turned back to the girl and he tried to summon up an awkward smile. “Listen, uh… you hungry?” he asked. “Got two rabbits here. I could share, if you’re not in any hurry or anything.” Dresden typically wasn’t so quick to share anything with strangers, but hell, why not? The girl had been nice enough in answering his questions, and she seemed rather alone. Some company was nice, every once in a while.
'Yes' she agree softly, brushing a dark strand from her eye line. As a medic and a healer she would know. Most, if not all of her ingredients were sourced, from somewhere in the world, from nature. It was a priceless thing, nature provided even the most sophisticated beasts with food and warmth. As human as she was, using books, reading, writing, she fell back into feral ways when finding food and a warm place to sleep. Odessa didn't care, she did what she had to to survive, both within Salsola and as a creature that had risen from four legs.
She frowned at his offer of food. Winter was coming and she herself would not offer up food she had caught, perhaps in summer she would. But for now when the weather was bitter, Odessa steered clear of any 'sharing' on her part. But when offered herself? Of course she would not deny. After all it would settled her stomach for a while and make sure that she did not consume her own stock. 'If you're sure. I mean, winter is nearly here...' She was in a hurry, technically. In truth she just didn't want to be out of her homelands too long. But free food was an incetive to stay around and converse some more. What's more she had not found out where most of the loners hung around. She sat down nearby, turning again to look at Dresden. 'So, have you seen many others around here?' An innocent enough question.
Indeed, winter was approaching, the bane of any huntsman. In truth, Dresden was unsure why he’d made the offer, but it had just seemed right. Maybe he’d been so long without company that he’d decided to forego his usual selfish behavior in exchange for a little more conversation. Either way, the offer was made and he wasn’t about to rescind it now. He shrugged, making his way to the hares and the fire. “I guess I’ll just deal with winter when it comes.”
He set about fixing the meat over the fire as he considered her question. “Well, I passed by a few loners up north, not far from the mountains. But other than them and you, I haven’t seen many since I got here.” He shrugged again, turning to focus on the girl. “I wonder if there are any packs around here,” he said, mostly thinking out loud. The girl claimed to be a loner herself, but she seemed to have more knowledge about the area than he did.
'That's a dangerous statement to make, you know' Odessa warned, 'You'd do well to find a pack, at least for the winter'. She watched his movements closly, more out of intrest that wariness. 'Mhhh...' she hummed as he mentioned loners. It was a bad start, but on a better perspective the mountain seemed to be her next destination. It was some kind of lead, however loose and wanton it was. She supposed she'd get a start in the morning, since it was getting late and the mountains would prove difficult even in the mornings light.
'I think there are a few around here, I don't know though. Mostly just old scents...' she lamented gently. Lifting her head with a sign she looked to Dresden again, 'So where do you actually hail from? Near here? Or further abroard?' She didn't mean to question him so intently, it's just that her curiousity often bested her. And she did honestly wonder, she herself came from further aways, but she had disowned the place and now considered Salsola her only true home. Her dedication to it was immence.
