there's a rat among us
#1
The small woman had shifted to her Seccui form, her pelt was dull and plain. The normal vixen tones of her fur had been replaced with muted tones of grey brown and ebony. Walnut extract had completely changed her appearance, the ringlet curls of strawberry blonde were gone as well, replaced with a wispy short bob of charcoal. Her ebony tipped ears had been repeatedly pieced, sparkling gems of garnet, tigers eye and mystic topaz adored her high pointed coyote ears as she sat on the borders waiting for a face, any face.

Her heart beat a rapid dance in her chest as her scared and hairless tail wrapped around her paws as she stared into the darkness. There was a duel battle in her chest, a terrible aching for the child she'd left behind and the beast who had shattered her world. Ezekiel had offered her a chance to test the warrior and to test her own skills in the same throw. The woman had thought long and hard on the offer and finally after a week of hiding away, having returned to her small den she had resolved to take him up on the mission.

While the rest of the clan would believe she was a traitor she always knew where her loyalties had lay. It was now time for the rest to do the same and she now believed that he would never take that leap without her missing from their ranks. She closed her eyes, her head bowed as she felt one tear trickle down her cheek. The smallest Lykoi woman had once more left her whole messed up world behind for duty, honor and a loyalty that had never wavered. She just hoped she would return the victor in more ways than one.

She tilted her back and let out a sad howl, more coyote than ever. As the notes died off she gazed longingly to the lands she'd left behind.
#2
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WC:1107 - Eee, it be a Zana <3 As for Alaki... He's injured on his left arm and shoulder (bandaged), lefts side of his face mauled and blind in left eye (not bandaged), both thighs injured and bandaged. Not wearing any clothes or weapons.


Although he'd initially shrugged it off and acted as if the his loss of sight wasn't a big deal, the grey rakeeb had slowly began to grow more and more aware of how his injuries would impact the rest of his life; thankfully he only lacked sight in his left eye, but after strolling around the familiar caves he was unnerved by the fact that every few steps he stumbled or banged into something, concentrating and focusing his sight was tiring and hard and more often then not he found himself dramatically turning his head so that he could see in what was now a black spot to him. No one had said anything about his injuries, only that he'd jumped in to save the kids and got hurt... yet he was sure they knew, sure that they were all judging him, condemning him, for when he faced the bear he had frozen, panicked and his injuries were his own fault. Regardless of the fact it was his first time encountering a bear, despite his daughter being one of the children in danger, he had frozen out of childish fear and nearly gotten himself, the pups and even Alexander killed; if the crows hadn't called for backup he would have been a lot worse off then one blind eye.

Alex had spent much time hovering around him, for some reason the eccentric wolf had declared himself first Alaki's personal medic and now he was the Rakeeb's self proclaimed bodyguard despite the pale males complete lack off combat skills. “I may be blind but I can still fight better than you” he shouted back down the tunnel where he knew the ghostly male lingered, poorly attempting to conceal his presence as always. The young samurai couldn't help it; his sighed and rubbed a hand across his face and pushed his black fringe out of the way, the slowly healing wounds across his face throbbed from the touch but didn't seem to open and so he dismissed them.

It had been just over a week from the attack and he was finally up and about through the tunnels and communal areas of the howling caverns instead of being forcefully confined within his chambers; although his personal cave was large, pacing around the place endless had nearly driven him mad, much like the time Naniko had locked him in there... being confined in his rooms for so long generally put him on edge, bringing back memories he's much rather forget. Emerging from the dark tunnel he reached blindly with his left arm and placed his hand upon the rough wall; a habit he'd picked up to confirm his distance between himself and the tunnels walls. As he moved the arm he felt Beyaz shift upon his left shoulder, the albino crow had began sticking to his owners left shoulder in an attempt to make up for his owners blindness.... so far the crow had been more of a hindrance then a help. Hoovering behind him but before Alexander was Chiya, the normally wild hooded crow tagging along with her master to cover 'air patrol' which was normally Beyaz's job.

A second sigh escaped him, “Over protective idiot and birds” he muttered to himself, not caring whom heard him. All the attention he was getting due to his injuries was grinding on his nerves and he simply wanted to be alone... and then the idea hit him. Swirling around he turned to face Alex, pausing a second to allow for his sense of balance to return, “I'm taking Hibiki out for a ride, on my own. You and you” he pointed to Alex and Chiya, “Stop following me” he repeated the instruction in low speech for the crow and then promptly left them, taking the near by tunnel that lead above ground just short of the stables. He didn't bother to tell Beyaz to stay behind, for he knew the pest would ignore him and follow regardless.

Taking his time he emerged into dim light, the moon casting a glow over the landscape but that alone was not enough for the young samurai. Stumbling here and there he slowly made his way to the stables, pushing the doors open and passing between the stools until he reached Hibiki's. Grabbing the mares gear he began the tedious task of tacking her up, but once he was done he pulled her reins over her head and began to lead her out of the stables, pausing outside Rian's stool. Looking at the brown and white stallion he grinned with mischief and opened the stallions door, allowing for the stallion to 'roam free' for a while and make sure Alexander couldn't follow him.

Guiding the mare outside he used a nearby fence to mount her, snatching up her reigns and grabbing the saddle as the mare instantly reared up and went through the usual motions of trying to throw him off. Eventually she tired of her feeble attempts, the Rakeeb's breath was heavy and his legs throbbed; specks of blood showed through the bandages covering both thighs, a sure indicator that the mares tantrum had opened up the cuts up his legs. Ignoring the pain he kicked the mare into action and guided her out towards the edges of his and Naniko's territory, the lands and scents that passed him both familiar and relaxing.

Time flew by and before he knew it he had been riding with the mare for a good hour, maybe two. Both he and the horse were out of breath and so he allowed the quarter horse to pick her own path and pace as he relaxed upon her back, relishing in the feel of the cool wind caressing his tall form. Minutes passed with just the sound of breathing and hooves, but then a mournful howl broke through, causing his head to rise and turn in the direction of the sound. Naniko was about, but since he was near by and upon the borders he decided to take the call, despite his weakened state he was confident enough to approach the borders, although for once he was completely unarmed.

Guiding Hibiki to the sound of the call he hastily made his way to where the summons had come from, soon spotting a small female in her secui form. Allowing the mare to take a few steps out towards the female he looked down towards her and made no move to dismount. “You called?”from his left shoulder Beyaz stared at the stranger in silence, digging his claws slightly into the grey males shoulder at the sight of an unknown canine.


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#3
She didn't know what she was expecting but the male that appeared before her was not what she expected. She silently took in the wounds and bandages as he slowed his pace before her. She shifted her weight from one leg to another for a moment as he spoke. She lowered her grey lilac orbs from the sight of the male as she spoke softly. "I was looking for a home.." She scuffed at the dirt before her with one paw as she growled softly. "No one thinks I'm worth anything out there.." She raised her eyes to look at the male, so scarred and wounded. He must know something of feeling like a failure, or atleast useless for the time being, she doubted he would be able to keep up with the pups of a pack in his current state, much less the top dogs. Others had underestimated her in the past, it was why she was good at what she did.

She lowered her gaze again, having studied the horse he was upon, a sudden pang of loneliness for Saol and SupSup rising in her heart as she sighed. She knew she was a pitiful sight but she wasn't certain what to think of the creature before her. What exactly did Ezekiel think this pack was made of, she wasn't certain. The few she had ever met from these lands had always seemed so weak and strange, but that was what she was here for, to gain their trust and become one of them, to learn their secrets and find their weaknesses. She was not a coldhearted bitch, but her loyalties were to her leader and only for him would she have turned traitor to their lands. It almost made her shudder to think of the things they would call her but she was a big girl, she'd stared them down in the past, she would do it again when she emerged from the dark lands she was about to intertwine with, if she made it out alive.
#4
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<style>@import url(http://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family= ... English+SC);</style>ALAKI
I'm so numb, Can't you hear me?
Here I am, There is something inside me
That still wants to feel
Word Count :: 365 Sorry about the delay... and don't mind Alaki... he's just being a dick for no reason xD

From his elevated position upon the mares back he simply stared down up the small women, disinterested and growing bored with the entire encounter. For once he'd managed to escape the ever overprotective eyes of Alexander and his family only to have to deal with some feeble looking weak thing; whom reinforced his opinion by mentioning the fact others perceived her as worthless. There was much better things he could be doing with his time, like training; although training was tiresome in many ways as well as frustrating for the young samurai, but with the lack of sight on his left side now he needed to adjust, needed to adapt and grown accustomed to his new blind spot and until he was back in top form he had to suffer his hoovering 'guardians'.

Beneath him he felt the mare shift her weight around, growing impatient with standing still whilst her rider dealt with the meek female. Sighing he considered his words carefully, as to not overly offend the female before him, “You say others think you are worthless, so tell me why I should accept you into my home?” his expression was neutral, disinterested whilst he considered what use such a small and feeble looking female would be for his pack, “If you are looking for someone to pity you and give you a home girl, then you have come to the wrong pack” he spoke further, eyes narrowing and watching the female for her reaction. Within Anathema there were many of much bigger physique, those who brought skills and held confidence within their skills and he couldn't help but think such a small, almost depressive looking female would become a outcast and less than beneficial to the pack; the only good thing that he'd thought of since having seen the female was that with her small size she may eat less than some of the bottomless pits that lived within the caves. Tilting his head to the left slightly so he could see the female better, “If you have no worth, as you said others thought you... lacked, then leave now. Otherwise I suggest you get to convincing me to let you into Anathema”

Image courtesy of Billy Lindblom

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#5
The small woman had almost expected the creature before her to assume that there was a real reason to why people thought she was worthless. She let her ears droop back a moment as the male continued to insult her, a thing that was dangerous for such a wounded creature. She didn't let her real emotions show as she just sat quietly taking in the words of wisdom from the male as she played her way into the lands. Her grey lilac eyes stared at her paws as she waited for him to finish. She lifted her head, her eyes glittering dangerously as she lifted her head up high, her ears slowly perking forward as she studied the male before her quietly. Her words were soft but simple as she spoke.

"Never underestimate the power of ignorance. Why would I give away all my secrets to the world, they have already judged me to be incompetent to their standards." She sat back on her haunches and raised her head up high and proud as she continued. "I am a difficult standard for others to live up to.. so they find weakness in my size, my scars and they let their tongues wag to dirty my name. They find ways to make me seem worthless." She let her eyes close slightly as she finished speaking. "I have survived where others have failed..." Zana glanced to the male with her head tilted to the side as she asked. "Are you one to judge without reason?" She knew she had not actually answered any of his questions but she would get to that in a moment, she had a reason for proceeding in the way she did. Her eyes stayed on the male as she waited for his response.
#6
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<style>@import url(http://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family= ... English+SC);</style>ALAKI
I'm so numb, Can't you hear me?
Here I am, There is something inside me
That still wants to feel
Word Count :: 523 Why yes. Alaki finds others smart mouthing him hilarious <.< Idiot wolf that he is

To the young grey samurai the fact that the small woman had mentioned others seeing as her as useless led him to believe that the small female saw herself as worthless. Naniko may take pity upon those with no skills but he wouldn't allow someone who had nothing to offer the pack into his home, it was as simple as that. Half expecting the small thing to whimper and start begging for acceptance despite her shortcomings, he began to mentally prepared himself to having to deal with some pathetic weakling... but was pleasantly surprised when the female lifted her head, lilac eyes seemingly alight with some sort of energy or another, clearly the small one had some fight in her atleast, and so he corrected his assumption that the small woman was a pushover and listened to her speak, a slow grin spreading across his face, blue eyes alight with approval as the small one stood her ground.

“Well, well, well. It seems i've just been corrected” his eyes narrowed slightly, considering the female in a different light. No longer some meek thing, but a female with a backbone atleast..... “and have to apologise now.” he responded, laughing lightly as he dismounted from Hibiki, his legs throbbed slightly with pain as he connected lightly with the ground and slowly brought himself to stand to his full height, but the pain was only small and easily ignored. Although he said he had to apologise he knew he wouldn't; stubborn and prideful he would never say sorry to anyone, for most of the time he didn't even mean it. “I'm Alaki, the Rakeeb of these lands.” he introduced himself and crossed his arms across his chest, keeping his left side against Hibiki in an attempt to cover his blind spot a little. It surprised him that one so small could be so... prideful? But clearly it seemed that others had underestimated the female much like he had, if the woman’s words were anything to go by. “And I didn't judge without reason; from your own words you implied that others saw you as worthless and so I simply inquired to whether that was true or not” he raised an eyebrow, highly amused by the smaller woman, not because of her height but because of the simple fact that she'd argued back to him without actually answering any of his questions. “So, mysterious little female who sits upon mine and the Angela's borders... what would your name be and what can I do for you? You say you seek a home within this pack, yes?” he asked.

Pausing and blinking as if a thought suddenly occurred to him. “Ah, and I should mention now that if you truly wish to join our pack there is a … ritual you'll have to go through. A joining of blood; for here we are a family... all joined by the blood of myself or the Angela. A small cut upon mine and your paw, the wounds connected so that our blood is shared, nothing too painful or bloody” he explained, wondering if the ritual would put the other off.

Image courtesy of Billy Lindblom

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#7
The small woman was a fierce creature of two of the oldest bloods in the lands. She stared up at the creature before her, the dark truth bubbling in her eyes as she waited. She would have growled at him if it was acceptable when he laughed at her explaination, but in time she had learned that such things only graced her with more trouble than it was ever worth. She just merely lowered her gaze slightly and nodded to the leader. Silence was a virtue, and one that her whole life seemed to curl around these days. She smiled slightly to herself as she realized that her own pride had allowed her to misunderstand his words, but unlike the male who offered the false apology she had none to offer for her own mistakes. It was not her way.

She did raise her grey eyes to the male as he spoke of her not yet giving him her name. She smiled slightly as she gave the name she should have been given when she was born. "Zana Sadira, daughter to the late Iskata Sadira..." truthfully she never knew what had happened to her mother but she had always safely assumed the worst. She had never felt love towards the woman so there was no love lost with her disappearance anyways. The next words were far more interesting to the tiny woman by far anyways.

She raised a brow as she chuckled slightly, bringing up the appearance of her own self as she asked. "do you think one more scar shall do damage to my looks anymore than the first?" her grin was slightly insane as she raised up a forepaw, "My family is already spread across the world, perhaps finding a new one closer to home is better suited.." a look of determination settled on her face as she waited.
#8
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<style>@import url(http://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family= ... English+SC);</style>ALAKI
I'm so numb, Can't you hear me?
Here I am, There is something inside me
That still wants to feel
Word Count :: 432Not my best post, sorry >.< Can end with my post, assuming she follows him to the caves? Or we can continue, up to you.

As the female returned her name he nodded slightly in response but otherwise remained silent, allowing her to speak and awaiting her response to the ritual; those he had greeted hadn't seemed all too put off by the blood sharing that initiated members into the pack and since it was just a frequent thing in his life he thought little of it, but he was sure that to strangers the joining custom of Anathema must seem both strange and disturbing. One day he'd get a joiner who blanched at the thought of the ritual, until then he'd wait and amuse himself with observing each joiners response to the ritual. Accepting joiners wasn't all that entertaining to the young Samurai and so he'd begun making a game of observing others reaction to the ritual and as the smaller woman spoke his amusement grew, showing upon his face in a stupid grin.

The smaller female responded in a manner he had yet to see and he couldn't help but chuckle slightly at her words. Shrugging his shoulder slightly he pulled the small dagger free from it's sheath upon his forearm; the blade was small and bland to look at, but sharp enough to do that job and light to carry with him. With a practised motion he ran the blade across his palm and stepped forward, crouching down before Zana and repeated the action across the raised forepaw of the female, pressing his bloody palm against the woman’s paw for a moment to merge their blood. Once enough time had passed he pulled his hand back, stepping away from the woman and bringing himself back up to his full height. “Welcome to the family, I guess” he titled his head to the side slightly, “Within Anathema you can choose to live above ground in the village located in that direction” he indicated with a wave of his hand roughly in the direction of the village “Although many of the buildings are still under construction. Or ya can claim one of the caves within the howling caverns; although you are more than welcome to stay wherever the heck you want if neither of them suit you” he explained.

“I'm gonna be heading back to the caves, so you can follow me if you want. There are normally a fair few members lurking around who would be more then willing to assist you and show you around the place” he explained and turned form the woman and began to walk towards the caves, not waiting to see if she was going to follow him or not.

Image courtesy of Billy Lindblom

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