The sky's on fire - finished
#1
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This thread is for those that signed up for Dahlia War thread number 3. When the full posting order has been established, every member will have two days to post when it's their turn, or they will be skipped. Cabins and some trees have caught fire and is steadily advancing. 300+

It all goes, all goes by


     
Violet orbs focused instantly, already giving space for horror to enter those uniquely hued eyes as dark smoke rose from what he estimated to be Flander’s field. How could they do such a thing? Dahlia de Mai was not innocent, but not all of them deserved death. Yet this was the message that the coyote clan had brought together with the smoke and a rising call of an alpha in need of his servants. Conor was surprised at the indifference he felt for his father as he called for assistance, but everything was overshadowed by the need to protect those he loved. He was already far from the new home he and the rest had set up in Wolfville, and as he closed to the invading area with a body pressured to the limit to obtain speed, he saw destruction moving on its own, without the continuous assistance of Inferni members. He stopped dead and took a whiff of the wind, trying to survive traces of hot ash and the stench of forest fire. The breeze was the licking flames’ friend, pushing it on towards the golden furred being, on towards the very heart of Dahlia de Mai. Several houses were already half devoured by the hungry disaster and without thinking the young man lifted his muzzle towards the sky and let his own emergency call rise.

     
The main river dancing through half of Dahlia’s territory was too far away, but there were two lesser streams that he could remember in the heat of the moment. It wouldn’t help because his hands were empty. The young council member did not wait for the assistance to come before taking the next step. He raced from house to house, tossing out whatever he found of buckets and bowls that could hold water. He watched the fire slowly eat closer and frowned openly as he ran about to gather what he could of beholders.


Table credit: Sace(Hemming)
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#2
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The scent had awakened the sisters mere moments before the calls rang out. Mismatched eyes met violet as the black and white Stormbringers registered the emergency that was going on around them, and as a duo they leapt from the mattress on the floor of the treehouse and sprinted for the rope ladder. There was no sign of smoke as of yet, but the scent of burning wood that was growing ever stronger was a clear indication of what was happening. Neither one knew how the blaze had started at first, they only knew they had to help and do something before the entire wood went up in flames. Together the sisters began running for the cemetery near the house Kol used to call home, making a beeline for it until the first alarm sounded. The cutting voice was that of the Rosen, in a different direction, and his tone was unmistakable. A look was shared between the sisters, both of them nodding in affirmation as Kol took off in the direction of Haku's call, leaving Bris to continue toward the Field as a different call for help rang out from its location.



The white Stormbringer seemed to be spending more and more of her days in her optime form, the better to read and write and practice all sorts of helpful skills. It was a disadvantage right now as far as speed was concerned, but as the young girl came upon the horrific scene of several houses engulfed in flames, she thanked the gods that she didn't have to spare the time to shift. Buckets and bowls and all sorts of containers were already spread about the ground, and the snowy female headed for a good-sized metal one immediately. Grabbing the large handle in her pawhands, the girl finally caught sight of just who had begun gathering the watering containers and had sent up the call for help. A young male not terribly older than Bris was sprinting about finding what he could to hold the precious water they'd need, and Bris sprang after him briefly. From his appearance, she knew him to be Conor Soul, Haku's son and the one who had lived with Lexey in Kol's old house, and he would probably know the area a bit better than she did. "Conor!! You are Conor right!? Where's the closest source of water!?" She yelped suddenly as a glowing ember drifted to land on her ear, batting at it as she waited for his answer before bolting in whichever direction he'd indicate.


Table by Kiri/Jenny!
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#3
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500+ words. Didn't realize this had gone up already or I would've replied before now. Priority thread ftw, using my Sie table. :o It is so lovely! And boooool, fire to Dahlia. :c

The heat burned her, though the flames were not immediately beside her. Jade eyes flickered around quickly, gaze never settling on one thing for too long, lithe hands clinging to the trunk of the tree she had been lounging in. Fear settled in her eyes as she realized what this meant. She was not afraid for her life, for she had none to lose, but she was terrified for what all this meant. The fire had not started out of nowhere, she knew, though it pained her to think about what had started it--or rather, who. She was not completely naive, and she knew that this meant that the war was touching them more directly. There was no denying that it had been Inferni to light the blaze, even if she had no tangible proof. What else could have sparked the fire if it had not been them? The clan and her pack were at war; it was time for her to face that. Maybe they had even been the ones that had been setting those traps and leaving mangled animal corpses on the borders. The idea made her feel like she had been slapped.

Lolita scrambled from the tree, knowing it was not safe there, just as the howl came as a request for help. It was not her alpha that had called that she was responding to, but it sounded familiar. The call belonged to someone that had been at the meetings recently held, but she could not place a name to a face. All that the creamy woman knew was that she had a duty to respond to the call. It was becoming more real now, and she needed to come to terms with the fact that she had promised Dahlia her loyalty and life. She needed to put aside all of her emotions now, and she could not think of the fact that two of her friends would do this to her home. While she did not feel completely accepted in the pack, having still met hardly anyone for a lack of effort on her part, this was her home, and it had been for a very long time, even if she had not realized it.

She moved with purpose to the source of the call, deciding that this situation, she would help her pack with everything that she was. Dahlia de Mai deserved that from her, at the very least. Her friendships with Kaena and Anselm had to be put aside right now, she decided then, as she approached the only two there. She did not recognize the white female, but the other, she did. At the most recent meeting, Haku had indicated him, as well as an older white woman, when discussing prior attacks from Inferni coyotes. She did not know of the relation, but she could smell Haku in him, almost. Lolita looked sadly between him and the smoke in the distance. "How do we end this?" she asked, referring to both the fire and the war in general. She did not understand how Kaena and Anselm could this this to her home, but the war had finally affected her directly, and she was very much sick of it.

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#4
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Myrtle had never expected anything like this to happen. Certainly, it was not until that foolish Infernian coyote had mauled him that he realized how terrible this war truly was. But never had he anticipated that it would suddenly become so real, and so frightening. Myrtle cowered behind a tree, letting his claws scrape dully against the bark. He did not know what to do. He could see Dahlian wolves scrambling to do something, but still, he wasn’t sure what he should do.

He had been hiding behind that tree ever since the Inferni wolves had entered Dahlia de Mai territory. He hadn’t known what to do. He had been far too afraid to do anything useful, and he had simply stared as they burned down the building. There had been the one who had attacked him, but there had been more coyotes, more! More than he had ever seen before and most of them (with the exception of the leader) looked like they were coyotes through and through. Unlike Myrtle and his brother – wherever he had disappeared to – who were perfect hybrids, these coyotes were not. They had moved with such assurance and swiftness that Myrtle had been unable to move; he had been paralyzed.

And now, he still did not know what to do. He watched as a boy, perhaps his own age, began running around frantically and grabbing human items. The wolf had even sent out a howl for help. But it was not until help arrived that Myrtle felt he could emerge from behind the tree. He approached the group quietly but quickly, realizing now that he could help, even if he had been too scared to do anything before. He arrived in time to hear each girl pose a question, both of which Myrtle had been wondering as well. What could he do?

“I weel ‘ehlp!” he declared, anxiously. He bent down to pick up one of the pots that was lying on the ground, holding it firmly in his hands. He could do this.

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#5
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Fire made it harder to breathe, and Emwe paced nervously back and forth only once, and whimpered. He kept himself close to Conor, geographically speaking, not entirely himself since his aunt's injury and disappearance. Still, they were not in the same house, for Emwe was not that clingy. This fire did not exactly help his instability, though, and when he thought about how everything bad seemed to follow him (for it was very sad to be Emwe right now, very very sad), he whimpered again. Only when Conor's howl rose above all the stinking scents and horrible roars of this fire did he collect himself, and moved out of the way of the fire, towards his brother.


........

Four-legged still, he did not even consider trying to fight the flames (water did not reach his mind at that point. He usually put fires out by stepping on them) until he saw what the others were doing when he moved into sight. He had seen most of their faces before even if he had never spoken to them, but now was not the time for social awkwardness. He realized now, for once, that he should stop worrying about his own hide, and start worrying about something else's. He understood what his brother was doing, and did not bother him like he usually would have. Racing towards a bucket, he scooped a large one up in his muzzle and bounded towards the small spring just up ahead. Adrenaline replaced the insecurity in his system, and he soon returned with the bucket full of water, only to grab another and running back to fill that one as well. He had not arms; it was all he could do, and he would do it well. World first: Emwe was useful.


Table by Sace/Hemming. Thanks! Big Grin
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#6
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Try to keep your posts short if you can and to the point so that we can move on as fast as possible. My reply here is a good example of what you should avoid ;P 500+

It all goes, all goes by


     
If he could he would have lost himself in the simple task of preparation. The oddly beautiful flames slowly drew closer without a halt and the pile of various items was growing despite that there were more items that probably would have been needed. With the approach of the white angel the boy finally halted and looked at her with a hollowed gaze before he moments later realized that it was Bris, the first member to have answered his call. Despite the weak showup the boy was grateful that someone had made the choice to answer his call for assistance when the alpha’s too had rung few minutes before. There was no way for Conor to know what was going on; he just knew that Dahlia would be on fire if the spreading flames were not doused. Violet eyes knew this female as they had met in the graveyard one wintery night, but there was not time to remind her of such a thing when there were more important matters.

     
Suddenly there were more. He recognized Lolita with the blazing red hair and the strange boy that had yelled his father in the face at the pack meeting. He had never realized that flames could roar until today. He was about to shout instructions when his four legged brother darted into the scene and did not even wait before he took a bucket and ran to the closest water resource. Despite the tragedy they were caught in he could not keep a small face for briefly visiting his face before he spoke to the smaller group. ” Emwe and M-Myrtle, you will be on water duty: your job will be to fill up the buckets with water and hand it to Bris and Lolita. Just do what Emwe is doing” He was not sure if he had gotten the foreign male’s name right, but this was not the time for it. He turned to Lolita. ” We will fight to put out the fire – concentrate on the worst spots first." He turned to Bris then, his face so much calmer than his mind was. ”I will toss dirt in the fire’s way. We can’t save what has already been touched, but we can limit the spreading if we work fast enough." The ground was still hard most places, but it should not be an impossible task.

     
The yearling let his mind go blank and felt his body crack and bend as he shifted into his secui form. It was only the second time he had been in this Halfling form, but it was only a matter of breaking and stopping the process at the right time. Exhaustion was heavy in his limbs, but adrenaline let him go on. Powerful paws with long claws dug into the chill earth and he started the race against the fire, trying to kick up enough soil in an uneven line before the fire managed to eat past and further into the territory.


Table credit: Sace(Hemming)
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#7
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OOC: Slight PP with Emwe, if it's not ok let me know and I'll adjust it. ^^ And hurrrr I fail for totally forgetting that graveyard thread, derp-de-derrrrrr...<3


It wasn't long before others arrived to answer Conor's plea for help. The only other face the girl recognized was that of Emwe, and only just barely, as he was Conor's brother and the other resident son of the chocolate Rosen. The boy in lupine form wasted no time, and Bris' question as to the closest water source was silently answered by his actions. However, before she could spring after him, Conor began giving out instructions. The Stormbringer's mismatched eyes watched the young male closely, her head nodding in affirmation that she understood what was needed. As Conor shifted into his secui form for his portion of the fight, Bris ran quickly to Emwe and traded him her empty bucket for his filled one.



The fire was spreading quickly, eating away at the timber of the closely-bunched buildings. The wind was working violently against them, trying to push the fire toward each subsequent building. After that, it would eventually end up in the trees, and Bris knew instinctively that if that happened it would become an unstoppable force of fury. Their little team had to put out the flames and keep the fire contained before it incinerated all of Dahlia de Mai. Working against it in the fashion ordered by Conor became almost a rhythmic dance. Trade buckets, dash water, trade buckets, dash water, look for another vulnerable spot, trade buckets, dash water...it went on like a well-rehearsed dance in Bris' mind. Hopefully the five Dahlians were not too late.


Table by Kiri/Jenny!
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#8
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I'll try and keep things short, but when I do that, they end up longer! Discipline, self. Big Grin Similar vague powerplay of Myrtle. ♥ 300+ words.

They were familiar faces, but not ones that she knew very well. How was it, it seemed, that she knew no one in her pack? It seemed that she knew more members of Inferni on a friendly level than she even knew in her own pack by name. For a fleeting moment, she wondered if the friendly relationships that existed between a few members of Inferni and herself would even exist anymore. The creamy Dahlian simply did not understand how they could do this to her home. She wished that they would keep their personal grudges just that - personal. There was no need to set Dahlia de Mai on fire. Whoever they had problems with, they could attack them directly. It still would not be good, as even if she did not know them, the members here were her family, but if they had done that, the coyotes would not have hurt everyone. Maybe Haku was right about the clan. Maybe she wasn't really a friend to any of them, regardless of what she thought.

She nodded vaguely as she listened to Conor's instructions, emerald eyes focusing on the boy already moving toward the water source, and then on the second male who had picked up a pan. Like the others, she took up a bucket as well, moving to the water and trading it for Myrtle's filled pan. The white female and the other boy were doing a similar trade off, and it was working well for them. The process became mechanical, splashing water into the base of the flames before quickly trading the empty container back for a full one again, and then the process repeated itself in the same manner. The flames were daunting, taunting her as they danced before them, the fire's delight very obvious to the woman. The fire set by the coyotes was glad to be destroying their home and possibly hurting the Dahlians. Lolita believed it probably reflected the coyotes' view, wherever they had cowardly run off to after setting the flame.

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#9
316

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The urgency of the situation dispelled Myrtle's apprehension and anxiety in one fell swoop. Now that the other Dahlians were speaking and moving and doing things, Myrtle felt as though he could actually begin to help now. No longer was he rooted to the ground, his limbs heavy and claws digging in to the bark of the tree. As soon as the boy gave his orders, Myrtle snapped to attention, determined to help in whatever way he could.


Although Myrtle had a little trouble running in his Optime form, he nonetheless was able to locate the spring and fill up his pan without any further delays. He traded them off to a pale girl with fiery red hair, trying not to whimper as she took the pan from him. He quickly surveyed the area, searching for another pail or bucket. He did not have to look far, for the fiery-headed lady gave him a new pail to use.


"Thank you!" he said, trying his best to pronounce the words so she would understand. He offered her a wide grin, and then stopped abruptly. This was no time for smiles! He had to work to help everyone put out the flames. Soon enough, they fell into a rhythm and Myrtle was able to trade one full bucket for an empty pail, filling them up and sending them off. He could do this! Myrtle felt pride swell in his chest, but he knew this was not the time. There would be time for cheering and jubilation once the fire was out. Until then, they would have to work tirelessly to make sure it did not consume the rest of their beloved home. Myrtle was not sure how much water they would need, but given the size of the fire – and the buckets of water in comparison – he estimates that they would be working for a very long time.

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#10
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Emwe ran back and forth, back and forth, always finding an empty bucket, always returning with a full one. Just now he wished he had hands, or maybe two mouths, but he didn't date to stop and shift just for that. The time lost could mean that they couldn't do this, and he didn't want to ruin everything. He heard his brother speak just as he darted away with a bucket to fill. Just do what Emwe is doing. How strange that he should feel pride at such a statement, but he did. Rarely did anyone advise anyone else to do all the things that Emwe did, but for once he had gotten something right. Had this situation not been so serious, and had his mind been its usual self instead of in this urgent state, he might've stopped and puffed his chest out, maybe done a little dance. But he didn't, because he was running back and forth as fast as he could to supply water to those whose names he didn't know who were putting the fire out. His throat burned and the smell was really bad and his muscles ached, but this was war (apparently), and he didn't want to disappoint anyone by ruining everything just because he couldn't breathe too good. Breathing was overrated anyway. Seemingly without tiring, the young male ran back and forth, back and forth, bringing water to the fire fighting squad.


Table by Sace/Hemming. Thanks! Big Grin
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#11
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D: if it takes this long for me to reply again, please skip me -- I'm currently very scarce and it was mere luck that I was given time today to post. Sorry, sorry<3

It all goes, all goes by


     
It was as if he turned deaf and blind as he lost himself in his lonely task, completely focused as wolves, buckets and water danced to and fro while he just dug, dug, dug. Simple minded Emwe, how well he had taken to this situation. Lilac orbs lifted briefly as he saw his brother’s sandy coloured form move swiftly with the beholders. It was hard to confess, and he would not have admitted it openly, but he had never expected his brother to be a hero if the time for it came. He had been severely mistaken and despite the urgency of the moment, the young male wondered exactly how badly he had misjudged his brother overall. Was it arrogance that had led him to this underestimation of his sibling? That thought did not appeal to him.

Paws had once been light cream, but now they were going on black, and as the male progressed and continued to rip up partially frozen soil to narrow the fire’s options dull ache and numbness danced together along with general exhaustion that had been present already before he had started digging because of the hastened shift. Did the fires rage with less power now than before? A quick glance down at the line of kicked up dirt seemed less strained, and it was a fact that the nature force was slowing its approach. Both Bris and Lolita were doing wonderful jobs with picking hotspots for the buckets of water, and despite the fact that it had to be heavy work in the length, both his brother and the foreign boy were still quick as they filled bucket after bucket after bucket with water.


Table credit: Sace(Hemming)
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#12
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OOC: Customers kicked my butt yesterday. x.x


There was no question that Emwe's small, four-legged form allowed him to move much faster between Bris' hands and the spring than he'd have been able to in optime form. It was sheer luck, so Bris thought, that Conor's brother had not taken the time to shift before dashing straight away for the water source. Between Emwe and herself, and the red-haired female and her own unknown male partner, Bris allowed herself a shred of optimism that the blaze was just beginning to quell. The hot spots she and the other woman were constantly working on had calmed some, and Conor's line of earth was succeeding in keeping the fire contained to the small group of houses it was currently consuming. It was starting to look like the son of the Rosen had sounded the call in time, and the white Stormbringer kept fervently at her duty. Even though she doubted any of the little fire-fighting brigade were closely acquainted (Conor and Emwe aside, of course), the team moved like they were perfectly in sinc, going through the motions with smooth efficiency.



Bris' mind went nearly blank as the crew worked tirelessly, the constant trading and tossing of water working itself into a rhythm in her head. The only occasional break in this rhythm came when the girl had to locate another hot spot, causing a momentary lag in cadence, only to pick it immediately back up again once another trouble spot was found. It was hard to tell how long the team went on like this, but it was becoming clear that at least they were making some progress. The inferno raged around the little brigade, Bris' pristine white fur becoming singed in countless spots as embers floated all around. Spotting another hot spot, the white girl shifted her position, coming dangerously close to the blazing house. Her folly was realized shortly, as the sound of creaking, failing wood started snapping somewhere high up on the building. The roof was beginning to collapse, and there was no way to tell if it would bring one of the walls down with it, nor which way it would fall.


Table by Kiri/Jenny!
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#13
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Would've posted sooner, but things got... Bad. And this post is so horribly because I wrote the first two sentences before I got sorta-kinda-really stoned, and the rest of it after. >____>;

Lolita inhaled sharply as a large ember landed a mere inch below her left eye, burning the flesh beneath her thin fur. It was not the first one to hit her, but it was, by far, the largest and most painful. Shutting her eyes tightly against the heat for only a moment, she fought away the painful thoughts of what was happening. It seemed impossible that the clan could set fire to her home. She had friends in the clan, and she had thought that the feelings were mutual. Apparently she had been mistaken, and that pained her greatly. Maybe she would need to go over to Inferni some time soon to see if she had been wrong.

Her attention had once again focused after a second had passed, the motions becoming even more robotic. She did not want to put her thoughts in the front of her brain, wanted to keep them completely separate from the necessary actions, lest those thoughts damage her ability to focus in this situation. The boy giving her the buckets filled with water seemed to be completely focused, as well. Lolita realized that she did not know any of these people, and perhaps it would do her some good to know those in her own pack. Certainly they would never set her home on fire, as they all shared a common interest: the protection and benefit of the pack.

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#14
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Skipped Myrtle; there's been two days Smile Random crap that Emwe does, yay Tongue

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His legs never ceased to move, and Emwe concluded in a flash of a thought that it was a good thing he had a tail, but he wished it had the ability to grab things. He'd seen pictures of some big gray things with long noses in a book once; the could grab things. He really needed that kind of a tail now. His legs were aching, and yet he didn't slow down. He could tell from every of his short visits that the fire was being slowly beaten, but they would need more water; more and more water. It wasn't so much that Emwe understood what would happen if they couldn't put the fire out; it was instinct. Fire was bad, and had to be either put our or run away from. Conor wasn't running, and Emwe was no worse, and so he refused to run from it. Adrenaline helped him a long way as he bounded back and forth, back and forth, but now the waits by the stream as the buckets filled were becoming as strenuous as the spurts. He coughed a little and his breathing was heavy. He hadn't not expected it, because he'd been running, but the coughing part was what he didn't understand. Golden fur was slowly becoming stained from all the flying matter that the fires sent up into the air, and suddenly it felt as if his chest was on fire, too. A quickl look at it revealed that it wasn't, but just to be sure he jumped headfirst into the stream the next time he reached it, completely soaking himself in the cold water. It continued to burn inside his chest, but everything else felt better. Quickly filling the bucket, he ran back again, water springing from him as he moved, like a fountain.


Table by Sace/Hemming. Thanks! Big Grin
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#15
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One more round and fire is out! GOOD WORK, MY LOVELIES<3

It all goes, all goes by


     
Frosted dirt cling to his partly damaged claws with desperation and the male’s chest heaved in the quest of obtaining enough air to get his body going in the same hurried tempo. He thought he was partly blind through most of the work, but orbs suddenly sharpened and saw Bris and the building so close to collapsing. The golden yearling was too far from her to do anything, but his voice came out strong and urgent in a warning bark in her direction. They were all working so hard. Conor’s fur was not the only coat singed by embers and smoke and burning hot ash. His lilac gaze scouted over the area and he found that while the fire was still partly raging, it was much less intimidating now than it had been initially. Nothing could be done with what already was light ablaze, but the path had been well blocked by the working Dahlians and it was getting no further. Paths blocked by dirt and water, the fire was slowly dying now, finding no fresh fuel to consume, and suffering additional damage from the never emptying buckets provided by the optimes and their bucket boys. There were several beholders to choose from, and now Conor too started off with the bucket duty, letting his sore paws temporary dance through the cool, shallow water before running back with a bucket for one of the two fire extinguishers.


Table credit: Sace(Hemming)
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#16
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Conor's shrill bark of warning had turned Bris' head upward in time. Too busy watching one section collapsing wall, she'd missed the overhang that had sagged just above her head. Her sharp eyes widened as the whole window casing, overhang and all, suddenly buckled and came crashing down. The young girl leapt desperately to the right, landing on the soft earth as the spot she'd occupied moments before disappeared beneath a raging heap of hungry flame and searing wood. She spared only a second in quiet contemplation before bolting again to her feet, offering the violet-eyed brigade leader a distinct nod of gratitude before hurrying to trade another bucket with Emwe.



On and on the buckets switched, on and on the Dahlians worked. Their progress was becoming steadily clearer, and by the time Conor left his digging to make another link in the bucket chain, it was obvious the flames could go no farther in their quest for destruction. The buildings it left behind in its wake would burn to the ground, but the rest of Dahlia would prove to be safe from the result of Inferni's arson. Rather than letting the wolves calm, however, Bris felt a renewed energy at seeing their apparent success, and she ran feverishly back and forth, determined not to stop until the entire advancing line was not only under control, but undoubtedly beaten. They weren't quite done yet.



Table by Kiri/Jenny!!
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#17
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Sorry I'm a day late - I'm an idiot with no concept of the date and thought yesterday was the 6th, so that today would be the second day. xD; Oops. 300+ words.

Emerald eyes turned sharply at Conor's warning, though it was not directed towards her. It pained her to know that Inferni could have tried to destroy her home like this and hurt those that were not involved in the war. Though they were not fighting the coyotes, this could almost be considered more dangerous now. Fighting another canine was more evenly matched and they could see that the damage was only to one another. The fire was another story, however. It held an unpredictable life, raging at anything in its path, as evidenced by the collapsing building. Any damage caused by the angry flames would only affect them, and the coyotes that had set this fire were probably away and safe by now. There would be no damage done to them, as far as she knew. This blaze would only hurt the wolves of Dahlia de Mai.

Lolita continued the pattern of water against the flames, repeatedly trading buckets off with Myrtle with a fervor that could only be described as moving like her life depended on it, and it did. If the flames were not stopped... The wolfdog did not to think of what could happen then. It seemed that would not be a problem now. The flames were losing this fight against water and dirt. She continued the pattern, refusing to get her hopes up. She would not be happy or rejoice until there was no doubt that they had won the battle. Lolita was simply not optimistic enough to think anything right until she had proof. Once the blaze was stopped, she would be able to be thankful for their hard work, and she would also be able to allow the hurt and anger take over. For the time being, that was being pushed to the back of her mind, as there was no time to dwell on that.

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Myrtle jumped, caught unawares, at Conor's sudden shout. He fumbled with the pot of water he was holding and ended up splashing the water all over himself and on the ground. Conor's cry had taken him by such surprise that his heart was now pounding even faster than it had been before, and his hands were shaking even worse. He saw the white wolf jump out of harms way just in time. Myrtle's hands shook and he could feel a twinge of pain in his chest. Why was he so worried for her? He shook his head and looked back down at his hands. Tiredness and fear was making his entire body shake. He tried to make it stop; it didn't work.


Dutifully, he continued to fill up the buckets, pots and pans with water and hand them off to the wolfdog woman. She didn't seem nearly as frightened as Myrtle was; she just looked angry, as if her hair would burst into flames from sheer rage. Myrtle handed her another bucket of water, trying not to quiver. His hands, however, shook on their own, and he tried not to splash any of the water on her like he had done to himself. The harsh reality of the situation took all the confidence he'd had only moments ago. No longer was he able to chirp a cheerful thank you to the girl anymore. He felt the fear piling up on him, threatening to crush him. Everything about this, now, was horribly scary. Myrtle frowned and gritted his teeth, determined not to let the fear get the best of him. His father had done that enough times for Myrtle to know how ridiculous it was. Myrtle was amazing (the fact itself was self-evident) and we would be the best pot-filler Dahlia de Mai had ever seen.

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Word Count: 392

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His lungs burned and Emwe felt as if it was all of him, dousing himself a little every time he reached the spring to fill another bucket of water. His fur dripped with cold and fresh water, but his lungs burned all the same. The male did not understand why the water did not work, nor did he understand why his legs were feeling strange. He knew that he had to bring water, had to stop those fires from burning more of what he cared about, but his body was telling him that it was time to stop. Rushing back with a bucket he stumbled and fell, spilling the contents of the bucket. His legs felt strange, like that time he had been entangled in those ropes and Tokyo had helped him out of it. As if they were made from something heavy without feeling, that was what they felt like. He got up quickly and whimpered and his tail struck his stomach for a moment before he was off again, on his way back to try and fill the bucketonce more. His limbs felt uncertain and he barely felt the cool of the water on his fur this time. Bounding back to where all the hot flames were threatening their pack, he sat the bucket down on the ground without halting, meaning to simply turn and pick up another bucket all in one motion as he had done every time before this one. But this time was different, because this time his legs felt strange, and they sent him slip sliding towards where all the hot flames were. He yelped as he slid, and he was lucky not to come close enough to properly injure himself. The scent of burnt fur rose to his nostrils, but the many times he had doused his pelt paid off, and the flames did little else than singe the hairs instead of burning them completely off. Whimpering, Emwe scrambled away from the source of all of their's desperation and got back up again, not waiting a moment before picking up another bucket and setting off towards the spring. Apparently, he needed to rest, but the fire needed to be put out first. If he worked harder, it would be put out quicker. He refused to fail his pack like he had done many times before.


Table by Sace/Hemming. Thanks! Big Grin
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Good Job, people! You just saved Dahlia! Feel free to toss in a last reply before this thread is closed and archived! 500+


All of them seemed to feel the exhaustion long before the hungry flames actually were under control. Conor Soul could feel his entire body scream without words as it was forced to repeat tasks again and again. He went on until his brother’s problems were clear enough. Lilac eyes had seen his twin toss himself into the cool water in pursuit of soothing relief. He had found none and the golden boy feared that it was his lungs that were on fire. That was a scorching pain he could not extinguish. The Ilex could feel the burn as well, from the throat and down, but knew well to crouch low where possible to inhale as little as possible of the air that so easily could kill over time if one inhaled enough amounts of it. The optimes with the buckets had done well, and the flames had been tamed and were slowly dying. Some cabins and still dry pieces still fumed with red hot embers and some flame, but it was no longer eating into the Dahlia. Instead it was dying. The wolves around him were heroes.

The young male coughed and harked, struggling to find the voice that earlier had sounded strongly to summon and instruct those who came to his aid. It was hard, and for a moment he feared there was only ash left in his lungs. His voice seemed damaged and weak as words finally caught sound in his throat. ”Great job everyone,” It was plain to see. He was unable to offer them a smile of appreciation, but it was not the right time for such a thing anyway. Purple hued eyes were almost swimming with intense relief; knowing that Dahlia and the children would be safe for now. There was such rage within his heart though, but he could not embrace the anger for what Inferni had done right now. He knew better than to let emotions alone rule him. There was enough sense in him left to appreciate the victory here.

The exhausted secui moved swiftly over to Emwe, softly poking the mechanic boy with a snout still wet and cold unlike anything else here. ”Emwe, it is over. You can stop now.” The voice was soft, yet urgent. He was not blind to the trouble his brother had had towards the end. While he had learned a lot from his aunt, he knew little about dealing with damage in lungs. He thought of soothing, steaming herbs for inhalation, but did not know if such a thing would work. Something to help the smoke cough was better than nothing though -- he knew how to soothe cough. His face turned and he looked to the rest of the group, searching for injuries. ”Is everyone okay?” He had feared for the white woman with the bi-coloured eyes, but Bris had not been taken by the wall as it had given in. They seemed to be alright. Exhausted and with a burnt furcoat, but they were all alive.

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