here we stand with their blood on our hands
#1
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indent By the time the fire had begun to spread, Gabriel was running. He had abandoned two legs for four and now flew over the dark ground, eyes fever-bright. While he had time, it wasn’t much. This was not planned, but he responded as if this had been laid out for years. Through a low part of the river, to wash away the scent of gasoline, keeping far from the pack borders and never once looking behind at the red-orange glow that was swiftly glowing. Not until he reached Inferni did he come to a skidding stop, body turning to estimate his timeline. By this point, Storm had to be burning. The night sky was glowing and the smell of smoke was all around. Gabriel howled, announcing the danger. Emergency, move, this is not a drill. I repeat; this is not a drill.
indent He bolted to the house, and once inside, resumed two legs. It took him three strides to cover the steps and slam the doors open, speaking loudly but without panic, calm and controlled. Those inside moved out, where several others were. With the same control, Gabriel spoke clearly and both announced the danger (which had, by this point, set the sky alight) and how they were going to leave. He allowed no questions, keeping the militaristic tone—this was how it had to be. There was a path, the same path he had followed here, that would take them south and west, away from the flames.
indent It was not until they crossed the swamp that Rachias fell into a fit of madness. Gabriel saw her bolt and chased her down, though she refused to leave without a fight. Arkham, she kept screaming. The boy wasn’t with them but they had no more time. The fire had spread to the city—far too close for comfort. Somehow he dragged her back, caught up to the group which had been following the directions he had told them, and the remnants of Inferni crossed through the thin cut of the western mountain range that led to safety. Behind them, the place they had once called home still burned.
indent Still, though, Gabriel insisted they had to move. This wasn’t safe, staying so close to the fire or the now-displaced wolves. They traveled for the rest of the night in silence, until reaching a hilly area and finding a large cave. Again, Gabriel held his control, stated they would remain here for the night. Even this far away, the smell of smoke and flame was in the air, brought by the same wind that twisted his hair. Off in the distance, he heard the wolves calling to one another. The doggish hybrid sat on the hill, arms on his knees, and stared at the glow from the fire he had started.
indent The world had moved on.




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#2
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He had heard the girl's shouts. That was really all the warning he'd had before it died down again. Hybrid grumbled, annoyed that he had been woken up while he slept. He really did not appreciate having that bitch of a coyote running around, yowling about her brother. Hybrid growled, standing up slowly so that he could exit his den. He had made his home amidst the roots of a tree, only a short distance South of the graveyard. He exited his den, surveying the sands in hopes of finding Rachias. Instead, he found something much worse. The world was aflame.


He stared off into the distance, the flickers of light penetrating through the sparsely forested eastern ridge of Inferni. Instead of growing anxious or worried, Hybrid began to grin, chuckling quietly to himself. So someone had finally decided to bring it all down. His merry chortling quickly turned into laughter, and before long, he was snarling, laughing, and yipping at the prospect of it all. How many wolves had died yet? How many would follow? The very thought of so many wolves dying in such a painful way made him grin even wider.


Death was a beautiful thing.


And death would be upon him, soon, if he did not leave. He could hear the sounds of the other coyotes of Inferni fading off into the distance. They were headed to the marsh, and that sounded like a wonderful idea. He followed the rest of the coyotes out, more sheep than canine, chuckling quietly. It was a beautiful night.

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#3
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She was deep in sleep after a long night and day. Her children were nestled closely to her stomach. Rousing slightly from her sleep when she heard heavy footsteps sound outside the door a little ways, she knew instantly was Gabriel. Something was wrong, a thick scent of smoke drifted in from the door, but it was not near them. Still clouded with sleep she raised her head, tilting it slightly, then his voice came and her red eyes fell upon her two children who were still sleeping. Rising to her four legs, Faolin was in her quad form, but quickly shifted to halfling. Clumsily she grabbed a bag that she kept and threw a couple needed supplies in it before throwing it over her back in a weird manner. Swiftly she finished shifting as she realized she had a tad bit more of time and swooped up the two sleeping puppies in her arms, wrapped them in a blanket and bolted out the door.

Gabriel, what's going on? she asked, but was soon to get an answer. Fear clouded her eyes, but she followed right in behind her mate. Rachias tried to bolt off, but there was nothing Faolin could do and she looked helplessly as Gabriel chased after her, soon returning to the small group. The queen was weary and she felt dead, nothing floated through her mind. She was in a daze, completely swallowed up in the whole ordeal that was taking place. The stench of the smoke burned her eyes and her lungs and she covered the heads of her children with a blanket so they would not have to breathe in the awful scent.

Hybrid soon fell into line, but Faolin hardly noticed anything and just quickly made her way. It felt like they had been traveling for hours and she had stopped to shift back into her halfling form. She carried Talitha in her jaws while letting Ezekiel trot beside her, switching the two back and forth as one grew quickly tired. Gabriel was close ahead of her and when they had stopped finally she let out a sigh, finally collecting her thoughts. Red eyes drifted towards her mate and they stared at him with sadness. Dropping her stuff she nosed the children close to her as she quickly trotted towards Gabriel and sat beside him giving his chin a couple licks and pushing her muzzle through his mane. He was much bigger than she was, especially with the size differences between a were and a regular coyote. She let out a sigh and her head drooped down, swiping her tongue over each child's heads.



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#4
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"I have to find Arkham..." She pleaded quietly, even as Gabriel continued to drag her along with the rest of them. Rachias was unaware of where they were going, what was happening all around. She only wanted Arkham. Tear filled eyes watched as the fire ravaged the lands behind him, staring and blinking, waiting for the moment that her brother would suddenly appear in the distance and run to them. It wouldn't happen though, she had to force herself to accept it. She couldn't take her eyes off of the fire, even as it faded off in the distance. The farther away that they got from it, the more desperate her cries became, sobbing and whimpering.


Finally, as they began to slow, Rachias turned to the one person that she suspected might understand. Faolin. "Please Faoly.." Her words were almost a whisper, strained and quiet. "I have to find Arkham..." She repeated, turning back toward the fading flames.
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#5
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Molochai had given up on Kaena. Disappearing into the night to wherever murderers go. He hadn't the strength to follow her again, not to just be given up on for another male and another litter. Instead the messenger had set back towards his birth lands in hopes of meeting back up with his siblings and maybe starting a new life. He wouldn't let someone lead the way any longer; he was his own being and had his own mind. No more playing babysitter, no more helping. Just time for Molochai. Traveling had proved easy until the smoke began to cloud the sky, lighting the clouds with flames and flickering. He had been half-way through the mountains when the real signs of danger began to change his mind. Bleeding Souls was on fire. His birth lands were on fire. Memories going up in a blaze of smoke and heat. Needless to say he reconsidered.



Tracing the way back, noticing forms moving this way and that, he began to hear the different cries and howls of those that had taken refuge away from the flames. Coyotes, wolves, hybrids and surely other animals were all scattered and trying to regroup with their family and friends. Molochai had wanted to do the same even before he found the fire. Fate it seemed for the first time was helping him. One form that had flashed by him earlier only now began to become familiar. Gabriel. His brother had always been a strong one and it didn't surprise him that he would survive. Made him wonder how many of the large clan would survive the flames. He hoped, despite his hatred at times for some of them that they all made it.



Following his brother's scent and gathering near the edge of a small group within the cave (none of which he recognized) he settled in his Secui form, gold stare eying the others with a kind of suspicion that surely only a Lykoi could muster. They were alive, more than he could say for some.

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#6
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http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/ ... 086007.png) bottom right no-repeat #0D0D0B; color:#FFFFFF; border:1px solid white; filter:alpha(opacity=70); -moz-opacity:0.75; width:280px; padding:10px; margin:-250px auto 0 auto;" align=justify>wheeee. So i'm making a lot of this up and i'm sort of making up for lost time b/c i never said where toxic was for the last little while. Big Grin




It had all happened too fast. Before he knew it his parents vanished again; he had unintentionally given them a head-start by thinking this behavior was routine. They fled in the dark of night just like always, just when he was younger and away from Bleeding Souls. Garnet and Midnight were around less and less until one morning he woke up to find them gone, totally alone. No Holocausts or Massacres in sight. The beach was his home temporarily as he wandered the beach for days until he remembered the pack house foundations Hybrid had shown him a month before, and made himself comfortable in one of the corners. No one was there to punish him for walking outside the borders so he often spent time away from home to get his parents out of his mind. He was relentless, though; he couldn't remember the last thing he said to his parents ... was this his fault? What did he do wrong? With every passing day he grew larger, more mentally sharp about his current situation: he didn't do anything wrong. He was abandoned. There was no one for him now except the sun and the sand and the... smoke?



Toxic was curled up in one of the corners of the house when the smell threw him from sleep early one morning, amid the shouts and calls of the rest of Inferni. The rest of the pack in the house was awaking and running out with shouts of fire and destruction. Momentarily puzzled, Toxic took his time to unravel and stretch. After he got outside, though, he realized the magnitude of what was happening: the entire world was crashing down. He could see the red and yellow light up the whole night; the smoke a curtain to a deadly show. Gabriel called throughout the house and though he was little, he understood; follow the pack to safety. After he wasted time gaping at the trees, the young pup sped off into the group of coyotes that were making a run for it.



His little body was in shape and kept up with the rest of his group but didn't talk to anyone and kept his snout low. He was just a little thing, momentarily forgotten, swept to the side while chaos ensued. Just as the morning rays were coming up Gabriel stopped after what seemed like hours, found a cave, and announced they were staying here for a while. Toxic, exhausted, plopped down next to the coyote he called his sister. She had his bright, ruby eyes; They were blood that was for sure, and she had helped him through the tough night. What's going to happen? He asked Faolin, the only coherent thought running through his mind. Everything was gone. What were they going to do now? What were his parents going to do now?


Suddenly he felt very, very alone.






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#7
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xxxxxThe world was on fire. Flames lite up the horizon like an early sunrise, filling the sky with a hellish glow. Smoke consumed the air, making it hard to breath as the blaze quickly spread, devouring everything in it's path.
xxxxxThe apocalypse was on them.
xxxxxIt was beautiful. So fucking beautiful.
xxxxxDeath was on the air. Death, finality, and yet something more. Change. A new life. Samael wouldn't die in the fire, and so it wasn't the end—not for him. He'd yet to reach his fate, and wreak havoc on the world by his own hand. This was someone else's doing.
xxxxxHe almost envied them.
xxxxxScreams rose above the crackling flames. Cries and calls of souls watching as everything around them burned: their lives and their entire existence. How sad. How little empathy touched him. Paws traced a path across the dark earth, lingering long enough to revel in the sight before outracing the flames. Inferni was gone. But he was able to find their escape path.
xxxxxEven to the end, his loyalty to Kaena's pack was divided, staying with them just for something to do, yet far from willing to die for them. Far from believing himself to have no other options, Samael wanted to track the fleeing clan, following them as they escaped the burning remnants of their former life. Mechanical, machine like he moved through the night, silence pressing save the fading sounds of the end of the world as the distance grew. Smoke and fire lingered in his nose, carried by the wind and lingering on his coat like the ash and soot that'd worked itself into his dark hair.
xxxxxEntering a hilly land in an area he'd never walked before, Samael found the cave where Inferni's remnants lurked, watching the distant glow that marked what had been Bleeding Souls. Slinking quietly toward the others, a scent and presence halted him in his tracks as though he'd hit a solid wall. Crimson eyes growing, surprise crossed the prince's face as he laid eyes on his lost brother. "Molochai," he said simply, otherwise regarding none of the other refugees gathered.
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#8
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Everyone needs to reply once more, and then this thread will be closed--and is thread #1 in regards to forming Inferni again. If you want to split off into private threads, feel free too. After my current scouting thread (#2), I'll have another group thread in which they move into the territory. :]
ALSO, NO POSTING ORDER FROM HERE ON OUT.

indent In the end, it had been his family that survived. They had always survived. Gabriel felt Faolin behind him but his eyes remained ahead, staring blankly. He did not feel guilt, because he had done what was right. God had given him this task and he had done His will. Now, all that was left was to see who lived and who died. Rachias kept whimpering about Arkham but Gabriel no longer heard. He was interested in those things coming, the monsters waiting out in the wild. He could see the stranger’s eyes and knew him in an instant. Samael, though, announced the golden male formally, and Gabriel at this point rose, walking out to the two on his hind legs, dark hair in his face.
indent He regarded Molochai for a long time. If you’re here, his face said, then she’s really gone. She’s never coming back. Still smelling vaguely of gasoline, the hybrid’s eyes remained on his brother, mother’s eyes—the eyes they both shared. He did not have to speak to tell his brother that he was glad to see him. Finally, he looked away, regarding the group as a whole. They were now four men, two women, and three children. “We’re going to move on,” he said, speaking to everyone. “Inferni has survived until now and nothing is going to change that.”




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#9
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He had expected to go unnoticed and then talk to Gabriel later when there were less creatures to listen. Instead his younger brother Samael had noticed him, recognized him and announced his presence. Leave it to a younger Lykoi to have a big mouth. Huffing out a sigh he gave a nod to his younger brother. "Samael." He had grown up and he noted the thinness to his physique and the lack of puppy fat that had been on him before. He'd have to speak with him later, privately and see how he was doing. Golden eyes stayed on Sam' for a moment longer before turning towards Gabriel who was now approaching.



His brother smelled vaguely of gasoline and Molochai frowned slightly at the smell and the smoke that lingered in the air. Taking a breath and then exhaling he gave a slight nod, seeming to know what his brother was thinking. Mother is gone. Molochai wouldn't leave her, he'd trained how many puppies their wolf-hating ways? It was her betrayal. She had left him and it was better now. He was his own hybrid, his own being without responsibilities to anyone except his direct family. Stretching out his spine he yawned and glanced at the others before adding, "I trust your plan brother." As if there was any doubt.

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#10
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Rachias' words tugged at her heart and Faolin had to turn her head away for a moment to clear the tears from her eyes before turning back to the girl. "Rachias, what about you? I don't know what I would do if I could not find the both of you again! Arkham is a really smart boy, more than anyone gives him credit for, I'm sure he'll make it out, and after the fires die down I swear we will search for him," she said firmly, shortening the distance between the two with a couple steps. She nuzzled the girl tenderly and urged her to move on. This was all too tiring and sad for the lot of them.

**

Faolin sat quietly beside Gabriel, she was dead beat tired and so were the puppies. The queen looked down upon the two little babies that were sitting about two inches away from her. Talitha was yawning and her eyelids were drooping as she tried to lean on Ezekiel. He did not seem to be doing much better, his ears were pinned against his small head and he let out a long yawn. Faolin smiled and took a step towards the two curling her body around them on the smooth surface they were sitting on. Instantly the two curled up next to her and pawed at her belly. They were already eating meat and milk was not cutting it anymore. They would need to hunt soon to feed their little bellies.

Her head lifted as Molochai's name was mentioned, she had seen him before, but that was a long time ago. Never really got to know the male. A small smile formed across her lips and she gave a dip of her head as a hello. A moment later she heard the voice of another, younger male and she turned her head to see Toxic. He was very tired and it was a bit of a fight to get him here and she gave him a lick of reassurance on his cheek. "We'll be fine, Gabriel will take care of us and I will take care of you. Come over here, you can curl up next to me for the time being," she said, sweeping him closer towards her with her tail. He was getting a lot bigger, but she felt responsible for him. He was her little brother after all and she wanted to make sure he would be alright.

Gabriel's voice filled the silent and still air, ears perked up and at attention. The smile grew wider, they would be alright, everything would be fine. Giving her own puppies reassuring licks as the fell asleep beside her, she would wait for Gabriel before they would move out or anything. It seemed that was it though she would let the babies sleep for a couple minutes longer, sitting outside in the nice fresh(er) breeze than the smoke they had been inhaling the entire trip. Shifting comfortably, the queen dozed, with her crimson eyes half open, keeping the three children in her view. She opened her eyes again and turned them on the eldest youth, "Rachias, come here hun," she cooed to the girl. She was hurting, and Faolin's heart was in her throat. She had refused to let her go and so had Gabriel, but hopefully her words made it a bit better. Arkham was smart, he would make it through. The only one she wanted to burn was Andrezej, but even then she would not wish that upon the young boy. Maybe there was still hope for the young Lykoi yet.


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#11
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sorry, this is short. :/
      Samael said nothing, gaze shifted to Gabriel only when he spoke. There was no need for words from the creature—his presence was enough, as far as he was concerned. Inferni would live, and the world would go on. But there were far more pressing things that attracted his attention. For one, the appearance of Molochai. The silent exchange between his brothers said it all, and Samael quietly moved away, back into the shadows from which he'd emerged.
      There he seated himself in the darkness, for he no longer wished to be in the presence of the others and laid his head on his paws. Fatigue from the journey settled in, along with something else that seemed to weigh him down to the earth. Kaena was gone, he knew that. Yet this renewed revival of that thought didn't please him. Molochai was her loyal son, and he'd never leave her side without reason.
      This meant she was truly gone.
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#12
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They had stopped. Although the journey was long from over, Hybrid could see that many among them wished it were already. Faolin's little soldiers were growing more weary and one of them was attesting to this with a long, drawn out yawn. Hybrid narrowed his eyes in annoyance, but looked away. He didn't feel like bothering Faolin or her little bundles of hell. He, like everyone else, was tired.


Gabriel spoke, and soon enough, so did one of their new allies. Hybrid glanced at the stranger that had spoken, noting with amusement the obvious tension between him and Samael. This new coyote also seemed to be the brother of Gabriel, which would (in one way or another) relate him to Samael. Wonderful.


Hybrid nodded after Gabriel spoke, eyeing the Aquila evenly. "Yes, Gabriel," he said, he examining the other male for a few moments before stretching his neck and dropping his gaze. He had nothing else to say.

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#13
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She was deaf to the words that anyone else spoke, eyes cast out toward the direction that they had come from, toward the lands that they had left burning behind them. Eventually Faolin spoke, the sound of her words catching her ears and causing her to turn her head. Despite how dry her eyes seemed now, there was still evidence of the tears that had left them before, matted in the fur beneath her eyes. She stepped forward then, stumbled and fell to her knees, and crawled her way over toward Faolin. It was there, beside Faolin, that she settled, slumped over with defeat and saying nothing.


She could've slipped away then, up and ran away from them and back to find Arkham. Rachias knew though, she knew that they'd already gone to far and by the time she returned to the lands, he'd already be dead.
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#14
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http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/ ... 086007.png) bottom right no-repeat #0D0D0B; color:#FFFFFF; border:1px solid white; filter:alpha(opacity=70); -moz-opacity:0.75; width:280px; padding:10px; margin:-250px auto 0 auto;" align=justify>sorry for the delay, life sucks. Short, also, because Toxic can't really do anything XD


Toxic was drifting in and out of sleep, being awoken by Gabriel talking again, and nodded to show that he understand what was going on. If he was more awake he would have asked a question or two but at the moment his entire face was getting heavy and couldn't find the energy to respond. Faolin licked him and took the invitation, curling up right around her tail, snuggling into her skin. He sighed happily and slowly closed his eyes, listening to the murmuring around him. Everyone agreed with the leader and the meeting seemed to end. They would stay there, he assumed, until the next morning when they would get together and reform what was left of Inferni. There he would be a part of it, until tomorrow....





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