stand against the wiles of the devil
#1
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time to break him in. hopefully i'll make more sense in subsequent posts... xD i am so sorry this is so long. :| IT'S NOT EVEN INTERESTING hdjsahlda. but if anything is wrong lemme knooooww!


It was colder here. Aemon couldn't help but shiver as a breeze whirled past him, his arms crossed sourly across his chest, angry at himself. He should have brought warmer clothes. As it was he'd traveled light. A single backpack carried all of his essentials: a small, rusting hunting knife, a skin filled with water, a change of clothes. In the outside compartment there was a pocket-sized, worn out copy of the Bible. It was second nature to carry the book with him now, though in truth he rarely referenced it. Touching it, though, was comforting.


He must have been close; he'd been running for days. The silver coywolf had been no more than a blur behind the trees on four legs, but he'd had to slow down after nearly a full day of travel. Now, he moved on two, the scarlet fabric of his tunic and black cotton pants hardly keeping out the cold. Running had made it better, but he was tired. He'd gone on horseback from Scintilla, but was only able to borrow the steed for the first half of the journey. Aemon had returned the good-tempered horse reluctantly, and pressed on alone. Without that help, it would have taken him nearly double the time.


Aemon hoped that Ithiel was right; that this was where their father was. The sun hung low in the sky, threatening darkness. Several times he had wondered if this was a good idea, to come here. Maybe he was never meant to know Gabriel. Even his mother had been only a temporary part of his life, and he'd grown not to notice her absence. Ithiel was his brother and closest friend; he hadn't wanted to leave him, but Ithiel had needed more time. Aemon had been restless the past few months, and he'd felt an urge brewing in him. He hadn't known his father, but he'd heard whispers about his achievements, and wanted to know more. His father was a warrior, a leader, a man of God; Aemon needed to meet him, at least once.


He'd never been to Canada-- in fact, he'd never really left Utah-- and the varied wildlife and scenery had awed him. Dark coyote-ears rotated with the noises of the forest, and as a twig cracked under his feet he glanced down. The twig was connected to a larger, more stable branch. The wood was dry now, and as he broke off the tines it grew into a shapely walking stick. Please with his tool and new weapon, Aemon quickened his paces, alert for any familiar scent. He'd gone around a mountain on this day, remembering that as one of the landmarks he should recognize, but he'd yet to come across any claimed land.


His ears twitched as he hear a howl in the far distance; it was wolfish, and instantly his fur bristled, wary. Aemon moved quicker still, hoisting his backpack further onto his shoulders and taking long strides, his feet hardly touching the ground. Thick cords of dark silver hair bounced behind him in a loose ponytail, the ends smacking against his backpack in succession. Once he could see his breath forming in the cooling evening air, he slowed, turning his nose up again in search. This time, he noticed a new scent. It was ashy, salty, and something else. Familiar? Maybe... It was enough for him to change directions.


When crimson eyes finally laid eyes upon the land's markers, his mouth fell open in surprise. Lined up and shoved onto pikes along their borderline sat more skulls than he would bother to count. With a blink he realized what they were, mostly: wolf skulls. The heads of the enemy. Empty eye sockets stared out at him, and he grinned, knowing that each one had once opposed this place and lost. Already, he approved. A smoky hand reached out to caress the surface and cavities of one of the nearer ones. In an instant, pulled his hand away and glanced around, hoping that no one had seen his misdeed.


He'd finally arrived, and now was hesitant. Aemon pulled the pocket Bible from his pack and slid it into the pocket of his pants. His fingers lingered there for a moment, caressing the cover before he threw his head back and called out. A series of yips and short howl ended the message, making it clear that he was not here threateningly. Aemon's posture was tall and alert as he waited, studying the terrain and rubbing his arms for warmth. He hoped that this was worth all the trouble.



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#2
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The savage in man is never
quite eradicated

Derp, forgot to mention that the skulls would have been done in Scintilla as well. XD Aemon would recognize the practice.

Word Count » +3

It was without doubt now, that they were swift approaching those dark, cold nights of the year. Ezekiel had spoken with his cousins about training, and maintaining some sort of food supply, and had to listen to Enkiel’s complaints regarding his “incessant meddling” but he was a leader who had not faced a winter as such before. Gabriel had always seemed to certain of all the things that Inferni maintained, so why did his son worry as he did? The coyote was a man made paranoid by time and nature—he feared that winter would do as it had last year, though his body knew otherwise.

A single smoking stick hung from his hand as he walked, red feet carrying him easily across the borders well-worn trails. He enjoyed that they had become apparent, for there was no doubt now that a claim belonged here. Even the westward expansion was showing signs of such wear, though those trails were still thin and not as packed and hardened as these. The horses could travel with ease; they could carry the wounded or charge to battle if the need came. Even now, paranoia. Even now, doubt.

There came a call, just north of his position, and the Aquila moved towards it instinctively. There had been many strangers coming to his door recently, half of whom shared blood. Yet as he neared the source, what he found was a peculiar sight. A hybrid colored in a manner much like Max. It was unfortunate that wolf blood alone would give rise to such unique colors. Fingers flicked away the remains of the clove-cigarette as he approached, head high and body declaring his rank in subtle ways that his hybrid blood acquiesced to. “You need something, stranger?” Of course he did—Ezekiel just wondered what.



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#3
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it's okay. xD i figured i would be correcting as i played him anyways. getting somewhere, here, at least. :S


Aemon stood hunched against the cold and the wind, crimson eyes darting anxiously to the sun as it fell lower. If night fell before his call was answered, he would choose to wait until dawn to return, and he wasn't looking forward to having to camp out in this land so close to so many packs. He was alert now, but felt his body fading quickly as he slumped against the would-be walking stick. To occupy the time, he pulled the Book from his pocket, flipping through the pages idly and skimming each with half-interest. He could barely read the text, and found his lids pulling closed. A twig snapped nearby, and Aemon snapped alert again.


He pocketed the Book and said a quick, silent prayer, straightening as a moving figure became visible ahead of him. Someone had heard him after all. The sun's low position cast an orange glow across the man's already golden face, and Aemon bowed his head as he approached. He was clearly a hybrid like Aemon, but his man was clearly in charge, or close to it. He held his head high and proud, and Aemon admired him silently, noticing the bow-and-arrows stashed behind his back. "Not a need, only a want, sir. I'm... I'm looking for my father, Gabriel de le Poer. Or either of his children, Talitha and Ezekiel." He would survive without knowing them, it was true, but he would not be satisfied. Aemon cleared his throat and swallowed, anxious and impatient for the answer. If they had moved on, so would he. "My name is Aemon de le Poer," he added, bowing his head again. The silvery coy-wolf was sure to remember all of his courtesies in front of this man, who he knew was judging him already.



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#4
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The savage in man is never
quite eradicated

Word Count »

The light played games with their appearance, but Ezekiel could see that the ashen-colored stranger’s fur was pale and not the sort he often saw in coyotes. Kaena’s was gray, but very few of her children seemed to share the tone. Humanized—he had a bag, his hair was fashioned, and he used a walking stick. Wherever he was from had some concept of what it meant to walk on two legs. Then again, the whole world was moving forward. He never would have suspected he would ride and own two horses a year ago.

Yet the feral nature of the beast loomed so close to the surface he could not hide it. The fur along his arms bristled. Father. Gabriel. Another child, but one older…one more coyote. How many had there been? A flash of teeth crossed his face as he opened his mouth, and his eyes caught the dying sun and captured it in their gaze. Ezekiel was livid, though his body remained stock still and hardly showed this. “My father,” the Aquila began slowly, his whiskers curling towards his muzzle. “Has left this land. My sister went after him. I am the only one that remains.”

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#5
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hhnnngh i suck


All of his tension was released at Ezekiel's words; his brother stood before him, but their father was gone. Aemon's large ashen ears shot back in defeat, a heavy sigh collapsing him over the walking stick. News of their mother's death had come only months prior, and the ache in his heart was still fresh. Now, it stung fiercely. "Left," he muttered, unable to keep the emotion from his voice. He'd come all this way... even his prayer had led him here; Aemon had been sure that he would remain. Embarrassed, he took a deep breath to compose himself and rose back to standing, crimson eyes briefly meeting the Ezekiel's fiery ones. As he shifted his bag with one hand, Aemon noted the hardness in his gaze, but held it. After all this way, he needed more than that. "The land belongs to you now, then..." he assumed, dark eyes moving back and forth in thought. "Do you think they will return?" he asked after a moment. His hope was feeble, but with Ezekiel here, wouldn't his father at least come to visit?


Aemon's face showed a frown, but his half-brother as Inferni's leader was still good news. Ithiel and Aemon had been the only de le Poers in Scintilla. Here, there was one more. There was strength in family. "I'd like to join you here, brother," he managed finally as red eyes found his golden ones again, "if you'll have me." If Aemon stayed, Ithiel would follow in later months. Then, there could be three again.


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#6
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The savage in man is never
quite eradicated

Word Count »

Oh there it was, the too-telling sign that another boy had filled his head with some false notion of a man greater than he was. Ezekiel had been like that once, when he had nothing to base his knowledge on, but after a month of close-contact and the still raw betrayal, Gabriel’s mythology was lost on him. He was a man like any other, and men were capable of mistakes—men were mortal. It had been Ezekiel who carried his father from the mountain. Gabriel was no God.

He remained still, not trusting his body. Some wolfish instinct wished for him to show dominance, to show reinforce the idea that he was not a force to be reckoned with. Had he not defeated Halo? Had he not remained when all others had gone? The coyote’s ears turned back, briefly, as he considered such a thing. “I doubt it,” he said bluntly, blonde hair flying away from his face as another gust of wind struck them. “But hope, if you want. Stranger things have happened,” the Aquila added, his teeth glistening in the sunset.

“If you wish to stay,” he went on, his eyes watching this new brother’s face carefully. “You should know what you walk into. Your name will gain you nothing here—I value those who prove themselves. You must be prepared to fight. You must be prepared to follow my orders when the time comes. And,” he paused, thinking of those new strangers he saw so much potential in. “Others will test you. This clan is...readying itself,” Ezekiel finally reasoned, knowing this was the simplest way to explain it.

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#7
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Aemon did nothing but nod solemnly at Ezekiel's response. He remained silent, now, crimson eyes studying this man who was his brother. Then he looked down, nodding. "Yes, of course. Gabriel will return, he forced himself to think.


Then, Ezekiel's tone became more serious, warning him. Dark slate ears rose again to catch all of his words. Aemon did not consider his name superior, nor did he think it made him worth more. But he knew how to fight. The lithe coywolf was swift and stealthy; at home, he'd been trained with many weapons. Now, all he had was this wooden stick, which would not do. "I can fight, and follow," he affirmed. "I only ask for you to share your knowledge. About our father, and this land..." He trailed off, gaze following the horizon behind his long-lost brother. Gabriel had preferred this home over Scintilla, and Aemon wondered why. And just what were they preparing for? "For war?" he guessed. The silver hybrid had noticed at least two other packs on his way here, and he was sure there were others. If coyotes were as intolerated as they were in Scintilla, he would not be surprised. Already he and his brother had seen several battles with local wolves; all had been small, but he knew the oppression nonetheless.



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#8
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The savage in man is never
quite eradicated

Feel free to have them head back towards the caves. We can start wrapping up. :>

Word Count »

“We will talk,” Ezekiel affirmed, though he wished sourly that his sister was around to aid him with such a task. Talitha would have been brutal in ways he could not be. Hell, even Gabriel should have been around to talk to this supposed son. It would have made his upcoming conversation a hell of a lot easier. A stranger who claimed blood could have come for any reason—but he didn’t seem to be lying about his goal, and so Ezekiel doubted he was here to cause trouble.

The Aquila shrugged, but showed one sharp, ivory tooth. “To be prepared, yes,” was all he said. There was no war coming, but one day there might be such a thing. It did not hurt them to know the ways of combat, and have plans in the event of war. “Come, walk with me. I have a lot of questions for you, but no desire to stand out in the dark. Tell me, where did you come from? And who is your mother?”

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#9
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i assumed he wouldn't know what killed jezebel, and only that she was dead? if not lemme knooow


Aemon kept silent, only nodding at Ezekiel's simple answer. He wasn't trusted yet, he knew, but Aemon wasn't bothered. For now, he was thankful to have a place to rest. The next few days would be filled with questions and learning, he thought. If this clan was making war preparations now, he needed to learn their ways quickly. He hoped they would not be so different from Scintilla.


At his brother's prompt, Aemon nodded and followed him past the skull-piked borders. Dark gaze lingered there as they passed, admiring their collection. Focus was quickly drawn at the mention of his mother, though, and Aemon's gaze shot down. He could feel his chest tighten, but forced himself to stay strong. After his earlier display, he needed to make a better impression. "My mother was Jezebel; she's... she's dead," he managed, stabbing the end of his walking stick harder into the ground as he walked. It angered him that he wasn't there for her in the end. But then, she hadn't always been there for him either. He'd often wondered whether it had been someone or something that had killed her, but Aemon preferred not to think that someone would murder his mother. Taking a deep breath, he continued. "I was born in Scintilla, to the southwest. We decorated our borders with our enemies, too," he mentioned, turning his head again to glance at the disappearing display. "Gabriel once helped lead a war there," he offered, hopeful that his father had shared that story with Ezekiel, so that he might hear it as well.


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#10
[html]
The savage in man is never
quite eradicated

Word Count »

The name was vaguely familiar, recalled from stories that his father had spoken years ago. It was the land that proved to him this boy was not lying—Scintilla was far south of here, and to claim knowledge of it as well as the fact that his father had led there, carried weight. Ezekiel finally accepted that they had to be brothers, then. If his sister had been present, she would have denied it. There had always been a weakness in him for blood.

He sighed into the wind. “I know about that place,” he admitted, blonde hair fluttering like the dying grass. “I think you and I will have a lot to speak of, Aemon.” This was something he now needed to face, and something he could not deny. Behind them the setting sun washed the sky with the twilight colors of pink and bleeding orange, and the cold air spoke of the too-soon coming of frost.

“Welcome to Inferni,” the Aquila added as they reached the top of a slope, overlooking the landscape of the Waste below.

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#11
Welcome to InferniRANKS · SITE · WIKI · NEWS

As a new member, why not:

    quare;">[*]Create some AW (all welcome) threads in our territory and meet some of your fellow clan members. Alternatively, you can join another member's AW thread (open threads are found here) or request for some private threads for plot purposes in our thread request forum.[*]Add your character to our member list. To do this, please post your character's information in this thread, using the form provided in the first post. NPC characters and NPC open characters of Inferni can be added as well, and will be displayed in their special sections of the list.[*]Check out our pack game and start earning points! The game is a great way to get fancy titles and icons for your character.[*]Take a look at the thread prompts. Every month, Inferni puts up three thread prompts, intended to promote activity and get Inferni members to know each other better both in and out of character. The list of current thread prompts can be found at the bottom of our Inferni Information Portal, as well as beneath the prizes on our game page.[/LIST]

    If you're confused about anything regarding Inferni or being a member of the clan, feel free to PM one of our pack leaders, and they can help answer your questions!

#12
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ndsjadka


Relief flooded Aemon at Ezekiel's words; so Gabriel had spoken of Scintilla here. It was comforting, and he wondered if others knew of the place he had so recently called home. He walked comfortably beside his golden half-brother, crimson eyes wandering the landscape as they moved through the grounds. Aemon's head filled with questions as they walked, but the swiftly approaching night and the biting cold kept him from speaking them now.


They came to the peak of a small hill, and below it lay the land his father had so recently reigned. The valleys below were peppered with boulders and sharp rocks, tall grasses swaying in the cool evening breeze. It was a prime piece of land, and he recognized it's potential; easy to navigate, with plenty of available cover. At Ezekiel's introduction, he stared in awe at the land, the setting sun casting a heavenly glow about the place. The Spirit had guided him here, and now he was certain that he was meant to be here. With a deep breath of the crisp air, he steadied himself against the wooden stick. "Father chose well," was all that he said.


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