Great is the art of beginning
#1
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Titania Moonsong
if nothing ever changed, there'd be no butterflies

This was it. It was time! Time for the fated lovers to take their place in this land and claim what was already theirs in spirit. They had already taken each other as mate, devoting their lives to one another. Now it was time to make that life worth something. Titania was young but strong of mind and spirit, and with Zalen to guide her she was unafraid. She trusted Zalen’s direction and leadership. He was part of her soul, how could she not?

So it was Zalen who called the shots for now, though Titania was not quiet with her thoughts. If she had questions she would ask him, and if she saw an error in the plan she would speak up. Though their plan, for now, was simple enough. They had left Zalen’s den in Arachnea’s Revenge shortly after the meeting with her father, and were to return to the place in the Halcyon Mountains where they had met to claim the land for themselves.

Now they were here again, in the place that would become known as Avalon, the very valley in which the moon first united them. The silvery wolfess walked close to her mate, paws dancing lightly over the ground, shoulder bumping up against his more often than not. A soft blanket of snow now covered the clearing and the edges of the pool were crisp with ice, but the river still flowed and the water fall churned the lake, keeping most of the water liquefied and clear.

The very sight of the stunning valley was breathtaking, and to see it now in its wintery state was exhilarating. As soon as the paradise was in view Titana’s heart began to race and she couldn’t help but let out a few excited yips. As they entered the clearing her excitement became palpable, and she nipped at Zalen’s cheek before racing off at a full sprint toward the lake. Her tail was curled high and petite little pawprints were left in the powder in her wake. When she reached the edge of the lake she stopped and peered over her shoulder, pink tongue lolling out of her wolfish grin as she challenged Zalen to chase.

Word Count :: +300
OOC :: Ok to back date to yesterday? Or more if you need?

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#2
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Zalen Damaichu
OOC :: Hahah I made this table just for this thread XD | WC :: +422

It had been an uneventful trip back to Avalon, though the time seemed to fly by with Titania at his side. They had left before the sun had even risen, and now as they entered in the frozen valley the sun was starting to dip in the sky, and it was beginning to get very cold. Titania, as carefree as ever, did not seem to mind this and nipped and tried to engage in play with him, bounding through the valley looking like nothing more than two streaks of red in the snow. He watched her with a soft smile on his face, wanting to join in with her but knowing there were more important things to attend to first. While she played in the snow Zalen quickly began skirting the edge of the valley, marking ever ten yards or so. They were lucky in that this was unclaimed land, the only wolf scent here was their own.

Finally he made it over to her, the valley now stinking of him, much to his pleasure. He lifted a paw and batted at her playfully, "It is getting dark you know, we should go down from this valley and see if there is any shelter." Not that the two really needed it, seeing as their thick winter fur was enough to keep them comfortable, but Zalen wanted to pamper his new mate as much as he could. "Come on, I saw a way out of here to the East." The two of them turned and headed out of the valley.

The snowy, rocky terrain out of the valley was somewhat treacherous, and by the time the two of them managed to get to even ground again the sun had set. The night sky was clouded and it began to snow very lightly around them. In the dark Zalen’s eyes pierced like search lights and he noticed a darker area to their right. Going to investigate he found it to be an opening to a large cavern. Smelling no other animal, the two wolves entered. Inside was massive, perhaps 1000 plus square yards of space in the main room alone. And it was warm here, and dry; Zalen turned to Titania, "Look at this place, a thirty or more wolves could live in here comfortably!" His tail wagged enthusiastically; it looked as if they had found their den.

Zalen moved over to a small alcove in the rock that was worn smooth and lied down there comfortably, giving Titania a look to join him.


i will follow you 'til the ends of the earth, my love
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#3
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Titania Moonsong
if nothing ever changed, there'd be no butterflies

At first she didn't really notice that her mate wanted to get down to business, the excitement of being back in the world where they first fell in love overwhelming her. Even when she looked back at him he didn't shoot her a stern look or act like he disapproved, but still he didn't come to her to play, either. Her tail wagged violently as she barked, and then very doggishly all of her extremities drooped as she watched him lift a leg at the edge of the clearing.

That's right, they are actually here to do something. Titania turned back to the lake, all signs of disappointment melting away from her visage as she stared out at the water. She would help mark the perimeter of their lands once they had decided them, but for now Zalen's musk was enough. Plus it might be best not to let on that there was a female here until they had fully scouted the lands.

At least, that's what Titania reasoned silently to herself as she continued to be very unhelpful, staring at the falls and looking for the spirit. She paced the bank, back and forth until she realized nothing was emerging. Zalen was on the other side of the clearing now. She looked at him, and then back to the falls, and whimpered as though she was trying to call out a friend to play; this time not Zalen.

Her ears fell back and she sniffed at the ground as she trotted around the lake, head low as though appealing to the spirit to emerge – she promised she would be good – but no rippling, fiery image appeared. Finally she noticed Zalen was done and she trotted over to him, looking a bit saddened.

“Will she come?” She asked, cocking her head and looking back to the waterfall. She wasn't sure but she thought that perhaps Zalen could ask the ghost to come back. They were connected, and Titania so dearly wanted to see the apparition again.

His eyes gave her the answer, and she conceded to him. As their paws made dual tracks out of the clearing she glanced back over her shoulder one last time, but saw nothing.

Her spirit quickly recovered though, and she was perky again just a few short feet out of the clearing. Her exuberance did little good for their trek over uneven terrain, though, and more than once she slipped, or would disappear up to the hip in deep snow. This was her first time dealing with snow, and here it was much thicker than in d'Arte. It was survival instinct that had her following behind Zalen, walking in his paw prints so these embarrassing mishaps would cease.

They arrived at the cavern, Titania's tail a whirl again. She nosed at the edges and sniffed the ground. There was no trace of other animals that she could detect. Zalen disappeared inside and her silvery form pranced in after, nails a staccato click on the stone ground. Golden eyes were bright in this cavern as she peered around at the sight.

“Wow... This place is beautiful. It's perfect!” she breathed and trotted away from her mate's side. To one wall she went and sniffed, and then she ran across to the other working up a near sprint and then skidding to a stop before colliding with the other wall. She sniffed there, and when she raised her head she saw Zalen in the alcove. She couldn't deny those eyes.

“What did you find?” Her voice chimed sing-song as she trotted over to him and crouched, moving beside him and snuggling up close. She looked into his face and then out at the cavern. “You can see the whole place right here, and we fit comfortably.” She giggled softly and butted her head up against his.

Word Count :: +600
OOC :: Ok to back date to yesterday? Or more if you need?

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#4
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Zalen Damaichu
OOC | WC :: +294

Having her next to him now cuddled up and warm he took a moment to reply to her earlier question, the one regarding his great-grandmother, "Ruby once was an Alphess you know, in fact she was one of the first." He gave Tit a smile, glad to finally tell her of his heritage, "She lead a pack called Silent Dawn. When I went East to the burnt realms where Silent Dawn once was she came to me and she has been by me ever since. She’s probably listening right now…" His words echoed eerily in the stillness of the cave, "She protects me and now she will protect you." He nuzzled Titania’s muzzle affectionately.

It was not long before Titania’s soft coos and rhythmic breathing put the large ebon male to sleep. That night he dreamt about Ruby, of when she had been young, and he and Titania and his mother ran along-side her in an endless spring and then up into the sky to chase stars. When the morning light finally drifted into the cavern Zalen awoke, his new bride still curled up in the hollow of his body. He nudged her softly to awaken her, and then got up and stretched. It was snowing outside but not too cold, the large white flakes were wet and fluffy. He turned and smiled at Titania playfully, "Come! Let’s see our new lands!" And with that he bounded out into the snow, immediately landing in a large bank and disappearing completely before emerging and breaching like a whale.

He laughed, tail waving behind him like a flag and waited for his mate, and when she came he circled her nipping playfully. They began to make their way North, a forest springing up in their view.


i will follow you 'til the ends of the earth, my love
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#5
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Titania Moonsong
if nothing ever changed, there'd be no butterflies

It was an honor to hear his story of his great grandmother. Until then the ghost had always been just that to her; a ghost. Something ethereal, mystical, and fantastical. Ever since that fated day in Avalon when she made her presence known, had chosen Titania to be one of the few to see her aery beauty, Titania felt drawn to her. Through cryptic words she had prophecised their future and had guided Zalen and Titania on their first steps to their glorious dream. She owed everything to Ruby. Yet still she did not feel indebted to the apparition. Instead she felt loved, for she was part of Zalen, and each loved the other deeply.

“She was?” she whispered, not questioning Zalen but marveling at the story. His own great-grandmother had been a first Alphess. That meant that the blood that coursed through Zalen's veins was truly meant for the life they wanted so dearly to create. Her eyes scanned his dark mien as she thought about the story of Ruby, and of his heritage. She so greatly wished she had a story like this to tell. Her father had been the founding leader of Cercatori d'Arte, but he was still very much alive and did not have the mysticism of a ghost. In time, though, she would learn to appreciate her lineage too.

She laid her chin on her paws, side pressed against the spot Zalen's body traced so perfectly for her own to fit in, and drifted off to sleep while thoughts of her beloved Ruby... great-grandmother in law?... trailed through her imagination.

Her dreams were filled with heavenly romps with Zalen, not dissimilar to the ones he himself had. From time to time Ruby would enter and she would walk with the mighty Alphess, but here in the dream world her visage was not nebulous as it had been when Titania had seen her. She was even more beautiful here. Titania walked with the Alphess through the clouds when the regal wolfess nudged her gently with her muzzle.

“Mmm?” Titania raised her head, eyelids opening half mast, and turned her gaze to Zalen. The nudge from Ruby in her dream had also been a nudge from her love in real life. Sleep was still heavy on her, and it took a long moment to begin to shake it from her body. Her maw opened in a wide yawn, tongue lapping out lazily as she soaked in the air. Finally she started to blink the sleep from her eyes. It was like they had switched roles – Zalen was already at the mouth of the den telling her to come see. Now the thrill coursed into her veins again and she leaped out of the alcove. A quick stretch of the forelegs, a kick of the back, and then she trotted over to him.

“Ah-ha ha ha!” She barked laughter as she watched her mate bound out of the den like a pup and promptly disappear into the snow. Every last hair of his dark form disappeared into the cloudy white snow. Her laughter quickly cramped her side but still she couldn't hold it in. It hadn't been so funny when she almost did that three times yesterday, but it was perfect now. He was supposed to be the sure footed one, after all.

She pranced delicately out of the den, careful to avoid making the same mistake. Her tail lashed unevenly as she trotted over to him. Her giggles started to die down, and as they abated she glanced to the west. The sky was still dark far off, and when she turned around she saw the bright orange-pink sunrise. The vision was not lost on her.

Yet Zalen's excitement was contagious. He wanted to explore and so did she! “What are you waiting for, slow poke?” she teased but he was already off, her paws kicking into gear a beat behind. Before them lay the woodsy expanse of a lush forest – one that in some ways remained green even in this winter. They danced among the trees, Titania weaving in and out coming close to Zalen and then parting in a wolfish adaptation of tag. She romped wholly feral, hardly even using words, choosing ancient canine techniques of communication, until finally she had something deeper to communicate.

“I was thinking...” her fae voice finally broke the wild. They had been running for a while and she now slowed to a brisk trot. Her eyes were on Zalen. “Our pack needs a name. Something appropriate... But nothing like those strange translations that touch back to the human world, like all the others out there.” She made a motion with her head, thinking of the origin of Cercatori d'Arte. The sky had lightened significantly now, and each of the night's stars were invisible. Still she remembered the sight of the sunrise as they left the den.

“We are still guided by the Alphess. This is as much her land as it is ours now. We are just a new generation carrying on an old tradition. I saw a sight this morning... did you notice it too? The dawn... our New Dawn...” Her eyes shifted to peer before her while she spoke, but turned back to him in that moment. What would he think of it? Was it silly?

Just then the ground beneath her felt strange. She stopped, surprised, and looked down at her paws. The trees didn't grow here. She looked to her right and there was a path of missing trees – the same to her left. Her ears flattened... something wasn't right. She took a few more steps forward, now coming to a patch of missing snow. “Zalen... the ground...” She had seen paved roads before, but hadn't expected this. Here in the midst of their wild paradise was the remnants of the humans' destruction... a highway carved through the center of their beautiful forest.


Word Count :: 999
OOC :: This was so out of proportion. Sorry. x.x

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#6
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Zalen Damaichu
OOC | WC :: +434

As the world darkened around them from the shadows of both the evergreen and bare trees Zalen’s mate touched up against him in such a way that made him glance at her. She had something important to say, he could sense it, and just like clockwork she began to speak. She spoke that they should follow in Ruby’s footsteps and name the pack and he nodded. She recalled the beautiful sunrise of that morning and he remembered it too and in a beautiful instant she spoke their packs name; New Dawn. He smiled and nuzzled her, "That is perfect. New Dawn…" but his thoughts were cut short as his paws touched unfamiliar ground.

This change in sensation had also startled Titania and the two of them stood like statues with their front paws in oblivion. Zalen was astounded; a road? A road here in the middle of the wood? His ears flattened in frustration and despair; they had come here to find somewhere wild and untouched by the humes, but apparently this was only a dream.

Sensing his love’s anxiety Zalen boldly stepped out onto the broken concrete, staring down the treeless scar as far as it went in one direction, "This does not have to put us to dismay… let’s see where it leads, perhaps the earth reclaims it farther down." Zalen set forward then, black paws taking him swiftly through the forest, Titania not far behind. He stayed close to her side, stopping every once in a while to mark a tree before setting out again. He hoped against hope that this road would melt away to nothing.

But sadly it was not so, though the road seemed to disappear in some places it would only rise again soon after and sometimes become stronger than ever. The two of them exited the forest, soon crossing a small, ice threatened river before finally coming to a large meadow, completely covered in snow. Zalen’s eyes were beginning to ache from all the white, and he used Titania’s body to remain moving in a straight line despite closing his eyes for a while. One of these moments was broken suddenly when Titania’s movement hitched and he opened eyes to see something that made his heart sink into his stomach. There, with the road running through it, was a small hume settlement; several buildings stood awkwardly and haphazardly in the snow, like twisted boulders. It even smelled strange here, like a dirt Zalen had only smelt in Halifax; his nose wrinkled at it. With sigh he began moving forward to see how extensive this place was.


i will follow you 'til the ends of the earth, my love
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#7
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Titania Moonsong
if nothing ever changed, there'd be no butterflies

The discovery of the highway made her heart sink, but Zalen wasn’t so quick to let this finding defeat him. Titania whined mournfully as they took their first few steps down the snowy asphalt pathway. She didn’t like this at all. This place was to be their paradise. How could they have a paradise when it was marred with such an ugly scar as this? Still, the thrill of adventure quickly wrangled her heart, and the farther they padded down the old freeway the livelier her steps became. Ears perked, tail raised again; if Zalen wasn’t going to let this beat him, she wouldn’t either.

She pranced at Zalen’s side, still surveying the land even as they trotted over the endlessly snowy terrain. Once she slipped on ice, and her legs splayed out every which way. Her claws scraped for purchase, but it was her closeness to Zalen that kept her from toppling to the ground and rescued a scrap of her dignity. She looked at Zalen, momentarily embarrassed, before laughing… might as well find the humor in it while she can.

It wasn’t long after that when she saw it… the scab that the scar led them to. Her breath caught in her throat and she jerked to a halt, golden eyes glaring at the shadowy buildings before them. They were worse than she imagined. Even the buildings that Cercatori d’Arte so foolishly embraced were better than this. They were broken, ugly, with archaic signs hanging unevenly from oxidized bolts. One particular building had an overhang that had long ago collapsed.

“This is… terrible…” She whimpered mournfully. “What do we do?” Her eyes turned to Zalen as he courageously began padding forth to inspect the dilapidated rest stop. Her ears flattened and she whimpered. “Don’t go over there,” she pleaded. This place was not at all like the places in Cercatori d’Arte, and because they marred her dream she liked it even less.

She watched him take a few steps before hurrying to catch up with him. They couldn’t stay away, she knew. They had to inspect, they had to truly look at this place before they could go any further, or come to any conclusions.

She trotted up to the first place, another building with an over hang that had mostly blown away. There was a building with two rusty pillars outside. She cautiously approached the pillars and sniffed apprehensively. Jostling a nozzle by accident, it fell from its hook and clattered to the ground, yanking on the decaying rubber hose attached. A pungent fluid burbled from the nose of the nozzle.

Titania yelped and leaped back, backpedaling until her rump bumped into Zalen’s side. Her ears flattened again and she growled at the pump, the smell coming from the tarnished fuel sickened her. “I don’t like this place,” she said. “Let’s look at another…”

Word Count :: 477

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#8
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Zalen Damaichu
They traveled through sunrise meadow to arisag shoal and now are running into InH | WC :: +314

Though Titania seemed quite apprehensive, Zalen would not bow in the face of this monstrosity. He went forward into the old hume town, its small buildings looming up around him. It was nothing like the horror of Halifax, so he could survive it; besides, as those mountains of rubble in the city had constantly been creaking, moaning, these buildings were very much silent and dead. He walked along the side of one of the homes, sniffing, and could find no scent that disturbed him. His reverie was then shattered by Titania’s yelp and her bumping into him.

She had made a hose of sorts come loose and it was spewing a liquid that reeked. He went near it cautiously, the smell familiar despite its toxicity. It took him a moment to place where he had smelled it before, and realized that it was a scent that had intermingled with the cars of Halifax; this must be gas. Looked at Titania, decided it best not to tell her the properties of this liquid. He moved several feel from it, and kicked several good mounds of snow to cover the hose, "We can leave." He said with confidence.

The two of them then exited the town and left off of the concrete path to bound in the deep snow of the meadow they were in. There was no need to continue on the highway now, they knew where it lead, but the two of them continued to parallel it. And soon, after several hours and with the sun settling low in the sky, scents began to emerge; wolf scents. They became stronger and stronger until finally a hard border to be found; a pack. "Do you know of this pack?" He said turning to Titania; it was not Anathema, nor Inferni, nor Salsola, but they were still North. Zalen had no knowledge of another pack here.


i will follow you 'til the ends of the earth, my love
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#9
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Titania Moonsong
if nothing ever changed, there'd be no butterflies

They found all they needed to know about the human buildings. They were dilapidated beyond repair. They might be a danger to walk inside, and they were only a shell of what they had once been. It was unlikely that any Luperci would even desire to live in the structures, and that was probably why no one lived there now. Zalen was unafraid of the small human settlement and he traversed the rest stop fearlessly. Even the bubbling, pungent fluid from the gas pump hadn’t phased him much. He just coolly buried the thing, and for Titania it was out of sight, out of mind. She felt more comfortable with the smell of the fuel dampened by snow. Of course, her powerful nose could still detect it, it was just less offensive now.

Relief washed over her when he said they could leave. This place was ghastly, like a grave yard, and she was happy to be away from it. As they stepped off of the paved highway her steps picked up again and soon the pep was back. They galloped through the meadow, hours of running and occasional play passing the day away. Soon the setting sun was far behind them, and they faced a darkening land that was crawling with other wolves.

This time she didn’t react with fear or apprehension, only curiosity. She stood tall and alert, surveying the different sounds and scents of this land. She cocked her head to the side, looking very confused and innocent.

“I don’t recognize the scent, but unless we went off course…” she glanced over her shoulder, and then back to Zalen. “It’s got to be either Anathema or Ichika no Ho-en.” She only knew of the packs from hearing them mentioned around Cercatori d’Arte. Although she hadn’t been to many of the lands she did have a general idea of their placement on the map.

“Should we find out? Might as well meet our new neighbors, right?” She grinned, but before she let out a howl to announce their presence at the pack’s borders she stopped, letting the final decision be Zalen’s. They had been out all day and were not prepared for things to go awry.

Word Count :: +300
OOC :: Naaaat... Reread the last sentence of your first paragraph. Lahv! Wink And... does this signify a new thread? To Ichika?

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#10
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Zalen Damaichu
OOC :: Hurpadurpa, I’m stupid XD This can be the last post if you want it to be. We need to get our tails in gear to get ND started!| WC :: +281

Titania mentioned a name that was not familiar; Ichika no Ho-en; that must be what this pack was. Zalen nudged his mate gently on the chin, "It is not Anathema, I lived by that pack so long I recognize their scents. This must then be Ichika as you said." A pack so close to their territory, but it seemed as if this was something that couldn’t be avoided, "Do you know anything of them? What kind of pack is it?" He wanted to learn as much as possible about their potential neighbors, they would be hard pressed to establish a pack near a territory such as Salsola or Inferni, he hoped against hope that Ichika was not like these others.

Titania suggested that they call upon the leadership and introduce themselves but Zalen shook his head, "No, this would not be wise. It is only us two, and if they chose not be friendly or happy about a new pack being established so close to them we would not stand a chance. No, let us wait until we have gathered all of our members; then they will be hard pressed to snuff us out." And with the subject closed Zalen turned south, back towards where he knew his den must be.

The two wolves walked in the stillness of night, close to each other, as one being. Zalen was tired, but he must press forward and gather Soran and the other’s if he could, "When we get to the den, you may rest my love, I will continue onto Crimson Dreams." But as he said this he couldn’t help but let forth a yawn, at which he smiled at Titania wearily.


i will follow you 'til the ends of the earth, my love
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