Quote from Adriana on August 25, 2018, 12:49 pm

Indy

Jackie showed no sign of letting go. Her arms were clamped tight around her body, as though at any moment Melinda would simply float away. The wind stirred from the open window, sending up the wild locks of Jackie’s hair stirring like fire in the sunlight. Melinda sighed, her face tugging in the appearance of a small smile; yet it was no more a smile than she was straightforward. It was a pained, tired thing and her skin looked taut on her face.

“Oh, is that so?” her voice intoned in the same tone she’d used on the alpha before. Mocking, arrogant, yet now tired and without its former weight.

She was a bedraggled visage of her former self. Her hair was strewn over her shoulder in wheaten locks, no better groomed than the wild red hair of her sister. Her clothing was dirty, her eyes tired, and her tiny frame all the smaller in the midst of the room. Surely, and particularly upon the weight of information she’d just conveyed, a person of such small stature would crumble away to a mere wisp. Yet that was not so. Tired though she might be, her eyes were still resolute. She had come with purpose, and nothing, not even a room full of “weapons” would deter her from it.

Her voice settled sharply in her throat, “If you are willing to barter, then we will have a proper conversation”.

"I did not come for you. I did not come to serve your bidding. And I will not be bullied into it regardless of threat. But at present, your desire suits my own. And so you will find me cooperative,” her eyes flickered back to the orange mass currently engulfing her shoulder, “Insofar as you use it to help her”

Melinda deposited the small vial into Kratos’ massive palms.

“Do we have a deal?”

—

In the drama that unfolded, Theo had found himself an innocent corner of the room to remain. He couldn’t leave, not until the wildness in Timothy’s eyes retreated. Yet he found himself unneeded and unacknowledged. It was a strange limbo. He was contemplating how far Toby must have run by now when he saw the bright flash of blue. Like every other in the room, he was transfixed. Yet perhaps for a different reason. He’d taken in it’s strange scent in a single breath, and his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He knew this smell.

Quote from Adriana on August 25, 2018, 12:49 pm

Deseree

Those embry eyes drifted back to Josh's limp body, a stitch in the woman's brow. Her gaze was broken when Tammy laid out the things on the table and she mouthed a thank you, followed by a curt nod. Keeping her eyes on the floor, she waited for the room to become quiet, then stood. Calculating, Robin took a long look at each new person in the room. There was dignity, and kindness, and charity to be seen.. and she concluded with a short sigh that she had nothing to worry about in leaving the injured child behind.

"C'mon, lets go." she uttered quietly on approaching Uno. At the doorway, one last thoughtful gaze was cast on the Calagathorm pack and their company, and the stranger departed.

Quote from Adriana on August 25, 2018, 12:50 pm

Indy

With guarded umber eyes, Uno watched each in the room. To still be standing as they were was a bewilderment… they’d clambered into a hornet’s nest, yet once there, had not been stung. Kindness it may be, but to rely so heavily on it was a dangerous thing. It was only by Robin’s stubbornness he’d remained as long as he had. And thus without delay, he followed after her as she headed out the door.

Quote from Adriana on August 25, 2018, 12:50 pm

Mae

Like a curtain being drawn closed, Kratos' fingers folded on the mysterious blue vial and its contents. The giant's towering body then leaned over Melinda and Jackie, casting a long shadow over them, and he spoke in a quiet voice.

"Nothing would give me greater pleasure." Kratos said in reply. "But it appears that your companionship has already been most helpful."
With a look that told more than his words had said, the Alpha surveyed Jackie with his bright yellow eyes and then looked at Melinda again.

"If you are all satisfied," He said to the rest of the room, he stood straight again and his shadow was withdrawn. "I need not remind you that we have guests on the mountain who are bred of ill humor. Therefore, I ask you to resume the task that I presented to you prior, and to not dally on your way."

In the same instant as giving the instruction, Kratos raised his hand and forbade Timothy to go with them. "You, my friend," He said in the same calm voice. "Will remain here with me."
*****

Timothy had felt the room become very small when the Alpha entered it, and the air seemed increasingly thick to him, despite the open window. However, as much as Timothy would have preferred to hasten out the room, he did not dare to pass Sabrina or the Alpha. So long as both of the aforementioned were between him and the exit, Timothy was forced to take a spot in the corner, opposite Theo, and lay on the floor. His turquoise eyes examined the Alpha's hand from time to time while he, too, was sniffing at the mysterious vial as if it were familiar.

*****

Kratos sat down on the bed, which seemed considerably too small for him, and beckoned Melinda to say her piece.
What became of the vial must hereafter be only assumed - inasmuch as it stayed in his hand, or was concealed on his person, or placed in some other location, - for once the Alpha's hands had enfolded upon it, the vial was gone from the knowledge of all, and would stay that way until such a time as he might later produce it.

*****
[Meanwhile, the hunters were again on the prowl through the woods.]

Willow-man would not recall what happened after the moment that he stumbled and met the ground, for with the drunken drowsiness of his stupor came also a forgetfulness, and shortly thereafter, a cumbersome slumber. The hunters were not in the mood for idle chat that autumn afternoon, and evening was coming on quickly.

The werewolves had spent most of their morning moving from one chaotic encounter to another, but the hunters were not relieved of their want by the brief skirmish on the road. Though Douglas Hampshire had scored a vengeful blow against his enemy, he was not satisfied, and he refused to withdraw with his companions.
Mary Berg knew that night would bring disadvantageous changes in the terrain for all of them, and that the longer the hunt continued, the greater the chances that they would take losses. As yet, however, Mary did not attempt to persuade the others to forsake the hunt.

"Where do ya s'pose they've gone?" Daniel Wiles said presently, muttering. "We ought just to drop this and join Al and Bolt at the bar."

Mary made a brief comment. "They've regrouped by now, they're waitin' us out."

"They've gone to the houses on the hill." Douglas replied, stepping out of his hiding place and making no hesitation to instruct the others onward. "Find the ones that we shot and kill them."

"Doug, I don't think these are the same ones that got Mercy." Mary said. The others looked at her gravely.
She continued, "They weren't the same colors, and they didn't dress alike."

It appeared that for a moment the hunting party was indecisive, looking between Douglas and Mary. Waiting for a decision to be made, the hunters wondered whether the hunt would be abandoned prematurely, or if they would pursue their query into its den. All had wanted the hunt to have better first results, but after their scuffle with the werewolves, the hunters were less enthusiastic. On other occasions, it was Harvey Bolt who led the company, and no one would dare to argue with his manner of doing things. This excursion, led by Douglas, had promised to be low-risk and high gain, if the right shots were fired in the first few moments. But now that the werewolves had been warned of the hunter's presence, everyone knew that they would be as hard to find as a shadow in the dark, and the prospect of a successful hunt seemed dim.

In answer to Mary, Douglass turned around. The others heard the gravel beneath his heel grind, but Douglas' dark eyes were solid like stone and showed no sign of his inner thoughts.
"The one that got Mercy was black as night." He said, in a tone reiterating his resolve. "We find it. We kill it. Then, we will leave. The one that I shot took off down toward the brook, so we'll track it from there."

With that last word, whether or not the others would join him, Douglas Hampshire turned away and resumed the hunt.

Quote from Adriana on August 25, 2018, 12:50 pm

Mae

Diane was somewhere between awake and asleep for a time. Adrift in the dim, murky pools between unconsciousness and a wakeful mind, Diane did not hear if Jodecai replied to her inquiry. Instead, she saw visions of the past as they mixed with emotions in the present, and dreamed a fantasy of the future. She dreamed of gun-shot wounds and claps of thunder, of city streets and eyes that watched from the shadows, of claws and maws and a howling voice that broke out over the sky. All while she dreamed, a fire burned at the back of her mind and in the foreground of her vision. Her body burned, and her lungs ached, but far more unbearable was the torment that consumed her mind; a mind so poised and calculating when kept from rest could devise the worst scenarios to explain agony and fear. Diane aroused herself as frequently as strength afforded, but it was fleeting.

At long last, Diane became aware of a light that stung her eyes and warmed her face. It was a dying light; the light of a setting sun, and yet its warmth pricked her skin.

Reason detested weakness, but in that weary hour Diane's heart longed for her father.

At present, she could not tell if Drake was in the room, or how much time had elapsed between her inquiry and her next wakeful moment, but when Diane stirred for the second time she could see the world outside the somber shack growing dark and dreary. She breathed her first steady breath in awhile, an effort to regain her composure despite the pain. Then she moved her hand, the only one she could feel, and lifted herself.

Where were the others?

Quote from Adriana on August 25, 2018, 12:50 pm

Indy

Theo felt a pang of unease tug at the pits of his stomach. His alpha had commanded him to leave, and surely he must obey it… and yet he could not forget that smell. It was uncanny. The boy lingered at the periphery of the room as the others exited, as though tugged simultaneously in both directions and thus not moving at all. At last, however, obedience won out and with only the briefest glance towards Timothy he retreated with the others.

---
Melinda exhaled with a harsh gush of air through her nose. She made no attempts to hide neither her relief nor her exasperation. The rest of the pack retreated from the room, as meek as children in a line. It was both amazing in the chaos they could create while their master was away, as well as their obedience when he returned. It was no wonder why Jacqueline had fit so well into their ranks.

Her gaze flickered towards her sister, still tugging tight. Melinda sighed, and pulled away slightly now from the embrace. For a moment, Jackie resisted, her arms drawing taut to restrain her. Melinda made no further attempt to pull away. If she desired it so, the red-haired woman could snap her slim frame in two. Nonetheless Jackie's arms ultimately fell limp, settling at her side stiffly. Her head was still bowed under a mass of tangled red hair. She looked feral and, utterly defeated.

Melinda sighed.

“The vial you hold in your hands, Alpha Kratos, is a secret not known to many. I did not design it. I do not know it’s implications, and I suspect you will have questions I cannot answer. However, what I can tell you is this.

It comes from the wild places of this world, from a flower which is known to some of your kind there… for ages it was used as traditional medicine, as a way to ease their transformations and gain better control, particularly in their young and newly turned.

In a more recent time, the many very interesting properties of this flower were discovered by those of more scientific discipline. With some experimentation, a serum was made… it was thought to exponentially increase the effectiveness in this purified form. However, not without consequence

To say it is highly addictive is moreover assumed… the body grew dependent upon that which it thought it needed”.

Melinda pursued her lips, "Yet there is more to it, as well… while the petals of the flower granted control, myth said the leaves would grant the opposite to those who partook in the leaves. Death, I presume, though we are fortunate in that it has not been tested”

Melinda glanced at Jackie. She had not said a word as she had spoken. Briefly, Melinda wondered if she heard anything at all, or if her mind was somewhere far, far away.

“Jacqueline, I am sorry. I really am”.

Jackie shifted, her hair falling from her face to her back, the bright glint of her eyes sharp on hers, "I know he sent you here to take me back… or to kill me”.

Melinda met that gaze, “I came here to save you. From him, and from yourself"

Quote from Adriana on August 25, 2018, 12:50 pm

Kaqurei

His body was one with his surroundings. The air he drew in as breath was in time with and did not disturb the very breeze. He swayed, ever so slightly, with the greys and the duns of the autumn grass. For all intents and purposes, the wolf with the jackrabbit pelt was invisible. As daylight slipped into its fitless slumber, he drew more and more into his element.

Levi didn't know who Mercy was or what had happened to her, but it seemed clear the hunters had come to avenge her. At least, Douglas had. That made him three times as dangerous as any of them... and also their weakest point. Strange, that such dual realities could exist at the same time.

A black wolf. It could only be one of two; Timothy, or the leader of those rogues that had invaded Calagrathorm pack territory. As Levi had neither seen nor scented the rogues before that day, he felt it just as well to assume the aggressor these hunters were after was Timothy. But Timothy hadn't been the one they had shot. Nor was he the one they were tracking now.

It seemed folly to seek after those who had been enemies and provide them aid. Too, it seemed entirely inhuman to let another perish when one had the power to prevent it. Again, a paradox. Levi's mind was made quickly. Carefully, he slipped utterly boundless, backwards, his eyes and ears not leaving the group of hunters treading the trail ahead of him. Then, once the distance was right, he slinked forward, ever quickening his pace towards the river. He could get there before the hunters did. What would he do then? ...it would come to him, he assumed.

****

Sabrina watched with a keen eye all that transpired. She watched after the lower ranking members of the pack as they followed the Alpha's command. For her part, she did not yet move. She looked at Timothy, meaningfully, and again at the Alpha, this time with a question. It would be up to him to discern it, but, for once, there was a trace of humility--or respect--or both in her gaze.

Quote from Adriana on August 25, 2018, 12:50 pm

Deseree

Bianca had listened to Tammy's advice-looking hesitantly towards Robin as the woman left without taking the leaves with her. Usually she would have gone after her, but today had left her feeling strangely unsociable and out of sorts. Instead she went quietly over to the loveseat in the living room sat, crossing her arms and watching dust particles flitter through the air where the last rays of sunshine scattered across the room.

Logan had been silent the whole while, but her mind was ever moving. The events that had happened just earlier had left her with the blueprints to discover her other side-to gain control of her secondary form and better understand the heightened senses that came with it, no longer clouded by pure instinct.

Josh's blood was the most prominent scent. It dominated the air with the heavy smell of copper. Her eyes kept drawing back on those sheets thrown haphazardly around the table, bloodied and torn. The smell of sweat and salt, perhaps tears? Bianca had been crying, she could see that in the redness of her face. The lingering odor of the breakfast Kratos had laid out earlier, the dust in the unused cabin...

Anxiety, too, had it's own print. Not in the same way smell did. Even humans could sense anxiety to an extent, but this was far more refined. Uno's anxiety had weighed heavily on the air, and dissipated with his leaving. It was the same anxiety that told ones instincts to fight or fly, and Logan could feel how easily it would be to be swept up in it in a breaths moment: drawn to a realm of hunt or be hunted. However she remained outside the brim of bestial desire and continued on as an observer. Josh, too, had a lot of anxiety, of a different kind. She decided it best to remain steadfast where she was, but looked to Ulric, urging him in a glance to make a decision regarding the strangers.

Quote from Adriana on August 25, 2018, 12:51 pm

Mae

Ulric wanted to ask the former strangers to stay. He longed to call them back in, to give them rest from their wounds, and to give them shelter from the danger of the hunters. Would it be wise to keep so many strangers under one roof, however? No. In Ulric's heart of hearts he was the longing for everything to be okay, for everyone to be friends, and for life to go on no matter what, but that was not reality. The hard truth was that every action and inaction had a consequence, and despite what we want there will always be something outside our control. Ulric knew that the best thing to do was let the kind strangers go, and hope in some way to meet them again.

With less people in the room to radiate nervous energy, it might have seemed like the atmosphere would be relieved, but the two common strangers produced enough despite it to keep everyone on edge.

"We should go now, Tammy." The broad-shouldered young man said in a gruff voice.

Tammy did not budge.

Ulric looked with a wary expression at Logan and Bianca. Logan had said nothing the whole time and Bianca was too-terribly unsettled by the prior events to be much use as a consultant.
At last, Ulric ventured forward with his hands at his sides and his palms facing outward.

"Look," he said. "We're not going to hurt you. You've helped us a lot and we owe you, so don't be afraid."

"You can't make promises like that, wolf." The young man replied. "None of you can."

Ulric furrowed his brow, unsure of what to make of the reply. He breathed a sigh and was surprised to discover how stuffy the air felt to him of a sudden. There was nothing to warrant it.

"Look, you don't have to tell us who you are, and we're not going to make you stay." Ulric said and attempted to clear his throat with a cough, but it only made him feel more congested. "We just owe you a favor, so if there's anything..."

"There is something." Tammy said suddenly. The young man who stood beside her looked agitated.

"What is it?" Ulric asked, glancing between the two guests uncertainly.

Tammy hesitated, then she reached into her handbag and pulled out papers, the pages that Zander had given her earlier. She set them on the table beside Josh's thigh and said,
"Please, return this to the one who gave it to me." Immediately her escort looked relieved.

"Okay," Ulric said. "Is there anything else?"

Tammy was silent, her expression as solemn as the grave. "No." She said at last, then she and her cousin withdrew from the table. Ulric watched them go and wondered immensely what was right to say to them, but who would respond? The cousins had gone from the dens as silently as they came, leaving no scent and no explanation.