Verisimilitude

[deardominique]

The ground was crisp, blanketed in a generous layer of sticky snow. The winds were mild, barely enough to softly caress the saplings into a minuscule sway. Yet, the fiery sphere of fire burned in the heavens like an olympian's torch, strong and unyielding. It's rays seemed to shoot down through the sapphire cloudless sky like finely tipped arrows, landing upon the winter-crested, desolate terrain relentlessly. The combination seems strange, unlikely even, but there it was. In mid-winter, temperatures greater than those that occur in the dog day's of Summer lingered over these lands. The snow was steadily melting, but a thick layer still concealed the Earth.

...Where am I...?

The words echoed infinitely in her head, which throbbed and hung low to the ground. Wolfen brows furrowed, pinnacles of pain shot up through every painstaking step. She didn't know where she was going, but she knew she must get somewhere...Where? The vixen herself wasn't sure. Auditives rested, completely lax atop regal skull. Her thick pelt of an impressive ebony was soaked through with sweat, a result of the persistant sun and the intense heat which seemed to be trapped within the perimeter. It was like a white desert.

The she-wolfen trudged on, canines firmly clenched. Her pace faltered, and she felt her paw bend beneath her lithe bodice, setting her on the ground in a bow-like stance. She tried to speak, but the only sound that escaped her wolfen jaws was an incoherent mumble, and with that lids monotonously closed over clouded honey occulars, and the svelte she-wolfen limply lolled to the side laying completely still on the damp, snow shrouded foundation.

[Relairah]

As the rays of the sun would beat down upon the land, warming it in the light, and melting away the white blanket of snow covering it, a creature would move foward. She appeared to be a wolf, in a way, but at closer look, one would see, she wasn't exactly a wolf. Her pelt was dark brown, with green stripes patterned about her pelt. Whisps of light brown tinted her fur, and even some hints of orange were evident. Her build resembled more of a feline appearance. A wolfish muzzle, set in a round head carried round ears. Her head was set on a short, arched neck, and a long, round yet thin-like body. Her tail was long and thin, brown with dark green stripes all the way down to the tip of it, and it was perhaps her most feline-like feature. Her legs were rather long, yet sturdy, with large paws. Though they were not visible right then, she carried long, sharp, feline-like claws. Upon her back, were large, butterfly wings, or so they appeared to be. Yet, in truth, they were feathered wings... in the shape of butterfly wings. The feathers were bay leaves, green in color. The edges of her wings were brown in color, the tips a dark orange. Whisps of light brown and different shades of green were here and there along the leafy 'feathers'.

Katarina was indeed a most peculiar creature, yet she was quite lovely in truth. She moved along briskly through the melting snow. She did indeed notice the heat, but she had just come from the packlands to which she belonged, her body freshly fed, watered, and rested. And, she had not been traveling very far. Why she'd left the borders of the packlands, was mere curiosity. She had been in the Out-Lands before.. she had been raised there... but far away from these lands. Very far away. These were unexplored lands by her own eyes, and she wondered what was here. She had a diamond that hung about her neck on brown chains, the crystal having a gentle green glow to it.

She was looking around herself and as her gaze fell to the earth stretching for seemingly eternity before her, her gaze would fall upon a small lump in the snow. She cocked her head in curiosity, pausing in her step for a moment, watching this small lump. She moved foward, lowering her head slightly, nose sniffing. As she drew nearer, she discovered what she gazed upon was a wolfess, and she at last stopped at the other's side. The other was alive... she knew that, but she was in no sort of strong condition. Katarina nudged the other gently, not taking note to the fact the other couldn't speak. "Hello? Are you okay?" she questioned with concern.

When she might discover the other could not speak, she would first make the sugestion the other eat some snow. Snow, once melted in one's mouth becomes liquid... and she would be sure the other would do well with some water, although it perhaps would be quite cold. She would then proceed to ask the other if she were hungry, perhaps. And, she at last would question whether the other wanted help in any way. She would be glad to support the other and take her anywhere. Katarina would be happy to answer any questions the other had... at least as far as her own knowledge went. A friendly smile might play across her lips... yet right now, her eyes that were usually playful were dancing with concern.

[deardominique]

Indeed. The seemingly feline-wolf hybrid who had stumbled across her still figure was...peculiar. If Elena had possessed the strength to scrutinize the being, or atleast possess an ounce of fortitude to open an eye and peer at the creature, her curiousity would most certainly have been stirred.

The ebony wolfen proceeded to lye motionless on the moist loam. The silhouette of her ribcage could easily be observed through her velveteen pelt of the deepest ebony hue, her chest gently rising and falling with each slow, shallow breath. As Katarina inquired the canine's well-being, her brow twitched subtly. The words stirred her from the ethereal reverie she had sucumbed too over the many weary miles of her travels. Elena found herself slowly being pulled away from the clenching jaws of the caliginous state of mind she had fallen into. She mumbled, the words too soft and muddled to be interpreted, let alone understood and grasped.

It seems that the snow around the nigrescent she-wolfen had inexplicably been promptly melted, and in it's place the genuine ground could be seen. The earth itself was flaxen-colored grass. The color it is blatantly expected to be after a long, vigorous winter. So there she lay, weak as a newborn whelp, surrounded by a golden halo of cadaverous turf.

Finally, murky twin pools opened weakly. Elena feebely squinted up to the stranger who lingered above her, optics only opened to fine reptillian slits. Her vision was far from perfect, the lithosphere appeared to spin dauntingly around her, and the edges of all objects were smudged and out of focus. She tried to turn over, attempting to rest on her belly, but a sharp convulsion of pain stopped her short, and alabastor inscisors clenched firmly shut, instinctivly trying to dull the pain.

A rather deep chasm burried deep into the vixen's shoulder. The sinew recklessly torn, and the inflamed, cardinal flesh openly exposed. Crimson fluid poured steadily from the wound, and stained the dry caramel-huen glades beneath her quiescent form.

"I'm...fine..."

She managed to mutter, words vaguely muffled due to the fact that her inscisors remained rigidly grappled shut.

[Relairah]

Slowly brows would furrow over those caring bright blue eyes, and a slight frown would come to her brown lips. She watched the movements that came from the other, and frowned even further with the open wound that bled onto the melting snow beneath them. Ears twitched, catching the two soft words spoken by this wolfess. She sighed, speaking gently. "If anything, you are not fine." she stated, hoping she hadn't gone unheard. At least she knew the other was conscious... but in such a bad condition. She could heal this wolfess... but firstly, only if the other desired it, and... she was unsure, really. She hadn't ever healed someone before, and, she was sure if she did she would lose much of her own strength.

The other was in such a bad condition... and she really did not want to ask more than the other could give. "Don't speak," she said gently. Perhaps if she could just move her somewhere else. She raised her head, looking around for a moment. At last, her eyes laid upon a blossoming tree. It would be some shade from this sun. She looked once more upon the wolfess at her paws. She shifted her position so that she stood behind the wolfess, and gently she attempted to wedge herself beneath the other, hoping to either lift the other upon herself, or, if not that, at least give her something to lean on for support. If she had success... she would then take the wolfess toward that tree. and place her beneath it.

"Please... at least try to drink some of this snow," she said with a smile. She wanted to help the other further. She only needed a nod or a shake of the head for an answer.. no words were needed. She spoke once more, voice full of care, and she found this perhaps was a question with an obvious answer, but despite, she asked it anyway. "Do you want me to heal you?" She was sure the wolfess would reply with a 'yes', yet after she healed the wolfess.. if she did.. she was really quite unsure of what would happen. Would she herself fall unconscious for a few days? Or would she only lose strength enough so that she'd have to rest a long while? She had no clue.

She sat back on her haunches slightly, senses alert. She watched the other with eyes shining with concern, wanting to help. She found this a bit odd. She hadn't ever really done this before. She was usually perky, bouncy, playfull... but she could see easily that now was deffinately not the time for such things. Neh, so she simply patiently waited on the other, that was all she could do... just for the time being.

[deardominique]

The desolate terra that the two creatures had managed to stumble upon, was laced with ethereal secrets. The truth was, Elena did not exit the pack lands and venture to this location on foot. But rather, she simply appeared here. Where her wounds had come from, she did not know. All she remembers are breif flashes of bright lights before they were promptly swallowed up by dashing figures of raven black. The surrounding area definately withheld some strange secrets. This land was special, this land was a transitional place between the real world, and the spirit world. This fact opened up new envelopes of questions, newly aquired inferences that may determine how Elena obtained her wound, and secondly, what was the strange object wrapped around the huntress' neck?

It seemed the relic had gone un-noticed, to both Katarina and Elena, who gently stirred now and managed to flip over and lay still on her belly. Honey-sorrel eyes glanced down at the pendant hung loosly around her neck. The she-wolfen was still light-headed, her vision still fuzzy, but the vague out line of an oval-shaped stone could definately be made out. Tiny veins of ebony blanketed the stone, and almost appeared to pulse deftly in the brilliant light of the day.

Elena scrutinized the opal, the faint feeling of de ja vu pulling softly in her memory. Although she could not fully recall where this feeling had been dug up from. Relizing that Katarina was still in her prescence, as it had slipped her unfocused mind, Elena once again looked up towards the feline-wolf hybrid. The wolfen had not the slightest clue how long she had been lying on the damp snow, but it seemed after however long it had been, she was finally comming to. Dispite Katarina's former request, Elena managed to whisper the distinct words of gratitude known by all,

"Thank-you."

When the proposition of healing was inquired, dual hearkens swivelled subtly towards Katarina, regarding the oppurtunity. Solemnly, the wolfess shook her head, the faint spark of a smile fleetly flashing through those deep twin pools of gold. You see, Elena had the ability to heal herself. Normally, it would take a few days to be completely healed, but the rate of healing appeared to be slowed down somewhat in this transitional realm.

[Aveilthé]

A creature can be heard, quite well if one paid attention.
The noise was being issued off of a thick clump of
spring-green foliage, albeit dripping with cold water. Not
because of rain, simply because winter was turning
into spring, and the snow was melting.

A disgruntled grunt and a heavy thud was then heard,
as an average-sized male wolf padded with a purpose
from the foliage, halting only to shake dead leaves
from his matted ebony fur. He then sat upon his thin
hindlegs, raising his muzzle to sniff the air. Dark leathery
nares snorted and flared. He released his black-spotted
pink tongue from his cavernous jaws, and began to
pant lightly.

"Hurrrr."

This noise was issued from his deep vocals. It sounded
partly like a growl and someone that got fed up with
an impertinent whelp.

Off he padded again, his thin tail bouncing about his
hindquarters. It was apparent that he was following his
nose, to an area that was not within the packlands.
The scent of two wolves were strong to him, for there
were no other wolves within a mile - save for those two,
of course. They were new scents. Usually being
the unsocial type, he dreaded meeting them. However,
they might be enemies, and Crow wouldn't hesitate one
bit for his fangs to find their throats and mess 'em up
good.

This wolf was blind. There was a thin piece of film
covering up electric-blue eyes, and eye excess dribbled
from the corners of his eye sockets. Though these
organs of sight weren't of much use to him, his other
scenses were heightened greatly.

In no time at all, the old wolf cantered then pranced
a bit before slowing to a halt, precisely where the other
two wolves chit-chatted. Not being able to see them,
he could smell their stink. The minute he stopped, his
maned neck ruffled and stood on end like static, his tail
rigid. A growl bubbled from his throat as he posed
in battle position: tail up, scraggly bitten ears cocked
and ready.

"Rrr, speak yeh mangy vermins, before my fangs
find yeh! Are yeh enemies?" He had a strange
'Sea-Captain' accent, albeit his voice throaty and deep.

[Relairah]

Bright blue eyes drifted towards the opal gem about the other's neck as she rolled. She gazed at it for a moment, with interest, and a smile came to her lips. Ears perked and her gaze went to the other's eyes when she spoke the simple words of thanks, and the smile grew. She noticed the gesture that said, neh, the other wolfess did not want the healing. Katarina nodded slowly, and with a sigh let herself begin to fall toward a lying position in front of the other, wanting to watch her to make sure that nothing happened. Perhaps she was heading toward a new friend? That was one thing that was constantly on Katarina's mind... new friends. She was always searching for such.

However, her head did not come to rest upon her paws, for instead her attention would be drifted to someone else who had seemingly joined in. She looked over him for a moment, as if judging whether or not he was any sort of threat... but she really couldn't tell. One shouldn't judge another by another's appearance, although this was done so often, sometimes without one even realizing they were doing such. Her ears perked at his words, and she was silent a moment, as if fear had captured her tongue. She usually had a quite playful, friendly nature, and well-outgoing... and there was no reason in the other speaking unless it was necessary... or maybe Katarina was merely over-reacting.

She didn't need anyone to tell her the wolf she spoke to was in higher rank than herself in the pack, such could be sensed... she'd have to watch the way she spoke with him, but even so... A faint frown touched her brown lips, "If you wouldn't mind, sir, I am a member of the Shinkou Ookami Pack, perhaps not as long or high as you, but still a member... and I am not a loner, or Omega of any sorts." She paused, glancing at Elena, yet still speaking toward Crow, and she wondered if she should speak for Elena or not. "Even if this wolfess here beside me is any sort of enemy to the Pack, she is in no condition to do anything right now," she turned her gaze toward Crow once more, "and I do believe that neither of us are of any threat."

[deardominique]

Auriferous globes shifted, as did Katarina's to the new fellow who had appeared in thier midst, rather unexpectedly. A wolfen brow arched inquisitivly upon enticing facade, spheres danced over his ample obsidian physique in a dexterous scrutiny. She feined the smirk which soon tugged at the corners of ebony lips, and Elena cast a sideways glance towards the one dubbed Katarina. The huntress noted the brute's stance, and the monotone growl that exerted itself from within his chest cavity. Acoustics were poised assertivly upon her skull, vision growing better, but drifting in and out of focus on occasion.

"Such a conclusion to jump to..."

Vocalization was rather sequestered, but each word was articulated with a careful finesse, so as to be heard clearly without question. She took into consideration Katarina's remarks, and gave a subtle nodd of her zenith in acknowledgement. What she had said, was relitivly accurate.

"That we are enemies, that is."

Finding the situation fairly un-nerving, and not being in much condition to offer much protection to herself, Elena attempted to stand. Lean pillars, that appeared to be nothing but bones covered in a thick layer of onyx fur, buckled under her own weight. She winced, the chasm on her shoulder sending pinnacles of pain through her svelte physique. But with her efforts, Elena proved to be successful and managed to stand, somewhat unstablely, upon slender fulcrums. The occasional twitch of an exhausted mucsle.

"Now...Does anyone know where, in the name of Satan himself, we have all wandered to?"

[Aveilthé]

OOC: Garsh, sorry if this sounds wierd. I'm out of it. I'm also watching Queen of the Damned, so it's hard to watch and type at the same time. Hee.

"Don't be a smartass, you little wretch," he spat, his
blind eyes revolving sickenly about his sockets. "Mind
your manners around someone that happens to be
blind. Th' hell do I know if you're n' enemy or not, damn
it." Bits of saliva seeped from his lips. He promptly
sponged it off with his tongue. "Th' broad sick 'er
somethin'?" inquired he, rather gruffly as his eyes
drifted off to another direction, though it was obvious
that he was speaking to the other wolf helping
the weak one.

After a moment he chose to reply to Elena's
question. "Yer in the outlands, far from safety. If
yer decide ter be hostile, then don't try to take an old
fool for advantage 'cos then that would be stupid."

[Relairah]

Katarina scowled, 'He should at least be able to sense whether one is of his own pack or not, she thought in response to him, but didn't say so. He wasn't very friendly, was he? Or so it did seem. She glanced at Elena, smiling slightly. The other was determined, and refused to give up at all... she was giving effort, or so it did seem to Katarina.

The outlands... the other had said. Ah, yes... said to be any lands outside of the Pack. There were so many lands outside the Pack's borders. They could be in any number of lands beyond those of the Pack. But, being as Elena was close to two members of the Pack... it perhaps was evident she was indeed not too far from the borders. Thus, the conclusion of exactly where in the many, many miles of outlands there were, would not be so hard to make, perhaps.

Her gaze wandered toward Crow once more, and she did indeed take not of the fact he was blind. "Oh, why would we have any purpose for taking advantage of you being old? We'd probably both underestimate you and then end up losing our lives," she said almost sarcastically. She sighed, wondering to herself where her usual self was. Perhaps it would return to her later... right now, she had other matters... such as Elena... she simply wanted the best for the wolfess she had suddenly decided to care for.

[deardominique]

Elena remained strong, standing admirably and balanced neatly upon lean pillars. Thick battle plume flicked irritably beyond her tall, inexplicably thin physique. She eyed the wolf dubbed, Crow, a faint gleam of inquisition flashing through those deep honeyed orbs of hers.

"Wretch? Now isn't that flattering ya old coo-"

The wolfess stopped herself, neck abruptly arching to the ground inscisors clenched tightly as she almost literally, bit off her words mid-sentence. Taking a deep breath, she regained her composure and resumed the poisition she had formerly been poised in. Elena feigned a chuckle at Katarina's wry musings, and a spark of a grin ignited within enthralling spheres of gold.

Not leaving it's prescence undetected, Elena's facade contorted into an expression protraying bleak suffering and once again pinnacles of pain shot through her body from the gaping gouge nestled within her shoulder.

"Great. Another scar to add to the collection..."