Tye had never given much thought to higher powers. Or deities. Or fate. And he still didn’t. But life did have a sense of humour it seemed. He would never have expected himself to be anything more than a warrior but for some reason, he had been chosen to take on the mantle of Lead Warrior. The ironic thing was, it was in possibly what was one of the most peaceful, most loving and tender time that he had ever, ever experienced in his entire life on this earth. Resting from his wounds in the healing den with the very wolf who had brought out the wolf he thought had died long ago when he had taken his first life. His ear had miraculously survived albeit, with a scar as a reminder. And unfortunately, the hearing in it had been affected just a little. But hey, now he had a real scar to talk about. Fully recovered, the onyx male was out and about, working out his muscles and putting his body to use again so that he would be fit and well to complete his duties. If there was one thing he was sure about with his new rank, it was that he would need to show he was competent enough and that meant making himself stronger than he was. He wouldn't do the disservice of underestimating the wolves in his pack but neither would he make it easy. A warrior could never improve like that. It would make the mind sharper and much stronger if it was hard because it forced the mind to think. It was almost as important as physical strength and skill.

That was why he had been out here since the early morning curled up into a tight ball inside the tightest, darkest corner of the cave that was available. The claustrophobia and the dank, darkness along with the insects and other surprises in here was a great test of mental strength. The claustrophobia especially, was something that was of concern to Tye as he was a large, towering wolf with hard, packed muscles and broad shoulders and chest. The stream crept inside, curling around jutting rocks in a winding stream that snaked further down past him. The stream was chaotic, prone to over-flowing but Tye found it soothing. He’d stayed absolutely still for a very long time now, ignoring the ice-cold water and the rising tide, the discomfort and cramping and numerous insects that had disturbed him by crawling over him or biting at him. The only thing that was moving was his chest, rising with each breath.

As part of the water washed up on his forepaws and muzzle, some rocks rolled up the bank poking him the foreleg that had been recently healed. His eyes flicked open, shimmering ice blue orbs of light as rays of moonlight from the outside caught them. It seemed as if he’d awoken, though he had never been sleeping but another could’ve easily mistaken him for doing so. For a long moment, he stared at the opposite wall only his eyes visible. Then he rose to his paws, his unkempt onyx pelt riddled with dust and grit. The prominent parts of spiked fur adorning the back of his neck and head were messier than usual. He stretched, extending his back and legs to work out the tension in the muscles. Then he made his way out of the cave towards the entrance, expression calm. Meditation was over. Time to move.

As he stepped out into the sunlight, the Lead Warrior saw another wolf at the edge of the river. A new one who was smaller than him who he hadn’t seen before but was of Erenyx who for some reason was attacking a moose calf. Was he hungry? Watching him, the large male stared at him with unblinking, cool blue eyes his expression completely blank. A fine sight he had come out of the cave for. Tye started to cross the stream at the shallowest, most peaceful end, one paw hovering above the water when the other male approached him, introducing himself and offered him some of the kill. A warrior? Tye turned his head towards him, piercing eyes locking onto his with intensity. He was younger than Tye, by a good year at least and was lively but naïve or perhaps just lost. At least he had the courtesy to lower his head to him. When Tye spoke, it was in a low rumble and his words were steady, “No I’m not hungry thanks.” He straightened, sub-consciously lifting his tail and pushed his ears forwards not breaking eye contact. This wolf, Nashoba, was new. It would take time for him to get accustomed to the pack but during that time, since he was a warrior, Tye would make sure he shaped up to be a true Erenyx Warrior. And of course, who he was. He continued, gaze trained on him, “You will meet many others, none of which are to be taken lightly and shown respect where it is due. Chiara for example and of course, our current Alpha Steele and Beta Nyx. Lead Hunter Magnus and Delta Irrationality to name a couple of others. I am no different except in one aspect. I am the Lead Warrior Male. My name is Tye and if you want to improve your fighting skills then come to me. The others in the pack will probably be pre-occupied with their own duties so do not disturb them for matters that relate to fighting unless it’s urgent and you cannot find me.” With that he turned back to the river. The waters were curdling around the cluster of jagged rocks that poked out of the surface, the current increasing in speed. All good. Perfect. He lunged for the closest rock, latching onto it with his fore-legs and hind-legs as soon as his torso made contact. It was slippery. The water rushed against him, trying to drag him off but he held on tight allowing it to pummel him.

“Come on in,” Tye said in a deadpan voice, glancing at him. “The water’s perfect.” It was a test of his confidence and a bit of a test of his quick thinking. The waters were not incredibly dangerous if one used his head to analyse the situation and come up with ways to survive. The current was fairly mild at the moment, not enough to sweep a wolf away unless he was being stupid and reckless and not paying attention to his surroundings. Or a wolf panicked. Tye didn’t really expect the other male to do anything as they weren’t sparring or training but he wanted to see what kind of wolf this Nashoba was. And to see what he would do. Tye was just hardening his body, training it against the elements. It was normal to him. He’d expect his warriors to be able to do the same but only if they were capable. Encouraging suicidal behaviour wasn’t his intention after all.

(Omg, Aris would have so much fun right now...hope y ou don't mind? I kind of needed to ask Tye to help train Ari anyway =^w^=)


An obsidian fae emerged from a cave, stretching with a wide yawn. She glanced back and forth, then began moving, following the waters. Ariste trotted, her ebony nose to the ground, whuffling. Her ears flicked, and her tail twitched, waving behind her. Suddenly her head raised, she halted walking, and her nostrils flared. She scented...fresh kill. She quivered, when she also noticed the smell of two wolves of her own pack. Her eyes moved as her tail stilled, she took a step forward. The cool, autumn breeze ruffled her thick, sleek pelt, swaying the silky strands. Her gold and silver eyes shone when the light hit them, the multicolored hues moving across the snaking cavern-like place.

Her ears pushed forward, picking up the sounds of two male wolves, unfamiliar ones at that. 'Well, might as well meet them...' She thought, and began moving again, her paws taking her towards the pair. She rounded to bend, and her orbs fell upon a calf carcass, and two wolves, leaping among the river rocks. Her jaws parted, and her pink tongue rolled out, wrapping around her muzzle, and touching her nose, wetting it, before returning to her mouth. She yawned, before clamping her jaws, her emotionless orbs roving to one black brute, then the next. Her tail lay limply between her legs, gently swaying back and forth. She moved until she was near them, opening her maw to speak. "Hello, others of Erenyx. I don't believe we have met face to face, I'm Warrior Ariste."  She said, resting on her haunches and wrapping her tail around her legs, to rest on her front paws.  Her forelegs stretched far in front her her, muscles expanding as she kept her eyes on the two he-wolves warily, always alert. Her tail twitched, and she straightened to her full height, diging her paws into the red earth. "And who might you two be?" She asked, wracking her brain to match a name to their faces. Her head tilted down, narrowing. 'I know one of these wolves are familiar...I've heard about him...' She considere, tilting her head and waiting for them to answer.

Tye laid his head on the side of the rock, ice blue eyes staring ahead at the empty darkness of the cave as his thoughts started to drift. He wasn’t sure what the other male would do or that he would jump in at all. Hearing a loud splash Tye slowly turned his head to the side. He’d jumped. He’d stumbled slightly but after a moment managed to get a grip onto one of the rocks near Tye. Then he lost his grip again, paws scrabbling at the rock. Tye watched, faint amusement dancing through his eyes. He was putting in effort. He’d give him that. The large wolf replied, his voice wry,“Really? I couldn’t tell.” This warrior, Nashoba, was like no other wolf that he’d ever seen. As the current became heavier and stronger Tye smelt the scent of another on the breeze. A new one. Brilliant. More wolves and more numbers. The Lead Warrior hoisted himself up onto the flat side of the rock with a grunt using both his forelegs and shoulders, large muscles contracting underneath his coarse pelt involuntarily as he used them to move. Water dripping from the tips of his fur, he gazed at the newcomer emotionlessly. Another wolf who put up the tough, bored act. There were already so many of those it was starting to get tiresome. He wondered, did she have a bad past as well that turned her into a stone cold fae? He’d be more surprised if she didn’t. It was par for course in Erenyx. As she introduced herself to be a warrior, Tye’s expression, set within a ruggedly handsome face, didn’t change an iota. He pushed off with his back legs, powerful muscles coiling and landed on the ground in front of the female. Glancing back at Nashoba, he said sternly in his calm, deep voice, “Hang onto the rocks until you feel yourself slipping. Even then, I won’t save you. You have to learn how to save yourself.”

Returning his attention back to Ariste he stared down at the warrior, appraising her silently with his piercing blues. She had a slightly larger build than the average females. Confident. But he knew best that appearances were just that. Appearances. His tail flicked the air, his dark stare growing even more pronounced as the warrior reared herself up to her full height. He wouldn’t expect a newcomer to know the ins and outs of the pack but he wasn’t impressed with her overall. The fact that she had the confidence was good but that was the only thing he could see at the moment. Tye was by most accounts, an extraordinarily calm wolf so he let the insolence behind her question slide. His only duty was to discipline her fighting skills, if she desired and nothing else. So he introduced himself, “I am Lead Warrior Tye.” His words were as confident and strong as his pose, not arrogant but a matter-of-fact with an underlying strength that suited his powerful form well. The shaggy-furred onyx brute was never one to boast and brag but that was only because he didn’t need to. He was secure in himself not to have to go around proving anything to anyone and let his actions speak for themselves. So his words were short and to the point. Tye stepped a couple of lengths away from the female warrior, turning around to face her half on his side. His face was a mask once more, void of emotion. The mass of frantic spikes adorning the back of his neck and top of his head glinted underneath the moonlight along with his eyes. A predatory gleam seemed to ignite them. Maybe his ill-gotten appearance for insanity wasn’t entirely unfounded after all. When he spoke his voice was like unsheathed daggers, danger lurking underneath, “So are you here to make some friends or here to seek out help for training? I will help you with the second right here, right now since we're both ready.” He watched her intently, waiting. A spar would be good. It’d help wake him up even more.

Occ: Let’s try a spar Ariste. And Nashoba, you can skip your turn if you feel like you can’t write anything.

Posting Order
Lead Warrior Tye
Warrior Nashoba
Warrior Ariste

[Pass]

(Lol, you read my mind)

Ariste  watched as the Male jumped, landing in front of her. She bristled silently at the proximity, taking a step back. Her ears perked as the wolf spoke his name. 'So this is the wolf I seek! She mused, opening her muzzle to speak, when he spoke again. She listened even more, intrestpiqued at his proposal. It didn't take more than a moment for Ariste to stand brace her legs, slightly apart to balance. Her head went down, and her ears went back, chin tucked, and her eyes sparked ferally as the dull light caught them. A growl caught in her throat, and a smirk tugged  on her lips, a mere ghost. "A spar...? Pleasured..." She said, eyes lighting up. Her tail twitched, dancing back and forth, before slipping between her legs. 'Ohh, I spar? It's been a while since the puppy has had a fight...' The voice she often heard taunted Ariste. 'It's just for training...' She dismissed, ignoring the voice's next words. Narrowing her eyes, she rolled her shoulder, putting one paw forward, then another, repeating, until she was just barely moving forward. "Attack when ready..." She said slowly, meeting his eyes. She flexed her muscles, bracing and running her tongue over her fangs, smirking. Her other side fought to take over, but she forced it back, lowering her head and watching Tye closely.


------------------------------------------


Round One (training)

Attacks: None

Defences: Ears pinned, tail tucked, chin tucked, shoulders rolled, head down

Injuries: None

(Meh, sorry for the shortness, not much to write, and I have more posts to make >.<)

Tye’s ear pivoted slightly, hearing no noise from Nashoba’s direction.  He’d have to assume the other was hanging onto the rocks as his attention couldn’t be diverted from Ariste. Watching her with cold, blue eyes as she began to go into a defensive stance the minute he mentioned the prospect of a spar Tye lowered his head, ears folding over.  She was slightly different from the others and reminded him of a couple of females he’d seen in the pack. Her eyes had lit up but that was nothing surprising from an Erenyx wolf.  Violence was bread and butter here, normal as it was. Whether a wolf took pleasure in it was something that was on a case-by-case basis and it seemed that this wolf, Ariste, may be one of those. Well, in the end most of them had killers lurking underneath in this pack. Even under a seemingly harmless façade of benevolence and genial nobility or kindness. Tye was no different. He’d had to do horrible things to survive but he’d never taken pleasure in any of it. Sometimes, Tye thought he should’ve. He had killed many and sadism could be a coping mechanism to convince the soul that it wasn’t entirely destroyed. But despite that, he’d made it out with his soul intact, though scarred. A normal, sane character would carry at least some sense of guilt or reaction to watching someone die before their eyes or being the one to end a life but he didn’t have any care for it. Tye was no angel. And if she made the mistake of assuming he would go easy on her then she was a fool for it. A warrior was a warrior, through and through. Gender didn’t matter. She moved forwards, goading him and smirking, running her tongue over her fangs in a show of intimidation. Tye’s hackles raised, black fur rising. He stilled, tail like a flag in the air. Then in a burst of speed, he rushed forwards, slamming into her front on with his upper body and right shoulder in a vicious tackle. As he made contact with her, he lifted his right foreleg, hooking it over her shoulders and neck as well as snaking his hind right leg behind hers to unbalance her and twisted to send her falling. This was the first strike, the opening shot. It was meant to catch her off guard and galvanize her into attacking. If she fell, he would unleash his fangs on her neck with the expectation that she would be quick enough to counter it.

Nashoba watched the two wolves as they fought. He knew it was practice and watched as the lead warrior by the name of Tye tackled the fae down. This made Nashoba think right away that Tye had won, but he had not saw the fae's move yet. If she thought quickly she could get out from under him or make him jump back by biting him or something to give her enough of a chance to get up and make her move. He wondered who would win, but soon thought to himself 'of course our lead warrior will win' He about slipped of the rock again and caught himself, 'Maybe I should get off the rocks now' he swiftly jumped to a rock that was near the shore and stepped off. He walked over near the spar and watched with interest. If he watched he could get better by using some of the moves they used and then he could practice them later, he would soon get way better and show he was worthy of being in this pack. He smiled at the thought of being a respected pack member, it would be the perfect life. Fighting with strength and winning with power. He promised himself that he will do everything he can to be a respected wolf in this pack.

Ariste watched the Warrior got into position, hackles flaring up as his tail paused. She growled, lifting her lips from her fangs as she awaited the attack. She watched him, bracing when he charged for her, taking one of her legs out from under her. She growled as he unbalanced her, but insead she purposely twisted  to fall on her side, and quickly rolled out of the way, the Lead Warrior's fangs grazing her neck, and could feel the cut stinging. 'Look who remembers her training...Maybe you're not as weak as I thought? Or perhaps you simply got lucky, and he should tear you apart in a matter of minutes..' The voice hissed belittlingly. This only served to anger her her, fueling her desire to win, the feel blood on her tongue, to feel pain. She crouched, her power going to her hind legs as she flexed her muscles, looking for an opening, feeling blood begin to trickle down her neck, dampening and tainting her fur blood red. She searched all the options of attacking, mind moving quickly so as not to be caught off guard. She suddenly jumped, twisted in the air, the cold air biting into her flesh, as she sored through the air. She aimed to land a ways from him, pushing him to either defend himself, or attack. If he turned to bite her, the fae would attempt to bite his neck, fastening her fangs into where his shoulder connected to his neck. She opened her jaws wide, fangs glinting, pinning her ears and tucking her tail in protection.


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Attack: Leapt at him and aimed to land a couple feet from him, hoping he would attack first, then she would attempt to bite his neck

Defense: Ears pinned, tail tucked

Injuried: Teeth mark grazes on her neck, bleeding slightly

She managed to roll out from underneath him, avoiding a fatal blow to her neck from his fangs though they grazed her neck. It was an improv move, one that was effective for its purpose. His body was lowered, close to the ground and he was recovering from the slam so she would have had some seconds to take advantage of. He turned around, blue eyes staring at her. He knew roughly where she’d be. His hackles quivered, the first glimpse of razor sharp fangs showing instinctively. The warrior hadn’t immediately rushed in to take advantage of his momentary delay. Instead, she seemed to be contemplating something, pausing. Tye began to approach her, resisting the urge to rush her. Seconds mattered a lot in a fight. There wasn’t time to think so much. Just time to react on instinct and smarts. But she seemed too new, too green. Her eagerness was refreshing but he was still waiting for her to show something. As he started to move towards her, readying to pin her down, she spun into action. She sprung into a soaring jump in a direction that he supposed was meant to land near him. Tye watched her sail through the air, expression as blank as stone with eyes that were almost as resplendent to the moonlight that shone on the pair. It was a spectacular display of acrobatics. Fun. He almost leapt for her until he heard splashing noises making his attention wander for a millisecond to the other new warrior. He hadn’t been able to hold on it seemed. He’d have to train more. But he hadn’t been swept downstream by the current. That was a good sign. Returning his attention back to Ariste as she landed near him he acted with precision and speed. She had landed near him, as he had predicted with the aim of biting him in what he supposed was his neck. But he went straight for her as soon as she’d landed, her open fangs scraping his left foreleg in the process. She was within mere inches of him so it was easy to barrel into her, going underneath her forelegs to use his momentum and upper body to unbalance her and get to her torso. His jaws would then grasped one of her forelegs, head twisting to yank her down to bring her crashing down onto her back.  


occ: Ariste, please use the code for the fight. Link is here:  https://ageofthewolves.rpg-board.net/t690-spars-the-ins-outs

[Pass]

Ariste watched him, delighted as his focus strayed, even if it was only for a moment. It was a precious moment, less than a second, but one she used with speed and quick thinking. She, with swift strides, was a mere bound away from him, but quickly found herself twisted, as he tried to force her to the ground. 'What are you going to do now? If he gets you on your back, you don't stand a chance.' The voice sneered, and she scowled, a fierce rumbling escaping her throat in response. As she felt herself wobbling in unbalance, she turned, pulling her lips away from her fangs, and opening her mouth, to clearly see every glinting ivory tooth. She snapped her fangs shut, hoping to close them around his scruff, throwing one paw over his shoulders, trying to regain her balance, but beginning to topple as her claws raked over his shoulders  and fell from them as she rose on her hind legs, she felt her foreleg being tugged sharply, bringing her harshly down on her side, elicting a quiet grunt from her, as she rolled onto her back, a safer position than her side, as her fangs flashed out a last time, to grasp his muzzle, to stall him, if not to prevent him from securing his own fangs onto her neck, ending the spar. Her paws raised as she stretched her neck out, something to fall back on if she couldn't stop the attack she anticipated was coming, eyes sparking competetively, determined to prove she was worthy, even if she had already lost. Her silver gold eyes flickered for a moment, before returning to blank, as the voice whispered instructions in her ear, once again distracting her, for a couple seconds.



Attack:  Fangs snapping out, to capture his jaw and prevent him from trapping her

Defence: Front legs pull up to defend her neck, should he evade her attack.

Injuries: punctured flesh where he bit her front leg, bruises  where she had fallen to the ground, hitting her side with force

Once she was unstable, he had the leverage to throw her down. She threw her paw over his shoulders in what he guessed what an attempt to maintain some balance but it was a futile effort. Her jaws snapped close to him, grasping for his scruff as he went in. Instead of his scruff, it nicked one of his ears. Tye grunted. Her claws dug into him, sliding off as she lost her grip and she crashed down onto her side though not on her back. She immediately rolled onto her back and went for his muzzle, her fore-legs up to defend her neck. Her jaws started to close around his muzzle as he leaned in to tear her throat out. He pulled back as soon as he felt it start to clamp around it and leaning down to her hind legs instead, clamped his jaws around one without puncturing the skin so that he had a firm hold on it in his jaws and used his strength to throw her, sending her rolling across the ground towards the river. Trickles of blood dripped down from where her fangs had cut his muzzle as well as his nicked ear. He gazed down at her, eyes heartless in the moonlight. There was something to be said that she had lashed out on her back but she still needed more experience. A fall could always turn into a counter-attack and there were other spots the opponent would attack other than the neck in order to kill if that was their ultimate goal. It wasn’t in Tye’s interest to kill her but to harden her and see how much she would be able to take. But death was something she had to learn to protect herself from. So attacks that would possibly kill were necessary otherwise there wouldn’t be any way she would improve. He had faith that she would be able to defend herself in some form to prevent a serious injury as she sought him out knowing what type of pack this generally was. He stayed where he was, tail lifting high while staring at her with ice blue eyes. As cold as the dark side of the moon. “You need to try harder,” He said. The spar was coming to a close for him. She hadn’t proved she was worthy, not yet. She still had a long way to go.

[pass]