The children of winter spiralled in loose patterns from above, their numbers ever-growing, dancing as one until they hit the ground and began their brief existence. The chill didn’t surpass that of a necessary evil, various particles of delicate snowfall bombarding his bronze body, forcing upon him their endless abyss of white. If only their defenses could be more powerful, for it took nothing more than a thorough shake to rid him of winter’s spell. He was returned to his former glory in a matter of seconds, only for the snow to regroup and attack once again, left to continue this pointless and futile display until the sky could supply no more. The weight of his paws emitted a soft crunch with each passing step, even one as fluent in their momentum as he unable to remain as eerily quiet as was achieved in the summer and spring. His silence of movement, his peculiar stillness, were among some of his most unfathomable, most respected qualities. Being Erenyx’s one and only robot, a living creature that breathed efficiency in and out of its lungs when others did the same with nothing more than air, left him with a reputation to upkeep. Needless to say that doing so was of exceptional difficulty, however. It was quite easy, simple even, when it was edged into every existing fibre of what was meant to be labeled as a personality. He was uncannily lacking in said category, though it was of no bother to him to try and make any changes. Life was manageable, perhaps less stressful, when to be considered with a thoughtful, calculative, and unbiased eye. It could throw at him the hardest of punches that it could muster, and as a result of such, would be left to face the shock of realizing that he hadn’t so much as faltered. Erenyx was the home of monsters; of an outrageously wicked and corrupted King; of soulless fighters; of manipulative and sadistic minds. In the heart of it all stood a mere Delta male with eyes that portrayed not a single care. He was not a monster, nor was he outrageously wicked or corrupted, or soulless, or even particularly manipulative or sadistic in his mindset. He was nothing. He stood before the world, before his pack, as the unbreakable tower with an eternal perception unique to none other than himself. Amongst the unleashed monsters, he was the sane and partially tainted mechanism.

He stood before the world and before his pack as such, and now he stood before the lone female as such. Eyes of dark gold were unfeeling, matching her hazel stare with cold, unreadable nonchalance. She had yet to curl her body into a proper portrayal of submission, though as always, he would be the last to request that she hurry up and place the tip of her nose where it was that his sinewy paw could drive it deeper into the dirt with a forceful shove. Most were lucky, to say the least, when they were met with the face of the robot. The other members of his hierarchy were less forgiving, tending to deal with situations such as this with far less willingness to keep things neutral. Irrationality, unlike so many others, cared not whether or not lone wolves at the border of his pack submitted to him. It was but a commonality that he didn’t go out of his way to refuse, though on the other hand, didn’t grow to expect. It was one thing to attempt to dominate him via methods of violence, something of which he’d be quick to counter, mind ruthless what with his inhumane lack of remorse. But when two wolves were staring at one another, neither trying to carelessly dominate the other, he was without complaint. “You stand upon the border of Erenyx, a pack under the command of Alpha Teren.” The words slipped out of his mouth with ease, having grown accustomed to spewing the exact same speech to each wolf that found themselves within this female’s position. “Your intentions are presumable, though I must request regardless what reasoning is behind your having summoned me?”

[It’s not a problem in the least! Real life comes before posting, so no need to apologize. I don’t mind waiting for responses.]

The tension on her behalf flooded the air like a constellation of unleashed butterflies, all soaring towards the sky in the hopes of being the first to escape, both out of sight and out of mind. The reaction wasn’t something that surprised him, for plentiful a wolf found his particular brand of oddity a touch harder to accept. It was unsettling to peer into his hollow eyes and return with naught; they were untouched by the pleasantries of life. Stone had long since enclosed any sentimentalities he might have once admitted to possessing, and now because of it he stood confidently in the body of a machine - a soldier. It had been a long time since someone had tried to knock down his thickened walls. Most knew that avoidance was the best option, if not the only option. It was why it was often so peculiar a sighting to see him doing border acceptances. He was isolated to the point that some almost found it saddening, as though to look to such a life and see inside made their hearts heavy. Outside of these necessary interactions with strangers, the Delta male was a wordless bystander that kept to his own tendencies. But that was perfectly fine. Others could try as they might to convince themselves that somewhere deep down his seclusion made him feel the traces of melancholy, but he liked the way that he led his life. It was a burden to have friends - he wouldn’t even call Helidos the enemy, had it not simply come with the territory.

“I’ll warn you, as I do with all females that wish to place their paws within these lands, that it’s more difficult to make something of yourself than it is for your male counterparts.” The sexist words were not conjured from his mind, for he held no such opinion upon the truth of the matter. Although, should the day ever occur that he stood in Teren’s place, he wouldn’t bestow females with a challenge in Erenyx any harder than that of males, it currently wasn’t his call to make. That was just the way it was, and until a time that it happened to alter, should it eventually do so, he held no quarrel against enforcing it. “If this knowledge doesn’t sway your decision to place your allegiance with Erenyx, however, then go so forth as to enlighten me of both your name and what skills and abilities you possess that will be of use to this pack.” He didn’t value any of the enlightenment he was requesting. It was a requirement that he ask lone wolves at the border such a question, for if not, he could unknowingly be allowing talentless Omegas into the pack around every corner - something of which he was certain Alpha Teren would not have. His blank eyes were unwavering from the she-wolf, ominous in their fixation. It was rather difficult to gather the words of oneself under such calculative scrutinization, for when he didn’t so much as blink, one was left with the helpless realization that nothing would be going unnoticed.

Was she still uncomfortable? Was there hesitation alight in her hazel eyes as she tried to make something sensible out of him? Most clung desperately to their caution because the unpredictability of his motives was often viewed as being downright cruel - for was there not fear to be taken away from what is it that is uncertain? His eyes looked glassy enough that, should one even so much as touch them, they’d shatter and fall right out of their sockets. It was disturbing, to say the least. It took the new additions to Erenyx a somewhat lengthy amount of time to get used to him. After all, it was hard to trust someone whose expression never quite matched his words. Nobody knew him to mean what he says, for his eyes often unintentionally told a different story.

“Such skills will have you fitting nicely into the rank it is that you desire,” the Delta stepped away from the border, a low sweep of his head granting the she-wolf access into his lands. “Though do not be surprised if others are unconvinced by your words alone; you may find that you need to prove yourself worthy of the rank you now hold, Warrior Tundra.” If she was as good at fighting as her claims led him to believe, then surely this would not be a problem for her. It wasn’t unusual for the combat oriented wolves of his pack to partake in spars with one another, testing their skills and sharpening their tactics. Irrationality was not known for his participation, for he knew enough of his abilities to know that simple acts of spar - absent of the intentional use of teeth - would not aid him any further.

No, he was not a violent wolf, but he wasn’t one to hesitate when a throat needed to be ripped out. A soldier performed his or her duty without remorse, sometimes, without even thinking. A robot that was, to some extent, programmed to follow the word of his Alpha was among the best at his work. Perhaps, with time, Tundra would come to understand that on her own, should her time with Erenyx prove beneficial. He had given her the rank that she so desired for herself, and now it was left in no paws other than her own to make use of it.

[You’re accepted! You can change your name to “Warrior Tundra” whenever it is convenient, and are now free to post in any of Erenyx’s territories that you’d like. You don’t have to respond to this thread again unless you want to end with her input. Sorry that it’s so short.]