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Post by [.¥.6.3.R on Jul 20, 2008 0:29:17 GMT -5
It was going to be a hot day again. The sun had just barely started it's cycle around the earth and already it was stiflingly warm. Perhaps there will be dark clouds on the horizen soon. Gods know we could do with some rain. Thora turned her chocolate-brown gaze to the sky, searching the clear blue expanse for a shred of gray. Nothing up there but the sun.
"Nothing down here but concrete and weeds, dumb dog. You had to pick the most lifeless territory in the city." It was true - not much bothered to venture into the Cracked. A rat or two if she was lucky. Otherwise, the weeds that struggled for existnce provided the only living company.
"Why even patrol your own borders then, great alphess?" The elk hound padded up the side of a collapsed brick building. "It's a waste of... "
She was about to say it was 'a waste of energy' when another dog caught her eye. It was a jet-black huskey male, so scent told her. With a sharp bark, Thora leapt off the building. She landed neatly, collar rattling.
"I hope you know you have crossed into my territory." The female stared down her muzzle. "What is your business here?"
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†Wing†
Puppy
〭???? ?h? ?ѡv????
Posts: 4
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Post by †Wing† on Jul 20, 2008 10:12:54 GMT -5
† There was a deep ‘phlump’ noise as the older, bigger dog dropped to the ground. Wing shook blood from the fur on his head and stepped elegantly over the body of the huge husky he had just thrown to the ground. His muzzle curled up into a half victorious, half stunned sneer as he trotted away.
Putting his weight on his front legs and his back left, he held h is right paw up in the air a bit longer each time he took a step. A shock blue ribbon with a bell was tied on that leg, and it made less noise now as he kept it up and moved as quickly as he could. Wing knew he could not afford another run-in with a bigger dog. After three fights the dog, so unacquainted with the territory around him, was not up for a fourth. The deep bite mark looked worse than it felt, Wing decided, and the abnormally small husky pushed the thought of pain to the back of his mind.
The territory around the young male turned from slightly grassy to rock, and then solid concrete. “What is this place?” he rumbled quietly. “I have never seen such destruction.” He shook his head and continued deeper into the stony hell.
Just as Wing put his front two paws on a slab of tilted building, there was a loud warning bark and Wing leapt back defensively, the bell on his leg giving a short jingle. His emerald eyes narrowed and he barred his teeth. Seemingly from above, a great gray elk hound landed in front of him and gave Wing a sharp glare.
“I hope you know you have crossed into my territory. What is your business here?” the elk hound growled. Wing gave a quick inspection to the dog. It was a she, made obvious by her scent and tone. She was slightly bigger than he was, but the black male was used to such a thing by now. She seemed defensive…for the moment.
Wing relaxed a little. “Your territory, eh? This is surely a sign that you are the leader here, in this cracked little hell?” He looked up at her with a glint of what could have been humor in his dark eyes. “Well now, this is more like home to me than any of the other places I have been. Where I come from, the females rule. Apparently, this does not occur much elsewhere. As for crossing through, I do not really care what ground I touch so long as I find a suitable home eventually. I have no business here except that of exploration.” He bowed his head politely before balancing his weight, as uncomfortable as it was, to be ready for any kind of response from the alpha she-dog. † † †
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Post by [.¥.6.3.R on Jul 20, 2008 10:59:38 GMT -5
As the female stalked a little closer, the husky jumped, sending a bell he wore around his right forepaw jingling. Thora made a mental note at how annoying that contraption was. He took up a defensive stance and would not take his emerald eyes off her.
"Your territory, eh? This is surely a sign that you are leader here, in this cracked little hell?" There was a hint of humor in his voice. "Well now, this is more like home to me than any of the other places I have been. Where I come from, females rule. Apparently, this does not occur much elsewhere. As for crossing through, I do not really care what ground I touch so long as I find a suitable home eventually. I have no business here except that of exploration." The husky bowed his head.
"Not caring where you step will get your paw torn off." The elk hound commented. She started to circle around the male, inspecting his worth. As she noted before, he was small for his breed, but not stout or fat. He was long and graceful, with the legs to match it. He carried himself high and proud, yet humbled in the face of authority.
"You said your motive is 'exploration?' You'll not find much free land around here: I own most of it because no other dog dared to challenge me." She paused in mid step, ears pricked forward at thoughts and ideas. She set her paw down - the black one with the studded collar - and an ingenious smirk spread across her maw. "But, you could live under me, I suppose. It gets so awfully lonely out here. Maybe two dogs like us could use some company." She finished her sentence by clicking her teeth together in his face and passed a lounge around her lips.
How fun it would be to have new meat around. Someone she could shove around a little. Maybe the news would attract more dogs... then she could have a little pack going. With a malicious smirk still present on her facade, she awaited a response from the husky.
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†Wing†
Puppy
〭???? ?h? ?ѡv????
Posts: 4
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Post by †Wing† on Jul 23, 2008 18:26:02 GMT -5
†
"Not caring where you step will get your paw torn off," the female said calmly. As she began to circle him, inspecting him. Wing found this somewhat offensive and his ears flew back agains his head. He had to hold back a growl as she mentally rated him.
"You said your motive is 'exploration?'" she said. "You'll not find much free land around here: I own most of it because no other dog dared to challenge me." The female stopped and smirked somewhat evily. "But, you could live under me, I suppose. It gets so awfully lonely out here. Maybe two dogs like us could use some company."
The dog in front of him smiled slyly and bit down on air, making a little clicking noise. She licked her lips and it took every ounce of Wing's strength to keep him from moving an inch or having a reaction.
Wing narrowed his frosty green eyes and kept his stance. 'Two can play at that game,' he thought deviously. Wing relaxed his stance only slightly and put his nose up to her ear.
"Well, if you're that lonely, how could I refuse?" The fur above his eyes raised and yet he kept a gentlemanly posture and tone. He bowed, half seriously and half in a tone that could have been playful or even mocking. He looked past her to the cracked and ruined buildings.
"So,...what is it I can do for you, my lady?" he asked suavely.
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Post by [.¥.6.3.R on Jul 23, 2008 19:18:27 GMT -5
The husky relaxed his stance a little. He moved his muzzle up to her ear, and by instinct, the elk hound repositioned herself to be at this throat in seconds if he tried anything funny. "Well, if you're that lonely," his voice was suave "how could I refuse?"
The dog bowed, but in a way that conveyed a mocking tone to the alphess. Her lip curled back to expose the teeth lining one side of her powerful maw. "So... what is it I can do your you, my lady?"
"Thora. My name is Thora." Her voice lost all of its sly and cunning syrup. "Follow me to the main part of my territory, we'll settle things there."
The female was no idiot either. She fell in place beside the husky - in front of him and she would be turning her back to a potential enemy. It was a straight shot into the heart of her territory. Although it was cluttered with bits of lose plaster and large chunks of fallen buildings, the road they walked was fairly manageable. Everywhere around them, the landscape was scarred by the small 'war' that had been waged on the city. Most of the buildings had crumpled to the ground. Useless though they were to humans, they looked as though they might provide warm dens for dogs.
The heart of Svartheim territory was the largest intersection in town. Four streets crossed in a wide clearing, perfect for assembling a mass. In the far right corner, a large slab of a skyscraper propped up at an angle was the centerpiece of the place. The black glass outside had remained relatively intact, setting it apart from the duller shades of gray. A panel of glass was completely missing low on the side that faced the dogs. It was inside the hollow interior that Thora made her den.
"Welcome to the heart of Svartheim. So long as you keep your paws in line, you can sleep where ever you like. Except the fallen black building - that's mine. So," The elk hound turned her head to look at the male. "Tell me what you think you're good at. If you're going to live with me, you're going to have to be useful somehow."
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†Wing†
Puppy
〭???? ?h? ?ѡv????
Posts: 4
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Post by †Wing† on Aug 10, 2008 9:33:40 GMT -5
†
The elk hound, who introduced herself as Thora, followed him through the destroyed city buildings. Despite the pain, Wing lowered his injured foot and put little weight on it to prevent a look of weakness. This caused the bell to give short, sweet rings every now and then, though the chime was wearing out and was beginning to lose its noise.
Walking straight, Wing took notice of all his surroundings, tired as he was, to make sure of any potential places from hideouts to warzones. The husky padded along firmly and quietly, making no sudden moves lest the hound behind him decided to attack.
“Oh,” he barked suddenly in surprise. “I didn’t introduce myself. I am Wing.”
They arrived in the middle of the crumbling territory, to an intersection, and Thora faced him.
"Welcome to the heart of Svartheim. So long as you keep your paws in line, you can sleep where ever you like. Except the fallen black building - that's mine. So, tell me what you think you're good at. If you're going to live with me, you're going to have to be useful somehow."
Wing had to hold back a snort. “You don’t really pay attention, do you my alphess?” The small husky looked up to the sky and then around the territory again before a small smile trickled across his maw.
“Exploration is my mistress.” His voice was soft. “Tears from the sky falling into pools that litter soft green forests, feeling firey sand underneath your paws and seeing a strange blue water that stretches on forever, tumbling blindly through spaces you have never even dreamed of seeing.” He looked back to Thora, and his emerald eyes shone. “All dogs have lost their appreciation for what this world used to be.”
Wing took a breath and sat down, careful to avoid injuring his back leg. “I can do what you ask of me. I am useful in most areas. I can fight, I can hunt, I can scout. Name it, and I can do it.” His complexion returned to a serious, somewhat cold and distant look. He waited patiently for the verdict.
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Post by [.¥.6.3.R on Aug 10, 2008 12:29:55 GMT -5
“You don’t really pay attention, do you my alphess?” Thora pulled her lips back into an insulted snarl. The huskey - who had now introduced himself as Wing - looked to the sky and paned around the intersection. A sly smile formed on his maw.
"Exploration is my mistress. Tears from the sky falling into pools that litter soft green forests, feeling fiery sand underneath your paws and seeing a strange blue water that stretches on forever, tumbling blindly through spaces you have never even dreamed of seeing. All dogs have lost their appreciation for what this world used to be." She blinked at him slowly, still glaring at the male. Most of what he said was a little too poetic for her to fully grasp the meaning.
Wing sat back on his haunches. The elk hound had been through enough in the way of injuries to know that, no matter how hard he was trying to conceal it, the hind leg with the bell was lame. That fact didn't matter to the female; most wounds would heal. It was the damn tinkling of the bell that was going to drive her up a wall. "I can do what you ask of me. I am useful in most areas." he said. "I can fight, I can hunt, I can scout. Name it, and I can do it."
His expression was serious and his gaze never wavered. She met his eyes with her own, her mind a buzz of calculations and speculations behind her cool facade. "I will put you to work then." Thora spoke slowly, with great articulation. She was still deciding what to do with him after all. "Go make boundaries while I hunt. We'll meet back here at..." She glanced quick up at the sun. "Just after sun high."
It was a good test she supposed. She would gather how intelligent he was by which objects he picked to mark the borders. And it would test his speed - her territory was not what one would call small and it would certainly take him some time to make the circumference. The elk hound smirked. She turned tail and pranced off to the edges of her territory.
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