rain rain go away [zynex and raze]

[c a e c u s `]

The deafening sounds of thunder reverberated throughout the land of Tytanus. Lightning flashed, giving a brilliant white backdrop to the gigantic mountain ahead. Every rock, crevice, and shadow was perfectly illuminated in the deadly light that zapped from angry skies. A few seconds after each blow of electricity would come another rumbling crack of its brother. Truly, this was the perfect way to showcase the pack's power -- make the Gods send down angry torrents of rain to strike fear in the hearts of thousands...and put the storm right above Rigorfall Mountain.

Of course, most wolves would be smart enough to stay away from the lands, but the shelters in the other territories were truly not up to par. The gaping mouth of the Agrava Cave, at the current point in time, looked inviting, dark, and...dry. So very, very dry. Something that the poor, soaked to the bone loner knew was desperately needed if he wanted to keep his good health. The rain pelted mercilessly on the blind wolf's sopping fur, and as he stumbled through the unknown territory, he tried his best to shake off the water. Of course, this was to no avail. There was too much rain to do much else.

The new scents and smells and visions of foreign spirits walking these grounds were becoming a little too much to bear, so Caecus closed his semi-useless eyes and tried to part his now heavy wings. Of course, they too, were soaked, and he could do no more than barely lift them from his back. He was suddenly finding himself sinking in the mud, so he quickly pried his lavender paws from the ground and continued to trudge along, occasionally stumbling and even almost ramming into a rock or two. He had only heard about this cave, and about the supposed curse that came with it, but either way, he didn't care. He just wanted to get warm. Even if this was a claimed territory, he couldn't let himself sit down and die. The sudden amount of determination that glinted in his eye was staggering -- it was clear that he wasn't here to join a pack, but he wasn't going to lay down and give up, either.

He stumbled into the entrance of the cave, and as the shadows engulfed him, he felt the water that was tumbling down his body stop. He knew that he had reached shelter. Oh, if only he was a Fire element or something, then he could start a warm fire for himself. Of course, he had the useless element, where he could just talk to old ghosts and ancestors. They always just complained about the cruelties of the world, anyway. It got annoying. They only cared about themselves, it would seem...

He yawned and quickly shook his fur and parted his ravenlike wings, giving them a hearty flap to get the water out of their feathers. He shook himself a little less hard once more before letting his eyes travel over the cave, wondering where these spirits would be hiding this time. To his surprise, there were none. The place was completely empty. A shiver went down his spine -- he always saw spirits, no matter where he was. He was never alone, ever. He was just lonely...but this, this was true emptiness. It was frightening him.

"Is anyone there?" he called out, and his voice echoed throughout the chasm. Is anyone there? ... Is anyone there? ...

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[-zynêx-]

Rain. It was an act of nature that did nothing but irritate her. It made everything wet and useless. It did nothing more than mat a perfectly groomed pelt into a clumped coat in disarray. No...she wanted nothing to do with the rain though it drenched her domain with a commanding vengeance.

It had not been long since she settled in this place, this earthly crevice looking for a place to rest and ease her weary paws into healing from a long, tiresome run. The land was hers, and as any Alpha showed, she spent the day marking her territory as far as her toned limbs could carry her. Should another wolf have a qualm with her boundary, she would have no problem settling it through tooth and claw. But as she held this mentality while staking her claim, she was nearly a victim to the rain's assault by her absent attention. She cut across the land, as swiftly as a fish swam through water, to her hideaway. Now her home.

She managed to gather spare leaf and twig from the interior of the cave and piled it in the center. She paced around the small structure making sure the timber of dry before her maw parted slightly. Gently, she breathed against the pile. A tiny spark left her blackened lips and lept into the pile. With another soft exhale, the pile came to life in flickers of red and orange, licking the tip of her nose as it greedily consumed the dry wood. Fire. She was satisfied.

She left the fire to itself and strolled toward the mouth of the cave. Her own stretched with a monstrous yawn as fatigue from the day weighed on her lips. Indeed, she was tired. And as her eyes slipped shut for just a moment, they suddenly snapped open as the wind from the storm outside carried an unfamiliar scent into the cave. She gave several careful sniffs to the air to gain information of the intruder and found the scent to be wolven. Ivory fangs glistened from a wide, parted maw as delicate black lips pulled back with a snarl. A deep, threatening call echoed off the walls of the cave making one enraged wolf sound like many. Their gathered voice raged war with the thunder of the sky for attention by the intruder.

Slowly, Zynex stalked toward the opening, her paws soundless on the cold ground. Steel grey eyes darted toward the intruder, then widened at the sight of its abnormality. The beast was wolf in nature, but on its back were extraordinary wings, now damp and lifeless by the rain. The wolf too looked soaked to the bone. The pitiful state was enough to lessen her growl, but not her tense form. Her eyes bore into the wolf as she replied, her tone soft yet commanded attention. "Yes...someone is here..."

words: 480

[Ɽazǿniel.]

R A Z O N I E L !!

Darkness.

The word carried a sense of power with it, a magical quality that sent a shudder through most wolves. With darkness came deception, evil, lust, vengeance, a heart too shadowed to play in the light. Fires of destruction and shackles of black, black ice. Anyone who was dark was either malevolent or mournful, detached from the rest of the world who walked in the path of light, the path of righteousness. Above the storm raging on was dark, shrouding the territory in an overbearing way.

Razoniel scoffed to himself as he stood at the mouth of the cave, and felt his fur stand on end when lightning touched down on the fields.
Sometimes he felt that he was the only one who remembered the comforting darkness of the womb, or the soft midnight black sky overhead as one cuddled with their mates and howled to the stars, who only came out in the dark. No one wanted to see both sides - yin and yang. He closed his eye and stepped back into the shadows, shivering as some slanting rain struck the entrance. One thing he would admit to was that this dark cave was cold, though a comfortable few degrees warmer than the freezing water outside.

He heard the padding of paws and supposed that someone was rushing to this place to escape the horrible weather. Already in the shadows, he gathered his power to mask the white and grey parts of his body, to meld into the darkness. He felt its sensual folds come around him and smiled ironically. In a few moments, he heard a soft sigh and saw light flicker at the tinder dropped by another lupine. As his eye flicked over her autumn pelt, he recognized her in an instant - his leader, alphess, Lady Zynex. At least, he would always call her Lady. He hated wolves who spoke archaically, greeting people with "What is your dubbance, brute?" where he thought a "Yo" would suffice. But get him around a leader, and he'd drop respectful titles into the conversation.

He was about to slowly let the shadows melt away and greet his leader, but suddenly she turned around and snarled, ivory fangs flashing in the fireglow. His gaze shifted to the entrance of the cavern, and he remained hidden as a sodden shape stepped into view. This new wolf, partially tinged with lavender, had horribly drenched wings, which had probably weighed him down on the way to shelter. The extra appendages surprised him only for a brief moment - in his years he had seen horned lupines, so why not winged ones?

Zynex was tense and answered the confused call quietly, making the black wolf perk up his ears. He finally let out a soft sigh to announce his presence and threw off the shroud of darkness. You couldn't really see him much, except for his one gold eye, and the white chin and grizzled fur around his face. He dipped his head slightly to his alphess and glanced at the newcomer, his face mostly stoic but also with a tinge of interest in his gaze.

"Someones are here," Razoniel said, unable to hold back the childish remark as it buzzed playfully in his mind. Now that he had made a dramatic entrance, he went back to speaking maturely. "Have you traveled very far?" After he asked this question, he sat down and looked unconcerned with the answer. He just didn't want a silent standoff; those always made him uneasy when he was out in the open. And a quick chat would probably ease the pressure off of Zynex a bit.

[c a e c u s `]

Caecus' ears flickered casually, his lax position on the floor of the cave showing that no matter what danger would come to him, he neither meant harm nor did he expect it from anyone else. He hated packs and their territory claims. He had as much of a right to be on a spot of land as any other wolf. Just because some bigshot pissed all over the territory didn't mean that the gods were going to give it to them. The very thought of organized crime, as he viewed it, made his ears flicker in annoyance. To him, this wasn't trespassing. This was sharing of the land he was born on, the land that he had every right to walk on and take a quick rest. He knew that the main reason for these boundaries was for hunting -- but, you didn't see him with a rabbit in his mouth, did you? No, his already slightly emaciated form showed that he had not eaten a decent meal in a long, long time.

As another roll of thunder galloped over the cave, a threatening snarl hit his eardrums. His head turned, and his wings, now a bit more dry, spread out. There was no sense of panic in his useless eyes. This wasn't a spirit calling, it was a real wolf. Was it good or bad? It really depended on one's perspective, didn't it? The lone male rose quietly, his body swaying a little bit as he inhaled. Another Alpha bigshot. He smirked faintly, but gave a bow nonetheless. Of course, he was in reality bowing in a slight angle away from the female that had just approached him. He could only smell and hear her, he had no way of knowing where she was at. His tail twitched a little bit, and the smile on his face was reminiscent of sarcasm.

"So, you must be the...how should I put this, oh. Proprietor of this cave, then?" Now that he knew he had not much to fear, his voice was distant as usual, and his look was vacant and almost eerie in its unreadable expression. The scent of another wolf reached his nostrils, and he turned in the general direction of where it was coming from. He couldn't see the wolf, which, once again, meant the wolf wasn't a spirit...smelled male, though. He inhaled again, sides palpitating from the effort before turning his head away to show that he was addressing both, if it was truly necessary. "It is normal custom for, when two wolves meet, me to state my name. I am Caecus, a ghost speaker." His tone seemed lazy and floaty, and his tail curled a little bit under him. He suddenly sat down, the effort of standing was taking too much of a toll from his body.

His head turned again when the other wolf, definitely male, began to speak. "I have...how far I've trekked, I couldn't say." Unfortunately, he never really kept track of such goings on in his life. Maybe he should...but his normally lax and lazy demeanor prevented him from doing so.

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[-zynêx-]

Undeniably, her interest was peaked by the disposition of this wolf. Obviously he was not intimidated in the slightest by her appearance...in fact, he didn't seem too attentive to her stature at all. Her own orbs squinted as she approached him, taking stock of all his features, more so his eyes than anything else. She stalked around his weakly form addressing him as far from a threat. He was a blind wolf...a misfortune in her eyes, though this ailment didn't seem to hinder his attitude in the least. Zynex muffled a bark in disapproval of his tone, but made no move to pursue further conflict. Her form relaxed only slightly upon deducing there was no threat to be found in the male....or at least nothing she couldn't handle. "I assume you needed a place away from the rain," she said, indifferent to the truth of the matter. "It is warmer further in..." She had no interest in holding an unnecessary conversation, nor was she looking to enlist him as many other eager pack leaders intended to do.

Instead she turned from him, regarding his presence as a nuisance and diverted her attention to her second in command, Razoniel. She had not known the wolf very long, and their pack was small...too small to even be recognized as a pack. A partnership perhaps. But she felt it was sustainable for now. She acknowledged him with a kinder look in her eyes as she retreated within the cave, closer to the fire. She glanced off-shoulder to her packmate with a subtle sway of her tail as an invite.

Zynex stood over her fire, dipping her head toward the flames and breathed deeply into it. The wisps of red and orange waved frantically at her addition and grew to an impressive height, radiating heat around the cave. It lessened once the walls were completely dried, and the flames reduced to a reasonable height. The Alphess padded around the living structure to find a comfortable place to lay, keeping both her packmate and the stranger, Caecus within sight. Sturdy limbs lowered her toned body to the ground and she turned on her side, her body taking a crescent moon shape. Her maw parted wide with a tremendous yawn as once again she was reminded of her fatigue. But now in the presence of another, she doubted sleep would come easily. Her defensive nature already gaining the better of her. It looked as though they would have to wait out the storm before she was privileged with rest.

words: 422

[Ɽazǿniel.]

R A Z O N I E L !!

The lone male did not look the least bit concerned with the alpha female’s presence. In fact, his tone as he addressed her bordered on sarcasm. No, he couldn’t just be a loner. He had to be the one who thought all leaders were pompous asses who only thought the land mattered. The concept drew back Razoniel’s lip, revealing some of his sharp white teeth on one side in a vaguely threatening grimace. He guess he could not be angry at the winged canine for mocking that which he did not know. The world was full of prejudice, and it would take a long time to change any of that.

The beta only knew that he personally lived for the pack, for the bonds forged, for the pride and belonging of guarding and guiding others. It seemed to change everything. These bands of unrelated wolves were substitutes for families, and just as closely knit in most cases. Mom and Dad led the hunt, and Big Cousin watched over Baby Sister as she tumbled about the den. Hold in the wolves, and they became a family, with a kind of kinship that a lot of random loners on a plot of land could not easily have.

Zynex noticed him as he materialized, and her expression warmed a few degrees in his direction. He offered a grin in return, just a flash of recognition. It was not that he and the lady were especially close, but she was most of who he could call pack. And, as second-in-command, he’d throw his life away if it meant saving hers. He could not suppress the smile at the time, though now it faded slightly as the newcomer glanced at him.

He expected someone who was unfamiliar with him to be surprised at the fading in and out of view that he took entire advantage of, being of the shadow element. But the male did not even blink. As Razoniel narrowed his own golden eye, he realized that those of the stranger were blind. A troubled frown passed over his countenance before he gave his fur a slight shake and attempted to push his unease away. He did not really pity this loner, who seemed to be fine with the “disability,” but was rather a bit frustrated about it.

Razoniel hated to be reminded of his own faults.

He turned in such a way that his blind side was more hidden, and in doing so noticed the tip of his leader’s tail sway to call for him. He had listened to her unconcerned words with respect since she had not growled territorially as the doubting part of him suspected. She knew what was and was not important. He nodded slightly at her and took a few steps toward the fire as she curled slightly around it. The heat felt good on his dark fur, and he smiled a little as he sat down again. He was still close enough to the loner—who introduced himself as Caecus—to engage in conversation and to not make it seem like they were arrogantly avoiding him.

“I guess my question was a bit unnecessary,” the black wolf decided in a tone that he forced to be chipper—or at least not bored as he felt. “One does not generally count their own pawsteps, eh?” He had the feeling that his remarks were getting a little lame, so he closed his eye and concentrated on feeling the warmth of the flames on his face and neck. After a few moments of silence, he added quietly, “My name is Razoniel.” He did not mean disrespect by not answering that right away, as per custom.

[c a e c u s `]

He could practically smell the questions the female wolf had -- they were pouring from every pore in her body, and it was slightly starting to bother him. He hated questions. Well, in general, he hated anything resembling conversation. It was so troublesome for him to actually speak...and normally he was wasting his breath on the dead, anyway. They never really stopped talking, it seemed. His tail flickered, and a few droplets of water were flung from the tip and onto the floor. They scattered and sank into the ground beneath, and Caecus's ears twitched in fascination of the sound. Oh, if only he could actually see what was happening...Instead, the sound of the female's voice brought him back to reality, and he looked back up from the floor he had no idea he was even looking at, his face saying that he was just brought out of a slight trance.

"I could, in fact." His voice was much more distant than before. "The rain was pelting too hard on me, I feared that I might break under it." There was no humor in that remark -- he truly did believe that rain, or any other kind of water, could have that kind of power on a living being. It was clear that the female didn't seem to want to talk any more than he did, so he merely nodded. He didn't move, however. He would have rathered himself to not crash into a rock. He took a deep whiff of where the fire seemed to be -- he only knew that it was a fire because the smell of smoke was thick in the air.

He could also sense the hostility of these two to him. Hostility...ugh, that was so troublesome. He hated fighting, but it didn't seem like this encounter would escalate to that. He had no spirits around to help him fight, and he couldn't see his attackers...he was weak, hungry, cold, and tired. He was in no shape to battle. This wasn't going to make him a pushover, though. The male wolf seemed to be a little less harsh to him than the female...both of them seemed to be close enough. They must be from the same pack. His lip curled only slightly at the thought of being in one of those things. This world was meant for the lonely -- it was every wolf for himself. Working together wasn't making anyone's lives easier. In fact, it just created more conflicts, more wars...and Caecus knew better than anyone that this world didn't need any more wars. The spirits that complained to him about how they had died in battle so valiantly against a rival pack was enough proof for him. Nevermore should be shared, not disputed.

He then stood slowly and shook his fur before following the echoing pawsteps of the pair before him. It wasn't as difficult, merely because the cave made their steps more magnified. He soon found the fire and sat down a safe distance away, letting his body stretch a little. He gave his black wings a flap before speaking. "I don't count anything," he said vacantly, his empty gaze moving to his left. "What pack is this called?" This was said with a bit more disdain. This seemed to be Tytanus, but who knew. It could easily be one of the other two, or maybe a brand new pack.

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[-zynêx-]

Whether by his own volution or some distressing matter, Caecus did not move further into the cave and instead remained stationary, staring into the vast space in front of him. Zynex made no attempt to draw him near. The wolf's business was his own. She was merely allowing him to rest within their cave until the weather had calmed and once again became suitable for travel. She did not have to acknowledge him anymore that than that.

None the less she was wary to him, and left his care to her second in command. The female was too tired to care about some blind stranger, too hungry to gather her remaining strength to raise some kind of insult of coax him out of the cave. She simply didn't care at this point. Perhaps after a light doze she would see the situation a little differently and react accordingly.

A triangular appendage swiveled lazily toward her packmate as he spoke to the stranger. She lowered her slender muzzle to the cave floor, muffling a chuckle at his expense under heavy paws draped over her nose. Such an interesting wolf, though their circumstances for meeting were rather plain and ordinary. She felt she hadn't really known the male all that well. Perhaps when the time suited she would take the time to truly know this wolf that the Fates brought to her.

Again an ear swiveled around, this time to the spoken words of Caecus. The wolf managed to find his way toward their fire, but kept his distance. Zynex raised her muzzle to speak, though with little enthusiasm. "This pack is named Tyntanus." The name was spoken firmly and confidently. Their number was small, yes, but it was not something to base them on. Zynex intended to live up to the powerful name graced upon their pack, even if it was just the two of them...though with time, she hoped others would seek acceptance into their ranks.

The storm continued to raged with enough ferocity to send a coursing chill down the spines of even the bravest and strongest wolves. This was nature at its most dangerous. Lightning lit the sky with blinding brilliance, appearing the magnify each droplet of water and it pounded against the outside of the cave. Sensitive ears became deafened by the merciless onslaught making it a wonder in itself that the small group of wolves were able to hear one another. Zynex turned her weary eyes to the outside and watched with idle interest as sheet after white sheet came down.

[Ɽazǿniel.]

R A Z O N I E L !!

Scarlet tongues of fire licked up at the air, and the black wolf watched his shadow play across the wall. With a tiny smirk, he turned his shadow into that of a bird, a monster, back to his own silhouette again. Water continued to patter outside, a wet cadence, and as he closed his eyes the melody serenaded him, made him feel at home no matter how unpleasant the weather was outside. This is what he did, though some would think he’d be a dark soul—he looked for the good things in life, pawing through the storm clouds until he found that mythical silver lining. And as this thought crossed his mind, his whiskers flicked in a smirk—the loner was bringing up the fact that the beautiful rain could have shattered him under its soaking weight. Two very different characters… Or maybe not so different. How was he to judge someone he just met?

Razoniel’s amber eye wandered to Caecus again, a tiny frown creasing his muzzle. Was he born blind? Did he have some power to help him get around? He had a lot of questions he wanted to ask, but he could not find the words without making the male tell his life story. Curiosity was just tugging his nose into things it should not be in. The winged lupine would probably rather stay silent, and definitely would not want to listen to his trivial queries. He shrugged to himself and closed his eye as he let his face bask in the firelight. He didn’t know why the male sparked his interest so much—he was just a grouchy, bedraggled loner who was temporarily seeking shelter in pack lands.

He opened his eye again when Caecus stood up, and glanced in his direction once again, his ears lying back against his skull slightly. The winged wolf made his way over to the fire, managing to not run into anything, and gave a tiny flap before he spoke. Razoniel opened his mouth to answer his question, but his alpha beat him to it. He gave a tiny nod then wondered what he loner would think of that. If he seemed to look toward the packs with disdain, then a simple name would not matter. It’d just be a stupid flag over a so-called pointless nation.

And Tytantus wolves did not have the greatest reputation, anyway. They were known for having brawn and no brains, a bunch of arrogant animals who only knew how to bite. But, though they were some of the physically strongest wolves in Nevermore, it was just a huge stereotype. He, for instance, liked to think of himself as intelligent, which may have come from his Goranzo bloodline. But even Goranzo wolves let emotions get in the way of their quiet thinking and grew brutish. And he didn’t know the Flyanta wolves all that well, but he was sure there was one or two who cared for something other than their beauty. Maybe.

Razoniel involuntarily dug his claws into the cave floor and winced at the peal of thunder, which seemed to shake the very particles of the air with an intensity that made his black fur stand on end. Ears ringing, he gave himself a shake to wake up and blinked out at the rain rolling off of the cavern mouth. Zynex was staring out in that direction also, and his eye fell on her for a moment, looking over her auburn fur. He grunted with the effort of standing up and took a few steps in her direction, flicking his tail slightly.

“Are you okay, my Lady?” the shadow wolf questioned. He would not have added her title, but he did not want the blind loner to think it was him he was talking to. He hesitated and glanced over his shoulder at Caecus, adding a little softly, “You drying up, Caecus?” He felt the urge to speak to this black-winged creature, even if it was probably not necessary—but whatever. If he got snapped at for trying to be polite, that was that.

[c a e c u s `]

Wariness between Caecus and the two pack members began to weigh the air down like a chronic illness. Honestly, what did they think he was able to do, what he was capable of doing, especially in this condition? The timber wolf seemed to stare off to the side, his vacant glare boring holes into the ground. Hm, if only he had laser vision. But, that probably wouldn't help anything -- even with that sort of power, he still would never be able to see. He was only able to see the dead, those that have passed on to another world, yet were still a part of this one. It was sad that they didn't have any other place to go. They were lost souls, literally.

He sighed, his thin sides heaving with the effort. He was glad that his wings had finally dried off in the cool air in the cave. The air had to pay a price for being toasty, though. Oxygen was now clouded with hints of smoke and other pollution. Using fire...it had gifts and curses. Much like the rest of this world's powers. Ghost speaking seemed the wost curse of all, however. Caecus found no joy in speaking with the dead. It merely reminded him of all of the things he had never done himself, things that he might not have much time to complete now. He had always been blind, and he had no intentions of asking a healer to fix his eyesight. He was perfectly capable of taking care of himself without his eyes. They had failed him...or maybe it was the other way around. He smirked at the thought before quickly morphing back to his normally expressionless face. Didn't want his hosts thinking him to be insane, did he?

"Tytanus..." he murmured to himself. "The land of the strong. The Titans, to be sure." He looked up to the alphess, his gaze boring through her and behind her to the other wall of the cave. "Brawn is not everything." He turned his gaze back to the fire. "But neither are brains...nor beauty," he murmured. "It seems that this world we live in cannot find a happy medium between all three." His tail flickered and his wings folded inward fully.

Murmured conversation between the packmates made the wolf stay silent. He respected privacy, at the least. His eyes traveled to the side, and he suddenly saw a small pup staring back up at him. He almost jumped, but instead smiled slightly. "It is nice to not be alone in my loneliness," he merely said quietly. He had a soft spot for small pups, especially the dead ones. They never got a chance to live, to fufill dreams...it was heartbreaking. The small wolf continued to stare at him vacantly, not saying anything. Caecus briefly wondered if the poor thing could even hear. Too many times before had he seen the cruelty of females to their pups, killing off the weak right away to preserve the strong. It was a corrupt system.

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[-zynêx-]

As acute and attentive as her hearing was, Zynex gave little indication she had heard her Beta speak. However if the tip of her tail hadn't twitched, it could have easily been mistaken that she was ignoring the male and was consumed with the outside. Her body rose and fell with a subtle sigh. "I'm alright Razoniel," her tongue caressed the name as if sampling the finest meats. Blinding herself from the rain by heavy lids she turned toward her packmate, offering a small, tired smile. "Nothing much can be done during this kind of weather. All one can do is be rendered idle and useless." Unintentionally her eyes fell upon Caecus, minding his own business.

After hearing her response he had taken to remaining silent, that was until he began mumbling to himself. His words so soft they were easily outweighed in volume by the pounding sheets outside. She had no interest in the conversation he was having with himself, but she was concerned about him doing the act in the first place. He first assumption was that he was deranged, or suffering from some madness he did well to conceal, but if that were the case, would he really be so composed and casually acting as though everything was right in his little world? But that's how it started didn't it? Zynex fixed the wolf with a watchful eye, witnessing his slight jump from what she couldn't see. The act alone raised her suspicions and they could not be silenced.

Furrowing her brows in concern, she asked, "Is there should we should know about you Caecus?" She left the question open to his interpretation, so long as she received a comprehensible answer.

ooc: slowly trying to rekindle muse.

[Ɽazǿniel.]

R A Z O N I E L !!

Caecus considered the name of the pack without as much disrespect as the beta had anticipated. He nodded as the loner mentioned how each main attribute of the pack did not equate to everything that was needed. It was true, in a sense. If one was powerful but lacking strategy, brute force was useless. Wit without being fit enough could result in one getting beaten up for their efforts. And beauty aided only in a momentarily vision of splendor, but all of these said nothing about the hearts of the pack wolves. "Not all wolves have the capacity to be a 'perfect' blend," he pointed out after a moment. "But that does not make them failures. We live life the way that we know how. I, for instance, live as a strong Tytantus wolf, with a bit more smarts than some, even if I pale in comparison to the masterminds of the Goranzo." He paused, then added with a perfectly straight face, "But I am not pretty."

For a moment afterward, Razoniel thought that the lengths he had gone to be polite were being completely ignored, but the minuscule twitch of her auburn tail showed him that she was just taking a pause before replying to him. She sighed and assured him, "I'm alright, Razoniel." She offered a faint smile as his ears twitched at how his name sounded in her mouth. As she went on to explain how the weather had left them all useless, he heaved his own sigh, which seemed to resonate with the others in the smoky cave. "I'm just glad we're not in a drought. At least the storms sounds beautiful, as horribly wet as it is." He closed his single eye, pointedly listening to the rumble of thunder, though he flinched slightly as lightning touched down on the far-off horizon. "It's good for you to have a rest, anyway. You work too much," he admonished.

His alphess's gaze traveled from him to the loner, who folded his wings and was whispering to himself. She looked confused by his soliloquy, and a bit wary, sizing him up as if he was insane. The black wolf frowned briefly before he remembered the blind timber's introduction: "I am Caecus, a ghost speaker." He nodded once and gave Zynex a look to show that nothing was amiss, before addressing Caecus a bit hesitantly. "Ghost element," he thought out loud for the benefit of his leader. "Whom do you see?" He was curious naturally and wanted to know how the world worked, sometimes wishing he could wield other elements for at least a trial period. He did hear, however, that communicating with the dead was more of a curse.

[c a e c u s `]

Ears flickered forward at Raz's speech. It made sense, of course. It was all based on opinion, really, if the world of the wild was meant for working together or separately. Both had their ups and downs, their pros and cons. Maybe it was all in the eye of the beholder, and that's what the gods wanted these wolves to figure out for themselves. Nothing was ever clear-cut. The comment of Raz not being pretty made Caecus snort. "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Not that I would be able to behold much of anything else," he chided, his tail flickering lightly again in a small amount of agitation.

The unease seemed to fade away a little when Caecus looked down at the tiny pup. Those eyes...they continued to stare right at him, almost in a mirrorlike pose to his own empty gaze. He blinked quietly, the areas around his eyes glowing slightly from using his power. Of course, this wasn't taking up much energy at all. After all, it was only him seeing the poor creature, not talking to him. If he wanted to try and control the baby wolf, that would be a whole different outcome. He was too weak for such stunts, and even then, it wasn't clear cut if the wolf would even respond to his mental orders. For him, it only occasionally worked, mainly because one had to make direct eye contact for the full effect. Eyes that sometimes he couldn't quite see...he blinked quietly, and the small wolf blinked right back, letting his obnoxiously large ear flicker backwards in comical curiosity.

How can ya see me, mister? the pup asked. His voice sounded strained, slurred. It was clear the fellow was deaf. Caecus' ears flickered back and he shook his head. His maw parted to speak, but then Zynex began to speak. Something about telling them something...what was there to tell -- oh. Well, talking to what seemed to be himself probably wasn't helping much of anything. He smiled tranquilly before shaking his head. Razoniel seemed to have gotten the picture. He blinked blankly into space before turning back to the other wolf. "A small pup..." he murmured, turning his attention back to the tiny male. His head tilted to the side and his tail wagged slightly. "Can you hear me?" The small wolf stared blankly, almost waiting for his first question to be answered.

Caecus sighed quietly. Of course, he was deaf even in death. That was how it worked -- you wouldn't just be magically fixed when you die.

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[-zynêx-]

Zynex wanted nothing more than to rest and having her subordinate advise it to her made the female want to oblige the desire all the more. As if his words were magically enchanted her eyes grew heavier and yawn creep from her throat, parting her maw with a mighty yawn and a soft whine from the strain on her jaws. Her mouth closed with a sound snap. She was definitely in need of rest. There was no reason to deny herself the luxury. Their guest wasn't going anywhere, not until the weather died down anyway. And since the wolf was blind, she doubted her would be attacking them in their sleep without her being aware. Zynex reared her head at the thought. Even she considered that to be in bad taste. She blamed sleep deprivation for making her so paranoid. She needed sleep.

The Alpha looked over her fire with waning moonlit hues and inhaled slowly, drawing the living flames to her lips and into her awaiting mouth. When the fire was but half its previous height and the light was dim she closed her mouth and exhaled wisps of black smoke from her nostrils. The black appendage danced with discomfort and a heavy paw joined it to rid the ash and burned scent. She hated subduing a fire in such a way if only because of the side-effect. When she felt the scent was reduced enough she lowered her head to the warm stone floor, turning slightly to lay stretched on her side. She heaved another deep sigh and prepared to close her eyes for sleep.

Yet, an auburn appendage flicked into the air, swiveling toward the Beta as he spoke his inquiry to their guest. His question seemed foolish. The male was blind, there was nothing to 'see', but then he had titled himself a ghost-speaker. Perhaps there was truth to the tale. Zynex scoffed from her lain position, doubting the winged wolf truly could speak with the dead. The idea itself was simply absurd. Yet she believed so...until Caecus mentioned it was a pup he could see.

The female's head rose with attention, her eyes scouring blinding around the cave. "A...a pup?" Her voice wasn't shaken, but it bordered desperation for truth. Had a pup really died within this cave..?

[Ɽazǿniel.]

R A Z O N I E L !!

The lavender wolf's tail twitched as he answered the beta's remark in a no-nonsense voice. "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Not that I would be able to behold much of anything else." He sighed slightly at that. He didn't consider the loner's blindness to be too much of a disability - at least, he didn't look down on him for it. He had lived this long, after all, so he must make up for it in other ways, as much of a hindrance his sightless eyes were. The black wolf shrugged mostly to himself and answered, "Just trust me. I'm not pretty." He chuckled slightly. "Got one of my own eyes gouged out. I'm just an old man." He glanced over at his alpha self-consciously as he spoke, not that it should matter if she thought he was old.

Zynex was yawning at his remark, making him smile gently in amusement, and turned her head to put out the fire. He coughed slightly at the smoke and wrinkled up his nose until she had lain back on her side again. She looked skeptical that Caecus could see or communicate with the dead, though Razoniel had come across those with the ghost element once or twice in his lifetime. When the loner mentioned it was a pup, his heart thudded, and his leader seemed to share the shock. A pup had died around here? He frowned and said nothing, staring at the empty patch where Caecus's sightless eyes lingered.

"Wonder how long ago the cub was here," the black wolf said softly. He looked at the great walls of the cave, and wondered if the young wolf had been lost in this place. He wanted to ask if the creature had any scars, but the question seemed too morbid, and he wasn't sure if Caecus was actually "seeing" it.