THESE DAYS, MAINLY LOSING YOU

Their collar crackled as they made their way through the swamp. Every little noise it made had once made their ears flick in surprise, but now only seemed to confuse them. What was it? What was here? The wolfdog trudged further, carefully clambering over roots and through the muck. They could feel it between their toes,  clinging to their fur. In the hollows of their claws. They looked, well. Miserable.

They considered going back, considered giving up, but with every step, the box crackled and sang to them, the noise filling the silence was hard to resist. The only companionship Keter had was whatever human mechanism was in the noisy little thing. It had only picked up...something, when they'd been on the very edge of the swamp, beckoning them further with every step. They owed it to themself, they thought, to at least see this through.

Keter watched their every step, careful and quiet. They watched strange critters dash away upon seeing them, not one of them stopping for a chat. It was a bit disheartening, really. All of it was disheartening, the wetness, the mud, the traps they had to keep avoiding-- and upon that thought, just after stepping over a log, they seemed to have triggered one, a net scooping them up, dangling them a little ways off the ground. They yelped and snarled in their surprise, panicking a little. This was bad. Who the hell was putting these everywhere?

Keter squirmed, trying to find a comfortable position in their net prison. They stuck their nose out of one of the loops, staring off into the distance. They could see... Something. A settlement? Great. Lovely. Moments away from being out of this hellhole, and now they couldn't even continue. Should they call out? Howl? Bark? Would that even be smart? They didn't know what lurked here, and Keter almost swore they saw something massive moving through the water back there.

Fuck. FUCK!

They pulled their face back, clamping their jaws over the ropes and vines, trying to bite and saw their way out of the contraption. Fuck this. Fuck all of this.

code by spacexual

The scent of Asvini was honestly what drew Aurum towards the scene of Keter's unfortunate capture, rather than Keter themself. The proxy knew full well that his daughter was growing up, and probably wanted to go out and explore just as much as any other child did. Despite this, he couldn't help the spike of anxiety that split through him when her scent led away from town, his large paws urgently carrying him after her before long. He was relieved to see that she was unharmed when he arrived, but he wasn't relieved to see that there was also a stranger present. His ears flattened for a brief moment, before he took a deep breath in to calm down. Keter didn't seem to smell of any enemy group, and certainly didn't seem like some kind of highly trained spy come to infiltrate them. They were probably just another bumbling person that had wandered too far and gotten caught in one of their traps. At least Asvini had helped them out... somewhat. He really needed to teach her a bit more about manners, didn't he? Either way, the proxy's focus was now on Keter, with the large lion coming up beside Asvini and gently touching his nose to her head in a silent greeting.

Glancing from Vignere to Keter, Aurum waited a moment before he said softly, claws kneading wet ground, "In addition to that... could we know where you're from?" It was better to be safe than sorry. It was entirely possible that this newcomer could've just been some loner that wandered onto their lands. However, it was equally possible that they weren't, and were actually some kind of ex-Pittian seeking sanctuary – a situation that would require far more finesse. Either way, Vignere was right to stop them before they returned to town, at least for now. With Aurum present, he could keep his daughter safe, and they'd be able to make sure that Keter wasn't a threat before they showed their entire hand of cards. He really had become suspicious lately, but after what had happened with the Pitt and Moth... it became difficult for him to trust that anyone was wholly innocent. It always seemed as if there were ulterior motives at hand.

[div style="text-align: right; text-transform: uppercase; text-shadow: 0px 0px 2px #1B1B2F; font-size: 24px;"][color=#44437F]— AURUM

THESE DAYS, MAINLY LOSING YOU

Keter's ears twitch at the sound of another's voice, and they find themself fairly close to a ti-tigon. She seemed young, but paparebtly knew her way around traps, as Keter soon found themself falling, net and all. They didn't hit the ground hard, thankfully, and they would soon recover any bruised pride. They nosed their way out of the vines, only to discover that another cat had arrived, spindly and a little ways away. Keter had only just removed themself from the damned thing before another fucking cat appeared, and at this point, they were a bit overwhelmed with the questions.

They didn't let this show, however, and found it interesting how quickly so many had come at the sign of someone setting off a trap. Were these a means of hunting? Were they expecting someone?

"Thank you for that."

The wolfdog straightened themself up before finally answering, "I'm Keter. I'm... not from here. Anywhere near here. I'm not part of any neighbouring... groups or... anything, really, if that's a concern. I'm just... Here now." They didn't know whose eyes to meet, so they looked to the largest of the group, the newly arrived winged lion.

"I found myself here with this-- thing. On my neck. It makes noise. But only when I started heading over here." They turned, to show the large box on their collar. Keter could feel embarrassment rising to their cheeks. This all sounded so stupid and contrived.. They worried that the others would think that they were lying. And in all reality....Keter was outnumbered, and was probably the only thing in this swamp that didn't taste like wet mud.

"When I realized the noise would sometimes be a little more... uniform, when I walked this way, I figured... I might as well see why."

The box was not emitting any noise currently. Keter knew exactly how crazy they sounded.

"I'm sorry for intruding. And setting off one of your traps. I was trying to be careful." Keter figured, if they were going to be here anyways, maybe... they could make a home here. "I don't know... anything about this land. Are you three the only ones here? You came really quick."

code by spacexual

When Keter began to explain why they were here, Aurum felt his interest begin to pique. The collar around the other's neck certainly seemed unique, and he said that it tended to make more noise around here? The angel didn't know much about technology, but considering the radiation that seeped through every crack of Tanglewood's swamp, it didn't exactly seem unusual that there would be some odd reactions here. Still, the proxy kept his mouth shut for now, not wanting to crush Keter's dream of figuring out what the thing was for, especially when he wasn't certain the sound was from the radiation. When Keter asked if it was just the three of them present living around here, Aurum found himself chuckling a bit, opening his muzzle to correct the other when Leroy arrived. The lion offered the general a nod in greeting, letting out an affirmative hum at the other's words. It was always nice, getting to tell others about Tanglewood and the lands that they presided over, as well as offering those that were peaceful a welcoming place to stay. It had been a long time since his own joining, but the male could still remember the surprised warmth he had felt when he had been welcomed – even while causing a big fuss over Poet.

Once Leroy and Vignere were both done speaking and introducing themselves, Aurum turned his attention back to Keter, shifting one of his large wings in greeting. He rumbled from the back of his throat, his one blue eye soft with both tiredness and happiness to possibly have a new face around, "As Vignere and Leroy said, if you wish to stay here in Tanglewood, you could. Even if it's just temporary, until you find out why that thing around your neck reacts oddly here." He gestured to the other's strange collar before continuing, "My name is Aurum, and I'm the second in command around here. If you do decide to stay, you can come to me with any issues you have while Leroy is busy." With the recent loss of Feza, Tanglewood had lost one of their higher ranking members, and that pretty much left only he and Leroy. Sure, they had newly promoted chasers to rely on, but that group was still pretty new, and thus it was best for people to simply come straight to he or Leroy if they had any major issues.

[div style="text-align: right; text-transform: uppercase; text-shadow: 0px 0px 2px #1B1B2F; font-size: 24px;"][color=#44437F]— AURUM

THESE DAYS, MAINLY LOSING YOU

Keter watched then, as a new stranger approached, a sort of large dog, with wiry hair and deep brown eyes. For a second, Keter felt a sort of kinship. Finally someone, something familiar. They nodded simply, as Leroy spoke, introducing the swamp and himself to them, as the others did the same. Keter looked to each of them as they spoke, making sure to remember their names. Keter didn't want to be rude, or step on anyone's tail.

"It's nice to meet you all. Thanks again, for being so quick to respond." They spoke, a little sheepish.

The group clearly held Leroy in high regard, and especially with Aurum's words, Keter figured that he was in charge. They wouldn't deny that it made them feel a bit special, to have the one in charge of Tanglewood approach them himself and offer them a home. Especially after being a public nuisance by setting off one of their traps.

"I definitely mean no harm. And... I would like to stay. Even if it is temporary. I'm sure I could lend a hand somewhere, in the meantime."

As interested as they were in jobs that could be done around the place, and in trying to find their place here in the meantime, the wolfdog was aching for a nap. Their legs were sore, and they were pretty sure they had a bruise on their rump from the fall. Plus... they wanted to see if their contraption would stutter again, as it had previously. Keter certainly hoped so.

code by spacexual