MORDRED NAUGHTLUS - Female - Dromaeosaurid -  Coalition Wanderer - 6 months

The twisted forest at night was a pretty sight, especially during the winter, where a thin layer of frost over everything, giving it a mystical feel. The forest was silent, any sound absorbed by the cold snow that freshly fell in the overcasted night. It was this night that something dark and twisted maneuvered around, leaving soft footprints in the snow, hidden by a very masterful cloaking. The heavy scent of blood and smoke that came from this beast was not hidden, but that was alright.

A heavy sigh drew out from nowhere, the hidden beast tasting the air and watched from her perch of a large branch. She weighed the branch down quite a bit, it's creaking and dipping were not to go unnoticed by focused Immunes. Or any Palm Glades wanderer.

Did Mordred know of the Glades? No. Truly, she did not know that a group lay beyond the forest and used said forest as part of their territory. Even if she did know, that would not have stopped her. The forest would be her hunting ground when the Coalition's island was not fruitful.

"Speech"

Sorbet’s breathless voice cut through the nighttime like a wind chime in a gale. The bioluminescent canine trotted to the hybrid’s side, his glowing blue eyes narrowed. Muddy paws and blood flecked on his chest implied the centurion’s previous engagement, but the angry boy dragged no kill with him. Lightning crackled between his ears; the electricity roared at him, but it whispered to everyone else.

“Smells like bad news.” Quasar’s nose crinkled. Blood and smoke implied tonight’s midnight snack would be a shit sandwich, but he’d make sure the intruder was the one to swallow it. The sparkledoggo growled and glanced at Sorbet. “You catch a glimpse of ‘em?”

He focused, tried to concentrate. The electricity faded out and he could hear properly again, a crushing silence with little details. The sounds of an owl. Creaking tree branches. Scuttling mice. A breeze rustling leaves. He looked up and squinted—the thing definitely wasn’t right above them, right? But… maybe… somewhere else in the trees.

The canine’s three tails lashed and weaved, glowing like the rest of him, as he squinted. Fucking canine eyesight. “You gonna sit like a coward? Come out. Or I’ll zap each tree, one by one, until you’re barbeque on a stick.” He spoke pretty, empty words—Quasar’s electricity never listened to him—but he sounded confident and angry enough to mean the threat.

MORDRED NAUGHTLUS - Female - Dromaeosaurid -  Coalition Wanderer - 6 months

The beast stayed quiet as Sorbet called out, and they moved just slightly as this horribly bright canine arrived and threatened with a storms wrath. She held back laughter, simply eyeing a closer, thicker branch to leap onto. She leapt from her perch, the branch rising in relief and her new perch hardly bowing to her weight. It was here that she decided to warp her voice, a strangled "I don't mean harm." from her jaws.

Slowly she was leaning off the branch, eyeing the eyesore of a dog.

"Speech"

In most cases, Rhinestone didn't give a damn about trespassers on Palm Glades land. Albeit, that was if they were friendly. He didn't really care about visitors that just came to grab a snack and then get out as quickly as possible. However, that didn't seem like what Mordred was doing. That wasn't even mentioning the fact that the Coalition of the Condemned had been dropped down to enemy status fairly recently. Really, the young beast should've been attacked on sight, rather than given a chance to defend herself with words or actions. However, Rhine wasn't a needlessly cruel man. The legate didn't want to see people harmed, and although it was hard to tell with creatures like Mordred, he got the feeling the other was young. In which case, the serval had no desire to hurt her, strictly against maiming children in any way, no matter where they were from. Instead, they would just have to make sure that she got back home safe, and then they could wipe their hands of the whole situation.

Quiet steps led Rhinestonestar over to where Quasar and Sorbet were already standing, the lanky feline's short tail flicking behind him as he eyed Mordred. The other's dark and shadowed appearance set the tom on edge, even more so than he usually was within the Twisted Forest. After a moment of hesitation – and wrinkling his nose a little at the Coalition scent – Rhine spoke up to her, voice firm, "Hello there... if you don't mean any harm, then you wouldn't mind telling us your name, would you? My name is Rhinestonestar. I'm in charge around here. If you're lost and away from home, then I can help you get back there." He wasn't particularly looking forward to setting foot on Coalition lands following the Glades's betrayal, but he didn't have much of a choice in the matter. If Mordred truly meant no harm, then Rhinestone would feel a responsibility to help. Of course, he didn't particularly like the way that she was staring in Quasar's direction.

The eyesore’s upper lip curled. His blue eyes darted to the source of the rustling branch, and he squinted at the shadowed shape. Big reptile thing, he realized, and his tails lashed. The green one swished, the closest to Sorbet of the three, and probably would swish against the gladiator’s shoulder if the hybrid didn’t notice and move.

“Yee, like Rhinestonestar said.” His voice growled low in his throat. Paws tapping the ground, he hopped between Sorbet and the young raptor’s tree.

“Not introducing yourself at the border? Yeah, doesn’t fit with your story about not intending harm.” His yellow ears crackled and glowed. He grimaced, clenching so tight his jaw popped, and tried to contain the electricity just a little longer. Give the stranger a chance, even if Quasar didn’t believe the arboreal stranger deserted one.