AMERICAN NIGHTMARE // open, joining

[CAESAR CIPHER.]

[glow=black,1,400]REST YOUR HEAD, HERE'S A LULLABY ! — ｡+ﾟ.[/glow]

Caesar wasn't an idiot. He knew that after his attempt at murdering Warringkingdoms, he would not be allowed back in The Elysium. So after Goldenluxury had killed his tiger body, Caesar possessed his savannah body and fled from the group. There was only one group he could go to now: Tanglewood. Except there was one thing that made Caesar hesitant in staying.

"Are you related to a Vigenere Cipher?" Aurum's words echoed in the dream demon's mind as he ran, a strange feeling in his chest rising as he neared the border of Tanglewood. Caesar skidded to a halt once he reached the border, panting, trying to fight off the feeling of his tight chest. Surely he won't be here anymore. Vigenere wasn't the type to stay in a group forever, surely his older brother would be gone by now? Yeah, that's what he was going to believe. It eased his worry, at least.

Caesar waited at the border, trying to silently catch his breath from all the running he had done. He was safe... For now.[glow=COLOR,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]

[toboggan]

Sniffing out and identifying a distant individual's scent is a maneuver that has saved many an ass, especially in a tribe environment where various groups bear a distinct and unique scent. Characterizing each of the group's smells wasn't an easy thing to do, since it's kind of impossible to perfectly describe the abstract. All the same, each of the tribes' stenches carried specific traits that one could identify: Tanglewood smelled of funky bog, the Typhoon was salty and tropical, the Pitt reeked of ass, and Elysium was fresh and crisp.

The odour that the general's snout picked up today wasn't any single one of the above. The smell was either an all-you-can-eat buffet of everything, or something completely different - Leroy couldn't decipher which it was. It's existence piqued the hound's interest, however, and he set out to track it down.

The hound's short search ended at the paws of a feline whose physique was so scarred and battered, they could have been a cat-shaped punching bag and Leroy wouldn't know the difference. Unable to cough up the cheesy welcoming bullshit that he was used to greeting newcomers with, the male hesitates for a moment, before mustering, "How's it goin', tough guy? Ya lookin' for a place to stay... or somethin'?"

[VIGENERE CIPHER.]

[glow=white,1,400]YOU FUCKING DISAPPOINT ME ! — ｡+ﾟ.[/glow]

Vigenere should be taking things easy, especially with his paw still healing, but the savannah could not sit still and stay put. The mere idea of doing that drove Vigenere crazy and made him itching for something to do. He did what he always did; patrolling the borders on the lookout for joiners - or to make sure said joiner doesn't get themselves caught in a trap. What Vigenere was not expecting, though, was a familiar scent being hidden among a mess of other smells.

Anger surged within Vigenere, making the demon grit his teeth as he hopped towards the border where Caesar sat. He was practically seeing red, and could you blame him? Caesar destroyed his life - quite literally. Caesar murdered his fiance right before his eyes, caused him to lose his position within the King's Guard, destroyed their home to the point where it didn't even exist. Sure, the two were brothers by blood, but Vigenere acted like they weren't. To Vigenere, Caesar had given up his right to be a Cipher long ago. It was appalling that his younger brother still seemed to carry the name, but that wasn't something Vigenere had any control over.

"He is not." Vigenere answer Leroy's question as he came to stand next to the General, his gaze dark and cold as he glared at the battle-scarred savannah before them. Funny how Caesar had more scars than him, though Vigenere wouldn't be surprised if those were caused by the dumbass doing something stupid. Whether that be walking into a bear's mouth or pissing someone off. Vigenere's fur was bristling as he stood next to Leroy, forcing himself not to jump at Caesar and tear the little bastard's throat out. "I suggest you leave, Caesar."

Did Leroy even know what Caesar was capable of? It seemed not, if the canine was offering Caesar a place to stay. Perhaps Vigenere would have been offended, but he didn't expect Leroy to know his past. Let alone what Caesar had done to their home. "Leroy," Vigenere tried to reach out to Leroy telepathically, not taking his gaze off of Caesar. "I don't know what our rules are regarding joiners, but I highly suggest not allowing him here." He paused. "As much as I hate to admit it, this is my brother." As if that wasn't obvious. "I don't consider him one, but allow me to explain why I am against him." He didn't want to give Leroy a choice in the matter, but ultimately, Caesar's fate would be up to the canine.

It was taking all of his energy not to lash out at Caesar right here and now. Luckily for the younger demon, Vigenere was more in control of his emotions, but oh how the urge to rip Caesar's throat open was tempting. He wanted Caesar to suffer the same fate as what he had done to Athena, but alas, Caesar wouldn't be that easy to get rid of - and Vigenere knew this. Killing some mortal body was only going to give Caesar satisfaction and Vigenere was not going to allow his brother that.[glow=COLOR,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]

[wormwood.]

☆ HUNG PICTURES OF PATRON SAINTS UP ON MY WALL TO REMIND ME THAT I AM A FOOL. TELL ME WHERE I CAME FROM, WHAT I WILL ALWAYS BE: JUST A SPOILED LITTLE KID WHO WENT TO CATHOLIC SCHOOL —

This was certainly an... interesting interaction to bear witness to. It wasn't as if Aurum didn't know family troubles. No, in fact, he knew them quite well. Whether it be his poor relationship with his mother because of her abuse, his strained relationship with his father because of his distance, or his complicated relationship with Poetking that involved many twists and turns, the proxy had never really been allowed a simple family life. Or at least, not a biological one. His adopted family had been the light of his life, and now that he had both biological and adopted children, he could only hope they would get along. Or at the very least, wouldn't end up with strained and damaged relationships like he and Poetking had as brothers, or worse, like Vigenere and Caesar. When the lion had first met Caesar at the Elysiun gathering, he had little idea of the other's familial connections. He had certainly seen the similarities between Caesar and Vigenere, but when he tried to question the feline about whether or not they were related, he had been quickly denied. It seemed, however, going by how Vigenere was currently reacting to the presence of the other male, that might not have been very truthful. Aurum had never really been a big fan of liars, and it thankfully seemed as though this one would be getting what was coming to him before too long.

Padding up alongside both Vigenere and Leroy, the proxy looked Caesar up and down, his one eye scanning slowly over the familiar feline. He knew that he hadn't been imagining anything when he had seen the familial similarities. His tail lashed and twitched from side to side behind him as he spoke, addressing Caesar first, "Hello there... not so long time no see, huh? You get tired of Elysium, or did they kick you out?" He would've been nicer to any other potential joiner, but considering how the usually level-headed Vigenere was acting... something needed to be up with this guy. Tilting his head towards Vigenere, Aurum found himself questioning bluntly, "You don't think we should let him in? I met him at the Elysium festival, but he denied having any connection to you... him lying to me doesn't exactly make me a huge fan of him right off the bat." Perhaps he was being a bit harsh, but as of recently, his patience had been running thin, cut down and strangled by all those that he had lost so close together. He didn't have time for liars and assholes, and his old plush walls had instead been replaced with tired, cold steel.

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

#psychosocial.

[alaric g.]

    Familial troubles weren't something that Alaric had had to deal with all that much. His father's death had been the only real rift-creating event in his rather small family, although its aftereffects had been quite significant. So much so that Alaric had been spurred to abandon a mother who'd grown distant so that he might be able to search for a better life where he was not constantly plagued by the nagging guilt that he had been at least partially responsible for his dad's death. Leaving behind his mom would be the last of his familial issues. He hoped so, at least.

    One thing about growing up in the middle of nowhere was that you were oblivious to most things regarding clan life. Caesar's crimes and infamy were not excluded from this. As such, when Alaric approached, he wasn't quite sure exactly why Vigenere and Aurum had become provoked by the scarred savannah. "What exactly did he do?" the tom inquired, eyeing Vigenere with his one good eye.

♔ don't do love, don't do friends

[CAUSTIC.]

[align=center]

[table][tr][td]

CAUSTIC

[/td]

[/tr][/table]
[table][tr][td]

[/td]

[td]

Caustic tries not the think about his family- or the semblance of the one that he had. Luc still haunts his dreams like a far-away ghost, despite the fact it'd been ten years.
Grief is a tar stuck to the inside of his lungs and produced the oh-so bloodied coughing that would find it's way to Tanglewood's earth. Caustic doesn't have much to add- all the questions he could have wanted are already asked. He places himself behind Alaric to watch the scene unfold. He is much in the same boat, here. He doesn't know who Caesar is at all.

SPEAKING

[/td][/tr][/table]

[VIGENERE CIPHER.]

[glow=white,1,400]YOU FUCKING DISAPPOINT ME ! — ｡+ﾟ.[/glow]

Vigenere was vaguely aware of Aurum and Caustic approaching, though he didn't look back at them nor offer them any sort of sign that he noticed them. Right now, the savannah's attention was solely on his littermate right now, almost like tunnel vision. I can't believe this bastard's nerve. Should he be surprised that Caesar was trying to join here? No, not at all. And by the way Aurum phrased his words about Elysium, Vigenere wouldn't be surprised if something happened there. A pacifist group like that won't like his personality long.

However, once Alaric's innocent question of "What did he do?" hit Vigenere's ears, the demon was sent into a flashback. Before him laid the body of his ex-fiance, her fragile body bleeding out before him. Caesar bared his teeth at Vigenere, his muzzle and teeth stained with the blood of Athena. Vigenere could only stare in shock at what happened, faintly aware of the blood on his chest. [i]Her blood on his chest. In a blind rage, Vigenere had lashed out at Caesar, but the fucker had fled and never came back. Truthfully, Vigenere was happy Caesar never had the guts to show his face after; he probably would've ripped his brother to shreds.

Vigenere had to carry his fiance's body back to her father, the King. The King had - understandably - been pissed, nearly killing Vigenere himself. Vigenere told him the truth of what happened and luckily the King believed him, and let him go. It was a shame he wasn't invited to the funeral, though Vigenere didn't really care at that point. Athena was gone and he had already mourned her, even if it was silent. The truth was, Vigenere blamed himself for her death and felt awful. He should have been there to protect her, he should have known that Caesar was lurking around, waiting to strike. But he didn't.[/i]

Back in the present, Vigenere was digging his claws into the ground. He was obviously trying to keep himself from leaping at Caesar and doing the same thing his brother had done to Athena. Although he had originally planned on telling Leroy privately what Caesar had done, Vigenere knew it wouldn't hurt if anyone else knew. No, it would be better if everyone else knew. Vigenere raised his head, scowling at Caesar as he spoke, "What has he done?" He echoed Alaric's question. "Many things. Conspired a murder against our former King - and succeeded. Destroyed our home, slaughtered the Princess because he was angry at her for being with me. Killed our parents." He paused, before looking back at Aurum, Alaric, and Caustic, then continuing, "If Caesar stays here, our clanmates will be in danger." Or that was what he was trying to get at, at least.[glow=COLOR,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]

[CAUSTIC.]

[align=center]

DR. CAUSTIC

[table][tr][td]

[/td]

[td]

Caustic listens to Vigenere's tale, and part of him just wants to ask- "Is that it?" In the scope of things, Caustic ponders if he's done worse. Likely so, Caustic was in a bloodsport, after all.

He keeps his silence, leaving it up to Leroy to decide.

[/td][/tr][/table]

[suvi.]

[table][tr][td]

SUVI KIIRA NÍ FAOLÁIN
MEDIC / BETA
TAGS && INFO

[/td][td]

[div style="width: 360px; font-family: palatino; color: #c48d85; text-align: left; padding-top: 15px; padding-left: 10px"]T͏O̴G͠ETH͏ER̕ ÁT̴ ̸T̕H̶E ST͏ART̶ O͏F̀ ̵TI̡M͏E

Splashes of yellow on the border caused the petite vixen to freeze.  Multi-colored hues widened.  For a moment the medic stood, perplexed and perturbed before she realized these memories came from Suvi specifically.

Hesitantly, she trotted towards the group, hanging back behind her clanmates.  Softly, she rose her voice, a bare whisper, adding to Vigenere's advice.  "Th-the Typhoon exiled h-him.  F-for attacking the Captain."  All over not receiving a promotion.

Blind ambition.  That was what infused the savannah.  Dangerous.  That's what he was.  Dangerous and rude and an ablest and everything in between.  She remembered.  "Don't you know how to speak kid?"  Arrogant.  Prideful.

Softly, snow white paws shuffled.  Uneasy.  These were Suvi's memories.  Still hers.  Her ears flicked backwards.  "H-he is cruel and ambitious. Y-you shouldn't... Shouldn't let him in, Leroy."

[/td][/tr][/table]

© MADI

[CAESAR CIPHER.]

[glow=black,1,400]REST YOUR HEAD, HERE'S A LULLABY ! — ｡+ﾟ.[/glow]

Caesar opened his mouth to reply to Leroy, his worries about the appearance of his brother faded away. Unfortunately for him though, he got hopeful far too soon; the brighter color of yellow that marked Vigenere's fur came into view and Caesar visibly tensed up. The fur on his neck raised as he heard Vigenere's tone, subconsciously holding his breath. Shut up. Shut up. Shut up. Obviously, pleading this to himself mentally wasn't going to do much, especially when Vigenere's clanmates were prodding Vigenere to explain what he had done.

Perhaps if it wasn't Vigenere who was revealing the things he had done, Caesar would have grinned. He would have been proud of the things he had done - and while that was true to a certain extent, the fact that Vigenere was speaking in such a dangerous, warning tone made Caesar dig his claws into the ground. "Come on, Vig," Caesar forced himself to say, trying to keep his voice from wavering. He smiled at his littermate, trying to feign innocence and be friendly. "It's in the past, no? I've changed, bro." God, it was sickening he was acting like this. He hated this. Could he last very long in Tanglewood when he had to force himself to be friendly and loving towards Vigenere?

Caesar's dark gaze flickered to Suvi as she came over, at first not recognizing the vixen but as her soul flickered before him - revealing this was the same Suvi that had been there during his time in The Typhoon. And she recalled that he had attacked Goldenluxury. Caesar grit his teeth together, fighting the urge to lash out at both Suvi and Vigenere (the latter due to knowing that Vigenere could, in fact, kick his ass). Looking back at Leroy, Caesar once again tried to give the General a friendly smile. "I assure you, I am not the same person they speak of. Not anymore."

This was insufferable.

//permission given to use clairvoyance to see Suvi's soul![glow=COLOR,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]