creatures of contradictions

DEIMOS And in your darkest hour, I hold secrets flame Green was not a common color along Halo’s wild expanses. Besides the fir and pine, Deimos had always known it to be amidst stark ivory and desolate plains of white – alabaster fixations swept upon frigid winds and glacial wakes. The field before them was something to cherish and behold, for everything it represented and could be: a babbling stream, fins of fish, stalks of verdantry rising towards the sky, as if it had never heard of being barren. Zuriel’s long strides followed close behind his own, while Belial soared overhead, wisely keeping quiet as they searched and explored. He glanced back to his traveling companions, eyes very carefully searching Ru for the thousandth time and likely for a myriad of unspoken reasons, then over to Talyson briefly, minutely, before carrying on their previous conversation about newfound foxes. “Supposedly they make sounds like ice cracking,” and he shrugged his shoulders, yet to see or hear the phenomenon for himself. “They should not be able to blend in so easily here.” So hopefully they’d be able to spot something quickly, efficiently, and utilize the information for the guild. master of nothing place; of recoil and grace

Tal's apprenticeship with the skyships had limited his time for Guild activities, so when a day off had coincided with the notice in the guildhall he'd jumped at the opportunity to stretch his legs on a scouting mission into the new areas that had transformed the home he'd always known.

Now his pale eyes drank in the green ferns and grasses ahead, bright with emotions that he kept carefully bottled up inside. He walked on tiptoe around Deimos and stuck close to Hotaru's side, keeping a respectful quiet as the two more experienced hunters conversed about their prey today; even if that prey was only intended for study and not bring home.

Boreal was, as usual, far more relaxed around everyone as she floated on new and unexplored thermals with Belial and occasionally dipped in and out of small, puffy clouds for the sheer joy of flying on such a lovely Leafchange day.

Hotaru

I want a snowfall kind of love
the kind of love that quiets the world

The Academy’s opening day looms closer than Hotaru ever thought it would. Many times throughout the year of getting it repaired and functional, she had felt the passage of time so keenly that it felt as if it would never come. That she would never reach the summit, never be able to honor her son’s memory the way she wished.

But here they are mere days before the grand opening, and Deimos’ offer couldn’t have come at a better time to distract her.

Talyson flanks her closely, and the cat inside her purrs at a low, sedate pace, pleased to have two of her clan so close at hand and with no others to intrude. This alone keeps her mood buoyed to a higher state than it normally is these days, the chance to stalk and hunt an additional perk that allows higher thinking - and therefore grief - to slip away in favor of primordial instincts. It’s unclear what is animal and what is woman; she was a hunter well before she Attuned after all. As Deimos’ eyes find her for the hundredth time she smiles faintly. “Some fox species are more nocturnal than crepuscular; I wonder what tendencies these have.” They may have to wait until twilight hours if so, which is always dangerous in Halo. “If they are similar to most tundra or desert foxes, they should be hunting right now. We have plenty of aerial options; should we scout or try to flush them out?” It’s an easygoing question. Hotaru is certain of her own hunting prowess, knows that both are valid options, and in deference to Tal’s relative quiet today she aims the question towards Deimos.

The kind of love that keeps you in bed all day
won't you bury me in your quiet love?

DEIMOS And in your darkest hour, I hold secrets flame Talyson’s quiet didn’t bother him; in fact, Deimos largely preferred it, given all the other circumstances blending and blurring for over a year. He tilted his head towards Ru’s suggestions, on the habits of foxes, on the notions of what to expect. “We can hope for the latter,” given a wry grin, knowing how much that mattered in the long run. But since this was their initial outing, and they had nothing to go off of but vague rumors, the notions and speculations would be theirs to hone and discover. “I would prefer scouting first,” and his eyes glanced upwards, towards Belial, Boreal, and then ministrations of their own accords. “If we shift, and the companions search as well, we can cover a broader area.” The courier on the ground would have his own vantage points too, depending on which portions he wanted to cover. Leaving his bag with Zuriel, who was quite content with the massive amount of grazing to be done, the Sword chose his eagle shift, rather than the massive thunderbird, for the occasion. Faster, and far less imposing, it would serve as a semblance of normalcy against the sky, especially if it was lazy gliding, rather than a hunting, predacious prowess. From there, he could float from above, catching a few thermals, sharp eyes taking in the grass, looking for any alteration in hues or wildlife. -- Feel free to post your character getting into position/searching out. I’ll dice roll for our success/failure! master of nothing place; of recoil and grace

The courier listened and learned - well, mostly. He frowned, nose wrinkling in consternation at the word 'crepuscular' but stayed quiet and tried to piece it together from context while Deimos and Ru went over the options at hand. He could well imagine the Sword flushing out their prey in his thunderous avian form - but the wide-winged stormbringer would flush everything else, too, and a stampede of the local fauna didn't sound like a fun time.

Luckily the Guildmaster chose subtlety to start with and soon enough he was airborne and rising fast.

Tal grimaced and bumped Ru with his shoulder, his voice low and a bit abashed as he asked: "So, uh... what does craypustular mean, anyways?" He hadn't dared ask in front of Deimos, but he offered Hotaru his arm to launch from once she shifted.

Boreal was already gliding east from the eagle that had joined them above, having a sense of the day's prey and keeping her pale eyes peeled below for something that was white and fuzzy. Once the hybrids were both in the sky, Tal took off at an easy jog beneath Hotaru's wings, his own eyes scanning  beneath bushes and rocky outcrops, seeking the shadows and covered areas not visible from above for movement.

---

Tal heads out beneath Hotaru and focuses on looking under covered areas.

Boreal glides east!

Hotaru

I want a snowfall kind of love
the kind of love that quiets the world

Her own wry grin is like a secret held in the corners of her mouth, only visible with discerning eyes. Hope aside, they will find them; she is sure of it. Whether through brute force or keener, wiser angles doesn’t matter to her. As such it’s a good thing Deimos’ idea runs parallel to her own - or at least to the option she knew logically would yield the greatest success, if not the greatest satisfaction.

As her eyes track Deimos with an unblinking intensity she hasn’t managed to shake in her year of healing, Tal’s gruff voice draws her attention reluctantly away from keeping tabs on her brother, a habit that she fears will not wane any time soon. Softening once her eyes land on him, she smiles faintly, fondly. “Crepuscular means an animal that hunts in twilight hours; dawn and dusk. It’s why you won’t find foxes in the dead of night unless you’re near human settlements - then they adjust to nocturnal hunting, to avoid us.” The frozen tundra and scorching desert were the only extremes that caused differing habits, and Hotaru is quite curious to see how these foxes lean. “Out here, we don’t have to worry about that kind of impact on their hunting behavior.”

Squeezing Talyson’s shoulder gratefully at his proffered arm, the Valkyrie shifts gracefully, talons painstakingly careful on the courier’s arm as she gains her bearings before taking off into the sky. She remains lower than Deimos, teaming up with Tal and guiding him with the shadow of her feathers on the greenery as she hunts with sharpened vision, keeping pace with Boreal in the opposite direction.

- - -

Hotaru shifts into her falcon form and guides herself and Tal west opposite of Boreal.

The kind of love that keeps you in bed all day
won't you bury me in your quiet love?

DEIMOS

And for all their careful planning – wings outstretched and companions below, they saw nothing.

Not a speck. Not a hair. Naught but the wild grass blowing in the rush of wind.

Tilting his head, the Sword’s piercing eyes took in the surroundings before ducking lower, as much as he might’ve dared to still not be seen or known as a predacious platitude. Sending the scouring evidence towards Ru, the deep rumble corresponded towards her mind. I do not see anything. Pausing, angling towards a nestling and outcropping of rocks and nettles, thorns and brush, he pondered if one would be meandering closer to those proportions. I am going to try by the boulders, giving her ample opportunity to decide if she would do the same, and hopefully relay the message to Talyson.

Belial followed suit, rapidly changing course, enough of a sign for everyone else that the chase was still on.

--

No fox sightings yet! Deimos is heading towards a group of boulders. What will you decide to do?

"who's gonna let you?"

they asked. i said

"who's gonna stop me?"

In truth, Tal hadn't expected to find anything on his own. There was a better chance of him flushing their quarry with his approach, though, so that Ru's sharper avian eyes would spot it as it moved away from him.

Or at least, that was the theory.

After awhile of nothing moving but the wind over the alien greenery and Hotaru's wing-shadow guiding him, however, Tal was beginning to wonder if the frosty foxes lived here after all. Given how little camouflage they'd have, maybe they preferred to hunt the Tundra...?

But Belial was moving, and so was Boreal. Tal glanced up at his feathery guide with a shrug, willing to follow where she led and continue their high-and-low teamwork.

---

Tal follows Hotaru's lead!

Hotaru

I want a snowfall kind of love
the kind of love that quiets the world

Their luck is minimal at best; far from nonexistent of course, as anything from surprise cannibals that somehow didn't perish in Edrei's fire to a pack of well-coordinated ursur could always be worse than the quiet wind over the greenery. Still, it could be better. Nothing on our end either, she reports back to Deimos, and looks down at Talyson where he stays beneath her shadow.

Luckily, while Hotaru is a practiced hand when it comes to patience, she is also an avid hunter. Deimos' intent has her shifting her own tactics, one wing dipping to coast into the wind, banking to the side. Slow enough to allow Talyson to follow without impeding his own groundwork.

She leads them in a long, loose arc around the backsides of the boulders, ready to head off any escaping, darting sorts that might shy away from the sight of Deimos' larger form in the sky.

- - -

Ru leads Talyson in a loose arc left around the back of the boulders to cut off anything that might flee from seeing Deimos.

The kind of love that keeps you in bed all day
won't you bury me in your quiet love?

DEIMOS

Coasting along, as if merely skimming along the banks of thermals and wind for an easygoing flight, the piercing juncture of his avian, eagle eyes, didn’t miss the sudden notation of white along the boulders. Not snow, but like bits and pieces of frost, speckled across vulpine hides. A few noises rustled along down near the rocky surface, but the Sword thought it sounded like the breaking of ice, as if it were unsettled along a tundra’s abyss.

Close to the left side he hinted towards Hotaru, plunging down slowly, so the creatures wouldn’t be increasingly alarmed. She’d be able to see them too, from this particular angle, as they wound their way along the boulder outcroppings, perhaps in pursuit of smaller prey hidden amongst the grass. Could be them.

Talyson would have the biggest advantage in his closeness, if he could find a way to identify and observe without being regarded as a threat.

"who's gonna let you?"

they asked. i said

"who's gonna stop me?"

It was the sound that caught Tal's attention first as he trotted quietly beneath Hotaru's shadow. He was closer to the source of the strange cracking and crackling noises coming from the boulders and he slowed his pace as he peered curiously towards them.

He didn't have any way to make himself invisible or turn into some harmless beastie, but when he saw a flash of crystalline movement on top of one of the rocks he froze and then slowly lowered himself into a crouch, easing forward through the lush tundra greenery. He didn't dare gesture up to Ru, but he trusted that she was watching over him and that she'd be able to figure out why he'd slowed and gone into a stalk.

There was a little rise in the land, more of a roll than a hill, and the courier stretched himself out flat along it and propped his chin up on his hands, watching the odd, glittery foxes hunting through the nearby rocks with silent fascination.

Hotaru

I want a snowfall kind of love
the kind of love that quiets the world

Moments before Deimos' voice quietly touches inside her mind, she begins to see them as well. Little hints of ivory that are too varied and textured to be snow or frost. At her brother's suggestion she banks slightly to the left, descending just as slowly - and taking a moment to be grateful that her own pale coloring in her avian form is far harder to spot in the skies when compared to Deimos' larger, darker one.

Below, she sees Talyson freeze and crouch slowly, and she doubles back to loosely circle overhead, admiring the strange glint of light on the foxes below. Tal has found a small group here, she alerts in her soft, regal tone. She flies even lower, knowing her other forms are too large and predatory even when still to risk trying any ground reconnaissance. For now, she merely observes their behavior and appearances from above.

The kind of love that keeps you in bed all day
won't you bury me in your quiet love?

DEIMOS

No efforts to be in vain; his silent agreement and acknowledgment pushed and pulled through the Attuned bond. The animals had been found – and now the greater difficulty would come in observing without disturbing.

With Talyson at his vantage point and Hotaru scanning the skies, the Sword would be the one sticking out due to sheer size and predacious capabilities. For once, he didn’t want to be seen as a natural threat, not in this capacity anyway, and so with a silent sigh, his mind calculated, broadening forth to the Valkyrie. I am going to go down and try in my cloak. An offering to her as well, by extension, if they could manage to not fumble around and alert the smaller foxes.

So he picked a spot a fair distance away, not enough to disturb the courier’s spot, to descend and land, quietly shifting, pulling out the aforementioned garb out of his bag. With some manner of luck, he too would be able to watch and journal without giving them all away.

In the meantime, the others would be able to see the rise of one vulpine’s snout – clearly smelling something (whether it was the assemblage of humans or not wasn’t quite known) – before another bound and leapt upon something in the tall grass. An insect? A mouse? Another sound of crackling ice sparked from their entities, into a particular pitch.

"who's gonna let you?"

they asked. i said

"who's gonna stop me?"

Oblivious to the conversation in the Attuned bond happening high over his head, Tal focused instead on what he could see: the foxes as they hunted and played among the rocks. Being still and silent didn't come naturally to the quick-footed courier but he did his best to stay as frozen as the ice up on the Sea of Glass, delighted with the vulpine antics. They were pretty cute, and the sparkle of ice on their fur caught the sun with a beauty he could easily admire.

A second fox stood up suddenly from her nap to streeeeetch, long and slow, and a series of chimes like ice breaking in Flowerbirth accompanied the sound before she ambled towards another fox and sat down beside it, watching the horizon to the south.

Boreal's sense of curiosity nudged at the bond but Tal shushed her silently, sending her spiraling higher into the sky until she was just a pale speck far above the land.