Heartlands' Story - Tracker & Lore

“Bull[EXPLETIVE], Sleekshade,” he turned to face Sleekshade then, “You speak of better places, but how much will we have to struggle to find those places? How many memories and tribulations will we go through, before someone else forces us to leave that place behind? Will you leave again then? Say it’s ‘for the good of the pack’? Go from place to place, never truly settling, because the moment we face a difficult opponent, all of a sudden it’s a lost cause?”

The new Alpha did not respond then. Even the crowd was silent, too swept up in wondering what the outcome of all this would be. Redtail turned towards the crowd, “We are not weak. We are not feathers in the wind that let the wind take us wherever it wants to go. We are Heartlands! We need to defend this home! Everything we’ve worked for, we must fight to defend! Whitestorm --” he turned to the man then, “They killed your wife. They stole your kids. Are you willing to let them get away with that? Let them think that we’re weak?”

Uncertainty quicked switched to anger and determination on the snowy man’s face. He stood a little bit taller now, ferocity burning in his eyes, “No, I will not. I won’t let Owlfrost die in vain.”

“And Firesong -- look what they did to Dawnblaze. She can’t even come to the clearing, too bedridden to the medicine den, because of them. They could have killed her. Are you going to let that slide?” Firesong’s reaction was much the same as Whitestorm’s. The fiery male stood tall, and announced that no one would dare touch his wife like that again.

“I will defend her to my dying breath.”

“Jessie,” Redtail’s voice was softer now, aware of the she-wolf’s fragile state, “I don’t have to remind you what you went through. Are you with me?” She hesitated, staring at her shifting paws, before looking him in the eyes and nodding.

“I’m in too!” Sootvine barked, rising to his paws.

“And me!” Said Marigoldshine, her multi-colored eyes shining with determination.

More and more wolves rose to their paws to support Redtail, but still many wolves stayed where they were. Though some held unsure expressions, others clearly disagreed with Redtail’s opinion.

“You may join Heartlands on their expedition back to save the pups, but we will not be killing anyone. We cannot fight monsters by being monsters ourselves -- that is not how you end conflicts.” Sleekshade finally spoke, his expression now one of challenge, a reminder that it was not Redtail’s decision, but the Alpha’s -- his, “We will spend this time resting and healing up, and on the sixth day, we will all make the journey to the mountains.” Sleekshade dismissed the meeting, and was just about to head to the medicine den. But Redtail’s word stopped him.

“No.”

The wolves in the crowd, sensing that the meeting was not truly over, remained rooted to their seats, “What?”

“No. I will not let you make this pack weak. I will not sit by and watch my family be uprooted from their homes over a challenge we can overcome. I had hoped you would make a better leader than Barnaby. His kindness made him weak, and I see now that you’re going to follow in his footsteps.

“At sunhigh on the sixth day, you will face me at the southern clearing for a duel. If I win, we will stay here and fight. If you win, I will admit defeat, and we can leave.”

Murmurs passed through the crowd. Sleekshade knew he could not show weakness. A moment later, and he nodded, “Sunhigh, then.”

Redtail nodded as well and, seemingly satisfied with the answer, left. The wolves dispersed from the crowd, sensing that the meeting was truly over.

OOC

Curse words will be uncensored from now on :') 

Day 77 - Part 4

Over the next several days, the wolves were able to get a low but good supply of herbs. The smaller wounds were gone, and many of the more moderate wounds had lessened to a more manageable amount. Tawnyspots and Dawnblaze still needed more time to heal, but Berrycloud no longer needed to be under Pinetree's careful eyes. Though food was scarce and rations had to be put out, it was not so bad that anyone had to go to bed with an empty stomach.

“Thank the Gods for an early spring,” Firesong said once.

When the wolves awoke on the sixth day, the camp was alive with the buzz of what was to come. All external activities ceased. The only thing that persisted was a foraging expedition, but even that was cut short in order to bear witness to something that may drastically change their lives.

When sunhigh came upon them, no words needed to be spoken. In groups or one by one, they left the camp to make their way to the southern clearing, a large enough patch of land with sparse trees and short grass spread out in patches. The ground underneath was sturdy but covered in pebbles, a landscape which would further test the wolves to see if one was truly skilled enough to be leader.

The spectators gathered around the clearing in a large circle, providing the opponents ample battling space. Sleekshade and Redtail got into position, facing each other and remaining a yard and a half away, then both got into their defensive positions. No one dared move or make a peep now. This was happening.

“After you,” Sleekshade said, watching Redtail through narrowed eyes. The larger male nodded and, after only a moment, charged forward head-on. With only a moment to think, Sleekshade ducked, anticipating that Redtail would try to quickly latch at something vital. But instead, the red male faked it; he skidded to a stop just before impact and, now knowing what Sleekshade was doing, grabbed onto the male's snout before the other could rise up.

The battle was on. Fighting continued back and forth, with no clear winner in sight, and power being exchanged from one person to the next over and over again.

Some time passes. Both wolves are breathing heavily and bleeding from multiple sites. After Redtail loses a hold he has, they seem to spontaneously agree to allow each other time to take a breather.

“Do you think they'll draw?” Austin asked, the first words to be spoken since the match began. Beside him, Robinwish shook her head slowly, not wanting to miss anything.

“You've fought well,” said Sleekshade between breaths, “But a draw means a win for me, until you decide to fight again,” it is unspoken tradition, from pack to pack, generation to generation, that if a duel for Alphaship ends in a tie, the current Alpha remains so, but the challenger has rights to challenge them again at a soon date. If a challenger loses, however, they do not have rights -- until years later -- to challenge again, and attempting to do so will result in being attacked into submission by the pack rather than the Alpha.

After a moment of breath, Redtail responds, “I won't give up yet,” a nod to Sleekshade, a nod back, and once more into fray they go.

The second half of the battle does not last nearly as long as the first. At first, the wolves are once more even. Redtail has found hold just behind Sleekshade's ears, and he forces the male to keep his head low as he pushes the other with his body. The lack of control forces the smaller male to slowly, but surely, move over, and his attempts to resist the other’s strength falls flat.

A loose pebble that Sleekshade stands on slides out from under him and causes him to fall. It is all Redtail needs to capitalize on the moment and put his body on top of him, two limbs on each side, one hold on the other’s neck. There are several moments in which Sleekshade tries to rectify his mistake, but Redtail refuses to miss out on the opportunity. Some more struggling later, and finds hold on Sleekshade's jugular.

It doesn't take long afterwards for Sleekshade's attempts to break free to cease. The moment he stops, the winner becomes clear.

There's a moment of silence, as the wolves process what has happened. Only Robinwish and Pinetree immediately spring to action, checking the wounds the two have. Both wolves have a mix of scratches, bruises, and bite marks mainly along the shoulders or at various parts of the neck, but Sleekshade had a few more wounds that needed tending to.

Finally, the other wolves come back to life. Even as he stands there, bloodied and tired, Redtail manages to stay tall, accepting his new role with triumph. The wolves gather around him and acknowledge his leadership.

“We will not be ripped from our home so easily,” he began, blue eyes scanning every wolf there, “We will not let them think they can take our children, our possessions, our sense of self. We will fight back against our enemies, and we will win! For Heartlands!”

Many of the wolves barked, yapped, and howled their agreements, his energy and tenacity permeating through their bodies and bringing them further to life. They were ready to risk losing themselves in order to save Heartlands.

When the noise died down, the voice of Sootvine came forth: “How are we going to take them down?” it was obvious by the way he spoke that he held confidence and faith in his childhood friend. Whatever he decided, Sootvine would be with him to the end.

The red male smirked, then, after a moment of silence, simply said, “I have a plan.”

OOC

This is the first half of Part 4, separated because the entry otherwise would've exceeded 10,000 characters (again). When all of these entries have been done, I will post a tl;dr!

Part 4

Five wolves from Lucien’s Claw entered the camp, with Tigon in the lead. Their noses pointed them quickly to the wolves at the center of the clearing, the smell of their wounds still fresh in the air: Berrycloud, Austin, and Sunfall watched them with weary eyes. The intruding wolves snickered and laughed, noticing with a good whiff that they were the only ones there.

“It seems you three still believe this place can be saved,” Tigon spoke, his teeth gleaming in his smirk, “Being stubborn has spoven to be a fatal mistake.”

Suddenly, Austin's bark causes a wall of multi-colored fur to rain down upon the wolves of Lucien’s Claw. A battle quickly erupts, the faces of Redtail, Sootvine, Smokewood, Raindrop, and Ourwin within the crowd as they came crashing onto the scene. Lucien’s Claw fights valiantly, but when Berrycloud, Austin, and Sunfall join in the fray, it becomes obvious that they cannot win the fight.

“Walker! Send reinforcements!” Tigon roars between battling, beating down the still-injured Berrycloud with ease before battling Smokewood more head-on. The dark-furred male waits no time in disengaging from battle. He expertly darts past the slower Yellowfang and Sootvine, and disappears amongst the growth of the forest. Ripping away from his opponent, Redtail chases after the man.

In his race back to camp, Walker is suddenly tackled by a purple and white body. The movement causes him to lose footing and collide with the ground alongside Lilypool, but he is quicker than her to get up, and continues his race back to camp. Such an action only lasts a moment before powerful arms wrap themselves around his neck and bring him down. Sleekshade grabs him by the scruff and pins him down, giving Lilypool enough time to quickly take his place.

Just as he backs away, Redtail arrives, his breath laboured but otherwise fine. Fire glows in his eyes as he approaches the traitor, and he orders Lilypool to force the man's head up.

“This will teach you not to take Heartlands' kindness for granted,” gaping jaws snap shut violently on the man's throat, grinding the arteries and muscle underneath. Blood gushes out of the site and stains Redtail’s teeth, the only thing not covered in red now his eyes.

“Redtail! Stop!” Sleekshade barks, his words falling on deaf ears as the new Alpha took the traitor's life away. He could do nothing but stare in horror and shock, knowing he had no right to interfere, but unable to stop thinking about how wrong it all felt. Everything he had known, everything Barnaby taught him -- Redtail was undoing it all, all the stories about the values of understanding, compassion, and forgiveness. He was twisting justice and turning it into revenge, into an excuse for murder. This was not justice. This was not how Barnaby wanted it, “Redtail! I said stop!” he leaped at the red-furred male then, unable to stand by and watch a man be murdered in cold blood. A tussle insued, both wolves battling out once more for the second day in a row, wounds re-opening and inviting with them the same soreness from before.

Meanwhile, Hazelglow's team snuck their way inside Lucien's Claw's borders, being careful to avoid any hunting or border patrol. Each wolf carried with them thick sticks, and one wolf, Ourwin, carried with him a piece of flint. Upon finding the campsite, the wolves gathered at one point and lit up Stormpelt's stick. She stayed behind as the wolves continued on. After a bit, Swiftbriar's stick was lit up, and he too was left behind. Halfway around camp, Marigoldshine and Hazelglow stopped together, carrying no sticks between them. The rest of the wolves -- Firesong, Ourwin, Hailstorm, and Pricklestep -- continued on, with Firesong and Pricklestep stopping at their own respective places.

By the end of it all, the wolves had created a wide hexagon-shaped ring around the camp, their bodies and fire being the barriers.

The wolves within the camp were unaware of danger at first. No warning came to them of impending danger, and no smell of ash or heat reached their nose. It was not until much later did the breeze change directions, carrying with it the acrid scent of soot and burning foliage. One wolf shot up, his eyes scanning the sky above the trees, and the moment he noticed the smoke in the air, he began to rouse his sleeping pack-mates awake. Confusion made them slow at first, but soon the threat became all too real, and panick drove the unprepared wolves into a scramble.

By the time any of them tried to escape, the flames already covered a wide swath of land, forming a wall that was impenetrable to all but the most foolhardy of wolves. The only way out was two narrow paths, paths which hid the jaws of hungry wolves.

On the western side of Lucien’s Claw's territory, the running wolves were stopped by Ourwin, Hailstorm, Stormpelt, and Pricklestep. On the eastern side, Swiftbriar, Marigoldshine, Hazelglow, and Firesong bit at the panic-stricken wolves there.

The brittle undergrowth and dormant trees provided much fuel for the ravenous fire. It snapped at bark and lapped at the foliage beneath it, the walls growing higher and higher until they could almost break the canopy.

Chaos unfolded all around, and it seemed like it would all never end.

“Stay down,” there is no venom or hatred in his words, only the stern tone of a simple command. The blood that cakes his maw is not his own. Redtail turns back towards Walker.

“I--Th--...Tha--...” Walker tries to speak between gurgles of blood, Lilypool still holding his head up.

“What? Speak up, I can't hear you,”

“Th-that… bitch dese'ved to die,”

The three wolves knew exactly what he was talking about. Redtail looked to Sleekshade, who still lay on the ground but was no longer dazed, and gave him an expression as if to say 'I told you so.'

“May you rot in hell, Walker,” and with one final tug, the life seeped out of the man, until all movement ceased to happen, and his face was buried in his own blood. Sleekshade watched, wondering why, even when he lay on his death bed, Walker could be so cruel as to condemn them.

Returning back to camp revealed a triumphant site: the wolves of Lucien’s Claw lay defeated and subdued, the four wolves unable to win a battle of 4 to 8. Though some particularly injured Heartlands members sat to the side, the rest watched their new captives with tenacity.

Redtail turned to face the wolves, their breaths still heard from their previous struggle, the air now filled with the further stench of blood. He particularly aimed to stand in front of Tigon, his posture undeniably telling them that he was leader around here. Blood-stained jaws parted just barely, a tease of what was to come, “Heartlands will not let some meager setback force us down,” he began, voice deep and menacing, “We have risen above this challenge, and now here you sit before us, a prisoner on our land.”

Lucien’s Claw were unafraid. Though their prides and bodies had been hurted, they did not fear. Tigon met Redtail’s gaze without falter, “Your is being raided. Your home is being destroyed. Your people will run into the hungry jaws of my pack-mates, so that they must face the justice that awaits them,” a pause; he studies Tigon's face for a moment. A flicker of fear shows, here one instant, gone the next. Or perhaps it was worry? “Walker is dead. Let his death be a reminder that Heartlands' kindness cannot be taken advantage of, without consequences.”

Another pause. He wants to see Tigon squirm at his defeat, but he remains streadfast. Finally, he says, “Run away, Tigon. Take what remains of your pack, and never come back.” A nod signals the apprehensive release of the five wolves. They look at their ambushers with wide-eyes and raised hackles, but dare not start enother fight.

Tigon turns to leave, “Oh, and Tigon?” he stops and looks back, unwilling to show weakness by not meeting his gaze.

What come next is a sharp, hot pain. Dull claws rake themselves furiously over exposed eyes, tearing at the flesh of his face and the skins of his eyes. A pained, loud whimper echoes throughout the camp and beyond, the feeling causing him to slump and lay half-crouched, half-sitting on the ground. Instantly, his pack-mates rush to stand beside him and support him, but what they see when they get there is his bloodied face and closed eyes. The red liquid drips through his lids. It takes no effort to know what this means.

Helping to support him up, the wolves rush out, their hurrying paws and Tigon's whimpers eventually dying into the distance.

OOC

So I guess this is part 2 of 4? Idfk xD There will be one more part, I promise you, and THEN all of this stuff will be over, and we can move on to smaller, regular entries.

A Summary of Entry March 12th, Day 77...

Walker, a man who was reportedly exiled from Lucien’s Claw, makes a full recovery thanks to Heartlands' hospitality, and says his farewell. A week later, Lucien’s Claw -- the name of the only bordering pack to Heartlands that's been leaving behind ominous warnings -- suddenly attacks.

In the midst of the battle, Owlfrost is killed attempting to help Jessie get the pups to safety, several wolves are badly injured, and Barnaby is defeated and blinded by Lucien’s Claw’s leader, Tigon. Having lost, Heartlands is unable to stop the wolves as they take all of their resources and, worser still, the four pups. Tigon states that they have one week to leave their territory as it no longer belongs to them, and that anyone found on the land by the week's end will be killed.

Permanently blinded, Barnaby declares Sleekshade to be the new leader, who wastes no time in saying that they will leave to the mountains and come back later to save the pups. Redtail and several supporters are outraged at this sign of weakness, and Redtail challenges Sleekshade for Alphaship, a challenge both are given six days to prepare for.

On the day of the challenge, the battle is even, but Sleekshade eventually makes a mistake, claiming Redtail as victor. The new leader wastes no time in setting up an elaborate plan to rid of Lucien’s Claw for, hopefully, ever.

On the next day, three wolves stay behind to pretend to be stubborn stragglers. The party of five sent to see if Heartlands has left is ready to kill them, but they are attacked by a group of Heartlands members led by Redtail. Outnumbered, Tigon orders Walker to call for reinforcements, but he is stopped and killed by Redtail while Lilypool holds him down.

Meanwhile, another group surrounds Lucien’s Claw’s camp and sets fire to the area, causing chaos and attacking fleeing wolves. A smaller team breaks off to look for the missing pups. Aided by the fire, they are able to retrieve Honeypup, Sharppup, Icepup, and Foxpup without much problem.

Redtail, Lilypool, and Sleekshade return back to their camp to find Tigon's group has been defeated. He shows mercy to them by letting them live, but not without threatening them first and blinding Tigon much like how he blinded Barnaby.

The offensive team returns home, and everyone rejoices at their victory. However, some people cannot help but to wonder whether this would come back to haunt them.

Day 86 (March 21st, 2021) Summer 3, Y4

Over the summer, several litters and pups have been born. Robinwish’s second litter consists of three healthy pups, a runt male and two bigger sisters. His sisters are pushovers and bully him for his small stature, but in return he gets special attention from Austin. Velvetwing and Yellowfang have given birth to their own litters, not too far apart from each other. In Velvetwing’s litter, she has three equally strong children, also two females and one male. And in Yellowfang’s litter -- her second and final one -- she has once more given birth to two pups, one male and one female.

Then, Marigoldshine surprised them all with having a litter of five! No runts, three females and two males. With this many pups, Heartlands is busy making sure no one sneaks off to get into trouble. Marigoldshine takes no shame in boasting the largest litter Heartlands has ever seen. Sootvine takes pride as well, and often visits the Nursery to see his whopping seven children.

“If they all decide to stay when they become adolescents, the pack will be solely related to Sootvine in a few generations,” Hailstorm commented once.

This year will have the largest number of Festival participants ever. As a sign of good faith and to further forge bonds, pack members from Shiawase and Fierce Grace have been invited to attend the festival. They help Heartlands set up the festivities, which include a few things that haven’t been done in previous years: games! Sparring tournaments, games of tag, hide and go seek, river-boating, mud sculpting, and more, included with the same delicious spices, herbs, drinks, and foods as previous years, with some ideas given by the allying packs as well.

While everyone is having fun, Redtail, Sootvine, Rupina, Reddii, Redmask, Alien, and other high-ranking officials get together to discuss the goings on of each pack, including new births, some members who have passed away, wolves who have been interested in living with a different allying pack, and other less diplomatic talks.

“One of our members have found certain plants that seem to terribly imprint upon what it touches with specific colors,” Sootvine announces. The other leaders listen with intrigue, “Perhaps we can make something of it? I can show you all whenever you’re ready.”

Members from StormClan have also taken to being a part of the festival. Most notably is Sharppaw, Jessie and Ourwin’s daughter, who tell her parents of Honeypaw deciding to leave StormClan and seek a life elsewhere. On more brighter news, she also states how she’s beginning to gain a reputation in StormClan for having an ‘iron bite.’ “When I find hold, I never let go -- my pack-mates can attest to that!”

Conversations are had, news are spread, and fun is...erm, also had. It is a joyous day for all the wolves, a stark contrast from the winter before.

OOC

text

Day 89 (March 24th, 2021) Summer 6, Y4

A month and a half after the Festival, members from Fierce Grace and Shiawase Clan arrive in the hopes of joining.

One of them is a young adult she-wolf named Doespring, granddaughter of the late Alpha Tyka, who helped found Fierce Grace. She seemed to have a rather shy personality to most of the wolves, but seemed to like the prospect of befriending Sootvine and Redtail. Perhaps a little too much, in some of the wolves minds. Neither Marigoldshine nor Yellowfang liked how affectionate she was being towards Sootvine, but the dumb man thought it was just because of his 'alluring personality.' Pfft, as if! Redtail, on the other paw, was fully aware of her advances, and ignored it as such. Due to the way her name was already formed, and because she comes from a close ally, she was not asked to change her name. Trusting her capabilities, she was not given a mentor either, but Hazelglow was assigned to keep tabs on her for a while to make sure she didn't mess anything up.

The other female came from Shiawase, and had a less traditional name. Bridge was fine with changing her name to Grasspaw, but wanted to know why it had to be 'grass' of all things. “I see the theme with uh lot of y'all. Redtail is red. Sootvine is grey like soot. Tawnyspots has tawny spots… But m' fur is blue, golden brown, and white, and m' eyes are orange. Why am I Grass?”

Redtail told her to stop making sense.

Grasspaw was barely an adolescent, so she was given Lilypool as her mentor. She had an accent the wolves of Heartlands hadn't heard before, and it made a lot of her words sound unfinished or combined with other words.

Aside from when she was sucking up to Redtail and Sootvine, Doespring was a hardworking individual who did not make the wolves doubt that she did not belong. She began to grow a budding relationship with Austin, Velvetwing, and Whitestorm, who did not mind how often she talked and the stories she liked to tell. She had a bubbly personality like the rest of them (minus Whitestorm, who was more laid back but tolerant of their sometimes excessive exuberance).

Grasspaw, so far, only seemed to have a budding relationship with Lilypool, but with enough time, she'd find her own niche to join.

OOC

E