Off the Under City Grid *Aryk/Pack*

[alryktwyla]

As he hit the opening of the lair he was basically greeted with pack that knew his brother and were worried. It did not take him long to locate the beta and inform him of what was going down. He was going after his twin and no one was stopping him from doing so. He hit the hall where their rooms were first and threw open the door of Aryks room.

Forgetting to pull back on the whole muscle thing, the door hit the wall and rebounded so hard it pulled the hinges from the concrete. It now hung crookedly. Seeing the writing on the wall, nearly brought him to his knees. Pain ripped through his heart so fast and furious it would not surprise him if he had a gaping hole in his chest. His breath caught in his chest and he struggled to breathe again for several moments. There was nothing of his brother here but his lingering scent. Even that was faint... like he just faded away or something.

What the hell had Aryk been doing. How had he missed this. Guilt knotted deep within his gut. He had been a huge self centered asshat. He should have paid more attention, should have been there for his brother. His twin. Why would he leave? It was a question Alryk did not have an answer to no matter how hard he thought.

Yea, shit hit the fan when their father had to be put down. It was made worse as their mother pulled within herself at losing her mate. For the last several years she had little to do with her children so self absorbed as she was. Had he done the same, he wondered. Had he ignored what was right under his nose? Self loathing was something new to him, he had to fix this.

His hand reached up and touched his brothers name. As if he could just touch him through that one word and be reconnected. Anger slowly seeped into him as his head bowed. "I will find you Aryk. I will not lose you brother." he vowed softly to the empty room.

Spinning on one heel he moved swiftly out of the room and paused to pull in his brothers scent. It lead him to Ravyn's room where her and Casimir had stood out side her door. At least she was safe, one sister accounted for. He moved on and found Aryk's scent at Rylies door too. Reaching out he could feel her though the pack bound in the main lair. Another sibling accounted for. The trail moved on and headed out of the lair.

The tunnels were quiet, as if they knew he was searching. He moved as fast as he could often doubling back to make sure he was picking up just his brothers trail. He got further and further away from the pack the connection grew fainter. As if they were merely echo's. His skin twitched at the distance. He had never been this far from the lair. How the hell had Aryk made it out this far without wanting to turn back.

It was another hour before he came to the door and found the toy laying against the wall. A little bit of fabric of a pack was caught in a nail. Alryk inhaled deeply, taking his brothers scent for comfort and reassurance. Reaching down he picked up the figurine and held it gently between his fingers. His own set was back in his room. It was something their father had given them. Sadness bloomed anew at the loss of their father and the fact that Aryk had just left. He left.

Alryk tucked the tiny tin soldier into his pants pocket. He shoved the door open and stepped out into the deepening twilight. He glanced at the surrounding landscape and shuddered. It was so different from the city. Things smelled different out here. He took one step then another following the faint foot prints that ran off into the distance.

[Aryk Twyla]

Rock, rock, rock, bump! Clatter, rock, rock, rock, bump! Clatter... The rocking rhythm in tandem with the sudden jolts seemed almost musical in an omninous way in the hot box Alryk was finding himself in as he woke. His head pounded as he struggled to open his eyes. His wrists and ankles were on fire as he looked up to see them fastened to the top of the rocking, bumping box, with silver chains, leaving him hanging like a pig on a spit. His boots were gone, as was his shirt. There were bars at one end of the box with a few of the wagon ruts trailing behind the.

Each bump was followed by a sizzle sound but Aryk did not make a sound. He looked to his side and saw a very dirty young man grinning at him toothlessly. The moment he made eye contact the man jabbed him in the ribs with a metal stick that sent a shock through him. He pulled up on the chains as his body arched and he could not help but cry out in pain.

"You be a good boy there, or I'll open you up like a prize pig." the man warned him.

Aryk nodded. He relaxed, making no aggressive movements. Suddenly the man jabbed him again, getting the same reaction. "I hope we git there soon, or you may be dead, seein' how I'm so bored, I might just kill you for fun." he laughed and jabbed him again. Aryk screamed and his body stiffened and jerked each time causing the silver chains to eat away more of his skin. "I'm going to kill you." he growled, and he meant it.

Somewhere deep in the recesses of his mind he felt a familiar touch. "Alryk." he whispered. He must have felt what happened. That would mean he knew something bad happened and was on his way. The lair was too far away for him to feel him from there. But Alryk would not be alone. He grinned slightly. "You are in for a world of pain my friend." he growled. The man responded by jabbing him again. Just as Aryk screamed again the box jerked to a stop.


The man scrambled to the bars and waited as the fat man who shot him unlocked the castiron lock and let him out. The two exchanged words before they both climbed back in. The fat man took out his gun again and pointed it at Aryk. "Can't have you getting all fiesty on us." he snickers and shot Aryk in the arm. Once again the world spun but this time he didn't pass out. He was weakened and unable to fight as they unchained him from the ceiling and let him fall to the floor with a painful thud. The chains remained on his wrists and ankles as he was dragged out of the back of the wagon and forced to his feet. He blinked against the hot sun and struggled to stay standing.

He looked up to see a caravan with men in a long cage on wheels staring at him. He tried to hear the fat man as he talked to another man he had not seen before. He was enormous and menacing.

"10k credits?? Look at him! He's a Lycan, worth at least 40k!" the fat man shouted.

"You'll take 10k and like it, if you want to live. I could just kill you and take him." the large man said calmly. The fat man took the credits with a muttered curse, "Come on boy! We're leaving." he shouted at the younger man. The two scrambled up onto their wagon and it lurched forward, leaving Aryk standing there with wobbly legs. Nonchalantly, Aryk lowered his hands and ripped a belt loop off his trousers and dropped it for Alryk to find. As much as he wanted to free them from his presence, he knew Alryk would not stop looking until he found him and Aryk was trying the best he could to make it as easy as possible on him.

"Collect the garbage boys." the tall, broad man called and walked toward the wagon in front of the cage which looked like a stage coach. Two men jogged over and grabbed his chains, dragging him the back of the cage. One opened the back while the other shoved him up into it. He couldn't quite get his legs up as the swung the gate to shut it but several of the other prisoners grabbed his shoulders and pulled him up before it had time to slam on him.

"Thank you..." he breathed.

"Don't thank us yet, by tonight, you'll wish your legs were broken so they couldn't put you into the ring." someone muttered.

Aryk just lay there, not even trying to sit up. "By tonight, they'll wish they had not bought me." he muttered back.

"Pfft! That's the spirit...don't worry, they'll leech that from you soon enough..." a voice returned. The wagon lurched forward, carrying them toward the backside of New Vegas.

[alryktwyla]

Alryk wondered for not the first time in so many hours, just what the hell had his brother been thinking. The ground crunched under foot. So many smells, sounds and just the over all feel of the air made his skin crawl. There was nothing above. Nothing at all really out here in the open away from the under city. Lee and Ghost had stumbled after him into this open wasteland. Lee had grown up tagging along after himself and his brother. Ghost on the other hand, he was an elder whom had come from another pack. His shock of white hair had earned him the nickname Ghost and well when he shifted he was nearly pure as snow. Or so some had claimed. Alryk couldn't recall ever seeing the snow. It was a tale told around the fire of the lair when life started to drag everyone down.

He was grateful for their company. They kept at the trail for hours only stopping when his brothers footsteps ended at the hole.
The scents of dirty unwashed humans rankled and filled their nose's like acid. The trail turned from just Aryks footsteps to those of some wheels. The spacing was even and deep through the soft silt of the desert sands. Running along side it were a nearly identical markings of his brothers shoes.. only these were deeper. They decided that whom ever was now wearing Aryks shoes was heavier. The stench of human mingled with his brothers made him angrier, 'how dare that vile piece of shit wear his brothers shoes'; With a snarl Alryk kept them going.

The winds whipped up grains of sand that stung their eyes and bit into exposed flesh. Their skin was turning red from the unrelenting sun. Lee grumbled his dissent till Ghost cuffed him and told him to shut up. A few hours later they topped a low rise and almost didn't believe their own eyes. A cart like box with wheels sat in the shade of tall prickly green thing, next to it a older human and younger one sat conversing while passing a canteen back and forth.

"Should have gotten more for that mut pa." the younger complained, his voice breaking oddly. Alryk looked to his companions and couldn't keep the sly grin off his lips. They had just found dinner.

"Shut yur trap boi, we got what we got. Ain't gonna matter much if it don't live long in the rings. Ya half fried the fucker with all your poking. I done tole ya son, once in a while, only if de critter is deserving it. Break em and you get nothing." He added before snatching back the canister of water and sucking it dry.

"When I'm in charge I'll get more from the Ring Master. Not some measly 10k worth a credits." he continued on to grumble kicking the dirt around the bottom of a wheel.

They could see the cart was empty, only the lingering scent of Aryk was present. Ghost tapped Alryk on the shoulder. 'Ain't here what do we do now?' He sent.

Alryk studied the pair and began to understand just what had happen. The Ring Master was gaining more fighters and these pathetic humans had just handed over his brother. one of the new comers to the pack had been a captive of such a thing. It had filled the pack with fear and caused security details to be more vigilant. 'I'll take the fat one.. Ghost at my side, Lee the runt. Lets get the piggy to squeal some' he returned. These pathetic humans were going to pay for having harmed his twin.

Bones crunched and shifted as Alryk changed. His face contorted with a soft snarl that rode the wind and had the older man jumping up fumbling for his gun. The old man was not stupid, the lycan's words played over in his mind just as three large shadows blocked out the light of the sun. That promise of a world of pain had just crested the rise. Regrets flew from his thoughts as self preservation kicked into overdrive.

Alryk crouched low and sprang into action before fully completing his shift. Anger and despair for his brother overrode every bit of common sense he had. Lee being younger by a score of years took a little longer. Ghost being much older changed with out a fuss.

The three fully changed lycans came barreling down upon the two humans. The elder tried drawing his gun up but it was grabbed and forced upwards; Alryks grip causing the metal to groan in protest as he bent it. His other hand gripped the fat humans neck and hauled him off his feet. The sudden stench of urine reached his nose and he sneered viciously at the man.
"We needed the credits.. I have to feed my boy.. don't kill us.." the human pleaded. The memories he'd gleaned from Aryk were enough, these where his brothers captors at first. Alryk forgot about talking, as his teeth sank into the soft tissues of the mans neck and he ripped out his esophagus. The elder human's cries ended in a wet gargling sound as his lungs tried sucking in air from a ruined throat. Jaws snapping he feasted on this petulant creature that made sport of his brother.

. From the corner of his eye he saw Ghost disembowel the younger human with one slash across the abdomen. The human boy gave only one scream of fright before; his pleas were cut off as Lee reached out and ripped out his throat with one hand while Ghost yanked off a arm. They made short work of the pair causing pain and suffering. The fresh flesh and blood was enough to heal the blistering damage done by sun above them. In moments it was all over and they started off again following the scents, back tracking where the wagon had come from.

Several hours more passed before they came across more tracks and piece of fabric torn from his brothers pants. Aryks scent was strong on it. It could only mean he did it intentionally. 'Come on brother leave me more bread crumbs, I shall find you.' He sent to his twin with every bit of strength he had. Hopping that their connection was not completely severed.

[Aryk Twyla]

Aryk had moved so that he was sitting with his back to the cage wall. The metal scraped at his back, causing scratches that just scraped the skin enough to make it bleed slightly. What better trail to leave for his brother than his own blood. It was the strongest scent he could imagine using. He heard a voice clear and looked up at a man who jerked his head up in greeting. Aryk could smell him, he was lycan. At least he was not alone even if the man was not from his pack.

"Rouge?" he asked the tall, well build man with dark hair and golden green eyes.

"Not by choice. There were six of us left, then these guys showed up. We fought them off the best we could but...they have a pet zombie in that box chained to the back of the coach. When my people panicked, all but me were killed." he said sadly.

So, he was a pack leader, even if it was of only six. Aryk thought some good could come out of this. "My packmates will find us. We have a big pack in New Vegas, it's growing every day, I'm sure Lukias would welcome you." he informed the lone wolf.

"Lukias?" the mans eyes grew wide, "I know him, he is an old friend." The man sniffed the air and grinned at him. "That's smart. If you'd like some help with that..." he said and pointed at Aryk, nodding over his shoulder as if to say he knew Aryk was trying to leave a blood trail. "It's not going to last in the air very long but if you can get some on the ground, that will help your packmates."

Aryk knew he was right but then he also knew it would put Alryk into a frenzy if he though he was bleeding out. That is...unless. "Yeah, but you should drop some of your blood as well, it will let them know you are here. They will smell the alpha pheremones in you and know you are working with me. My twin is one of them and if he thinks I'm wounded, he will freak out." He said as he turned around, exposing his back to the older wolf.

The older wolf shifted just his hand, Aryk marvelled at how the older wolves were able to have such control as he heard the bones snap. He felt a sharp claw scratch deeply along his lower back but did not let out so much as a wince. The elder wolf knew what he was doing. Aryk turned back around and leaned back so the blood would drip down the side and onto the ground. He watched as the alpha male turned around and gasped at the deep lacerations on his back from a barbed whip. "Just rip off the bottom scab, it should start bleeding again just fine." the man said. "They treat those whips with silver, it can't heal if I can't wash it off. They do it to keep me weak between matches." he explained.

Alryk carefully ran a finger along the scab, looking for the part that would cause enough blood to flow from it. He knew it was better to just rip it off. He dug a fingernail under the scab and pulled, reopening the dirt cacked wound. A trickle of blood rolled down his back.

"Do you welcome me?" the alpha said in a low voice. "Deed for deed, we are linked, welcome me so we can communicate. He looked up at the other men watching them.

"I welcome you, Lukias may have my hide but we need eachother." Aryk stated and opened his mind to the man.

"There." he heard in his head, "Now reach out to your brother." The man turned around and leaned back on the bars just like Aryk then reach for Aryk's wrist. "I'll help."

Aryk closed his eyes and focused on Alryk, reaching out. He thought he felt the slightest of touches when he heard the alpha's voice again. "Focus, use me." Aryk poured on his focus and suddenly felt a strong connection with Alryk and the newcomer. "Alryk! It's the pit fighters." he shouted in his mind. "We are doubled back to New Vegas. I am not alone." His head began to throb from the effort and he felt his connection fading.

Suddenly he heard the alpha's voice again, this time addressing Alryk, "I am with him, I can protect him but not for long, you must hurry."

[alryktwyla]

His skin itched under the constant blistering heat of the sun. It didn't matter that a few hours ago they ate and ate well, his lip curled at the thought. Lee and Ghost were just as uncomfortable under the unrelenting orb. After this he would be glad enough not to see day light for several weeks or more. Having spent more then half his life under the city in tunnels and only snatching a meal here or there from the odd tunnel opening. Alryk had little memory of what it was like to be out doors to play on lush green grass or under the verdant green trees that grew tall and thick around their child hood home. There was a time long past that he and his brother along with their parents lived in a quiet normal little mountain town made up of pack members, a commune of sorts that was hidden from prying human eyes.

With a snort of disgust at his minds wandering thoughts he rubbed a hand over his baking scalp and froze. Pulling in a deep breath he let loose a long howl that would raise the gooseflesh on any human that should chance to hear it. There on the wind the scent of his brothers blood mingled with dirty bodied sweat. The recognition barely had a chance to register before the sending reached him. Ghost grabbed for his arm and held him upright.

"He's alive, wounded and circling back in a cage masters wagon. Aryk's got another lycan for company too. Strong. He must be quite old to be able to get a message to us. Ghost we need to send to the others let them know what's going on. Lukias needs to be told about this. We'll stay on this trail and keep following them." He said and was relieved to get nods of agreement. They wouldn't let this cage master have another lycan to fight for it's sick amusements.

Relief surged through him. Aryk and his connection wasn't broken, though he still had no clue as to why his brother took off. It wasn't a wound anyone would see on the outside and he held it close to his chest. His brother's leaving and disconection was like a knife in the heart. Pain. Such a useful thing. Focusing on that alone and the scent of freshly drying blood he set off after his brother and the mystery lycan. Ghost and Lee fast on his heels as he ran.

There would be time enough to figure the mess he and his brother were in. An it was a mess, since their dad had been put down everything was a mess. He wondered if Rayvn was behaving or if Rylie was ok. The landscape stretched before them as his thoughts strayed to family matters and what should be done about them. He didn't want things like this to happen again though. They needed to talk this out and welcome Ravyn's choice of a mate too. That aught to be amusing.

Ghost snickered as they ran. "Boy get your head out of your ass. That lycan's good for your sister. Lucias wouldn't have let him near her if he wasn't. Pack needs new blood in it. Pools been getting stale." he added. Lee just nodded his agreement as they topped a low rise and could see the dust ahead of them. Their keen eyesight could make out the caravan as it rambled along and kicked up a steady cloud of dust from the bone dry ground. On the horizon the wall of New Vegas was coming in to view as well. They were catching up.

Looking to the others Alryk nodded and sent to his brother. 'Coming for you with company. Stay with me brother.'

[Hom Dae Ken]

The warmth of the desert sun was slowly permeating the tarp that had been thrown over Hom's unconscious body. As the building heat began to revive his cold and aching muscles and kick-started his half-reptile metabolism he finally began to metabolise the tranquillizing drug out of his system. Only the slightest stirring betrayed his changing state of consciousness. Gradually his senses began to sharpen and awareness of his predicament flooded back to him. He was lucky to still be alive.

Those who had captured him were unused to dealing with mutants of his kind and the dosage of tranquillizer based on body-mass had been much too high. He had experienced a brief hope of escape when the guards had thought he was dying but it was soon clear that the dead were just food for the living in this twisted menagerie. He had been too sick to fight at the last stopover and he had been punished badly for it; only his novelty had saved him from worse then. They would make him fight when they next stopped, no matter how sick he was.

He needed to move; he needed to warm up and to shake off the effects of the drug before they took him below ground again or he was going to die. Painstakingly he began to uncoil, wincing where raw skin scraped against the floor; several of his scales had been torn away leaving painful open sores on his body. He crawled out from beneath the tarp on his hands, still too nauseous to attempt to raise his torso upright. His serpentine lower body followed, undulating slowly until he was completely free of the covering and lay breathing heavily in the direct life-giving sunlight.

The cage stank of so many bodies, sweaty, sick and injured. Hom dry retched; he had not eaten in a week but the smell and the drug were turning his guts inside out again and he was very, very thirsty. The sharp tang of fresh blood hung in the air and he turned his head towards the source, his long forked tongue flickering out to taste the air. The two bleeding looked human but their taste in the air was unlike anything Hom knew. He thought he might have tasted the older man before but his memory of the last few days was blurry.

Hom did not want to draw more attention to himself but he needed help and the faces of the other captive creatures that turned towards him carried only suspicion and wary indifference. “Pleessssse... ssirsssty” he begged of anyone who might possibly give a damn.

[Aryk Twyla]

At the front of the wagon, there was a dirty tarp that Aryk assumed was covering supplies. To the side of that was a tattered blanket with two tiny feet sticking out and a large bucket sitting next to it. Aryk tilted his head to the side, trying to comprehend what the hell he was looking at.

When the tarp moved, many of the men in the wagon pulled away from it in startlement. “BOY!” the driver bellowed, “Shut that thing up or face my whip again!” the driver bellowed. The little blanket jerked and Aryk heard a pained whimper. A small boy emerged from under the blanket. His musculature was well defined but there was no fat on his body. He was painfully skinny, indicating starvation. But his musculature was just to well defined for him to be human.

Aryk stared in disbelief at what he was seeing but that look only lasted a moment before he realized that he had seem stranger shit than that in his lifetime. The poor creature looked terrible. His eyes went back to the child.

The child reached for the bucket with a scrapped and bloody hand, his other he kept tucked in close as if protecting it from further harm. The forearm of the injured limb hand a large purple lump and his hand was quite swollen. He was bare from the waist up, wearing only a pair of tattered shorts. To Aryk it was painfully obvious what he was, as many of the Lycans lived in this style of dress for ease of the shift and, shorts were easy to come by.

The boy only had one good leg to walk on because the other was painfully twisted and obviously broken. On his back were deep, oozing, bloody whip marks. The boy looked terrified as he approached the snakelike being. He put the bucket down and pulled the ladle out, offering it to the creature from as far away as he could, his hand shaking so as to dribble water from the ladle. He nearly dropped the thing before it was taken from his hand. He closed his eyes and waited for it to be returned his open hand then returned it back to the bucket.

The boy whimpered and moved from person to person, offering each one a ladle full of water. About half way, he stopped and sniffed the air. His eyes turned and locked on Aryk and the man across from him. Just then, the man he was giving water too made a lunge for him. Even with his broken limbs, he moved like lightening. In the blink of an eye he was sitting in the dark haired Alpha’s lap with his arms around his neck, whimpering like a puppy. The man looked at Aryk with narrowed eyes, “Now they steal our pups?” he growled. “And maim them?” he looked up at the back of the driver. “He is the first that I will kill.”

Aryk followed the Alpha’s eyes and agreed. That driver needed to die, and soon, for what he did to the pup who was now curled in against the Alpha so tightly, he doubted he could pull him away. “He is not one of ours, but we can take him in and take care of him. You are welcome to come as well.” He noticed the sun was going down and the back gates to the city were looming in the shadows of dusk. “Now, we are almost home.” He closed his eyes and sent his thoughts out to his brother. ”No mercy, brother. They have stolen and wounded a pup.” Lycans were nothing if not protective and vengeful when it came to the wellbeing of a pup, any pup. For all pups held the future of Lycan kind in their loins. There would be no mercy for this lot of animals.

((You can catch up but don’t make a move yet. Thanks.))

[Natasha River]

Life in the back of a wagon was an acquired taste perhaps. Of course, it was easier to adjust to when it was optional and you were not bound so tightly that your fingers were going numb. The Ring Master had quite the circus with him, and in some instances it was quite literal. Under what looked like more debris a patch of white moved against the filth of the floor. A closer look would show that it wasn’t part of the clutter, but rather someone’s hair. The ivory strands were thick and tangled with flecks of dried blood near the scalp. Part of an ear was visible. It’s fair, small and pierced in multiple places. Only after a particularly nasty jostle of the wagon (followed by swearing from the driver) knocked the cover from her figure. The woman’s eyes were closed, her face bruised and a deep, nasty looking cut on her forehead. Her features were pleasing to the eyes, though currently marred and distorted by swelling.

She’d been picked up a few days ago, and after a particularly nasty tussle with one of her handlers ended up as she was now. Her lean, tattooed arms were bound behind her back at the wrists and elbows, a chain looped through to her slender neck so that if she pulled too hard she would pull against her own throat. Whether her unconsciousness was a result of drugs or the injury remained unclear, however in time she realized where she was and that she was not alone. Her eyes flutter open, or rather one of them does. The left eye is swollen and bruised as though she caught a slug to the face with a set of silver knuckles. The chocolate brown eye looks out to the others, noticing the two male wolves and the pup. She doesn’t say anything but rather continues to take the place in- being as still as she can while still letting her eye wander. She doesn’t want to draw attention to herself.

Yet in her observations she could see that the male Lycans were thinking. If their thoughts were on escape then Tasha wanted in. She shifted a bit and spoke in a quiet way. The sound of her own voice rattled in her mind, irritating her headache. “If this is what you call home, you should move.” Her voice had a thick accent which leaned heavily towards Romanian but was ultimately a muddled mess. Her tattoos peeked out from under her pale purple tank top, weaving a story of colour and artistry. They were bright and whimsical- a stark contrast to their current situation. “I don’t suppose you’d want help with that?” she smiled at them with a row of pearly teeth and full lips. The bottom lip had been split open, but was nearly healed now. Though the comment was light and almost humorous (after all, it wasn’t as though he’d need to pack) the message would be clear. As she spoke, Tasha’s eye slid to the driver and then back to the other Lycans and the pup. She was offering help if it meant her own chance at escape as well.

[Hom Dae Ken]

Hom met the new prisoner's eyes for a moment; was that pity he saw there? It certainly wasn't the fear and revulsion that the other prisoners showed him. Surprise but not hate and certainly not fear. He flicked his tongue again to taste his strange scent and the sharp tang of blood. His dark brown eyes widened a second in realization; They were laying a trail! That had to mean there were more of them coming, or at least that was what the strange tasting ones thought or hoped.

He kept very still as the tiny terrified child painfully dragged the water bucket towards him. If the child startled and spilled it then they would both be punished and neither of them could afford that. The child looked as though it would die soon enough and Hom would not be the one to cause him to be deprived of what little life remained him, however miserable that existence might be. With deliberately slow care he took the ladle from the child and drank.

He did not smile nor try to comfort the small boy; the boy had seen his fangs and was deathly afraid of them. Hom wanted more water and the boy was afraid enough that he would have given him it but that was not going to happen because then the child would be punished so he simply placed the ladle back in the child's hand and let him move on. “Sssank youss.” he hissed softly. The child made no answer but it was important to Hom to show gratitude for kindness; that was what his mother had taught him.

Hom was struggling to understand the degree of fear that the other captives showed towards him, especially in his cold and weakened state. He knew he was different, that what quite obvious, but his parents had not been afraid of him, nor the ones who had captured him. There were many of the people with legs and only one of him; should it not be he who was afraid of them? That thought was a truth regardless; Hom was very much afraid of these cruel creatures who had dragged him from his home for no more reason it seemed than the pleasure they derived from his pain.

The warmth of the sun on his skin and scales had restored his strength and flushed the drugs from his system quickly but Hom remained lying down. There was no purpose to alerting anyone to the extent of his recovery; he needed to escape soon if he was going to survive. He returned to watching the two strange ones as they comforted the child; there was such kindness and such rage in their eyes. The rage frightened Hom as he had never seen such a powerful emotion.

His coils shifted anxiously as yet another strangely scented creature stirred in the debris. This one was a female though and sported strange and colourful patterns across her skin. For a moment when he first saw her Hom thought she had scales like himself and he continued to stare at her in wonderment.

[Jasper Hyde]

The child clung to his torso like a lifeline. Hyde felt pain creep down every limb, every cell in his anatomy. Even his skeleton seemed to ache. Jasper Hyde watched the driver with his amber green eyes filled with anger, rage and lust for the death of the driver. Hyde’s arms clenched just a second as the boy shook with fear and shock. Hyde placed his lips down by the boy’s ear whispering to the child as best he could. He had been brave. He honored his pack by surviving and that’s what counted. Hyde couldn’t say the same for himself.

The wounds on his back burned and itched, a maddening situation that had kept him up at night while his hands were bound, and it fueled the red hot flames of vengeance in his belly. His hair had grown, and he could almost see it’s shaggy ends as he whispered to the kid. His face was dark with several weeks worth of growth and even to look at him, you wouldn’t know who this man was from any other. Scars and open wounds riddled his back and sides. Even the tops of his arms held pockmark like circles where he’s been punished and not allowed to heal. “He’s got too much attitude, Jeb. Burn it outta-dat sumbitch.”

Hyde remembered every silver chain, every stamp they’d ever laid on his skin. The multitude of lashes given until he could barely stand. He had never surrendered. He would fight to his death, if only for the pack he lost. The child seemed to understand his dark thoughts, and whimpered lightly. The sound was a trigger for Hyde, and he blinked away the animosity and bitterness he had stored within his memories. Hyde looked to Aryk with a cold set of his brows as the driver bellowed again for the boy. The boy didn‘t loosen his grip and Hyde spoke with a low growl to Aryk.“Your brother had better hurry.”

Hyde felt the tension in his limbs, aching but ready for action. He was not a man for talk any longer. He once enjoyed the thrill of the game, circling around his prey and tempting it with freedom. No longer. Not this time. Hyde stared at the driver with dark intent. Soon.

[Aryk Twyla]

Aryk reached out for Alryk again but he was met with a disturbing silence. Alryk? Alryk what's wrong? Do you hear me? He looked at the old alpha. "I'm not hearing him anymore. I'm an identical twin, our connection should be strong enoug for me to get him." His eyes turned back to the snake creature and met his eyes. He wasn't human, that was certain, but what was he? The creature suddenly shifted in what seemed like mild alarm and he followed his eyes.

Female Lycans were revered because of their effect on a male Lycan. A male Lycan needed a female to stem his lusts and rages. They kept a man focused, made him think before acting. Female Lycan's were essential to a male's longevity. If a human female gave birth to a Lycan's offspring, there was only a one in four chance they would be a pup and those pups absolutely had to mate with another Lycan to beget a pup. Therefor a female Lycan was honored and reverred for her value and contribution to the packs survival.

She must have been expecting the reaction the two men would have since Aryk immediately scented her as a fertile female and his lusts and angers rose causing him to growl and pull at his bindings. They had a female and they abused her. By no means did he need her to protect her in a normal situation but when hands were tied, quickness and agility were not exactly the thing you needed. His strength, and that of the other Lycan, could possibly release her, then she had more change of getting away then the males because of her sheer speed. But then, would she run?

They had a pup and he was close to death. A female would never leave a pup behind, especially a wounded one. Being Lycan bred, with care, the child would survive and Fatty was not getting his hands on either of them. It seemed the man forgot all about the boy for a moment since they were entering the gate to the Undercity. "It's just a matter of time before he comes after the boy again. I'll kill him if he goes near him, or the female, if I have to rip my arm off to get out of these chains." he growled.

He motioned for the woman to get closer. He hunkered down and whispered, "We need to get this pup out of here. My pack is right below us, below the seweres in the abandoned subway." he began then looked at Hyde but didn't make eye contact as that would be a show of dominance and that was not what he was doing. "With respect, sir. I know this place and I know the tunnels. If we can get her free, she can get the boy to the sewers and let out a howl. My pack would come and get them to safety." he turned to the woman, "You could tell them where we are." he reasoned, "You're faster, you have more chance of getting away. Are you old enough to shift without the moon?" he was barely able to force a transformation without the moon but it didn't last long. Even if he and Hyde could, the silver would keep them from shifting.

A thought occured to him, they had no idea who these men were messing with by holding him, a female, a pup and another alpha. "Oh by the way...my pack leader is the son of Lucien. My Alpha is Lukias Aman..." being that Lucien, and now Lukias were in direct line with the very first Lycan ever, everyone knew who they were and knew they were among the most powerful Lycans in existence.

He looked back at the snake creature and remembered something that could help them. He was a reader and knew about legendary fable creatures and knew they were reverred by the Magistrate, Thor Ericsson. "We can use him to our advantage as well. He looks like a Naga." he whispered. "The magistrate here is an old Viking, he still worships the old Gods, and for that reason the mutants that come from the wastes who resemble legendary creatures are treated like demigods. He even built them their own sanctuary." he snorted and nodded at the snake creature, "He finds out that guy is here, we'd have the Vampires swooping in on these guys."

[Natasha River]

Natasha wiggled on the floor to bring herself closer. It was clear that the bonds were tight by the red line rubbed into her slender throat. Still, Tasha only grit her teeth at it and carried on. This was not the first time Tasha had been bound. As such, she knew a few showbiz party tricks that might come in handy for their current situation. All things considered, when you added in the flair of her gypsy circus life… well, those same tricks could get very colourful. She listened intently to everything that was said, the chocolate drop of her one good eye darting between the two males.

Based on the information granted by the younger male’s little monologue, Tasha decided she would trust them, for now. But she would be plain with them here and now what her thoughts on the situation were. Circus life might have turned Tasha into an asset strategically for their situation, but it also made her distrustful of outsiders. And for Tasha, even though the males were Lycan as she was, that did not mean they were not outsiders. An outsider herself, Tasha always felt the lines that separated those that claimed a home and those that were passing through it. That was a hard fact of gypsy life- the rom, and the gadje were two very distinct worlds. Gadje were often cruel in their mistrust. It made Tasha careful.

“If you can get me free I might be able to get one of you free as well before he sees me.” she nodded her head towards the driver. The motion was a little strained for sake of the bonds. “In either case, I can escape with the pup and get him to your pack.” She motioned to the man that Aryk described as a Naga. “Let me take the pup to your pack and on my word I will bring them back to you. Then we can take the Naga man to where he would like to go. If he chooses that sanctuary then this old-god magistrate may see it as a sign of good will. But don’t be a fool. If we send word to some gadje to send vampires to our rescue? They will come armed to the teeth, and what is to say they do not just brush our ashes under a rug while they do as they please with him?” She snorted disapprovingly. “If intend to do that then when I get that pup to safety I can only promise to point your pack the right way. I will have no part of the bloodsport that is a vampire’s ambitions or folly.”

Tasha’s words wove a story, whether she was telling them one or not. Her voice is musical with it’s old world accent, the tell tale signs of so many languages tucked away into little facets of her phrasing- it was no wonder that her family was so successful in their trade. Most importantly, she confirmed her ability to shift and her confidence in her ability to escape. Better still, if opportunity allowed them time, she might be able to get at least one of them free to keep the driver preoccupied while she contacted the cavalry. It was ambitious, yes, but perhaps a risk worth taking. Either way, she proposed the idea, but did not make the decision for them. They had to make their own fate. But Tasha had a very matter fact way of speaking. This was not a woman who boasted. This was a woman that got shit done. She was also an honest woman. She had intentions of coming back with the pack to reunite them with Aryk. But, that was only if they didn’t involve an outside force. Tasha was only interested in a pack that trusted itself before any others. And she was looking.

It’d taken Tasha a long time to accept that fact, but now with her own pack, her family, and the circus troupe gone she had no one. She had kept on the road because she didn’t know where else to go. Where do you go at the end of the world? The only place you can. Home. For a gypsy like Tasha that didn’t mean a place- it meant people she cared about. She had lost her home, utterly and completely. But in the end she knew what her family (and more specifically her father) would have wanted for her- to find a new one. It was by no means an easy task. There were limited options in a dying world, especially for a willfull and somewhat odd girl like Tasha. So Tasha had simply decided to love the road until something else called to her. It had, in a way, repaired some of the damage that had been done to the zen like peace she had once felt for sake of the joy in her life. It wasn’t a perfect system, but it kept her chin up and her head on her shoulders. Panic was foolish- it took away time from planning the perfect solution.

[Hom Dae Ken]

Hom was getting more and more nervous with each passing moment. The huddle of strange tasting, two legged ones were whispering furiously amongst themselves now and he could not hear well enough to understand the hissed words spoken quickly and with strange accents. Though his senses of smell, taste and touch were exemplary his vision was no better than normal and his hearing somewhat sub-par. Though they had laid a scent trail behind the wagon it now looked like they might be considering not waiting but attempting escape immediately. The situation was escalating rapidly if this group were planning some immanent violent action.

The one word he thought he did catch from their conversation was 'vampires' and vampires were bad. His main concern however, was that from the way their eyes moved and they glanced around it made it clear that they were amongst other things talking about him. Hom could not imagine how that could be a good thing, especially not in conjunction with vampires. If it were a good thing they would have spoken to him wouldn't they? All the creatures in the cage-wagon were dangerous, even though he was reluctant to admit it himself if he were forced to defend himself. Perhaps he had feigned helplessness too well?

The creatures were angry and they outnumbered him three to one; he was not one of them and only the new one had looked in his direction with anything other than contained rage. He could taste the hostility in the air around them and he shifted position again coiling tighter, ready to move quickly if he needed to. Perhaps he could make his own escape attempt if the guards were distracted sufficiently by whatever was planned. Patiently he settled to waiting and watching the small group intently, wishing he knew why they had been talking about him.

[Jasper Hyde]

Hyde had once heard a voice like that. No, not Hyde, he reminded himself. Jasper. His mind flashed with an image of sitting next to a river, moon light cascading down as he spoke. No. He couldn’t remember that now. He needed the strength that rage would allow him and Hyde knew rage better than most. Hyde whispered a few more words to the child in his lap and the boy nodded.

Hyde cast a glance at Aryk, his eyes wandering to all around them, bound and broken. “I want to try and save as many as we can. Even if it’s the last thing I do.” His voice spoke of a deep growl, hollow like his soul felt. Hyde was an alpha. Is was his job to save and protect. He had not been able to do his job before, blinded and weak. Now, he knew that he could last until he at least tore the driver apart. That man would never see another damned credit in his life.

He closed his eyes slowly, their lids felt stiff and painful. Hyde couldn’t remember a time when he didn’t hurt inside and out and memories of time well spent seemed lifetimes ago. He looked down the line of caged animals, all shapes and colors, him included. They were like pieces of the puzzle, but all of the edges were frayed and unable to be fit together. The child moved in his lap and Hyde felt the surge of protective feelings. Would they ever be able to find their fit again?

[Aryk Twyla]

Aryk sighed and moved back against the bars. The woman would not help if Lukias involved the Vampire. She didn't know anything about the man. While he was a vampire, Lukias had used him as a tool before when it came to an impossible situation. The selling of children, even Lycan children since they were for all intents and purposes human, was illegal. "You don't understand. The boy is a pup, but he is human by the laws and if the VSF finds out about it, and Thor knows about the Naga, they would be a valuable tool for getting everyone out alive." He looked back at the others in the cage, "Everyone else looks like they are just mutants, they could probably get out on their own if the Vampires busted in on their operation. We owe no allegiance to any of them. We owe it to our species to get out and to get the pup and the female to safety." he wished he could push his hair back out of his eyes as he looked at the alpha. They were stuck here if they could not get on the same page.

"I'm most saying we make friends with them, I'm saying, drop the info on their laps and let them to all the work while we make a quick getaway." He said his peice and that was all. If they did not work together as all Lycans should and most did, then they were sunk. Aryk still had an obligation to get the pup and the woman out because it was his duty, his instinct to protect them. If they actually did get free, and survived, then he would take the pup to his pack and see if they could heal him up enough to make it to his lunar ceremony when all disabling injuries, save scars would vanish with his turning. This experience would help him become a powerful warrior for the pack.

"If we start putting conditions on how we escape, we may as well lay on our bellies and let them kill up straight off." he muttered in frustration. He looked up as they entered the gate to the Undercity. The place was filled with the curious people staring at them, some threw things that bounced off the bars. He growled at one man who jumped on the bars, jeering at him. It was then that he looked up to see a man pointing a dart gun down at the prisoners. "Last stop fella's, it's nap time." One by one, he heard a pop and a zip as the prisoners were each shot with a dart and passed out. He tried to dodge the one fired at him but it hit his shoulder, seconds later he was out cold.

[tag: Tasha]