Tithe

The spring had been mild. Kind to those who lived in the mountains. Though the mountains themselves had fallen fairly quiet to the king’s ears. For a time he laid on an outcropping stone, his iron colored eyes looking over the ridges and cliffs of Spirane. The songs of the people here had fallen silent with what he could only guess was uncertainty. The quick succession of leadership changes and the sense of still more changes forever looming in the air had not done well to ease the mind of those who walked these trails.

Tithe’s ears pressed hard against his skull. His teeth bared to himself briefly. He would serve his land has loyally as he always had, work to create a stronger Spirane. He would work to make the land great once again. Once the source of the uncertainty had been found and once the battle against it was won.

Getting to his large paws with a heavy sigh the steel clad knight jumped from his perch on the sunbathed rock and padded through the familiar terrain. With each step his mind picked through the things that needed to happen to bring the pack back to greatness and bring it to a new light. History was something always to be remembered, but the future was to be looked towards. One must always remember the past but never be stuck in it. Life and time was always in a flux and changing with the hands of fate and fortune stepping in to take the lead. The hour glass never stopped turning.

Nor did the winds of change stop blowing. The soft spring breeze shifted and brought the scent of a stranger. Lifting his nose Tithe inhaled the scent and calmly followed the trail. The wolf called no greeting, nor challenge, nor announcement. It was a curious thing to enter a realm with no clear purpose or motive. Tithe picked up his pace and quietly tailed the visiting male. The stranger walked without aggression, still seeming to be investigating the trails and the winds around them.

They came to an old den, abandoned since the rule of Roman, but not before. From the trees Tithe watched for a moment. Quietly letting the other male take the time he needed. After a bit, Tithe slowly approached.

Greetings. His smooth voice called to give plenty of warning to his presence (if Everett wasn’t already aware). No pose or posture of dominance, Tithe sat just within the boundary of the den space. Close enough to converse with the man, but far enough to be respectful of space and to see an attack coming if it did.

I would say ‘welcome to Spirane’ but it appears as though you have walked these trails and know them well.