The Cold Path

[Elizabeth]

Aloyoshenka walked along the coast. It was an odd feeling... being at the shore in winter. It was night. It was cold, lonely, empty. He shivered as a gust of cold wind hit him, it was coming from out at sea. The clear white waves hit the edge of the beach. The monotones crashing sound gave the whole area a chill mood rather than a soothing one. He had been walking all day... but he wasn't tierd... he couldn't be. This didn't seem like a place he would want to fall asleep. He was wide awake. Each time his foot hit the sand a dull cold crunching sound was made.

He walked on until he came upon a strip of tattered cloth. It was washed up a while ago and looked like it must have belonged to a corsair or somebeast of that sort. He wrapped it around his neck and the lower portion of his head making a sort of scarf for himself. It was deadly cold out and he needed all the protection he could get now. Nature was his greatest enemy on this lonely road.

[Glavon]

The clear, ice-blue eyes watched the figure of a pine marten as it walked along the shore.

With a wince, Solitude Fleetclaw raised his stiff arm up. The cold served no purpose except to make the muscles even stiffer, and it was getting to the point where it actually...hurt. Cursing his horrible luck, and the monitor lizard who had done this to him, the stoat flexed the arm once more and padded slowly forward.

His actual body wasn't really affected by the frigid air swirling around like a poisonous snake, looking for something to bite; no. The stoat was well accustomed to the cold after years of hunting for other beasts for the simple reason of making them suffer. The stoat was naturally pitiless, ruthless, and evil.

And since he couldn't find his worst enemy-Merce-he'd decided to make this marten pay instead.

The freezing cold blade of the kilij twitched up as the marten bent down to pick up a scrap of cloth, and the stoat padded forward before resting the needle-sharp tip of the blade on the back of the creature. One move and he could have the marten skewered on the blade.

"Hello. My name is Fleet."

Polite but deadly-that was Solitude Fleetclaw, indeed.

[Elizabeth]

"Hello. My name is Fleet."

"Hello," Aloyoshenka replied warily. "I don't believe I've heard that name before? None the less, pleased to meet you." He kept a level and polite tone but looked very unsure of whether to trust this stranger or not. He lifted a paw and unwrapped the scarf from his head proceeding to wind it around his hands. He looked up and continued to wind. Yes, of course, his guest was still there. Aloyoshenka smiled, and glanced down again.

"It's very odd for you to just walk up and introduce yourself like that." He said grimly with a smile still playing on his lips. "Do you need something?" His brow furrowed as he tucked on last fold in his complicated wrapping and stopped. He let his hand drop to his side. He raised his head to look into the stoat's eyes.

The wind whipped past the two figures standing in solitude alone, yet not alone, on this vast expanse of shoreline. One freezing yet trying with some success to hide it. One perfectly at home here. The colds icy breath beat relentlessly upon them and the moonlight glinted of the deep endless waters.

[Glavon]

Hello, I don't believe I've heard that name before? None the less, pleased to meet you.

The ice-blue eyes blinked once, the frown flashing into a friendly grin-at least, that was how Solitude wanted it to turn out, and it looked pretty genuine. The marten took off the cloth on its head and started to wind it around its paws, smiling up at the stoat before glancing down again. Inside his head, the monster that was always there was urging him to start the battle-no need to drag it out-but the stoat mercenary would take his time. After all, there was no need to hurry. The marten could run, and Solitude would track it to the ends of the earth. No reply was issued from the stoat.

It's very odd for you to just walk up and introduce yourself like that. Do you need something?

The grin quirked into a smirk, the vicious white teeth bared and glistening. "Ah...one can be polite, correct? Sadly, few beasts-vermin and goodbeasts alike-stop to introduce themselves. May I have the honor of learning your name?"

The kilij moved smoothly down to brush the sand with its gleaming, razor sharp tip. Sure, Solitude didn't behave evilly, and you'd never stop to think he was bad when you first met him. But give it a while...and you'd find out.

He would not attack yet...but in a few moments' time.

[redclaw]

A cold biting wind blew through lonely nighttime woods. The branches shaking and rattling only added to the frighting atmosphere set by the winds howling dirge. All this had no effect on Incendia Abyssus, the evil weasel.

Incendia strode through the woods, his bare chest open to the cold. He was searching, not for a certain beast, but for any to unleash his boundless wrath upon. Finally, his search was over. He heard voices ahead, voices of heretics who needed purged for Vulpuz. He smiled, not a happy smile, a cruel, twisted smile. He would have fun tonight.

Incendia came out of the trees onto the, There, no more than twenty paces away, he saw the sources of the voices. Without even introducing himself or giving the beasts a warning, he shouted, "for Vulpuz!" He swung his huge sword with both paws in a deadly arc, right at Aloyoshenka and Solitudes necks...

[Elizabeth]

"for Vulpuz!"

"What the..." Muttered Aloyoshenka. A large cold gust of wind hit him, blowing his clothes and his fur... adding a dramatic effect to this already dramatic encounter. His drew his sword with cat like speed and brought his muscular arm in front of his face to ward off the blow.

With a loud ringing clang the thin rapier bent and broke under the strain of the opponents sword. A shock went through Aloyoshenka's arm and numbed it. He shook it till it felt alive again. He had avoided this mad creature's first attack... but what next? He had not been paying attention to the stoat all this time. Why should he? He didn't care if he was safe or not. He didn't look like the friendly sort.

He grunted and stared at the stub of a weapon he held in he paw. Fixing his eyes on the mad beast, he could not tell what type of beast it was in the dark, he hurled the hilt (With a small part of the blade still attached) at it with all his might. "May that hit it's mark." Aloyoshenka said under his breath.

[Glavon]

For Vulpuz!

Solitude saw the glint of steel and ducked; just in time, for the massive steel weapon wooshed over his head. He looked to the marten and saw it had raised a rapier in defense, which had been broken in half by the sheer force of the blow. The stoat mercenary smirked-this would indeed make his prey easier to kill, although he was going to clean up this excuse for a weasel before him first.

The kilij shot up, and the stoat swung with devastating force at the weasel's middle before his stiffening arm picked the dagger out of his belt and hurled it savagely at the neck of the beast. With an annoyed half grunt, half growl the stoat leapt clear, glaring at the weasel with hatred tainting his eyes before he spit on the sand next to the weasel's feet.

Holding the kilij by his side, the stoat glared into the weasel's insane eyes. "Another example of impoliteness." he growled, raising the blade of the cold metal weapon. Baring his teeth, the stoat swung again at the weasel, once at the legs and once at the arms, before stabbing in the general direction of the weasel's abdomen and leaping back, eyes glinting in the light.

"Your fox god is no match for me," he chuckled. "If you must...come fight."

[redclaw]

Much fast than one so strong should have been able Incendia moved his sword into a vertical posision and blocked Solitude's sword. But, the dagger hit him right in the shoulder just as the rapier struck him on the other side. The dagger had struck true, it sank into Incendia's arm. The rapier hit sideways, but it still left a cut.

"Another example of impoliteness."

Incendia jumped to the side as the next attacks came at him, an hellish grin on his evil face.

"Your fox god is no match for me. If you must...come fight."

Incendia remembered well what The Fallen had taught him, now he repeated it. "Vulpuz is no fox," he hissed, "see how the WARR empire fell? Vulpuz was against them! Vulpuz has destroyed nations! You are no mach for him." As Incendia spoke the very air around him seemed to get darker. The aurora of fear he always had around him grew and evil permeated the night. Incendia dashed forward at his targets, slashing at Solitude and then Aloyoshenka with amazing speed and strength.

[Elizabeth]

"Another example of impoliteness."

Hmm... Okay this was his little stoat "friend" speaking. He seemed to be doing alright.

"Your fox god is no match for me. If you must...come fight."

What was this creature saying? Fox god? Why would a weasel worship a fox??? Well, he knew nothing of this "Vulpuz" anyway. And did this really matter? Here he was battling for his life and Mr. Stoat was rambling on about a weasel's religious beliefs.

"Vulpuz is no fox, see how the WARR empire fell?"

Well... one thing was for sure. Mr. Stoat sure knew how to get this weasel going.

"Vulpuz was against them! Vulpuz has destroyed nations! You are no mach for him."

Here the crazy weasel swung his sword... With a cry of shock Aloyoshenka lept back to avoid the blows being rained apon him. This wasn't safe at all but there was no way he could avoid this fight.

[Glavon]

((-crosses fingers behind back- Oh Bethy! We'd never pressure you to do anything! :3))

Vulpuz is no fox, see how the WARR empire fell? Vulpuz was against them! Vulpuz has destroyed nations! You are no mach for him.

Solitude ground his teeth. "The WARR empire was only destroyed because they were too obsessed with worshipping a fox to actually defend themselves." He laughed ruthlessly, the sound echoing around the near-empty beach, a smirk tainting his features. "You would do well to remember that."

Suddenly, the deranged weasel slashed at the stoat mercenary; he leapt backward, but was a little slow and got a not-so-deep slash across his chest. Blood welled out of the cut, and Solitude pressed a paw against the gash, looking up at the weasel with hatred in his eyes.

The kilij flashed up like a living thing.

"You have officially overstayed your welcome, weasel. I don't know why you have this obsession with Vulpuz, but whatever."

Grabbing the kilij, Solitude went on the attack, hacking and slashing at his newfound enemy like a madbeast, bloodlust staining his ice-cold eyes.

[redclaw]

"You have officially overstayed your welcome, weasel. I don't know why you have this obsession with Vulpuz, but whatever."

"It is you who is not welcome here stoat," Incendia hissed, "this land belongs to Vulpuz, as does all land." He deflected Solitude's attacks with as much fury as they were given, sustaining several small wounds in the fight. Then he ripped the dagger out of his own shoulder and slashed at Solitude with it.

[Elizabeth]

"It is you who is not welcome here stoat, this land belongs to Vulpuz, as does all land."

Aloyoshenka sneered. He had had enough. "Since when!" he growled, "Just answer me this, Since when?... I'll bet you can't answer. That's because it NEVER did! This land... All this land has forever belonged to free beast. The land is and always shall be open to all."

Aloyoshenka watched everything that Incendia did. He waited to see if Incendia would be angry enough to try to attack him. If so... Vasiliev thought, He won't get very far, I can tell you that much...