no more alone or myself could I be

All welcome for a thread of any length or style.

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^^

 He'd been gone longer than he'd originally intended, but his venture southward had yielded more than enough interesting data to keep him preoccupied for some time. He imagined some of it would even be useful to bring back to Hydra and the rest of Empyrean. He'd been able to confirm that there were others showing up in this strange and and laying their own claims, and while as far as he knew none of them were immediate threats to Empyrean's borders there were whispers of other packs coalescing from the the haze of unscouted territories, some of which they may need to keep an eye on in the future.

 He was lost in thought for some time before it struck him that he had been thinking of himself as a part of Empyrean, absent of the nagging voice that had accompanied him previously and insisted he had only been taken like one would a desperate, lost pup. While it was true a vast percentage of the pack were a familial unit, he was not the only stray Hydra had taken under her dark wings. And the Matriarch herself had spoken to him as one of them.

 Maybe he was starting to believe it. A flicker of a smile flitted across his maw and he trudged along, his gaze occasionally finding itself drawn to the Nameless Mountain growing closer above the treeline. He was some ways away yet and the sun had just completed it's pass through the sky, hiding itself behind the horizon line and bringing on night. Night wished for company though, and arrived with a slightly more unwelcome visitor  - storm clouds rolled, silent and heavy, the pressure of them a perceptible force above him. Soon enough a streak of lightning flashed across the sky above, and is if it had sliced the skies open rain gushed down in its wake.

 Element was unsure of the territory he was in - he'd been hoping to travel through the night and make it home in one swift trek. But the rain was unrelenting and he found himself searching for appropriate cover, at least while the worst of it passed and the lightning calmed. Suddenly uneasy, he picked up the pace and started to run, ready to seek shelter the moment something suitable appeared.

^^
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With their number seemingly growing by the day, Rex took to expanding his patrol routes. First it was a klick south, then two, then almost three by the fourth day. Their resources were thriving, but he couldn't help but concern himself with the possibility that it all could go pear-shaped in a few months. Sure, there were no other packs butting up against their borders—the nearest group at least a half-day walk to the north—but his experience urged him to take precaution all the same. He hadn't exactly cleared it with Hydra, but he also hadn't spent time marking this new route, either. A preliminary deviation from his routine. But if she did decide it was in their best interest then it couldn't hurt to map it out. 

A javelin of lightning shot down from the heavens, the accompanying thunder a deafening roar which shook a deluge of rain free of the clouds. The droplets pummeled the foothills, impacting like veritable mortars on a battlefield. He pinned both ears against his neck to protect from invasive water as he broke into a sprint down into the open field, seeking shelter away from the sentinel trees that dotted the southern reaches of the Nameless Mountain. What he hadn't counted on was the scent of Empyrean and wolf, amplified by the moisture in the air. He slowed to a trot, blinked, and immediately honed in on the movement of another through the storm. Ink-cloaked, but not Hydra, nor her sister, Alya. The rain had reduced his visibility by more than half, so he relied on his other senses to lead him straight as an arrow in pursuit of the fellow. 

"Hey, hold up!" he shouted, doing his best to throw some warmth into the words. The last thing he needed now was to be mistaken as a threat.
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^^

 There was something exhilarating about the storm. Sure, the rain did pelt him harshly, stinging his sensitive snout where it there was no protection from his heavy coat and making him squint as he ran to save his even more sensitive eyes... but there was something about it he was enjoying. The way the rain struck and stung sent jolts of feeling through him; the way his limbs pumped as he ran, tough paws slamming against muddy earth, the micro-calculations made in each moment that allowed him to surge forward with his balance intact, traction gained beneath him despite the muddy earth. The rain pelted him, he threw himself forward through it, his legs kicked, his muscles ached, the heavens roared, and the skies were backlit with steaks of radiant light. [/align]

 It was trance like. He felt alive. Unquestionably alive, unquestionably present. This world was sending him a message about just how real it was and he was answering back, proving that he too was real, a force upon the earth that would not be bowed. [/align]

 He pushed himself harder, and while escaping the rain and reaching the mountain had been his initial goal, Ele now ran for the hell of it. It felt good, to put his whole self into something, and he kicked out harder, straining himself to move, move, move faster. So far inside himself was he that the shout came to him almost as if words from a fading dream - but they did reach him. Being so close to the mountain had allowed some semblance of protection, and he hadn't been keeping as close of an eye on his surroundings or tuning in to any scents other than that of the rain and the earth. A dark and waterlogged ear flicked towards the sound and, very reluctantly, Ele started to slow. His muscles groaned as he did so, already vibrating with the memory of his exertion. He didn't have it in him to stop moving entirely - part of him felt like if he did so, the trance would be broken and he may lose it for good. So Ele fell into a trot, scanning the area the voice had come from in time to see another figure approaching through the deluge. He sounded a loud chuff at the figure, acknowledging his presence, but still a little too in his head to greet him with words.

^^
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As Rex neared, he noted features that were otherwise masked by distance and the mist of vapor. Peppered across his undercarriage was hints of white which, at a distance, made the markings appear uniformly gray. The white of his limbs and tail tip, however, starkly contrasted against his pitch colored coat—briefly he wondered if he was one of the only true gray wolves of the Empyrean collective, but filed that piece of information away for later consideration. Instead he honed in on the moment, appreciating the welcome coded into the wordless greeting, and extended his powerful stride to fall in a few paces off. 

His gaze swept to Element's, then beyond to indicate his desired heading. He could fill the (presumably) companionable silence with meaningless conversation and polite exchanges, or he could merely enjoy the storm and have a bit of fun with a brother. A spark of humor caught him unawares and, without anyone around to admonish him, Rex dove in to nip at the other man's shoulder before re-doubling his pace in the hopes of slipping out of striking range without seeming too obvious about it.
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^^

 Element's gaze followed Rex's as it lit upon the Nameless Mountain in the distance, and when he turned back to the other male his brow was quirked in silent curiosity. Words still felt a little far off to him as he tried to temper his breathing, taking slow and filling breaths as he replenished the oxygen in his lungs and blood after his prolonged sprint. The rain still was a torrent, vast quantities of cool water pouring down across the two wolves as they stood in amicable silence. Had Element not been studying the others face so intently while he waited for his words, he may not have caught the spark of mischief that flashed across his eyes, as quick as the lightning flitted across the sky, illuminating the features of the land before sending it back into darkness.

 So too did that spark flash across Rex's face before he was in motion, and had he not carried the scent of Empyrean on him as he did Element probably would have flinched and drawn back, wary of a sudden change in his intent. But there was no malice in his movement, and Element was caught off guard enough by the way the sudden playfulness defied his previous expectations that the nip landed gently, no more than a pinch through the thick sheath of dark fur. Acting just as the lightning did once more, there and gone was Rex, standing before him in one moment and now running away. A wild grin split across Element's face and he released a playful growl. Drawing in one final replenishing breath, he bounded forward again, intent on closing the distance between them.

^^
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Rex wasn't entirely sure why he was driven to such antics around a near-stranger, but something-something camaraderie probably had a lot to do with it. And, as he took a breath to consider his advancing brother, it felt completely normal to him—like these were games he often partook of, or instigated, when there was no work left to be done. His heart gave a bit of a flutter at the thought, caught between relief and mild befuddlement. But he hadn't the time to think on it long as the two-toned male closed the distance with an excited grin. Rex whisked his tail in a proud arch as he cast a look across his shoulder, flashing a humored smirk of his own. He reeled back on his pace, and waited until the other could get in a lick of his own—it was only fair after his cheeky maneuver. 

The rain continued to pound down on the field, the din a roar to rival the thunder rolling through the tumultuous clouds above. But the danger also beget beauty, too, to those willing to brave such storms. A crack of lightning shot across the sky, casting the Nameless Mountain in a brief flash of resplendent white-gold. A terrifying spire of rock dwarfed by the fury of Mother Nature.
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THANK YOU for being so patient!

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^^

 
There had been a lot of time for self-reflection and melancholy, and the golden opportunity to dwell in one's own thoughts until there was a chance you would drown in them. What there hadn't been an equal number of opportunities for were the ones like these - the freedom, the exertion, the powerful drive to move and run and do. All the better and all the more entrancing was to share it, and Element found himself churning with the warm feeling of... pure, simple, peace.

  Although he ran with all the effort his legs could sustainably muster, and his breath was heavy in his throat, there was a wild pleasure in his eyes even as he squinted against the onslaught of rain. He met Rex's gaze briefly as the other turned to glance back at him, and a grin whipped across his face as he let loose a rumbling and good-natured growl. A flash of light arced across the sky and for just a moment erased all the shadow from the world. All the shadow that had been weighing him down, just for that moment, was replaced by that light.

 God it felt good, to be having fun.

  Element churned towards Rex, closing in on his left side and snapping the air harmlessly along his tail and haunches as he approached - nothing but the sound of clattering teeth as a warning, not wanting to interrupt their momentum with an actual nip. At least just not quite yet.

And so the two would continue through the storm, weaving together a new bond just as they wove through the rain.

^^
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