" Find the place. Steal the egg. Slay the queen."

[renferret]

Two Eagles Bluff(#3332RJ)

To the northeast, the foothills climb upwards into the steep, snow-capped crags and mountains. Here, the tall summer grasses bend in sporadic waves as the wind dances on the bluff. The evergreens and aspens give way to an open field that lends itself to a panoramic and picturesque view to the south and east. A small stream wends its way unobtrusively through the eastern edge of the mountain's crags, the scent and sound of trickling water clear on the hesitant but almost incessant breeze. Wildflowers litter the green of the grass, coloring them with touches of violet and bright oranges, yellows and blues. Tucked in along the sloped wall of the forested foothills to the northeast is a well-worn section of ground.

Contents:

Jacinta

Obvious exits:

Stream  Cave  Trail

 

The white wolf moves through the edge of the Wyld-infected forest without much hindrence; experience seems to have taught her which vines will twist in an attempt to snag at a limb, and which will not.

 

First-Strike can't be mistaken for any other wolf, but she looks even more unusual and out of place today. The Walker elder's back legs shuffle and drag as much as they actually step, and she appears to be wearing some strange cloth and metal contraption that hooks around her neck, down her spine, and around her middle. Her ears are folded back--pain and tiredness are impossible to hide in this form.

 

The Wendigo stops when she hears the other's approach, taking to homid once she is within sight of the theurge. Her eyes are narrowed, still, at the sight before her, though she does not question or comment on what she sees. "Waqaa," she says, instead. "Did Glowing Sky find you?"

 

First-Strike chuffs ascent before she shifts up to homid as well. The signs of injury are still there, if much better disguised. "Yes. You wanted to talk?"

 

Jacinta's brows bob, and she gestures to the west, where the brambles thin even further and a small clearing has been maintained. "Autumn comes," she says, leading the way to a gathering of sizeable boulders. "The Wyld has peaked and now begins to ebb. The Wasps steal the strength of it."

 

Mouse follows, but she's even slower in this form; shuffling, limping along. "The queen's nearly done. We're heading out to St. Helens this weekend, to see if we can find the place we're supposed to move them. Sounds like we need to move as soon as we get back."

 

Jacinta gives the Glass Walker a longer look as she turns to lean against one of the larger rocks. "Ii-i," she says after a moment. "A balance must be struck." Her eyes narrow once more, though her gaze remains steady on the other elder's face. "What will be done to move them?"

 

Mouse gestures with one hand. "The dreams talked about 'rescuing the princess'. There's a new queen in the middle of the nest. If we get her out before the old queen dies, the wasps will follow her. Otherwise, they're likely to stay." Her expression suggests she doesn't feel the need to elaborate to Jacinta as to what will happen if they do. "The Ragabash are working on a plan to steal her away, but it's going to be damned dangerous. Those things took a cub apart in seconds."

 

Jacinta considers Mouse's words, teeth baring at the mention of the cub. "Will they follow while the old queen lives?"

 

Mouse shakes her head. "I doubt it, but the old queen has very little time left. She was withering when I saw her, and the ragabash report she's even worse now. A few weeks at best, if that."

 

With another bob of her brows, Jacinta accepts the information. "Timing. Find the place. Steal the egg. Slay the queen." Again, her lips peel back from her teeth. "Ensure the workers follow, without allowing them to catch the courier."

 

"My pack's totem is available for a moonbridge," Mouse says. "But that doesn't help with the actual extraction. Slug suggested using the metis gift to dig under the nest and up into the central chamber." She shrugs one shoulder. "That might work, but we'd need someone more than me. I'm...not as fast at digging as I've been in the past."

 

"Ii-i," Jacinta agrees, with just the hint of question in her tone and expression. "In winter, most insects will slumber. The cold makes them sluggish. I can call upon Wendigo to bring winter to the hive. It may help."

 

Mouse's eyebrows lift with interest. "That would be damn helpful, I think. They also seem to get drunk off of the Wyld fruit, and cannibalize the energy of their own hive-mates."

 

This new information seems to catch Jacinta's interest. "Is it that they target their brethren whenever they hunger, when one is already weakened or injured, or is there another trigger?"

 

"From what I understand," Mouse says, narrowing one eye, "when they're dying or dead. The scouts said it happened a few times when they killed sentries. And on the same note, as long as they're taken out fast, the hive doesn't seem to notice. Slug also said once they were inside the hive itself, the wasps ignored them, as if they were supposed to be there. It's getting in and out that's dangerous. And, well. The moment anyone touches that baby queen, all bets are off. We lost the cub when she showed signs of aggression. They reacted to Owen's too, until he finally listened to me and knocked it off."

 

That lip curl returns at the mention of the Get of Fenris, no attempt made to hide her opinion of the other ahroun. "This is how it is with true wasps and bees. It is how other insects can prey upon their larvae. Finding another route inside, or a way to stun or slow those guarding, will assist the thieves in their quest."

 

Mouse nods in agreement. "There's one last worry. When the scouts went in, they saw an overgrown beetle trundling around as if it belonged. If those larvae /are/ being preyed on, the baby queen could very well be in danger."

 

"Soon, then," Jacinta says. "There is nothing we can do to protect the egg from without. Only by moving sooner can we attempt to ensure its safety.

 

Another nod from the Walker elder. She breathes deeply. "I'll see about getting results from the St. Helens trip as soon as possible."

 

"Ii-i," Jacinta says again, and then she juts her chin toward the contraption the elder wears. "And you are healing?"

 

Mouse's mouth tenses. "I'm healed," she explains. "This thing helps. Some Glass Walkers have other options, but," a pause. "That's not a priority for me just now."

 

Jacinta's nostrils flare at the suggestion of Glass Walker options, and when the other finishes, she says, "You are a friend to many spirits. You could find assistance there, when there is time. Little Silvertip's friend, Nemarta, is adept at healing, even that which Grandmother leaves us as tokens of our glory. I will ask him to seek you out."

 

"That would..." Mouse pauses again. "I'd be honored. But like I said, it's not really my priority right now. This is." She jerks her chin toward their surroundings. "I can worry about scars after we get our home back."

 

<OOC> Jacinta: Neryarta, not Nemarta. But I was close!

 

"Ii-i," answers the Wendigo, her voice firm, posture stiffening. "First, the caern."

 

Mouse smiles faintly, and nods. "And I think if we manage that, I'll feel like we can do anything," she says wryly.