Delta rolled the dice.

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Character Diceroll 1: Success Diceroll must be above 500 to be successful. 0 was added for Charisma. 525 was added for Level 3. 0 was added for A. No Enchantment. 8 was deducted for C. Vagrant Penalty.

Delta hadn't expected so many of the rivers and streams to freeze, ice floes had been a rare, distant sight out in the open ocean in only the most frigid of seasons. Inland though, nearly all of the smaller streams autumn rain had fed had since starved and shrunk to nothing, replaced instead with packed snow and dried branches which drastically shrunk his range. It had been frightening sure, the few times he'd slunk across land to reach other bodies of water now inaccessible by swimming, but he'd managed well enough at first. He'd even found himself enjoying how the snow felt against his pelt, batting at the banks and rolling about in the strange almost-water when he wasn't busy with hunting. Now however, even the larger rivers were freezing. Delta had feared they'd dry up completely like the streams had, but instead the ice created a thick, strong layer above the currents to block the water in. He'd desperately clawed and scrabbled at his new ceiling out of the initial fear of being trapped, but it hadn't taken long for the little cat to grow accustomed to it. In fact, he almost found himself preferring it. The water was colder now, sure, but it was dark and quiet. Fish were sluggish and easy to snap up, and he didn't have to worry any land predators would try to catch him now that he was protected beneath the ice. So, Delta's winter had been rather peaceful. Boring, but peaceful. He patrolled the water and nested in deep cracks along the riverbeds, only swimming up to the ice to press his face against and make out the hazy outlines of sky and trees above. Where the ice was thinner, sometimes he caught sight of animals moving across the banks. Sometimes they stepped on the ice, and that seemed to be the most likely explanation as to why a section had broken off along the river's edge here. Delta spent a good long while regarding the break with a mixture of apprehension and curiosity, but it seemed that whatever creature had initially broken it had long since left the area. Eventually he gathered the courage to take a look, pushing off the riverbed to rise up and poke his eyes above the water's surface. It had been quite a while since he'd been exposed to the air, and a gurgling hiss escaped him as he squinted against the sharp winter sunlight. As his eyes slowly adjusted, he peered up and down the territory and blinked with awe at the realization at just how colorful the air was here. Delta had never seen such a place before, and he was so distracted by the sight that the ordinary clump of cattails sprouting from the soil close by fell out of his attention. He was debating on the idea of stepping from the water to get a closer look at the strange almost-fog when suddenly, there was a wolf. They had made no sound heralding an arrival, no scent or sight. It was as if they just appeared from the plants, close enough to touch, and Delta shrieked. DICE ROLL: Charisma, Banshee Success: Delta's scream evokes a sudden sense of terror, instinctually trying to scare off a perceived predator. Failure: Delta screams in surprise, but there's no supernatural effect. It probably sounds kind of funny cause his mouth is still halfway in the water.

The reminder of the river soothed his worries somewhat. Once he'd walked to the border, he could simply swim his way back from there. Or even continue upstream; although Delta envied the beauty of Loch's flowing fins, he could only imagine how strange it would feel to have them pulled and battered by an opposing current. If the river ever grew too strong, it was easy for the little cat to simply flatten himself to the ground and allow the water to rush above him instead. He gave a small nod to the wolf's explanation, and a small part of him preened at the idea of being an adventurer. "Yes. Alright," he meowed, watching as Loch gracefully shot upwards through the water. He hesitated for a short moment before taking another breath and following, flapping his flat fins against the water as it grew warmer and lighter with the rays of sunset. Anxiety churned at his belly the higher he swam; without the seafloor against his belly, open water surrounded him from every side and offered countless new opportunities for predators to attack. he kept his whiskers splayed and dark eyes roving, making sure for perhaps the dozenth time that nothing was coming for him before he too poked his head above the water. It was bright. Delta swallowed a hiss and squinted against the reddish light, blinking rapidly until the membrane covering his eyes receded and his pupils adjusted to the sky. And pretty, he thought with mild surprise, watching purple clouds overhead slink across the vibrant sky where speckles of starlight began to shine through. He opened his mouth and let out a gurgling compliment to the scenery, but with his lungs still full of water, it was unintelligible above the surface. He nearly missed Loch beginning to paddle away, jolting from his awed stupor and nodding vigorously at his call as he tore his gaze away from the clouds above. Swimming on the surface felt different. If he kept himself buoyed, Delta felt the uncomfortable warm prickle of the fur along his spine and fin-tops drying. He settled for an awkward half-above half-below approach, swimming after Loch with only his eyes and ears above the water like a particularly nervous looking caiman. He gritted his teeth as the ocean floor sloped upwards to meet his paws, his sensation of weightlessness beginning to fade as he slunk clumsily from the water and felt the full weight of his fins and tail press down against his stumpy legs. He made a strange noise, half hiss and half gurgle, before water streamed and sputtered from his nostrils and gills. Unless he wanted to suffocate, it was necessary to force all the water from his lungs before a breath of air was taken. He coughed and sputtered wetly, though the fit certainly looked much worse than it felt. The first breath he took was sharp and short, punctuated by another bout of wheezing and hacking until his body remembered how to process the strange, dry air.  "Sorry," he grunted, slinking further onto the sand and not bothering to shake the wetness from his pelt. He focused on breathing in and out, slowly remembering the rhythm and feeling his body adjust as his heart slowed again. "It's, ah--I have to remember how," he gave a few more focused breaths before clearing his throat, sagging in relief as he felt his lungs take control of themselves again. He looked towards Loch again, slowly stretching out his legs and feeling the strange sensation of having to push upwards against gravity. "Which direction?"

Enya rolled the dice.

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Character Diceroll 1: Fail Diceroll must be above 500 to be successful. 0 was added for Perception. 493 was added for Level 3. 0 was added for A. No Enchantment. 0 was added for A. No Buff / Penalty.

He knew that she knew, and the smile which curled across his muzzle was all too smug for her liking. He wanted her as a bodyguard, a subordinate, and Ida almost laughed in disbelief. She could have denied him then and there, if only to see his expression crumple and twist as it had with the countless others she'd defied, but she held her tongue. His words were honey sweet, but Ida knew that beneath those delicate petals and feline structure, he had the heart of a shrewd, greedy wolf.  He was offering her many things, many more than he could afford to give as he stood now. He was trying to sweeten the pot--ore, a roof, whatever meat she wanted. He offered everything but independence. He needs me, she realized, and she rasped her tongue around blunted fangs again. He needed her, but he was trying to twist it towards the opposite-- to make her indebted, and reliant. "Never am ah gunna rely on anyone else fer stone," she rumbled. "Ain't ever gunna trust a need  'tuh someone else's paws," 'less ah'm willin' fer them 'tuh take it away. Her beady gaze flicked between the two cats as her thoughts churned, and an idea came to her then. "Ah'll follow yuh 'fer as long as ah want, likely 'till yuh settle. Guard yuh n' teach yuh," a flicker of amusement passed through her then; he had no idea how new she was to the land as well. "In exchange ah'll take yer offer fer meat n' medicine. Perks. Call it uh test run. See how it works out 'n where yuh settle. If it's somewhere with uh cool wind n' plenty o' stone, ah'll...consider it." Ida snapped her mandibles together with a sharp crack, and a chuckle rumbled through her barrel chest. "Yuh ever build with stone, Sol?" Her offer was simple--she would help him, he would humor her. He was no king now, but perhaps... Her thoughts turned the idea of eventually. If she could survive, thrive, with a king that needed her and believed the opposite. Not as a nameless subordinate who relied on him for survival.

The stranger's answer to the question of her age made Ida pause, and a strange, thoughtful expression flitted across her features then. All this talk of different worlds and hopping realities had made her head spin, but she had evaded death as well? She almost wanted to refute the claim outright--call bullshit as she saw it just as she always had, but she thought again then of the echoing crack her skull had made when it collided with the stone. She thought of the pain so sharp and so blinding it had sent her weightless, and a phantom pain twinged at the back of her head as she imagined what the inside of it must have looked like as it split across the earth. "Huh," Ida muttered, realization dawning upon her then. Another chuckle escaped her, and she shook her head with giddy disbelief. "After yuh did, ah guess. Didn't think it possible, but," a grin split her blocky muzzle, "'ere we both are, huh." It was almost hard to parse what the other dame was speaking of now that she'd come to such a revelation. She had been dead, hadn't she? And yet here she stood now, paws firm against the crumbling soil and the wind cold and sharp in her lungs. If she were any younger, hell, maybe she would have started to frolic then and there. She managed to contain herself however, and pushed the excited buzzing in the back of her throat down until it tickled at her claws. She listened to the stranger's explanation on the matter of souls and wills, and let out a low, thoughtful rumble in response. "Sounds how uh soul was 'xplained to me as uh whelp. 'n if it got impure yuh'd be sucked down tuh th' fiery pits," truthfully, that had been Ida's first reason into convincing herself this wasn't the afterlife; she thought for a damn fact it wouldn't be nowhere near snowy and cold where she'd end up. Take that, God, she thought with a pang of satisfaction. Still though, there was a name the other wolf had mentioned that Ida did not recognize. "Is Tsillah th' name for God 'ere? Or'sit one of yer beasts?" Ida thought again of the moose and decided then that yes, she could totally believe such a creature could eat someone's soul. She lost her hold on that thought as the other dame spoke again, and a second startling realization was slammed into her. Leader of Dusknora. Huh. "Damn, n' even you get orders?" Ida blurted, amusement mingling with the surprise which had flashed across her gaze. She paused for a moment, almost unsure of what to say next before another chuckle escaped her lungs, shaking her head again in amused disbelief. "'n yuh were just holdin' that in. Yer somethin' else, Enya." Ida had never met a pack leader that hadn't started off the conversation with a proclamation of their power, something that never sat well with the great dog and her many issues with authority. This felt different--she really, really was in another world now, wasn't she? She flicked a tattered ear at the monarch's offer, and surprised herself with the temptation she felt. She'd certainly had her fair share of pack living (and her share of exiles), but she supposed she'd never started one or met a leader quite like this. She couldn't settle, not yet, but let out another low hum as she looked east and listened to the monarch speak of beasts and bones. "Ah'll consider it," she finally decided, but her thoughts were pivoting back further north. She curled her dull claws into the soil and felt the sting of raw flesh where pine wood had scraped along her paws, and decided that yes, she much rather preferred taking her frustrations out in a proper battle, especially with some supposed beast. What else could be out there besides what she'd seen already? Besides, maybe she wanted to see this leader of Dusknora in action--so far, she was impressed. "Hell yeah," she answered, and arched her humped back in a deep stretch to soothe her exerted muscles. "Yuh ever been tuh th' geysers up north? Found somethin' real nasty there n' buried it further n' the woods there. Some sort'uh shapeshifter."