Home away from Home.

Ever since emerging to this land Syo had felt a new need awaken within him, the need to explore. It was so strange, before he was able to just wander the endless white of the Nexus and be happy with that. But now sometime after seeing the vivid colors of the seasons in the Nayati pack he wanted to see everything he could in and out of the new lands he hoped would be a long lasting home. Maybe this was the restlessness of his wolf rising to the surface telling him to expand his range. Though it wasn't really his range, he didn't own any territory outside of the Nexus. That didn't mean he couldn't wader though.

Using his powers he opened portal after portal stooping in any land that would interest him and going to that land by thinking of a color or animal rather than the destination. The places he saw didn't really hold his attention long, sands, sea, mountains, a swamp, forest. Somewhere in his mind he knew what they all were and the animals that should live there. Standing in the middle of the swamp he sighed looking at his reflection of his blue furred wolf self in the murky water. Shaking his head slowly he sighed. "Guess it's time to go back home." The words were an annoyed but not really angry mutter as he thought of the vast white void of his home. With glowing eyes he made a portal and walked though it to the white world beyond. But hold on this wasn't his world.

The wind ran though his dense fur with a bite of bitter cold, there was no wind at home. Figures stuck out here and there dense shapeless forms to break the landscape, there were no forms at home. The sun was in the pale white cloud filled sky shining down on him but there was no sun or sky for that matter at home. And there was blue, a calm peaceful color that seemed to mix in with the white of the floor and sky, there was no blue at home. "What is this place? Does this world have a connection to mine?" Lost in though he started to walk feeling the cold slickness beneath his paws. Somehow he was able to move on without falling something he figured his wolf side just knew how to do.

Slowly he sped up wanting to see just what this place was, wanting to explore every last bit of it. Soon though he stopped as something slowly fell to the ground before him. It was like some tiny white fairy and cautiously he lifted his nose to it to let it land. It did and as soon as it did the fairy turned to some kind of liquid. Alarmed he jumped back hoping he didn't kill it. Apparently he didn't though as he saw the thing again, but looking just a bit different. Again he let it land on his nose and again it turned to liquid. This time cautiously he licked his nose to find...just water. It was then he saw that from all around the water fairy things fell without any real direction and landed on the ground where they built up. In awe he sat and watched the non living fairies fall on this cold, wet, white land, this shadow of his Nexus, this home away from home

A strange sound, some kind of cracking caught his attention taking away from the awe of this majestic place. In the distance he saw some of the white water move away from the slick ground, maybe the noise was the ground moving. Soon after he felt something under his paws that were spread out wide to keep him up. "A shock wave?" That didn't seem very natural yet he did not know what was and what was not natural in this land. It was almost too cold to try and catch any scent, or maybe he was just not used to scenting things in this odd cold. Deciding to investigate Syo walked forward calmly but cautiously.

His caution was a good call it seemed as he saw some color in the distance breaking the white, someone was there. They were bound to see him if they looked even absent mindedly in his direction. First of all he was a large wolf, 7 feet from nose to tail tip, 4 feet from paw to shoulder. Second his coloring made him stand out in this white. His paws were dark blue with a band of gray before his legs had the same dark blue socks before merging with a lighter blue that made up most of his body albeit with highlights of a medium blue. Most of the top of his back and tail were the same dark blue as his socks though from his neck and a tuft of fur that covered his left eye he was silver as he was at his muzzle and underbelly. His eyes were a pricing gold. With the right lighting in this land he did not doubt he would look somewhat like one of those jagged rocks that were not rocks that stuck out of the slick surface that seemed to be made as the same substance as the surface itself. The lighting was not in his favor now though.

"Might as well see who this is since they can see me so I can find out who this is." The thought drove him onward and he stopped a good body length away from the figure, the woman before him. She was one of that Kostas pack, the one lead by that Bladewolf male of darkness. She too must be of darkness or evil if she would follow the likes of him, already Syo was on his guard, fur on hsi neck raising to offer added protection and to make him look bigger, tail up high showing he was not afraid of this evil nor would he bow to it and eyes stern. He did not growl though, there was no reason to just yet, if a fight could be avoided it would be.

Watching the woman he found himself confused by her actions. Just how was she floating over the slick surface? Perhpas a better question was why? What were those figures she was making, some ritualistic dance? After closer inspection he saw she had blades on her feat. No doubt those would make very formidable weapons, perhaps she was doing some kind of training. Well he wouldn't be drug into it or have those blades find any part of his flesh and he was going to let her know that. "You there, Kostas woman. Whatever you are doing it doesn't seem to be of much use, I know you have blades, already you have lost the element of surprise."

As the woman paused and stared at him he went on the defensive believing she was sizing him up and preparing for battle. The fur around his neck rose to defend his scruff, the fur on his back rose to make himself look bigger and he lowered his body some to spread out his weight. Squinting just a bit to protect his eyes he growled with a warning as he waited. But the woman did not attack, in fact she did not even move. She did the furthest thing from his mind, she...laughed. And laughed, and laughed, so much so her eyes started to water. "How dare she!" The thought ran though his mind as a savage bark escaped him. "How dare that Kostas woman think me so harmless as to laugh! Well, I will just have to show her I am not to be taken lightly!"

Growling louder now he crouched and prepared to lunge but paused as the woman looked at him, taking away his own surprise attack. This woman, who he had decided was strange indeed, perhaps even mad apologized for laughing now. She went on, perhaps just to make him drop his guard but he would not. As she lifted a blade he jumped back just in case but it seemed he only wished to show it to her. It was odd, the woman did not seem intent on attacking yet she clearly had weapons and what did she call him 'Wolf-ling'. Staying put at his distance and still ready to fight if she attacked he spoke as the woman did not seem interested in speaking anymore.

"Skating, is that what this ritual is called Woman of Kostas? If you did not come seeking to start something then why bring those weapons and cut on this surface? What is the purpose of this, is it truly a ritual or are you just mad?" Syo wanted to move, he wanted to circle around the woman and not just stand and wait for some frontal attack. That would be foolish though, with those blades she was clearly more acrobatic than him in this non-Nexus Nexus.

The woman gave her name and called the ritual a sport, he didn't know what that was but he knew what a competition was, to fight to try to prove you could best another for the sake of one's pride. Or like a spar to move forward and better yourself. But to have fun? There didn't seem to be too much point in the activity that way and how could it even be fun? It seemed just so strange to him. Well, maybe he could get some answers as to if this was really something she was doing for fun or if it was just a cover by way of observation.

"Aleria is much shorter yes, but I shall only use your name if you use mine, it is Syo. I don't see how I can join in and I don't know if I want to. How do I truly know this is fun? Show me more of your 'skating' on this slick..." there had to be a word for whatever it was, he still didn't know it though. However it reminded him of something the humans used glass. "slick not-glass. I will observe and judge if it seems fun." The idea was still somewhat ridiculous to him and that was apparent in his tone. Though if he could learn more of odd activities from her that would be useful.

The Kostas woman, seemed wiling to work with him, and to give him a bit of information. So the stuff beneath his paws was called ice. He wanted to lower his head to sniff at tit some more but not with Aleira right in front of him, he still could not trust her, they were talking to one another peacefully enough but that didn't mean much. As she said some strange words he did not understand his ears fell and he crouched ready for an attack. The words did not sound like some other language of this world, no they sounded like words of a spell. She seemed eager only a moment ago to have him 'covered' whatever that meant but now it seemed she changed her mind. There on the ice he waited for an attack as her hands vanished. It was almost as if she opened a portal of her own but he caught no smell of the Nexus nor did he feel any part of its 'mind'. This seemed to be the girls own magic.

Simple minuets felt like hours as he waited but all she did was produce her own pair of these ice skates. He eased up as she set them down but was still ready if the woman changed her mind and was going to do ill. Though she just seemed as amused as she was when he first came upon her, the idea of him in this form in those skates seemed to intrigue her but indeed he would be much better in human form. The activity seemed interesting enough, indeed if he could try it he wanted to but he would not shift in front of her. Eyeing her with suspicion he spoke. "I will step away to shift where you cannot see me and I will be back in moments. If you have some kind of trap laying in wait for me when I return you will regret it." The words held bustle honesty, he would not lie about what he was stepping away to do nor about becoming hostile if this was some trick.

Turing with haste he walked away looking over his shoulder every now and again to make sure she was not following with some attack in mind. Once he was far enough away he went behind something projecting out of the ice like a massive white stone. Maybe it was even more ice but he did not have time to investigate now. Feeling safe there he opened a portal and entered the Nexus. It was quite a relief to be in the blank, silent land with a neutral temperature. Sighing he walked over to his belongings and shifted, picking up his clothing to hide his nudity and wondering how they would suit him in the cold place of ice. Surly his shirt and one pair of pants would not be enough but he did have a few more outfits and decided to layer wearing a black long sleeve shirt on top and dark blue jeans on the bottom. Going into the ice barefoot did not seem wise so he grabbed his boots with mind to change when he was near the skates waiting for him.

Opening another portal he went back to the icy world an the cold hit him instantly. He didn't like it much, even with the layers facing the cold in human form was vastly different from that in wolf. He would just have to push past this so taking a hesitant step he tested his boots on the ice. They held him well enough and he made his way back to the girl, sniffling the air to make sure she was still alone. Going up to the skates he inquired. "What do I do when I have these on?"

It seemed Aleria was still very willing to teach him this ice skating, not to trick him and there was no ambush waiting for him. Putting on the skates and glide-walking was all it he had to do so kneeing near the strange bladed shoes he put one on. With one foot now in very different footwear than the other he put the foot with the skate down to test it. He was at a loss as to how to get the other one on while standing, it didn't seem one blade was stable enough to just stand on so he manged to sit and get the other one on. Now the problem was getting up, which he manged well enough with his walking stick and the blades digging into the ice a bit.

"Gliding." He repeated to himself looking down at his new shoes. After nodding once or twice he lifted his walking stick then moved his right foot forward. This was no easy task, he had to keep his core tight and pay close attention to his balance just with this small movement. Dragging his other foot behind him he moved forward about a foot or so. Little by little he kept on moving, it became a challenge to him to move further forward each time. There was indeed a limit to how far he could move but he did not mind. "This is indeed a form of training, strength, balance, awareness. It is odd you let a stranger practice the training with you though. He commented with his eyes still on the ice before him. Though he did not let his guard down, he would be able to hear if Aleria moved to him suddenly, the blades moving on the ice were easy to hear after all.

Again she spoke very strangely, but at least she used his name not 'wolfling'. Would she use that name again if he was in wol form? That seemed rather annoying, maybe he would just be in human form whenever he was around her. Looking at her with obvious questioning in his face he spoke. "What is this... Jell-O? I do not think I want my legs to be like it." Sliding forward some more he stopped and tired to turn in place as to face her. Stopping wasn't exactly easy but by tossing his arms out he stabilized himself well enough.

"Your ability? Elements? Can you use the ice and the form it takes as it falls from the sky?" To have power over something he didn't even have a concept as before now intrigued him, still not enough for him to throw caution away competently yet enough to make him curious. Everything about her seemed curious though, to that evil pack she was a part of, to her strange view of 'fun' and to her odd word usage.

"Aleria...fun in the making. You just met me but it sounds like you would want you and I to meet again once I am better at skating. Why though? You know nothing of me, I am certainly not of your pack, we are strangers yet you have given me the skates, thought me how to skate and sound like you want me to get better. I do not understand."

That much he was willing to tell her, he did not mind giving away aspects about himself. His powers though, and the Nexus, that was not for her to know.

It seemed she was just surprised by his question as he was, though she was still kind enough to answer it. In a way, he was glad that she did not reserve her skills for the pack but at the same time it created a dilemma for him. No creature of evil would expand their gifts to those not of their family. He would truly have much to think about in the near future.

Once he returned to her e paused looking at her new form. It was wolf enough but not fully, nor was it fully human. Lycan, she was a lycan, but where had he learned that word from, had he seen this form before? Maybe it was natural to all like them, maybe he had one such form but did not have it yet. Yes that must be it. His thoughts were so loud he almost did not hear her reply to his statement, in response he thought to only nod but found himself speaking. "Yes, sometimes I know things I have had no prior knowledge of. It may hold hope."

He found his ears twist back after he spoke as if showing his regret in speaking them. No, he would just ignore that for now, he could focus on his 'past' later. Now it was the time to find if he was dealing with good or evil. Looking at her meager rations he nodded at the idea of a hunt but was also hesitant. "I wouldn't know of any game around her, and I would not know how to hunt with one in lycan form." It wasn't a rejection, he was hungry and how she acted on a hunt would reveled much and clear his mind some. If that was possible at the time however he had no clue.

The names of those animals meant very little to him, aside from fish and bears. With all this ice he doubted he would have found any fish though. Having already asked so many questions he didn’t much want to ask any more and figured when they saw something that would be good enough, he could learn the name once his belly was full. “I’d rather not face any bears either so we shall try to find what we can.” Waiting for her to put her items away he nodded though was still confused. How could one with such a form hunt just as wolves do? Well, he supposed that question would be answered on the hunt. Huffing a bit as she posed the hunt as a challenge he nodded. “Yes, no need to underestimate me.”

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As they moved on he was very thankful for his fur once the wind rose. It was still cold but he was mostly protected. It was getting hard to see but scent would guide them. The endless white reminded him even more of home when there was nothing to see and if anything that helped him focused more on his senses. Tail wagging just a bit he paused when Aleria spoke and lifted his head. The scent of blood was strong meaning they may have found food. With a low growl resonating in his chest he let instinct take over as his walk became more of a stalking motion.

“You as well.” He whispered back to her moving ahead of her toward the source of the smell. As hard as it was to see he could make out four large shapes in front of him. The shapes were mostly white aside from crimson on what he made out as paws and muzzles. Bears, they were snowy white bears around a fat brown kill. These must have been polar bears. “Back away, back away very slowly there are four polar bears here.” He said as loud has he dared against the wind. As soon as he was feeling thankful for the wind that hid them, it decided to die down, then stop all together making the two of them stand out. The bears knew they were there now and they weren’t happy.

Cursing under his breath Syo know they didn’t stand a chance. If there was one of them maybe but not against all four. Bounding forward his fur rose, his ears fell flat and a savage growl escaped him. He needed to get them out of there, he had just the way but only if they didn’t charge in a portal after them. “Distract then escape.” The thought was clear in his mind as he opened a portal directly behind Aleria.

“Back up! Back up now go straight back! You’ll be taken someplace safe, you have no reason to trust me I know but do it. I will follow as soon as I can.” He didn’t bother to glance back, in this white world the portal would be hard for even him to see. For that reason he made it more like an oval on its side so it would be hard for her to miss. It would only last a minute but if she was fast she would be fine. If she were to listen to him she would find herself in the Nexus, his own little part of the Nexus and would be by a few furnishings in an endless white void.

As one of the bears started to advance Syo ran forward with a plan in mind. A few body lengths away from a bear he made a portal right in front of him, already focusing just behind the group of bears to make a return portal. He had to act fat and be flawless. There, he was through the portal and in the Nexus. Before his body was even fully in his home it was out again behind the bears. Barking harshly a few times he managed to see the one who had charged him stumbled at the surprise and turned to see him again. He didn’t have time to focus on the other three, it seemed this bear was eager to challenge him as it answered him with a roar. Perhaps it was frustrated with this strange wolf who seemed to be before him one moment and far behind him the next.

Fight or escape? Well he couldn’t escape until he knew Aleria was away, and he couldn’t find the time to look for her until he faced this bear. Fight. He would have to fight for now then go from there.

The first thing Syo tired to put all his focus on was his grip on the ice. The bear would have an advantage there he knew that and he would have to be careful. Tail lashing behind him he stood his ground and waited, eyes on his challenger. A second roar pulled his eyes away, it seemed another bear had made up its mind that he was a foe to be driven away. That would prove to be a huge mistake as the first bear charged at him while his eyes were on the second. By the time he looked at the first he reacted out of instinct not thought and tired to jump to the side in a doge. His instincts failed him as he made a clumsy landing, slipped on the ice and landed on his side.

The bear had adjusted coarse and was soon towering over him. Not wanting to just be a target he thrust his head forward ready to snap at any part of the bear he could get a hold of. Unfortunately his fangs did little but grab excess skin. The bear had much more luck in an attack of its own as its claws found his shoulder. A cry of pain escaped him making him let go of the bear and lay his head on the ice. Fighting against the pain the only thought on his mind was escape. His eyes wanted to shut against the pain but he kept them open and looked to where Aleira once stood. She was gone! Good! It was time for him to join her.

The hulking mass of bear rose a paw to strike again but Syo had readied a counter attack. He opened a very small portal no larger than a fist on the hindquarters of the bear itself and closed it as soon as it had oped taking a small chunk of bear away with it. It wouldn't be enough to cause the bear long term problems, after all it was only defending its kill, Syo had no reason to hurt it any more than he had to for that. The attack served it's purpose, the bear turned to see if there was an immediate attacker to face.

As soon as it did Syo opened a portal on the ice under him and let gravity pull him into the Nexus. He would appear as if out of nowhere in front of Aleria with an echoing roar of the bear and the chill of the artic. That lasted just a moment though before the portal was closed. Panting he manged to get to his feet and look at his shoulder. There were four deep gashes and blood stained his fur. It seemed standing wasn't the best idea, it made the pain much worse but some part of him, maybe his pride, didn't want to just let him lay there. Sighing he turned his head to Aleira glad he was safe but rather surprised to find her in human form, nude. Not one to invade on another's privacy he averted his eyes.

"See that screne over there?" He said meaning a decorative Japanese style wall. "There is clothing behind it, you may take a long shirt if you want to serve as a dress on you." His words were a tired sigh, this was no time to fight the pain he felt or try to push past it, they were safe now. Sinking to the 'ground' he lay as a small pool of crimson broke the endless white all around them. Closing his eyes again he tried not to whimper any at the pain. He knew Aleria was a healer yet he did not want to asked to be healed, he felt that was too invasive. Once she was clothed he could get her home then see if he could find help from his pack.

As she shirked no doubt with surprise and perhaps embarrassment he lowered his ears apologetically. He didn't feel up for moving much at the moment. He could understand her position, he came to the Nexus when shifted to change into clothes, he didn't want to be caught without them. Feeling her next to him he opened his eyes and lifted his head a little before deciding to set it back down. Relief washed over him as she made her offer. "I did not want to overstep any bounds by asking, but please any help would be welcome. I can help you back to your home when you are done, this place isn't the same realm as yours, my portals can take you back."

At her question he grew thoughtful. It did not seem like she wished the bear any harm, no she did not seem like one who wished that. Maybe she just wished it was a fair fight, injury for injury. "That certainly would be a just trade, but no. We were intruders on their meal, competition but not foes. I did only what I needed too, an injury on the rump of one who attacked me."