Lyckos & Others

Climbing the Croal Mountains allowed him time to clear his head and collect his thoughts. Lyckos felt he was stumbling from one disaster to the next. Firstly, it was the loss of Hydras and Quake and now the sudden suicide of Lotus. Lotus, the daughter that was no longer his, the daughter whom he had taken in as a whelp, but who, just minutes before her death, renounced him as her parent before taking her own life. The conflict between Lotus and Ankh had seemed a simple one to resolve, but, alas, things never go to plan, and thus, Lotus had died, and he had lost a potential aid-source in Majikan.

Lyckos did feel hurt, there was no denying that. He had raised her, and she did still hold a part of his heart, but her words had wounded him, and though his love was still present for her, the hate bourne of that fight countered it. Perhaps, he told himself, she had been brainwashed by Majikan and his ilk, or the Haunters? Nevertheless, she was gone, and had disowned him, so he would pay her the last respects she had wished, and call her by her true heritage: Lotus, daughter of Luke and Tahti, raised as a Lurker, but ultimately, a traitor to her adoptive family.

Lyckos stepped onto the winding path that lead to the Guardian’s Temple, a path etched into the ground by the many animals that had travelled it. Behind him was the small brigade of Lurkers he had taken to the quarrel between Ankh and Lotus. His hazel eyes searched the skies for the falcon who accompanied them, signalling for the bird to land on his back when they entered the Temple. Lyckos, followed by Camden, Iphito and Lyriani, stepped into the Temple entrance. Lyckos walked to the centre of the Temple, and once there barked for the pack to come to a halt. “Quaidah?” he called, his deep voice projected through the building and echoing in the ancient structure. There was a certain item of business that needed discussion with the Guardians. Namely, the Haunters, but there was something that had bothered him that Lotus had said. She had claimed Hydras was alive. He didn’t believe it could possibly be true, after all he saw her fall, saw the flames that tore across the land, but something in his mind nagged at him to ask the Guardians. If there was even the slightest chance it was true, he needed to know, and if not, then it was the confirmation he needed to put his mind to rest.

Quaidah & Others

The range of emotions that ran through the minds of the various Lurkers following Lyckos ran from deep anger and disgust to pity and quiet grief. Chief among those experiencing the former emotions was Ankh, who stalked along with such a rigid gait that even his offspring didn't draw too close to their father's heels. Owl was right up there with him however, talking quietly now and then to try and belay some of her mate's royal fury and indignation over the whole event. Bullet was, perhaps unsurprisingly, one of those experiencing grief over the death of Lotus, though even the big and soft-hearted hybrid felt the sting of betrayal from Lotus's betrayal.

Treading lightly at her father's side, Lerna didn't speak a word as Lyckos led the contingent up along the rocky trail to the high altitude shelter awaiting them at the top. She wasn't fearful of her father's wrath like Shear and Dan were of Ankh's; rather, the chocolate-coated hybrid was walking beside him in a show of moral support, knowing that among all those present, he was the most profoundly affected by Lotus's actions.

Long before the Lurkers had made their way to the Temple, word of their arrival had spread on the wings of the packs' sentries. So as the great labradane made his entrance, Quaidah was already navigating through the corridors to make his way to the central room where the allies were congregating. "Lyckos." The hybrid bobbed muzzle down in typical greeting once he'd breeched the last set of stairs and sauntered briskly to take a stand in front of the larger alpha. "I hear there's trouble?"

Lyckos

When Quaidah appeared in his sights, Lyckos smiled briefly, dipping his head in mutual respect for his fellow alpha. "No, the trouble is not why I'm here. Although, I should probably warn you to keep your pack away from Majikan, the tiger. I believe he corrupted Lotus. Unfortunately, there was a disagreement, and it had ended with her suicide." He paused briefly, a momentary flashback to the events just hours ago, and took a second to compose himself again, "No, I have come to ask you about the activites of the Shadow Haunters. This peace concerns me. Normally, I would enjoy a break in the fighting, but this...this feels wrong. Have you noticed anything strange about them?"

While Lyckos was busy, Camden wandered to the edge of the chamber and lay down. Iphito headed back outside, and Lyriani sat down next to Camden to watch the proceedings.

Quaidah & Others

His eyes lit with surprise, and then were promptly enveloped in sympathy when Lotus' death was announced. It was a pain he shared to some degree, with many of his own siblings and relatives lost to the Shadow Haunters either through war or corruption at a young age, though he had yet to be a father and experience the pain of loosing one's daughter. The alpha's stern eyes softened as he looked to the ground, in his own silent way of showing respect and condolence until Lyckos had composed himself and went on. Raising his eyes again, Quaidah got right back to business, "My scouts have reported a lot of movement in their ranks. Risen has not been seen for some time, and Pepper has confirmed that a large group of Haunters appears to have taken up residence near the outskirts of the Human Town. It is unclear whether this is another branch of the Haunters, or a defected group." The alpha paused for breath, "Lyckos... can I speak with you privately? There is another matter of importance that needs to be addressed, pertaining to the Haunters."

Lyckos

The news was worrying to Lyckos. All this movement of the Haunters could spell a new wave of fighting. Perhaps it was a new tactic to try and bring the Lurkers down? Lyckos' heart sank while he listened to Quaidah, but he tried to keep his face neutral so as not to betray his fears to his packmates and allies. Also, the disappearance of Risen concerned him. Although he hated her, they had come to an agreement just before her apparent disappearance, that they would join forces to defeat Tainted, and bring about a kind of ceasefire. Now, however, it seemed the cogs in the Haunter war-machine were beginning to turn once more, and under a new leader, it seemed.

Then, Quaidah's sudden need to speak with him alone about the Haunters made him feel that there was something even worse to come. Though he did not react, aside from a nod, Lyckos' heart rate doubled and he couldn't help but feel apprehensive. "Lets go outside." Walking out the Temple door, Lyckos composed himself once more. He walked a little way away from the Temple, then, once he was sure there was no one around, turned back to face Quaidah. "What do you need to talk about?"

Quaidah & Others

Ninaki and the others respectfully fell back, leaving the two alphas to their private discussion. Quaidah trotted after Lyckos, his smaller, compact frame so dwarfed by the other's as to almost be absurd, "What I am going to tell you... I do so only to prepare you. That last thing I would want is to cause you or our family any undue stress." Using the term 'our', Quaidah subtly affirmed his own heritage as a Lurker, and a common bond with his root pack. With a steadying breath, the hybrid spoke evenly and at length, looking up to Lyckos as he did so, "It was a few weeks back, around the time the Haunters showed a lot of movement and potential split up. Our scout, Grey Feather, reported seeing..." Here he paused, lowering his voice by a degree or two, as if that might somehow soften the blow of his next words, "...Hydras, at Pikes Lake. With one of Risen's sons, Tumult. From his description, she bore extensive scarring, and he is positive in his identification. However... he also reported that she seemed fond of Tumult."

Lyckos

Immediately, Lyckos was on alert. Quaidah's opening sentence sent alarm bells ringing through his mind. This was not going to be good. Then, his mind was thrown into turmoil. "Hy-hydras?" Lyckos repeated, shuddering violently as he watched his fellow alpha in complete disbelief. Yes, Lotus and Majikan had said it was true, but he had truly believed it couldn't possibly be. After all, he watched her fall, saw the raging fire that raced towards her body...but he never saw her actually be engulfed by the flames. So Lotus really was telling the truth?

Lyckos took a step back, and his head fell, shielding his face from Quaidah to hide the pain that wrought his features. "It's what I feared..." he whispered. Lotus...he had doubted her, and all along she was telling the truth, no matter how converted to their side she had been, her heart still held the piece of Lurker pride that had meant she had tried to tell him. He was sickened with himself, but above all of this was the gut-wrenching pain that, perhaps, Hydras might be alive, and that she had been ever since that fight.

She had been alive in Haunter company.

But why would she be with Tumult, the son of Risen? Hydras wouldn't be fond of him, so it couldn't be her, surely? He was torn in two, his heart desperate to believe in Quaidah's words, but his head saying that it was impossible. He didn't want to doubt the information, even though it was so concrete, but something in his mind told him it couldn't possibly be true. He sucked in a deep breath, biting back any tears, but as he lifted his head once more the hurt twisted into his face was but a fraction of what he felt. "Well then, I must tell my children and the pack. Thank you for telling me, Quaidah, and I would like to ask your help. I must go...and find her once the news had been told. I do not know what I will find, so I ask that the Guardians come with us, please."

Halo

Halo had been listening in, having stayed with the Guardians ever since Lotus was driven to death. Halo knew her sister could never handle being doubted, especially about something as big as this. "She told you. You didn't believe her. You thought she was a liar. If you would have believed her, she would still be alive." The young hybrid was hurt right now. "Tell me you still love us, Father..." She mumbled, lying in the shadows in the corner. "Tell me I'm still your daughter. Tell me you still loved Lotus."

Quaidah & Others

The pain and confusion that Lyckos was now going through lashed back at the unfortunate messenger, stinging at his own soul for being the one to inform the Lurker King of such a revelation. She had been his great aunt, but he had not known her nearly as well as Lyckos had, nor shared the unbreakable bond between two such mates, and his heart went out to the shocked labradane. Quaidah closed his eyes momentarily, focusing on taking a slow, even breath as he let Lyckos have his few moments of stunned silence to compose himself. Striving for an even tone, the smaller-stature hybrid replied once the other had found his voice again, "We are forever by your side. I will rally the pack, and have them ready to follow you whenever you have prepared your family."

From this point, Quaidah was ready to call for his raptor scouts to help inform the pack of the plan, but he was stopped in this when a familiar voice called out. Normally, the easy-tempered alpha would have backed off and allowed the conversation to take place without his interference, because Halo was the adoptive daughter of Lyckos - but because Halo had joined his pack, Quiadah felt he had some room to bare a single fang in reprimand as he spoke. It wasn't against what Halo said - that was between her and her father - but her behavior was what irked the male, "Halo, this was a private conversation." The words were held authority, but there was no rumble or growl to accentuate them, only a keen stare at the younger Guardian to reprimand her for listening in on the conversation.

Lyckos

“Thank you, my friend,” Lyckos replied, a small emotionless smile accompanying his heartfelt words. He had needed to come here for this, the reassurance from Quaidah. With Hydras gone, Lyckos had been at a loss for what to do, having never been a solo leader or a leader of any kind before. With the help of Quaidah and the other Lurker leaders, he had begun to take command with ease, and he was truly grateful to them for aiding him when he needed it most. “Now, I must...”

The small voice of one of his adopted daughters drew his attention. He let Quaidah chastise her for her actions, and he supported the Guardian alpha for that, but he did not punish her further, instead he did quite the opposite. “Halo,” Lyckos whispered, using a quiet, coxing voice to draw the youngster out, “I do still love you, I always have and always will. Lotus...I love her too, but you must understand that I believed her to be corrupted by Majikan. Other family members have been brainwashed by the Haunters, and I feared she had been too, so when she told me Hydras was still alive, I couldn’t help but disbelieve her. You understand, don’t you?”

Then, he heard a call not far away. “The messengers of Greyfell wish to meet with the leaders of the Shadow Lurkers and the Ancient Guardians!” Lyckos’ head lifted sharply, and all those emotions were quickly locked down. Now was a time for business, not for his emotions to get in the way (or so he believed). He glanced to Quaidah, as if to ask “Who is Greyfell?”, but did not actually speak his question. Instead, he quickly called towards the Temple for the Lurkers that had accompanied him to come out, then he began tracking the call. He did not realise it was the messengers of the newest leader of the Haunters...