Legosi POV

It had been a long few hours, but Vitmori had fulfilled his end of the deal. Legosi had his pack back, and they had a place to stay. Vitmori had guided them to a cave at the base of his mountain; it was a wide and open cave with a single narrow entrance. The area was relatively spacious, with plenty of room for them to grow into. Legosi had been warned, however, that there was a threat further down the cave, deep under the mountain. But for now, that was fine since the danger had shown no signs of leaving its space as far as anyone can tell. He had been informed by Vitmori that there were already people on this land and that they were under his protection; this meant that they were also under the protection of Legosi and his pack from now on.

Looking himself over, Legosi had grown considerably. He was longer, taller, and possibly even denser than before, if not a little lanky outright. It was more than a little discombobulating if he was honest with himself, no longer being looked down upon by others as he was now unquestionably bigger than the rest of the pack.

The dynamics within the pack had also changed, Vitmori having gifted the rest of them a higher level of intelligence and understanding of the world around them, much to the confusion of the wolves themselves. With most of the previous leadership dying and wishing to stay dead, many of the younger generation had to rise and take their place. A lot of it was settled with a simple discussion, who would be guarding their new den, who would go out on patrols, and things like that. Legosi was the obvious choice to lead the general day-to-day. Still, a she-wolf had also stepped up from the rest, deciding to lead the group from the den while Legosi more directly manages whatever happens beyond the den.

With the den suitably organized and managed for the moment, Legosi found himself sitting outside at the mouth of the cave, staring out at the setting sun on the horizon. He wasn't too sure how to feel; he was satisfied with the overall turn of events, knowing that his pack won't go hungry or freeze this winter. Though he couldn't help but be melancholic over the death of his father and the other elders, they were gone, and despite being offered the chance to come back, they chose to remain in their eternal rest. The young wolf remained lost in thought for some time, unknowingly ignoring the world until some cawing broke through the fugue.

"Ahoy there, pup, you're the new recruit, aren't ya?" The bird calls out, fluttering in close before landing on the dirt and gravel close to the wolf. "Call me Jack, Captain Jack the Sparrow, and I'll be the one watching the skies for Vitmori." Jack mused cheerfully enough before stepping closer as he looked Legosi over. "Have you gone and met the people yet? That's a rather important aspect of your new role, after all, especially after one of theirs got hurt while being chased by yours."

Legosi just... He stared at Jack, not exactly paying attention to the words coming out of their beak. Much to the confusion of Jack as the wolf seemingly sniffed at the bird and stared some more absently.

"Ey! Knock it off. You're freakin me out." Jack finally snapped after a few too many seconds of that, even lobbing a ball of water as it pelted Legosi in the face, seemingly snapping the wolf out of their stupor.

"Hwa-? W-what was that for?" Legosi reacted in response, not exactly sure what was going on as he got to all fours and vigorously shook out his fur. Though after another moment or two, Legosi finally collected himself as he looked back over to Jack thoughtfully. "You're... Like me, right? A leader under Vitmori?"

Jack eyed the wolf warily before responding slowly. "Aye... Nothin' gets past you, I can tell."

Legosi simply tilted his head curiously at that before continuing. "So, um... What brings you here?"

Jack just seemed to look tired of this exchange already as he flapped his wings and hopped a little bit closer. "I'm here to make sure you pay the people a visit. You're new and need to familiarize yourself with them. Vitmori likes these people, so we gotta make sure nothing happens to em, got it?"

"Oh! R-right, of course. S-sure, yeah, if you don't mind guiding me, that would be great. But... Er... Would they even want to see me? We tried to kill some of them after all." Legosi couldn't help but let his ears droop with concern; even if Vitmori put him in this role, it's not like those people have to accept him for it.

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Jack seemed to nod slightly in understanding before flitting over and landing on Legosi's head. "Well, you can sit here and wallow in anxiety and other bad feelings, or you could go on over and get introductions over with." Jack let out a low whistle before looking down into one of Legosi's eyes. "I can guarantee at least one little girlie will be happy to meet you, so don't worry all too much."

Legosi looked up with his eyes while making sure to keep his head steady. "A-are you sure? Well, alright then, if you say so." He replied hesitantly before getting to all fours again while Jack hopped down from Legosi's head and rode along his back. Legosi, in turn, looked back into the den and barked out a couple of times, calling for some others as the she-wolf emerged with a couple of other wolves from the pack.

Jack looked over the other wolves curiously before flapping his wings as he took to the air. "Come along, newbies, follow the birdy," Jack called out mischievously as he went ahead, the wolves soon taking off after him as they headed towards the people.

Isaak POV

"Come on, where's that stamina you humans are so proud of? We've only just started." Zanitul teased with a throaty chuckle as she watched the teen human lay flat on their back.

Isaak groaned in response, not even bothering with words as his chest rises and falls noticeably. They were around the clearing of the old campfire, sparing with two decently carved wooden training swords in order to keep their skills sharp. Well, it was more along the lines of Zanitul using Isaak as a sparring dummy, whereas Isaak did his level best to fend off her heavy strikes by parrying and dodging where he could. Eventually, he rolled over onto his side, the dirt clinging to his sweaty arms, forming a thin layer of mud as he pushed up to his feet. "Oh, don't give me that; you're just sparring with me because you're bored, and I'm the only other one who actually knows how to wield a sword." He retorted as he rolled his shoulders and released a heavy sigh of exasperation. "Are you gonna teach me anything, or are we just gonna keep doing this?"

Zanitul flicked her tongue with amusement as she stepped closer to Isaak and poked him in the chest with the training sword before pulling it back. "Maybe tomorrow, novice; for now, let us just focus on that stamina." With that, she tapped Isaak on the head before taking a few steps back, readying herself while Isaak reluctantly got into a stance as well. Isaak was about to take the first swing when the ecstatic cry of a usually quiet child sounded out.

"Puppies!" Aug, the adorable little dwarf calls out, her little legs quickly carrying her across the clearing.

Stopping short on his first swing, Isaak pulls back to turn and look at what excited the little dwarf, only to freeze up instinctively as the 'puppies' turn out to be a group of spitter wolves, led by a massive wolf that could easily tower even over Shepherd Zasutir if it stood on its hind legs. Isaak only felt the tension in his lower back release once he spotted Jack, the bird with the red bandanna riding the large spitter wolf's back. "Jeez, I don't think I'll ever get used to seeing docile monsters..." He murmured over to Zanitul as he set the training sword down and dusted himself off before approaching the forming crowd around Jack and the spitter wolves.

The wolves, for their part, are more disturbed and confused by the reception; Aug somehow managing to already get on the back of the biggest wolf while the kids and some adults crowd around the other three spitter wolves. Even the prowler cubs were getting mixed into the action, messing with the wolf tails and clamoring about with the other children.

Isaak once again decided to observe the situation from afar as he watched Shepherd Zasutir approach, the crowd mostly breaking apart to allow him to pass, even though Aug remained on the big spitter wolf's back. A few of the other kids were still stroking the other wolves' fur coats, the wolves, in turn, being surprisingly patient in response to their antics.

The Sheperd greets the wolves and Jack warmly with a fanged smile before speaking up. "Welcome, Jack; I see we have newcomers. Are they also in Vitmori's service?" The Shepherd asked, knowingly. It was apparent even to Isaak with a casual glance a ring of green had distinctly formed around the largest wolf's right ear, in stark contrast to the earthy gray dappled coats that the wolves currently had.

Jack was the first to respond as he tweeted out. "That's right, Shepherd, I bring you Legosi, the Defender." He presented dramatically.

Though at that, the wolf's large ears seem to drop back anxiously when it surprisingly clears its throat. "H-hello there, yes I am Legosi, it is a pleasure to meet you all... I err... I hope there are no hard feelings about earlier... We... Well, we were just simple beasts before, starving and desperate at that." He explained as he looked around the crowd of people before clearing his throat again. "Vitmori has given us another chance at life, and we shall take to it proudly. We hope to live alongside you all peacefully and be there for you if any more danger were to come this way."

There are some hesitant murmurs among the adults in the crowd. Still, the children seem to pay that no mind as they go about petting the smaller wolves, the wolves seeming to enjoy their gentle touching as tails start to hesitantly wag under the attention.

The Shepherd seemed to smile warmly at that as he looked among the others. "If Vitmori saw fit to bring you into our community, then I, for one, wholly agree with his choice. After all, Vitmori is a powerful and experienced warrior. Through his wisdom, we were brought into safety despite our circumstances, and through his mercy, we have been protected. I personally welcome you, Defender Legosi. May we have a fruitful and prosperous future together." He enthused, holding out his scaled hand for Legosi. The wolf, in turn, took a moment before lifting his paw to Zasutir's hand, meeting it as the Shepherd shook them.

It was at this moment the children decided to pay attention again, as Aug was the first one to cheer. "Yay! Welcome, puppies!" The other children followed suit in their cheering as the adults dispersed, and the Shepherd walked off, murmuring with Virtisa as she seemed to grab his attention again.

Zanitul piped up from beside Isaak as she flashed a toothy smirk. "Well, that was something... Anywho, you've rested long enough. Back to it." She mused as she draped an arm around the teen and began dragging him off towards their training area again, while Isaak responded with an exhausted sigh.