Poison-Anthem

"Oh Elders that's cold!" Cold water splashed up her legs as Nyx danced in the shallows of the beach. Just on the horizon, the edge of the dome loomed, glowing ever so gently with the dim morning light. She had not been outside the dome much, so a heavy amount of nerves had settled themselves in the cape of black fur across her shoulders. Behind her, a growling laughter met her ears. Brendanus strode up to the edge of the water, his tail swishing almost lazily behind him as he watched her tiptoe through the waves. "It is about to get a great lot colder you know Nyx." He rumbled, looking over his shoulder and further up the beach. There, a large wolf gazed at the pair from under the shadow of a great tree. Argus, Brendanus' signature companion, huffed and settled down, his forepaws draped across a pack Brendanus had brought with him. It had been a small number of weeks since Nyx had first spent an afternoon with Brendanus training the newest batch of puppies. They had since grown to

“Come now, it isn’t that bad.” Nyx pushed a bowl of stew across the bar to the spiked green Rex. The Rex was nursing a heavy bruise to the side of his cheek, dabbing a cloth wrapped around a chunk of ice to the swollen patch, hissing with each press. “Not that bad my tail spikes.” He grumbled, wincing as he finally fully rested the ice against his scales. “I can’t believe I didn’t see it coming. You would think after spending a few days with the things that they would be used to me by now.” Nyx chuckled, pulling a mug up from where it had been soaking behind the counter, rubbing a damp cloth around its rim. “Deer are fickle beasts Zoisen, you should know better than to put your head down at their level, especially with the young bucks. It’s a challenge to them.” The tavern's dining room had wound down over the past hour and now the inn keeping Rex could take time to pay closer attention to her more favorite customers. Zoisen had been coming in each evening to partake of a glass of

Nyx had never been around many predators before, unless you counted Rexals themselves. Deer? Other herbivores? Oh she knew them inside and out. Sometimes quite literally when it came to meal prepping. But predators? Much less wolves? That, now that was a new one. So it had surprised her to receive a call for help from the best known wolf tender in the dome. Nyx hadn't spent much time around Brendanus, the occasional guest at her inn or the every so often passer-by at the market. But truly one on one was also a new experience. So when the fluffy rexal turned to acknowledge her presence in the amphitheater, Nyx had to take a moment to compose herself under his gaze. Nyx felt her throat tighten as she stepped forward. He was a gruff rexal, but that certainly didn't stop him from being quite handsome and Nyx had to clear her throat before speaking up. "Sorry if I'm late Brendanus. I had to clean up the breakfast rush before closing the tavern for the afternoon." The grey rexal grunted

“Are you sure this is right?” Nyxie shifted awkwardly under the harness wrapped across her shoulders and chest as she dropped to all fours. It was made of thick deer leather and she could tell that someone had taken great care to pad the rubbing bits with thick wool. Still, the sensation was odd. “Oh yes dearie.” The older rexal stepped forward, pulling on a few straps and shifting the harness to the blue girl’s new position. It was still an odd sensation, but a few of the more abrasive spots were relaxed at least. “Thank you again for helping out today Nyx. I know you surely have much to do back home, but with Brux going lame at the last minute you are an elder sent gift.” The smaller rex gestured to a pasture just beyond the planting field the pair stood in at a burly deer who grazed most lazily in the distance. “Oh it’s no problem, really. I was happy to help.” Nyx rolled her shoulders, setting her claws in the dirt. It had been a last minute decision to help out the farmer, but

Rain. Ellie hated it. It had started not long ago, first a few drops here and there and now a downpour so heavy she wondered how the spectators could see the arena below them. It would drench her fur and get mud between her toes. It would make the arena floor slippery and dangerous, but that was what the spectators came to see. She growled softly, her fangs flashing themselves at the sound of thunder in the distance, her fur rising on end as static and nervous energy coursed through it. A soft hand pressed itself into her shoulder, a comforting aura pushed through to her soul. Slowly, the calico nemeion relaxed, turning to face the young woman at her side. She could smell the nerves on the girl, but she put a good show of pretending they didn’t exist as she stared out into the arena. They would be up soon. It was Visha’s first entry into the colosseum, her first true fight. Not that the girl would be fighting herself, but it still was the first time her training would be on display.

Breath filled his lungs like he had been under water too long, a heavy blanket of sleep sliding away from his skin leaving him gasping. Dreams so real he had been sure he would wake up back in the dank hole he had grown up in. Panting, Caliban raised his head, his claws digging into the hay and wood beneath him. The space around him was smaller than he was used to, but it wasn’t the same. Still it felt as if the walls were closing in on him, crushing him. Panic set his heart racing, until a heavy paw reached over, pressing against his haunches. Recoiling, the dark nemeion spun in the dim light of the enclosure, pressing his back against the wall. Light filtered through a high window covered in metal bars. In the dimness he could make out a patchy coat of oranges, whites and blacks. A soft voice, rumbling and yet ever so gentle, drifted across the space between them. “You’ll be ok. Take a breath.” The lioness beyond the shadows stood, the light catching her mismatched eyes. “Do you

The capital was a chaos that Schism had almost forgotten in his years on the farm. Bustling and noise formed a steady heartbeat, a underlying bass line for the very life that thrummed all around. The roo wasn’t sure if it made him feel more relaxed or uneasy. The flight through the countryside to the capital had been long, but the silence and freedom had been a breath of fresh air, a stark contrast to the suffocating feeling of having so many hippus and harpies rushing around. War had been declared officially and every hoof and tallon and hand was needed to turn the great wheels of the country. Fliers for recruitment fluttered on walls and trees and even flipped across the paths. A heavy unease filled every step of the city’s inhabitants, and Schism wasn’t immune to the feeling. He had come here to sign up after all. War and battle was a glory his father had told stories of and crowed about, assuring his child that he too would find his place as a leader among avus. But everyone had