Posts by Kayn

^{Hypokrisis. Kayn had already known, already prepared himself, for the broken thing of beauty. What were the odds that fate wouldn't thrust someone upon him that might change his mind? But the demon of unknown depths had been right, and he was ready. This time the porcelain doll wouldn't shake his conviction, even as the words that fell upon him rang with painful truth. Hypokrisis was right in every way and he knew that. There would be no returning home once the Rogues found out about him. Spying for the Cartel had been one thing, but actively working against them? For the Sanguine Ruins no less? It was an eventual promise of his own exile that he was willingly agreeing upon, and it was a decision he'd follow through with a thousand times over. Even if it meant he wouldn't be able to see Astral again after that point. Even if it meant she despised him. She wouldn't be the first, and as long as she was safe than he could live out his sentence feeling justified in his actions.}

^{"No, not at all. I appreciate you looking out for me once again, Hypokrisis, but my decision was made long before your people stole her from me. I'll face my eventual punishment with unflinching conviction for no price is too steep. It's no longer about whether I can come to terms with it," the wolf of the abyss confessed, voice devoid of the shaking fear he'd been prey to when the one his admiration blossomed for had saved his life from that otherwise fatal arrow. Where would he go after he was exiled? Kayn truly didn't know, but he was prepared to be branded a traitor. Sollux had already done so. If he could handle losing one home than he could handle a second. He'd have to, for Astral's sake.}

^{Kayn had deceived everyone for far too long, including himself. He'd proven what he was the moment he took up the fabled scythe and cursed crown for his own power. Betraying those he cared about ran through him with as much certainty as the crimson rivers that flowed through him. He'd raised himself surrounded by those that prided themselves on destroying the happiness of others. He had been a fool to ever think he could redeem himself. Kayn was born by blood and he would die by blood. Saving the one his heart yearned for would be his final step into absolute darkness, a decision made with good intentions that would surely break the last vestiges of good that struggled within him.}

^{Kayn kept his gaze on Hypokrisis instead of looking to their leader, a flare in his eyes that proved he would challenge gods if that was what was required of him. "But you've only seen what he is capable of. Not what I'm capable of. Fourthwall groomed his own demise the second he agreed to train me, this I swear to you. One day he will look upon me, but the young boy who demanded be trained to defend his family will no longer be there," The demon-touched lupine swore with a fiery desire dripping from his tone, hatred, anger, and even pride glowing like a blazing inferno from merely the words he spoke with unfaltering belief. The Blackheart Rogues were a clan of care-free individuals who valued justice who were led by a monster thats very existence was hypocritical. Much like Kayn himself. They were both creatures that didn't deserve to parade as avengers of evil when they'd both been responsible for atrocities that would have equaled a death sentence if they'd been put on trial. One day he would be strong enough to put his home on the right path. Until then he would slink in the shadows, awaiting the moment to strike.}

^{Kayn perked up at Deathstrokes words, for many different reasons. Hypokrisis. Undercover work. The Sanguine Ruins. They were all relevant topics to the black wolf, some that he'd admit more readily than others. "I'd be more than interested in assisting in the art of subterfuge Deathstroke. It's in the past now and I'd like to think I've more than proven my loyalty, but I was at one point a spy for the Cartel. A damn good one too. It's amazing what a young child would do to impress his father," the obsidian lupine offered forth. He couldn't let the assassin have all the fun, and if his plan with the Ruins went through then knowing what the Rogues were doing would be useful For better and worse. Or if it failed, well, perhaps undercover he could orchestrate Astral's escape that wouldn't end in her death as the Sight seemed to imply in his moonlit nightmares.}

^{"Perhaps unfortunately I doubt anyone there would suspect me. I'd hazard, in some ways, I'd fit in a little... too well. Not unlike yourself in that regard. The perfect spy duo for such a mission, no?" Kayn mentioned with a certain nonchalant casualness to his voice, although the words themselves bore more than one hint of accusation. Did the wolf of darkest nights appreciate the assassins assistance for the Rogues? Well, of course he did. But he was still more than skeptical of Deathstroke in many ways. He was like a feral dog on a leash in away and Fourthwall would likely only be able to maintain the chain for so long. Perhaps others would trust him, but Kayn had spoken to Sollux on many occasions and trusted the ghoul more than his own father. The Cartellian leader hadn't lied to him before so the midnight wolf had no reason to suspect his hatred of Deathstroke was any different. Kayn would be ready when the assassin turned, but until then he'd tolerate and even learn from him. What other choice did he have?}

^{The midnight lupine stepped forward, excitement in his eyes as he took in Deathstroke's announcement. Training? It was honestly perfect timing. The Rogues would need it, including himself, and the canine was raring to fight. Kayn was a young, spry warrior who was perfectly in his prime. His body was that of someone who knew the battlefield the same as if the concept was an old friend. Fighting on different terrain was not something he was well versed in at all however, sand especially. He was born and raised in the harshness of a temperate jungle, but that hadn't prepared him for something as unreliable as the annoying particulates that the assassin had made a pit entirely out of.}

^{"Count me in old man. I'm sure you can teach us all a thing or two. I'll be honest, I've never fought anywhere near sand. I usually try to avoid any tactical disadvantages, but with the Ruins we've really no choice," Kayn admitted, sitting down comfortably until Deathstroke was ready to begin. The wolf's lupine body, the only one he possessed out of a like of shapeshifting abilities, was not suited in the slightest to harsh temperatures or sand. He'd conquered the first in his home land, yet the second he'd given a wide berth. Until today it would seem.}

^{Kayn listened intently to the words of the older male, taking in what he had to say about history, but most of it didn't matter much other than that those clans could handle sandy terrain. Although that implied that they all had their members from that time however long in the past, something that the wolf assumed was unlikely. The Sanguine Ruins however currently lived there and that made this lesson as valuable as any other more generally applied combat information. Knowing how to time your strikes, which way to dodge, and how to feint only mattered if you could move your paws on the terrain with enough agility to pull them off. Did Kayn think he could? Of course, but only after he learned how. Knowledge was the essence of power. It was a philosophy he'd lived by since a very young age after observing what chaos a little bit of information was capable of.}

^{The ebon lupine raised an invisible eyebrow at Deathstrokes request, skeptical to a degree but not entirely unwilling. "So you want me to strut my stuff eh? You do realize I'm not my dad, right?" the wolf teased with a knowing grin before stepping onto the sand. He took a moment to analyze how the first step felt, taking in the way his paw sank deeper into the ground without his consent until oddly leveling out. It was like mud that solidified at random. When he went to move his paw again though he took note of the way the ground immediately shifted upon the loss of pressure, almost causing the black wolf to lose his footing. Kayn took steps more confidently now that he'd felt it out a bit, increasing his speed, but the newfound run caused the particulates to alter their formation again in a different way. He did his best to account for it despite the ever changing consistence of the sandy terrain.}

^{It certainly wasn't as quick as he was on the comfortable forest floor, yet he'd gotten into an alright stride that betrayed the difficulties he was having. Kayn was managing to move without being restrained too terribly, however the concentration it was taking to keep his pace without faltering would be impossible to keep up in an actual combat scenario. Finally he stopped after feeling he'd demonstrated the basic that Deathstroke was looking for, turning to the one-eyed male with a conflicted gaze. "How was that?" the obsidian lupine genuinely questioned. He wasn't even sure if he'd developed a proper technique for walking or running, let alone if it was a proper speed for what his current teacher thought. Well, that was why he was training after all. If he knew then he wouldn't have agreed to the session in the first place.}

^{The midnight lupine heard Deathstroke's words to his son in passing, ears perking up at the noise. Stores eh? Someone like the assassin probably had a lot of them in general. In a lot of ways the one-eyed male was a living legend among the various clans, usually in infamy, but all the same he had quite the reputation. Hearing the tales from the perspective of the one who created them in the first place seemed like an interesting enough way to pass the time. Perhaps more importantly though, Kayn had a few things he wanted to know. Things Deathstroke would be the perfect person to answer. After all the male's name had been tossed around in heated arguments all the time while growing up, although the wolf had been too young to understand what was going on fully. That was no longer the case.}

^{"I'll confess I share his sentiment. I'm hungry for a few stories of my own," Kayn admitted, sauntering over to the pair with a certain swagger to his step. It had been something on his mind ever since the assassin showed up at the Cartel only to be sent away in a hurry. Then later he'd arrived in the Rogues, but there had been so much going on since that time. With Deathstrokes prosecution and warnings from his skirmish with the Cartel, the Sanguine Ruins taking their people, and Colour Command laying claim to the same land they wanted, Kayn hadn't the opportunity to talk to the older male. It was really the one thing that had gone so far in keeping his mouth shut when it came to topics he wholeheartedly disagreed with his mentor on regarding the assassin.}

^{The abyss furred wolf sat back on his haunches comfortably, tossing Deathstroke a friendly grin that clashed with the intense look in his heterochromatic eyes. "You got any tales involving father dearest? He was never really home growing up so I don't know that much about him. If his arguments with Sollux were any indication, I'd wager a lot of that was because of you," the lupine questioned, boiling curiosity mixing with long held animosity in his voice. It hurt to think about, but Deathstroke knew Feliks better than he did. Better than anyone? Well, that was part of the problem. Kayn really didn't know enough about his dad to even tell who he cared about. It had only been recently that he came to terms with the fact that, somehow, he'd been on that list. All the black wolf knew of were the stories and rumors that had been spread of his father, many of which he had already refuted in his mind as outright lies. He'd come to question that over time, yet every single time he did his dad made his way back into his life for a brief moment and the cycle of admiration was born anew. The midnight lupine had grown into his own person now though, and that meant he wanted the truth, or at least as much as he could hear from anyone that wasn't his father. The only person Kayn knew who was close to Feliks in that kind of way was, without a doubt, Deathstroke.}

<sup>The shifts in energy that Kayn had picked up on were both startling and confusing at the time. Fenrir sensed Disturbia and with her another creature he didn't know, locked in conflict based on the negative energy flowing from the area. Immediately the ebon lupine had set out in an effort to find his sister before anything happened. Kayn had lost her once and he refused to lose her again. She meant far too much to him to ever let go of. She was more than capable herself now it seemed, but he still would have preferred that he could fight all of her battles to spare her the pain that came with it. The physical and mental trauma that came with a life of war was intense and something he'd experienced first hand. Disturbia was clearly a warrior now herself, but had she seen the terrors of the world as he had? If so, did she understand what was at stake in the face of true oblivion?

It was the thought provoking, critical worry for his sister that spurred him forward with every ounce of speed he could possibly muster. She was family and that meant he had to be there. Only, with a stab to his mind and heart that stopped him dead in his tracks, he'd been to late. Fenrir could feel the conflict escalating, both life forces growing weaker, but in an instant things changed. He could still feel them both, but it was different. Feeling things through the spirit realm, especially second-hand through a demon, always obfuscated things to a degree, however this time Kayn could truly say he didn't feel her life energy anymore. At least not in the way it had been before which terrified him. The other creature that was with her? Gone with a scream that echoed into the distance, except it had no traces left like his sister. The demon-touched lupine hoped with all of his heart that meant she had won and was still okay.</sup>

^{When he finally broke the coverage of the forest to reach the waters he felt her near, Kayn rushed forth to her side. Worry marred his usually collected features as he arrived at his sisters side, pressing upon her motionless form. "Disturbia? Dis wake up! I'm here now, things will be okay I promise!" the ebon wolf said despite her lack of hearing, voice shaking in a manner that mirrored the organization of his thoughts. She was alive... She had to be. But Kayn was no doctor and that meant he didn't know what to do except panic. Tending to minor battle wounds was one thing, however figuring out if she was okay and fixing what was wrong after a battle that pushed her to her limits was an entirely other thing. For once Kayn wished his mentor was there, if only so that he could teleport them away to the safe confines of the castle. In his worry stricken state he hadn't even checked her breathing as one might have regularly done, mind already defaulting to the worst that could have happened despite his absolute refusal of that possibility. Instead his eyes locked on the lifeless corpse of the hellhound, rage building within him at the already deceased creature.}