<< Kodaline >>
mentions: all, camino and valentia particularly

Kodaline knew he was late more so than his handler. She was even more scatterbrained than usual. First forgetting to stuff his toy with his meal, then leaving it behind in the storage area, she was all over the place. While his handler wasn't particularly good at keeping track of things, this wasn't the norm. He huffed, nudging the woman's leg with his muzzle when she opened the door to let him out of his kennel for the morning. It was about time, he had watched her frantic scurrying about quietly, leaning against the chain-link fence.

"Come," she handed him the oblong rubber toy stuffed with the second part of his meal, and without another word made her way down the hallway. Usually the woman talked to him, mindless chatter mostly, but today she didn't. Odd, but he shrugged it off as the result of being late. She usually didn't walk this fast, either. Huh.

Unlike most dogs, he never really had an issue with working off-leash. Koda never really wanted to go anywhere away from his person. He just had a small loop, something like only the handle of a lead, clipped onto his collar in case his handler wanted to keep hold of him. Not that he was going to do anything. It seemed like some of the people in the kennels were apprehensive of his size.

He ambled through the gate, slightly behind his person. She kept picking at her fingernails. Maybe something was wrong with them? Humans were weird, and the nervous woman was proof. Was there anything all that different about today?

He could see almost everyone else already in the field. Well, that was too be expected. At least he had gotten there after Frosch made his morning rounds, more than once he had slammed into Koda. The hound dog was there too, what was her name? Valentina?

Koda leaned against his handler's legs (gently, of course. Had he not been careful, he could have knocked her over entirely. Why such a small woman was the handler of the biggest dog on the team was anyone's guess.) After she scratched the scruff of his neck for a few moments, he trotted off toward the others. Usually, she pet for him longer, but he was glad to go eat his food.

Nodding to Camino and mumbling a quick "morning," around the awkward rubber toy in his mouth to the other dogs, he dropped the toy in a patch short but thick grass. Shaking out his fur before flopping down with a huff, he placed a massive paw on the black rubber toy. He surveyed his teammates, amber eyes landing on each one for a few seconds, checking in on them. It was partially a learned behavior from his training and partially pure instinct to make sure they were all okay.

His eyes lingered a bit longer than the others on the new dog. Something seemed off about her this morning, but he really couldn't place it. Maybe she hadn't slept well or something. She seemed nervous before she blurted out the question. Had something seemed off today? He didn't know, all he knew that his handler had been late.

"I was late," he huffed, a touch of humor on his tone, "I don't know about anything else. My person is just weird."

Oh, the topic of dreams had been brought up. Honestly, Kodaline rarely dreamed, and when he did they were either very good or very bad. Not something he enjoyed either way. "Eh, not really," he murmured before poking the rubber toy with his muzzle. Wrapping his jaw around it, he tried to crush it by the big hole to get his food out. Its shape was weird and he couldn't get enough of a grip on it to break it.

It had been a while since he had eaten out of one of these. Maybe he could just fit his muzzle into the hole enough to lick the food out?

Nur | The Brains | Mentions: everyone

The big Malinois, to no one’s surprise, was the first to sound the alarm. He uttered a low whine of happiness and shuffled to his feet, then bounced over to the front of his kennel, tail whipping into a frenzy behind him. Nur, in the kennel next door, raised her head and watched him. Captain, as he was called, was one of the few dogs in her team who could match her drive and motivation step for step. Throughout training, she had seen him work relentlessly beyond the point of exhaustion or defeat, seen him tackle impossible tasks. She trusted him completely.

She trotted up beside him and sat delicately at the front of her own kennel. After spending her entire life in this facility, she had grown accustomed to days that followed routines and schedules and allowed certain expectations to be fulfilled. Today was not one of those days, it seemed, as she recognized exactly one out of the three people who had clustered down the hallway from the kennels. That one person was her trainer, who stood by silently as the other people chattered in agitated tones.

"They’re not ready. Their success rate in the simulations aren't high enough. Just yesterday they came out to a 66% probability of success.”

“They don't have to be, only one. Anyway, we don't have a choice. Alpha is about to depart and their lead dog is displaying vision loss. Without the training to disable the device, there's no point in sending them at all, and we can't afford to prolong the departure."

"But this could throw the entire mission into jeopardy, and what about the-"

"Look, if you've done your job, they'll be fine. They would have been put into the field sooner or later. She'll know what to do."

Nur cocked her head, at rapt attention as she tried to make sense of the words. Captain's claws clicked against the floor as he tapped his anticipation, and she shot him a look of mild annoyance. It was distracting. She understood many of the words independently, but had difficulty stringing them all together into their new meanings, and the constant tap-tapping was making it hard to concentrate.

The two strangers lingered in the doorway while her trainer approached. She greeted him with a polite wag and a calm stretch as she prepared to be released. After some time trying to excite her with treats and toys, they had come to an understanding. Unlike some of her teammates, Nur was not an emotional or cuddly canine, and probably never would be. Nevertheless, she was certain her trainer knew that they shared a bond of trust and companionship.

"Hi Nur, ready to go? We've got a lot of work to do." Her trainer said as he let her out of the kennel. So far, so good. He always used those exact words at the beginning of a day. She often left the kennels first, too, although all the dogs were subject to regular one on one sessions at all hours.

Her suspicions rose when she realized that they were heading for the exercise yard. Usually they would go through some drills first. Her ears swiveled in agitation as she struggled to mentally adapt to this unforeseen switch, but she didn't resist as her trainer led her up to the door. He hadn't spoken much on their short walk, but then again, he rarely did. Pausing briefly at the door, he pressed a hand against the thick, coarse fur at the back of her neck and gave her a couple of gentle pats. "I'm sorry, girl. I wasn't expecting this."

Then the door opened and she stepped into the yard. Behind her, she heard him speak, "You guys have to work together now, okay? This is your team."

Her team? Nur stared, uncomprehending, at the assembled canines who had spread across the exercise yard. No, her team was waiting back in the kennels - what was he talking about? She recognized a handful of them by scent and even fewer of them by sight. There was a tall and slender looking greyhound, a spotted catahoula, a short-legged hound, a stocky and powerful looking mix, a massive furball of a beast that she couldn't quite identify, and dashing about below his huge frame, she thought she caught a glimpse of a small terrier looking dog.

"Team." She spoke softly before shaking out her fur and striding over to greet them. Despite the uncertainty of the situation, her tail was stiff as a flag, arched attentively over her back, and her pose was straight and confident. Yellow fur prickled a sharp warning along her spine, fully prepared to defend herself and her new position should she interpret any of them as being anything less than welcoming. They would work together at all costs. They must. The somewhat premature hackles masked whatever insecurities coiled sickeningly within, and she hoped her dominant aura would deter questions about the other dog. She wasn't sure she could explain that even if she wanted to, and as far as she was concerned, didn't owe them an explanation.

The terrier came bounding out from somewhere - he was so quick that it was hard to keep track of his movements - now dragging a rope toy. She blinked impassively at the small dog, a little miffed but nevertheless impressed at his energy. "I am Nur. We are a team now. I hope you all share your small companion's courage, because we have a lot of work to do."

When he was closer, he noticed Camino's protective motion over Geralt, and he appreciated it, even though he was a little insulted that she seemed to think that he couldn't judge distances. He let himself be appeased by remembering that Geralt was small, and she might be worried that he wouldn't notice him until it was too late. Gracefully, he came to a stop. Ajax liked to consider himself a graceful dog, but he tripped over Geralt enough for it to be embarrassing unless he kept a bit of distance.

"That's nice," he shook out his fur before he made himself comfortable. Before he could say anything another dog joined them. Ajax nodded at Valentia. He didn't like how nervous she was. If she couldn't trust them enough to be relaxed during their time off, how would they be able to depend on her in the field? He wanted to put her at ease, but he didn't know the right words. He was glad that Camino made an effort. "Good morning," he didn't say much more expecting to have to talk to the whole group at some point, but didn't see the point in continuing when they were constantly interrupted.

He stiffened, when he realized that Frosch was running towards them. He liked to be active, but he liked to rest too. He was a little concerned for Geralt, but he was sure that Camino had it covered. He moved a little so that Valentia was shielded slightly. He was larger than her, and he doubted that being run over would put her at her ease. As the words spilled out of Frosch's mouth, Ajax's ears sort of deadened to him. He had a hard time listening and comprehending, even if he wanted to. Was there even a point to try to reply to him?

He gave a yawn and shrugged as a reply. If he got the time later, and someone was actually interested, he would give a more in depth reply. He gave a polite pleasant expression, "That sounds pleasant. I didn't really have any dreams." Ajax figured he would do whatever the group wanted to do. He had no real opinions or cared. He had no real objections, so he wouldn't be dramatic or try to cause needless arguments. He moved back to his former position once Frosch settled in. His ears perked up, when Valentia felt the need to mention that something odd had happened. Was he not the only one?

Perhaps he would learn something more if someone else didn't come along to interrupt them. He noticed an anxioius scent coming off of Valentia. He looked at her kindly, "Are you okay?" He wanted to know if he could help her, but he didn't want to ask quite that bluntly. "Morning," he nodded to Koda. He didn't offer much to the current information. He hoped that perhaps they had made things up in their minds. He went over closer to Valentia, "My owner wasn't as attentive as usual. I'm afraid I did something wrong," he ducked his head ashamed to admit his fear.

He looked towards Camino hopefully, "You really think so?" He normally didn't look toward others for comfort, and he normally was able to figure out things on his own, but he had been feeling guilty. He had been too concerned about himself to consider other options. He turned to Geralt, wanting a distraction. All of his normal quiet confidence flooding back. "I wouldn't mind taking a gamble at challenging you," he gave a snort of amusement. The last time they had done this between his strong jaws and weight, he stood there with the rope, while Geralt futilely tried to pull it away.

Eventually, Ajax would pull it towards himself or shake the rope until the smaller dog let go. On the rare occassion to keep things interesting, he let Geralt win. He wanted to play with Geralt, because he was a team member, and it was rude to avoid him, yet he didn't want to hurt him wrestling him. It would be better to do tug of war where he didn't need fully on body contact to play. Ajax turned stiffly on the newcomer. His gaze darted around. Where was their team mate? Why was she here? "Hello, can I help you?" he thought this must be a mistake.

Perhaps they were only supposed to train with her, and make sure that they had a back up team mate just in case. He stood up to his full height. He knew that if she was to fill the position that had been vacated, which seemed to be the case, she would be their leader. He didn't want a stranger for a leader, and he would be sure to challenge her at every turn. Was this what all of the oddness was about? His face showed his confusion. He considered ignoring her and going ahead to play with Geralt.

Camino sat back and watched as Geralt swung the rope toy about, tossing it and shaking it as though the rope's destruction was Geralt's sole purpose in life. The wayfinder smiled at the smaller dog's challenge, though she had no intention of taking it if another dog was up for the game. No sooner had Geralt spoken, Ajax accepted the challenge - really, if one could call it that - and stepped forward. This would be sight to behold, that was for sure. Geralt had stubborn jaws, and seeing him flung around by the much larger dog was rather amusing - of course, considering Geralt remained unharmed.

It was only a moment later, and Camino's sharp nose picked up a new scent. Dogs and humans alike passed the pen regularly, so Camino was in no way concerned. It was normal. But the dog seemed to be getting closer to the enterance. It certainly wasn't Kyanite - where was she? Kya was never late.

Never.

It was somewhat of an odd day already, but the appearance of a new dog at the gate was very, very different. She was a medium sized canine, with golden sandy fur, large pricked ears, and a proudly arched tail. She carried herself regally, with confidence and pride, as though she owned the place. The dog showed no intention of turning around as she was released into the yard, and instead made a beeline for the team.

Camino remained sitting, head inclined thoughtfully. She was not at all fazed by the little blur of fur that was Geralt; in fact, she seemed remarkably calm. A well trained dog.

A team? She isn't a large protecting breed, and she's certainly not a tracking dog. The only role she could possibly have is Kya's role, if she has just announced herself a new team member.

Surely Kya isn't being replaced?

It was possible, Camino thought, that Nur could be a new addition, like Valentia was. That seemed likely, really. But Kya's uncharacteristic absence seemed like too much of a coincidence for that to be true. Was that why her handler had been so nervous? Why everyone had been? Had something happened to Kya? Camino doubted Nur would know - how could she - but Camino might ask regardless.

Ajax stepped forward before anyone else, confronting the dog. Immediately, Camino could see that this may not end well. The new dog radiating confidence and dominance - as did Ajax. Although she knew, or at least hoped, Ajax had enough self-control and restraint for anything to escalate too drastically, she was unsure about Nur. Camino couldn't judge a dog so quickly, and neither was it her place to do so. But the wayfinder assumed, at least, that this dog had some sort of discipline - highly reactive dogs weren't suitable for training and teamwork.

Camino didn't neccessairily want to say anything. She wanted to watch, to wait, to see how this might unfold. But if no one else was going to speak up, she may very well choose to. Camino stood, spotted pelt somewhat dirt-speckled. She always managed to ruin any grooming the humans did only moments later. Rolling in the dirt felt much better than the itchy skin the soap left in its wake. She'd think that the humans would have been able to compensate for her somewhat sensitive skin, which seemed to rebel against any manmade product applied do it. Not yet, it seemed.

Camino stepped forward, head raised, but not agressively so. Relaxed, her tail swung behind her. There was no fear in Camino's posture, nor neccessairily an obvious wariness, but a thoughtful curiosity, rather.

Camino considered asking the dog if she had come to replace Kya, but she felt that sort of direct inquiry would alarm the rest of the team. Regardless, it did need to be adressed, uncomfortable or not.

"Nur," she said, trying to secure the dog's attention, "are you a replacement or addition? Do you know?" Camino inquired, head tilted.

<< Kodaline >>
mentions: All, directly addresses Camino and Nur

Huffing gently as the little dog danced between his paws, Kodaline was careful to wait until Geralt was safely away from his large frame as he flopped down with a sigh. Rolling the rubber toy under his paw as his gaze scanned the nearby dogs. Thoughtful, his gaze fell on the nervous hound dog. Hopefully she would be okay. With their training intensifying as of late, it wasn't hard to tell that they would be departing soon. Or at least that was what Kyanite had said. She was smart like that.

Koda only replied to Camino's joke (was it a joke?) with a small "heh" and the good-natured flick of his ears as he began chewing on the rubber toy that held his food. Shoving it around with his muzzle, snuffing loudly, he tried and failed to fit his nose in the hole at the end.

Watching with mild amusement as the fast-dog dashed around the yard, Kodaline huffed as his attemp to crack the toy open failed. The rubber toy just bounced gently onto the ground. When Frosch wasn't constantly talking, he was rather amusing. What was even more amusing was Geralt. The little dog had considerable strength for his size. It was impressive, really, that he was able to keep a grip with Ajax, of all dogs flinging him around.

While Kodaline was never all that good at reading other dogs, he could tell Camino was amused. He spent a moment, thoughtful, with his eyes on her before realizing he was staring. Hopefully she hadn't noticed, the big dog didn't intend for it to be weird between them. Turning back to his toy, he seemed a little too interested in trying to get the food out.

His head shot up as the new dog entered the yard, toy still grasped loosely in his jaws. Who was that? She looked vaguely familiar, but he couldn't quite place it. The sandy-colored dog looked alert, no, more than that. Proud, maybe? She walked oddly stiff. She wouldn't try anything, right?

Kodaline had always been wary of dogs he didn't know, no matter how many times it had been made clear to him that they weren't a threat. His handler once told him that it was natural to be protective, or something like that. Whatever that was supposed to mean. She was kinda weird, but he did love her.

Still, Geralt's readiness to go greet her made him a bit nervous. Before he realized it, the big dog was on his feet, rubber toy still clenched between his teeth. It was hanging loose, he had torn part of the rubber toy. Good, now maybe he could finally eat.

Then the new dog spoke, and Kodaline turned his amber eyes back to her, the unfamiliar scent wafting in his direction. Reminding himself that she was probably another trainee that they were supposed to meet (or something like that), he dropped the toy and dipped his head to her before she spoke.

They were a team now? No, that wasn't right. There must have been a mistake. "What?" he questioned, shaking out his fur and cocking his head. Camino asked her something about being a replacement.

"Replacement?"