4/19/2026, 3:01 PM
![[Image: 3cffdc614f8365755a476c0de39c8db0.jpg]](https://i.pinimg.com/1200x/3c/ff/dc/3cffdc614f8365755a476c0de39c8db0.jpg)
Speak your mind, even if your voice shakes.
3-3-3 OC
3-3-3 OC
SpeechEmotional Actions Thoughts
Bao’s ears twitched, a sharp spike of adrenaline cutting through the fog of her pain. The sound of a voice—deep, steady, and terrifyingly clear—forced her eyes to snap toward the source.
The white bird took flight, startled by the newcomer's approach. It hovered in a frantic blur of snowy feathers above Bao’s head, a frantic crown of white silk against the grey sky.
Bao tried to scramble back, but her body betrayed her. The movement pulled at the gashes on her ribs, and a strangled gasp escaped her throat. She looked up, her pale eyes wide and blown out with fear, fixed on the "ivory behemoth" looming over her. For a moment, Bao couldn't tell if the war had finally sent a god to collect her or if this was just another predator.
Shaking violently, she dug her front paws into the blood-stained earth. She pushed, her muscles trembling like guitar strings stretched to the breaking point. Her hind legs skidded in the loose dirt, unable to find purchase.
I...she started, the word breaking off into a sharp intake of breath as the laceration on her cheek pulled open.
She looked at Nyra—really looked at her—noticing the Sovereign's clean strength compared to her own ruined state. The bird, sensing the lack of immediate violence, settled back down, landing with a defiant chirp on a piece of splintered wood mere inches from Bao’s shaking shoulder. It seemed to be waiting for her to answer, too.
Bao’s own voice felt like it was buried under a landslide of gravel. She tried to swallow, but the metallic taste of the nosebleed made her cough, a wet sound that sent a fresh jolt of agony through her chest.
Bao managed to prop herself up on her forearms, her head hanging low as blood dripped from her muzzle into the dust. She looked like a creature made of shadows and wounds, held together only by sheer, stubborn will.
I don't... know,I'm sorryBao rasped, her gaze flickering from Nyra’s paws up to her face. The disorientation hit her again—a dizzying spin of mountain air and the scent of spring that felt entirely too kind for the likes of her.
Where... whose border is this?
She didn't ask for help. A wolf of her rank knew better than to expect it, but she didn't collapse again either. She just watched the Sovereign with the wary, flickering intensity of a guttering candle.
