A small frown tugged at the corners of Tetradore's lips as his emerald irises peered into the impenetrable darkness. He could scarcely make out the form of the vampire down below him, the bright crimson hue of the Nighthaunt's eyes below instead drew his attention. Those gleaming eyes were almost enchanting with the way they penetrated the darkness, as if calling the Were-King closer towards them and to his own inevitable death at their wispy shadowed maws. It was the slight wiggle of warmth beside him that broke that spell upon him. The warm blue eyes of the equally as black little weasel beside him eyed him in curiosity, prompting a soft sigh upon his lips. How he would have liked to leave Darcy to his fate - to find his way back to the world they knew without the man. God, how many problems Darcy's absence would solve...and yet..with those small blue eyes staring at him with such unadulterated trust, Tetradore had a hard time being as callous as Darcy deserved. His voice called out over the growls and snarls of the creatures below him, his instructions so purposefully vague as he half heartedly offered Darcy some glimpse of safety.

The larger Nighthound roared at the possibility of his prey's escape, the creature lunging forward with his jaws audibly snapping. Tetradore felt the rush of something fly past him before a loud collision above him drew his gaze upward as he peered blindly into the darkness. He could hear the scraping of nails on some hard surface and the crumbling of rocks and pebbles as they clattered down harmlessly around him. It hardly took long for Tetradore to piece together what had occurred. Darcy, in his blind panic, had leapt for the cliff, only to pass it entirely as he slid down the side of the ravine. The Were made no effort to help his companion, the Alpha merely scooting back from where he'd laid upon the edge with the simple expectation that Darcy would find them...or not. He was hardly prepared for the figure that suddenly collided into him, the force of which pushing the very air from his lungs as Darcy's body crumbled into him in some frenzied attempt to find purchase upon that ledge. A grunt left Tetradore's lips as he kicked Darcy off of him, the man sliding back against the smooth stone, his back pressing against the cliffside behind him with the warm air from the crevice in the rock blowing gently against his bare shoulder.

He was hardly surprised by the gruff insult that left Darcy's lips as Tetradore strove to find his feet under him against. "It's not my fault you couldn't find the fucking cliff." The Alpha countered, his hand reaching up to run through his locks. His chin rose as he tentatively peered over the edge of the small landing, the desperate sound of claws digging against the smooth stone as the sound of barking and hissing echoed loudly in his ears. God, he wouldn't feel comfortable again till they were back in that labyrinth of caves, as much as he disliked that feeling of being crushed in an oblivion of blackness. He was hardly prepared for the way Darcy suddenly reached outward, the vampire lifting the small ferret at his feet. Her slender body flailed wildly as she shrieked in that high pitched voice, that blue glow deep within her fur flickering in some clear agitation. Tetradore sighed, his hand rubbing over his features as Darcy lifted the helpful little creature up like a lantern, the blue light gently illuminating his caramel skin. A distinctly unimpressed look crossed his features as Darcy commented on his lack of clothing - as if it had been a choice on the Were's part.

"If you hadn't fucking left me with those damned things, I wouldn't have had to shift, now would I, Darcy?" He hissed back with clear sarcasm within his baritone voice. The wild thrashing of the weasel caused that blue light to shift almost uncontrollably within Darcy's grip until the vampire released his once solid hold upon her. She fell onto the ground with a solid thud, her little feet scampering towards him as she hid herself behind him, her ebony fur bristling as she stared back at Darcy with clear accusation. Tetradore's brow furrowed at her usage of that mysterious word once again. Eidolon. What the hell even was that? Darcy's voice followed his own train of thought, at least until he called the little creature a rat, something she took clear offense to.

"I'm not a rat!!" She hissed at him, her blue irises looking up at him as she informed Tetradore alone her true species, something the Were-King never would have guessed. "I'm a mink."

"Oh." The Alpha answered dumbly, the man hardly capable of telling a mink apart from any other creature within its family. His gaze turned briefly upward as Darcy gestured towards the mink, demanding he 'make' it tell them how to escape this world of blackness. A soft sigh left the Alpha's lips as the man leaned down towards the little mink, his voice far...softer than his counterpart. "I'm sorry he grabbed you like that." He commented as he reached out to gingerly stroke the creature's fur. "...but he is right...we need to get back to our home. How do we leave here?"

The Mink seemed to consider the question for a moment before she shook her small head. "You can't. No one can. The Shadow King has banned all entry and exit. You shouldn't have even been able to arrive in the first place...but....since you're an Eidolon...maybe there is a way..." She seemed to consider thoughtfully as the little mink took a step closer towards the crevice she had led Tetradore out of. "You'd have to defeat the Shadow King first....he lost his sanity a long time ago." She seemed almost sad as she reflected upon the mental state of her Monarch before the little Mink began to waddle back into the cavern. "Come on, I'll introduce you to the Resistance. General Mordecai can answer your questions and Queen Cribellate can weave you some Shadowwear." She paused abruptly in her step, glancing back at them with a small frown.

"But first..." She gestured down with her little paw, Tetradore glancing towards Darcy before he slowly kneeled down in front of her. The mink scampered closer towards him, her slender figure stretching up as she placed her paws upon his bare chest. The blue beneath her fur began to glow ever brighter, like a veritable beacon as her breath softly exhaled over his face. Tetradore hardly noticed that rush of magic, nor the way his own emerald irises began to glisten with the same otherworldly luminescence that afflicted her and the stalking Nighthaunts below them. Slowly, the world began to take shape around him, his eyes capable of distinguishing the different hues of blacks, the sky above suddenly seemed as if it was twinkling with dark purple stars and depthless navy nebulas. The ravine around him came into sharp focus, the wispy fur of the canines below now standing out against the darkness of the night sky. "....thanks..." Tetradore commented as he reached up to gingerly rub at the corners of his eyes, that difference in his eyesight was almost...discombobulating, as welcomed as it was. Tentatively, the mink glanced over towards his companion, as if she was unsure she wished to give the cowboy with the same gift of her magic.

My heart is just to dark too care. I can't destroy what isn't there

so if you love me let me go

Deliver me into my fate & leave me with my sins
If you still care, don't ever let me know