Io

Io
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Maher (Sister, NPC)

Zarina and Majavis (Sisters)

Soheil, Alkor, and Arash (Nephews)

Soraya (Niece)

## Application Sheet

Io was a brown-furred she-wolf with a russet back and white underbelly. She was the sister of Zarina and Majavis, who joined Xassa after Zarina's death and her family's destruction at the paws at the Hive. After helping to kill General Sloe in the final battle of the Hive Wars, Io vanished from the Domain, her whereabouts unknown. Io was conceptualized by OneMinuteSketch and Willowbyrd, designed by Willowbyrd, and created and RP'd by Skystar261.

## Personality

* ***Confident and Self-Assured.*** Because what's a good plan if it's not yours? Io has a lot of self-confidence and is very proud of her origins and of her place in the world. She's certain in her abilities, sometimes even a little bit too much so. That might be a little upset, now that she's been forced to retreat to Xassa, but she's trying to look at it as another place where she can excel. Hopefully.
* ***Flirtatious.*** If there is one way to hide the fact that you only want to flirt with women, the best way to do that is to flirt with everyone! Io is quick to switch into a charming, seductive behavior if she feels like she needs the upper hand. Unfortunately, it can come off as almost too pushy, but she means no harm by it. Surely everyone must have figured out that it's just how she is, and that she doesn't mean it...right
* ***Smug.*** A bit, or maybe a lot, of a smart-ass, Io takes pleasure in making fun of others' short mental comings. You just should have known that, and then there would have been nothing to laugh for. It's uncertain if her mockery is a form of love, or a way to get out some hidden malice in her. It is fair to say that no one escapes her teasing though.
* ***Envious and Ambitious.*** Despite the fact that Io loves her sisters more than anything, she's always been very jealous of everything they have. She's always felt that her parents favored them over her, even when they abandoned their family. She's willing to do whatever it takes to be at the top, except for harming her siblings. Other than that though, everyone best watch their backs.
* ***Vengeful and Short-tempered.*** No one, and she means it, can cross Io without expecting there to be some sort of repercussion. No matter the act, she will repay it, and if she feels the need, she'll repay it tenfold. Since the attack of the Hive on Oxus, she's been especially short tempered. She's going to get her revenge, but at what cost? It's probably best not to push her buttons about it...
* ***Spiteful*.** Unlike many she knows, or at least those she thinks she knows, Io will do almost anything out of spite. You don't want her to cross the river, well you can damn sure bet that now she's gonna. Somehow though, this spite is often what keeps her alive on a regular day. Doesn't make it any better, but she's finding her own way to navigate this hell hole of a season.

## Pre-Group History

Io was born into a small pack within Xassa's borders, Oxus, to the alpha pair of Barrubah and Indra.. along with her three sisters, Zarina, Maher, and Majavis. It was no secret to say that their little pack was proud and confident, two traits that Io grew into well. She had promise. From even a young age she was a strong fighter and a somewhat capable hunter (more often than not she would try to go after something far too large on her own). It was a miracle that the biggest threat to her life wasn't herself though, there was the ever-growing threat of Xassa, the much larger pack who claimed the Oxus homeland as part of their territory. Though a battle would probably be a loss for the smaller group, Io was against any form of peace. She wanted *her* pack to be the owners of the land.

So it's an understatement to say that she was not pleased with her father's arrangement with Nineveh. She was glad that it was going to be her all too much a pushover of a sister, Majavis, who would be forced to marry instead of her. Not that the white she-wolf seemed to mind, much to Io's disgust. So, when Majavis and Zarina left to join Xassa, Io refused the welcome into the pack. Part of her was happy for her sister, that she might be somewhere that she wasn't different, but she would never admit to that. No way she would be caught with those creatures, the ones who had taken her home from her.

Little did she know that it was far from the end of what would be taken.

As the months went by though, it became clear that nothing could stay as it was. It seemed like one war had been abridged, only for the packs to find themselves on the brink of another. One with the Hive. The mysterious strangers came from nowhere, slaughtering everything in their paths. It was only a matter of time before they reached the remainder of Oxus. There was a battle. No true member of Oxus would give up their home to some wacky strangers from the north. They had already had to make a deal once, and now it was time to win a battle for themselves.

But the battle wasn't going as planned. The white wolves were never ending, ripping her packmates and friends apart like it was nothing. Even though she tried, there was little she could do to save her home. The only thing she had ever known was going to be gone, and there was nothing she could do about it. And yet, when Io's world was falling apart around her, the only thing she could think was that she needed to save her sisters...

Even if that meant saving the traitorous pack they lived in. Which was how Io ended up limping into the Xassan camp, looking for both her sisters and preferably a healer.

## Group History

After this tragedy, she traveled to Xassa, arriving under the light of the moon. Here, Io discovered that her sister, Zarina, was dead. Io offered comfort to her remaining sister Majavis, and received some in return. She had her wounds tended to by the pack's healers as well. Becoming restless at the Tell, Io quickly found herself approaching a pretty young she-wolf named Malia, and asking her to show her around the territory, flirting all the while. Malia was flustered, but agreed.

Io didn't really like pack life, and often found herself wandering off on her own, wondering if she would really be able to make this work, for her sister's sake. She had her doubts, and expressed these to Nouri, trying to find her place within the pack. He offered some advice.

Still, there were perks to pack life - Malia's company being one of them. She never wasted an opportunity to flirt with the paler-furred female, often tagging along while she was on guard duty. Sometimes Io would participate in other activities, hunting with Nayeli (though Io's disrespect for rank and title, and short tempers from the heat, resulted in an argument between the two). Once, she got a thorn through her paw, and made an acquaintance of another Gula, Dodge.

Io would volunteer to help her packmates when the time came, however. Word had arrived that the pack of Riverfell had been ambushed by the Hive, and he wanted to check on their allies, gathering a group of wolves to provide safety in numbers and fresh paws to help the Riverfellians hunt and recover. Apart from himself, Nineveh brought volunteers Io, Malia, Ajax, Caldera, Anshar, and Xochipilli.

They never made it to Riverfell. Instead, they ran into a Hive General who had taken up residence in Blutwald's old territory, with mass forces at hand. Quickly, the Xassans fled, fortunate to have not lost their lives - fortunate that General Sloe seemed only interested in remaining within the boundaries of the valley.

Upon their return, the Xassans realized they were virtually trapped within their territory. Though they could leave the borders, their routes to their allies were blocked. At least, for a time. They didn't notice when the Hive pulled away from the northern borders, focusing their attention on Fellfang, until a Fellfangir named Shiantara stumbled across the border, begging for the Xassans to help free Fellfang from their island. Though Io worried about her sister being exposed to the Hive (as all Xassans were leaving to fight or help heal the injured), she was determined to fight the Hive, and voiced her support aloud.

Not all of her packmates felt as confident in their fighting skills, and Wynchester approached, asking for some quick lessons before their departure, which Io was happy to provide.

As they traveled towards Xassa, she took the time to check in on Majavis, who expressed her disdain for Cyrus Nineveh and his tendency to make reckless decisions. Io wasn't very familiar with Nineveh yet, but could see the points she was making. Io also asked if Majavis wanted to back out of her arranged marriage, since Oxus was no more. Majavis expressed contentment with the position it put her in, and that any pups she and Anshar may have would have a chance to become alpha.

Io fought fiercely in the battle to free Fellfang from the Hive. She paired up with an Aryn wolf named Inessa during the battle, for a time, and was aided in taking down a Hive drone by Berengar of Fellfang. She survived without serious injury, fortunately!

They didn't have long to recover from the battle, but in this interlude, Io would become an aunt, for Majavis had four pups! She had one niece, Soraya, and three nephews, named Alkor, Arash, and Soheil. A few weeks later, they were called upon again, by Mhor, to fight the Queen. *That* was what General Sloe was protecting in Old Blutwald - the leader of the Hive. Io joined her packmates marching off to battle again. Before reaching the battlefield, a Mhorian named Ramona gave Io a quick check-up in order to make sure she was fit for duty, which she was.

A good thing, too, because Io would find herself in one of the most critical battles of the war: the fight against General Sloe. She, along with Berengar of Fellfang, Orsu of Riverfell, and a mountain lion ally named Nova, fought against General Sloe and managed to fell the white wolf, with Nova delivering the final blow. With Sloe dead, Io felt, for the first time in a long time, a sense of peace. Perhaps, she reasoned, it was Sloe who was responsible for the destruction of Oxus. Perhaps this was the closest to revenge she would ever receive - and she welcomed it.

Perhaps finding this peace was what she needed to move on with her life, or perhaps some other factor kept her from returning with her packmates to Xassa. Whatever the case, when the Xassans departed the battlefield and returned to the Tell, Io was not among them. Her fate remains unknown.

## Trivia

* She has many, many scars from both before and during the Hive Wars.

## Quotes

* "Tell you what, Sweetness. I like you, you’re not nearly as insufferable as the rest of your pack. And you’re not from here, I can tell. How would you like an insider’s look at our wonderful grasslands. And between you and me, I can’t stand being in this little homebase any longer.” (to Malia, *Bittersweetness*)
* "The Hive will fall piece by piece until we've driven them from all our lands!" (her vow when Xassa leaves to fight the Hive, *To the Rescue!*)

## External Links

* Official Application Sheet
* Skystar261's deviantART Gallery