[EVENT] Coming Storms

[Annchen]

Eld wasn't made of rocks, but he decided to take the comment from his prisoner as a compliment. All rock hard muscle, baby! He reluctantly let the wild dog go, and when she ran he ran after her. It wouldn't do to lose them now! Most of the firekin seemed to be able to keep up with the quick and agile dogs, but they couldn't afford to worry about stragglers at the moment.

 

[fuKurohane]

Roihu could not allow himself to fail again. With the dark hyena gone, he sprang at the opportunity to be among the first to chase down the wild dog. Several others were already following suit, choosing to abandon their captives. Not a choice he would have made... but there were few options here. The priorities were not in the canyon, which was flooding. And these canine beast didn't seem available to reveal any more information. The one dog who did, didn't seem like she cared much to talk freely without some form of persuasion. And that meant a hot pursuit. Not that he should do the persuading - everyone knew what happened the last time, and he surely wasn't about to live that down.

Onward and upward, then.  

[Whimsical Blue]

It was unfortunate that the hyena under her paws had her so distracted... Morag missed the moment when the wild dog took off and the others sprang to follow. It took her a crucial moment to realize they were off and running, leaving her scrambling to follow when she did.

Dashing after the others, the dark lioness stumbled, swearing to herself as something tweaked her paw, sending pain shooting up her leg. Damn it! This was not a good time for a strain...

Limping a little, she loped after the rest of the group, struggling to keep up and failing. This did not bode well...  

[Excited Apathy]

An interesting range of emotions ran through Mkazo as the others talked, although his face remained as stonily forbidding as ever. The trade--theoretically, captives for captives--sounded sound enough, although it rankled to have to bargain with lesser creatures like these mutts. Especially when the mutts had invaded their lands and taken hostages from their pride. If he had an excuse to knock a few of them around again, he probably wasn't going to hesitate.

When the wild dog took off he was quick to follow, although it took some time for him to build up speed. In the end, he was a large dark mass hurtling along, keeping up with the speedy pace the mutt set.  

[Mimsey]

Drat, she hadn't been able to lose them. Marzi skidded to a stop, observing the terrain around her. The canyon had been left behind, and the others with it. The open desert on one side, and few scattered rocks on the other. She crinkled her snout, and faced the rocks.

If there was anything the lions and she could agree upon, it was that this had gone on for far too long. She waited [but not patiently], as the others caught up with the main group. "Scheherazade is holed up across the way there. The doctor should be there, too. But that's not the problem."

She blinked against the rain, which had slowed now to a casual misting. Bidding the desert lands farewell. "The doctor's not a hostage, she came without askin. But one of the cubs is. Scheherazade grabbed 'em in the rain, and I don't know what she's planning but I get the sense she doesn't care nothin about Nini."

Marzi's eyes narrowed. "Sarakh made a mistake inviting her. Grief made 'em crazy, but there's no excuse for her. She just doesn't like firekin. Said knew all sorts of things about you. Either way, you're not going to get her to stop just cause you surround her and act nice."

Her tail twitched. "She started talkin crazy things, like were were going to die here for some sort of cause. I don't think she has an exit stratedgy, so you're dealin with a hyena that's got no care for her own life and is just tryin to get under your fur."

"Don't know what you did to her to make 'er mad but, that's what it is."

In the distance, a loud shrieking yelp began to ring through the air. Marzi furrowed her brow. "Guess she got Skall."

arrow Good time to make any last minute plans!  

[Excited Apathy]

Mkazo growled low in his throat as the wild dog finished explaining the situation. A hyena that was ready and willing to die, that cared nothing for the sick member of the mutts' group, that had one of their medics and a cub. It was a nasty combination, and the large dark male would have opted to get between her and her hostages and kill the crazy b***h if that were all of it. But it wasn't. She knew things about the Firekin.

"She needs to be captured if possible," he rumbled. "We need to know why she's doing this. What she knows about us. But we can't risk letting her get away again--we can't ******** afford to be gentle. If we need to knock her out and drag her back, fine. If we have to kill her rather than let her leave, so be it." A pause for breath--the male was not the wordiest beast in the desert. "If there's a way to sneak between her and the hostages, we should think of it. We don't want her to use them against us."  

[Andranis]

Coming to a stop, the dark-maned male scowled. At least the damnable rain was letting up a little... "If she isn't cooperative, I vote we beat her within an inch of her life and leave her at the border as a warning..." His lip lifted in a snarling grin. "It sounds like the others in this group may not even like her to begin with!" Kosuke wasn't opposed to reviving some old Firekin traditions!  

[Kimaria]

Azar, tail whipping, growled lowly at the suggestions cropping up all around him. The run had taken some of the breath from him (that wild dog had been fast) and he was one of the last to arrive as she skidded to a halt and turned to speak again. He didn't trust her. He didn't trust anyone who was kin, but if they wanted to get back their cubs and find out what on earth Ea was doing, they didn't have much choice. Not if they wanted to get to wherever they were holed up in time.

"Captured?" He hissed through his teeth, hackles up. "What does it matter why she is doing this? An enemy of the Firekin is not given warnings. She knew what she risked coming here. If she cares nothing for her life than I say we take it from her. That will serve as the best warning."

They had enough problems with the Nergui. Be soft with another group desperate to try and take advantage and they could have two enemies on their paws. Better to eliminate the smaller one now.

--

Vesta smiled at Mat's enthusiasm, moving across to join where she was trying to excavate a particularly large rock from the sand. "I don't think even I could move that one, Mat. Here, about about this one." She took a step to the side where a more cub-sized rock lay submerged in the sand. "Some of these rocks can be deceiving. They look small but once we start trying to move it, they're bigger than they appear."

She nodded, then, towards Keegan's suggestion. "That's a great idea. It's smaller than the other but digging out the sand will get it moving quicker, I think."

Fia stepped up. "Where do you want me?"

"You can push the rock with Mat, perhaps? Keegan and I will start trying to dig it free." Vesta wasn't normally one who took the lead in things, but this was what she knew. She was confident with this.

"Okay, everyone in position."

And as Vesta started to dig, Fia shifted to place her paws against the rock and waited. A few seconds later and the move would begin.  

[Excited Apathy]

"She doesn't care about her damn life," Mkazo snapped. "We leave her on the border and she'll just come back." His tail lashed, once, before he forced it still. "I want to know if she's in with the Nergui. She's got a cause, that isn't whatever sick mutt brought that other one," a paw gestured at the wild dog, "here. I want to know what it is." His eyes were hard as he added, "I don't really give a hot s**t what happens to her once we know that."  

[Mogami]

“Some things are beyond forgiveness.” Nkera said, panting slightly as he finally caught up with the rest of the group, just in time to hear the wild dog talk about the black hyena again. Enough with this talk of letting them go with a beating! They hadn’t even had time to do that with the other hyenas and that might be the plan for the psychotic one? Nkera was glad so far most seemed to agree that the risk of letting the black hyena leave was simply too great. “We can try to get some information but if she’s on a suicide mission holding grudges against the pride, intruding, stealing and taking a cub, enough is enough.” His upper lip moved to reveal two sharp canines in a silent snarl.

“She should not be allowed to live to see another day.” Nkera concluded, tired of keeping his opinion to himself. The black hyena could go to hell with her reasons for all he cared and the Guard was more than willing to take care of it personally if anyone asked it of him. They needed to make an example out of the crazy hyena.  

[fuKurohane]

Asuen lept up with a sharp yelp as the massive Firekin released her. Her neck still ached, but as usual, she ignored the pain almost completely, cackling horribly at sprained paw of her previous captor. "Souqot vai u'slk gau liuk'rs do. Kaeudae!" she spat, implying there was some form of karma involved.

She sped off after Marzi with a strange hyena-howl, urging her to let her catch up. Of course, there were lions on her tail now. She wasn't sure how willing her acquaintance was to being caught again. She was among the first few Firekin who caught up with the dog, but went to stand by her side rather than face her confrontationally. "Auo vai korr'rs aerr vai xrav?" she whispered half-suspiciously, Are you telling all you know? It was not often a hindrance that Asuen couldn't speak the common tongue, not back home anyway. And here it proved as something that would only annoy the lions - not that she minded that, of course. It made the whole business more fun. Asuen's brow furrowed as she suddenly became serious. "Auo vo sa'rs ka lorv klod?" Are we going to help them?

There were yelps and shrieks in the distance, and Asuen cowered with a low whine unconsciously, fully aware of the horrors which Scheherazade could cause, and only somewhat willing to experience them herself.  

[Yin-Bug]

Azar slowed as she approached the group, her panting started, just lightly as she waited for what the canine had to say. Her tail flicked behind her and she waited, "A cub?" She repeated back, anger was in her voice. She missed out on the part earlier that they had a cub. She couldn't believe that they had a cub. If she knew that before she wouldn't have even put up with this hyena stuff to begin with she would have went straight after one of the others. Her own hackles were raised, for once she had to agree with Azar'b. "I agree, lets go."

She half snalred as she looked toward the group. "I say we get going, we need to move quickly." she said simple her tail flicking around behind her in annoyance.  

[SilverLutz]

Mat huffed and puffed, but the rock wouldn't move. She sighed softly as Keegan suggested digging. She was bored of digging! She wanted to push some rocks around! As the two lionesses joined them, Mat stopped pushing and eyed the new rock. Hmm...

"I guess we can try the smaller one," she mumbled, moving to put her paws on the rock. When two large paws were put next to hers, though, she hunched her shoulders to look more tough, wanting to impress the older lions.

"Okay...push!" she said, feeling the rock budge as the sand was removed.  

[Mimsey]

Marzi listened to the input from the others, before bowing out faster than you could say 'good luck and so long.' At this point Elcca had arrived with the group, and spotted the wild dog beginning to back-peddle.

"Not even going to see the plan through?" Elcca said, glowering at the mutt.

"As I remember, I said I would lead you to where they were. I'm not fighting against Scheherazade. I should have known better not to involve myself in the first place, but I did anyways for Nini. As far as I'm concerned, our books are in the clear." The dog's grin widened. "Besides, its not like you strong lions have anything to fear from ravenous, bone crushing, flesh-rotting hyena jaws."

Elcca stepped aside, making a good show of her own slightly hypocritical disdain for the wild dog's cowardice. Perhaps mad that by comparison, she was suddenly made brave. In the distance the other hyena was still wailing. She wasn't sure if there was a point to saving him, but if they didn't move fast they would never know if there had been.

As the group drew closer to the rocks, there was little sign of the doctor or cub. But they did see the huge female hyena shaking the other around by the neck like a rag doll. He'd been shrieking in pain a moment ago, but now the sound was muffled by the crushing grip she had on his throat.

In between the savage mauling, the hyena looked up and locked eyes with the group. Her grip tightened.

arrow Better break this up!

- The next five people, roll 1-20.

It will take a roll of at least 15 to save Skall's life.
It will take a roll of 20 to capture Scheherazade immediately.



 

[Mimsey]

fuKurohane

As Asuen chattered, another dusky grey hyena pulled up alongside her. He was bloody from the firekin's beating, but his cold eyes seemed hardly bothered. Perhaps as if this were all very common to him. He snorted, a slight plume of mist exhaling with it. "Wa roqa duma orr va maad," he said in a low drawl. Their mission was done. While fun, they weren't about to instigate anything that might be seen as suspicious.

Darj watched as the firekin moved forward, disappearing across the shadowy side of the rock. He licked his muzzle. It was unfortunate to lose Scheherazade. As unpredictable as she was, she could have made a prime candidate for the horde. Even a suitable mate. But he wasn't about to go out of his way to assist her. He was sworn to much higher principles.

A black raven landed on his shoulder. He glanced towards it, his yellow eyes boring down upon it. "Wa koae voscr, sram raoqa," he said to Asuen. They would watch, but nothing more.

They were, after all, just trying to help a friend.