Welcome to Gaia! ::

Being away from home for the first time was both exciting and terrifying. On Vu and Mollies’ first day in the rogue lands he felt truly afraid he wouldn’t be able to catch anything to eat. This was the first time he ever needed to worry about food. Fortunately he did catch something; a plump hare, just like the promised. It couldn’t have gone better. Before long Vu found himself feeling completely at home in the wilderness, like he was meant for adventures far from home. That only lasted until night came. They managed to find a cozy space in a tree to sleep in, but the night was full of alien voices, hyenas and leopards. Crickets.

The spire of Pride Rock was still visible the next morning. Now just a speck on the horizon, it served as a compass, always pointing the way home. Vu found that comforting. On the other hand, his heart did not want to believe that everything he knew as a cub, his entire world, could be summed up in a tiny blue speck. Soon he began to worry about his family. Would his mother be worried? Would Ghilt? What about his sisters and brothers?

Even though he wanted to turn back he put up a cool and confident front because he wanted Mollie to believe he wasn’t afraid and made no mention of his feelings. Oh, but Vu felt very afraid. He just refused to let it show. He wasn’t a cub anymore. He was a warrior.

On this morning the sun rose on the strangest land Vu had ever seen. The earth beneath his feet felt cracked and dry and there were no trees for miles, the tree they slept in the last they had seen since day break. Sparse, thorny bushes dotted the landscape, and in the distance, perhaps only a few miles away, sand dunes rolled like waves of water across a gigantic lake. There was no sign of grass. Vu walked close to Mollie, keeping his eyes and ears open for danger. He didn’t like this place.

“Can you smell anything?” he asked, glancing at Mollie. He assumed she would remember what her mother smelled like.

She would show them, Badieh knew that se, the fire of the desert herself, would show them all one day. She found herself coming outside from the borders of the Simo, after the...truce, or whatever you might call it. She flicked her tail, crimson eyes glancing around. She was almost an adolescent now, almost full grown, but not yet, though she was larger than the cubs and some of the juveniles back home, that was because she was stronger, greater, faster, more fierce, and her father would be proud one day if she were one day...Queen, again.

Dreams though, those things came to her in dreams. Badieh was angry, nothing more than, thrilled, in the lightest sense of the phrase, and as she moved, a scent caught her nose upon the wind, two, and one was female, another ale..female, and she snarled to herself.

Was she weak or strong?

Badieh hated that some thought that males were stronger than females, but Badieh hated that females liked that males were the strongest ones. No. Just because it could be that way didn't mean it should.

Snarling, and moving so that she would get closer, enough to see and perhaps, play, a little, she moved.

Predator wanting a feast.

Pausing in mid step when she caught a sent of a lioness somewhere, her green eyes narrowed and her ears pinned back. It had a faint scent of something familiar, maybe the smell of the Rougelands? She hardly remembered what her mother smelled like anymore.

Without a word, Mollie moved on ahead, picking up the pace, to a run. "Momma?" she murmured, her heart kicking into full gear. She was giddy at the prospect if it being her mother.

Something felt wrong. That lioness was too small to be Mollie’s mother (on the other hand, she was much larger than any cub Vu had ever seen). The way she hovered over Mollie like a hyena inspecting a kill sent a wave of fury through his limbs and before he knew what he was doing he was rushing toward the scene, kicking up dust as his claws raked over the cracked earth, canines glinting like sabers.

Coming in from the side as he closed the distance between them the muscular cub’s girth finally reached his senses in its fullness. If Vu had been in a mind to remember, he would have recalled a day many months ago when he challenged a juvenile male to a fight. The juvenile was smart. He pointed out that Vu wouldn’t have a chance in hell of beating him because he was so small. Vu might be bigger now, but facing this female in one on one combat would be about the same as fighting that juvenile when he was but a few months old. In a fair fight he didn’t stand a chance in hell.

Screw that.

Vu charged the female at full steam, charging in from the side and leaping for her throat. A throat hold is the quickest way to end a fight. He didn’t intend to kill the female with this strategy, but he hoped to startle her enough that she gave up without forcing him to face her. As he closed in, he neither roared nor snarled. He could hear Mother’s voice in his head, explaining the importance of keeping the element of surprise.

He could only hope the female hadn’t heard him coming.

Badieh sneered, her tail whipped the ground and made a puft of dirt hit the wind. "Close," she spat, "but not close enough!" Badieh growled again, letting ehr claws pierce the crackling ground, "Do you not realize who's presence you are in? Do you not realize your in the presence of a Queen of fire?!" she wished to outstretch her paw and scrape it down the small one's face, to leave a mark for her to remember, meeting a Queen of teh dunes, of the sand and fire that was true blood firekin, though a low rumble of secret war drums thrummed against the ground, and as a force came into the air by her side, she snarled and thrust her right arm backwards, feeling a connection with a thick but stupid neck.

She was brutal, adn strong, though she was almost at her adolescence she was large, adorned with muscle and fire in her blood from her beloved father. As she saw the young male fall to the ground, she hesitated before striking again.

"Another, filth? You, shall be filth," Badieh said eyes downcast towards the small female, "And you," she turned her head, a sadistic grin on her maw, "You are almost[]/i]."

She was cruel, but she deemed it fit.

"Be wary 'almost,' your blood is dirt when compared to mine. However, I will spare both of you scars, if you bow before my eyes," she looked towards the female who's eyes were so bright but she so small, "starting with you," Badieh placed a paw atop the girls' head and looked towards the male who she assumed would try to attack again, but with her touch on the female he seemed to have a care for, he might think again.

"Do it."

With every word spoken, Mollie's bravery grew a little bit, as did her fear. Eventually, one won out over the other. She had to steel her nerves in order for this to work. But with that paw on her head, it would make this slightly complicated.

Why would she be almost filthy? Why would anyone think they were a queen when they were still just a bully? Swallowing thickly, the green eyed cub tried to go into a bow. Instead, she swiped a paw at the bigger female's leg, wanting to just catch her skin to startle her. If successful, she'd bolt faster than a jack-rabbit being chased by a leopard. If not, then she prayed someone, anyone, would stumble on them and somehow get both her and Vu out of harms way.

Blood-taste filled his mouth, staining his tan muzzle brown as she shoved him to the ground. He tried to squirm but her girth prevented his escape. Before she could put her full weight upon him he managed to free a single arm and dig his claws into the arm that held him down, as if making her bleed a little more made any difference. Even as her claws punctured his skin and his airway collapsed into a burning slit under the weight of her massive paw, he felt no fear of her. He felt extremely far away from everything.

He turned his attention to Mollie and begged her to run if she could with his eyes. Mother always taught him to fight with every ounce of his strength and never accept defeat. This time, winning came second. The ultimate goal from starting the fight had not changed.

Save Mollie.

Allowing her to be hurt, that was accepting defeat. Here was one lesson he never needed to be taught. If you have friends you protect them; if you’re a warrior, you defend them with your life. There was nothing else to learn.

He turned to the Firekin, teeth bared. As the two pairs of blood-colored eyes locked a prickle of fear raced down Vu’s spine.

“N-no…” he choked out. “We won’t b-bow to you! You’re… not… a… real queen... W-where’s your red? You’re… just black, like... mud… y-you’re… not… Firekin!”