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 Posted: Wed Jul 25, 2007 8:24 pm
Dathcharu'kai was stalking the lands of the Mistweavers. He had heard through the wind that Mo'onasi was here. The one that he had done the deed to. A small twinge of him regretted what he did, but when he thought of Reflection, the anger would swell up again, and that tiny voice was trampled to a temporary death.
He had no idea what he was doing trying to find the stupid girl, but perhaps all he had wanted to do was bask in the glow of his deed. And a piece of him wanted to make sure that she was dead, so Laana would never find out. Though....if she did, it wouldn't matter too much. He could get what he wanted out of her if he really wanted too, right? She was (usually) right under his paw, so perhaps he wouldn't have to worry about it, anyway.
All these thoughts through his mind distracted him from where he was going, and he made the fatal mistake of stepping right into a bush. The rustling would startle anyone nearby. So much for secrecy. He could just fade away, but he was too sure of himself to 'run away.'
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Posted: Wed Jul 25, 2007 8:36 pm
Someone had already seen him, though. Kizuka had been on the lookout for intruders, indeed had been most fanatical about such things, for a very long time now. On her way back from the interior that afternoon, the brown lion had taken a short detour to get some water when a flash of red had caught her eye. Such a hue, close to the pink she'd long since been warned about, sent up flags in her mind immediately and the wraith of a Mistweaver forgot about her drink, instead going to follow what the wings told her could only be a God.
That, certainly, had made her more wary--no longer for any unfamiliarity with such things, but for the fact that she WAS familiar with the ways of such creatures. Who knew what this male could be; he might even be a relative or friend of Momo's or Ushaufu's... but somehow she thought that unlikely, especially considering her mate's attitude and her friend's condition.
Indeed, when she'd gotten herself into a good position a fair distance away and downwind of him, Kizuka noted that the male seemed to be watching their home cave. She frowned. The male hadn't yet made a move to approach the cave where she knew at least Momo resided, if not her daughter as well, and he'd been there for a good while; as long as she'd been watching him, at least. Her eyes narrowed as she considered what he might be up to, when suddenly the male did move... and rustled a bush.
Careless.
Seeing no reason to keep herself hidden any long, Kizuka moved from her speckled shadow, coming closer but not near enough to invite attack from the winged beast. "You there, One Horn," She addressed him, finding a convenient description so that he might not shrug off her words as being addressed to another party. "What business do you have in these parts?"
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Posted: Wed Jul 25, 2007 8:47 pm
Dath's claws flexed out into the ground, frustration at himself. The foolish god had been seen, yet again. He really had to do something about that. His head was slumped down so his shoulderblades stuck out from behind his neck, the expression on his face carrying disgust. When he was a child, his fascination with them ceased to be filled, but as he aged his patience for them grew thin, and the ache for their blood on his paws grew. He knew better then to go with his impulses, though, for he feared the control his beloved twin could set upon him.
So for now, he would just hold his grudge.
He hissed at the mortal, unpleased with her speech. His golden eyes shrank into a glare, his large mane rustling a bit as he spoke. "Gods can go where they please. From one end of the earth to the other. Dear mortal." His tail lashed once behind him before settling down, conveying a warning to not push his buttons. Dath was on the trail of his prey, and he did not want to be interrupted.
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Posted: Wed Jul 25, 2007 8:58 pm
"But they watch their step when in another's territory," She replied flatly. She'd met enough of them to know it was true. Ushaufu kept away from the Oasis because it was Chaos's territory, Audilifu gave respect to her brother here because it was 'his. Though her mind still said quite confidently that this land was the storm king's, Ushaufu still defended it for him... just as she knew he'd defend her against this one if it came to that. Kizuka did not, however, wish it to come to that.
Still, she wasn't going to let him speak down to her like that. Long gone were the days of her blind worship and awe in the presence of a god.. ANY god, save her King. "You're treading on mine and my mate's home, and cross into the Storm King's realm with it." If he didn't know where he was, he would now, she thought. Still, she kept her distance far from him. Though her eyes wished to glance to her home behind him, she did not dare. Of all the lions she'd seen come through the past few moons, this was by far the most dangerous seeming.
Regardless of her speech, she gave him no gesture of attitude; no raised hackle nor barred fang, no sight of claw or spittle did she dare. No, instead she stood, careless seeming, just as she would have her Queen. "Our land is not good for hunting, if that is what you seek. Those who have the means to leave have, save those of us too committed for our own goods." Her body gave fact to this statement, though she didn't move to further explain herself.
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Posted: Wed Jul 25, 2007 9:45 pm
"Hah!" was all the god said at first, a small laughter emerging from his throat. "Territory is something that you mortals cling to. The only reason that the Gods claim territory is for mortals like you." A sly smirk flew across his mouth for a second, fully believing in what he had said. A god like him didn't need a land to call his own, he felt more power in going where he wanted then claiming and keeping a small patch of land for himself.
"Storm, you say? Not one soul has seen him in many a mortal's time. It is amusing to think that some still cling to his return....many consider him dead." His words were harsh, but they could hold some truth to them. The state of these lands that he 'owned' was evidence enough. The small, empathic part of him admired the lioness for her dedication, though it also could kill her, through starvation or disease.
"There may be a chance that I am hunting for something other then prey," he said, acting without a care that the lioness was threatening him. He knew better then to directly threaten her life, for blood would not spill by his paw, and he was also uncertain as to the size of the pride that lived here.
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Posted: Wed Jul 25, 2007 9:59 pm
Kizuka's ears flattened against her skull at his words of her King. Indeed, though she'd always considered that he was long gone, she'd never had her faith wander so far that she thought he might not come back. To think him dead was.... Kizuka snarled at that thought. It bothered her to have this stranger know her mind, but it bothered her more that he could be right. Ushaufu had said little on the subject whenever she'd brought it up, and he never seemed to dare touch upon it himself. Indeed, he'd been reluctant to bring the Storm King into any conversation that concerned his own kind. Was it possible that he ...
No. So simple a thing would never turn her faith from her mate or her King. It wasn't going to be so easy as that, no matter the evidence in front of her eyes. Kizuka snorted, "Are you so certain I mean the King alone, then?"
Though she raised an eyebrow, the female left it at that as she began to slowly circle him to the left, moving around the arch slowly towards her home. As she moved, she kept her eyes on him. "There are few others here. Name your quarry and I will tell you if you'll find them or not." She wasn't stupid; suicidal, perhaps, but not stupid.
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Posted: Wed Jul 25, 2007 11:19 pm
Dath calmly ignored that the lioness was walking around him, studying him. It didn't bother him at all; hey, let her look! It certainly let him stay calm, instead of making him nervous. His eyes soon closed as he waited for a moment, letting the silence reach between the two of them.
"Wouldn't that be something of an act of a traitor?" he questioned, his eyes slowly opening, watching the lioness. "I have heard my target is here, so you confirming it might be worse off then offering to assist me." His tail flopped next to his side, his forepaws shifting as he settled himself down into a sitting position. His wings were loosely resting on his back, the swallowing black colour sticking out from his deep red coat.
"Besides, I have a hint that she is around here, close." His face didn't flinch with what he said, hoping that she would take the bait that he laid out and feed him even more information without her even realizing it.
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Posted: Thu Jul 26, 2007 6:01 am
"She?" Kizuka stopped as soon as she'd gotten herself between him and the cave. Sitting down, a sign that she would not be moved so lightly, the lioness's pale eyes narrowed. Why would he come about a random lioness? It wasn't too hard to figure, from his disparaging attitude towards mortals and general creepiness in the first place, whom he was after and the thought sent a chill down her spine. This was that disgusting creature?
Kizuka warred with herself over attacking him. No matter how much she wished to, she knew she'd stand no chance of fighting him outright. Beyond that, to do so might mean that he'd find Momo easily. "That depends on what your intentions are, though skulking about in the shadows--or attempting to, as it were--doesn't bode well for them, either."
The jab was meant as pointedly as it sounded. He really wasn't much a "subtle" creature with that coat and chest plate. Indeed, he couldn't have stood out more in this waste land if he'd coloured himself bright pink and danced around singing "i'm a little teapot."
"A hint and the reality aren't always the same thing. There are few females left in this area, most left with their cubs a long while ago. Those who are here have always been here, born and raised of the Pride," She seemed to grow a little at the thought of it, as if her Pride where truly just that, the only thing that held her up anymore. Indeed, it might be. "Asking whom you seek is not the act of a traitor if she isn't here. Indeed, I have turned away many a lion these past months that might have stayed otherwise."
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Posted: Thu Jul 26, 2007 11:01 am
One of Dath's ears flicked in annoyance at her comment with him 'attempting' to stalk. It wasn't his fault that his mind was suddenly filled with thoughts that distracted him from everything else. He fluffed his mane up with a huff, a retort dancing on the tip of his tongue. He bit most of it back, but not everything could be held back. "Whoever said my intentions were well? Do I look like one that brings good will to those who I meet?" He finished his questions with a grin, pleased with himself as always.
He stood up now, not wanting to stay stationary as long as the female was as well. It would keep her on her toes if he nosed around, acting curious. She didn't seem too nervous about the area that the two of them were in, but she could also be very well disciplined in keeping herself calm as well. "I have faith that she is here, somewhere. The real question is where she is in these dead lands. You'd like someone like her would have, ahh..." he snapped a branch under his paw the emphasise what he felt. "Better standards as to where she would hide. Not in such hideous conditions like this."
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Posted: Thu Jul 26, 2007 11:17 am
"Faith is well and good; I have faith that she is not here." Kizuka replied with an easy shrug. She watched him, never moving her eyes from him though her ears flicked from side to side in order to catch wind of any other that might come upon them. A frantic part of her mind prayed Kimaji wouldn't show herself--though the mistie had no doubt that Momo, should she see this, would hide, Kimaji had not the mind to do so. It wasn't that the girl was stupid, simply... naive.
This lion, with his blood coloured coat wasn't a gentle seeming figure, as he'd stated himself. Though she'd like to believe that every hooligan whom stroked his own ego was nothing more than a braggart, the world was never so simple. Sometimes braggarts were more than capable of committing themselves to their promises... Kizuka did not want to risk that he was one of these. Unfortunately, she had shielded her daughter a little too much from such things.
"These conditions, as I have stated, favor no one. Few manage to live here, and even those of us who stay...." Kizuka did not finish that statement, but it hung in the air like a fog. She let herself have no denial that staying her could have easily killed them all--indeed, were it not for Ushaufu they might yet add to the rubble and bones littering the land.
"It is possible," She drawled slowly, "That she was here and passed on already. It happens occasionally but.. unfortunately, you'll find no corpse." She didn't bother listing the rather unsavory reason for that. "So, intentions good or bad, there's little reason for me to care, isn't there? She won't have been one of mine, of that I'm certain."
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Posted: Sun Jul 29, 2007 5:06 pm
Dath's patience was wearing thin; he felt that the scrawny brown and white lioness in front of him knew something, but he wasn't going to beat it out of her. No, she would die in her own due time anyway, what with her malnourishment and all. He would save his energy for another soul, another time. He drew a paw up, admiring it before flexing a claw out. He admired it cooly before speaking.
"Faith is nothing but an illusion," he stated before dropping the subject and switching to the last thing she mentioned. "I hope you are correct, female, because if she is indeed in these lands, and I find her, you will regret it."
He lowered his paw and switched his attention to the female, his slivered eyes concentrating on her body language, trying to pick up anything he could. Sometimes he could find his answers in the way they moved, most that he spoke to foolish to not remember that every twitch, every breath could be scrutinized. This female was good, though, and the little odd bits that he picked up didn't tell him much. She seemed cautious in what she did, but that was it. Frusteration was boiling in the god, but he kept his cool on the outside. He could take it out on something else later, when he had left.
"Though your comment intrigues me; I would find no corpse? Are you taking in the habit of disposing bodies you find? That is something foreign to the world we live in, isn't it?"
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Posted: Sun Jul 29, 2007 5:14 pm
Kizuka drew herself up straighter, her ears flattening for a moment before they raised again. Though she'd implied it herself, she couldn't help but be disgusted at the thought. The language, however, was easily read as being affronted at called out on such a thing. True to that thought, her voice was careful and offended, "Perhaps a little unusual but when such ..tactics.. are necessary..."
The female broke off her statement, switching the topic as quickly as she could. "Faith may be an illusion, but illusions have power--so your kind has always taught. I have no doubt that I am correct in my statement, surely were there a foreigner in our midst I, or my fellow scouts, would have found her already. We've had more than enough trouble in these parts and need no more."
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Posted: Sun Jul 29, 2007 5:37 pm
Dath's mane ruffled up a bit, feeling vaugely disturbed that this pride was doing something with their dead. It made him a bit more uncomfortable with these lands, and with him shifting his weight around from side to side made it evident that something was bothering him. He gave a short snort before picking himself up on all fours again, repeating the lioness.
"'Faith may be an illusion, but illusions have power.' Perhaps that's so, but illusions are also fake, and there to fool the foolish." He swished his tail around him, letting his black paws fog out a bit, the shadowy-black flame that was his illusion of choice animating the limbs that it licked around. It was anything but hot, as the ground and dry grasses only shifted a bit as the flame teased them; nothing but an illusion, harmless. Perhaps not the paws behind it, but the flame itself. "You can keep your foolish faith for yourself, and keep praying to your Storm God. Pray that he'll help you if I find you were lying to me, as well."
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Posted: Sun Jul 29, 2007 5:43 pm
"I have uttered no untruthful word to you and thus have no fear," She replied, deadpan. Indeed, the lioness never even twitched at his illusion. One did not, after all, love a lion whom resembled a corpse without growing accustomed to things not being quite as they seemed. She still held no reservations that this lion would not rip her to shreds, however, and thus carefully trod her path through this obstacle. Indeed, she had uttered a few lies here and there before him, though it was never her want to speak in falsehoods. The situation warranted it, however, and thus Kizuka forced herself to remain as relaxed seeming as possible. There did not seem to be anymore that she could say that wouldn't give her game away.
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Posted: Sun Jul 29, 2007 5:50 pm
With a grunt, Dath gave one last look at the lioness, not trusting a word he said, but accepting it for the time being. Perhaps, in the future, he would find what he wanted, and if she did lie to him, but for now he had no proof to back that up, and knew better then to foolishly dive into something like that. Well, while he still had his mind, anyway.
The god gave the lioness a snap with his jaws as a final warning before turning his back on her, not giving her another word before he left. With one whisper of a breeze that didn't exist, the flames from his paws shot up with a flare, engulfing him in the shadow-like fire. It stood there for a moment, his tail poking out just for a moment before it deflated, the ground pushing up the last bit of flame to disappear into the air. The ground had remained untouched, no breeze followed him. The god was gone, though it was unknown for how long he would remain gone.
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