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 Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2012 3:20 am
"You do realise you are in the presence of a mountain lion, yes?" Ram made no secrets of his heritage. If anything it had taken him months to learn to walk on the sand, but when it came to the slopes he was a goat. Bouncing, scrambling and climbing were nothing to him and he had just as much energy left in him as Furiko did - truthfully, he promptly would have been more exhausted if he'd been forced to walk on the sand for a long period of time!
"So, allow me to put things into perspective for you," he murmured softly, pressing his nose against the captive male's. "You have thirty seconds to run, then I will come after you. If I catch you, you will lose your limb. What can I say... you slow me down, I'll slow you down," he continued and rolled his shoulders in a lose shrug. "Mine will just be permanent," he growled and stepped back again.
"Start running," he ordered.
Truthfully he had no intention of tearing after the captive male and every intention of causing havoc around the cubs. The more chaos he could cause, the easier it would be for them to scattered and Vai and Sarcire could gather up as many as they could to rescue. Any that were left behind would be recovered by force when he had proper reinforcements...
Alas, before he could explain this plan to his companions, he needed Furiko out of the way.
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Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2012 3:39 am
SilverLutz I want to Nominate Fireheart to snatch up the last cub Nuzhah if you would please. ^^
At Ram's words he glared at Ram. He hadn't been planning on the male being a mountain lion like him but he wasn't afraid to take on Ram at all and Ram was giving him a chance to run. He could use this chance to his advantage.
Once Ram gave him the order to run he took off heading back towards the pride borders and ran only until he was out of sight then he hid in some dense brush and waited. He didn't figure he had long before Ram would come after him and that was when he would attack.
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Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2012 6:15 am
Ram waited patiently for the captive lion to disperse and only when he was satisfied that Furiko was out of earshot he turned to both Sarcire and Vai. Keeping his voice low so as not to be overheard he issued his instructions, the last instructions that the pair of lions were likely to receive from the leader for the time being. It was for this reason that they were short, simple and to the point...
"I intend to attack that pride," he informed the pair in a flat tone, motioning with his paw towards where the cubs were being held. "In the midst of the chaos I need you to gather up as many of the cubs as you possibly can," he continued and cleared his throat. "Lead them home as quickly as possible, take them back to the dens and reunite them with their families." he explained. It was at this point he closed his eyes and sucked in a breath.
"Whatever you do, do not look back and make sure the cubs don't either. Do not worry about those that you are unable to gather up in the midst of the chaos, any we miss we will return for," he murmured reassuringly. "But with so few of us here we cannot save them all at this point, we will need to gather reinforcements for a second mission."
"...Are we clear?"
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Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2012 6:42 am
This wasn't good. Not at all. Fireheart had managed to capture one of the cubs, a little black and white one that had been surprisingly well-hidden, but in her return to the neighboring pride she had caught wind of the fact that one of her scouts had been captured. If any harm befell him, she would have to re-think the plan of just cub napping. She wouldn't stand for torture or killing - they weren't going to do that to the cubs, after all.
She had gone back originally to try to save the blue lion, but she passed one last cub in her mission and groaned quietly. How could they have missed just one? She quickly grabbed it by the scruff of its neck and took off, a snarl on her face as she charged by the captive in the brush. Being seen now wasn't an issue. If fact, being seen now would let that other lion know Furiko wasn't alone.
She took off to the border and was alarmed to see quite a few lions starting to stand guard. She blew past them and into the jungle she knew so well, leaving them in the dust. She wouldn't be able to go back to help Furiko, but he was smart. He'd be able to get out of trouble and not put their pride in any danger.
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Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2012 7:33 am
Sarcire was so incredibly grateful that Ram was here. Without him, she seriously doubted that they would have been able to accomplish so much. Even so...to attack this other pride? Yes, there were the cubs that had been kidnapped, but a full-out attack.
But at least her job would be to get as many cubs back to the seashore as possible, not to take part in the attack. That was a blessing, considering her personal feelings and her general exhaustion now. Not to mention her injuries.
"Yes Ram, we're clear," she confirmed to the older lion.
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Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2012 8:52 am
Vainamo didn't think Ram attacking alone was a good idea - it was practically a suicide mission! But he nodded, understanding.
"Got it. We'll get the cubs back, and the theives will pay for what they've done, one way or another."
He also worried that said 'return mission' would be meet with even more reinforcements from the theives as well. It would be all out war, and who was to say the theives wouldn't just kill whatever cubs that got left behind to spite them? It would be all out war, but just how many of his Bahari brethren could stomache war?
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Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2012 9:49 am
The blue female rushed towards her mate. She was so glad he had found one of their cubs. She eyed the little white bundle and immediately started to groom her"you frightened me! Don't ever hide from mummy like that ever again." She looks up at xenon and touches his nose with her own.
"Where are the others? They are right behind you, right?" She nips her bottom lip and searches the path her slate Gray mate had come down, looking for the red, blue, white, pink and browns she was so used to. Searching desperately for her babies.
"Xenon, where are the cubs?"She manages to squeek her paw wrapped tightly around the white and pink cub."Where is your sister?" The twins, they were always together, always attached to one another. "Where are your siblings?" a sickly sinking feeling hit her and she looked up pleadingly at her mate. "Where are they Xenon?"
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Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2012 10:18 am
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Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2012 10:24 am
Xenon's expression was strained as Afina barraged him with questions. Sadly he knew none of the answers and as he hadn't seen a scout since making his way to the dens, he hadn't been able to receive any updates himself. Solenn's discovery had been sheer luck and as she was pampered mercilessly by her mother (and interrogated) he couldn't help but release a sigh - suffice to say that in all honesty, he knew that the little cub hadn't the slightest idea where her siblings were...she had been oblivious to everything around her until now.
"I don't know," he replied softly, surprisingly calm despite the situation. It was then that he shook his head and nudged both mother and cub back to the dens and closer to the other Pombuka and Pomiki. "My borders were clear, if Kota hadn't contacted me I would still be there and completely oblivious to what had happened," he pointed out gently.
"But I can confirm that the borders have been shut, nothing will get in or out...and from what I gather, plans are already in motion to recover the cubs as quickly as possible." he murmured, then pursed his lips. Technically he was lying as he didn't know what the plan was, but it was better to provide her with some hope than none, for now he would place his faith in the guards and scouts...
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Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2012 10:31 am
Ram grinned impishly at the pair of lions, the Bahari were certainly a peaceful bunch and the prospect of taking the offensive seemed to be a little foreign to them. Fortunately it was fairly normal for Ram and with that familiarity came an exit strategy. He was there to cause chaos, stir up tempers and distract - suffice to say he wouldn't be sticking around to be pinned and imprisoned. He would cause havoc as he intended and then he would run - in addition, he would run for terrain that most would struggle across...in other words, he was going to turn Furiko's delay to his advantage.
Yes, the gypsy may not have realised it, but while he had maintained his silence, Ram had been observing the terrain and memorising it. He had a rough idea of the lay of the land now and as such, he would be able to escape quickly and quietly. There were advantages to exercising patience sometimes, especially if someone unwittingly gave him the knowledge that would otherwise improve upon his plans.
"Perfect," he nodded to both lions and without further comment, he bounded off. When he had placed enough distance between himself and the pair of Bahari lions, he released a dramatic roar and deliberately thrashed his paws against the undergrowth. Suffice to say that on his approach there would be no stealth or subtlety - everyone would know he was there, and everyone would know he was hostile.
...Now more than ever, was the perfect opportunity for the pair of Bahari lions to slip in quickly and quietly to retrieve the few cubs that they could manage to escort home.
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Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2012 10:36 am
Vainamo wasn;t neccesarily all that good at creeping about, but he tried his best to move stealthily about as Ram went in for the distraction they needed, but he'd have to depend heavily on his nose for the scent of the Bahari. More importantly though, would be Sarcire's nose. She knew the scent of her siblings best, and hopefully that would lead them to the cubs faster than relying entirely on their eyes amidst the chaos.
"Smell them, Sarcire?"
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Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2012 10:36 am
It wasn't until just now that Sarcire realized that Ram had been holding himself back so very much as he traveled with the two of them. How could he move so quickly over this terrain? Still, it wasn't her job to follow him, or to stare blankly after him.
"Yes, I do!" she confirmed. The lioness moved slowly and painfully, but after nosing around for a bit, she brushed aside a bit of vegetation to reveal six cubs.
"Oh how happy we are to find you!" she told them.
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Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2012 10:48 am
"We're here to take you home, kiddoes," Vainamo smiled, attempting to be casual and comforting for the no doubt frightened little furrballs.
"We should try and find a quicker, easier, way back home. But first...where are the rest of them? Weren't there more of you?" He questioned the cubs, then looked back, concernedly, at Sarcire.
Shoudl they take these six and come back for the rest later without even trying to find them, or....
No, it was probably best to get back with these six, rather than risk not being able to come back with any at all.
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Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2012 11:29 am
"Better to get this lot back while we still can," Sarcire argued with Vainamo. "That way we can be sure of their safety. I hate to say it, but the others might get injured when Ram attacks the strangers," the lioness worried aloud.
"Do you know an easier way back?" she asked, hope visible in her eyes. Her pads were all torn up and it would take a lot of saltwater to heal them.
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Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2012 11:32 am
"We an probably find whatever trail the kidnappers used. We'll just have to use our nose..."
Vainamo was no dog, and quite frankly having one with a better sense of smell right then would have been wonderful, but between scents and tracks... Vainamo could hear the chaos going on around them, and settled on a direction.
"This way!"
Vainamo picked up one of the cubs, and ushered another two along. Three for him, and three for her, to worry about.
"Let's go before we get caught..."
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