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Andranis generated a random number between
1 and 5 ...
4!
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 Posted: Wed Aug 01, 2012 6:48 am
Serkan let out a hm, then started walking. Though his pelt was bright red, he dropped down into the grass. It would be easy to say he had been wandering along and decided to hunt some antelope. After all, lions had to eat, didn't they? And the grass was parting easy enough, making him feel rather silent. Now and then, his ears moved, listening for anything at all, either that would give away the position of someone else, or himself.
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wooga Paes generated a random number between
1 and 5 ...
5!
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Posted: Wed Aug 01, 2012 6:50 am
((Or wait, nevermind. A 4 was rolled. so ignore this roll xD I guess. Sorry 'bout that!))
With a short nod, Azulon continued along with the others, stalking through the tall grass and keeping low. Hopefully they would find something useful, quickly. If Yoan was right, the Nergui were still around and might just catch them prematurely, which would be entirely inconvenient. He flicked an ear and noticed Hraelsveg was hopping after him. He didn't have much patience for chicks. "...Do like the raven. Keep a watch out." He mumbled, and the fledgeling eagerly flew off.
Hrafn, meanwhile, flew off to find a nice place to perch and maybe keep an eye on things from a distance.
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Posted: Wed Aug 01, 2012 7:51 am
Morag slid into the grass with a smooth, even gait, using what she head learned as a huntress to move a silently as possible. She was not a muddy color that would blend in well with the dried grass, but she could do some bit to keep herself unnoticed.
Hoping everyone remembered the talk about separating in pairs, she followed in Serkan's wake, trying to look in the direction he did not to cover as much ground as possible. An elderly lioness, huh? She could be hard to spot if she were hunting prey... and Yoan had not mentioned what she looked like, so she had no colors to look for that might give away a stalking lioness. Morag could only hope to catch any furtive movements, so she kept her eye sweeping the grasslands.
Kivu took off from the dark lioness almost as soon as she started moving, flapping up into the sky to join her siblings. Over come for a moment with the joy of flight, she soared in lazy loops and swirls, climbing and falling as she tested her skills against the air currents. She became so absorbed that she forgot entirely about the search, much as any child would during play.
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Posted: Wed Aug 01, 2012 10:16 am
[ As warned: TOO LATE YOU GET BOTH ]
As Serkan and the others wandered through the tall grass, they narrowly missed a small black body curled up amidst the thorns. It wasn't the first time he'd had to hide before. In fact, his short life had been full of hiding. Even when the big lions moved through, snapping blades of grass and thorny roots as they did, he didn't move. He knew to be silent. Another few seconds, and he'd be in the clear.
That's when a shout cried out in the distance. Across the plain, the Nergui patrol was still reclining amongst a small alcove of rocks and trees. It was a large group, and it seemed like a few more had joined them since the firekin had last met them. One, however, was familiar. It was the striped female from before. Tengri, they'd called her.
"Where ek sra food? Yui shame uir group bae sodems ku long!" she shouted, striking out at one of the demure rogues that were tending to them.
Her voice was enough to startle the cub from his hiding spot. Suddenly, he was all fours and speeding past the sneaking firekin. Running away from his hiding place, and out into the field. Out of sight almost as quickly as he had been spotted.
"Cuka! Where ek old raod kakora? Ikm's you em crorsa uk kaadems ik? Du aeui dekrumur ik?" the nergui female kept raving, helping to mask the cub's escape. Her fit was also drawing attention away from the sneaking firekin. A few of the nergui outriders turned inwards, watching the striped female with a few chuckles.
-----
Keeping her voice low, Elcca offered a quick translation: "She's angry about the food."
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Posted: Wed Aug 01, 2012 10:42 am
The sudden shouting startled Morag, but her response was to freeze in place, eye wide and ears pressed back. What was going on now? The voice from behind, mentioning food, made her glance in the direction of the patrol. Well, at least the female was keeping eyes trained on her and not on the grass where they hid.
The sudden flurry of movement caught her attention and Morag turned in time to see a small black cub dash into the grass. Without thinking, she went after him, keeping low as she struggled to follow. Questions flashed through her mind as she moved; what was a cub doing out here? was he alone? why was he running away?
This mission was just getting stranger the farther they went and the more they learned. And what they learned only roused more questions, showed them how little they really knew about this enemy from the north. The cub was a more immediate problem though... even if he had nothing to do with the patrol, she had a deep feeling of wrongness for a cub being alone in these harsh lands.
Startled as well by the shouting, Kivu dipped in her flight and turned her bright little attention to the patrol. Confident in her safety, she winged towards the group and found a spot to land amongst them, strutting her proud little self about with her chest puffed. "You caw worse than I do! Are you calling for your momma to come feed you?" She chirped insolently, though she kept an eye out for any paws coming at her.
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Posted: Wed Aug 01, 2012 11:03 am
(YAY)
Though he initially might be intent on chasing after the cub as well, Azulon managed to still himself. Morag was on it, and too much commotion in the grass like this might call the Nergui's attention... Besides, he didn't quite like children. It was unlikely the cub even knew much.
He frowned and tried his best to make out what the lioness was yelling about, but the distance made it even harder than last time. He crouched close to Elcca, ears perked. "Perhaps there isn't enough of it." He mused. If this family was being forced to provide the Nergui, it at least seemed plausible. Unfortunately, that information was hardly helpful to them. So the Nergui were bad guests, it was nothing new. "Can you make out anything else?" There were less words he understood this time. But Azulon managed to make out 'where' and 'old', so it sounded like they were asking for the elderly lioness Yoan had mentioned. Was she important?
... "What are those birds doing?" He hissed as one of the fledgelings, one of the the ravens, headed towards the group. Followed by the vulture.
–––
Seeing her sister go for the little gathering made Hraelsveg feel silly. Because she wasn't there! So to remedy that, the young vulture rather quickly altered her course to join her sister. However, she was a larger bird and less agile in flight, so instead of landing she circled around the air above them. "Yeah!" She agreed, cheerfully. "Look at us! We never complain!" The joys of being a scavenger.
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Posted: Wed Aug 01, 2012 3:50 pm
Mkazo's ears perked at the mention of this 'Visionary'--an important rank in the Nergui, maybe--but before he could ask, they were on the move again. He didn't mind, much...he approved of checking out what the hell this Nergui patrol was doing with this little band of rogues. He kept pace with the group, his dark form pushing through the grasses as his eyes scanned the area.
When the Nergui female started yelling, he hunkered down lower--and stiffened in surprise when the cub burst through almost at eye level. Morag was after it in a flash, and while he would have thought her capable of handling herself against a cub...it was entirely possible for her to run face-first into a Nergui. Maybe one scouting around while the patrol waited for their food? Unwilling to let another Firekin run into potential danger alone, he rose up just enough to be able to move and took off after the cub and lioness.
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Posted: Wed Aug 01, 2012 4:33 pm
A child? Why was there a child out here? He looked to the others, kept his voice low, "should we shield him? was he with the traveling family?" it was strange to have a cub so young to think be within the clutches of the nergui. Mwako'damu did not want teh cub to be taken into teh midst of cruel monsters. Everyone, family, elder, cub, they all needed to be safe from the monsters of the north.
"Small ones look silly,"Kooka said, trying to keep his voice low. So many moving, too many, in Kooka's opinion.
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Posted: Wed Aug 01, 2012 8:37 pm
Elcca watched as Morag darted off after the cub, torn between listening to the shouting lion and keeping everyone from getting separated. She sided with the shouting lion. She wasn't very good with kids anyways, and hopefully the ones who had gone off after him weren't going far.
"Its possible," she said to Azulon. "There hasn't been much game that we've crossed paths with. But it never surprises me to see those in power act with cruelty. They may be throwing a fit simply because they can."
Across the field, Tengri took notice of the birds mocking her from the air. Her brow contorted and she let loose a chain of words that Elcca couldn't decipher- but from the tone, she imagined them to be colorful northern curses. Ah! She did learn something new everywhere she went! The striped female looked as though she might try to swat at the little fledglings- but one of the other members of the patrol group stopped her.
"What ora aeui doing?" the other snapped. "Graos Oma temns wukora birds."
Tengri snarled lowly, and settled back down. Apparently, disagreement or not, she wasn't going to make the fool mistake of attacking something that belonged to Graos Oma.
----
"She's being scolded for eyeing the birds. Looks like their story was the truth," Elcca reported.
----
It didn't take the cub long to realize he was being followed. Without a sound he sped up, crawling through the underbrush as though he could disapear into the earth itself. He didn't know who these strangers were, but it seemed Nergui had taught most youth that strangers were never to be trusted. If any offerings of friendship were given, none were returned.
Finally, he reached the small cluster of trees. Ignoring the thorns and high grass, he ducked into the underbrush with a flash of little claws. He must have found a hiding place amidst the roots, because no further sounds came forth.
Except one. As those who chased after the cub grew close, Yoan suddenly darted down between them. "Look out!" he called.
But by that point, a dull brown form was charging out of the brush. She targeted the nearest person, and pounced!
arrow If you followed the cub, roll 1-5!
Anything over a 2 is a counter.
A 5 may pin the opponent
A 1 results in being pinned.
[ Only one need roll. ]
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Excited Apathy generated a random number between
1 and 5 ...
1!
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Posted: Wed Aug 01, 2012 9:00 pm
Mkazo saw Yoan's dive, heard his warning, and dug in his heels--far too little, too late. A flash of dull brown charged out, taking the large black lion by surprise and sending him crashing to the earth. Later, he would feel burning shame at being overpowered in such a way...hell, he might have been feeling a bit of it right that moment. He had more important things to worry about, though. Things like keeping this lioness from ripping his throat out before she knew who he was.
"Hold," he growled, keeping his voice low lest it carry to the Nergui patrol. "Hold, damn it all! We're not Nergui--the Nergui are our enemies." It was a risk, and he knew it. The way he saw it, if the lioness were Nergui he'd be dead anyways--and if she wasn't, convincing her he wasn't might be his only chance. He tried to catch and hold her gaze with his own, tried to impress upon her the truth of his words. Instinct screamed to fight back, to survive, but he remained still. He had to convince her he meant no harm to her or her cub--and a fight would draw the attention of that gods-damned Nergui patrol.
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Andranis generated a random number between
1 and 5 ...
5!
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Posted: Wed Aug 01, 2012 9:02 pm
Scowling, Serkan took off after the cub. Had he stepped on the thing's tail? What was a cub even DOING out here? Was it with the family, or worse, the Nergui? He half-hopped over a small rock, before he spotted the lioness. He skid to a halt, ears forward and eyes wide with shock. Was this another Nergui?! Did they come in brown like that? It had been so long since he and his brother had escaped, he'd forgotten. The tri-colored lion bit back a cry, not wanting to be found by the patrol.
((*Edit* s**t, I was typing when EA posted xd ! I didn't see it!))
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Posted: Wed Aug 01, 2012 9:15 pm
"Whoever Graos Oma is, he's very powerful." He was clearly the leader of the Nergui, but if he was feared enough to make a hot-tempered lioness give up on attacking a pair of birds... Well, maybe he was a bit more than just a leader, like the Firekin's own Regents. "These fledgelings may prove very useful to us, then. If no Nergui would dare harm them." They were perfect spies. They should stay on the chick's good sides. The trio seemed rather impressionable, so it should be easy.
Azulon glanced back, to try and figure out what had happened with the lions who had gone off after the cub. He could not see them from here, and laid his ears irritably. What was going on? "Let's just hope they don't do anything stupid." He commented, mostly to himself, before turning back to pay attention to the Nergui once more. Perhaps they could still overhear anything useful.
–––
Though perhaps initially hesitant, once the lioness began to yell at Hraelsveg and her sister, the vulture quickly shook it off. She was untouchable! Sure enough, another of the lions reminded the mean-one who they were, and she was forced to settle down. Good! Insolently, she glided down and landed. Not too close, but she was convinced now that it was safe, with everyone reminded she and her siblings were off-limits. Perhaps she could even find out anything useful from here!
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Posted: Wed Aug 01, 2012 10:02 pm
Aithne had been quietly following from the back, she mostly was trying to keep herself from getting caught. She knew that she was an extremely bright lioness, she felt like she stuck out more than anything else. She flicked her tail behind her and stuck as close as she could to the others keeping herself down, her head low to the ground. Her tail was flicked behind her, and she listened to the others as quietly as she could. She felt like the entire point of their trip occurred in a few minutes. The young birds were in the air, they were getting as close as they could. And then there was the shouting and the yelling. She flinched, she almost hit the ground as the yelling began.
But she stayed though when the cub was spotted, she felt like all of them going after it was not a good idea, she approached a little closer to the others, trying to keep by Azulon's and Elcca's side. She paused and her hair bristled, she heard more rustling. She was hoping whatever was going on that everyone was safe.
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Posted: Thu Aug 02, 2012 7:33 am
Morag pulled her headlong flight to a stop as a brown lioness burst from the bushes the cub had disappeared into, talking Mkazo to the ground. She cursed inwardly, but then, what had she been expecting? She had worried the cub was out here alone, but how long could one survive, really? She'd been a fool to put the group in danger by chasing after her own sympathies.
She hissed low as she glanced back at where the patrol was, making sure no one had noticed the scuffling.
"Quickly, we have to get out of sight before the patrol notices the commotion. Please, let him up, we are not a threat to you or the cub. If you want to keep him safe, then don't draw their attention to us." She said, her voice low and intense. She made no move to force the older lioness off her companion, though her paws flexed against the ground. Surely he'd be able to handle himself, pinned or not.
Kivu strutted over to her sister when she landed, ruffling her wings in apparent unconcern over the lioness's discomfort. "Yes! We belong to Graos Oma! We are his eyes and we see what you do." She cackled, enjoying being able to poke at the much larger, far more dangerous creature without fear of repercussions. "Shouldn't you all be off doing important things? Why are you here bothering these outsiders instead of being useful?" The little raven eyed each of the patrol and the family they were harrassing, curious as to what all the fuss was about. Whatever it was, maybe she could be a helpful distraction.
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Posted: Thu Aug 02, 2012 8:01 am
There was no sound coming from the dusty lioness's chest, but her teeth were barred and her body trembling with a silent growl. Now that she was standing in one place it was clearer to make her out: an older lioness, covered with a few fleeting scars and sharp green eyes. She might have been old, but it was clear she still knew a thing or two about fighting.
Either that, or making use of pure adrenaline when cubs were in danger.
"If you are not the Nergui, who are you?" She hissed, her voice low. She didn't seem interested in letting the male she'd toppled back up. "Who would stalk around while their horde rests just across the plain? And fool enough to think such a small troop could call them enemies?"
Even against Morag's pleas, she seemed quite set on getting her answer. Her body tensed. "You can offer safety by being unnoticed? I see your group and I doubt that very much."
But as minutes dripped by, it seemed even rage had its limit. With a low growl she released the male underneath her, shoving him to get up.
---
"He's a peculiar sort," Elcca mused. "So far we know only a name. He could be a religious figure, but they seem to revere him like a king. The Nergui pride stretches out between its various hordes... perhaps he is off in some other campaign. But its hard to believe such an absent figure can control a group as volatile as this from a distance."
Definitely something to think about, in any case. Had they some form of communicating, perhaps with these chosen birds? Or were the Nergui simply more loyal than she gave them credit for? Even the firekin had their share of dissension, and they seemed a formidable group in spite of it. How could chaos create such unity in the Northlands?
"Trouble," a voice said from overhead. It was Yoan.
---
[Will forgo garbling, since birds are likely to understand Nergui-speak]
Tengri flexed her claws, trying her best to ignore the little flying rats. It was their fault for going through this area. The birds here were always more talkative and annoying than anywhere else in their land. Spurned on, it was said, by some matriarch. It made the female's nose crinkle in disgust. If the Kaars were not so fond of them, she'd turn the entire pride's youth into bird catchers.
"Like little birds would understand what is important," she half sighed. "Its your master's orders we follow, after all."
"Little bird is right," one of the darker lions said. "We waste time waiting for Godlum Oma to return. This should not be tolerated."
Tengri rolled her eyes. Not this again. She turned her paw over, and licked one of the cracks that had appear over the trek. "Bother Svarr about that, not me. All I care about is dinner."
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