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 Posted: Wed Nov 23, 2011 10:18 am
Wolf was the first to notice her bird flying in. She had grown up with him at her side and could easily pick him out at a distance these days. Unfortunately a winner had not yet emerged from today's sparring match. They were both bruised, sore, sweaty and bloody but neither of them were ready to give in. Just because she had seen her bird did not mean she was prepared to stop nor was it a valid excuse. Retraining her eyes on Othelia she continued along the circular path the two were now weaving as the selected their next plan of attack.
Wolf saw her opportunity and was preparing to charge in when quite suddenly Raven was in her face. She balked and back stepped quickly shaking her head to shoo her friend. "Raven, we're busy." She said clearly annoyed.
Raven ignored his friend and partner and continued flapping around her head. If he moved the two would get back into their fight. "Not this time!" He said making himself as much of a nuisance as possible. "Trouble at the thieves' den! Ms. Flutter's got a bit of a pest on her hands and wants the guardies back." He swooped away from Wolf's head and moved to Lorenna. "That means you too horns! Hurry hurry!" He called as he perched on a tree branch.
Wolf frowned for two reasons: one, the match was now over and two, there was trouble. She turned to Othelia and nodded her head. They both understand that work came before play. "Let's go." She said before darting down the path that lead to their cave. There was no time for delay.
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Posted: Wed Nov 23, 2011 11:09 am
Othelia did little more than watch the strange scene unfold in the middle of their dueling ground. She had not seen Raven coming but she certainly saw him now. She tilted her head to one side and then to the other before stopping to listen to his message. "Trouble?" Her eyes narrowed. That wouldn't do. She snapped at Raven as he flew past her before meeting Wolf's eye. She nodded as well. "Right."
Wolf vanished from sight but Othelia hung back for a moment. "What are we looking for bird?" She demanded looking up the tree.
"White stallion with a top hat." He cawed down to her. "Light hair. Looks like a femme."
Othelia nodded her head and then quick as a flash she was after Wolf paying no attention to the aches in her legs or sides. She kept her eyes peeled for signs of the stallion in case he had fled. She didn't see him but she saw Wolf. "White stallion. Top hat." She called to her ally as soon as she was in range. Wolf acknowledged with a bob of her head though she didn't say anything.
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Posted: Wed Nov 23, 2011 11:29 am
As usual Wolf spotted the target before Othelia and when she did she made a sharp right turn and headed straight towards him. She did what she could to pick up more speed aiming to cut the stallion off. He was running too, it seemed as though Lorenna had already told him exactly what was coming. There weren't many sane souls who would stick around when they caught wind of a kalona being associated with the group.
Extending her legs as far as they could go she managed to do exactly what she planned and got directly in his path before stopping. "Halt." she snarled planting her hooves firmly in the ground and lowering her head. This was a trick she'd picked up from Othelia. It was a predators posture. She wasn't a predator but if she was going to be on the attack it didn't hurt to behave like one.
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2011 10:05 am
It hadn't taken Farren long to bolt out of the secret treasure vault they called a cave. A kalona? That mare had a kalona at her beck and call? It was a shame that she, quite clearly, already hated his guts. She was practically exactly what he'd been looking for this entire time. If only she'd had a weak heart! Then she would have been perfect and he wouldn't be running for his life.
In retrospect it probably would have been better to skip the insults.
He kept his eyes peeled for signs of anyone approaching and at first the thought he was in the clear. There was nothing to his rear. Unfortunately he didn't spot the mare darting out of nowhere to leap directly into his path. He came to a sudden stop that sent his mane back into his face. He was so certain that this was the mare's kalona that he hadn't thought twice about what he was facing down. Now that he was actually looking he wanted to kick himself or the mare.
"You're not a kalona at all!" He shouted shooting the mare a fiercely annoyed look. It had all just been a stupid trick? The mare stood like a kalona but only a blind soquili would take her for one. "So what, your boss pretends to have a kalona and then sends you out to spook them? That's pathetic!"
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2011 10:23 am
The second Wolf changed direction Othelia knew that she'd spotted the target. It was time to work. She grinned and followed Wolf's trail keeping as close as she could. When the tan mare picked up even more speed Othelia moved to stick to the shadows. Wolf would intercept that stallion. There was no doubt about it. And while Wolf had the stallion's attention Othelia would close the trap.
She could hear the male shouting furiously at Wolf. It wasn't an uncommon response and really Othelia would have been shocked if he'd been worried looking at Wolf all battered and covered in dirt. She looked like she'd just had her rump handed to her not like the fighter she was. While he spoke Othelia moved and once he was finished for a moment she was behind him.
"That's not our boss." She said referring to Lorenna. "And you let the kalona get behind you." There was a moment of silence as the stallion turned. A brief pause. Then Othelia lunged to leave her mark. Not to kill just to make sure that he never forgot what happened when any of the UG were crossed.
~*~***~*~
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Posted: Wed Dec 07, 2011 6:25 pm
Lorenna didn't care to fight off the smug look that settled on her face as the white stallion had scrambled to the door. His panic amused her in a dark and twisted sort of way. Years ago this sensation would have bothered her. Now she almost wanted to go out of her way to make others scurry off in the same way. Almost. She still had her dignity to maintain.
It was one of the few things that remained the same over the years. Her dignity. It was what separated her from the average, simple-minded creatures that roamed the lands. Carmine often referred to it as the 'stuff that made her so uptight.' Lorenna shook her head. Carmine always did find a way to hit the nail on the head in the most rudimentary ways.
Turning about she took to straightening up the cave. It wasn't particularly out of order but she needed something to do until the others returned. She wasn't about to risk dozing off and the place could always use more organization.
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Posted: Wed Dec 07, 2011 6:42 pm
Othelia licked her lips. The blood from the bite had long since been washed off but the memory of the taste stuck with her. She was hungry. As soon as they reported back she was going hunting. This time of the year all of her favorites would be fattening themselves up for the cold season. The walk back to the UnderGround's headquarters never seemed so long when she wasn't hungry.
Lorenna was never fair with her orders. Othelia was only to attack but never kill. There seemed to be some sort of three strike system that the kalona was to follow at all times. The first time she was only to do a little damage, just enough for them to remember. The second she was allowed to do more lasting damage. The third mauling or killing was permitted. The only trouble was they'd never gotten past the first stage. Being able to nibble but never eat was torturous for the kalona.
It made her scowl just thinking about it. She wasn't entirely sure what kept her with the UnderGround. By her count she'd paid Carmine back for rescuing her long ago. Now it just seemed that she had grown too comfortable with everything but Lorenna's system to ever leave. She let out a puff of breath and flicked her tail. Of all the places to pick to settle with the UnderGround was probably only one step less strange than a colony of usdia.
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Posted: Wed Dec 07, 2011 7:01 pm
Wolf was feeling a little worn out. Between sparring with Othelia and running off to catch a strange stallion, that closely resembled a mare in all but one way, her energy was spent. Right now all she needed was a long drink, some food and a little time to check that none of her wounds were serious. Before any of that they needed to report back to Lorenna. She wasn't their boss, not really, but in Carmine's absence she became the acting commander.
Even if she weren't it was not particularly difficult to give a report. Caught the stallion. Othelia bit the upper portion of his hind leg. The stallion swore and ran off in a mixture of fury and fear. Just basic information that would only take two or three minutes to rattle off. Which was good because she could see the entrance now and she wanted to go straight to the large water jug that they kept in case of laziness.
"Lorenna." She said marching the rest of the distance briskly. "Caught the stallion. Othelia bit his hind leg. He ran off." She said as she walked past on her way to drink.
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Posted: Wed Dec 07, 2011 7:38 pm
  Carmine had been completely stunned when Ayden had turned up at her unusual home looking for her on Malta's behalf. As the day went on things began to make more sense. Evidently since Carmine had last seen her father's friend he had given birth to children of his own. Five of them. Two of them were friends with her daughter. They had gone to visit their father and had brought Malta with them. It seemed word of the UnderGround had at least reached Ayden's ears so he knew where to find her.
After a visit with them the strange things started up again. Wolf's father had shown up. He was looking for Wolf. Carmine wasn't sure if they had somehow planned all of this. She glanced to her side at the dark blue stallion walking in perfect silence. Yep. Definitely Wolf's father.
Once she could finally see the cave she bolted. He'd follow but that was okay. He was freaking her out and she needed to see something normal. She wanted to see her gang. "I'm hooooome!" She shouted. "And I brought company!"
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Posted: Thu Dec 08, 2011 8:02 am
Lorenna had to admit that Wolf had an amazing gift. The girl could take an entire 30 minute story and shorten it down to three sentences. Lorenna watched as Wolf breezed past her making a bee line for the water jug without so much as sparing her a 10 second look. Barely three minutes later Othelia walked in stopping just past the entrance to stare. Lorenna shifted and looked away from the kalona mare. Everything about the kalona made her nervous. The only bonus was that her wings had never fully grown out so at least Lorenna didn't have to worry about death from above.
A prolonged silence followed, punctuated only by the sound of Wolf drinking and the occasional rustle of hair, wing or tail, as Lorenna tried to work out why she was being stared at like a rabbit. After several long minutes, longer than she would care to admit, she managed to figure out that the kalona was hungry in general, not hungry for her. "If you have been waiting for my permissio-" was all she managed to say before a familiar voice shot through the cave.
Carmine was back.
Without bothering to finish her sentence she made for the cave's entrance in a purposeful stride. She had a number of questions for the mare. The current and most pressing one on her list was about the company she had. Some dark blue stallion with a lion-like tail that Lorenna had never seen before. The color and design on his pelt reminded him of a certain other flutter that she knew.
Lorenna's mind stopped for a moment. Was it possible? Was she meeting a relation?
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Posted: Thu Dec 08, 2011 8:10 am
Unlike Lorenna, Othelia only had one thing she needed to speak to Carmine about and it wasn't a question. She never needed to ask Carmine. Carmine didn't care. It was one of the long list of reasons that the kalona preferred the wind over Lorenna.
As she left the cave she only took a moment to glance over the stranger. He looked familiar but she couldn't be bothered to figure out why. She simply didn't care enough. Her stomach was more important right now. If he gave them any trouble there was always Wolf.
"I'm going hunting." She said as she brushed past Carmine. "Send for me if you need help." Then with a flick of her tail she trotted off into the forest to find her fill of rabbits, or squirrels, or birds. Whatever happened to be stupid enough to draw too near.
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Posted: Thu Dec 08, 2011 8:18 am
Wolf stood at the threshold of the cave for a minute doing nothing but staring at the navy blue stallion. She couldn't believe her eyes. What was her dad doing with Carmine?
With her tail swaying back and forth behind her anxiously she paced over to her dad. He'd never come on any sort of visit before. She didn't like the looks of this. "Dad." She muttered rubbing her cheek against his neck in greeting. "What's going on?" She pulled back to look into her father's pink eyes. There was something troubling the stoic stallion. She could see it even if no one else could. Her father was probably one of the biggest reasons she was such a good observer.
"Why?" Wolf's eyes darted around the area quickly. She didn't need to finish the sentence. Her father would understand this sort of minimalistic speech.
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Posted: Thu Dec 08, 2011 8:26 am
The instant Carmine spotted Lorenna she grinned. It was good to be home with that familiar cross face staring her down like she was about to be beaten. She didn't move from the spot as Othelia strode over to her nor did she get a chance to say 'fine' before the kalona was out of ear shot. She shrugged it off and started over to the cave making it halfway to Lorenna before she noticed Wolf. It didn't say much for Carmine that she only noticed her friend at all because she was already on the move.
She wasn't sure if she should have felt so irritated that no one was really paying her any attention at all but she did. She'd just come home, a nice little welcome was in order, but no. All the attention was either on the stallion or the stomach. She frowned and turned to watch the family reunion. If there was going to be no celebrating she could at least figure out what was going on.
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Posted: Thu Dec 08, 2011 8:34 am
Lamb returned his daughter's greeting by nipping lightly at her short mane. He still didn't fully understand this kind of behavior but Fox had been right, it did seem to create an unusual feeling of happiness and familiarity between the participants. At the thought of Fox a sensation that was becoming more and more familiar to Lamb pulled at his heart.
He met Wolf's eyes and frowned slightly at her question. Wolf was smart. She had already noticed that something was wrong. The rhythmic swaying of his tail ceased as the answer echoed about in his mind cause the strange and painful sensation grabbed at him again.
"Wolf..." He started not worrying about finding the right words. Only two were needed. "Fox missing."
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