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 Posted: Mon Nov 27, 2006 6:58 pm
She waited until he was beyond her, almost lost in the gloom beneath the heavy pine branches. The elk was silent, almost as though sensing his impending doom, but she could see his breath-mist hilighted in the scant light of the moon. It was enough.
Adrenaline pumped through her veins; the only sound she could hear was the pumping of blood in her ears and her breath, ragged in her chest. The urge to leap, to taste rich, hot blood was almost too much to resist, but the threat to Kiros' life kept her back in place. Senses were everything now. Pebbles dug into the rough pads of her paws, pine needles brushed across her face as she crept closer to their prey.
Slowly... quietly...
Her muscles quivered win anticipation as she crouched low, eyes watchful for the elk's faint form, sillouetted by the lighter sky and woods beyond. There, the breath... she sucked in air and waited.
The soft scrape of earth under paw alerted her to Kiros' leap. She was already moving as he regained his footing for his second attack, and as he clung to the bull's back she ran in and snapped for his jugular.
Blood gushed with the strength that only an artery possessed and she grinned as it cascaded over her jaws. The bull reared, trying to dislodge its attackers, but she clung on with a grim, desperate tenacity. Should he succeed in dislodging her, she had no doubt she would be destroyed beneath his legs. A hoof caught her in the hip and she winced, but already she could feel the bull weakening.
Hold on.
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Posted: Mon Nov 27, 2006 7:11 pm
Kiros held on his grip just long enough for Jori to make her move. It was pure and dumb luck that they had succeeded. Sensing Kiros weakening the bull gave a few kicks, ripping the lone's teeth from its flesh and sending the creature flying, fur and all.
Kiros' breath left him with a crunch as he landed on his right side, rolling over forest loam with little skill. He let out a muffled groan and shuffled his feet uselessly. He'd hit hard, but as far as he could tell nothing was broken. He'd just be a bit sore and bruised for a few days. Besides that, the adrenaline in his body wouldn't allow him to feel injured. He had to help Jori; and quickly.
His feet pounded against the earth again as he made lunge after lunge at the large animal - wripping and tearing at flesh where he could. Fear and sweat clogged the air as the animal began to die. It thrashed once more, kicking out at Jori, and managing to catch her in the rib, Kiros gave a gasp of alarm and barely managed to avoid anohter flailing ligament. He knew that sign, though, the bull was slowing and dying. As Kiros watched he could see the creature's eyes roll back into its head, accepting its fate with so much despair. For a moment Kiros felt a pang of guilt. Before Xan he would never have harmed another, but he'd become one wolf now.
The distraction was enough for the deer to at least smash his tail. The lone let out a yelp and quickly darted out of the way as the elk fell to its side, drifing into a sleep. A sleep that would last forever.
Kiros looked to Jori, she seemed alright enough. A sigh of escape left his lips and he gave a wag of his tail to let her know he was okay as well. There was nothing quite like the agonizing moments of mure exhileration. He looked at the bull elk's eyes once more. They were already beginning to haze over, marking its moments. Then it gave its last final twitch and was still. Kiros bit his tongue, trying not to think about the creature. It might have had a heart in there somewhere as well. A family, no doubt looking for a lover. Had he done the unthinkable? It was certainly more meat than they needed. But it was cold, perhaps it would last them some time. It was worth it. They deserved this. The pair of them could have died.
Taking a deep breath to calm himself he made a statment to Jori, "You first." It was more polite that way. He was the lone, in her packlands, and it was one way to win her over once and for all.
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Posted: Mon Nov 27, 2006 7:42 pm
Jori winced as Kiros slammed into the ground. Heart in her throat, she watched for him to rise, and for an agonizing moment she thought he wouldn't. Then he was on his feet and lunging in; her body flooded with a relief that she was faintly ashamed of.
Kara will never forgive me.
The bull was weakening fast now, his blood still flowing freely from his torn neck. She released her grip and jumped back just as his front legs buckled. Her breath came quick and sharp now, casting small clouds of mist into the night around them. The bull's clouds were smaller, weaker, further between... and then they stopped all together. Bloodflow slowed to a trickle as his eyes clouded over.
She looked at the dead animal and felt a moment's compassion. It could have been her. It could have been Kiros. But it wasn't and for that she was thankful. After all, predators hunted prey; the strong survived and the weak perished. That was the way of the world. But it didn't mean she couldn't be grateful for the gift of life.
She glanced at Kiros, a grin splitting her maw in a sudden burst of happiness. They were alive! Suddenly the faint light of the moon as it broke through the clouds seemed a wonderous gift, the silver-black trees something to cherish. She felt her heart beating in her chest and shivered. Someday it would be her turn to die. But not now.
The necklace thudded against her chest as she turned to face the lone. "I should hope so. After all, I did all the work!" But the words were said in joking fashion, and softened by the wagging of her tail. Kiros had risked as much as her, if not more, in the attack.
"We can eat together." She padded towards the corpse and tore at the still-warm flesh.
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