Welcome to Gaia! ::

Sagasu thanked her lucky stars, every God she'd ever heard about and her ancestors that she managed not to hit any rocks or get pulled towards them. She certainly did not appreciate being given orders by a male, even one who ruled a pride, but there were more important things to worry about at this point. Namely, the little cub that was now holding on to her back with tiny claws.

"Don't worry, little Sister. We'll be there in no time." She said softly, trying to keep her voice steady and confident.

They reached land quickly and Sagasu grabbed the girl by the scruff and brought her over the breaking waves. She dropped the cub in the sand, getting a few instinctive licks in to dry her up and then backed away so that the lions she guessed were the healers could have a look at her. It surprised how difficult it was to take hat little step back, feeling a good amount of attachment and possessiveness for the little cub all of a sudden.

He was pleased that the bird helped Lani decide to keep her shell. If she'd wanted the carving he would have given it to her, but he was going rather partial to it. The prizes were quickly cast into shadow as events unfolded out in the ocean waters. Desher couldn't handle swimming yet by a long shot. He felt helpless as he watched others running into the waves after the king. However, there was something he could do.

"Seems like there's trouble in the water Lani. They'll need you." He leaned his shoulder against hers and headed at a very fast walk down to the shore line. They needed a healer and she was one. Once there, he moved aside to make room and watch.


Eade paddled swiftly out behind a couple of others. He gasped when he spotted the cubs on the driftwood and nearly swallowed a mouthful of water himself. The male tucked the tiny cub firmly into his mane. "Don't let go!" He turned and headed back toward the safety of shore. It was much faster going back than out as the waves helped. Once he felt sand beneath his toes he headed toward two familiar lions coming toward those rescuers.

He forged through the waves towards them. "Desher! Lani!" Eade carefully pulled the little male off his back and set him before Lani. He didn't know what to do and shifted restlessly from foot to foot. "Anything I can do to help?"


Yang from his vantage point spied the others who'd run into the waters coming back. "Hey they're back!" He called for Ade's benefit. "They got cubs too!" He sounded impressed. The adults had brought cubs outta the ocean! It was magic! Was that how he'd been born? Everyone seemed so stirred up though, that it didn't seem normal. Of course he'd just been born, so who was he to say what was normal or not?

Ram was the last of the lions to climb ashore, and he was relieved to find that each who had came to his aid had successfully brought the cubs to safety. It was at this point that he set his shivering cub beside its siblings and turned to the healers who were waiting expectantly on the shore - he could already see some expressing concern and knew better than to stand between them and their ministrations.

"Take them to the dens, somewhere warm and quiet," he said, spitting out some of the water that had gotten into his mouth. "Let them settle their nerves for a time, have food if necessary," he shook his head after a moment and offered a half smile to the healers. "I apologise for stating the obvious," he added, in reference to his set of instructions that they probably knew better than anyone else!

"However I cannot stress the importance of not pressing them for information at this time, let them rest," he cleared his throat and finally turned his attention back to the volunteers who had come to his aid. He knew some of them, but he didn't know all of them, and surmised that they had come from further afield. They may not have necessarily come for the festivities, that was simply lucky timing, but they had already done far more than was really expected of them.

"You have my sincerest gratitude," he glanced at each in turn and then bowed his head a touch. "You have saved a great many lives today," he paused and glanced about him. "You are most certainly welcome here at any time, if you need to dry off I am certain you will be offered one of the dens to warm in until you are more comfortable again."

"But I must offer my apologies, I need to locate my mate as a matter of urgency..."

He had only glanced briefly at the tiny offspring, but even then he had seen their pale blue coats. It was as if they had spawned from the very sea themselves, quite a turn up for the books given the celebrations.

Just ahead of Ram, Zamir had deposited the cub on shore. His dark coat was soaked through, his mane water-logged, but he only shook it off. He was immediately pressed into by his mate, her white and orange coat getting soaked by his own. "You don't need to worry about me, Aiko." He smiled at her, affection reflecting in his eyes. "I'm not THAT easy to take down, and if the sea didn't want me here, it would have rejected me by now." Still, he had to wonder. Where had those cubs come from?

Her heterochromatic gaze followed the cubs as they were taken to the dens, confusion on her face. "Where did they come from?" Other than, of course, the sea. She looked at the other lions around, wondering if any had answers. She wondered, did anybody have any ideas?

"I think it's obvious..." Paws still in the water, Azat stared out at the horizon. "They came from the sea." She looked over at her sister-by-mating, head tilting. The smallest tuft of hair danced in a slight breeze. "They're... Actual children of the sea." Her gaze soon returned to the sea, taking in the waves. "At least, that's what I think." It was the best answer she had, at least.

As he watched the Cubs get taken away Triton slowly backed up he found it hard to take his gaze off the cubs, he needed to protect them, but he knew that he could do no more, he wasn't a healer after all. In reversing and not paying attention to his surroundings he bumped butt-first in to the soft pink lioness. "I'm sorry." He mumbles absentmindedly all of the worry about giving her personal space was gone, completely washed away by the Cubs that had been born from the sea. "Where do you think they came from? They looked like the waves themselves gave birth to them, but...but they were flesh and blood." He shakes his head in disbelief, he had been raised on legends of the sea and this was clearly a legend in the making.

------

The dark lioness smiled at Dagr, she knew of course that he was trying to help her, but her usual confidence felt almost flattened by the hullabaloo. She didn't turn though she wanted to return to watching over the pride she knew she w old have to integrate properly sometime. This was probably the best time to do it, to properly join the pride as a whole. "I don't know, I'v never played these games before, what would you recommend?" She tilts her head curiously, she really needed some help here, she had no idea how to play games really, they weren't things that rogues did.


------


Afina watched as her son wandered away to check the activity. "Cubs from the sea?" She mused looking up at her large mate. "It sounds just like the old legend. The first lions of the Bahari'mtoto rose from the waves." She chuckles gently although she quickly shook her head. She was a little superstitious, it was a part of the culture she had been brought up with, the sea was to be feared, loved and respected, but the idea that Cubs could be born from the waves was a little silly, even to her. Perhaps that was because she was a mother and she knew exactly where they came from and it was far from a poetic experience. "I fear the poor things are anything but a prophecy. Who would do that though. I can't imagine." She shivers tucking herself in closer to her large mate.

She turns her head up and licks Xenon on the cheek "Do you remember when they were all tiny? Before they became the big lumbering louts they are now?" She sighs a long gentle sigh. "I miss that."

She was so upset at having the little cub gently removed from her grasp that Sagasu barely noticed the touch but she did turn and lean slightly against the male, rubbing shoulder against him distractedly, as if he were one of her Sisters. Obviously, the recognition came quickly after but she made no show of it, feeling a little uncomfortable at the physical contact.

"They are a gift from the Sea, surely. A good Omen of things to come." She said as if trying to quickly change the earlier line of thought, an anxious flick of her tail the only sign she was still a little uneasy. "The Sea takes more than it gives, we should not ignore it when something so precious is given to us."

Well, at least the cubs looked alright, though she’d yet to hear them speak. Sagasu would’ve liked some reassurance that thy were alright.

Hima watched as the cubs were brought away to dry out and get something to eat before turning back to her mate once again. She moved in to inspect his water-logged mane, leaning in to pick some seaweed out of it that had gotten lodged in there.

"You didn't? That's a relief. I thought you had fallen in," she said, spitting out the salty green stuff. "Oh, you big whiner," she added with a little snort even as she gave him an affectionate nuzzle. "If it's still aching later I'll see what I can do to help it settle down. Old lion," she finished, an amused look on her face.



Udayi trotted after Kari, looking around at those on the shore. No one looked hurt, thankfully, but a bundle of cubs was being swept away back into the trees and Ram was looking rather water logged.

"So...did...those cubs just pop up out of the sea?" she asked, looking at her friend with wide eyes. "How did they survive? I thought cubs weren't allowed to swim in the sea?"



Starfire listened to the whispers and words that passed from mouth to mouth. A blessing, they were saying. A sign of good will and luck. Cubs born from the water. Surely it meant good things to come for the pride. She was glad to see no one was hurt, just a bit wet, and as she walked through the lions she picked up on all the little stories and whispers. This would definitely be interesting to bring back home to share with her pride.