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 Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2012 12:55 pm
"Kakumei! Where are you?"
He heard it again! His mother! "Come on, Vivace! Come on!" He couldn't hope to outrun Vivace with his bloody leg but Kakumei urged him on nonetheless. His wounded leg was twisted and dragging behind him, causing a jolt of agony with each step. A rush of dizziness flooded over him and the edges of his vision darkened dangerously. He slowed and staggered, wobbling from side to side until he managed to press forward again.
"Come on, Vivace..." He panted and gasped with fatigue and pain. Ahead of him he could see a large group of soquili, huddled against each other and staring with huge eyes at the scene around them. "Come on...." He had slowed now to a fast walk but kept pressing forward despite how woozy he was and the black spots that danced in front of his eyes. The dim sunlight glinted off a beige soquili's back and a familiar voice called his name one last time. "Mom... Mom?!" He gave an anguished smile and ran for her, but his body couldn't take the sudden movement. Kakumei slumped forward, head meeting as consciousness fled him.
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Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2012 1:03 pm
"Kakumei! Oh, Kakumei!" Capriccia dashed forward just as her adopted son collapsed. He was covered in blood and for a terrifying breath she thought he was dead. When she reached him she saw that he was breathing, but it did little to allay her fears. "Vivace, what happened?" Her uncle had accompanied Kakumei to the group and she looked at him frantically before nuzzling desperately at her son. "Kakumei... please wake up!"
Capriccia had endured many miserable years of life before she met her lovemate, Utena. Her father Glissando had ruthlessly stomped down her spirit with sharp words and sharper bites. She had felt alone and abandoned by the world, some days thinking of running away from the herd entirely. Out of all those years, nothing she ever experienced had been as horrifying or heart-breaking as what she felt today when Kakumei disappeared. She had sobbed and panicked with her other two foals in the knot of soquili that had gathered around Shrivatsa, their new alpha. She had wanted to dive out into the fray to find Kakumei but didn't dare leave her other two children behind. Now she saw that because of her failure, he had gotten badly hurt. If she could have traded her life for his recovery she would have right then.
"Kakumei... I love you. Wake up," she begged him, but her son's eyes were closed.
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Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 7:58 am
The moment Shrivatsa pushed past him Phala's brain stopped working as did his legs. He tried to move toward Shri, and the filly technically, but his feet wouldn't budge. Instead he simply stared in wonder and shock at the white form of his sister. She was alive? She was alive! She was angry but she was alive! Relief washed over him and he finally found the power to move.
"You're alive." He said stumbling towards the two females. His eyes were shining as though he was about to cry. He might have been. He was just so happy to see his sister breathing. His rage towards the kalona melted away as quickly as it had come. "I thought...that kalona...I thought it had killed you." His words came out in a choked-up half-laugh. He probably sounded insane laughing, even a little, at a time like this but he just didn't care. Shri was safe.
When he reached her side he finally noticed the exact state he had left the foal in. Well that explained why she was mad. He decided not to acknowledge it in the hopes that Shrivatsa would let it slide.
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Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 8:18 am
Something wasn't right. They'd made great progress, Vivace could see a group of herd members, but what had been the cost? Kakumei had been staggering and slowing the closer they got. Vivace smiled when he saw Capriccia but that didn't last. Kakumei fell.
"Kakumei!" His voice blended with his neice's as he bent to look over the colt. He wasn't dead but there was still no reason for celebration. When Capriccia reached them Vivace found he couldn't find his voice to answer her question. For a moment he just looked on wide eyed as she rubbed at her son. "Th-there was a wolf." He managed to stammer looking down at the unconscious foal. "I chased it off...but..." He didn't need to finish the sentence, his eyes drifting to look at Kakumei's wounded leg spoke volumes.
"Kakumei..." Vivace felt scared. He didn't know what to do. He never knew what to do. Vivace bit his lip anxiously before something dawned on him. He did know what to do. "Hey!" He shouted at the herd. "We need a unicorn!" He couldn't tell who all was present but maybe, just maybe, they would get lucky.
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Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 5:14 pm
Bushkin's head hung and she sucked in air as if she were drowning. The strain of pushing her body to the limits for so long was starting to show. She was now feeling her injuries, and she had many. Her ribs felt like they were on fire from the kicks she had received there and numerous shallow cuts bled in slow pulses. The fire coming from her eyes gave off the light of a candle now instead of an inferno.
After all of their fighting, inexplicably Revyra still stood. Bushkin didn't know what else she could do to destroy the mare, running out of energy and ideas simultaneously. "Just... get out... of my way..." she panted. "Tired... of fighting... you." There were much easier targets if she could only get to them.
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Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 6:05 pm
Once the two wolves had surrounded him Deva felt a bit of panic set in. He couldn't keep his eyes on both of them at the same time, he'd have to quickly make up his mind and just go for one of them. Initially, he set his eyes on Ninetails. T'kashi was rather intimidating with his strange tusks. But then Ninetails spoke and a sudden chill ran down his spine. For some reason he wasn't expecting either of them to talk, but there was just something in her voice that truly scared him. That helped him to make up his mind and without any warning he charged at T'kashi, his hooves kicking out at the wolf as he got close.
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Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 6:21 pm
Revyra took in deep breaths, sweat clung to her coat and she could feel the bruises forming from the hits she wasn't able to dodge. All in all she looked to be in better shape than the draft mare. Just moments ago she had been charging around like an enraged bull. Now it looked as though whatever had been fueling her fury had left her. It seemed that she was now beginning to feel the steady beating Revyra had been dishing out. Good. Revyra wasn't sure how much more of this duck and dodge routine she could put up with.
"I won't." She said raising her wings once again. No matter how tired she was she would keep fighting. This was what she had been prepared for practically her entire life. This group was full of those that had run for their lives, those that were not so prepared for combat. The last thing she was going to do was let this mare wander off to one of them.
"You have two options." She took a deep breath to keep her going. "Leave here immediately under my watch and never return or perish." Maybe not perish, Revyra didn't think she had the strength for that. Rendering the mare unconscious seemed well within her capabilities, however.
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Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 6:33 pm
T'kashi didn't change his course even when the stallion came directly for him. He had run down more soquili than he could count and had never been seriously injured in the process. Unenlagia would arrive soon, and they would kill this stallion together as they had so many other times. All he had to do was stall their prey until he arrived! Dodging past one hoof, T'kashi leaped up to try to grab the other leg in his teeth.
He misjudged the distance. The hoof collided with T'kashi's side with a shattering crunch. Ribs broke and punctured within him. He fell to the ground with a choked whine and coughed out red foam. Things inside of him were broken and bleeding. He was drowning in his own blood and wasn't dying easily. His claws scrabbled helplessly at the ground, the light dimming in his eyes with each lungful of blood he spat onto the ground.  Ninetails stopped in her tracks. Her only packmate lay dying on the ground and she didn't want to be next. She turned and ran from Deva, away from the herd and the battle.
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Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 6:39 pm
Unenlagia screamed like an injured hawk when he saw T'kashi fall. His wolf, his familiar! T'kashi had been his co-conspirator, his assistant, his soldier, his friend. He was probably the only friend that Unenlagia had in the world now that he had abandoned his human, and now he was dying. He wanted some way to make it not have happened, but that was beyond him. The only thing he could do was avenge his fallen companion, and that he would do with a fury.
Still yelling in a primal rage, Lagia ran for Deva. He hadn't been far behind the wolves and was as swift a runner as there was. The feathers from other wind soquili he and his human had killed shook and thrashed in the wind of his sprint. He was determined that Deva's feathers would soon join them for what he had done.
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Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 6:55 pm
Deva felt a sense of relief as his hoof made contact with T'kashi. Maybe that would make the wolf think twice about attacking his herd. But then he noticed the condition his attack had put the wolf in. Sure, Deva had told himself that, if he had to, he would kill both of them. Now that he was actually witnessing one of them die, he was horrified. He had just killed another creature. And not quick and painlessly either, T'kashi was clearly suffering from the fatal wound. The wolf's gurgled gasps for air and the blood seeping out of his mouth....the light eventually fading from his eyes, all of it put Deva into a state of shock. Only seconds ago had he felt complete hatred for this creature but now he felt pity.
He was so locked onto the terrifying sight before him that Deva didn't even think about Ninetails. The other wolf could have easily taken advantage of him, had she not decided to run instead. Nor did he notice that Lagia was headed for him with murder in his eyes. It wasn't until he heard a cry from one of the herdmembers off in distance did he also notice the sound of thundering hooves. But it was too late. Lagia was upon him and he had no chance of fleeing before being injured.
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Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 7:11 pm
Lagia ran straight into Deva. He didn't care how he hurt him, he just wanted blood. He tried to bite, kick, shove, anything that would do damage. He had come to try to kill a herd but now his mission was simple: Kill this stallion. He wished for the teeth of a bear, or the claws of a falcon. He wished he had the sting of a hornet or the bite of a snake. If he could have had his way he would have combined every dangerous animal into himself so that he could better tear Deva to pieces.
Fortunately for the stallion, he could not. He was only himself, one soquili with the regular grass-chewing teeth of their species. He could draw blood with them if he struck deep enough, but he wasn't going to be able to tear out any throats, not that he didn't attempt it...
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Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 7:25 pm
The impact threw Deva to the ground and knocked the wind out of him. He suddenly had no sense of where he was and only the slightest of understanding that he was being attacked. He tried to use his wings to shield himself from the onslaught of bites and kicks, but he was hardly in a defensive position. He was getting battered by Lagia's hooves and was pretty sure a clump of feathers had been torn from his wings. The only way for him to get out of this mess was to get up. Not just back on his hooves, but into the sky. That was the only safe place. But it was easier said than done. The constant barrage left him with practically no opening to get back up. Out of desperation, he kicked out at Lagia then did his best to get up as quickly as possible.
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Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 8:23 pm
Lagia was hit in the legs by the kick and staggered back hissing. The pain radiated outward from where he had been hit, but his leg still held him. It wasn't broken, and that meant that he wasn't going to give up the fight. He dodged around other hoof attacks and readied himself to try to stomp the life out of the stallion. He thought he saw a splotch of red on one of the other stallion's hooves and it only made his rage burn hotter. He lifted a hoof, preparing an attempt to crush the stallion's skull!
In the distance, he heard three barking calls. His hoof fell back to the ground and he turned to stare back up the pass. The three calls came again. That was the signal Samsara had told them to listen for. It meant that the fight was over, their call to withdraw. It felt like he was dunked in icy water. Samsara's orders were absolute and she wouldn't tolerate dissent.
There was no signal that she could give them to show on what terms the fight had ended. All Lagia knew was that he was meant to leave but had unfinished business left to attend to.
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Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 8:36 pm
Bushkin tossed her head and prepared to run at Revyra again. Even though she was tiring, she would keep attacking until her heart stopped beating. She had the demon within her tearing her apart for blood, and the demon Samsara who commanded them and would have nothing else. She narrowed her eyes and prepared herself. This could be the last attack. She might finally be able to kill the mare and then move onto the rest of the herd. Her muscles bunched and she rocked back, preparing to surge forward... and then she heard the call.
She mistook Samsara's first call for more battle noises the first time but there was no mistaking the second round of them. No more fighting. It was done. She stood frozen in indecision and inactivity. Leave or die, the mare had said. Leave, Samsara's calling said. If Bushkin had been any less fatigued she would have ignored the orders and stayed, but in her current state, rational thinking barely won out.
"Goodbye," she told Revyra. She backed away from her opponent slowly, watching for oncoming attacks. When she was far enough away that she didn't think she could be hit on short notice, she ran.
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Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 8:50 pm
Although technically not ruled by the mare who'd put this group together Celestia found herself eying the body of the ferret from earlier. She wanted that kill at least as a trophy. The burning in her paw that the stallion had injured prevented her from dashing forward though. Licking her muzzle Celestia watched Adagio with keen eyes. It seemed as though her luck was out on the edge. A sharp series of barks ruined the wolf's concentration. To actually follow the order or not was another question.
Celestia snarled softly before slinking lower to the ground. Her tail flicked back and forth before she made a split minute decision. Her paws found purchase on the rocky ground as she pulled her lithe body forward. The ferret's corpse in her sight Celestia charged forward her jaw opening to try and grasp the ferret's tail in her jaws. She'd try and scoop and run and just keep on running. Away from the battle; away from death and carnage; away from the crazed skinwalker. She felt her teeth catch on the tail and she closed her jaws with a snap and darted away. Time to get a move on and heal. At least she would not end the night on an empty stomach.
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