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 Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2012 8:04 pm
Aodhfin could tell his half sister was more than unhappy with what had to happen but in his eyes she had set it all up for them and they had just rolled with it. he knew she would have to get over it in the end, though he assumed that wouldn't be likely anytime soon. giving a chuckle, he made his way up the wall to join the others that had already made it to the top. it seemed this whole thing was going to be very interesting and hopefully worth the whole trouble. though to him, seeing his half sibling all flustered was more than amusing, specially when she brought it on herself which made it all the more amusing.
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Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2012 8:08 pm
It had worked.
Somehow, someway, they had fooled the guard into believng they were on some bonding, hunting trip with Morag. Helping her get back in to the game, help her get on her paws. . . Something like that.
Thankfully though, regardless the reasons, he seemed to let them continue and carry on with their excursion. A small part of Nyimak did bemoan their fate -- that was a close enough call. And a small part of her realized that things would only get trickier the further they got along. This was a reconnaissance mission, after all, and stealth was the name of the game.
Thus far they were . . .flailing.
Who had orchestrated this anyway!? And why did it choose the lions it had. . .? They were certainly an odd group.
Saying nothing, Nyimak quickly picked her way up the stony hill. Of course, it didn't seem quite as difficult now as it had when she had first attempted to get over the thing. But then, silence wasn't needed at this moment, because Tarsa didn't seem to care.
Falling back to quiet reserve, the lioness listened. Daylight was approaching, and very soon they would be picking their way through the mountains. That was good enough for her. To walk lightly, to walk quickly, and try to find out whatever they could about these Nergui. Hopefully . . . the trip through the mountains wouldn't be quite as troublesome as the damned stone wall.
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Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2012 8:08 pm
Yes, she was unhappy, he could hear the aggrivatation in her voice. The fire, it was there too, burning hot. She was firekin, injury or not, and it would not hold her back. Nothing would, he assumed, unless she wished to use her claws against someone who might question her abilities. He'd do no such thing. The sheer fact she pressed on, had such spirit and strength in her after attack, after coming into healing, it showed her true prowess and he felt as if the group, the firekin,, were gifted to have those like Morag among the ranks.
He smiled as he followed behind her, quick on his paws.
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Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2012 8:09 pm
Azulon was genuinely amused by what the lie had turned into. Instead of a simple hunt hey were helping a 'poor' lioness. He got himself over the wall easily, once Tarsa was dealt with, and followed along contently. At least it couldn't be said this event was boring. He supposed they were clear for now, so long as the black lion didn't comment on the encounter to anyone less gullible. "It did work out quite well." He agreed with Elcca, and didn't mind that Morag might be flustered with the whole event. Take it for the group, as it were.
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Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2012 8:11 pm
Aithne held back giggles as the male believed their story. She really wondered if they should have such lions guarding their pride. She was thinking maybe she should talk to some one about that. She was especially worried because she felt as if they gave him a pretty silly story. She tried not to laugh and she just turned her head and looked toward the other lions. She didn't understand why they were all standing here talking. "We still have many miles to plan and talk about these kinds of things." she mentioned simply before turning toward the sands.
"We want to get there and get back as quickly as we possibly can and if we want to do that we need to get moving, no reason to stand around and talk about it." She stated annoyed that it seemed like there was going to be a lot of times standing around debating on what was going to happen next. She was starting to get annoyed she was trying her hardest to keep her temper but at this rate it wasn't going to work too well.
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Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2012 8:21 pm
Mwako'damu looked to a bright pelted lioness who had a dark and golden band around her ankle. She seemed displeased as well. Mwako'damu furrowed his brows. This mission, secret or not, was going to be interesting every step of the way.
"As we travel through the mountains, we should be watchful for any rogues, or potential nergui we may come across. We should also keep the birds from flying unless absolutely necessary, we don't need to call attention to ourselves. We could use them if we need a high view from somewhere if we've cloud cover, or if we need a water source. As you said, we've a long way to go, but we need to be ready for anything that may come, which means staying hydrated and nourished whenever possible," Mwako'damu said with a nod as he walked on.
They'd have a long way to go.
But he'd do everything he could to make sure they had what they needed to have a successful mission, and this also meant for everyone to be healthy throughout the trip.
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Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2012 8:28 pm
Well, look at that. The simple hunt had turned into a bonding hunting experience for a recovering defender. The story had grown like wildfire! Mkazo made a sound deep in his chest that might have been a suppressed laugh. Or maybe it was a grunt. "Well enough," he said as the others crossed the wall. "But we should move. If we're lucky, we've got a damn long way to go before we find any Nergui" His eyes flicked to the mountains ahead, and there was a flash of something unreadable in his expression before it settled back to normal. Mountains...he knew mountains, far better than he knew sand.
Homesick?
Maybe a little.
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Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2012 1:24 am
"Lionsss are ssslow." The snake hissed grumpily, shifting down past Elcca to scale down the other side of the wall. He had already crossed once and had come back to see what the hold up had been. The rocks had posed no difficulty for the cobra and he was impatient to get going. They were heading into bad lands and he didn't want to linger. The night was dark. The night was cold. His coils already felt the chill from lack of sun. And yet there was safety in dark. Once the sun came up it would glint bright against red pelts.
"Listen to the black-eyed one." He gestured towards Aithne. "Lesssss talking. More walking."
And then he was off again; swift and silent.
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Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2012 3:33 am
Mkazo stiffened, shocked out of his thoughts, and glared at the snake in offended rage...but he managed to keep from snarling a scathing reply. His mother's hawk had been much better behaved--then again, he had been a slave, and these creatures were not. He'd had a run-in or two with those that kept smaller beasts--birds, snakes, and the like--to do their bidding, and had nearly had his head bitten off when he'd explained that "dhaifu" meant "slave." The Firekin, apparently did not keep slaves, as his birth pride had. It didn't make the snake's reproach any easier to swallow, however, and for several minutes his claws were slightly extended as he walked. "Hongshan," he said, not bothering to pause, "What sort of mountains are we looking at crossing here?"
Maybe if he had something else to focus on, he wouldn't have to worry about the gods-damned snake.
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Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2012 6:27 am
Saoi had remained behind the wall of stones while the others fast talked the guard who'd come to see. They seemed to have it well in paw, and he'd figured that, if he remained unseen, he could still complete the mission if the others were forced to retreat to the pride. Happily, there was no need. He rose from his crouch as the guard moved off and slunk away with the others, tail lashing. "Well done. Lucky it was only one, at least." He whispered to Eccla before jogging ahead, eager to be away from the pride.
Peri, having seen the encounter from above, swooped down once they were well enough away. Probably feeling as energetic as his keeper, the bird faked having a go at one of the snakes below, but pulled up well before coming into striking range. Her fluttered to his lion's back, perching and preening his dusky feathers. "The mountains go quite a ways, as she said."
"And we'll leave fewer tracks on them too."
"Shame you can't all just fly over them, hmm? Could be there and back again in half the time."
The white lion smirked at the bird and bucked him off again. He then wove through the mass of lions towards his sister, nudging her with his shoulder in a friendly manner. "Good job back there, sister. I don't doubt your claws. Good thing he didn't offer to accompany us, hmm?"
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Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2012 7:06 am
Morag had not stopped to wait for the rest and heard the calls to get moving only faintly. She needed a moment to stew before she faced anyone and the slapping of her paws against the ground let her leech out some of the anger she felt.
Wounded pride, that's what it was, she came to realize. She didn't like being coddled and she didn't like others assuming she couldn't do something. It rubbed her the wrong way... but in this case, she had to admit that the idea had been hers, and it had accomplished what she had intended, if not quite the way she would have wanted. The others meant nothing by their ribbing, simply playing around, so as she walked so slowly let go of her hurt feelings till she felt her brother nudge her and didn't immediately bite off his head.
Turning her half-covered face, she flicked her tail in response. "Lucky indeed. But we do still have a ways to go yet. Lets hope that is the most significant danger we face before we return."
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Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2012 7:42 am
Wait, they had a snake? Elcca watched the black thing slide across the wall, casually barking orders as he did. Maybe he was the one organizing all of this. She gave a low chuckle, amused with her own inner thoughts. But when wasn't she?
Once it seemed everyone had made it over, Elcca started back down the slope. Ahead of her, the others were starting to hike through the pass, Morag leading the charge. Mountains, which had been threatening their trip ever since they reached the guardpost, would start to more deliberately impede their travel now.
But it wasn't the mountains she was worried about.
She wasn't Hongshan, but she did have her own notations to add about the mountains. "I believe you all call it the Spine. It runs across the north end of the Motoujamii. Known for being particularly abusive to travelers," she rehearsed. If she remembered right, the second Hongshan group had suffered some trouble getting across them. "There would be no sense blocking a pass if it couldn't be used. If we keep moving this direction, we should cut across them on the shortest path."
"I can't say I know much about lions who might live on this side of the desert. Presumably no prides, firekin seem to like a wide berth. But there could be a few stragglers. These mountains are the only waypoint between the Motoujamii and the great deserts to the north. I'd hate to see what sort of creature would deliberately choose to live here."
Up ahead, the ground started to rise up, mirroring the mountains that shaped it. It wasn't too steep, but it wasn't exactly easy strolling either. Small thorny shrubs clung to the rocky surface, providing the only sign of vegetation in the surrounding area.
As Elcca was starting up, her foot hit a loose stone. Hey, these things are everywhere! But wait a second, that's no stone...
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Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2012 8:00 am
When he was sure the last of the others had made it over, Serkan finally climbed over the wall. He was just catching up to Elcca when he spied the skull. Now that was foreboding. The male walked over, pawing at it. "Wonder who was..." He looked up at Elcca, then made a strange if snap decision and picked it up. No sense letting it go to waste, was there? After all... If they were going to sneak around the Nergui, someone wearing a skull would look less suspicious to them, wouldn't it? For some form of comedic effect, he set it on Elcca's head. "There, look Nergui."
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Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2012 8:14 am
"Ha! I almost imagine you'd be disappointed if it were. Still. I'd rather we all return whole from this." He walked quietly alongside his sister until they reached the first slope, and then the sound of something clattering, and the hubub of those who saw whatever it was, drew his attention. His walk slowed, though he didn't stop, and he leaned back to peer over the backs of others, trying to spot whatever it was.
Apparently someone had put a skull on Eccla. One of the Hongshan's ideas? Well...it might be a burden to carry it so far, but she did look something like fierce with it on. He wasn't too close, but then... "Doesn't look like a lion's skull to me. So probably no one we know. But then, I didn't think anything really lived up here." He peered around at the other rises, and the further mountains. "No idea what could be..."
He'd never been terribly far outside the pride's lands before, and when he had, it'd always been for prey, or on a mission. He'd seen little by way of other feline species, though he knew of them. And he'd never seen any canines or apes, or many of the other creatures that roamed the more habitable lands outside the Firekin's desert. As long as the skull wasn't a lion's, he didn't care. There were more important things at paw, like the slope. He attacked it with gusto, for a moment pulling into the front of the pack as they scaled it.
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Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2012 8:16 am
With the sight of the skull Mwako'damu's chest hardened, he drew in no breath. Another fallen. How many had this beastly horde taken away from the world? He felt a surge of heat in his veins and wished to throw all caution to the wind, draw into battle who he could here and now. But it would not be smart, they would no be able to condemn them all if they were outnumbered. They were firekin, but they were also intelligent of war efforts.
With the comedic effort, Mwako thought for a moment, and looked to those among them who might remember seeing the nergui firsthand, while moving ahead of course.
"Do you know if they have any specific markings, traits, paints, adornments?" he asked aloud as they moved. "if we begin to get close, perhaps we might adorn ourselves with similar tokens to draw away suspicion? Especially if they have any birds in flight monitoring the area."
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