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 Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 9:02 am
Carefully placing his paws, Kingu did his best to not fall in the river. Swimming had never been his thing, and he wasn't about to try it now in a river that he saw crocodiles in down the way. It was very unsettling to him.
Mud squished between his toes as he reached the other side. Relief washed over the lion, but he knew he wasn't quite out of danger yet. He still had the bank to climb, and that was very step. Very VERY steep... Never the less, he found a path and started to jump and climb.
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Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 9:03 am
She'd never been one for hunting, but having cubs and then striking out alone when they'd grown had forced her to begin perfecting her skill. It was late in her life, but it certainly had helped.
Having temporarily shed her more noisey jewelery, Mut stalked after the herd. Now and then, an antelope would look up, then amble away. None seemed the wiser, all at ease. The lioness got closer, paused, then rushed forward, having picked out one with a limp. With loud calls, the herd took off, heading straight for the river.
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Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 9:05 am
As he pulled himself up onto a ledge, Kingu was afforded a good look over the edge of the embankment. What he saw, though, made his ears fall, as well as his jaw, eyes wide. The thundering should have been warning enough, but he'd never paid much attention to the herds. Now he certainly did, because the herd was coming straight at him.
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Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 9:06 am
It didn't take long to catch up to the injured animal. The run had done exactly what Mut had hoped it would, aggitate the injury and make it worse to the point of lameness. As the animal floundered and balked, Mut leapt at it. Even though it was injured, it still had fight in it, tossing the lioness off before hurrying after the rest of the herd. Unlike the others, though, it stopped, refusing to jump. As the lioness tried again to get it, the smell of another lion made her stop. With the oppertunity, the antelope hurried off.
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Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 9:07 am
As the last antelope jumped over him, Kingu took the chance to catch his breath. Nothing could get the adrenaline pumping quite like a herd racing straight at you... About to stand and scramble up to the top, the sound of hooves and paws made him stop, shrinking back. Was there another still? There had to be. But the hooves hurrying away had him wondering... Was there another predator there? He'd been a fighting dissapiontment, after all... Very slowly, he peeked over the edge.
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Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 9:09 am
At the same moment, Mut peeked over the edge to see what was down there. She found herself nose-to-nose with another lion, blue eyes staring into dark brown. There was a moment of hesitation before a scream ripped from her maw, the lioness scrambling back. It wasn't every day that one ran into another lion in such a manner, and she was understandably set agast. Why was he even THERE?!
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Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 9:10 am
To be met nose-to-nose by another lion was shocking in and of itself. To hear a scream was another, and Kingu found himself letting out his own yell of surprise. As he jerked back, the ledge under him gave way, the dirt crumbling. Paws flying forward, the male dug his claws into the ground in a sad attempt to stay up. But that, too, failed, and he found himself tumbling down into the mud of the bank. Once again, he faced a long climb up.
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Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 9:11 am
Regaining herself, Mut went and peeked over the ledge. Well, the lion wasn't RIGHT THERE anymore, but he was down on the ground. She frowned, sitting back a moment. Well, it served him right... Sneaking up like that... But then it occured to her, he was probably trying to get up there to cross the river. Starting to look around, the lioness noticed something alarming. The crocodiles had noticed. Returning to the ledge, she looked down, ears back. "Hey, you might want to move FASTER! The crocodiles are coming!"
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Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 9:12 am
Looking back confirmed it. There were crocodiles on their way. As panic began to set in, the lion looked around. And there he spotted it, a rough but useable path to escape up. It had the signs of herds using it in years before, but it would work for him. Jumping out of the way of an incoming crocodile, he went running for the path and started up it.
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Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 9:13 am
Pacing, Mut wondered just what she could do. Then she spotted a branch, left long ago by who knew what herd. Grabbing it, she hurried to where the path neared the ledge. When she set it down, she leaned back over the ledge. "Hey, I'm gonna hold htis branch out! Grab it and I can pull you up!" Grabbing it again, she waited.
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Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 9:17 am
Digging his paws in, the male climbed up the incline. When he neared the ledge, he grabbed the branch, beginning to climb up. Below him, the crocodiles struggled to follow. He could hear the snapping of their jaws, as well as the scraping of scales on scales. It chilled him to the very bone.
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Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 9:19 am
Leaning back, the lioness struggled to heave the male up. While him climbing helped, her being smaller than him didn't. As he crested the ridge and pulled himself up, she found herself tumbling back. When she sat up, the male had pulled himself up and collapsed, gasping for air. She went over, hesitating as she looked at him. "Are you alright...?"
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Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 9:21 am
As he caught his breath, Kingu stared at the ground. His live had flashed by his eyes... It wasn't too exciting, he'd decided. Even if it WAS a pretty big risk to lurk near human settlements. Brown eyes turned towards the lioness, ears flicking to hear her words. He nodded, swallowing, and fully looked up. "Yeah... I'm alright..." He looked back at the river, hearing the crocodiles hissing. "Thanks for saving me... Um... What was your name again...?"
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Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 9:22 am
"Mut.. Mut'salama..." She swallowed a bit, glancing at the river. The water was positively boiling with crocodiles angry they'd been cheated of a meal. Looking back to the male, she leaned down. "Who are you again...?" He looked like he would fit into the royal family, with his coloring and patterning. Then again, everything was starting to fit in... She was sure there were likely purple and green cubs descended from the royal lines somewhere. While waiting on a reply, she went and retrieved her jewelry.
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Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 9:23 am
As the lioness walked away, Kingu got up and followed. "Mut'salama... Egyptian in origin, meaning gentle mother." He tilted his head, watching her. So the names of the north reached all the way down here... It amazed him. He would have to tell Rotem about this when he got back. "I am Kingu'jua. It means sun king, but I'm no king, more of a sage..." He paused, looking at the gold pieces. His mind was running... She was the right colors, already had a name style common of the area, even had jewelry that would fit the area... "I come from the En Gedi, far to the north."
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