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 Posted: Tue Dec 15, 2009 11:51 am
Hala loped swiftly across the flat plains of the rogue lands, enjoying the run in the fresh morning breeze. Enjoying the feeling of freedom it gave to him. He was in surprisingly light-hearted spirits for one who was normally so angry and bitter. It was probably because his belly was full and a fight with another rogue the evening before - which he had won - had put him in good mood.
But as all good things, it was never to last, and there was no doubt that before the day was done, he'd be his old self again: a growling, vicious male.
He paused as his stamina reached his limit, his breath rasping from his lungs. Then. after catching his breath, he moved down into a shallow gorge, knowing he would be glad of its shadow come midday.
He had made quick progress the last few days, the land being relatively easy to traverse than most he had passed through. It was new land, too. Earth that his paws had yet to touch. It meant he wasn't walking in circles. It meant he was finally getting somewhere.
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Posted: Wed Dec 16, 2009 4:28 pm
Her father's words rang in her mind as she stalked the bird. A warrior had to take advantage of every situation. A normal lion might see a bird as a fresh kill. A warrior would see a bird as a worthy opponent, a foe that would mimic the cunning of another lion in battle. A warrior would see it as practice.
She flicked her tail across the arid ground as the bird changed directions. Her paws burned on the hot dirt, heated by the rising run, as she galloped toward her prey. Minutes seemed to pass as she jumped. The bird noticed at the last moment and lurched higher into the sky. Dabiku stretched her paws as far as she could. Her claws caught on the edge of the bird's long tail. She hurled her force forward, toward the captured bird, and she twisted to ensnare the bird's plumage between her teeth. A soft breeze rustled her fur as she landed, the bird safely caught in her maw. Dabiku's heart pounded with the thrill of her success. She was thankful for the life the bird had given her through its sacrifice. Her old pride had always taught respect for the sustenance prey brought. Sustenance meant life on the Savannah.
The chase had led her directly into what seemed to be a shallow gorge. She placed the fresh kill on a smooth rock and licked her sore paws. On days like this, she felt most in tune with her past. Maybe - just maybe - her father would have been proud to see the huntress she had become.
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Posted: Thu Dec 17, 2009 11:41 am
Did Hala miss his pride? When he'd first left to strike out after his brother, he had missed it dearly. The respect. The superiority. The attention. He'd had all he had wanted. Then, the moment his brother had attempted to assasinate him - out of jealousy no less - everything seemed not to matter. And the further away form home he got, the less he thought about it. He couldn't go back now, not now he'd gone against their wishes and he couldn't go forward, either. He could not go forward until his brother had paid for what he had done.
So here he was, stuck in a state of limbo, with nothing keeping his paws moving except the thought of showing his brother who he'd messed with.
His pride had told him not to be so prideful but he could not help it. He had loved his brother and in a moment of weakness over the love of a female, he had turned upon him. The scars of that attack were there beneath his fur, the only sign of their existence being the odd tufts that had grown back slightly irregular from usual.
What would he do when the sourve of his hatred was dead?
Well...he'd think about that when the time came. There was no saying how long it would take him to find his brother, he just hoped that Altair knew - or sensed - that he was coming for him.
Continuing down the gorge, Hala paused to scent the air. However, the wind was not on his side and the first time he was aware that he was no longer alone was the sound of paws.
He growled - a startled sound more than threatening - and drew to an immediate halt, drawing both ears forward, tense and suspicious as always.
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Posted: Sun Jan 03, 2010 7:52 pm
Pebbles skittered down the gorge's edges far above Dabiku. Their echoes reverberating through the ground when they fell, making the dirt tremble slightly beneath her paws. She looked toward the canyon's mouth. The sun momentarily blinded her, yet she saw tan and cream mixed with black disappearing behind a ledge.
Another lion, or perhaps prey. A warrior had to be certain before reacting to the situation. She sniffed the air, stepping forward with a paw to balance while she held her head high. A lion, most definitely. Another rogue, given where they were in the middle of nowhere. There could be several reasons why another lion would enter the gorge. They could be avoiding the sun's rays or simply passing through. Equally as likely, they could have smelled her prey during her chase and wished to steal it from her. Prey could be hard to find in the Savannah. If they intended to steal her prey, negotiations would prove pointless. It would be better to strike first and ask questions later. Dabiku reached down and picked up her prey in her mouth. The bird's feathers tasted like blood, warmth still in its limp limbs. She hurried to the side of the canyon, and she placed it behind a rock. Blood smeared across the rock's surface. She kicked dirt and dust over the bird's surface to disguise its scent. A lion would still be able to sense it, to find it, yet Dabiku meant to put it at the back of the newcomer's mind. It was easier to talk away a fight if the prize remained mostly out of sight and smell. She paced back to her original stance beside the smooth stone. Several feathers clung to the stone's surface, but they couldn't be hidden in time. She would have to hope that the other lion's intentions were benign instead of hostile.
A shadow crept from near the base of the gorge, and soon a large lion appeared. The sun above momentarily caught his dark fur, making him seem like a shadow himself, before the gorge's wall blocked the sun and she could no longer see him clearly. He seemed startled for a moment. It gave her hope. He might have simply come across her on accident.
His growl made her fur prickle around her shoulders. She steeled her will, her claws flexing against the dust in a small motion. The growl so distracted her that she hardly noticed that the growl had seemed more benign than threatening. The unfamiliar lion was much larger than her, large enough to lead the hunts if they had been back in her old pride. If it came to a battle over her prey, she would need cunning and luck to defeat him. She believed that a warrior could be seen from a lion's eyes alone, and this lion had the bright eyes of an intelligent warrior. Hopefully, his reflexes were as slow as he was large, otherwise she would have a hard time if things came to fighting. She would do her best to avoid a battle until she could determine her odds of winning.
"Hello." Dabiku held her ground and tried her best to seem friendly. Her tail swished across the arid ground, stirring dust behind her. "Are you simply wandering around these parts?" She wanted to dissuade him from challenging her for her prey, yet jumping to conclusions could create an unwilling enemy. While the chances were slim, he could still have come across her and her new catch accidentally. He would have to make the first move, be it friendship or aggression.
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Posted: Tue Jan 05, 2010 1:04 am
Dabiku was right to be suspicious of the shady looking character who had crossed her path. He had no inhibitions about stealing someone else's kill, especially if he was hungry. Lucky for her, however, he had recently fed and he'd probably think twice about causing needless trouble when he wasn't ravenous. He didn't want anymore interruptions to his journey that day in any case, and was eager to be done with this 'meeting' so that he could be on his way.
And, in his knowledge, females were a waste of time. They were manipulative, greedy and stupid creatures put on this world only to bear a male's children. And, if they weren't pleasing to the eye, there was no use for them at all.
His sharp, green eyes narrowed as he caught sight of the girl who had made her appearance, dark-pelted with yellow eyes and an odd coloured patch on her rump. Actually she was quite pretty and even seemed ready to attack him if he made any wrong move. Ah, yes, this female could be an exception then. No scared, flighty little thing. This one reminded him of the females back home.
Ah home...there were some things that he missed about it dearly indeed.
As of yet, he had not really paid much attention to her catch. "I do not merely wander. A male such as I never needlessly wanders. I seek and I find and I complete the goals I set out to accomplish." He curled a lip and gave her a look that seemed to say: how dare you think otherwise.
"And you are no use to me, unless you have come across a male that looks much like myself." He paused, lifting a brow as if to await her answer. Him and his brother did very much look alike.
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Posted: Fri Jan 15, 2010 8:55 am
Dabiku frowned as he spoke, and her pelt rose on her shoulders. She forced herself to remain calm, to not become angry because of his words. Many rude lions roamed the rogue lands. Perhaps he was uneducated and knew no better than to think himself above other lions. Still, his words made her blood run like fire through her veins.
Dabiku rose to her paws and slowly circled him, looking closely at his pelt and markings. His question seemed strange, almost too easy. She must have seen a dozen rogues who resembled him, although few as large and strong as he appeared. He would have to be more detailed to receive a good answer. "There are many dark pelted lions in these parts. I have seen several who resemble your appearance." She sat down several feet in front of him, trying her best to look unassuming. A fight was not what she wanted. Yet again, after his rude words, she felt like giving him a good swipe in the ear. His mother must have been neglectful in teaching him manners. "Are you looking for someone in particular?
"Perhaps you should look in the nearby stream?" she said, gesturing with her paw southward. "You might find a lion that looks like you there." It was a petty, amusing quip, an indulgence to her own humor. Jokes about reflections were always amusing to her. Oddly enough, he seemed the humorless type, but he was rude enough for her not to mind. Either he could appreciate her humor or ignore it.
"I'm rather uncertain what you being male has anything to do with your purpose traveling. Are you saying that females are more inclined to needlessly wander than males such as yourself?"
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Posted: Fri Jan 15, 2010 11:29 am
He did not miss the rise of her fur at his voice. Had he hit a weak spot with his words? It seemed so. Well, this would be entertaining. Winding up others was something he had started to enjoy - though it wasn't always like that. It was both startling and sad to see how much a lion changed when a brother and best friend turned against him.
He stood still as she circled him, allowing only his ears to follow her as she moved, listening to the sound of her pads against the floor of this gorge. Perhaps she was seriously thinking about answering his question? Perhaps she had seen his brother? No. That would be a miracle and Hala no longer believed in miracles. He didn't believe much in anything anymore.
"I am." He replied. "A sibling."
And then she continued and he growled in irritation. That was enough of an answer to know that she had not seen anyone close enough in resemblance. Stupid female. Why were they always so useless?
"Ah, so you're a comedian? How very amusing you are." He sounded anything but amused. He snorted, irritation growing, and stepped towards her, growling a little under his breath. "Females are put on this land for cubs and nothing more. This land is ruled by males, despite what some might think. Those women that think to change that will find themselves swiftly put back in their place." He narrowed his eyes. "So you should be careful what you say, woman."
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Posted: Mon Jan 18, 2010 4:56 pm
Dabiku frowned at his admission. Years of practice hiding shock prevented her from gasping with surprise. He searched for a sibling, one of his own kin. Perhaps she had judged the lion too harshly. She knew the pain of being separated from kin, and she could only imagine how he must have felt. He searched for a sibling, perhaps one that had wandered astray from their homeland. It made sense that he would be brisk and harsh with his words, under such stress. Sympathy nudged at her heart, even as Dabiku tried to still it. A warrior could not feel pity for every heartbreaking story they heard. It would only serve to weaken the warrior in the end. Still, he must have been hurting, searching for a lost sibling in the rogue lands.
The lion's next words erased all the warm thoughts from her mind entirely. She pressed her paws firmly against the ground. Her claws flexed in the dirt, etching small grooves. "Females are put on this land - what an interesting character you are. First, you ask for information, and then you insult me. And I would like to see any male try and put me in my," a hint of malice filled the final word, "place." The lioness stood to her paws, and she flicked her tail behind her. She carefully stepped several paces to the side, keeping her gaze firmly on him. The dark fur of her pelt rose between her shoulders. When she finally stopped moving, her back no longer faced the ravine wall, instead facing further into the gorge. If this came to a fight, Dabiku knew better than to get cornered by such a large lion. The advice she had learned as a child - avoid fights with those stronger than you - pressed at her mind. His words pushed that advice aside, sending a rush of adrenaline through her veins. She would not push a fight. But any male who spoke so casually of 'putting females in their places' was a potential threat. She had heard of a pride far away where females lived as slaves to males, and she would not tolerate anyone who tried to press their backwards opinions on her.
Dabiku narrowed her yellow eyes as she looked at the large male. "I will say what I wish, man. You should be careful of what you say to other rogues. Some would prefer to take offense at your words, instead of rolling onto their backs and taking the insults like cubs.
"I have not seen your sibling, at least not to my knowledge. Perhaps we should part ways, before our difference in opinions causes problems."
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Posted: Thu Jan 21, 2010 5:41 am
If she were to ever meet Hala’s brother, Altair, she would not believe them related. For though he had done a terrible thing that day by attempting to assassinate his own brother, he was in fact an incredibly likeable lion. He thought too much with his heart that day, caught in his jealousy. But in truth, Altair had regretted the moment every day of his life. He had run away in fear of his own life and had travelled non-stop to stay hidden. To strangers – especially women – he was a perfect gentleman, kindly spoken and eager to prove himself as friend. However, the similarities in their appearance could not be denied. She would know it if she saw him.
“You speak tough.” Hala replied, sounding amused now. “But words cannot shield you against me. My craft is death. It is what I know.” He narrowed his eyes. “Watch what I say in case of offending? Do I look like I care who I offend? And, if I remember rightly, it was you who thought it amusing to play with me by using your poor excuse for mockery.” He growled.
“So now you realise your mistake? Foolish woman you are. Do not anger that which you cannot restrain. You are afraid and now you wish to run. And there we have it. The idiocy of female-kind.” He wouldn’t take women as slaves. He couldn’t stand to have them around for long. He’d been betrayed by one already and he had no desire to let one be close to him for more than a single night.
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