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 Posted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 10:17 am
The antelope emerged from the herd and grasped a tuff of grass with its teeth. Its spots looked bright in the noonday sun. Her own fur would glisten if the antelope lifted its head. Dabiku held her breath while the antelope chewed, its ears pricked. It reached down and tore another tuff of grass, the moment passing with her still undiscovered. The sun drifted behind a cloud, casting a momentary reprieve across the Savannah. Tranquility reigned through the grasslands. The antelope herd mingled in unison as they shifted around their young, protecting them with their hides. The prey she had chosen had a red mark over its hind foot, as if it had narrowly escaped another predator some time ago. It was neither too young nor too old, but it seemed weaker than the others nonetheless.
She bowed her head in the grass, touching her face to the ground. The dirt felt cool against her fur, unlike the burning sun hanging hidden in the sky. Her prey would fall today and end its life, but it would sustain her for another day. While the life of a warrior involved killing, a true warrior had to appreciate the food it received in exchange for another animal's life. She murmured thanks to the animal, though it couldn't hear her, before she pressed her paws against the ground and sprang toward the herd.
Chaos spread through the grasslands, antelope and other animals startling at her sudden presence. She kept her focus on her chosen prey as she circled the herd and corralled them into running south, against the wind. While the wind would also work against her, she stayed close to the ground and it affected them more than her. She latched her claws on the antelope's hindquarters, but it balked and tore away.
A hiss escaped her as the prey darted away from her. This wasn't how it was supposed to happen. It had taken her most of the morning to determine that this antelope was the ideal catch from the rest of the herd. She put on an extra burst of speed to catch up with the antelope again, but it seemed far too ahead for her to catch it on her own. The wind worked against her, burning her eyes and sweeping her fur downwind, and that kept her too far behind the prey to catch it. It looked like she had failed.
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Posted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 12:08 pm
The ground underfoot was sunwarmed and soft beneath her paws where the lioness prowled along one of the many paths through the roguelands. Usually, she was a far more open and cheerful sort. Wandering through the grass, her golden eyes bright with happiness or joy or some other pleasant emotion. She'd walk or bounce or prance along her way to nowhere in particular, watching the clouds pass or admiring birdsong or flower blooms. The world was truly a wonderful place, Keena loved everything about it and took every opportunity to treasure it.
But hunger can change the view of the world, even if it's only a little bit. And Keena knew full well that if she scampered and laughed her way passed the herd she'd smelled they would likely scatter. She wouldn't want to startle them if someone was around looking for a meal. Not if she could help it. How upsetting would it be to have a long day of hunting ruined by a careless traveler? She didn't want to be the one to do that to someone!
And so she crept along, cream colored belly low and shoulderblades wriggling with each long slow step. She looked quite like she might be hunting herself and to be honest the idea had occurred to her that this might be a good opportunity. She'd not eaten all that recently after all, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to kill an antelope. There was no one that she'd seen around to share it with, and she knew full well she'd not be able to eat the whole thing. It would feel like waste, which would be a real shame, though she knew scavengers would probably be happy to finish off the remains when she left.
Decisions, decisions... it was hard to choose really, when she could see them all there with her stomach wondering if it were empty or not. Keena stopped her sneaking walk and let herself settle to lay down, paws beneath her in almost the same pose they'd been while she was walking. Was she hungry enough to have a go? Should she wait? It was awfully warm with the sun beating down like this, and she was sure the golden spots on her back must be gleaming in it, it felt so strong. Not to mention that her pale coat stood out slightly from the darker colors of dirt and grass, especially with the sunlight stark against it.
And then, suddenly and unexpectedly, chaos.
Keena was instantly sure she'd somehow caused it, before she realized that most of them were running almost towards her. Maybe a little more to the west than her current position, but it was certainly enough to let her know she'd not started it off. So then...what? Or rather, who?
Hesitantly, Keena lifted her head, ears perked as she glanced around, trying to spot the catalyst for the chaos that stampeded...pretty much everywhere. And...there. A dark furred lioness sprang at one of the preybeasts, mildly impressed in spite of knowing she'd done the same herself. But that lioness was fast... oh no!
Keena watched, utterly shocked, as the other feline's intended target sprang away. Well that wouldn't do, it had seemed like such a flawless strike from where she was standing. She was a bit closer, if she ran southwest she might be able to cut it off, but she'd have to go now.
She launched herself forward, feeling the ground churn beneath her paws as Keena bolted to try and catch up to the intended mark. The wind that had been at her side most of the morning was now practically blowing into her face, but as long as she kept her head down she could appreciate the other lioness' tactics. The leaping prey would have a harder time with the wind than she would.
She did catch up to it, almost, her momentum great enough to make her skid slightly when she tried to turn and face the antelope from a good fifteen or so feet away where she'd finally cut in front of it, and she nearly lost her balance. Whoops, cats were supposed to be agile and graceful and such. To help cover her slip, Keena sprang at the antelope. If she didn't manage to catch it, maybe she'd drive it back to where the other lioness could take another shot.
Teamwork for the win.
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Posted: Fri Jan 15, 2010 9:41 am
Another lioness burst from the stampeding herd and brought Dabiku's mark down with speed and agility. It happened out of nowhere, so fast that Dabiku hadn't noticed the lioness until the antelope was already down. Her heart sank to her paws. That hunt had taken mere moments, while Dabiku had been stalking the herd for so long. She had even weakened the prey moments before. Yet the rogue lands were an unfriendly place. It was likely that the other lioness wouldn't acknowledge her part in the catch, and even more likely that she would refuse to share. Dabiku didn't want to fight over the catch. The day's heat had exhausted her, and with her stomach aching with hunger, she would probably lose.
Dabiku weaved her way through the stampeding animals until she stood beside the lioness. The antelope looked so delicious, lying at the tan lioness's feet. She had to admit that, up close, she could tell why the lioness had caught it so easily. The muscles beneath her pale pelt looked strong, the muscles of a warrior. Dabiku stayed several feet away from the lioness, not willing to encroach on her personal territory. Dabiku tried to keep her expression friendly as she swished her tail. "Pardon me," she said. "That was quite the leap you made. It was very impressive." It was as close to confrontation as she would go. By all rights of the Savannah, the lioness had honestly won the prey. And besides, the catch had been rather impressive.
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Posted: Fri Jan 15, 2010 10:00 am
Keena crouched over the dead antelope, surprised that she had been able to take it down. Although, she shouldn't have been. She'd hunted and made plenty of kills before. Maybe it was because the other lioness had somehow failed to catch it, maybe she'd thought it was some kind of special or strong preybeast that would be difficult to kill. She looked up as the other approached her, licking the blood off her maw and straightening to stand upright as the dark lioness spoke.
"Oh, thank you," she gushed, feeling grateful that the other lioness hadn't noticed the leap for the attempt to hide a stumble that it really had been. She wouldn't have wanted such a powerful huntress to think she was clumsy, she wasn't usually the sort to trip over her own paws. "I never would have caught it if you hadn't hurt it first, I really thought you had it there. It seemed a shame to let it get away after that."
Not that she was commenting in any way on the other lioness' hunting skills! Keena meant it purely as a compliment, that the other female had stalked the herd so well that even Keena hadn't seen her, and the powerful sweep of her claws as she leaped at the antelope, the tan lioness had been shocked to see it get away. Even if she had been the one to catch it, it had mostly been an impulse not to let the other's efforts go to waste. It had been such an amazing thing to watch after all. Such skill. It had only been a fluke, pure luck on the antelope's part, that it had escaped this dark lioness' claws.
"Would you mind if I shared?" Keena asked hopefully, taking a step back from the kill. It was, after all, the other lioness who had stalked the antelopes, and it was her claws that weakened it enough for Keena to catch it. Really, it sort of belonged to this dark lioness even if she had been the one to bring it down in the end.
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