[EVENT] Dark Rumors (Closed!)

[Mimsey]

In which we bludgeon through diplomacy

... and dark rumors spread

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Life in the Kitwana'antara had changed with the arrival of the strangers at the border. The ambassadors of the Nergui, Godlum and Sarangerel, had brought with them a dire message, and the quiet, little pride had suddenly found itself under threat of invasion. There was no guarantee they would be attacked, but the queen, Nawiri'chiwa, would not take any chances. She had heard what the strangers had wanted, had been told they would return to either be given -or take- what they wanted: the disease.

As long as she stood alive, she refused to let strangers use their disease. The Nergui had promised them freedom, had promised them a life without fear should they make alliances. Nawiri didn't buy such a promise, and knew exactly what the plague could do to others. It was not to be made a weapon, was not to be taken by others; this was their cross, their burden, their fate and their fate alone. So plans had been made.

The guards and warriors were on high alert, and scouts and spies had been sent outside the lands to gather what little information they could on this threat. Those who could be trained to fight, were; those who could not, were kept close to the heart of the pride, along with the direly ill and those too young to be let out alone. Unfortuantely, while life moved on as normal, there was an unspoken tension and uncertainty.

Was this a test? Was the Great Goddess Pestilence punishing them? Only time could tell . . . . While Nawiri'chiwa hoped upon hope that the strangers were all talk and would not come, she feared the truth in Godlum's words. If they did come, would they be able to stop them from infection? And once they did get the disease, if they got it at all, then what?

The Kitwana'antara were a rag-tag bunch. Though they had some talented warriors and defenders, they were still under-prepared. They were still small; the disease kept their population in check, and not many outsiders were willing to risk infection. Though the queen was proud of how quickly the pride had begun to prepare for a future invasion, deep down she worried. Would it be enough? Or if the Nergui came, would that be the end. . . ? The future was no longer guaranteed, and the additional stress was not particularly healthy for a pride already under siege from its own, personal fight for life.

But . . . what could they do but hope for the best and prepare for the worst? Life would go on another day, as it always did, threat of invasion or not. And today was just another day.

 

[Mimsey]

Previously on...

The outpost in the Bonelands has been a success...mostly! While the firekin attempt to make peace with their new allies, the rest of the Sentinels have begun using the camp as launch point to the rest of the savannah.

It took some time before information started to trickle in, but finally they came in the form of some dark rumors. Strange lions live across the grasses, in a land plagued by disease and strange magic. Concerning enough on its own!

But according to rumor, they've been in contact with the Nergui... its time to find out why!

/////

Elsewhere, the Kitwana'antara is currently on high alert. They are defensive, and are taking all precautions over a potential, future invasion. Immune scouts and spies have been sent on some long-range missions to attempt to learn more about the Nergui and keep an eye out for any large groups moving towards the pride lands. The Master Warrior Mittere has been training non-warriors in some basic self-defense and offensive maneuvers, in hopes of aiding their rag-tag army.

It has been clear that the motive of the Nergui has been to take the disease. So carriers and those who are plagued have been drilled repeatedly that they are NOT to engage unless commanded to do so. They are still trained, but if the Nergui DO arrive they are to fall back to the heart of the pride.

Right now the borders are mostly off limits, save to guards, scouts, and warriors. The majority of the pride are kept close together near the heart of the pride.

Tensions are high, fear is in the air, but Nawiri'chiwa has been trying to encourage life to go on as normal.

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Welcome to another cross pride event!

As always, all members of both groups are encouraged to participate! We'll be hashing out some story, drama, and handing out some free loot as well! Please mind the specific rules for each pride section, but other than that... have fun!

Rules:

@@@@ 1. All members of the firekin and kitwana prides are welcome to join!
@@@@2. Disagreements are fine!
@@@@3. Always remember to respect other people in RP, even if your characters do not get along!
@@@@4. These threads sometimes move VERY fast. Do not take it personal if someone misses something you've said.

@@@@ Firekin only: You may select TWO characters to use outside the pride, regardless of rank. They must be adults.


INFECTION DISCLAIMER:

Firekin. The disease in the Kitwana lands is spread through blood and saliva. You have been instructed by Seide to run rather than fight. This is not a plot based around infection! If any firekin is exposed to the Kitwana virus, congrats! You get to stay! emotion_donotwant

PRIZES I DEMAND THEM!

As usual, all posts in this RP will count as tickets to you! At the end of the event [usually within a week-two weeks], they will be raffled!

First winner will get to select their choice of cub!

Kitwana boy is colored by Ririka. He is a seer! Son of the goddess of blood and a nergui.
Firekin girl is colored by Ecavi. She is the daughter of Ea and Vlam.

Kitwana members, thanks for having us! <33333

 

[Mimsey]

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The clouds were threatening rain by the time the sentinel group made it to the strange pride's borders. Threatening, but not yet delivering. To say it brought a sense of unease was an understatement. The clouds hung over them like shadows. As if the rumors about these lands, and this pride, were disturbing enough... now it was going to rain! Firekin hated rain about as much as they hated the idea of a pride they couldn't face in combat. Even Veru, who considered himself to be as far from a warrior as one could get... the idea was particularly chilling.

Who was to stop this pride, if they sided with the Nergui? How could you stop a pride that killed without warriors?

It had taken several weeks for information to start arriving at the outpost. Or maybe it just took that long for their neighbors to believe they weren't planning an invasion. Whatever the case, rogues began to get more talkative. And there was one resounding note: strangers had been seen, talking in odd languages. The last time they had been seen, it had been at an audience within the Kitwana'Antara pride. A strange pride by all accounts. The rouge lands seemed more concerned about their doings than any strange northern tribe. In fact, many of the rogues they'd spoken to were terrified of the group.

And as they crossed over the borders, Veru could see why. He felt a certain sense of de javu as he he watched the land shift from rustic brown to tepid grey. A scent was in the air, and it was a familiar one. Sickness, disease. When he had first arrived in the Motoujamii, he had been sick himself. Sick with a kind of ailment that made his bones lurch from the unnaturalness of it all. This land- this land felt like walking back into that moment.

"Be watchful," he said to no one in particular. Word in the lands stated that lions who fought with this pride got sick as well. It wasn't hard for them to put two and two together to see why the Nergui might be interested in an allegiance. "Remember, do not engage."

It wasn't just a rule to be ignored. He and Seide had both agreed that they couldn't risk bringing this sickness back to the Motoujamii. Anyone who risked infection would not be going home.

 

[wooga Paes]

Moto'spaki was not happy to be here. He was not happy to be in a lot of places, but this place was worse. He had been born after the plague, but while the firekin were still recovering from the damage caused by it. The pride had been smallish in his youth, with many of the firekin having either died or fled; he'd learned this.

And now they were here, risking themselves with a pride known to have a disease, one that killed. He did comprehend the importance of contact with them. The firekin would need to know what they were up against. If this pride were allied to the Nergui, they would be in for quite a bit of trouble. He wrinkled his nose at the thought.

The sky also just made this seem all the more ominous. Dark, a wet smell in the air. He wondered if rain would make it easier or more difficult for the disease to spread, as he didn't entirely understand how exactly it worked. He wondered if anyone really did, sometimes things just sort of... happened.

He perked his ears when Veru spoke, and glanced at the other male briefly, before training his eyes ahead. He wondered when they, the 'kitwana' would start showing up, and didn't look forward to it.  

[Mogami]

Dumaka rose from a sitting position when he spotted the lions in the distance. There were many of them, all in colors of red, black and white. It was peculiar to say the least. Perhaps it was a family that intended to stay? Dumaka would obviously warn them of the plague that ravaged the lands but they did need more numbers. They always did.

Looking back to the pridelands, Dumaka let out a booming roar that echoed through the area. If the strangers proved to be violent, he would need more Guards to make sure no infected lion ever left the area. Now, was it him or were those lions bigger than the average rogue? Dumaka wasn’t a small lion but he could tell there was something large, broad and heavy to those lions… perhaps they would be more resistant to the disease as well.

With a tiny cough, the striped lion made his way towards the strange family with a confident gait.  

[DragonsRage24]

She was a soldier, she was new, but after learning what threats lurked outside her new home, her new pride, she, as Firekin, had decided to venture with the others that came to this land. Ayhas looked around as she tred lightly on the soil, careful not to step on any jagged stone piece that might splay upwards towards her paws. She had heard rumors, of this place before she had come to the Firekin. She had never imagined she would actually be here. The smell was different, the air felt stagnant, clinging to fur (she made a mental note to bath herself in sand when they returned home).

Ayhas knew not if the other members of the pride had been made aware of her joining, but she walked with a confidence, but also a respect to those of this pride, though she stayed close to her new kin. Moto'seide, she was told, was the lioness to follow when beyond firekin borders.

There was still so much to learn for the firekin, but regardless, she had to help with what was happening now so she had time, in the future, all the time in the world, to learn every and any aspect bestowed upon her.

Moto'seide was not far in front of her, nor a male companion, Veru? She had to learn names quickly. Was he the one with the quip of the tongue, or another? She stayed close, however, and noticed another pale male nearby, he looked similar to Veru except the red upon his pelt was darker.

She was jealous, perhaps could could paint some red upon her.

Her strange eyes looked to the approaching male, one of this strange pride, she gathered, but she made no aggressive motion, the air, though strange and scented with the ill, needed to remain calm.

((hope it is all right that I used Ayhas, let me know if I should change her out for any reason Kim/Mims for someone more recognizable <3))  

[Excited Apathy]

Nuria was uneasy.

Nuria did not like being uneasy.

A pride that was ridden with disease, that could kill without fighting...what would the war be like, if the Nergui claimed such a pride? It was too much to hope for that it would wipe out the Nergui--after all, this pride still lived and...thrived, if you could call it that. It was still around, in any case. The scents of disease and rain clung to her nostrils, making her wrinkle her nose in disgust at more than her thoughts. Movement caught her eye, however, momentarily distracting her. "It looks like we've been noticed."  

[Mimsey]

Elsewhere, Cthugha was attempting to nurse a migraine with some sleep. It was not going to plan. Between the poor weather and lingering unease in the pride, sleep wasn't coming easily. When a roar echoed out, causing his head to lurch, all dreams of sleep evaporated. Something was happening.

The young male willed himself onto his feet, pushing aside the brambles that made up his makeshift sleeping spot. It probably wasn't his place to investigate... but now that he was an adult, he couldn't help feel compelled to start actually contributing to things. Shaking out the remnant pins and needles from his feet, he headed down the slope and towards where the sound had originated.

He was still a good while off, but in the distance he could definitely make out the shape of lions congregating. Red ones.

---

Veru turned his head towards Nuria, nodding his head in agreement. "Subtly was never going to last for long. Not with this group anyways," he smiled. But it was a kind of tense smile. Veru was good at diffusing situations, but it would all go to hell if one of them tried to jump them. Despite the fact that the group of firekin had been instructed specifically not to engage, he doubted anyone would remember if they came under attack.

It wasn't in their nature to run.

"We don't know what kind of dealings they've been having with the nergui," Veru continued. "We'll not jump to any conclusions, but lets watch our exits to be sure."  

[Mogami]

The closer he got to the large group, the faster Dumaka realized he had been wrong in his first assessment of the lions. Different patterns and sizes clearly suggested they might not be as closely related as he’d previously assumed and, perhaps more importantly, the way they moved betrayed the kind of combat training that Dumaka had been warned against. Were they part of that invading pride he’d heard about? That one that had gotten his pride all worried and anxious?

The striped lion tensed and stopped walking, his body language changing sudden and completely in an instant. He couldn’t allow himself to be caught by them but the Guard knew he must not fight them either. It was a tricky balance trying to find out who they were while keeping enough distance to make a run for it if necessary. The Goddess’ gift could not, under no circumstances, be set free into the outside world, Dumaka reminded himself as the large lions moved closer and closer to his location. Crap, he was so outnumbered.  

[Talencia]

Divy was nervous. She had originally apprenticed as a scout, but as she was growing up, she was realizing this wasn't the path for her. However, it seemed fate had other ideas for the youngster. Thus far she hadn't shown any signs of the sickness, so she had been sternly told by a growly pink lioness that she was needed out here as a scout, not as a nanny inside the pride's safety zone. Despite her sweet nature, she'd been given combat lessons as well.

Now normally being a hybrid would have meant she was significantly smaller than her fellow pride members. However, her father was one of the largest lions in the K'A, and as a result she was about the right size for an adolescent lioness, rather than a leopon. She would have loved to be able to slip through the tall grasses unseen, but her growth spurts were making that difficult now, as did her pale back. Thus, when a warning roar came from nearby, she was able to lift her head up and see what was coming.

Trouble. That was all she could think it would be! She could see Dumaka approaching a large group of very large lions. Every one of them was an aggressive combination of red, white, or black. The sight completely terrified the poor leopon, but she had a duty to do. With trembling limbs, she stalked closer, angling to come in behind the striped male she assumed was another scout.

She was not suited for this at all. At least they didn't have her patrolling the borders, but when the roar reached her ears, her heart quaked within her. It seemed it was time to leave her normal duties and perform her newer role of guard.

Perhaps it was due to her divine blood from her mother, but Tara had never come down sick with the disease, not even a little. She had always been grateful for this fact, because it made her more able to look after the little ones she was given charge of, some orphans like herself, some developing the sickness. She refused to think about the times she lost a cub to the disease, but it did happen, and she made sure she was there to comfort the other children. Not being diseased had always been a blessing.

Until now.

Now being immune to the ravages of the disease meant she'd been drafted as a guard during these uncertain times. Of course, she was compliant and even willing to do what she could to keep her pride and its people safe... but unfortunately that meant being ready to fight. So when that roar sounded, it meant she was needed. The summon wasn't urgent at least, but she moved towards the border with heavy paws. Would she be called on to try to kill in order to keep safe those little ones she so loved?  

[DragonsRage24]

As they approached the lands, it appeared that those pride members that had spotted them were just as wary as the firekin band as they were of the pride itself. They were stepping on a thin line, and it need not b tested what would happen if something were to go out of line..or get out of paw. Ayhas listened as a couple spoke, Veru as well. It was true, how subtle could a group of lions at the border of a pride be? She wrinkled her nose atthe thought.

The firekin, if the places were switched, would have had a much different reaction than these lions...then again, the firekin didn't have an illness within their ranks, their dens, their families.

What did the nergui want with such a thing?

Illness...they would be ravaged by it. But this pride did survive. Ayhas's mind ached with trying to come up with answers, none of which were good.

Ayhas nodded at Veru's request and let the others gain a little footing on her, and she remained in the back of the group, now and then she stopped, looking behind her, around, watching the terrain change.

If they needed a quick escape route, she needed to be aware of how far in they were traveling, and how they were going to get out.  

[Kimaria]

"She hears a roar!" Netravati exclaimed to no one in particular, pausing in her monologue to glance in the direction of the signal. She did not know specifically who the call belonged to, but it was a friend, she knew that much. But a roar like that could only mean one thing... "She thinks there is danger. Demons of the night come to steal away our Lady. To steal away our sickness. Netravati can't let that happen. Today she will be the heroine. She will be the lady with the eyes of fire and shadow and no one will stand in her way." She had adopted that title since one of her friends had bestowed it upon her as a youth. "She races down to where the signal uttered forth, thinking nothing of her own safety; only that of her people she wishes to protect."

Barrelling forwards at a dangerous speed down the slope of a hill, Netravati made an incredible ruck-us as she did so - advertising her presence to all those nearby - cracking loudly through branches and undergrowth. And, when she was almost to the bottom of the slope, she slipped, throwing her body sideways and knocked her hip into the side of tree. A yelp of pain sprang from the back of her throat, startling a pair of ravens roosting in the tree above her head.

When she spoke again, she was out of breath. "Bracing herself, Netravati moves forward to confront the enemy."  

[wooga Paes]

So it didn't take long at all. Spaki almost sighed, and wasn't sure if he was relieved it hadn't taken long, or unnerved. He flicked his eyes, briefly, over the lions around him. There was a lioness who had joined them recently, Veru, Seide, Nuria, some more. Would, despite warnings, anyone be inclined to get into a fight with these diseased lions? These were the thoughts that came to him as he heard the roar, and watched a stranger approach.

He didn't imagine the Nergui as the sort to form alliances with anyone, they struck him as a divide and conquer sort. He hoped that they had caused just as much animosity in this pride as they had with the Hongshan, initially, and anyone else. But perhaps that was just wishful thinking. Spaki just preferred to think the Nergui were enemies in common.  

[Excited Apathy]

A brief, curt nod was Nuria's answer, as she kept suspicious eyes--a startling blue against the flaming red of her fur--on the approaching male. He was so obviously wary that it was pathetic to watch. Others were joining him, all seeming as nervous as he. Where were the spines in these lions? If most of them were like that, they didn't stand a chance of withstanding the Nergui. "Hopefully one of them is at least brave enough to speak with us," she quipped, a sarcastic edge to her tone.

Sarcasm was good. Sarcasm masked her own uneasiness at not knowing which of these strangers carried the disease spoken of in dark rumors. For all she knew, all of them could be infected.