[Duel] Trading Sea for Sand

[SilverLutz]

Menkar stood at the edge of the dunes that the Firekin called home. He was curious about this place for sure. Having grown up in the Kizi he was used to lush jungles, pools for swimming, and sandy beaches with the ocean not far from the dens. Here....it was sand. Sand and the occasional stunted tree. Nothing like he was used to but that's what made it exciting.

Brasa, returning from one of her excursions to look for new watering holes, spotted the starry male and trotted over to him. "Hello! I don't think I've seen you before," she said, taking in his smaller yet sturdy frame. "You want to duel?"

"Oh...is that how you get in?" Menkar asked, tilting his head. Brasa nodded in reply.

"Yup! Just show me you're capable of fighting and you're welcome to join."

"Ah...well. In that case, yes, I'd love to duel," Menkar said with a grin.

"Great! I'm a little tired but this will be fun," Brasa said with a grin as she moved in a little closer to wait for the newcomer to make the first move.  

[SilverLutz]

Realizing he was to make the first move, Menkar decided to start big. He charged forward towards the large female although he found running in the shifting sand to be a little difficult. Still, he had grown up with his sea-loving, ex-Bahari father who had him on the beach day in and day out once he was old enough. Surely he'd get used to this sand too. As he reached the female he pounced.  

[SilverLutz]

Brasa held her ground for the first attack. She wanted to see how strong he was, after all. The blow that hit her was surprisingly strong for such a laid-back lion, and he certainly wasn't any great hulking beast. She stumbled a bit but was quick to lash out with a paw, hoping to remind him with a quick hit that charging in recklessly wasn't always the best course of action. In fact, it rarely was.  

[SilverLutz]

Menkar was almost expecting the lioness to move, so when she didn't it startled him slightly. He hadn't meant to hit her so hard, but she took it fairly well. A paw came flying up to his face and he jerked away quickly, dancing back out of reach. If there was one thing he was proud of it was his agility which he had to thank his father again for. Swimming worked out all kinds of muscles that didn't usually get much attention and it made him very quick on his paws.

He darted in again, this time to the side of the female to try to swing for her paws.  

[SilverLutz]

Oh, he was quick. That would help him in the long run for sure. Brasa hopped aside as the male swiped at her paws, only snagging one which did nothing to topple her to the ground. She turned quickly to pounce on his backside as he passed her, claws extended just enough to bite if she made contact. The aim here wasn't to maim or seriously injure but she did want to see how he took to being bloodied.  

[SilverLutz]

At the last moment the female turned to jump. Wow, she was quick! Menkar scooted away in a rather undignified position, but he escaped unscathed. Sliding in the sand as he turned, he held his ground for a moment before charging forward again. The full-on attack had worked well the first time he had done it, maybe he could feign an attack like he had done just before this one but really charge head-on into the female once again.  

[SilverLutz]

Dang it, he scooted away again! Brasa turned to face the male as they paused for a moment. This time when he charged she knew not to be taken for a fool. She waited for the last possible moment to jump out of the way, twisting in the air to once again try to land a hit on his back. Her claws were out once more, hoping to rake down the red back to let him taste a bit of pain. It wouldn't do to have a fighter who couldn't take a hit.  

[SilverLutz]

Oh, she was going to try to take the full brunt of his attack again! He charged in head-first without bothering to wait and see if she was going to move, and of course she did. He was going too fast to try to stop or turn and felt the female's claws lightly rake along his back. It wasn't enough to break the skin but it hurt and he gave a surprised roar as he managed to come to a halt.

"Hey...that was a good move," he said with a laugh as he turned around to face her again. "I won't make that mistake again!"

This time he simply pounced forward, paws and claws out. He didn't mind dishing out a little pain, too.  

[SilverLutz]

Brasa grinned at the male, glad he was being a good sport about it. "Thanks, you're not so bad, either! Still gotta impress me, though," she said, flicking her tail. As the male hunched down to pounce she returned the favor and they both leaped at the same time. Although Brasa was bigger it seemed Menkar had longer legs because his claws dug painfully into her chest before hers touched him. She roared in surprise and pain as they fell back onto the sands, the larger lion over her. She struggled to kick him off, not wanting the fight to end.  

[SilverLutz]

Ha! Victory was his! Kind of. They fell into the sand, his paws still on her chest, but her hind legs kicked at his underbelly so Menkar hopped off before she could land a good hit. He didn't go far, though, swinging around to pin her down from the other side. He stood over her head, paws heavy on her chest. It allowed her to reach up and take a swat at his face if she so chose, but it might also be the victorious move.  

[SilverLutz]

The heavy paws on her chest let up for just a moment, but soon they were back, keeping her pinned in place. She growled quietly and tried one more attempt at landing a hit, reaching up to lash at his face with her paws. This time she kept her claws in, not wanting to scratch up his face. She wasn't that upset about being bested by a stranger. Maybe if she was one of the fighting ranks she'd have been more irritated.  

[SilverLutz]

The heavy paw made contact with Menkar's face, knocking him to the side and off of the female. He opened his mouth to work his jaw, the hit rattling his head quite a bit. "You've got some power in those paws," he said as he rubbed his chin, still smiling at the female.

Brasa rolled to her feet and shook the sand off her back, a little smile on her face as well. "And you've got some agility. I think you'll do well here, rogue."

"Ah, it's Red, actually," Menkar said with a laugh. "Sorry, I didn't give you my name before we started."

"Red...that's actually your name?" Brasa asked with an amused grin. "I'm Brasa. Welcome to the Firekin, Red."

"A nickname," the male corrected as he turned to walk into the Firekin's lands with Brasa. "I guess a silly one here, huh?"

"Yeah, a little silly. But it suits you," Brasa said with a little laugh. "Come on, I'll show you around."

FIN