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 Posted: Mon Mar 27, 2006 9:54 am
((For, um, anyone Firekin? xd Azachamorel comes home!))
It had scorched her paws from the moment she'd set foot on it at last, and in the day that followed she had grown to relish the pain of it, waiting for the time when her pads would thicken against such harm. For now, though, the way would be pain.
But she would not allow it to get in her way; she had a pride to find and, more immediately, a kill to make. In her stomach the rumblings of hunger were beginning again, although for a lone wanderer Aza was remarkably fit and well filled-out, with barely any hint of rib showing beneath her wind-blown, sand-dusted pelt.
The red lioness travelled into the wind with a slinking lope, headed towards the unmistakable scent of oryx. Truth be told, she would have preferred gazelle for their smaller size and less fearful horns, but if oryx were what there was to be had, then it was what she would have.
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Posted: Mon Mar 27, 2006 10:09 am
 Chomo was wandering the desert in search of a meal himself, a dark blur against the heat haze that hung about the sands. He was warm, his mane proving more of a hindrance than a help in terms of heat efficiency, nevertheless it was useful in some ways, keeping the searing sunlight off of his delicate nose by the shadow his bangs cast. His own paws were numb to the heat, having walked away whatever pain there was to be had quite some time ago.
He was alone, which was strange, normally he would have one or the other of his cubs following along in the safety of his shadow, but not today, Ra was not used to the open desert yet, nor adapted to the hunt.
As he walked, he once again began to feel the same insignificant way he had at the oasis, as though he were somehow deficient to uphold the firekin honour. His father and mother had been hunters from their birth to the day they died, never once leaving their precious desert. His own hunting skills had been honed outside the graveyard where the lands were lush and grasses were all around. He was dissapointing his parents memory by his own incompetance.
He frowned, only ever looking truly troubled when he was alone, to everyone else he was naught but smiles and warmth, a pleasant exterior to hide the inferiority he felt.
Outside the desert he had been a lone lion of a proud and terrible lineage. Here in the desert, he was nothing more than bottom rung of a strict hierarchy, somewhere just above slave.
He too caught the scent of Oryx, unaware of the other lion nearby, and, with a sigh that spoke of his doubt at catching one of the beasts off guard, he made his way towards it.
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Posted: Mon Mar 27, 2006 10:41 am
Aza padded onward, the scent of prey strengthening as she drew nearer. At last, slinking to the top of a dune, she spotted her goal -- a small, straggling herd. She crouched there, the two-toned tuft of her tail twitching just so, and watched.
This one shook itself, that one craned its head back to scratch itself with its own horns. Tails flicked, split hooves stomped against the sand as the creatures milled and mingled with each other. One female was rounding, bearing a heaviness that could only mean one thing.
She would be slower, that one...but later, her calf would be still easier prey. Hunkering down, the lioness narrowed her keen eyes, looking more closely at the others. Wait, there...a yearling moved, with the subtlest favoring of its right hind leg. At first glance, standing, he had seemed only to be shifting his weight, but now she saw that was not the case.
That one. It would be that one. Ears flattening in concentration, her gaze flicked here and there, as possibilities flitted through her mind. The most straightforward approach would be to simply charge down the dune to her target, but that would leave her exposed for longer, and she knew from walking the sands that they would slide and shift underneath her.
That was too risky, she knew it. But she needed the shortest distance possible, slowed just enough as she was by her tender pawpads. Frowning, she gave the area another glance. She couldn't deny that she wasn't used to desert hunting, with its uncertain footing and lack of cover.
Aza had the skills to take down a beast, but she needed to adapt them, and quickly.
Turning, she made her way gingerly down the back of the dune to slink around its base and hunker there, where her bright eyes once more sought her chosen target. Closer, closer...just a little closer, on with you... She didn't have long to wait until it was now or never, because if a head turned just the right way, she would be seen.
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Posted: Mon Mar 27, 2006 10:57 am
Chomo spotted the Oryx herd from a distance, but didn't shift into a hunting stance. He wasn't really motivated and didn't see the point in risking the brunt of those horns over a half-effort hunt.
Instead he merely walked to a distance from them, where a sloping sand dune provided the slightest bit of shade and lay down to observe them for a bit. He was too far away to be a threat, and though some of them watched him warily, they had no cause to flee.
Aza however was still well hidden and Chomo didn't spot her.
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Posted: Mon Mar 27, 2006 11:16 am
Azach's eye for movement caught the shift in focus of some of the oryx, though from her position she couldn't discern what had caught their attention. Their wary attention.
But she didn't have time to be concerned about their concerns, as her target took those few steps closer, away from whatever or whoever it was. The huntress broke into a crouching stalk-run to give her a few moments more of stealth before gathering her powerful haunches and springing into an all-out run.
At just that moment, the herd spotted the red flash of lioness and gave a bleat of warning-distress as they turned and fled in the opposite direction, bunching around the pregnant female...and leaving the lame yearling to struggle behind.
Aza powered forward, tail flagging behind her as her paws sought purchase in the sand, slipped, held, and carried her on, stride after stride. The grains grated against her tender pads, but she put it from her mind, doggedly pursuing the limping oryx.
Then she was close enough to spring, and he was close enough to kick. The muscles of his good leg twitched in preparation, and she shied towards the lame side, launching herself at his back as he kicked out. His hoof skimmed through the air at her side, her paws landed against him, claws coming unsheathed and finding purchase in his flesh, one set just above the base of his tail, the other deep within his tender flank.
With a pained squeal and a terrified buck, the animal tried to run onward, dragging his attacker with him as she braced her hind paws in the sand in an attempt to brake them both, but all that managed was to furrow the soft sand behind them
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Posted: Tue Mar 28, 2006 4:30 am
Chomo hadn't expected the oryx to be spooked and jumped to his feet as they started to run, some in his direction. It was a chance he wasn't about to pass up on, and though he had only spotted a blur of red fur off to one side, he let out a growl and bolted after the nearest animal, an adolecent female. He had cubs back home ot feed and any food was essential. Normally he might have let it slide, but couldn't today.
Somehow, in the chaos of the two lion's unwary pincer movement, he managed to snag his claws in the animal's side, quickly bringing his other large paw around to get a grip on her back. His weight was an advantage on the young animal and though she kicked out and struggled, he somehow held on, feeling as if he were trying to hold onto a bucking bronco. Still, for all his luck, he was still pretty far away from her neck.
With a frown of concentration, he swung around his head and sunk his jaws into the top of a foreleg with a crunch, causing his quarry to stumble and tumble into the sand. Without another moment of hesitation he sunk his teeth into it's neck to suffocate his prey in the typical fashion. Only then did he get a chance to look around himself proper, seeking out the one who scattered the oryx.
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Posted: Tue Mar 28, 2006 5:45 am
Focused as she was on her prey, though Aza caught movement at the edge of her gaze, she couldn't afford to pay it any heed. The pads of her hind paws burned as they dragged through sand, but finally the lioness' weight on his back slowed the oryx and dragged him down, back legs giving out. With the animal on the ground, Azach wasted no time in making the kill proper, powerful jaws crushing its windpipe.
But as the yearling twitched and stilled, she lifted her head at last, crimson gaze searching out the one who, by pure chance, had unintentionally become her hunting partner.
A male, large and dark, but red. Blood. Here in the desert, it could mean little else. Her heart, which seconds before had been pounding with adrenaline, caught in her throat as something inside quivered with joy and anxiety both. It had been so, so long.
Slowly, she righted herself, posture at once proud and open. In the interest of caution, however, she would wait for him to approach.
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Posted: Thu Mar 30, 2006 4:06 am
The dark red lion watched with interest as Aza brought down the oryx with skill and efficiency, his eyebrow raised. She was clearly of considerable skill.
Chomo was pretty sure that his kill was safe for the moment, all the way out here in the desert and, after watching the female for a time, he decided to head over. As he got to his feet however, there it was again, that feeling of worthlessness in the precence of another lion clearly of the blood -for who could be such a colour and build without Finar-si's blessing?.
He moved to within a respectful distance, then seated himself, his expression warm and somewhat hopeful, at least she seemed amiable. He swished his tail anxiously behind him as he spoke.
"Greetings."
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Posted: Thu Mar 30, 2006 4:34 am
Quietly, Azach blessed her luck in having taken down the oryx; even with her skill, her hunts often did not end so very well. And to have failed under the watching eyes of the first member of the Blood to meet her upon her return would have been unfortunate. Firekin they both might be, but first impressions would still count.
She dipped her head in acknowledgement of him, respectful without being submissive; she was something akin to an intruder here, a lost member tainted by life outside the desert, now returning, and as yet she did not know what the dark lion's standing might be. Not king, certainly..he had been brighter of pelt than this one. But anything else was a possibility.
"Greetings," she returned, voice strong for a female, before offering her identity, "Azachamorel, daughter of Xamach and Fiametta." She kept all her uncertainty from her tone, though the lioness' tail twitched behind her in nervous betrayal of her concerns.
Let the desert sun burn away her taint.
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Posted: Thu Mar 30, 2006 4:48 am
Chomo had grown used to the formalities of the pride again after a fashion and bowed his own head curtly in response to her own introduction. "A pleasure to meet you, I'm Chomo, son of Moto and Kimwitu." he grinned amiably, Chomo was a traditionalist but one who didn't necissarily take a vicious stance towards much.
"Nice to see another of the blood out here. Haven't seen or scented you before, are you a fellow returner?" He wasn't afraid to admit that he had spent time outwith the rolling sands, in some small way, it was to him, an asset.
Besides, the graveyard hadn't been /too/ different to the desert, just colder.
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Posted: Thu Mar 30, 2006 5:06 am
Comforted somewhat by his open manner and amiable grin, Aza relaxed, settling gingerly into a sit herself. Oh, how her pads ached now that she had time enough to think about them.
"Do so few remain that it's rare to see them?" she asked with frank concern, mistaking his pleasure at seeing another 'out here.' The last she had seen it, after all, the pride had been stricken with plague. "Yes, I...got sick and got lost somehow."
There was something defensive in her words, born from fear and a need to justify her absence. But wait..he'd said...a fellow returner? Disbelief and then relief crossed her features. "You say..you left, too, and returned? You're accepted?"
Bright gaze focused on Chomo earnestly, as she awaited his answer with an anticipation almost fit for a much younger lion.
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Posted: Thu Mar 30, 2006 5:23 am
Chomo shook his head "No, there are many in the pride now, life is coming back to the sands again after it's long abscence. My mate and I" he grinned slightly at calling Nuri his mate, he didn't even know if she'd dissaprove of that one, he hoped not. "have even given life to a litter of Firekins, the first since the devastation of the plague." he swished his tail, as proud as any new father.
In response to her other question, he nodded "Yes, I was trapped outwith the sands as an adolecent and grew up in an elephant graveyard many miles away. I returned to find the king willing to welcome back those true to the blood but driven out by other circumstances. He is fair in that respect."
It was true, Chomo had a new respect for the ruler after his warm delivery of his blessing to the pair.
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Posted: Fri Mar 31, 2006 4:44 am
"That's good to hear." Aza smiled with a sort of content relief, genuinely uplifted by the news that the Blood ran strong once more. "My congratulations, Chomo. You must be proud."
Her words seemed to shift in and out of formality, with an increasing tendency towards informality. She was, perhaps, a bit lacking in the graces of speech, having been absent since she was a youth. But sincerity, at least, she retained in plenty...perhaps that too was due to her absence.
"A fair king," she breathed. "What's his name? I remember Kiu, just a little.." Then, with a shy shift of her eyes, she couldn't help but ask, "An elephant graveyard? I've heard of them, but..I never saw one. What was it like?"
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Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2006 1:00 pm
Chomo nodded "More proud than I can even give voice to." he really was proud of his two sons, little troublemakers both but firekin to the core.
The red lion in his own abscence was lacking in the often harsh manner of speech native to the Firekin, seeming soft in both his manners and graces. He nodded in response to her comment on the king. "Kimeti he said his name was." a slight grin spread across his muzzle at the memory of the king's pleasantness in comparision to what Chomo had expected.
"As for the graveyard, it was dark, always cloaked in mist, with nothing but dust, elephant bones and the lions that lived there for company." he grinned. "Despite all that, I have wonderful memories of the place."
He looked over his shoulder in the direction of the dens and frowned. "I'm supposed to watch the cubs this afternoon. It's quite a ways back I'm afraid." he gave Aza an apologetic grin before adding "I had better get going."
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Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2006 1:08 pm
Kimeti. She fixed the name in her mind, attaching to it the image of a king who just might allow her to return to her parents' pride.
The image of the graveyard caught in her mind, a contrast to the desrt home to which she'd just returned. It was neither dark nor misty here, though perhaps dusty was close to this place and its shifting sands.
As Chomo made to excuse himself, Azach nodded. "Best go to them, then. Thank you, Chomo." She would seek out Kimeti.
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