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 Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2007 3:44 pm
dustfeather The sun beat down harshly onto a savannah dotted with acacia trees. During this part of the dry season, waterholes were few and far beween, forcing lion and prey alike to move constantly to find new sources. At these times, it was nice to be the predator, as prey gathered near the scatterd water sources...but the heat made hunting difficult and potential scavengers also gathered in the same areas.
A dark black lioness with startling purple eyes prowled across the hot earth, the grass tickling her stomach. Afu was still traveling with Ahali...he was a good hunting partner and better company than she had expected. They'd been traveling for several hours without any sign of water, and the night-pelted feline's temper was running short. She pauses by a stubby acacia tree, trying to duck under it's almost nonexistant shade, and flashed a look to her companion. "Too damn hot," she snapped at him.
Nearby, unnoticed by the dark lioness, a flicker of smoke twirled up into the sky.... wooga Paes "Be gratefull you don't have one of these. "
The large male lion snorted, shaking out his thick mane. This, despite adding to the idea of his size, was quite horrible in these situations. The creature flopped carelessly next to the tree, content as long as his furry ball of a mane wasn't in the sun, even if most of the rest of the lion was out in the sun.
Another bad point for him, was his dark fur, though he fortunately wasn't as dark as the female he was travelling with. It did prove easier to hunt with someone else, and in some odd way, sometimes it was nice to have company. But like Afu, Ahali'Bagawa was unaware of the smoke.
"Maybe we should wait till its darker. " He flicked his tail, trying to move it into the shade as well, away from the stinging of the sun. "But a bigger tree would be nicer. " demon_pachabel Though he was not 'the' hunter, Yua was able to notice the change in the growing scarcity of animal life, as well as water sources in his own travelling time. The only reason h e was out there to begin with was to find Tui. Where had that girl wandered off to while he wasn't looking?
The mid-day sun was rather cruel, even to him, though he didn't bare any dark coloration to his coat. At least, not as dark of coloration as others out in the lands may have been 'blessed' with. He was still thankful for that. At least he could still say 'It could be worse'.
The twirl of smoke in the sky did, however, catch the shaman's attention for a moment. It didn't seem to be that close, nor did it seem to be that big. Perhaps a small controlled flame of some purpose. However, he couldn't really see the purpose in such a thing.
While he would have liked to have taken a break from walking outside in the heat, Yua had to force himself to dismiss the signs of possible trouble to come and keep walking through the grass.
With his luck, however, he could see a pair of, to him, larger lions (I almost put 'loins' here.. *SNORT*) sitting in the distance. This caused him to pause.
Perhaps he would have to take a different route around them. He wasn't exactly the strong sort, and he knew this. (Last thing he needed to do was find Tui and be beaten up! ) PhiferWolf Travelling in the darkness that the underbush gave, he waited for a good while. For the most of the day he remained under the shade to cool off, that didn't seem to work out as he had planned. The heat was just unbareable...just as it was when he was a cub but back then, it was worse. He groaned as he rolled over and pushed himself to his feet. He had no idea where he was anymore, after seperating from Mwana it felt as if some sort of great weight was lifted from his shoulders. That female was just so...what was that word. Arrogant? He didn't know what could describe her. She was nice at times but most of the time she was just being "lady"-like, that is what she said. But to him, she was being snotty, just a dumb princess who thinks she is better than everyone else and just.... annoying.
Firekin and Mistweaver. Ex-slave and Ex-princess. How could they get along? They were complete opposites, then again opposites attract right? He did care for her for whatever the unexplained reason would be. Something about her reminded him of someone, something. He didn't know what he was thinking. With a sigh he headed down into the edge of whate looked like a basin. .... A rather large basin really. It was like a crater or something. Looking around, he could see that there were not many herds, if any, around at all. The last one he had seen and hunted was of a zebra herd and that was when he met the Goddess of Tornadoes, Chamchela. What had been going on as of late? It seemed as if things were starting to decline. Nevertheless, he needed to eat. The large male had already starved himself to hunt and feed that princess and now... he was just weakened, drained of his energy. He needed food.
His body crouched down low and carefully stalked through the grass when he came to a tree. Voices? Carefully, he moved up against the tree and peered around it with dull green eyes, lost its lustrious glow after those many moons of crying, it seemed like he had none left to shed. In the distance he saw that there were a hunting party out here. So there must be a pride or something. Then his eyes landed on the larger male, red fur. He growled low and narrowed his eyes.
"Firekin..."
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Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2007 3:59 pm
dustfeather That gets a teeny bit of amusement out of her, as she eyes his mane. Yes, there were advantages to being a female. But she only collapsed, frowning indignantly. "Pah. There's not enough shade here to keep a vulture cool. I just - who's that?"
The feline's ears swivel about, her purple eyes coming to rest on Yua's distant figure. Even now, there's something distinctive...she frowns, shaking her head. Why would she meet someone she knows out here? Unless they're being followed, and Afu finds that doubtful. But there may be more than one, and the dark lioness gets warily, gracefully, to her four paws, suddenly grateful for Ahali's bulk. She's focused on Yua, so she doesn't notice the other's arrival - yet.
=====
In the far distance, fire crackled along the dry grasses, hungrily devouring everything in it's path. A dark figure rustles it's wings at a nearby acacia, then snaps them open. It tears off a branch, mindful of the thorns, and swoops down to the burning mass below. The branch end blossoms into flame.
The creature flaps up and across, until it moves across the savannah, and drops it down into the grasses. Fire multiplies.
Fire crackles, starting to circle the as-of-yet unknowing group of felines.
The creature chortles, then flies off. wooga Paes "How would I know? "
range eyes rolled in annoyance. He was usually quieter, but if you have this huge puffball around your neck in this hea, its estimated you'll be pretty cranky. The large lion was unaware of the danger out there,and in this case, it wasn't anyhting he could fight off with brute strenght.
But instead, there are two things on his attention. At first, he'd ignore the dark blob in the distance, in this heat, even he wasn't interesting in 'fun'. But Something else snapped his mind into awareness. It was the faintest thing, but he'd been attacked before. He could barely hear it over his own breathing, but if he knew something, it was that rumble, and even fainter, a word, he couldn't quite make out.
There is a deep growl from the former firekin almost emmediatly, and he pulls himself up quickly, swinging his head around and pacing a few ways away from the tree, then back, ears foreward, strayinging to hear. "Get out. " He growled, tail lashing in annoyance, eyes narrowing. Blast this tall-ish grass, he couldn't see that well if something was just down low enough, even something as bulky as a lion. Tahja Estes He swore he didn't see how No was going to be able to stand it, he had been traveling away from the Firekin lands for days and still he couldn't shake the sand completely from his pelt. He'd tripped once on his way out and the consequences still haunted him till this moment. Not even bathing in what little water he was able to find wasn't enough to rid himself of the tiny granuals. So it was no surprise that he felt a little distracted, constantly pawing at his mane, which itched something awful now. Damn!
As if that weren't enough, this heat was unberable... He'd thought the desert was bad, but it seemed he'd be making his trip back home during a strong dry spell. Thankfully there -were- trees ahead, however, that he saw.
Green eyes focused on those trees, paws slowing to a stop so that a smile could form and a relieved sigh could escape him. He'd rest for a bit. Ausi must be worried since this trip was taking longer than expected but that couldn't really be helped. He needed to take breaks or he'd suffer exhaustion. A few other lions could be seen ahead, but beyond them all a plume of smoke, making the adolescent lift his gaze higher.
".... Now what's all that about...?" He wondered quietly to himself, easing further forward. PhiferWolf The growl inside of him grew louder and louder. His rolling growls were a warning. The louder he growled the probability that he was gonna attack grew even more. He stepped out from the tree, his posture very similar to the other male's. His body was tense, lips parted to reveal the rows of sharp fangs and long canines, his ears forward and his fur bristled. He was right, the other was a Firekin, anything that was red was an instant tie to the Firekin Pride. That pride where his father originated from. The father who raped his mother, the father who forced him to train and work for him when his mother was killed. His hatred for that pride burned deep, if they did anything to him or not, they were all the same to his eyes. The mention, the scent, the sight, the resemblence made him go beserk. He hated them.
Trigger ignored the other female, probably a female this Firekin to do what his father did. He kept his growl rolling inside, his emerald eyes narrowing.
"A Firekin, I didn't know you monsters ventured this far from the desert sands. Isn't also against the pride to leave it?"
He mocked, rhetorical questions. He was prepared for a brawl, he was ready for anthing. Even a slave, he knew the traditions of the pride that he was born into. His father made it a priority for him to know it. However, they no longer held him down. He was a rogue, a free-lancer who could do as he wished onlyheld back by his own. He was strong in all areas where power includes; physical, mental, emotional, he had all of that and more.
"What is your name, Firekin."
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Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2007 5:22 pm
dustfeather She glances back to Ahali angrily, but she doesn't have time for a retort...she looks back toward Yua's distant form, frowning at him. The frown turns to bewilderment at Ahali's sudden outburst, and her head snaps around again. Was he talking to Yua? Thick-head, the unknown adolescent didn't seem to be a threat...but the large dark feline wasn't looking in Yua's direction. He was looking elsewhere, and she was not about to press him for information, not in that mood. Were they being surrounded? Perhaps the adolescent was just a decoy...and as Trigger moved out of the shadows, Afu moved closer to Ahali, instinctively. It looked as if they were squaring off to fight, which just annoys the dark lioness. Males! Her eyes narrow, and she opens her muzzle to snap something at Trigger. But more movement catches her eye, and she glances up to look toward the newest arrival, who's moving toward a clump of trees in the distance.
And then she freezes.
Smoke is edging the horizon, and from this distance even the flames can be seen, sneaking up toward the sky.
"Ahali..." She says, and for the first time sine they've met, there's a hint of barely-controlled panic in her voice. Her limbs lock, and she stares, pupils constricting in shock. demon_pachabel It was a bit unnerving for him to realize that he was being LOOKED at, causing him to take a bit of a step back, before squinting his eyes to attempt to see over the distance between him and the other-... Hey! There two were -totally- gonna duke it out!
... Now he was even MORE unsure of if he wanted to get closer to the group or not.
However, his internal 'survival' instincts were supressed by his curiousity, causing him to continue walking through the grass and towards the tree. Every motion contained it's own caution to it. Did he.... wait!
He watched the Firekin pair for a moment, before sitting in the grass and calling out to the female that accompanied, apparently, one of them.
"How rare for me to find a familiar face out here!" wooga Paes Orange eyes narrow, and for a moment, a snarl almost errupts into an ear-splitting roaar. But even Ahali liked to hear whatever his opponents said, and though his growl barely lowered, hies ears were intent onthis lion. But he recognized something here. This was a firekin too, or part,his eyes aving caught the hints of brown.
"Everything but my lineage is against that pride. I don't see why I'd follow their rules. " He growled deeply, ears back again to the security of his thick mane. At least, it usually deflected blows from them. As a familiar voice came weakly to his ears, he blinked, and for a moment, Ahali was once more aware of the lioness, and he remembered how Gumu had died. He didn't want this again.
The lion pressed moved tokeep himself well between the route of the other and of Afu, wichwasn't so hard,considering her body was smaller than his; easier to block away. The lion flexed his claws, lowering his head and lifting his lips even more. "Afu, get out of here. " He said to her, though didn't bother lowering his voice, or looking up. Again, he spoke to the lion.
"I owe you no name, and even so, it's been changed since I left that loony bin. If you're trying to recognize anyone, then you've failed. "
But.. what was that? This lioncouldn't be so hot, that it was steaming. No, of course not. The smoke was only caught by the former-firekins eyes when he looked slightly above the lion, as the grayclouds began to rise into the sky. Was this..
"Fire? " PhiferWolf Trigger's eyes narrowed. "my lineage is against that pride." .... "I don't see why I'd follow their rules." ... his lion was clearly against the same pride. But it cannot be helped that he felt that he was challenged by this male, he had to be offensive. His attention snapped when a voice of a female's voice called out to him and he replied, moving in her way to protect her. If that was the case then this male.... could not possibly mean him too much harm.
"Well, we got some things in common now don't we.... The hatred for that bloody pride and we have changed our names since our leave from those sands."
he scoffed and turned his head back to the incoming, what looked to be, fire.
"Tch, damn...."
Trigger casually moved himself closer to the other lions. A fire..... His ears perked up and his body seemed to jump. Mwana.... if she was around then.... she might be caught. Kumbuko, if she was still seeking for her sister and she was around..... same goes for Amile and Limbua. Damn, he got involved with way too many and too many who are too young to perish. Damn. All he could do now was hope that they were safe and away from him. Mwana.... she could do well alone, if whe was desperate enough, she would come find him. The sudden impulse to run up and out to find her ran through his body but his body just would not move. .... Something still resisted that idea.
Trigger's head turned to speak over his shoulder.
"So, what do we do now, Firekin? Lioness?"
Again, ignoring the others but Afu and Ahali seeing as they are the only ones that stuck out to him.
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Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2007 5:58 pm
Jing'fei's eyes widened as the sounds of an oncoming fight caught his already swiveling ears. He turned the rest of his head and neck accordingly and for the first time sighted the other lions in the distance, a female amongst them. His expression hardened, and he began drawing closer, wondering if there was trouble. What could he do against either of those males though? They were both huge! But his upbringing and his concience wouldn't let him simply walk away.
The acrid smell of smoke finally started drifting their way then, and he realized as he drew nearer that he also heard the crackling of flames, and the intense heat was becoming worse. His eyes widened, and with sudden alarm, he increased his pace to a run, loping quickly towards the group (Yua being the closest), in the event that they hadn't yet noticed the peril.
"Hey, I think we're in trouble here!" He observed to the brown lion who seemed closest to him in age.
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Mila Farrell Vice Captain
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Posted: Tue Feb 06, 2007 7:19 am
The dark lioness's limbs tremble, just a little. She couldn't remember being this frightened, except perhaps when her father went into one of his rages. But fire awoke a primal fear, even though she had not had any bad experiences with it up to this point. There was just something about the flames that made them seem alive...a cruel, raging creature.
Oddly enough, however, the large unknown male's words bring her back to herself, and she finds herself automatically straightening. Leadership came easily to Afu; she was the type that would not tolerate any other position. It was, perhaps, why she had remained rogue so long. Her odd light-eyed gaze yanks away from the flames in the distance, and she focused on Trigger, her tail lashing as an outlet for her fury and terror.
"We need to get out of here," she addresses Ahali, glancing at Trigger to include him. "You can squabble later. Quickly, before it heads in this direction - " she begins, crisply, then spots the distant horizon. Fire spreads...her eyes narrow, and she glances around imperiously, and her eyes alight with surprise on Yua.
"You -" But this is no time for idle chat, and she merely nods to the former Ela'wadiyi; and, she sees, another white-colored male with beautiful golden hints to his mane and tail. "Come on. We'll be safer as a group if we stick together and don't panic." Her tail lashes again, irate.
"Quickly!" She snaps, and bounds off on a parallel to the flames, in the direction of a large outcropping of rock to the west.
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Posted: Tue Feb 06, 2007 12:17 pm
What kind of brain-dead idiot was this? The male's threat stance died out, but he gave his own snarl of annoyance towards this stupid former firekin. He probably would snort out some sort of insult to this creature, but Afu's sudden courage interrupts him.
"Squabble? " He rolls his eyes. "You call it a squabble when we're attacked? God, Afu. " This was more sarcastic than anything, as somewhat, he didn't quite feel like getting into a real argument with her. So far, he'd found she was head strong; trying to convince her of anything was like a lost case.
Safer together? It was just more to worry about. The large lion snorted in contempt, and eyed the other red liongrimly, almost as if this were his fault. Not only this, but did he thinkthey were buddies now? Just walking over like that. But then Afu suddenly darts off. Whatwas this obsession ove rthe fire? Ahali didn't particularly fear it, to him, it was comming from one direction, easy to evoid. He didn't know they were being circled.
Nonetheless, though, he wouldn't argue, especially because she probably wouldn't hear him if he said anything, so he turned after a glance back at the others around, then went off to follow the lioness, his large paces keeping him from staying far behind.
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Posted: Tue Feb 06, 2007 2:13 pm
Yua quickly relized how misguided his first impression of the smoke had been, and the sudden burst of yelling and demanding coming from everybody caused him to side with Afu rather quickly.
He looked to Jing when he spoke and nodded firmly. "Yes yes. I do think we're in trouble if we stay here as well..." he agreed, then looked to the lioness of the group, nodding to her aknowledgement, before turning from where he'd been walking to run after her.
Fire was something that would eat up everything, for sure. Afu was right, they needed to move as a group before the flames caught up to them. No matter -where- they were coming from. If all they were doing was moving away from the flames, he wondered, what were they going to do when they got where they were running now?
This put the adolescent's brain into a quick and hurried motion to attempt to think. He freaking needed to see where they were going to BE first. Even knowing what the flames were doing would have been nice.
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Posted: Wed Feb 07, 2007 6:40 am
Trigger scoffed and headed the other direction, not following the group but to where the fire wasn't. It was common sense, if you wanted to escape a fire, go to where there isn't any yet or going to be. But when he felt that he was alone in this choice he turned back watching the other four run off. Damn.... a lost sheep. With a curse, he doubled back and quickly ensued. This day just got worse.
mental note... find Mwana after this.
The ex-Firekin moved quickly and caught up to their ranks, the growl simmered down but it was still there. The chance of being attacked was low, at least no one had instigated anything or pushed any.... 'spot' of his. Trigger snorted and ignored the other Firekin. Either way, he was still a Firekin, that blood ran through both of them. Abandoned their pride or not, they were Firekin. At least, that was how he saw it. Even now he calls himself a Firekin even with half his blood being of the Pride Lands' descent
His attention remained on Afu, apparently the one in control here. Normally, he does not take orders but if this got it done quickly, he could go out and find that lost female companion of his wherever she may be.
"Afu, are you sure you know what you are doing?"
He asked, his tone rough and harsh, not meaning to as it has always been like so. His "soft" tone.... well, that was sort of his soft tone. Felt sorry for any female that happen to fall for him. His dull green eyes darted to the right. Ahali.... the Firekin. Beside him maybe a footstep or two behind was a dark male with gold streaks. Behind himself was a smaller borwn male with strange markings. Four males, a single female. Great.
The large male's eyes took a glance back to the flames and scowled.
Stupid heat....
Trigger had a thing for heat, always reminded him of the Firekin deserts, didn't tick him off that much, just annoyed him. Though, he found something more annoying. That aside, he sighed and went on. As of late, after meeting Mwana, nothing seemed to have phazed him much or he paid little mind to. This other Firekin sparked his interest a bit. Why was an ex-Firekin doing way out here? Then again, he was out here, right? But what about these others? Where they rogues? And where did this female come from? So many questions and not the time to ask or get answers. Another time.
Trigger used his strength to push himself faster only to hold back a hell of a lot more of it to stay by Ahali and at the same time be behind the female. His glances turned back to the other two to just make sure that they were still there.
How do I get into these messes....
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Posted: Wed Feb 07, 2007 9:11 am
((I hope I'm still okay to join in with Lefika. If not... ignore me? ^_^; I know it was going to be Koda, originally, but that was if the whole RP was on the weekend while I was away.))
All Lefika had really wanted was a walk.
Koda, the dear thing, he knew how much Lefika loved to travel, to explore the great wide world. So, sympathizing with her agony in being cooped up in the den with the cubs all day, on this day Koda had graciously agreed to take the boys on an outing. Thus, Lefika had been free to take a little day trip. She smiled fondly to herself. Koda always knew just what she needed.
She'd forged north from the jungles she now called home and in time came to the crest of the crater. It was a curious thing, not like any land she was yet familiar with, and it struck her so that she was determined to explore it. She clambored over the edge and climbed down the slope. For a while she just walked around the edge. In the distance, she spied a small, loose group of lions. Two of them were quareling. She ignored them. She had no business getting involved in the petty fights of others. Then the shouting grew louder. Still she ignored it; she assumed the fight had merely escalated. But even as she thought this, she scented it on the air.
Smoke.
From her vantage point, as she turned, Lefika could see the flames quite clearly. In the dry heat, the flames grew tall quickly, and they crawled along the landscape. In fact, they seemed to be coming around in a great circle... something that didn't seem to occur to the lot of the lions below as they darted from the nearest crop of flames. Lefika frowned and dashed down the ledge towards the group. She caught pace with Afu and Ahali and addressed them conversationally, even in chaos, as was her way. "Hey," she said, "You know the flames are coming around in a circle, right? At least, it looks that way..." Her pale steely eyes glittered a bit with fear, but she wasn't about to let it overtake her. No way. She was a strong lioness, and she wasn't about to let her concern drive her away. She was going to stay and offer her assistance to this group. After all, being a new mother, her protective instincts were on overdrive. She just wanted to help.
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Posted: Wed Feb 07, 2007 9:53 am
On a morbidly optimistic note, Jing'fei was glad that he'd already parted ways with his sister and her escort by now.
They were joined by another as the group began their escape. Jing felt much more inclined to follow Afu-- he found it a bit ironic in that instant that her dark pelt made her resemble his mother, it seemed a strange thing to notice at a time like that.
Whoever those two males were (Firekin he'd now guess, by their tempers, sizes, and pelt colors (they looked like they could have been brothers, even) from what he'd gathered from Kidondo.), they both seemed rather hot headed, but especially the one with the tan, who almost ran off on his own.
Jing ran alongside of Yua, though he seemed quick to catch up to the group as a whole. The white adolescent lookied ahead and upon spotting the rocks, understood. The flames that were racing towards them were eating the grasses and anything else in it's path as if it were some starved beast, however, as Jing noticed, it also seemed to be faster than they were. Already the flames had caught up to them. He feared that they wouldn't make it to the rocks before the orange and yellow beast cut off their path. As if confirming this, along came Lefika, whose words he caught as they ran.
The flames were moving in the shape of a circle??
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Posted: Sun Feb 11, 2007 3:47 pm
Tui'lians big paws pounded the ground as she raced through the grasses, her pale eyes searching. "Yua!" She called out, wishing she had never left her new friends side. She had wandered to examine a scent she had picked up, but found she had followed her nose to a pile of bones with hardly any meat on them.
Tui was hit with senses of all kinds as she came upon the group; the scent of smoke in the air, getting stronger. The sight of Yua made her smile with relief as she ran towards him and the other lions.
Suddenly a large busrt of flames came up behind her, and she gasped with terror. She started coughing immediately, the smoke filling her lungs and making her eyes water.
The flames acted as cruel masters, pushing her forward and making her run faster and faster. She finally caught up with the group of lions also escaping the flames, and ran right to Yu'a side.
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Posted: Sat Feb 17, 2007 1:44 pm
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Posted: Mon Feb 19, 2007 10:58 pm
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Posted: Tue Feb 20, 2007 6:11 am
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