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 Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2012 4:53 pm
 Lesedi was on patrol duty. It was a foggy day with absolutely no wind and an eerie landscape stretched out in front of the tawny lion. Not even the birds sang today. On days like this, Lesedi was more inclined to believe in the Ethereal and he took the Priestesses’ words to heart. They’d told him he’d meet someone of importance today and normally he would’ve simply snorted and silently mocked their… visions? Intuition? He met strangers near the borders almost every day. Some joined the pride as brothers, others as Thralls. It was difficult to judge their future importance based on a single meeting. Someone of importance. What did that even mean?
Whatever the case, Lesedi sat on a rock formation, trying to scent the air for intruders.
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Posted: Sat Aug 11, 2012 3:28 am
 After a less than friendly encounter with a group of reavers Aruná had decided that these "Stormborn" lions were responsible for her sister's disappearance. She had been able to track the group back quite easily since there were several lions and their hostages. Getting in without doing so as a slave was not going to be as straightforward, and Aruná had skulked around the borders for days now, plotting her next move. She had hoped to see some sign of her sister before barging in, but she was starting to grow impatient.
With the fog as an unexpected ally she decided to try sneak closer than she had dared before. Hopefully she'd learn more about these lions, and possibly get a glimpse or scent of Udongo.
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Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 5:44 pm
It started with an uncomfortable feeling Lesedi couldn’t quite describe but he knew he was not alone even before the scent of a stranger reached his nose. He’d not been alerted by any sounds of alarm from the birds in the area or the stranger himself… herself. A lioness, that alone was enough to tug at his suspicious nature. She was definitely up to no good or she wouldn’t have sneaked up under the cover of the dense mist into pridal territory without calling out to the lions who lived in the rocky lands.
“Show yourself.” Lesedi said in a growly tone, a clear indicator of his discontent. The idea that someone could sneak past him and reach the heart of his pride on Lesedi’s watch was as insulting as it was unlikely as far as the Reaver was concerned. His voice, loud to begin with, grew even louder as he delivered a single word that sounded like an unspoken threat in itself. “Now.”
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Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 3:05 am
Aruná hadn't noticed the lion in the fog, and it annoyed her to no end. She must have mistaken him for another stone in that rock formation, since the mist made everything take on a greyish tint. There was no use trying to hide or run, and she tried to look tall and proud as she approached the lion on top of the rocks. The look she gave him was challenging, and she sincerely hoped that he was alone up there.
"Yees?" she drawled, "What seems to be the problem?"
It was a long shot, but she hoped that her chances would be better if she didn't show any fear. If more guards were posted within hearing range she'd be ******** either way.
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Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 11:29 am
Oh, feigning innocence, was she? Two could play that game and while Lesedi was very tempted to give a sarcastic reply to her words, he had pride in his position and being on duty kept him from ignoring the responsibilities that being a Reaver entailed. There was an edge of challenge to her that seemed to dare him to contradict the innocence of her question and the tawny lion held back another growl with difficulty, his competitive nature instantly begging for a fight. He stood at his full height, leaning a bit forward as his tail lashed angrily behind him.
“You have crossed the border of the Myrsky Syntynyt, home of the Stormborn. We do not allow visitors to pass through.” She’d definitely caught the scents betrayed the lands as an occupied location so he now had reason to suspect his motives. “Are you here to challenge your way into the pride?”
The only way she was going to keep moving closer to the pride was as a new member or a Thrall and Lesedi didn’t think she looked like slave material – like the last girl he’d met near the border that he’d brought back as a Thrall. He hadn’t been patrolling the borders that day and it had been easy to subdue the meek blue female but this one, with her fiery markings that seemed to match the determination in her eyes, would probably react in a very different way and Lesedi couldn’t afford to leave his post in order to attempt to capture another Thrall for the pride.
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Annchen rolled 5 4-sided dice:
1, 3, 3, 4, 3
Total: 14 (5-20)
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Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2012 3:24 am
Aruná hadn't really had a plan, and now she had to play by ear. She knew how challenges had worked in her old pride, but there was no telling if it even meant the same thing here. It was mostly a Claw thing, so she just had a basic understanding of it. When the challenge was for leadership of the Claw it was serious business, but there were more laid back challenges too. She wasn't sure what this was, and it might perhpas have been wise to figure that out before accepting.
"Err... Yes, I'm here to challenge you," she said, puffing her chest out, "You seem to be alert enough to be a worthy challenger."
This might turn out to be a very bad idea, and she sincerely hoped she hadn't just challenged the male to the death...
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Mogami rolled 5 4-sided dice:
1, 1, 4, 3, 4
Total: 13 (5-20)
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Posted: Mon Aug 27, 2012 2:44 pm
So she was a challenger. So far Lesedi hadn’t lost an askorun and allowed any rogues to join the pride. He didn’t think this female would be the first.
Taking a few steps forward as his body dropped to an aggressive feline crouch, the tawny lion actually looked a little amused at the lioness’ words because he was convinced that he could defeat her easily and he was eager to see the change in her attitude once he started wiping the ground with her face.
“So be it. Outlander, one day I will kill you.” He delivered the Stormborn greeting belatedly to give the challenge a sense of formality but also to enjoy her reaction to it. The next moment he was lunging at her, throwing his full weight forward as he aimed a blow to the dark lioness’ head.
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Posted: Tue Aug 28, 2012 1:18 pm
Outlander, huh? She tried to remember what she'd heard from the cheetah she'd traded information with some time back. You either entered their lands as a slave, or you fought your way in. So she better win this, if this challenge was her ticket to enter these lands. Enslavement wasn't an option.
"Last Stormborn I met, I promised to kill," she growled, but the time for talking was over, and she had to throw herself to the side to avoid being bowled over.
Aruná narrowly managed to duck away from his first attack, very annoyed over being distracted by talking. That wasn't going to happen again. She circled her opponent, trying to keep moving to make him work if he wanted to charge at her again. His soul looked young and flighty, and she could see that he was a fighter. But her soul also had the colour of a warrior, and it was far more mature. Hopefully some good spirits out there would help her get an edge in this fight. She made a feint and then dashed in low to try to get at his hind legs.
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Posted: Wed Aug 29, 2012 11:21 am
Lesedi growled back as the lioness circled him and then lunged at his hind legs. Lesedi had moved to hit her right before she feinted and so he just barely missed her. His weight made it difficult to avoid her attack and so, in perfect Stormborn fashion, he didn’t. The Reaver braced himself for her blow, his head already twisting to catch her neck as soon as she came close enough. The moment she touched his leg, he would have her neck… well, that was the plan at least. She was already surprising him by being much faster and more aggressive (both in words and actions) than he was giving her credit for. So maybe she was worth his time. Someone of importance, huh?
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Posted: Sun Sep 16, 2012 1:56 pm
Aruná was used to moving prey, and she had started her attack with that in mind and had to adjust quickly when he didn't move. She had more or less expected the Stormborn to try to avoid her attack. But it seemed to be true that these warriors were fearless in battle. And if that was the case she would simply have to keep moving and wear him down.
The former hunter threw her entire weight on the leg closest to him, hoping to get him off balance. She could feel his teeth graze the back of her neck, before she could roll away, and cursed under her breath. He got mostly fur, and not much skin, but it was still painful. She had to be more careful than this!
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Posted: Tue Sep 18, 2012 5:21 am
Lesedi groaned when he failed to catch the dark lioness by the neck. This was one of the reasons he hated fighting females. He could say that it was because such uneven fights were beneath him as many times as it took for himself to actually start believing it but the truth was that he found their speed and agility rather annoying, often tiring him to an unpleasant way of fighting or an actual draw.
Her move had indeed left him slightly off balance so when he jumped at the challenger with one paw extended, Lesedi knew the blow would most likely not connect. Knowing that he was leaving many openings in this failed attempt, it was his turn to curse under his breath.
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Posted: Mon Sep 24, 2012 2:02 pm
Mogami Not sure where she's going with this... xd More than trying to annoy him as much as possible.
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Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2012 1:43 pm
Annchen XD Well, it worked! ahahahah
This was no good. He had a lot of work ahead of him if he wanted to become one of the toughest Reavers in the pride. At the very least he had to be able to easily defeat a smaller lion or lioness even if they were faster or more agile. He doubted he could ever match this lioness’ grace, his weight and built played heavily against that but something had to change even if Lesedi was forced to completely change his entire fighting strategy.
He thought about ending their fight at that moment. She was undeniably holding her own and dealing some damage as well. As much as he hated to admit it, it didn’t seem like he would be able to grab her and he had already wasted most of his stamina trying to get a hold of any part of her body that came close enough. He could play the defensive part but that went against everything he had learned from the more experienced Reavers with whom he had been practicing his fighting skills and he wasn't about to make such a sudden change mid-fight.
“Enough.” He said at last in growly tone, straightening himself up from his fighting stance. “What is your name?”
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Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2012 2:58 pm
Aruná straightened up, strong and proud. She could see that she was starting to wear down the male, but she wasn't sure how much more it would take. For all she knew this could be a trick to make her drop her guard. But these lions seemed to value strength, and she felt strong. If he wanted to keep fighting she would continue for as long as she could. She had managed to bring down difficult prey before. A lion wasn't the same, but the stakes were higher than usual and she would fight to the bitter end.
"I'm Aruná," she said in a loud and clear voice. There wasn't much to add to that. She had never been embarrassed of her rank as hunter, but it didn't seem impressive enough to mention, and 'of the Mizimu'Tungika' wasn't true anymore. "I'll defeat you with the help of the spirits."
The last part was added on a whim. She wasn't sure if she could count on the spirits for help anymore, but it was probably best to keep on their good side just in case. And she knew some outsiders got very uncomfortable if you started talking about the spirit world. It might help her even if the spirits of her home had been left behind in the plagued and abandoned pride territory.
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Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2012 4:54 pm
“Aruná.” Lesedi repeated as if committing the name to memory. “Well met.” The Reaver’s expression seemed to contradict his words but his tone had suddenly become quite neutral.
“Defeat me?” The idea almost made him reconsider what he’d been about to do and drop to a fighting stance again, reconsider his strategy and wipe the ground with the dark lioness’ face. But he wouldn’t. Others, some that he respected even, could fight in clever ways, using both their strength and their heads but Lesedi still had a long way to go before he reached that level.
“You can pass freely, Outlander Aruná.” There was no point in fighting until they couldn’t stand when it seemed the outcome would be the same no matter how long they fought. Lesedi turned and nodded the lioness to follow him. “From this day forth, you are Stormborn. Follow me.” Spirits? Bah! Maybe she’d turn into a Priestess – as if there weren’t enough of those creepy lionesses around. The thought didn’t make him feel any better and he eyed the dark lioness with wary eyes before making his way towards the heart of the pride.
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