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mouselet rolled 5 4-sided dice:
4, 1, 3, 1, 2
Total: 11 (5-20)
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 Posted: Mon Jan 20, 2014 7:10 pm
 Ensis often thought that the best part of achieving the rank of Reaver was the fact that he was often the first pridemember to test a newcomer's skill and mettle. Not only was there the thrill of pitting himself against an opponent of unknown strength, but the thought that no other Stormborn lion could tell him what to expect. The white and green lion accepted such advice when offered, but did not seek it out, preferring to let his opponents surprise him - or not - with their skills and preferred techniques. He had heard that there was a lion seeking an Askorun, and now Ensis waited, still as a statue, eager for the first sight of his challenger.
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Princess_Feylin rolled 5 4-sided dice:
1, 4, 4, 4, 3
Total: 16 (5-20)
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Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 9:21 am
"Hello!" he called when he knew he had crossed the invisible line that marked the edge of the pride's territory. If there were formal words for this, he did not know them, and so he added something that sounded suitable for the occasion. "I am here to challenge for right of entry."
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Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 4:56 pm
"Then I shall test you, and see if you truly have iron in your blood," Ensis replied, his voice measured and calm as he looked upon his opponent. The other male was dark, with an oddly colored and patterned pelt the likes of which he'd never seen. But looks meant little to the lighter lion, it was all about the strength, the speed...and the reaction time.
Lunging quickly from a complete standstill, Ensis rushed the other lion, aiming to ram him in the shoulder and throw him off balance. Maybe even knock him over. There was no formal bow or any of that nonsense. There was simply the opening attack.
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Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 5:52 pm
Sky was ready for the way these lions charged in without warning. He had dodged the initial attack in his last fight, too, but then he had been unprepared for what followed. This time he was less concerned about the opening salvo and already in motion with an attack. Dodging was a waste of time and energy unless it was also combined with an attack.
So he, too, lunged forward, close enough that his shoulder brushed against his opponent's and his face was brought near enough his hip to aim a bite there. Last time he had been told that there were no rules, and so he knew it was permitted to draw blood in these battles. He did not have to be careful of his opponent. He had to be better than him, and fight him to a draw at least.
The ground was damp under his paws in the same way that the air seemed to be pervasively damp and slightly salt-scented, but Sky did not find either of these things to be a drawback. Instead, the salt air was invigorating and reminded him faintly of the taste of blood. For a pride of warriors, that was entirely appropriate, Sky felt.
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Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 7:58 pm
The bite wasn't totally unexpected, he'd certainly brought himself close enough to make it reasonable and the teeth were a lion's last resort most of the time. He wasn't able to dodge it entirely, but the damage wasn't too bad. This time.
It was an interesting choice for his opponent's opening attack.
Instead biting back, Ensis brought his paw around, claws extended, towards the other lion's face. It wasn't meant to actually hit, but the challenger didn't know that.
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Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2014 5:05 pm
As Ensis had predicted, Sky had no way of knowing that the claw swipe wasn't meant to make contact with his face, and so he ducked away from it. It was mostly successful, but he was not entirely unscathed. While he was already crouched he gathered his strength to leap forward and attack again immediately, even risking blows directed at his face. He kept his chin lowered and his eyes narrowed in the hope that these measures would protect his eyes.
His forward momentum was just that. He didn't have his teeth or claws bared for an attack. He was just moving very fast and hoping for a very hard impact. It had not been a brilliant strategy for him the last time he tried it, but this time his opponent was not also intent on ramming him skull-to-skull. If his opponent dodged, well, he would just have to hope that he was able to perform an about-face fast enough to avoid any further slashes to his face.
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Posted: Sat Feb 01, 2014 11:56 am
Ensis realized what was happening with only enough time to brace himself, not enough thought or time to dodge out of the way of the challenger's ramming himself bodily into the white lion. It hurt - a lot - but the Reaver managed to keep his feet even though the force pushed him back.
In retaliation, he reached around the other's black mane to rake his claws down the dark male's back. Who was he to argue with the challenger coming into easy foreleg's reach?
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Posted: Sun Feb 02, 2014 8:28 am
The pale lion's claws certainly hurt as they dug into Sky's back and shoulders, but the dark lion was determined to be victorious in this battle, and so he dug in with his hind claws as much as possible and shoved into his opponent, moving in the direction that the claws were pulling him anyway. He was not in an ideal position for biting still, but with his hind legs doing all the work he could raise his forepaws and wrap them around his opponent in a very similar grip to the one being applied to him. From there it would be a struggle to see which lion could overpower the other and attain a better position.
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Posted: Sun Feb 02, 2014 8:55 am
Ensis raised a mental eyebrow at the tactics the dark lion chose to use. So...that was how he wanted to play it, eh? Pure wrestling? It wasn't the white lion's preferred method, not at all. He'd much prefer to use claws and fangs.
The Reaver decided he wasn't going to play along. So instead of actively fighting the challenger, he instead allowed his body to go limp, collapsing towards the ground in a controlled fashion.
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Posted: Sun Feb 02, 2014 10:22 am
Collapsing opponents were fine with Skydas, as long as he kept himself from toppling over and exposing his underside to vicious jabs from his downed opponent's hind claws. That was the shortcut to evisceration and Sky wanted no part of that. Gut wounds were nasty, nasty things and Sky knew that it was far beyond his ability to treat any such, should he be careless enough to receive one. Thus, he simply released his grip as his green-maned opponent fell earthward and moved out of kicking range, for the most part.
His four paws did not stay on the ground for long though. Soon Sky was lunging forward in a daring attempt to slash at his white opponent's sides with his foreclaws. He didn't intend to do serious damage, just draw blood. He wasn't really sure how to tell when one of these challenges was over, having only fought in one before. That time the other lion had declared it over because Sky had been reeling with dizziness and barely able to form sentences. Well. Sky was willing to fight for as long as it took.
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Posted: Sun Feb 02, 2014 11:11 am
Aha, his ploy had worked. The dark lion released him as Ensis allowed gravity to have its way and simply folded his legs appropriately. Oh sure, he'd have a few bruises to add to the overall total, but the move had accomplished its goal.
Unfortunately, the challenger simply refused to give up. Well, perhaps that was fortunate after all, the Myrsky Syntynyt certainly didn't need weaklings who gave up at the first indication of difficulty. The white lion brought up his forelegs to block the incoming claws. He didn't wince as they ripped new bloody streaks on his legs, after all, better his legs than his face.
As soon as he had breathing room, Ensis lunged to his feet once more, fangs bared.
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Posted: Mon Feb 03, 2014 12:22 pm
Sky found himself momentarily astonished by the way thin lines of red appeared on his opponent's white limbs. It wasn't as though he'd never drawn blood before, but on his opponent's white coat the contrast was something of a spectacle. He didn't dwell on it. Blood was blood, and he was fighting. There were more important things to consider. Like, for instance, the fact that he was getting tired of feeling like he was being humored.
"I can do this all day," he warned. He had the energy and strength to fight longer, but in truth he'd had enough. He snarled as his opponent gained his feet once more and bared his fangs, then he lunged again, aiming for his opponent's forelegs with his claws and snapping at his throat with his jaws. Manes tended to protect throats, but any lion who knew anything about fighting learned to deal with that in one way or another.
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Posted: Mon Feb 10, 2014 5:58 pm
Ensis managed to twist himself so that his challenger's claws struck home and his fangs grasped mostly hair. Mostly. A touch of blood as well, but again, what concern was that to the Reaver?
He saved his emotions for feeling true satisfaction with the level of skill he'd found in this newcomer. He'd make a good Stormborn.
"There is no need to continue this battle all day," he said, taking a step back. "You've proven yourself strong and the Myrsky Syntynyt welcomes you. Come, warm yourself, meet the Warlord, and find welcome in this home."
It was far more than the white lion usually said, but he felt the situation warranted it. It had been a good fight.
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Posted: Tue Feb 11, 2014 4:05 pm
Oh, thank the gods. Because all that stuff about Sky being able to go on forever? Totally untrue. He was tiring pretty rapidly. These Stormborn lions were formidable foes and he knew for a fact he was not in a position to win protracted battles against one. Not yet, anyway. Training against them regularly would fix that, he had no doubt.
"That's good to hear." He grinned and tried to make it look as though he wasn't the least bit tired. He'd just won entry. That was a victory, even if the battle itself had not resulted in a definite victory for one lion or the other. "Thank you for a good fight."
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