Hero - Xiao and Elysia

[Talencia]

Hunting by herself for small game was something Ely was good at. She had even rigged a sort of sling to loop over her head and across one shoulder, so that she could move freely with her prey. Since she wasn't just hunting for herself, she took pains to catch as much as she could while she was out. Today had been an excellent hunting day.

In her sling bag she had two fat rabbits, several plump (and lazy!) birds, and even the gangly form of a lost gazelle foal. She had only just gotten it settled and began heading back for the pride when she'd heard the unwelcome and dangerous sound of hyenas. It was clear there was a pack of them, not just one or two, and her first instinct was to hide. She'd darted behind some shrubbery, but they'd kept coming, calling taunts to her, though she was positive they wouldn't see her... oh, but they could smell her prey! The leather sling, made from the tough hide of a crocodile, was damp with splatters of blood from her hunts.

Great. Just great.

Despite how close they now were, she cinched her sling closer, took a deep breath, and bolted from cover. She was hopeful that they weren't so close that she would be unable to escape them. Much to her dismay, she found them right on her heels. With a frustrated growl she changed her flight, turning from the too-distant pride borders to the shelter of a large pile of rocks in the near distance. Once there, she spun, not even with enough time to divest herself of the heavy sling. Snarling, she slashed at the first canine to come close. "Come on, take my prey... but I'll take you down first!" Her defiant words weren't merely bravado. She was no fighter, but she certainly knew how to inflict harm. Defiantly she swiped at another, sending it ducking away with a yelp.  

[Talencia]

Ely was gratified to hear an answering roar from the other side of the attacking pack. She surged forward to bean one of the slavering canines with one heavy paw, claws leaving furrows in its mangy skin. "See there?" she snarled, panting as she swiped at another, scoring its nose. "There are more on the way, fleabags! My pride doesn't take kindly to mobs of scavengers on our lands!" Nevermind that she was possibly beyond the pride's borders. That was irrelevant at the moment. Even with another lion, a male at that, helping her against the pack, the odds were still rather against them. She was willing to throw any possible weapon at them, even words to creep out their tiny brains.

"Is death worth the attempt at a few hares, hmm?" She lunged and sank her teeth into the muscled shoulder of one as it glanced back towards the male. With a powerful jerk, she hauled it sideways and into its neighbor, releasing in time to allow both to go crashing to the dirt. "Blood for blood, we'll bleed you more than these few measly carcasses could hold." Make them pay ferociously, and maybe, just maybe, she and this stranger could win free.

F a y t h - x