[SRP - North] A Playful Challenge [Thrain & Malus]

[Quaji]

The day was like any other. The sun was still in the sky, just peaking through the leaves above. The birds were still singing above him and there was still work to be done, but any of that could wait for the moment because today was different than normal days in just a small way. Today was the day he would present his kills to be pitted against the huntress' kills

He had approached three days ago, accusing her of poaching and when he requested her name, she replied with a small proposition; a challenge of a skill set she was uncommonly known for but that he lacked. Hunting. They had three days to hunt for a number of creatures and to bring the head of each of them to a specific spot so they could be judged and see who was the better of the two at this.

He sat patiently at the designated meeting point; an open area with only a few rock formations to really denote the place as anything special. Of course the captain knew this place well; he trained here frequently and despite the aching, he had brought the heads of his kills. Here was hoping it would be enough to earn him her name. The lion's memory failed to recall her name from any whisper he had heard and until now, he had not occurred to him to just ask around for it. Three days wasted, but still, perhaps he could impress himself. With the smell of blood in the air, he waited for her.  

[Quaji]

Coming over the hill was Malus with a rough skill, stained with blood and smelling of decay thrown over her back, part of it in her mouth. Violet eyes lit up as she saw the tan lion sitting patiently. Hastening her pace she quickly approached him. Letting the bag slide off of her back she grinned broadly.

"Ahah! I was wondering if you were going to show. Of course you beat me here. Probably those strong legs. I'm guessing you're used to the terrain already then? I hope you brought some good kills. How many did you catch?" There was no reason to waste any time with idle chit-chat. That wasn't her style anyways, especially not when there was such a feeling of excitement.  

[Quaji]

Thrain's roll for # of prey caught.
Rolled a 1.

Thrain's ears went back. Her bag seemed to be so full and well, he didn't have much to offer. He wasn't a hunter at all and since coming to the Tianxia, he hadn't really needed to hunt for his own survival, not with the hunters sharing their kills with everyone. The once regal captain was now reduced to almost a frightened cub as he whispered the number of prey he had caught for the competition between the two of them.

"One..."  

[Quaji]

Malus' roll for # of prey caught.
Rolled a 5.

"One?" She echoed. She had never met such an incapable hunter, but of course the huntress knew better than to say that. There was no reason to offend the man. This was all supposed to be fun anyways, but it was a way for her show off her skill, at least for a small time. Puffing her chest out, Malus proudly declared her number of downed prey. "One's not bad. At least you caught something. I'm sure it's a great one though. I caught five."

The green lioness paused. Maybe she should have gone easy on him. She was a hunter after-all and he wasn't. It wasn't in his profession to really have to know how to hunt, only fight. "Well, show me what you caught."  

[Quaji]

Thrain's roll for kind of prey caught.
Rolled 2, medium prey.

Of course he knew he have to show it but somehow he had hoped hers would be all small and that she wouldn't have many but five? No, even if they were all small, the sheer quantity would outweigh his medium-sized catch. Slowly he twisted around and pushed out the head of a bush duiker. The little antelope's head was still fresh, which was a requirement of the game. Hopefully it would be enough that she wouldn't just outright dismiss him as a hunter and perhaps give him the chance of a rematch some time.  

[Quaji]

Malus' roll for kind of prey caught. #1
Rolled 3, medium prey.

The first of her five came out and it was the head of a Nubian ibex. The horns a decent size and she knew she could probably trade it for something in the West in any of their trader's came to the North in a timely manner. Maybe sending a falcon their way wouldn't be a bad idea. Even the skull could be worth something! It was something she hadn't entirely thought about until the head was sitting in front of her. Malus' gaze turned up to Thrain to gauge how he reacted to the first of her five heads.  

[Quaji]

Thrain's response.

It was a fine example of what a skilled hunter could bring down but there were still four more to go and that made the captain nervous. He was obviously outshined by her superior skill in bringing down prey. Now he could only hope she was gentle in not rubbing it in his face that he utterly failed. Luckily for him the Tianxia was known for their unrivaled respect to its own members and so far everything was going well. There were no crude comments and only her genuine and well deserved pride had surfaced so far. Giving his approval of it, he simply nodded.  

[Quaji]

Malus' roll for kind of prey caught. #2
Rolled 1, small prey.

The next item wasn't even a head but instead one of the wings from a blue-winged goose. It was something she was also planning on trading since she was sure the blue-hued feathers all along the wing would also trade easily to the craftsman in the West. She was intensely proud of killing this bird since waterfowl were typically so hard to catch. Still, Malus hardly waited for his approval this time, hurriedly working on pulling the next out.  

[Quaji]

Thrain's response.

Those feathers were absolutely beautiful! Even Thrain, a lion with few earthly desires, found them breathtaking. Making a note, he would definitely ask more about the bird that they came from after this little competition was over. There were still three more kills to go and then maybe, if he was lucky, he would get her name.  

[Quaji]

Malus' roll for kind of prey caught. #3
Rolled a 4, medium prey.

It was another ibex, though slightly larger in size than the other. It's horns were just as magnificent, if not more-so and there was a beam of pride that came from Malus as she sat there with her collection of prey. She wasn't even done yet! Oh how she felt so bad for crushing the new captain in a hunting game, especially since he only managed to catch one thing, but this was her job and she was good at it. His job was to keep her and the rest of the North, safe while they did theirs'. He was good at that or so she had heard through all of the rumors circulating around him.  

[Quaji]

Thrain's response.

She was proving her skill with each head she displayed and with each other, Thrain's heart sank a little more. He lost this so badly. Still, there was still some sense of pride that she belonged to the same house as he did. Perhaps the two could become friends, despite their rocky start. Perhaps there was still a chance to begin said friendship after this.  

[Quaji]

Malus' roll for kind of prey caught. #4
Rolled a 4, medium prey.

A boar.

This was another huntress' speciality when it came to hunting, but was a new one for Malus to tackle. She had heard of the dangers it posed to anyone who came across one, especially a new mother, but all Malus had heard when others were warning her was 'This is challenge, go kill one!'. And so she had. Especially proud of this one, there was even a thought in her head already to see if she couldn't get something made out of it's tusks. Maybe a necklace, or a fur cloak with the tusk as a clasp, for the colder times in the North she heard so many talking about of course.  

[Quaji]

Thrain's response.

There was still one more after this one. And the display of the boar's head only reminded him more of that fact. Had she taken down something even larger as her final kill to show him? This would be one game he likely would not participate in again, but there was still a moment of fun and reflection on himself and his abilities to be had.

"And the last one?" Thrain asked cautiously, worried it would be something that would forever shame him and his mediocre hunting skills.  

[Quaji]

Malus' roll for kind of prey caught. #5
Rolled a 1, small prey.

The full body of a hare now laid underneath the huntress's paw. It was small in size, hardly anything even on it that could be used to feed anyone. It would probably end up going to a worker, or a criminal, but the skin was still soft enough that it would make leg warmers for a young cub's forelegs in the right artisan's care.

"And that's the last one." Malus replied, a wide grin on her face. She had absolutely decimated him in this challenge and it felt amazing to actually be good at something. "That was a good game, Tie Shi. Maybe we can play again some time." Of course she knew his name. Almost everyone did nowadays.

As she packed up the heads to hand them over to a messenger to take them to the West to be refined into useful items, she turned to look down her side towards the captain who looked at his one kill. "My name's Mo Zhao. Ink paw. Just ask for me around the other hunters if you want some hunting lessons. You seem like you might want them." There were only a few hunters in the North so it was a fairly tight knit group and before Thrain even got a word in the huntress was already gone back towards the center of the North.