[Duel] Transitioning (Aurinko/Adhama)

[Andranis]

Sleek and dark, Aurinko walked to the area she swore was the designated place for duels. It seemed to her a lot of them happened here, at least for those trying to come in. Not that she minded, the constantly-stirred sand of the space meant it was always a new challenge and was never the same dips and hills. It kept the lions of the pride sharp, but it also meant that repeat challengers would never be on the same sands twice.

As the sun reflected slightly on the ride lightning-like stripes on her back and the white tuft of her tail, Aurinko surveyed who was here to challenge today. She only spied, for the moment, a white and black lioness with golden runes on her shoulder and pale gold eyes. "I've never seen you before... Are you ready to fight your way in, stranger?" Aurinko was not one to mock new-comers. Her blood was all new blood, something that made her decidedly proud. Her mother had fought with Kidondo and No in the rebellion, something she'd boast about if asked about her family history. She embraced new lions because of it, and looked forward to fighting duels not because she wanted to win, but because she wanted the other lions to win and earn their place. She wouldn't make it easy for them, though. She was a soldier, after all!  

[Meepfur]

This seemed like a good idea.

To Adhama, pretty much everything that occurred to her to do seemed like a good idea, and attempting to duel her way into the Firekin was the latest in the string of 'good ideas' that had been her pilgrimage. None of those good ideas had led her to a name, and so she'd decided that maybe finding her name and returning to the swamp wasn't actually what she was meant to do. In light of all the places she'd been and things she'd seen, it was certainly not the exciting thing to do. Going back to that quiet little life lost more and more appeal every day. But this...this pride was for her. She was sure of it!

She eyed the red-striped lioness as she approached, sizing her up carefully. For a swampie, Adhama was a bit larger than average thanks to the maternal side of her family, but here she felt downright small. It was an uncomfortable feeling, one she was quick to shake off.

"I am," was her simple but confident answer.  

[Andranis]

"Good! I'm not going easy!" The dark lioness, with little other warning, charged head-long at the black and white lioness. If she dodged, good. If not, she needed more practice. If Adhama lost in this duel, Aurinko wasn't going to hold it against her. Losses, after all, were learning opportunities. She'd watched other lions lose one fight, and then win the next, even against the same opponent. Clearly they'd taken what they'd learned from their loss and used it against their opponent the second time, learned from their mistakes and what mistakes the other lion had made.

As she got closer, Aurinko jumped, claws flexed out. When she said she wouldn't go easy.. She meant she wasn't going to avoid using her claws.

Meepfur

 

[Meepfur]

This was Adhama's first attempt at anything that could really be called a 'duel,' and so she wasn't entirely certain what to expect. Claws or no claws, teeth or no teeth, all she knew for sure was that seriously injuring her opponent would be frowned upon. When the larger lioness came at her with claws out, though, she could only assume that minor injuries would be acceptable.

As Adhama ducked out of the way, she felt the other's claws skim over her hide, and whipped around to strike at her with her own claws unsheathed.

Andranis

 

[Andranis]

Aurinko let out a surprised roar, whipping around and swatting at the other lion. Her claws missed, though - Adhama appeared to be out of reach before she could even fully turn. She gave a snort, then set to circling. Perhaps, if she was lucky, she could unnerve the other lioness. The dark lioness' body dropped low as she growled, raising her hackles. She was still a large lioness, even with her non-Firekin blood... But the desert still somehow gave her large stature, and she enjoyed that. Some of those Bonelands lionesses were still intimidated by her size. Was this new face?  

[Meepfur]

Adhama was not easily intimidated, courtesy of a large helping of the youthful belief that she was invincible. And awesome. Very, very awesome. It was arrogance, plain and simple, and a rather dangerous dose of the stuff. She was blissfully unaware of - or at least chose to ignore - the fact that she was as mortal and therefore fallible as everyone else. So, bigger than average lioness? Not a problem!

The rune-marked lioness was undaunted by her opponent's display and rushed forward, using powerful hindquarters to launch herself at the soldier, her goal to land on Aurinko's back.

Andranis

 

[Andranis]

Meepfur

Also roll! (Hi. 8D)

Andranis

The black lioness let out another roar at the hit, before she set back to circling. Maybe she could just annoy the other lioness into a misstep... As she moved, she took a moment to admire the patterning on her opponent. White with black stripes... She'd seen it on zebras, and when at the Bonelands outpost, had asked a zebra what benefit the striping had, besides frustrating lions and leopards. The zebra had pointed out that while the white stripes reflected heat, the black stripes absorbed it, so it acted to help regulate temperature.

Not that it probably applied to a lion, though, but it was still a fascinating subject to her. If she hadn't been a Soldier-type, she would have thought to study all the markings of the lions in the pride. But she had no patience for that, and she was starting to lose her patience with her own poor performance now.  

[Meepfur]

This was all going exceptionally well for Adhama so far, fueling her characteristic confidence and turning it to outright overconfidence. Fresh from landing a hit - a very good hit, if she did say so herself! - she bounced right back in to swat at the dark lioness yet again. And she may have, well, she may have stumbled a little. She would vehemently deny it later, but sand was something of a difficult surface on which to fight for someone unused to the terrain, and she slipped a bit, fouling the attempt.

Andranis

This has only taken, uh, forever and a day. Many apologies!

 

[Andranis]

The stumble wasn't missed by the more experienced and native-born lioness. She dove away, purposely tumbling before jumping up again. A confidence wiggled its way in, the combination of the fault of her opponent's steps and knowledge of her being native to the lands. But it created a fault for herself, too, as she moved to strike, only for the sand to give under her front paw, the swipe missing by quite a bit. She let out a curse, trying to recover quickly.

Meepfur

 

[Meepfur]

Her own slip-up was quickly forgotten when Aurinko faltered in the sand as well. Adhama smirked as the other cursed, and attacked again with renewed confidence, driving forward hard to take advantage of the moment it would take her to recover from the missed swipe. Maybe, just maybe, if she were to hit hard enough and fast enough, she could end this, and have what she craved: victory, and entrance into the pride.

Andranis

 

[Andranis]

Meepfur

It seemed the odds would be in the former swamp lion's favor, as Aurinko tumbled again from the force of the new attack. She didn't counter this time, though, didn't even try. She was young, yes, but she wasn't stupid. She could see she had lost, and opted for a graceful defeat instead of a graceless one. Instead of attacking again, she simply stood and looked to the other lioness. "It seems I cannot defeat you today." She gave a bow of her head, smiling. "You are, indeed, of the Fire. Welcome home, then."  

[Meepfur]

Adhama was pleased as could be when her blow hit home, and her opponent yielded rather than countering again. The black-striped lioness stood tall, eyes alight and dark tail lashing in excitement. That had been a good fight, and better still, she had won it - against someone far larger than she. It was the outcome she had expected, of course, but knowing she would win didn't dampen the rush she felt when she did win. In other circumstances, she might have gloated, but even she knew now was not the time for such behavior.

"Thank you," she said with a nod and what bit of graciousness she could scrape up. "You fight well."

Andranis

 

[Andranis]

Meepfur

I thought I'd replied to this! My bad! sad

Bowing her head again, Aurinko continued to smile. "Thank you. I've had my whole life to train for these sorts of moments." She lifted her head, motioning with it toward the interior of the pride's lands. "Come, then. Let me show you all the best places to relax and where everything is." Her smile turned into a grin. "It wouldn't do well for you to get lost, even in a place like the desert!"