[SRP - North] Lesson: #2 [Thrain & Anga]

[Quaji]

Stat Counter

Lion vs. Cheetah

Thrain
HP: 30 +5 (for Captain rank)
Hit: 2, 3, 5, 6, 8 and 11
Miss: 1, 7 and 10
Critical Hit: 4, 9 and 12

Anga
HP: 15 +2 (for Guard rank)
Hit: 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10, 12
Miss: 3 and 6
Critical Hit: 8 and 11

The captain was back out, just before dawn, at the blue cheetah's request for yet another duel. The birds weren't even out at this point of day which was odd, but then again, there weren't too many birds that truly sang in the North and especially not on the training grounds. It was far too noisy and threatening for most small songbirds to nest. If they could even find a tree to make it in. So Thrain was currently standing on the cold ground, the wind whipping his mane back and forth as it seemed a storm was brewing overhead. While it seemed violent, it was almost a norm. Storms had been so rare in the Pridelands outside of the wet season that despite him being from a whole other pride, this was becoming more of a true home every day.

Over the hill, a thin blue figure made it's appearance.

"Ah, I see you finally made it."

"Yeah, yeah, like I'd miss this for anything." Really, she was already late, but that was because a falcon had come with news of Yatimah's progress. Of course the orange leotah wondered how her sister was doing, how her training was going and when she would be back in the West. Making a reply had taken more time than she had thought it would and she ran late. How she worried about her sister, well...half-sister, but as far as Anga was concerned, the missing half didn't matter. Even if they shared no blood, by now the blue cheetah would consider her a sister anyways.

It was her long, powerful legs that had even gotten her there before the captain just decided to call it and leave.

"Are you ready?" He asked, shifting his paws slightly. "You lost the last round. You get first hit."

Anga swallowed and shook her head. "No, I want you to go first." She wasn't entirely sure why, but it made it easier to react to, seeing him coming at her versus her going at what seemed like a brick wall that would not be phased. Round two.

Both nodded to the judge and braced themselves.  

[Quaji]

Thrain roll - Hit! -8 HP

The first hits are always the hardest. At least in Thrain's opinion. The gap between the two opponents was always the part that managed to get him to falter when it came to any of the duels he participated in. Even the one against Kito had been hard, but at that point he had still be hesitant about dueling a duke. At least he was getting better at closing the gaps faster and more efficiently. Mouth open and mane swaying as he moved, Thrain's body move to push Anga's to the ground, trying to throw her off-balance. It was always the easiest move for a lion who was more top-heavy like he was.  

[Quaji]

Anga roll - Hit! -4 HP

Despite her best efforts to keep herself upright, she knew would go down if Thrain managed to catch her and down she went. Her snarls and hissing filled the air as her paws flailed, attempting to push against the much larger body. Scrambling to get back up onto her paws, she put a small amount of distance between the two again before charging him again, trying to get onto his back. He was a lion, with a large bulky mane. She had the advantage when he came to speed and agility. Feigning to the left, she turned quickly to the right and leapt. If she could get on his back, get him awkwardly stumbling around...maybe, just maybe then she'd have a chance to win this one.  

[Quaji]

Thrain roll - Hit! -3 HP

What?! She was charging, changing direction and then suddenly she was a blue blur in the air. That was a strange tactic, one that Thrain hadn't encountered in active combat, but now he had. She had thrown him off-balance, causing the captain to go tumbling to the ground in a heap, throwing her a small distance away from his body with her lithe paws skidding against the ground as she came to a stop. Growling under his breath and with a messy mane, Thrain's golden eyes flared as he raised himself back up onto his paws slowly.

"That was impressive, Xian Lan." He spat. Maybe he was too competitive against those he thought himself better than, or maybe he was just finally feeling the affects of being brought to the ground by a cheetah of all species to manage to take him down. Breathing heavily, but evenly, Thrain finally got the rest of the way back up onto his feet and as quickly as his larger body would allow, he put his body close to hers, swiping at her legs, determined to bring her down. It was a good tactic, but an overused one. Maybe he could actually show her how it was properly executed though. Jumping on someone's back to bring them down...that was a new one for him.  

[Quaji]

Anga roll - Crit! -14 HP

Oooh no, she wouldn't fall for that. Back-stepping, she avoided all but one of his the larger feline's attempts to bring her down. One of them caught her thin leg, sending Anga stumbling but she didn't actually fall. Narrowing her eyes, the cheetah snarled as she rose onto her back legs, this time pushing against his chest instead of trying to climb onto his back by leaping. One of her paws went to push on his face, the other on his shoulder to try and keep his right paw down.

She wasn't stupid and now that she had fought him once before, she knew he favored his right side more than his left. If she could remove that one from play, she wouldn't have as much to worry about when it came to actually trying to win this duel. Yatimah, Upepo, Davina...the West, they were counting on her to be at the top of her game and to the top she had to go.  

[Quaji]

Thrain roll - Hit! -7 HP

Huffing, with his head turned to the side, Thrain's golden eyes narrowed as he pushed passed her paw, letting it slip into his mane instead. She underestimated his maneuverability and that was a plus for him. Reaching around he grabbed the scruff of her neck in his mouth. Break the lock that she had kept on him for far too long was the first step in finishing this. With his jaws holding part of her neck in his mouth, gently so, but still there, he put her on the ground with a firm paw placed on her chest before releasing her.

"You still have much to learn, Xian Lan. I can teach you more, but you should return to the West. You've learned more than some of the guards here do in weeks of training. You are ready to return, whether you believe yourself to be ready in a matter I cannot help with."

Releasing her from under his paw, he nodded to the judge who only re-affirmed that he had indeed won the duel that day by saying loud enough for the group that had gathered to hear, "Captain Tie Shi is the victor today!"

"I visit the West frequently, perhaps we can duel again another time." Bowing his head, Thrain left the grounds to let Anga think on the events of the duel. Perhaps it was cruel to not listen to her words, but he would have rather let her think on his and her own thoughts for now.

[word count: 1236]