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 Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2018 1:37 pm
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Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2018 1:39 pm
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Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2018 1:40 pm
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The sun rose behind their backs, and shed light upon an army as it closed in upon the borders of the Ukuhlwa'Izwe. The Myrsky Syntynt had arrived, bringing with them a storm that no pride could dream of weathering. They were not lions drawn towards the allure of peace. No, their strength was clear - why not use it to their advantage? It was their way of life, to take from others to provide for their own kind. Most had been born and raised with this ideology, this need to serve their pride and earn wealth for themselves and their families.
Greed fueled their fires. A pride without a Queen was crippled, and it would be unlike the Stormborn to pass up such an opportunity.
Calypso stood alongside Ull, both looking worse for wear. Their foolish assault on the Queen had not been made without repercussions. Her pride hurt more than her injuries, but her chance to rectify her mistakes lied in this battle. To prove oneself here was to erase the mistakes of the past, to succeed here would erase her past altogether. The battle ahead would not be easy - the enemy already knew that they were coming.
She heard the caw of a crow, but did not bother to look up towards the flock swarming overhead. Birds could do little against them, only sound the arrival that the Ukuhlwa'Izwe already knew was coming. Instead her gaze turned towards the side, to their Captain, Sabia'deimos. What a menacing creature the lioness could make herself out to be. The pelt she wore across her back was clearly a badge of honor for the Captain. The skull mask she wore across her face hid her expression, but did not hide the command she held over them.
Calypso had no true power here, it was why she had needed Sabia'deimos. She had enticed them with the promise of riches and sturdy thralls, while her own goal had only been to take vengeance upon a pride that had wronged her. A pride that sheltered her mother despite her crimes. The abuse of her children, the abuse of her power. It had all served Queen Ashiki, so there had never been any need to hold Katiti'manina accountable for her actions.
Well, now Calypso would.
She waited for the cold nod of Sabia'deimos' head. Go.
As a unit, the Viking moved forward, their pace fastening into a sprint towards the opposing army. "Do not die in bed!" Calypso roared - all those who died here would surely dine with the Stormlords in the afterlife.
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Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2018 1:41 pm
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Kethiwe (played by Felyn)
Dawn broke over the red stone and pooled light upon the rusty sands of the Ukulwa'Izwe. It crept along the dunes, trickled down the cliffsides, inching closer and closer to the heart of a pride in turmoil. Any other day and the sun's first rays would have been met with sleepy-eyed Scars returning from the night guard and early rising Guides ready to round up their pupils. Today, however, it was met by an army. Every rank of the Outlands was trained as a soldier and today, each branch of the three-fold system was represented in full. It was not just the Military and their infallible Queen's Claw that stood at attention in the valley of the scions but too there were vessels, keepers, scryers, eyes. All eyes were turned forward to where the Viziers stood, waiting at the head of their crowd. Whispers filtered through the gathered bodies like smoke, words of anxiety or anger, as they awaited their first true test as a Pride since the Queen had reunited them upon their lands.
At the back of the crowd, the whispers grew a bit louder. Bit by bit, they began to part and give way to lone male that was making his way to the front of the gathering. As the front line finally stepped aside, it was Kethiwe joining his mother's consul. At first, he only looked toward the horizon with silence and consideration, but then he turned and leveled his brilliant eyes upon those that had gathered with him.
"Brothers," his voice rang loud and clear, "sisters, I am Kethiwe. Scion of Taka, Son of Ashiki, and the Crown Prince of the Ukuhlwa'Izwe. I am standing here today because my mother cannot. I am standing here before you because our great Queen, the last daughter of Tiah, has been attacked on our land."
The male shifted, walking pointedly across the front line so all might turn their eyes upon him. His pelt, as so many of their pelts would, blended into the orange cast of the sky and the clay-rich earth beneath their feet. Each step that he took was careful, purposeful, and the look on his face was one of focus. He was a lion about a mission, a lion who meant shed blood and tear pelts. He was a lion about vengeance.
"Now, these impudent Stormborn are marching against our beloved homelands, lead to us by the traitorous Calypso with promises of riches and servants for the taking. She was born on our soil, raised by our paws, but would lead a foreign army not only to attack the Queen but to take for themselves what is so rightfully ours!" With each word his voice grew louder, angrier, until he was bellowing with his fury and letting spittle fly from his jowls with each baring of his teeth. "I am not here to give you a speech about your duty to this pride or to your Queen, I am not here to command you to lay down your life. I am here to remind you that you are all sons and daughters of the ancestors and that all of us owe a blood debt to those that have walked these lands before us. I am here to lead you in the place of my mother, with my brother, cousins, uncles, viziers - all of us - by your side."
He stepped back to the center of the crowd and dipped his head low, honoring the troops gathered before him.
"We will bleed together, we will fight together, and we will do so with a fire these bastards have never seen.
We ARE the Ukulwa'Izwe!"
In the crowd, a lion's roar resounded - to the left, another. One after another after another began to rise in furious admonition as Kethiwe lifted his head and turned to face the sun once more. His own roar rang loud and true like a crack of thunder through the morning air and in the wake of its tremor he took flight, barreling forward at the head of the charge.
It was time for war. |
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Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2018 4:18 pm
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((Note: I'm going to be pulling myself from this raffle. Give others the chance to win those pretty boys. <3))
Shetani stood with a thunderous look on her face, glaring out at the approaching threat. They truly believed that they would be walking away from this victorious? The Outlands were not like their previous targets -- those too weak and soft to fight against them. The Mind sneered balefully before snapping her gaze away to sweep across those gathered around her.
She could spy her brother among the mix of faces, stone-faced as usual, as well as others within the Academy. She raised an eyebrow, however, when she noticed that Evadne was not among them, nor was she standing by Ajani. That was strange.... She hadn't been one of the Guides that Shetani had chosen to stay behind to watch the pride's cubs. So why wasn't she here?
Her thoughts broke as she spotted the familiar form making his way towards them. Ah, the Prince was here. She made a mental note to ask Ajani about it later.
The Monarch's Mind watched with a proud gleam in her eye as Kethiwe spoke to his pride -- then lifted her head to give out a roar of her own, before surging forward, claws unsheathed.
Though his face was stony, Ajani was as infuriated over the situation as his sister was. Because not only was their Queen down and their pride under attack, but he and Eva had just found out that she was pregnant. He would not allow these heathens to come anywhere near her.
It had taken some coaxing on his part to convince Evadne to stay tucked away at home -- the last thing he wanted was to worry over her and his cubs' safety while in fight -- but he was thankful that she'd conceded in the end.
He turned his attention to Kethiwe as the crowd parted for him, watching with a steely-eyed look. He barred his teeth at the end of his speech, and then let out an almighty roar of his own. These Stormborn were going to learn just how much of a mistake they'd made by coming here.
High above the Stormborn, circling almost like a vulture, Terpsichore flew with critical green eyes searching the group. She didn't like this, not one bit, but she was nothing if not loyal to her mistress, and by extension, to the pride the lioness was so attached to. That meant doing her part in ensuring their win, and what better way than by finding the head for them to cut.
That said, she still rather wished that she was elsewhere, could think on things much more enjoyable. Hearing of her mistress' cubs had made her start thinking about having her own. Not cubs, of course. That would be silly. But little chicks.... She always loved playing with little ones, and she wondered what it would be like to have a clutch of her own.
She hadn't brought the subject up with any of her flock, nor did she have any intention to at this time. They were silly thoughts, young thoughts brought on by her desire to feel... at least a little bit of love.
Terpsichore shook her head, trying to focus it back on the problem at hand. It had always been a problem of hers, focusing and all that, but she tried to keep on task right now.
On the opposite end of the battlefield, standing tall within the group, Hjalmar smirked as he waited for the call to charge. Honestly, he was already satisfied with how this viking was going. After all, he was walking away with a pretty little thrall. Thulile would enjoy having another girl alongside her. Granted, she still needed some breaking-in, but he was sure he could manage it. He rather enjoyed the idea of doing so anyway. After all, her feisty nature reminded him of....
His expression soured slightly as he realized who he was thinking of. Now was not the time to be thinking about her. In fact, 'never' was how much he should be thinking about that harpy.
Moving on, he thought with a huff, he tried to focus his attention back on what was happening. Just in time too, because their Captain motioned for them to move forward right as he did so.
It never even occurred to him that he could get injured, or worse, during this fight. He'd never been in a band whose target was actually matched in strength with them, and as far as he was concerned, these Outlanders were foolish to try and fight them.
So, with a battle cry of his own, he dove forward, looking forward to the carnage they could reap. |
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Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2018 6:29 pm
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Where was she?
She felt her heart pounding in her chest as the front lines clashed with one another. Calypso ducked underneath the swing of someone's paw, and continued forward, paying little heed to the battle around her. The ravens were circling overhead - she had to be here. This was the best chance she would receive at getting her vengeance for years of wrongdoing, and Calypso was not so much a fool as to throw it away.
She passed a lion that reminded her of stone, one of their's surely by the braids in his mane. The Outlanders were easy to pick out, wearing coats of reds and browns, some blacks. There were faces that she would recognize, if she had cared to stop in her desperate search for her mother. There were lions here she had grown up with, lions perhaps she had been friends with.
That was all in the past now, a past she would rather forget. It was easier to move forward with her mission without the familiarity of the lands that surrounded her sinking into her psyche.
"Child."
The voice sent a chill down her back, it's familiarity to the sound of claws raking over stone. It made her fur stand on edge for a brief moment until anger consumed her. After all these years, she was still being addressed as if she did not matter. She was just a thing her mother had made to do her bidding, and of course now that she was no longer obedient, the niceties Katiti'manina would have afforded her were gone.
"Mother!" she snarled, and that pure hate seemed to take Katiti'manina aback. As if her emotions and feelings were disgusting. "How surprising to see that you are not in hiding, how's the bi-" Calypso hissed as she felt talons piercing her cheek, the beating of wings obscuring her vision. A ******** bird! It was an annoyance more than a hindrance, and Calypso's paw swept up to smack the raven away from her face.
A strong force collided into her chest, and Calypso was shoved down into the red dirt on her back. Above her stood her mother. The expression she wore was hard to read - hate, yes. Loathing? Certainly. But the complexities of her parent was not something Calypso had time to waste on. "It was a distraction," she wheezed.
"What have you done?" The Monarch's Soul demanded. The moment Calypso assaulted her Queen was the moment Katiti'manina had abandoned the small shred of faith she had placed in her troubled daughter. "Foolish, ungrateful, reckless child! Did you think my love for you would spare you from death?"
"You don't love!" Calypso cut her mother off before she could ramble into some spiel about how great of a mother she was. Even in a fight, the b***h loved to hear herself talk.
Calypso knew that her mother could not forgive her. Katiti'manina's love for Ashiki overshadowed everything else. No one could compare to the Queen and there was not enough love in Kat's heart to spare it on anyone else but Ashiki. If she did not act know, her mother would kill her. Growling lowly, she kicked her feet into Kat's stomach, shoving the red lioness off of her.
Quickly, she rolled onto her feet to confront the Monarch's Soul... but she was gone. "The <********>," Calypso snarled.
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Felyn rolled 1 4-sided dice:
2
Total: 2 (1-4)
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Posted: Fri Nov 16, 2018 4:17 pm
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This viking had been.. eventful. With their cubs all rowdy teenagers it had been a strange attempt at some alone time with Jupe. Rocky though their relationship was, they had bonded in their value of strength and power. She was a spitfire that glowed as fiercely as the embers in his own heart and their cubs were growing up to be strong, fine stormborn even if they were endlessly frustrating.
They deserved that, he supposed. The stormlords only gave what one could handle.
What they hadn't been accounting for was for nearly the whole damnable lot of them to tag along when they had been specifically told to remain behind, safe, at home. Jupe had cuffed them all good and lashed them with her tongue - he had only glowered, angrily, and for the most part refused to speak. If they sought to be a part of this viking then they could earn their place as one on their own. He was not here to coddle them, they would succeed or fail on their own.
And by the stormlords, this was going to be a test.
He stood shoulders above the lions that surrounded him as the lions in the distance poured towards them like a wave. They were mostly dusky browns and earth tones, full of anger he could sense before he could even see their eyes. The front lines clashed but he waited, looking, trying to decide best where he was needed - only to spot that lioness, Calypso, and the female she had so carefully described with complete and utter loathing.
Katiti. The hoarder of gold and toys. She was an achilles tendon to target and those shiny baubles she wore, well, he was sure Iza would like a pretty bracelet.
As the pair parted and the red coated female parted from her daughter, Daijur was following, watching. He caught up to her as a green-coated male barged past him and wasted no time in reaching out to swipe a paw at her hind leg. If he could throw her off balance, send her tumbling down, then they could take her easily. |
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Posted: Sat Nov 17, 2018 9:13 am
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Her cubs were not even a day old when the war started. They would grow up being told that they were born on the eve of a great battle. However, she would not allow them to grow up being told their birth marked the day that the Outlands crumbled. From the moment she drew breath she had been told she was a bad omen, heavens be damned if she would allow such a stigma to follow her cubs through life. Even if she had to carry the weight of this conflict on her own shoulders - even if she had to paint a river of blood across the red stone.
The children were with a nanny that she trusted, safe and warm in the den they had built for them. She would return to them soon - and she would bring back their father, their grandparents, their uncles and aunts. Their family would return, whole. And they would be loved. When she had first met their father he had told her that she had never known anything like the Outlands; that she did not know what it was like to be part of a Pride that would die for each other. He was right, she had never known the kinship she had found within these lands - and now she had it, she was reluctant to let anyone or anything harm it.
Even if it meant following a war band when she should have been resting. She knew Azzan would not approve, but he could not deny her place amongst them and he would at the very least understand. Her pelt blended in well amongst the others, it was easy to sneak along. Unlike her adopted son that stood by her side.
The dark lioness closed her eyes as the Prince spoke, her heart and mind wandering back to her forest home; of the star pelted lion that had read her fate and decided she was an outcast. The Skadi believed in their mother; the spirits of the earth and trees - Worshipping everything that grew and changed and flourished; the Outlands was empty of such things. When she first met this Pride she knew their mother had abandoned them; but in her place stood their Ancestors. She had no doubt those spirits of the past would smile on them, but a little extra help would not harm. If they would look to the sky, she would whisper to the earth and the roots that ran deep. To keep them safe - all of them.
Then a roar caused her eyes to open; and her feet started to move before the fear had a chance to settle into her bones. Silver eyes scanned the field; even amongst the sea of red Katiti was easy to spot, her adornments sparkling in the slow light. They attracted her like a Magpie to a golden horde - and Chau ran towards the Soul.
Ebu’sika found himself wishing he had the fortitude of his adoptive mother. He knew she should not be here, she should be at home warm and safe. How could he stay behind when she would not? His pride would not allow it, his loyalty to her would not allow it. The black lioness had taken him and his brother in when they were alone, fed them, protected them, raised them to be proud members of the pride. Now, it was his turn to watch over her.
Bright eyes looked down at the female as she whispered her prayer into the dirt; knowing not the words she spoke or the entity she was pleading to. Instead he just looked towards the clouds in the sky, and made his peace with whatever spirit would listen. He could not deny her when she said she wanted to follow, he could not dent her anything she wished. Unlike the female by his side who decided to remain silent, a roar rumbled in his throat - deeper than even he expected.
Ebu had grown up to be a large, shaggy lion with long fur and a broad figure. Unlike his companions he was white amongst the sea of red and brown; standing out amongst them. Boneland boy - the colour of bleached bones and as thick as a femur; the others mocked. Not Chau though - she had always said he looked as peaceful as a fresh blanket of snow. It always made him feel a little better when the others teased. And they stopped teasing - when he got big enough to clout them.
It was Chau that ran forward first - but he followed her. Knowing full well if he let anything happen to her he would have to pray he was taken too - or Azzan would see to it he joined her soon after. As quickly as the thought left him, the lioness he was tailing changed direction; much quicker than he would ever turn. “Chau!” He scolded, she said she would stay with him! With a clenched jaw; he decided the best he could do was act as a wall - and prevent others from following after her.
It was a dark brown lion that caught his eye first - colliding with him shortly after. He was not as experienced as the Claws and Scars around him; but he was bulky and large and maybe that would be enough. The two rolled and Ebu unclenched his jaws long enough to bite down. Hard.
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Posted: Sat Nov 17, 2018 2:46 pm
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Kus’an was young and thirsty for glory. The black male had always been outwardly stoic - his speech was nonchalant and his gaze icy despite the deep red colouration of his eyes. However, as cold as he was, his heart still whispered wished into the night. He still had dreams.
He dreamt of battle and blood and honour and status. He dreamt of titles and adventure and brotherhood. Dreams that he had only ever expressed to his sister; the one creature that he could trust with his wishes and wants. She would not laugh at him, not judge him, no matter how naive he sounded. The only creatures who would hear his secrets from her maw where the spirits that lingered in her shadow, their laughter was silent and distant - his ego could cope with that.
Even now he remained calm, more than some of the creatures that could be found on their front line - it was like he had seen dawns like this one thousand times before. In the Oneiroi he had, but this drawn was different; if he fell today he would not wake up in a cold sweat amongst his siblings. If he fell today - he would do so without honour. Just a foolish boy who held foolish dreams too close to his foolish heart.
His face still stung from where his mother had struck him, but what stung more was his father's silence. His plan to make them proud had backfired; he was still the worst child, despite being the largest, despite being the strongest. When his moods took him, when his teenage angst was at its worst, he would ask himself why he cared? But come morning he remembered; he cared because his family meant more to him than anything else.
This battlefield would be his redemption - his last chance to prove himself. It might have seemed like he was in a great rush to grow up; and he was. He had dreamed about being a part of one of his father's adventures. None of those dreams ever went quite like this, though. He had always seemed happier when this scene played in his head. No battlecry came from the adolescents maw, worried that in his youth it would sound like a squawk. Though his voice had broke, it still had its moments of weakness, especially when he was anxious.
The young lion followed behind his father, acting as his smaller shadow; a place he would be for many years to come. They looked alike - and he was proud of it, proud of the colours of his pelt and the patterns he wore. His father was dead set on a target ahead, but Kus was not dumb enough to get caught under his feet. Instead red eye eyed scanned the area for a target of his own.
He found one. A target that wore the same braids he did - but was found on the enemies line. |
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Posted: Sat Nov 17, 2018 3:12 pm
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He should not be here.
...But how could he not be? The Outlands were his home, even now his mother was with the Scryers, praying to the Ancestors for protection and guidance. He hoped his twin was with her, that way if anything happened to him, someone would still be around for his mother. Hikaru was not always a dutiful son to her, but he loved her just the same. This time was no exception to his misbehavior. The battlefield was no place for an Unbranded, but now that he slipped amongst the ranks of his family and friends, there was no turning back.
The young male had followed in the Monarch's Soul's wake. With her, he figured no one would tell him to go back to the safety of the heart of the pride. His mother served her after all, and Hikaru found a strange comfort in her ability to 'see' so much. It could be unsettling, even bone-chilling at times from the stories he had been told by other Outlanders. Few actually understood the Soul, but all knew to respect her.
Why her sight had failed now, he did not know. He hoped it did not bode ill for them.
As Katiti'manina plunged into a fight with another lioness, he found himself swept up into the throes of battle. Hikaru gasped as a lion much larger than himself swung a heavy paw towards him. He barely managed to duck underneath the strike from the full-grown male. His survival instincts kicked in far too late. He was too deep into the battlefield to run away, and to engage anyone now would be folly.
He had undergone the same training as all the other Unbrandeds, but his lessons were far from complete. Hikaru was too young, too naive to be in the sort of fight he had plunged recklessly towards. The black and yellow male ran, dodging through enemies and allies alike. His bearings on his surroundings were lost, and he was contributing little to the actual battle besides his own survival.
With his heart pounding in his chest, Hikaru skidded to a stop. He felt the glare of red eyes upon him, and twisted his head sharp to the side to see an enemy not much older than himself. There was something unsettling about his visage, the way his spine was visible upon his back. But, this was someone Hikaru could stop. This was someone Hikaru could hold back from assaulting his lands and his family.
Perhaps in this battle, Hikaru could prove to be of some value to his Pride, his Prince, and his Queen.
"Okay, let's go!"
By the Ancestors he sounded so ******** lame. |
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