The night had been a long and restless one for Siyo'Jini, and though he'd spent his time atop the meeting rock to keep an eye on and attend to any pride business that had come up, he felt the hours tick away slow as molasses. The longer the day had gone on, the more irritable the large lion became. He needed to do something. Any moment he wasn't by Kiv's side, he feared for her safety. It was a silly thought, he was sure, as the pride was populated by trained mercenaries and killers for hire, but the fact that he wasn't there to ensure her safety was enough to rattle him. He'd already let her slip through his paws once before, and he wasn't about to let that happen again. So, when Thunzi came to him in the early morning hours, just before the sun was about to rise over the horizon, Siyo was ready for whatever plan the leopard had dreamed up. It was straight forward and to the point, which is what he had been hoping for; but it forced him further away from Kiv'mauti. He couldn't think about that now. The plan was in motion. No matter what, lives would be lost today.
Following silently behind Siyo'Jini were two brothers. Half-brothers, really, but they considered each other full siblings. Products of the Bonelands, raised by their father to fight as cubs, and each battle-hardened by the mercenary's way of life. Khanyo took point ahead of his brother, fiery eyes intense with the promise of blood and death this morning. Siyo'Jini had come to them not long before they had awoken for their morning spar, with an order and an air that dared them to challenge him. They did not. The brothers had done much contract work with Siyo'Jini as their backup, they had seen him fight and kill their enemies, but something about this morning was different. This was no contract. This was personal. And Khanyo knew better than to question the Boss.
Neze trailed behind the two other males, the two brothers nearly dwarfed by Siyo'Jini in terms of size. The Boss was impressively large, and perhaps not as giant as the red pelts of their homeland, but large, nonetheless. Whereas Neze and Khanyo were both well below average height for a male lion, though what they lacked in vertical size they well made up for with muscle and skill. Khanyo was the heavier of the two brothers, thick and daunting with raw strength, whereas Neze kept his frame lithe with lean muscle. Speed and power. He'd fought many battles against those that wished to kill him, and he'd won. Such was the life of a mercenary. So, when Siyo'Jini came to them with the promise of battle, who was he to refuse? They would fight, and they would kill. To Neze, it didn't matter why. It was expected of him, so he would do it.
He had brought two experienced mercenaries with him, but even then, it was risky. They were likely to face twice as many in battle this morning, but he didn't dare bring more to aid him. They couldn't leave the territory unprotected. Doing so would put the civilians and the cubs at risk if their enemies had decided to move against them and subvert this little war band. He didn't need to look behind him to know Khanyo and Neze were following, they had been loyal to the Mercs for years now. He'd seen them grow from untrained, foolish wannabe warriors into proper mercenaries, and he knew what both of them were capable of. It brought him peace of mind and allowed him to focus on the task at paw. Kiv'mauti had enemies, and that made them his enemies. Siyo'Jini did not tolerate enemies at his border.
Despite being behind Siyo'Jini, and in front of Neze, Khanyo was the first one of their group to notice the strange scents on the wind. He instinctively stopped, giving a quiet warning growl to his two traveling companions as he crouched down in the tall grass. Thankfully they also silently dropped down out of sight as Khanyo crept closer to Siyo'Jini, and Neze closer to him so they could communicate. The Tani'Ajiri did entertain a great deal of strangers, looking to make a contract with the mercenaries, but few traveled in such a large group. "Strange scents on the wind, possibly six to ten traveling together. A small pride, perhaps?" He kept his voice low, hardly a whisper, but loud enough for his companions to hear.
Now that Khanyo mentioned it, Neze had also smelled something strange on the wind. He took a moment to breathe in deeply as his brain untangled the many strands of scents. "There's blood, too. A fresh kill?" They weren't so far from their territory that it was unthinkable for a hunter to have pursued prey in this direction, but he couldn't be certain. Something about this didn't feel right, and it was nagging at the back of his mind. What pride, even a small one, would risk coming so close to another's territory without fear of repercussion?
Siyo'Jini clenched his jaw as he listened to his two mercenaries. He too could smell the tangled mess of scents, mingled with fresh blood. None of the scents were familiar, and he didn't recall anyone coming into the territory to seek contract work in the past few days. Though, to be fair, he had mostly been spending his time next to Kiv'mauti, and he hadn't thought to ask Thunzi about any significant contracts being made in the past few days. He'd not given Khanyo or Neze many details about what or why they would be fighting today, but he was certain they would follow his lead into battle without question. Emerald eyes narrowed as he signaled for silence from his two mercenaries, a rustling nearby catching his attention. His ears swiveled as more rustling came from the other side of them, but it was the twig snapping behind them that alerted Siyo'Jini to their predicament. They were surrounded. So much for surprise. Siyo raised his lips in a silent snarl to warn Khanyo and Neze, if they hadn't already caught on to the situation, before he lunged forward into the tall grass. No questions were asked. When he felt himself collide with another lion his claws and teeth were quick to find flesh.
Khanyo might has well have invited their enemies into their inner circle, as he mentally kicked himself for not catching on quicker. They were surrounded. This was a trap. How well prepared had they been for something like this? How long had they been waiting? Days? Weeks? It all happened so quickly, much more quickly than he had time to actually think about it. His body simply reacted as soon the Boss gave them the signal. It was time to fight or die. A snarl ripped its way onto Khanyo's maw as he charged the tall grass to their left, leading with swiping claws as he felt his paw strike something hard. Before he knew it, he was locked into a duel to the death with a lion who had been about ready to barrel into him.
They'd realized it too late, they all had. This was a trap, and they had fallen for it. Neze sneered at the underhanded tactics, but there was nothing to be done about it now. They would need to fight if they wanted to survive, and that suited the dark maned male just fine. With hardly a twitch from his tail he bunched his muscles and exploded at the tall grass to their right, a savage snarl splitting his lips and gnashing his teeth. He didn't have to wait long to find his opponent, as they had been just about to spring the trap themselves.
Siyo'Jini hadn't the time to size up his opponent or notice any particular details about them as their exchange of blows was quick and merciless. Neither Siyo nor his mysterious attacker were pulling their punches, as claws and teeth sliced into flesh and left behind angry red lines. Rage bubbled to the surface. An untethered, raw feeling of absolute hatred that threatened to overtake him. They were strangers, and yet Kiv had told him so much of what she had to endure as their prisoner. For years. If he had only known, he could have saved her from that fate. But he hadn't. She had been alone, starved, beaten, tortured, and utterly alone. A dark fire burned deep in his soul at these thoughts and bubbled to the surface in the form of a guttural rumble as he growled. He had no time to wonder how Khanyo or Neze were fairing as just as he had his opponent pinned to the ground, hearing his opponent's breath wheeze as his fangs fastened around the other male's throat, a solid blow barreled into his side and bowled him over. "Two on one?" he growled, a bloody grin plastered on his maw as he staggered to his paws. The interloper merely sneered at him, as he helped his friend find his paws. The three males squared off once more, as Siyo'Jini spat blood from his mouth. "So be it," he hissed, malice dripping from his voice. More for the slaughter. More for him to enact vengeance upon.
The sounds of battle were all around him, and honestly Khanyo could not have felt more at home. He lived, he breathed combat, and he was more than happy to oblige his opponent in not holding back. Heavy paws struck hard blows against his opponent as claws sliced flesh, and teeth sought any vulnerable areas to rip at. It was a difficult fight, with neither wishing to yield, as that would certainly mean death. Eventually Khanyo was able to overcome the other male, feeling the crunch of bone between his teeth as the last light of his opponent left his eyes and Khanyo's fangs pierced his skull. Panting heavily, with his fur matted in blood, both his and his opponent's, Khanyo turned his attention to the familiar sounds of Neze battling. This was no fair fight, so the golden male had no issues with charging over to help his brother.
Neze had more less been evenly matched with his opponent, and they were slowly wearing each other down with heavy blows and sharp cuts. It was a welcomed relief when Khanyo came charging int to barrel into his attacker, and it was the distraction that Neze needed to find an opening and end the fight with one decisive strike. Between him and Khanyo, fangs and claws finding vulnerable areas to exploit, their opponent didn't stand a chance.
Siyo'Jini was no stranger to battle or difficult fights, for as a mercenary he often took on jobs that no one else wanted to do. When prides didn't want to risk the lives of their own members, and when the battle was deemed nearly impossible, they hired the Mercs. It didn't matter if a mercenary was lost in battle, it didn't affect their pride or their members. But the Tani'Ajiri survived. Siyo'Jini survived, and those prides had paid the agreed upon price or they found themselves at the end of his claws. Emerald eyes burned hotly as he exchanged blows with his two opponents, carving fresh wounds into their hides just as they did to him. He couldn't let them win though. If he couldn't stop them, then he would be dooming Kiv'mauti to death. His Kiv'mauti. She'd come to him for help, risked her life to find him, and now he was going to spend every ounce of his strength ensuring her safety. It didn't matter what happened to him in the process. So long as she was safe.
Finally, he saw an opening he could not let slip through his claws. One of his opponents had grown tired of the prolonged battle and was beginning to get sloppy in his attacks. Siyo'Jini was quick to strike, catching the other male on the jaw with a heavy blow and sending him sprawling onto the blood-soaked grass, where he lay still and unmoving. Unfortunately, his other opponent took the opportunity to lunge at him, a set of sharp fangs fastening around his neck. Fool. There was no escaping his wrath. Now that he was able to focus on this single opponent, the interloper from before, Siyo'Jini did not hold back. In such close quarters his claws raked across the vulnerable areas of his opponent's face, momentarily blinding the other male as he loosened his grip to get away. Siyo'Jini did not let him escape. He redoubled his efforts, pounding blows into the other male until eventually his fangs found their hold around his throat. They stayed there until he no longer felt life from the other male.
Khanyo and Neze finished off their last opponent, only giving themselves enough time to breathe before they turned their attention to the bloody scene of Siyo'Jini gripping a limp body in his jaws. The sight might have chilled those unaccustomed to death and war, but the brothers merely waited patiently for their Boss to finish off the last of them. "It was a trap," Khanyo panted, though at this point it was obvious to all three of them. "What were they after?" What hadn't Siyo'Jini told them? was his silent question.
Neze stood next to his brother, his sides heaving and his fur slick with blood. Some of it was his, some of it from his opponent, it didn't really matter. "There were only four of them," he pointed out, his brows furrowing together as he gave his brother a questioning look. Khanyo had said he'd smelled nearly twice as many, so where were they?
Realization dawned on Siyo'Jini's features as the limp body dropped from his jaws. He had been so enthralled by battle; he hadn't paid attention to how many there were. For now, he ignored Khanyo's pointed question about what they were after. They weren't done. With some effort Siyo'Jini was able to get up to unsteady paws as he gave his mane a shake, attempting to clear his mind of battle fog and exhaustion.
"You're too late," a voice from behind wheezed. "Fool. This was-" the voice coughed out a small chuckle. "... only a distraction. They've got her by now...!"
Desperation and rage clouded his mind as Siyo'Jini spun around to lunge at the struggling lion. There was no stopping the manic, blinding fury that overtook the great black lion as his fangs sought to bring a final end to Kiv's enemy. Death did not come swiftly enough for the other male.
"Boss?" Khanyo called, his voice hollow compared to how it normally sounded. Death did not faze him, but this? "Boss!" he snarled, when he was certain the other male had been dead thrice over. "Snap out of it, dammit! What's going on?!"
Neze stood silent next to his brother, dark eyes narrowed as he watched his Boss' unhinged episode. "That's enough," Neze agreed, the sound of a threat laced deep in his voice. They'd drag Siyo'Jini back even if they had to beat him unconscious first, but either way, they were going back.
It took a long moment for his mind to unfog from the sheer rage and despair he'd felt, but eventually the voices of Khanyo and Neze got through to him. He blinked slowly at the mess at his paws, as the blood in his veins turned to ice. A chilling breath made his skin crawl as he turned away from the scene, his emerald eyes hardly looking at either mercenary. "I'll explain on the way, but we need to hurry," he breathed out in a hushed tone, hardly believing what he'd done. If it wasn't too late, gods if it wasn't too late. He had to make sure Kiv'mauti was safe!
((Word Count: 2,662))