She had gotten quite good with her poisons now that she had a safe place to work on them and try new things out with them. She had gotten pretty good at hiding her scent, too, picking several different herbs, plants, and other strong-smelling things to roll in before trying anything sneaky. Today, she was hanging around Vermeda Brook, scouting out its borders, trying to figure out the smell of the area. She had already rolled in several plants around the pride's borders and her scent was at least disguised for the moment. As long as it didn't rain, she could pass as a recently joined member at the very least.

Ducking into the borders, Shiva kept towards the outskirts, laying low in the brush and moving quickly but quietly as well. She wasn't too worried about running into someone here, though. She had poisoned her claws earlier - dipping each unsheathed claw into the pulp of a hemlock. She was careful to not step on anything that looked sharp, else she ran the risk of poisoning herself in the process.

What did she seek in Vermeda's borders? Really, nothing. She didn't wish to learn their secrets or steal from their stores; she only wished to find out if her efforts were working. Would they smell her, find her, and her excuse of being recently joined pass? Or would there be a fight?


@Revna

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Potential XP (doubled)
assassin
+20 Successfully poison someone (non-lethal)
+10 Practice fabricating another's scent

barbarian
+20/+10 Win/Lose a fight

the sea does not like to be restrained OOC: trying to not bring up Eira's pregnancy because we haven't had the thread where she knows about it LOL Also she's still sad about Reynir Taking on the rank of lead fighter didn't necessarily mean that she had to patrol the borders, but today she chose to anyways, making sure to take the opportunity to keep her muscles limber and in shape, as well as keep her senses sharp. She is a protector at heart, and making sure her family - both biological and the pride itself - was safe is always at the forefront of her mind. She sticks to the borders, walking alongside them to note any disturbances that she might need to report later. All seems quiet at first, birds chirping as normal in the warm summer weather that will be cooling down soon as autumn approaches. She isn't expecting to find anything, so when she notices a few broken twigs on a bush, she almost doesn't think much of it. Despite her initial instinct to just shrug it off, Revna pushes her nose forward and inhales, smelling....nothing but plants. Perhaps someone less perceptive would not have found that odd, but Revna does. Because if any animal moved through here and brushed against the shrub there should have been some kind of smell left behind. There was nothing. Her emotions are still a tangled mess from everything between herself and Eira as well as the situation with her son and the Sigrun. She is not the lioness to be testing right now, so she huffs irritably and narrows her eyes, seeking an explanation from the surrounding landscape. @Shiva Potential Experience - Paladin, Double XP Event +20 Intercept a trespasser +10 Patrol your borders Potential Experience - Ambassador, Double XP Event +10 Lose a spar or fight (defaulted or judged) OR +20 Win a fight (spars not included, defaulted or judged)

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There was a lioness hanging back, sniffing the brush she had just moved through. Shiva's adrenaline was starting to pump now, though she was still in control. How was she going to move from this? Continue forward, deeper into the pride lands, or try to distract the female somehow, and book it for the border?

It was interesting how her scent guise hadn't worked here. She wondered just what the female scented that gave her suspicion.

Shiva decided to play it cool instead, dropping the stealth and just walking along in the brush like she would if she lived here. She eventually climbed out, after making a racket (on purpose) and spotted @Revna sniffing the bushes nearby.

"Oh, sorry," she said upon seeing the other lioness.

Her stomach dropped.

She remembered this lioness from Caladan Cove. And while that didn't immediately mean she was going to be caught here, it meant that she had to play this situation very carefully. "I'm still pretty new here. I don't think we've met? I'm Rose."

the sea does not like to be restrained The distinct lack of scent keeps Revna rooted to the spot, looking for other signs that a lion might have passed there, or perhaps something to tell her that it was another creature entirely. She didn't have to wonder for long. A lioness steps out of the brush as if she belonged here, and Revna's head immediately snaps up and her eyes go straight to a lioness who she believes to be a stranger, despite the vague sense of familiarity to the pink woman. Revna's eyes narrow, suspicion clearly written all over her face. "If you're a part of the Brook," she begins, glaring at the lioness, "then why are you masking your scent and skulking on the border?" Her voice is firm; demanding an answer. She might only be lead fighter, but the pride's defenses are still very much her concern. "Who accepted you into the pride?" she asks on a secondary whim, deciding that if the woman couldn't answer that properly then she was, indeed, a trespasser. There were a limited few who could approve new members, and as a ranking member of the pride Revna is aware of their names at the very least. @Shiva

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Just play it cool, Shiva.

For an assassin, she wasn't very good at this, she realized... much to her dismay. Perhaps she was better and slipping poisons into food items and into drink items, but not slipping passed nosey lions at their borders. Perhaps it would have been smarter to stay hidden. She should have at least tried instead of popping out and realizing she had met this lioness before.

"For hunting purposes," Shiva lied, hoping that would be good enough to appease the lioness. "If the herds can't smell a lioness nearby, it's easier to get closer. And I wasn't skulking. It's not my fault you couldn't find me." She realized she was being a bit of an ass, but she didn't have to fear @Revna - even if she was the one trespassing.

"Uh-mmm, a tall, brown dude," she lied, making up a common-looking description in hopes it'd appease the lioness. "I forgot his name, sorry."

the sea does not like to be restrained Revna's eyes narrow as she outright glares at the pale lioness - still finding her oddly familiar, but forgetting exactly who she was. Her question about masking her scent is answered well enough, she supposes, though it's clear Revna is still suspicious of the woman. Her claws flex into the soft ground underfoot as she waits for a good enough reason to launch herself at what she believes is an intruder in their midst. "New and you've already forgotten?" she scoffs with a shake of her head, the tone of her voice suggesting she doesn't believe the lioness or, alternately, that she thinks the pale woman is an absolute imbecile. "I'm sure you can at least remember the name of Vermeda Brook's high sovereign?" The description given could have been any number of lions, possibly even the high sovereign himself, but Revna is not about to be satisfied by a mere description. She wants a name. Or this lioness will pay the price. @Shiva

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The further they got into this conversation, the more dangerous it became. Thinking about it now, Shiva realized Vermeda Brook was a terrible choice to trespass in. Cassandra was here. Her family was here, and because of that, she was familiar with the names of them... but that didn't help that she was trespassing on friendly territory.

"Aquila," she answered flawlessly, but didn't bother to follow up with whether he was the one who accepted her or not. At this point, she was beginning to backpedal, turning to walk towards the border instead of carry this conversation any longer. "Look, I'm gonna go, but when I come back later, I'll call for Aquila himself to clear up any confusion about my recent joining." Though, of course, she had no intention of coming back.

@Revna

the sea does not like to be restrained Revna is taken aback by how easily the name of the high sovereign flows from the stranger's (semi-stranger?) lips. And the answer is correct which frustrates her even more because it fails to prove the point. Her tail begins to lash back and forth as that frustration boils over. She knows she has a trespasser on her paws - or at least she is fairly certain. But proving it just became even more annoying than it already was. "Why don't we call Aquila now?" she hisses, stepping closer to the lioness, her ears flattened and her claws already extended. "Then we don't have to worry about any confusion later." Of course, she has no intention of letting the lioness simply go. Her guilt is clear as she tries to move toward the border, ready to escape the situation rather than resolve the confusion she speaks of. Revna leaps forward and tries to snag one of the lioness' forepaws with her claws, to keep her from moving farther back. ooc: feel free to turn this into a dom match if you want!

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Despite all her attempts to de-escalate the situation and leave, she is blocked by this lioness. This familiar lioness who, thankfully, doesn't seem to remember her. It was, unfortunately, the last straw when the woman threatened to call for the High Sovereign. Seemingly backed into a hypothetical corner, Shiva growls, "I'm sorry, but I can't let you do that." But it's not Shiva who makes the first strike after all, it's @Revna.

The darker-colored lioness reaches out and hooks her claws into the back of Shiva's retreating paw, and... well, fight's on. Her space was breached, her attempts to escape blocked, and now... she couldn't allow this lioness to get her King. That would spell trouble for everyone.

So, she wanted Shiva to stop backing away? Fine. Shiva surged forward instead, attempting to bash her chest into the other's and wrap her unsheathed claws around the woman's shoulders. If possible, she'd also attempt to land a bite at the left side of the woman's neck.

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Shiva vs. @Revna
for Dominance (let me go!)
Round 1 / 3
Hits:

Rolling 7d20: 17 + 14 + 2 + 15 + 9 + 10 + 7

Dodges:

Rolling 5d20: 2 + 7 + 14 + 17 + 3

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 20 + 18 + 1 + 7 + 10

ART

the sea does not like to be restrained "Why?" she growls in response, but Revna already knows the answer. "Because you're a liar? A trespasser?" Her voice is nothing but accusatory, her lips drawn back in a sneer. Did this woman really think she was that stupid. And then the recognition hit her. She knew this lioness from her time as a noble of the Cove, so long ago. She had joined just before the pride was stolen from them. Her eyes narrow even further, and she makes a note to remember this lioness' appearance from now on, even if she can't recall the name. She'd not let this woman into a pride that she was a member of, if she could help it, in the future. She successfully snags the woman's leg, and in response the lioness surges forward, slamming her chest into Revna's. The impact is not substantial - they were not so far apart that a large amount of force is built up - but she still feels the hints of a bruise forming beneath her skin. At the same time the woman tries to wrap her legs around her shoulders, Revna steps back, trying to push away from the woman and put a little distance between them. The claws rake furrows into the sides of her shoulders, but the woman does not manage to get her arms around Revna. Teeth barely graze the side of her neck as the woman also tries to grab her there. With a snarl, she lifts her right paw and aims a powerful smack at the woman's face, hoping to catch the side as she withdraws from her bite attempt. Revna vs. @Shiva for Dominance aka don't fucking lie to me! Round 1 2 3 Hits: Rolling 6d20: 3 + 15 + 19 + 2 + 6 + 11 Dodges: Rolling 5d20: 5 + 3 + 16 + 15 + 10 Luck: Rolling 6d20: 17 + 7 + 11 + 1 + 5 + 2

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