The world had shaken. He could have been forgiven for thinking it was an earthquake, considering the landslide had moved things in much the same way. He'd been woken out of the first solid sleep he'd gotten in at least a week, which had only compounded his confusion. Betsy, run! he'd called, spotting the familiar form of his wife at the entrance of the den out of the corner of his eye. Where were the children? Were they safe? They must have been with her, he assumed, because he didn't see them within the den.

He'd followed the flashes of her pelt through the rainforest as they ran, never quite able to catch up with her but also never stopping to wonder why. He couldn't stop. Not with the ground rumbling beneath him and the sound of trees shattering right behind him as the landslide swept up to him.

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When he came to, everything was quiet once more. His body ached in multiple places, and while he could move all his extremities it did hurt to breathe. The tree trunk that was laying over the top of his lower half, pinning him into the hole he was in probably had something to do with that. He was lying on his right side, meaning he couldn't quite tell what was around him, but what he could see was the upraised roots of another tree to his right. He'd been swept into the tangle of a tree's roots, now pinned down between the tree and mud surrounding him.

He could see the sky above if he turned his head enough and craned his head back, but otherwise he was in a hollow, unable to see his surroundings for all the dirt, mud, and tree roots.

Tobin attempted to move, uselessly flexing his hind legs and sinking his front claws into the dirt as he tried to pull himself out from under the weight of the mud. All he got for his effort was pain searing through his side. Something somewhere was broken, he could tell that much. There were also various wounds peppering his front limbs, sluggishly weeping blood.

Betsy? he called, voice breaking into weak coughs. Had she made it out? Had anyone made it out? Was there anyone around to help him? Tobin cleared his throat as best he could, offering a few rattling chuffs to the Rainforest in the hopes of someone being there. He certainly wasn't getting out on his own.

+20 Save a character's life through healing +10 Heal a character’s sickness or injury +10 Set a broken bone It probably wasn’t proper for her to be snooping through another territory, but the scent markers had been washed away and she could tell, confidently, that it was vacant. She certainly wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity to explore somewhere while she could, especially considering she had no intentions on ever joining firnen to begin with. How else would she be able to see all of amaryllis if she hadn’t seen each of the territories? Exactly. It didn’t matter that she still felt like she was committing a monstrous crime by trespassing on unclaimed land, not one bit. She sucked it up and went in, hoping no one was around that would still try to chase her off despite the lack of borders. Betsy? Well, she hadn’t been called that before. Still, she couldn’t even identify where the voice had been coming from until she followed the scent of blood to an older gentleman properly pinned beneath a tree. Septima’s eyes widened in surprise as she rushed to his side, immediately scanning for anything that could possibly be made worse by moving him. “sir, can you hear me? I’m going to try to dig you out but I need you to help by wiggling a little bit. I’m a medic, i can help you.” She just couldn’t move a whole ass tree by herself. Septima began to dig around the fallen lion, struggling through the mud. Unfortunately, it was her only option unless someone else happened to come around.

meadowlark fly your way down

i hold a cornucopia and a golden crown for you to wear upon your fleecy down

Yet another lioness hearkened to the call of Betsy? Clodovea went by many nicknames—most of which she gave herself and doled out according to how she felt that particular day—and while 'Betsy' was not one of them, she thought she might as well respond just in case. "Coming!" she called cheerily, adjusting the course of her sprightly paws to seek out the caller, who she could only assume was going to become her newest friend.

It didn't take long for the thick scent of blood to grope at her nose, and then the sound of a second voice, urgent, to grip her heart and send her paws running. Someone's hurt, someone's hurt, someone's hurt, she repeated in her head, fuel to keep her moving as quickly as possible until she arrived at the scene. What she saw caused fretful tears to instantly spring to her eyes, but just as instantly she came to the self-proclaimed medic's right side and began to dig furiously beside her, careless of the fact that she was perhaps a little too close and that some of that dirt might find its way onto her. She opened her mouth to speak but, finding her throat thick with tears, closed it once more and made herself busy with the digging until there was another clear task to do.

@Tobin @Septima

code by corvus

He heard responses, a miracle for him considering he had no way of getting out on his own. As it happened, the pain was helping to clear the haze in his mind, and it was his usual shrewd gaze that met the gaze of the first lioness to arrive. My wife, is she... he started, only to wonder why the hell he was asking. He remembered burying her, all those years ago. Never mind, he concluded softly. That was weird. It must have been the trauma.

I strongly suspect I have a few broken ribs, he commented as the pair began to dig. He supposed he shouldn't count his lucky stars just yet, because he wasn't free at the moment, but with the pair of them working surely they could displace enough earth to be able to drag him out with some help from himself. Presuming he could manage to offer more than the ineffective scrabbling he'd done before.

@Septima @Clodovea

He wasn't running away this time. When the landslide occurred, Hero had been fortunate enough to miss majority of the chaos, but that didn't mean he was just going to up and leave the place like he had in the Hollow. He was younger then, dumber. More frightened, but not this time. The masked lion ran right back into the fray as soon as the movements of the land halted. At the sound of a familiar voice, the young Hodari rushed to find @Tobin trapped beneath a fallen tree. And he wasn't alone.

Two unfamiliar faces had found the old man before the Hodari, but at least both seemed ready to help him as they dug beside the tree. "Tobin!" Hero called to the elder, first taking stock of his pseudo-uncle's consciousness before seeking to aid the women. "If we can dig deep enough, maybe I can weasel under the tree and help prop it up?" He looked to both @Septima and @Clodovea with the hopeful suggestion. Tobin was as much family as any blood related member. He wasn't ready to lose the man. Hero set to work helping to dig on the opposite side of the tree from the girls, waiting for the right moment to sneak underneath.

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Another home lost to the whims of Mother Nature. The Hodari never seemed to leave their homes on their own terms. From mountains, to jungles, to caves, there was always something that seemed to push them out. Seldom was it ever just a simple challenge. Unlike the Hollow this time, Roan had not found himself trapped in the rubble, but he remained close to the lands to aid those that might have had a harder time getting out. At the sounds of trouble, though, the mauve man wasn't far away.

By the time Roan found his pinned comrade, three others had already flocked to his aid, his son among them. Perhaps the elder lion was covered in the way of assistance, but could there really be such a thing as too much help? When it came to moving a whole ass tree, they'd need all the help they could get. Ears twitched when @Tobin mentioned something about broken ribs. At least he was talking. Roan could only hope either of the lionesses were medics and would know what to do once they freed the man, because they were going to free him. Failure was not an option.

"Hang in there, Tobin," the masked man found himself saying, as if the blackened lion had any other choice. Roan's gaze went to the older-looking lioness of the two, seeking @Septima's attention before diving in to help. "As soon as he's free, can you tend to him?" The Hodari's minty eyes pleaded with the woman, hopeful she could help. Roan had been pinned before in a similar way and knew what could happen once that pressure was released. Whether or not either stranger knew what to do, they still had to get Tobin out one way or another, so the mauve man found some free space to start help digging.

Septima was grateful to be joined by @Clodovea. She remembered the girl from before, the budding medic that seemed to be in the right place at the right time and not afraid to trespass when someone was in danger. Good, the Miroslav thought. That was what would make her successful. Her ears drew forward as @Tobin mumbled something about his wife, but there wasn't any time to dig deeper. Her focus needed to be on him and him alone as she furiously dug.

They were joined by two men, thankfully. "That would be perfect," she said to @Hero. "If his ribs are broken he'll need all the help he can get to get out." Septima turned to @Roan next, nodding. "Absolutely. We just need to get him free. On the count of three, can you both try to lift the tree? Sir, do we have permission to grab you and pull you out?" Consent was important, thank you. At least to Septima.

"Ready? One, two.. three!"

ART BY RIOT, CODE BY DEE

what a life i lead when the wind, it breathes

Through the frantic digging and blur of tears, Clodovea was aware that others had noticed the crisis and had run to help. It was beautiful, lion helping lion, the way the world was supposed to look (at least through the Visala girl's rose-colored lenses.) Getting lost in the loveliness of the moment, her paws had begun to slow their dig just a bit—but @Septima's urging and directions renewed their urgency to move enough dirt away from the trapped lion that he could at last be freed.

When at last there was space enough for @Hero and @Roan to position themselves in the best way to move the trunk, Clodovea would flatten her narrow body on the earth by the edge of the freshly dug hole, prepared to help draw the injured lion out at Septima's command. She was not a girl meant for acts of strength and brawn, and felt overwhelmingly thankful that she'd have the other lioness's power to aid her in dragging @Tobin out while the two lions cleared the way. As soon as the other healer would move to drag Tobin out, Clodovea would join her in the endeavor, working with all her might to move the older gentleman to a place where they could better tend to him.

what a life i lead in the spring

code by corvus

Hello Hero, Roan, Tobin greeted the pair somewhat weakly, but thankfully coherently, as they approached. He hoped they hadn't heard him yelling after his long dead wife, but if they had he could figure out some excuse, he thought.

There was nothing for him to do while they worked to dig him out, since straining himself trying to help didn't seem like a good idea when he had no idea what parts of him were actually broken. He guessed he'd consider himself lucky that he seemingly hadn't broken his back. He still wouldn't have gotten out of here if not for the quick assistance of not only his pride mates (and adopted family) but also these two kindly strangers who hadn't simply taken advantage of his situation.

Yes, of course, do whatever you need to, he replied to Septima's question. He wasn't going to say no to whatever they might attempt to rescue him, but he respected that she'd asked.

He would grimace in pain once they began to move him, making good on his promise to attempt to assist by pushing with his hind legs as best he could, but damn, it hurt. A pained rumble left him, but again it was better than being trapped.

Despite all the pain he must be in, @Tobin managed to still greet the boy as he approach. And... his father? Hero's head whipped around to find Roan hot on his trail. Well, that was good. More muscle to help move the tree. Maybe even more of the former Firnen lions were still around somewhere. On the other paw, there really wasn't any time to waste going to look for more help. Whatever help they had present would just have to be enough. Looking to @Septima, she seemed to be in agreement with the plan as the boy's father took charge. @Clodovea seemed young, and perhaps just as inexperienced in a crisis as Hero was. At least they were in the same boat. He now just looked between his father and the Andal woman for instruction.

Once everyone was on the same page, and the digging had gone far enough, Hero positioned himself on one side of Tobin while his father managed the other side. The idea would be that both men would lift the tree at the same time, creating enough space for the girls to help the old man climb out of the trap. Hero just hoped he was strong enough to help, and that his own father was well enough. On the count of three, the ebony lion stood in unison with his father, the tree trunk positioned across their backs. He arched his shoulders, trying to make himself as tall as possible if only to create that much more room for the elder to escape. Quickly, though, the weight of the tree set in. Hero could already feel his limbs shaking, ready to quake beneath the pressure. "Hurry!" he encouraged, but more out of fear if he was unable to hold this stance. To drop the tree once more upon Tobin would only make things worse.

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