The strongest boy. Though, despite his easy climb into Ecrosia’s ranks via several victories, there was nothing quite like fighting a King. He knew little of Andal’s leader, but he knew he was male, probably big, and he knew he’d seen him around before. That would be the kind of win that earnt props from girls. There is some regard paid to Alaric’s warning, but almost as if he were a child who needed to do exactly what he wasn’t meant to - Violarum seeks this desert sovereign with a roused thrill.

Would Gunnhildr be pleased? And Fallon - would she live with him if he was a King? There is a subconscious quirk of his lips at the thought of her and their playful rendezvous. This day had played upon the youngsters mind since the first sprout of his mane and the eager realization of it in his reflection one hormonal, teenage day. Now, fully fledged, it was time to flex on some men who had grown a little too comfortable upon their royal perches.

Violarum lumbers down into the pit in an almost atypical way, his strides no less heavy, but a zealous purpose evident within the sweeping momentum. Eventually, the clay male finds a comfy spot somewhere within, rolling his toes about to find some firm footing. It was early enough in the day that the sun skimmed across the rim of The Pit, maintaining a hazy shadow beneath its towering walls. An inhalation, then a call - of gloriously practiced proportions mind you. Desert King, catch me outside!

Violarum vs @Seneca
Round 0 of 5 - for Andal Oasis

_{art by yumpy}

zelda Did she have reason to be here? No, not really. But the challenging cry of a maybe-friend, likely acquaintance, was enough to invite her curiosity into its full form. Invoking a sense of urgency as she rushed out from where she had been exploring to find him nestled in The Pit. A place that was clearly marked for challenges but oh, he called for something far more than jsut a measly challenge. He called for another's home and that, more often than not, invited drama. It was no wonder that she was brought here today for drama was her ultimate magnet. Give her some popcorn and she'd be entirely set for the whole afternoon. Nonetheless she sat herself down, impressed upon her pride mate a you get it, big guy wink (because she knew him for he was an open book that looked for the confidence boost). Once she waited to see if he would look her way (even for a second), she grabbed the closest rock that she could find within this dust bowl and began to scrape her claws against it. Hard enough to make it work but quiet enough that no one would think her sharpening was in any way threatening. She was here for a good time but she might as well prepare herself, right? The constant down and up was soothing, as she wondered if she would actually get to use sharpened close soon or if they would continue to put at the way side. +5 - Observe a fight +5 - Maintain your weapons (sharpen claws) +5 - Observe a challenge and learn the results

annie slinks into the pit with a wild smirk on his lips. a hare is clutched between his jaws - his version of popcorn - and his eyes dance. he knows this will be go-o-o-d. he'll be disappointed to lose home so quick after throwing himself there but he doesn't doubt that big brother is going to come out fuckin' swinging. so he makes to shuffle past @Zelda with a mumbled "lookout, babe." and a sideways glance. he doesn't stop, continuing until he can prop himself up on the nearest large boulder, flopping dramatically onto his side with his shoulder propping him up. a pause, a wiggle, a flick of his wrist to send a sharp rock flying, and then he settles with his hare between his teeth. eagerly, his gaze settles on @Violarum and he chirps "okay, now i'm ready." as if the male is waiting for his arrival to get serious.

BG CODE ART

zelda But wonderfully enough she didn't have a whole lot of time to continue sharpening it before someone whirled past her. It seemed that @Antares had come past her with a light warning and in the seconds that he gave her a sideways glance it was like slow motion baywatch. Eyes locked, mood set in and her mouth opened just so slightly that she hadn't noticed at first. Then the moment sped up again and she was watching him ascend the nearby rock where he set himself up in such style with a hare in his mouth. A harsh swallow and her jaw clicks back into place, swiftly shuffling the rock harshly to the right before wandering to him. It seems you found the best seat in the house. She pauses and flicks her paw in direction of his cozy throne, May I lay with you? The question lingers on her tongue as an innocent question but only the true zelda-knowers would know that she wasn't ever good at playing innocent. +5 - Observe a fight +5 - Maintain your weapons (sharpen claws) +5 - Observe a challenge and learn the results

goddamn kids always mucking things up. evidently alaric's advice was all for naught, and the wheat king could only hope that it wouldn't bring hell down on his head.

he came as soon as the summons went up, scanning the slowly growing crowd for any sign of a familiar face. @Zelda was only vaguely familiar, a newer arrival in the mire, and he wandered over with a quirk of his brow. "fratenizing with the enemy, are we?" amusement sparked in green eyes, the tone of his voice teasingly serious.

truth be told he was rather grumpy that the young hot-blooded male had disregarded his words entirely, but that was a conversation for him and @Violarum. once the dust settled.

for now he dropped to his haunches near the first two on the scene, settling his gaze on violarum with another arched brow. a silent question that seemed to simply say -- really?


+5 - observe a challenge

where innocence burns in flames

i'm frozen to the bones

image by yumpy, code by corvus

olive --

she perks at the summons, and though it wasn’t meant for her, it may as well have been. it piques her interest with its demanding tone, and she finds herself obliging to its whim without question. fervently, she pursues it, allowing her stride to stunt only when the forms of others seize her focus – gathering, and for what purpose remains unknown to the babe. she is naive to the politics and practices of her peers here, and it is not until she nears the epicenter of commotion that the metallic tang of blood engulfs her senses: tantalizing and foreboding all the same. but it does not deter her from the prospect of socializing with the growing crowd, and she moves to join them.

an amused grin tugs at her features as her gaze attempts to meet any of the onlookers in a silent greeting before it settles on the apparent ringleader: a pretty boy, poised and confident. she notices that the gatherers seem to be focused on him, and it remains unclear to olive as to why – was he their king or something? “why are we looking at him?” she queries to no one in particular, frowning in her confusion. she shrugs though, and stares at him, too. maybe he would dance for them.

+5 -- observe a challenge & learn the results

Ears perked up at the sound of challenging roars. Driven by both the curiosity and wish to know what would this be, she found herself approaching The Pit. Doing so quietly, aiming to hide as she didn't want to be seen so easily. With many Rike lurking, she coidont risk it, not anymore. Her cubs needed her alive and well, as no one else would be able to feed them should she be insured to the point of not being able to. For that the woman would attempt to hide Doing by using the shadows of a low bush. Eyes of blue pasted into the upcoming fight. She washed her scent with the sand, but also covering her tracks. She wanted to be nearly invisible, undetected for the duration of the event. Ragna is attempting to stay hidden

table by koi // art

Seneca has gone too long without a good fight — a real fight. He has spent months focusing his energy on Andal and its inhabitants, allowing life on the island to go on around him; his caution, whilst it has kept his family (mostly) safe, has also left him somewhat wanting and hollow. So when the call comes, the kingwelcomes it. It speaks to his arrogance that he assumes his victory before he has even seen his opponent, but he would not be a Miroslav if he did not harbor such a mindset. He doesn't doubt that the crowds will gather to bear witness, as they always do. But he is not here for them, and he pays them no mind as he makes his way to the arena. It's somewhat amusing that this one does not come to his door as challengers often do these days; either fear drives him to caution, or he is here to put on a show as much as he is for the crown. If it's the latter, Seneca certainly intends to give them a display worth remembering. As he nears, he can see the leering onlookers — supporters, opposition, it doesn't really matter. They are all white noise to Seneca; he has eyes only for the man loitering in the center of the ring. They are closely matched in size, but if they are matched in skill, only the following minutes will tell. The Miroslav arrives without fanfare, without dramatics, neither blatantly announcing his arrival nor making any attempt to conceal it. He is steeled and centered, and whilst he might have anger for the circumstances at the end, his temper has no place here, in this moment. It would only distract him. Reaching the edge of the arena, Seneca descends into the pit at an increasing speed from @Violarum's left side, attempting to bull-rush into the younger lion at a perpendicular angle. The Andal sovereign attempts to meet his opponent full-bore, trying to ram the front of his left shoulder squarely into the middle of his opponent's ribcage. His jaws surge forwards, attempting to drive his teeth into the tender flesh around Violarum's spine. Expecting a retaliation of movement, he refrains from throwing his claws into the mix at this particular moment, choosing to instead keep all of his legs squarely beneath him. seneca vs violarum for andal oasis move one of five Hits: Rolling 8d20: 4 + 18 + 1 + 5 + 12 + 6 + 14 + 19 Dodges: Rolling 5d20: 9 + 14 + 11 + 18 + 19 Luck: Rolling 5d20: 10 + 1 + 4 + 9 + 18

you better keep the wolf back from the door

image by koafox, code by koi

In his head, the few gathered are all rooting for him - or at least, for a good show. It felt decidedly natural being the star of said show, and unlike the apparently humble arrival of the reigning leader, Violarum intends to soak up every set of eyes with gusto. Yet, there is one pair that are particularly scrutinizing; Violarum staring back in the wake of Alaric’s quirked brow. He expected something to come of this, win or lose.

He might have been more attentive had his attentions not been so grasped by the wheat swamp-man, and though he was aware of Seneca’s arrival, he hadn’t pinned him as his opponent until the aggression of the male was exuded within his approach. Violarum had begun to pivot towards his left, yet was out-paced to do so - managing only to reduce the angle of impact and not quell it.

The monochrome leader collides with brunt into Vio’s left rib cage, resulting in a stagger of his weight away from the force and a surely shocked expression. He had forfeited his balance for a fleeting moment, accidentally, yet thankfully ensuring a lack of splintered bones - the assault inflicting dramatic bruising and a loss of breath. This was a real battle. The kind in which a man might never be the same.

Then the burn of the male’s teeth sinking into flesh; piercing muscle on the left side of his spine, just missing vital nerves. A thunderous snarl signals his opponents success, an instinctive swing of his head attempting to return the assault as Violarum regains his balance. He would try to sink his teeth into the functional muscle of Seneca’s left shoulder with ambition to hold, hoping to buy enough time to swivel on his hinds, seeking to bring the duo to a more chest-to-chest position.

Violarum vs @Seneca
Andal Oasis - Round 1 of 5
Hits:

Rolling 8d20: 5 + 7 + 9 + 16 + 4 + 6 + 1 + 15

Dodges:

Rolling 3d20: 10 + 15 + 6

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 3 + 4 + 11 + 17 + 15

_{art by yumpy}

Seneca maintains more of an element of surprise than he anticipated; @Violarum, evidently, has enough interest in the crowd to not notice the approaching sovereign until he is nearly upon him. They collide with audible force, and though heavy bruising will flower across his shoulder, he has the upper paw for the moment, and adrenaline dulls his pain. The first welling of blood against his tongue is welcomed and familiar — it is freeing. All he's wanted these past months is something he can sink his teeth into, and Violarum offers himself like a lamb to the slaughter, providing something tangible for Seneca to redirect onto. There will be no room for mercy in this battle; he simply doesn't have the capacity for it. As his opponent curls, Seneca takes an outside step to his right on his hind end, attempting to maintain a slight angle to their position and keep something of a distance between the back two thirds of his body and any onslaught from his adversary's claws. It means that Violarum's teeth hit their mark, though not quite as deeply as intended; his canines drag painfully through the muscle of Seneca's shoulder, ending up with a somewhat tenuous hold on the outer layers of sinew and skin. Seneca attempts to elongate the wound on his adversary's side, trying to drag his teeth down the curve of the clay male's ribs. His right fore, meanwhile, lifts and swings, with his claws attempting to find purchase on the delicate achilles tendon of Violarum's left hind leg. seneca vs violarum for andal oasis move two of five Hits: Rolling 8d20: 9 + 14 + 4 + 7 + 20 + 18 + 10 + 17 Dodges: Rolling 5d20: 1 + 5 + 6 + 9 + 19 Luck: Rolling 5d20: 6 + 18 + 13 + 2 + 14

you better keep the wolf back from the door

image by koafox, code by koi