She could focus on nothing but the unmovable grey hunk above her. Not the texture of the sand or the aural roar of the sea or the churn of spectators as the main fight concluded. There was only his shaggy, stinky mane burning her nose with its intrusive stench. She could hardly breathe! It must be his mane. And not the way he was squishing her. His weight further wedged her into the sand, distorting and scraping the flesh around her sternum and peeling a red patch from her left elbow that was still beneath her. Fangs managed to clip under his chest, but not enough to persuade him to move. Her right paw whiffed on nothing but then bitterly arced up again to attempt to trace claws beneath his abdomen. After he shoved daggers into the peak of her nape, making the new and unmatted fur darken with circles of blood, she snarled and aimed to flex her shoulders forward to try to dislodge the grip.

Walpurgis vs @Adeodatus
Dominance
3/3

Lead Fighter Perk: +1 hit rolls when fighting on your pride territory or an allied pride's territory.

Hits:

Rolling 9d20: 14 + 7 + 13 + 15 + 11 + 5 + 3 + 8 + 20

Dodges:

Rolling 4d20: 6 + 15 + 9 + 10

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 8 + 18 + 5 + 19 + 3

He found his grip, felt her shoulders pushing forwards and even though he felt the pain in his jaw as she tried he would growl and attempt to tighten his grip before also attempting to shake his head back and forth, ignoring the pain that would surely come from his movements. Ears flat in his mane as he felt the sudden pain in his abdomen from claws digging into it. A snarl forming as his claws dug deeper into the ground or flesh, wherever they were at currently. He knew that he would regret this and the scars would be there to prove it later on in his life, especially if someone looked down under.

Adeodatus vs. Walpurgis
Dominance
Round three

Hits:

Rolling 6d20: 3 + 19 + 10 + 4 + 17 + 7

Dodges:

Rolling 3d20: 14 + 15 + 5

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 2 + 1 + 5 + 10 + 19

ART BY IRISH / CODING BY SENTINEL

She had lost. Tiamat knew that in her bones, but she also knew that she had been so close to taking the throne from @Alizabeth. She also knew that this was far from over. Neither of them would ever see eye to eye or get along. Perhaps neither of them would even be able to exist in the same space together. And Tiamat did not care. She might have lost today, but she would not submit to the Lagoon sovereign. The Anatu princess would submit to no one. And one day she would be a queen - one way or another, she would see to that.

Eventually they were forced to separate, their teeth and claws seeking out the last bits of damage that they could possibly manage before releasing flesh. As Alizabeth pushed to her feet so did Tiamat, standing strong (albeit a little shaky from her wounds) in front of the smaller woman, refusing to back down even in the face of defeat. She snorted, her eyes narrowing at the hypocrisy of it all. "You took the Lagoon from someone else. The same almost happens to you and you throw a fit. Prides rise and fall. Yours will be no different." She didn't care about the woman's family or whether they would be displaced. How many families had she already seen displaced in this land by the paws of others? Alizabeth was not special in that regard.

"The Lagoon will be mine," she hissed, baring her teeth at the other woman. "One way or another - but I will not kill you." Alizabeth could threaten death all she wanted. If it came to that, and Tiamat came out on top, she would choose to not take the life of another. She might be petty, willing to dethrone someone who thought too highly of herself and had the crude mannerisms that were not befitting of a king or queen, but she did not want to kill someone again. The weight of her former friend and her unborn children still weighed heavily on her heart, and she would not go that far again if she could help it.

It wasn't until Alizabeth mentioned her sister's name that she turned to see @Shiva with those gathered from Scilla. Her eyes widened in surprise for a brief moment, but she felt no anger or ill will towards her sister. Her gaze was merely curious. Apparently the siblings had a lot more to catch up on than she had imagined. There was no reason for her to be angry at Shiva, though. They were both adults who could forge their own paths in this world. Tiamat would respect that, no matter what. It was the words that came after that caused her to narrow her eyes, gaze turning to the woman who had bested her this time. "Take up your issues with Alaric without me," she snarled, her tail lashing back and forth as her own rage built up in a rolling storm within her. She would not let them take her prisoner. Not if she could help it.

She was wounded and weak now, but she would not bow before these lions. She would not willingly submit to being taken. They would have to drag her back if they wanted to take her. And she wasn't going to wait to find out if the others were going to act on their leader's orders. Shiva was already questioning them. That was enough for her to decide that she would attempt to take her leave. She turned, swaying a little on her feet, and began to stalk through the sands.

If she could get across the border before they stopped her.....

image by rabbit, code by anyu

@Shiva stepped closer to them and spoke up, and the answer given isn't one that was acceptable to the King. Tongue slowly slid over her teeth, softly glistening along those lethal weapons as she prayed to whatever Gods there were for patience. "You see, Shivs, I fuckin' would, but your dear sister here doesn't seem advanced enough to fuckin' be capable of that. Pitty." She drawls, irritation bubbling in her chest. Shiva had been able to get past her petty hatred, had come to respect Alizabeth and the feelings were mutual.

Despite all the accusations she could've flung at the lioness, the ivory King had not, and she wouldn't allow anyone else to either if she could help it. But was loyalty more important than blood? In most cases, no. Toes curled into the sands she knew so well, talons caressing them slowly, doing her best not to completely lose her shit and attempt to end this all here.

Kaloula arrived on the scene and proudly proclaimed, Long Live King Alizabeth! and a surge of pride filled her chest, giving her a renewed vigor and strength. Tiamat had no just barely won this match - they could think so all they wanted. The white, wartorn woman had spent all her life battling - she could've continued until she passed out had it been necessary. Alizabeth only looked more worse for wear because her coat was white and blood fuckin' looked awesome coating her. Both hers and Tiamat's.

Alizabeth watched as her opponent who apparently hadn't had her ass kicked enough to shut her the fuck up, got up and ran her mouth with little clue as to why the King was so pissed off. Was it that hard to put two and two together? Did she not know how to use her brain?

A sneer touched her nose, teeth flashing - almost immediately as the other attempted to leave did the Scilla King move to try and block her path. "Listen here, and listen fuckin' well. Had this just been about my pride, this would be a different fuckin' story. Since yer not capable of usin' yer goddamn brain, I gotta explain for you. Bitch, YOU made this personal, you came after my home, my family - and that's not gunna fuckin' fly, capice?" Get it through your thick skull.

Once more her gaze fell to @Nero, @Dysnomia, even @Kaloula and then again on Shiva. Would they come and aid her getting Tiamat into custody? Alizabeth understood that this was Shiva's sister - understood that this may seem petty to her, but the ivory King did not feel petty. This was justified, there was reason behind it besides her own feelings. Answers were needed and she didn't feel comfortable letting Tiamat leave until she knew them. If she had wanted, she could've commanded the entire pride to attack both of them, attack Tiamat herself - yet the King was attempting to do this non-violently.

She had had enough today.

They're at a strange impasse it seems, with @Shiva seemingly unwilling or, perhaps, unable to answer Myra's challenge with tooth and claw. @Tanaz, standing resolutely at the huntress's shoulder had a few clever words of her own to offer, something Myra appreciated though she did not tear her gaze away from the pale woman's pink stare. She allows the silence to drag on, tension building and building in the space between them, until it finally snapped - though not in the way Myra would've have expected.

There is little point, after all, in continuing to argue about the Ecrosian's right to spectate once the battle had come to an end. Myra huffed out a low growl, reptilian eyes narrowing to blue slits as Shiva practically dismissed her, but she wouldn't stop the Lagoon lioness from moving to answer the call of her leader, who had apparently emerged as the victor while Myra's focus had been otherwise occupied. 'Next time.'

The voice of the Lagoon's still-reigning King, her white fur streaked bright red with blood, roared out across the sands, demanding the crowd's immediate departure. Fair enough. The battle-scarred woman had succeeded in keeping her crown, she had the right to demand such things. It's her second command that riles Myra back up immediately, pointed ears flattening against her head in displeasure. Challenge or no, did @Alizabeth really think she could hold of one Ecrosia's own here against their will? That Myra and her pridemates would simply allow it without a word? Whatever personal quarrels Alizabeth and @Tiamat might've had, this was just pushing it too far in Myra's books.

With one last glance back towards the pair of battles still raging on the sidelines, the Mire Noble would step forward (tossing Tanaz a meaningful glance as she passed by), in an attempt to approach her wounded pridemate and the irate King. "Enough. You were challenged to a fair fight and you've won. Holding her hostage isn't going to prove anything more - it just makes you look paranoid." What precisely, did the hot-tempered King fear was going to happen once Tiamat left? The sandy woman clearly needed time to heal before she'd be a serious threat to her crown again. And if the day indeed came that Tiamat challenged her again? That was simply the way of things. If not Tiamat, there would always be another challenger eager to take her place.

"If you want us to leave peacefully, then you'll let her go." Myra has no deep-seated grudge against the Lagoon, so she too, can afford to attempt a non-violent route, half-hearted though it honestly is. There's no need to outline what the alternative outcome will be. The beach was already stained with the blood of multiple Mire lions - what were a few more drops then, shed to protect their own?

ART COPYRIGHT IRISH

Things weren't going very well. Before he could blink the fight was over and his mother was attempting to take Tiamat prisoner, something that he wasn't even sure Saga would have done. Just kidding, she totally would have. He was just being shoved aggressively between a rock and a hard place to the extent where he wasn't sure whether or not to actually listen to Alizabeth for the first time in his life. What the actual fuck is happening right now? Ransom and Walpurgis were busy fighting lions that hadn't instigated (not that he was upset by that) and now Alabaster had taken his leave, presumably to maintain his neutrality. Fucking hell. He glanced to @Ghyslaine with worry in his eyes, but what choice did he have? He was Scilla's heir. The lagoon was his home.

He knew he was going to be attacked, he just didn't know when or by who. Nero attempted to bolt forward with the intention of cutting @Tiamat off from her quick escape. He wasn't being particularly threatening, but it was clear he was needed in order to help out Alizabeth. Even if he disagreed with what was happening..

"Someone fucking get Alaric and bring his ass here so we can get this shit over with," he groaned, irritated.

code by dee

She watches the main fight with absolute fascination, and though she is ready to watch the other with the same rapt attention- something else seems to be going on. She strains to hear, focusing on the small King, who reigned victor, and when she seems to want to order her lions into helping maintain the other in the Lagoon. Marja hops to her feet.

"MARJA HELP" She hollers, completely disregarding that @Roan would tell her when to get involved because lets face it she is the village idiot. Bounding, bouncing, and hopping she would aim for the fleeing lioness and the shiny white pinky boy, and she would hop to a halt.

"SMALL KING SAY STAY!" She would holler, spit and slobber flying everywhere as she focused and fixated on one @Tiamat . Was this her problem? Absolutely not. Should she mind her own business? Yep. Could she? Clearly not.

ART BY RABBIT, CODE BY LARS

Salty sea air brushed over her coat as she sat, joined by @Oleander and @Marius. The later she didn't know. Elaine Dieudonné. She introduces herself first and then her cousin. Oleander Dieudonné. She tips her head toward the older male with her. Anyone with eyes would be able to figure out that she was her mother's daughter so she didn't feel the need to offer anything to him to tie her to her position in the pride. She watched the fight closely. She had been in a number of fights before but knew that every fight was different and that learning how to be in one would never stop. Even her mother watched fights with careful study so she could be better. She took a few glances around. The Bluffs members didn't have the numbers here but it did seem that the Mire's members had a lot of interest in what was going on. As the fight came to an end, it seemed that things weren't going to just end or jump into more fights. No. It seemed that the white lioness wished to keep the female as a prisoner. Interesting. She hadn't seen that done before but she was sure her mother would enjoy learning that the lands here were going that route. How sweet it would be to have prisoners who tried to take their home.

Dark ears flick as she listens to the words being thrown about. She couldn't help but have a level of understanding for both sides. On one side, this was their home now. A place where families came to be safe. Much like the Bluffs. The threat of someone taking it never went well and never would. Ripping families from their homes would always end in blood staining the lands. On the other end, she knew that none really had a full claim to the lands they lived upon. Well, maybe the natives but she didn't know much about them. Everyone else had played a game of who is stronger for as long as they had been here. Their claim was only as strong as their leader's ability to fight. Nothing more and nothing less. No matter how bitter of a reality it is to understand, nothing would change that fact.

A call for someone to get Alaric rose up and her blue gaze found the white male who was requesting it. Their few numbers would do little to help in the fights here but getting the leader from the Mire was something they could do. We can get Alaric. She called out, gesturing to the males with her. She knew that @Oleander would come but @Marius was being lumped into this and expected to attend as well. She waited only long enough to make sure that her words had been accepted by the group before standing up and leaving the sand and salty sea air behind for now.

exit

Art | Table Code | background

With his cover blown, he finds little reason to stick around. If he can't watch from the shadows, he doesn't really care to watch at all. Yet, he hangs around just long enough to see the small white lioness win and that's information that he can take home to the Brook. Having done his job, he stands, and stretches- focusing on @Ceres for another moment.

"See you next time. I'll hide better and see how good you are at smelling me out." A lame attempt at flirting with the female who had bested him, as he shoots her a grin- and makes to leave- he's glad of his smell of wildflowers- at least, his pride scent should be concealed- and not cause the Brook to be a target.

-exit unless stopped-

ART COPYRIGHT IRISH

Many events were occurring very quickly, and when the Ecrosian onlookers should have been taking their leave, Alizabeth calls to take Tiamat hostage. It was a bold move to do so while the other swamp lions lingered on Lagoon sands, and Tanaz felt herself stiffen with surprise and no little annoyance. The white sovereign had won, what more could be had from this challenge? A frown weighed over her lips as she caught Myra’s eye as she passed and would attempt to speak plainly to the bloodied monarch, but she could not pay them too close a mind as a white lion had darted forward to intercept Tiamat.

Tanaz tilted her chin towards him, ears pinning in irritation. Clear the path, and we will leave in peace, Alaric or no. She hissed, fixing her glittering hazel gaze to him; although she rather liked his idea to gather more Ecrosians to this Lagoon, and whether that would solve anything or not, it would still take time to do so… and tensions were escalating with every other heartbeat. So, for the moment, the chestnut cat made no indication that she would fight this pale lion—Myra carried the weight of authority for now, and she had stated they would leave in peace if allowed, so Tanaz would not do anything to make a lie of her promise.

@Nero

ART COPYRIGHT IRISH