Traveling through this convoluted maze of a jungle is something of an ordeal, but Viveka is not the type of woman to be so easily dissuaded from a goal once she's set her mind upon it. In fact, she turns it into something like a test for her strength and agility, weaving through the trees at a brisk pace, shoving past the barriers of the underbrush and leaping over fallen logs and tangled branches.

When she does pause, it is only to carve the evidence of her passage into the tree trunks with a vicious fervor, silver talons scratching so deeply into the wood that whole chunks of bark are torn away beneath the onslaught. A tiny act of destruction, but oh so satisfying nevertheless.

She makes it to the borders of Firnen as the challenge begins to reach its natural conclusion. A shame, perhaps. Viveka blows out a 'hmph' of breath as she considers the two warriors, a colossal woman of red and a muscular man with a strange, mohawk mane. Oddballs, both of them. But so long as she's here, the Rike supposes she might as well stick around long enough to see how the battle ends.

+5 Observe a fight (Ryker vs Kireena)
+5 Maintain your weapons (sharpen claws)
+5 Exercise to gain strength (excluding spars)


"SPEECH"

code by scorpixia♡︎

The girl is wary still, of going to a place such as this. Considering the mess that was the last time the Maven had left the mountain to go towards the sounds of violence of chaos.

And yet down she descends on tentative paws, following after the subtle scents of other Illyrians drifting on the wind. The girl doesn't know where her father and his friends have wandered - only that the jungle had been meant to be their home. The Rainforest pride is a different beast, but she feels that must know what is happening here. If it has anything to do with the apparent absence of her most loyal kin.

She picks up speed as she goes, as if to dissuade herself from turning back, until she's sprinting agilely through the dense undergrowth of the jungle. She slows only when the sound of clashing felines is undeniable, slowing herself to pad cautiously up to the territory's edge, eyeing the Rainforest King's battle cautiously as comes to a halt besides @Valeria. Had he been there at the Brook, that day?

The chaos had been too much. She does not know.

"Do you...know who they are?" She asks of the yearling girl at her side, noticing her wide-eyed stare at the battle. Though perhaps Maven's gaze does not look so different, save for the new undercurrent of steel that gleams within them.

She is not quite used to this yet, perhaps, the violence, the bloodshed. But she knows now, that she can endure it.

+5 Observe a fight (Ryker vs Kireena)
+5 Exercise to gain endurance (excluding spars)
+5 Learn information about a potential threat

You're only sixteen, going on forever

art + code by sammiie

+10 Successfully stay hidden for the duration of a thread (assassin)
+10 Remain undetected in a large thread (5+ characters) (sleuth) (it's gonna get there pinky promise)

At first it is peaceful and the thumping in his chest insists on the presence of danger despite the present shade amid the advancing dawn. Nobody trespasses lightly; he knew this, from his old established pride, their established patrols and protocols, and the base filled information given from the king when he joined. Perhaps there are soft areas full of mirth and joy that welcome missteps and welcome strangers freely... but these are exotic. Tahiti out of reach. Here he waits violence, or at minimum firm capture.

Violence comes in an ambush from the king. His coloring and nimbleness give him greater ability and advantage in coming from behind. George sees the female is slow to turn, not because she wasn't on guard, but because she is simply a tank against a motorcycle. She seemed consistently outflanked. George is sure the king would defeat him too, one on one, although George didn't have the disadvantage of bulk it was plain the king was also more experienced than the assassin (who continued to lurk and watch quiet) in single combat. Not that his scars hadn't suggested as much.

She is still a huge, ugly, collapsing building, and George is sure that her good hits could hurt. He is a gambling man and knows to watch for the late upset, but he watches it as one may idly regard a game where the odds are long and the whistle draws near.

-- attempting to hide

@Ryker VS. @Kireena FOR Firnen Rainforest
— RESULTS —

Ryker Hits: 6 + 6 + 4 + 5 + 4 + 9 luck = 34
Ryker Dodges: 1 + 1 + 3 + 3 + 2 = 10

Kireena Hits: 4 + 5 + 4 + 4 + 4 + 11 luck = 32
Kireena Dodges: 2 + 3 + 1 + 2 + 2 = 10

Ryker Successful Hits: 24
Kireena Successful Hits: 22

Ryker HAS WON THE CHALLENGE FOR Firnen Rainforest!

---

WOUNDED ROLL

performed on discord by @AbjectTerrier

Kireena is automatically WOUNDED for losing!

Ryker Wounded Roll: 4

Ryker is WOUNDED!

Profiles will be adjusted to reflect the wounded rolls, which, if received, reduce the character’s hits and dodges by -1 for an standardized amount of time. Any wounded rolls received from this fight are considered healed as of August 3rd, 2023, and are logged in the wounded log. Once healed, post in Trade & Dice Updates to have your dice returned to normal.

Please allow the challengers to respond to the fight results first. As per the site rules, if 3 days go by without a post from the challenger(s), they can be skipped. Whichever comes first! Any posts made before this will be removed, unless you are posting to another fight.

[OOC: oocly agreed between Corvus and myself to swap posting order. Also Ryker has PP permissions in his next post. >: Also! Corvus said a post coming so please wait for Ryker before reacting (It'll be fun! :D) ] Time had stopped - vision was white and there was a high pitched ringing in her ears. All at once..sound returned, an orchestra of noise assaulting her eardrums - even though there was none.. The blood in her ears.. the wind rushing through branches. The ragged breathing of her own lungs. She struggled to catch her breath after the impact with the tree.. and as if her body was catching up as well, the red giant gave a wheezing cough before a second came - and with it? A wash of crimson vomit. He had done something to her - poison.. but what.. how? Kireena didn't know. What she did know - is that he would _PAY_. The giant would twist, using a last rush of strength, though her limbs shook and trembled.. The muscles crying. Though it was obvious she had been defeated. She would still try one last time - to see the other poisoned as she had been.. Jaws parted as the woman sought to close the distance between them - lunging at @Ryker's shoulder. She wished to sink her fangs into his flesh - to give him a taste of his OWN medicine.

code by koi

Waking up with the bloodstains
My state of mind is a hurricane

A mixture of blood and dirt came at his face as she stumbled, spraying a speckling of red and flecks of brown over his muzzle. Ryker pulled back a step as she hit the tree, but she didn't go down just yet. It was obvious she was struggling, though, so he supposed it was down to a matter of seconds - an estimate cut in half as red erupted from her mouth. Hm. Probably was a bit of internal bleeding, then. Neat.

In a sudden last-ditch effort, however, she surged toward him once more and Ryker spotted an opening. A split-second to react, and he twisted his head to duck her searching jaws and catch her by the throat. Jaws clamped around flesh, as he reached forward to yank her far foreleg toward him as he pushed with a last burst of energy from a fading adrenaline rush to bring her down to the jungle floor.

There would be a frozen second where he stayed in position, panting both in exertion and anger, before he released his grip, one paw planting firmly on her throat in replacement as he addressed her, "I don't know who the fuck you are, but you're not going anywhere until I get answers." He did have enemies, and needed to know if this was their doing. "So congrats, you've won a place as prisoner of Firnen."

He'd straighten then, paw still in place possessively, as he finally got a look at the crowd. "If you don't live here or aren't from an allied pride you have ten fucking seconds to get the fuck away." The aches were starting to make themselves known, and the sharper pain of fresh cuts. He needed to get this stranger secured, and see to his wounds, but the crowd really needed to disperse. His tail lashed in agitation, "Firnen members are encouraged to use extreme force against trespassers." Lethal force, even.

@Kireena

I'm a wild boy, ready to destroy

code by corvus

Fuck.

This wasn't good. The hair along his spine stands on end, and he nearly chokes on his own air. She falls with a distinct thud to the floor and the black and white male stands victorious. He had seen many kills, performed many more himself but he finds himself unable to keep a wince from forming when Ryker struck Kireena with claws--right in the neck, of all places. He hovers over her like the reaper a plague victim, and Kovirah can't hear what he says--but he is clearly saying something before a warning is projected in the silence that befalls the climax of their duel.

So, he is faced with a choice. It's clear enough he cannot go to Kireena, and risk being murdered. Yet a part of him wishes to do so--almost impulsively. He has to fight against it, for the first time in his life, the emotions are running wild and he cannot quite articulate why or how. He feels his claws ache in anticipation, but ultimately Kovirah decides it might be best to retreat and rethink. And he better get going now before someone began to realize under the musk of the flowers and other flora was the scent of a rogue.

With the skills befitting his old profession, he tears himself away from the scene. Slinking along the heavy underbrush--careful and swift--allowing for the rest of the murk, mud and flora to rub against him. He brushes against fragrant sap and pollen, in hopes to keep himself hidden as he quickly makes a b-line for the edge of the pride's territory.

What's worse, is he had no idea who her allies were, or where she came from. No place to rally a call to help. He was alone in this world again, and cursed himself for letting it be. He'd give anything to know where Maia and her family had gone. Surely they would at the very least, have imparted wisdom he could use.

One last glance--though he cannot see anything now--and Kovirah slips across the border once more.


---Exit


potential xp:
+10 - successfully stay hidden for the duration of a thread (assassin)
+5 Practice covering your scent (Assassin)
+5- observe a fight (barb) (Kireena vs. Ryker)

code by daanyan, Art by Rabbit

Demons Are Like Obedient Dogs,

They Come When They Are Called

Abbadon watched the fight closely, while also making sure to watch her brothers back, she is trembling with rage, she watched the end of the battle, the cough of blood, the surge toward her father, and her father quickly pinning the attacker. A prisoner? Her little ears perk up, slowly she starts towards @Ryker, finally rage wearing off and in seeps raw emotion, her eyes are watery though she wouldn't admit she was crying. Why was she crying? Dad defeated the challenger, she should be happy.

But being a child is hard, understanding emotions is hard, and it all comes crashing down on her too fast as she sways a bit, bottom lip pouting as she stares up at her father, ""Daddy...""

She mews to him, a pitiful whimper, the type of sound that makes house cats who have never been parents before run into the room as if they had babies of their own.

code by corvus

Well, the good news was that nobody had disturbed her while she had hunkered down amidst the Rainforest to watch the fight. The scent of the Rainforest had been smothered upon her pelt with a feverish desire to blend and she had done so with ease. So when the fight came to a finish and the previous and still standing ruler made the red-woman a diminished opponent, Juliette knew it was time to get out. She was no ally of his and while she (personally) wished no ill will upon a pride she knew nothing about, there was no truth that he would offer her the same. A simple smell was all the reason one had sometimes to attack and so Juliette made her way out of the territory one sneaky step at a him. Rubbing herself upon some of the trees as she departed to further coat herself in it to further disguise herself upon her exit. Making sure that she still smelled relatively Firnen-like so that she wouldn't get stopped for any reason. From what she could smell, there was still no hint of where she came from and thus continued her merry way out as though she was just a low-ranked spectator. exit juliette

hidden
+5 - Practice fabricating another’s scent
+10 - Successfully stay hidden for the duration of a thread
+10 - Sneak into another pride's territory without getting caught

Using Level 2: Able to fabricate pride scents.

^{ART BY AURORA, CODE BY CALA}

Pale eyes followed each movement, each splatter of blood against the jungle floor. It was the first real fight he'd witnessed, and he drank it in, unconsciously almost-mirroring the movements as his father attacked. The identity of the red woman remained a mystery, as his sister had no answers, but the boy's faith in his father would not be shattered yet. She fell hard, and Lucifer's breath caught in his throat a second. It was impressive in a way he didn't yet understand, the sight of his father pinning a bloodied enemy.

Then his sister was moving, and his stance relaxed, ears tipping back in worry as he followed after. He didn't like that sound she made, but he didn't understand it, either. Dad had won, their home was safe, that was a good thing, right? The idea the outcome could have just as easily been the opposite hadn't really occurred to him.

At a loss for what to do for his sister, he turned his attention to the stranger. She smelled like blood and...something else he didn't yet recognize as the taint of poison, but instinct told him to stay out of reach. So he'd glare at her silently from slightly beside his sibling.

@Abaddōn @Kireena