Her wanders always took her far from Ecrosian land.

The same unseen power that had bound her to the borders where Aniadar met Ecrosia now seemed to repell her, or perhaps she chose not to go near on her own will. And who would blame her? To be shackled so long in the in-between of life & death had crushed her soul and then fired up her flame again. Her desire to breathe air and walk among the living again had only grown stronger. Stronger to a point of bursting.

And she'd achieved what she ought to do.

She'd made the possible impossible. Of course, not without the aid of a witch, but Erna would never admit to such thing. The witch had been a tether between her tremendous power and the living world. Only a bridge to cross, a means to an end.

They were all a means to an end.

And now the diety was roaming, her foreign feet taking her places she had not visited before in search of things she had not seen before. In search of answers.

This cavern was buzzing with anticipation. The air was electrified, and she found this feeling familiar. She could sense how thin the veil was here. Another piece to the puzzle.

@Veros

and i could've died last night

but i heard the the voice of a smaller god

code by corvus

The roar and spray of the waterfall nearby muffled out all sounds and snuffed out most scents - at least ones that lay inside the caves behind it. With a wet sprinkle to his coat, Veros ducked inside, finding the air much colder, much damper in the cave than outside, though the boy did not put any reason to it other than it being a cave. Sure, the Devorre had their own beliefs in gods, but Veros was raised so loosely on those beliefs, he barely remembered them any longer.

As he penetrated the cave further, his eyes found a familiar shape in the darkness, and a displeased tut left his tongue, clicking against the roof of his mouth. Runa, the yearling who had beaten him in acquiring Barony, and then tried to shame him for it. The taste she left on his senses was sour, and he couldn't say he enjoyed the company of the young woman. Still, he lingered, glaring at her with the ghost of a snarl etched into his lips. Was she ready to even the score?

@Runa

code (c) cala

She could feel the electricity softly buzzing. It was strange, as if she could almost taste it here. As if the darkness that seeped into her bones was warm sunlight, or the dampness a breath of fresh air. A small, knowing smile sat on her dark lips. This place... it felt like she was seeing an old friend once again.

The sound of a displeased tut set her back into the instinctive wariness that she always carried herself with. Runa spun to stand eye to eye with @Veros, his glare bearing holes in her skull. It made her lips upturn into a mocking smirk. "Oh? Here to even the score?" she eyes the sunset boy, her eyes trailing the small wounds she'd left upon his larger frame. They were the works of an artist. "You will never defeat me. I am stronger, but not only physically," She was stronger and every possible way. "I am immortal." Youthful tones declared, and the darkness seemed to swirl around her.

coded by flea + art by runandwine

Oh? Here to even the score?

He would be, if he could guarentee his win against her. He would not set himself up for failure if she was just going to best him here again. What would stop her from trying to kill him even? There was no one around to keep her from doing it.

"You're full of shit that's what you are," he retorted back. She was just a girl. She didn't have power. She just had a mouth she liked to run too much. And she had luck on her side, maybe, but that was it.

Okay, change of plans. Her bravado hurt his ego a bit.

"No amount of your bullshit is going to deter me, though. Nice try. So, yeah, I am here to even the score." And with that, he charged her, attempting to push her into the rock wall behind her. He extended his left foreleg to attempt to catch her at the shoulder (with his claws) in case she tried to just... move out of the way.

---

Veros vs. @Runa
for Dominance
Round 1 of 3
Hits:

Rolling 5d20: 18 + 3 + 16 + 6 + 9

Dodges:

Rolling 3d20: 10 + 3 + 12

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 13 + 6 + 17 + 15 + 12

OOC: Slow fights are okay with me <3 I dont remember what we were gonna do with this thread anyway, so I hope you're cool with another fight LOL <3 Runa bruised his ego a little, and he couldn't say no.

code (c) cala

"You're full of shit that's what you are,"

Her mocking smirk faded away abruptly, replaced by a cold expression that put the rocks beneath their feet to shame. She felt her anger rise, but it was thwarted by how puny the mortal boy in front of her was in the grand scheme of things. For once, the Deity within her did not froth at the maw, nor did she chant commands of destruction. No, rather she stared with snake eyes, waiting for what @Veros would do next.

"No amount of your bullshit is going to deter me, though. Nice try. So, yeah, I am here to even the score." She scoffed, slipping into her defensive stance as if she was born with it. "Predictable!" her harsh voice snarled, but the words were lit up by her mad smile. Oh, she will enjoy beating his ass in the ground again.

She waited for him to be close enough and seconds before their collision, she sought to yield to her own right with a leap, hoping that his momentum would bring him crashing straight into the wall behind her. Of course, she did not leave that unscathed. His shoulder collided with her left one, leaving a mild bruising and a mildly shaken balance that she tried to correct. Unfortunately, she had not predicted that he would predict her attempt to yield, and so his claws left long, deep marks across her shoulder and toward the mid portion of her chest. "Give up, child—!" she yelled, her voice echoing in the cavern walls around them. She sought to stand at a T of his shoulder now, right limb rising with momentum from the ground as she sought to send her claws flying across Veros' face. "—I've slain on the battlefield before you were even a spark in your father's eye!" War after war. Sigrun and Sigrun at her feet - her life knew no peace. This child will soon find out what terrible mistake he'd made.

Runa vs. @Veros
for Dominance
Round 1 / 3
Hits:

Rolling 4d20: 20 + 15 + 12 + 11

Dodges:

Rolling 2d20: 5 + 11

Luck:

Rolling 6d20: 2 + 14 + 16 + 3 + 9 + 18

coded by flea + art by runandwine

The young woman had some nerve, and he sought to smack it right out of her. She had already proven to be a wildcard in the Mire, easily getting herself demoted in the last skirmish that happened on pridelands. It was only a matter of time before she spit her nonsense at the wrong lion. He was internally soothed by his claws ripping into her shoulder and chest, but jostled by their clash all the same.

"You sound like--" he began, cut off by the motion of her swipe coming towards his face. He jerked back his head and squinted his whole face as her claws swiped across part of it. His movement only helped a little, causing her to miss her intended mark just barely. Instead, her claws raked down the left side of his turned face, his cheek, his jawline, and a bit of his neck had deep claw marks beginning to ooze. "--An old hag!" he finally finished, turning back to her and feeling the wound on his face and neck stinging harshly.

Then he attempted to grip her shoulders with his claws and swing his skull towards her, hoping to skull-bash her and not the rocks behind her.

---

Veros vs. @Runa
for Dominance
Round 2 of 3
Hits:

Rolling 5d20: 3 + 16 + 17 + 18 + 9

Dodges:

Rolling 3d20: 15 + 17 + 9

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 8 + 14 + 11 + 15 + 18

OOC: hoping to be faster with this! Works calming down a little. <3

code (c) cala

Claws tore sunset-marred flesh with utmost satisfaction to follow. She couldn't keep herself from grinning at the wonderful sensation. She would never get tired of the beauty of this ferocious dance, of the way her muscles trained and the way her skin stung as blood oozed freely from her wounds. It was simply... art. How could she ever give up the kiss of death? The walk on the edge? Never. Never again.

Even if death is to seek her, she will cheat it again. Her existence is an anomaly in the fragment of this reality. She is great. She is immortal.

And thus why would a mere mortal child's words reach her? Why would they offend, when they were the buzz of a winged insect in her ear, soon to be gone beneath the weight of her paw? Nein. Such things were not worth her attention. Wir werden sehen, wie viel der Hund ohne Kehle bellt. An old hag she may be, but what stood before him was a tiny, wounded girl that will beat his ass.

When he gripped her shoulders, claws digging deep into her flesh, she found herself facing him in exquisite agony. The snarl that came was a mixture of pain and ferocity, as he reached forward to head-butt her. In the last moment, as retaliation, she attempted to readjust her whole skull down in an attempt to smash her temple, her vulnerable skull, directly into his jaw in a counter. This was going to hurt. It was going to be amazing.

Runa vs. @Veros
for Dominance
Round 2 / 3
Hits:

Rolling 4d20: 12 + 2 + 8 + 18

Dodges:

Rolling 2d20: 4 + 5

Luck:

Rolling 6d20: 12 + 16 + 9 + 10 + 2 + 6

coded by flea + art by runandwine

He squeezed his eyes shut, readying himself for the impact. This was why he didn't see that she had moved, and thankfully, he didn't ram his head into the rocks behind her, but she did ram her head into him. In a last minute readjustment, Runa had successfully ducked, and as Veros came in to swing his head into her, he was met with a painful counter that slammed his jaw shut with a click, taking only a small part of his tongue with it. A snarl ripped through him in that moment and he sought to disconnect from her, but curling his claws and hoping to leave deep lacerations in their wake.

---

Veros vs. @Runa
for Dominance
Round 3 of 3
Hits:

Rolling 5d20: 1 + 17 + 16 + 18 + 8

Dodges:

Rolling 3d20: 14 + 20 + 9

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 13 + 7 + 3 + 4 + 1

OOC: feel free to request this with your reply <3 This fights hella crusty :D

code (c) cala

Her skull rammed painfully into the foe's head, and yet despite the dizzying feeling, she managed to beam a smile from ear to ear. Oh! She was enjoying herself very much. At this moment, she felt more alive than ever, blood coursing through her youthful body with such vigor that she felt half mad.

When he began to retract from her, she felt his claws dig deeper and leave a longer mark across her flesh. Oh, no, we're not finished! She attempted to step closer to him, jaws unhinging in an attempt to wrap tightly around his chin.

Runa vs. @Veros
for Dominance
Round 3 / 3
Hits:

Rolling 4d20: 17 + 7 + 13 + 18

Dodges:

Rolling 2d20: 15 + 13

Luck:

Rolling 6d20: 16 + 4 + 13 + 19 + 3 + 10

coded by flea + art by runandwine

@Veros VS. @Runa FOR DOMINANCE
— RESULTS —

Veros Hits: 2+3+3+4 Luck = 12
Veros Dodges: 1+2+2 = 5

Runa Hits: 4+2+3+5 Luck = 14
Runa Dodges: 1+0+2 = 3

Veros Successful Hits: 9
Runa Successful Hits: 9