The only remaining allegiance he has is to his own family. Nero descends upon the scene quickly when he hears the call echoing out, but his eyes do not seek Morrigan or her opponent. No, his eyes search only for @Maven and @Capucine that he might somehow spare them the trauma of witnessing a fight to the death. If it were within his power to prevent his daughters from ever seeing reality, Nero would make it so. His presence is there as a means of defense if necessary as well, but he hopes his girls have the common sense to stay away. It's barely even been two months and their father is already beat to hell just in time for war.

Fantastic.

code by corvus

High away, tucked into the Summit it is the deafening roar that summons Morrigan, the call that Eskel knows Talisa fears- the call he fears for her and the gray Queen he's becoming rather fond of. Eskel stands, moving towards the den of Talisa, hesitating but knowing that she would want him there- at the fight, to defend the Summit.

He is thankful that Talisa has yet not left to go. He is praying that she will not go. That Morrigan will win, that her appearance at such a thing won't be needed.

With any grace, she will stay home and keep safe. Not that he doubts her abilities as a fighter, but because it is a distraction to worry more for her, to worry that she will be harmed. A potential distraction for Morrigan, he also fears. Eskel is armed mentally and physically for war as he descends the Summit, following in the wake of his pride-mates unknowingly.

When he arrives at the Pit, he stares through the swirling storm, and notes @Isla ♔ @Cassandra, and others. Eskel approaches them, aiming to come near, but not so near that he blocks them from moving into a battle. His gaze aims to meet the Brook Queen, and the Heiress of the Summit with a grave nod- his gaze moving to the Queen who has already flung herself into battle- for her life.

The plum male is huge, and she has not forgotten what he has done to them- to this family he has joined- to his family now. Silently, he prays- Eskel who had never been religious, never felt anything towards any god or goddess- he prays to them, to Maua. Prays for strength for Morrigan. Safety for his home.

The colossal giant remains near the females, in an effort to protect them, to be a soldier they can rely on- while he looks for a target- his claws flexing in the snow- as he waits.

"Eskel is actively looking for a fight, and is open to Major Maims!"

ART BY YUMPY, CODE BY LARS

Despite the massive storm raging ahead, she hears the faintest noise, the call of war- that rouses her from the confines of her warm den. The Noble, makes to leave the cubs sleeping- to move out silently so that they may not note her presence being gone, and heads towards the pit. There is a feeling of worry in her gut at the sound, and Ghyslaine moves towards it, a moth to flame. When she nears- she spies the plum king, she witnessed Violarum defeat and Morrigan- in battle. Her heart pounds in her chest, her eyes wide, as she looks around those gathered- gaze landing on @Nero. She aims to move to through those gathered, nodding to any she recognizes and who may see her to move to his side. "Are the girls here?" She whispers, as she nears him- speaking to him, as her gaze cuts through the storm, trying to see them. Praying they would not come.

ART COPYRIGHT RABBIT / CODE COPYRIGHT ANALESE

Her gathered group next to Kvare would begin to grow, with @Sunder and @Lagertha arriving to stand near Kvare and herself. A nod would be given to the other two Cove lionesses, acknowledging their support as they spoke. A strong snort would be given in answer to her uncle's words of snuffing out every medic in the valley. "She will survive - we must make sure he does not come out of this unharmed." Cassandra vowed, dark ears pushing back as she spoke.

@Amara would join their gathering next, and she'd give the Wolfbron queen a nod of respect as she approached. While they might not have seen eye to eye on things, she very much respected the older lioness for her prowess and ability to keep a hold on the Bluffs against so many who sought to take her from her. "Amara." She greeted, with a smirk revealing itself on her face as the starry queen spoke of returning the favor, a spark came into her eye. "He is also fond of stealing others... I am thinking of returning the favor." Cassandra said, flicking an ear as she spoke.

A glance would be given to her uncle as she spoke next. Her next words were quiet, for @Kvare only. "Perhaps Renfri could be the one to give you in exchange for Zephyr. If I am successful, I will gladly gift her to you, to do whatever it is you desire with her." She said, for only her uncle to hear. After waiting a moment, Cassandra's eyes roamed over the crowd. Her focus was broken however as her newest adopted so came rushing in yelling her name. "Oaken! Be careful. It is not safe for you here." She said, aiming to grab the little boy. If she grabbed him, she would then attempt to gently push him towards @Asbjørn. The unspoken command in her gaze as she aimed to lock eyes with her colossal son. Protect him.

Back to the natter at paw. The subject of Renfri. Perhaps she could bait the bitch into revealing herself. With a smirk on her face, Cassandra would look to her mother who was fighting. Maua give her strength. She silently prayed to Maua before beginning to do what was next. "Perhaps she would like to bear the shackles of a prisoner." Cassandra said, knowing that if Renfri was here or not, she would be fighting this day.


Cassandra vs ??
For @Renfri
Round 0/3

actions. "speech."

Art & Table code by Zodiac

Marja would have missed this call to battle, this call to death, had she not been out in the storm trying to make her way back to the Cove. The loon had gotten a tad bit lost, unable to remember how to get back after a spell in the jungle, but she was traveling through a storm of Gromm's fury... and then she heard it. Was Gromm beckoning her to dance with death? To witness strength and honor on display?

She made her way down to the pit, her green eyes squinting her mouth open in a gaping sort of look. What was this? Marja's pace picked up into an all out, very clumsy run as she skidded down into the pit and she let up a yowl. "storm prinosite silu!" Storm bring strength She hollers, loudly, and likely with spittle flying everywhere. "silneishaia pobeda!" Strongest win! Of course she doesn't rightly realize she should have a side in this, but she then spies her King locked into a fight, and she immediately cheers for him too. "korol viigrivaet mnogo srazheny!" King win many fight!

Blessing him, and praying so loudly to Gromm for strength for the strongest, is time consuming, but she doesn't end her hollering- doesn't yield, as she begins repeating herself.

"storm prinosite silu!" Storm bring strength

"silneishaia pobeda!" Strongest win!

"korol viigrivaet mnogo srazheny!" King win many fight!

OOC: "Marja is open to any interactions, just please tag me on Discord!"

always alone and unwanted

I don't mean to be so crass about the situation -- But it's easier than breaking down -- The reasoning your loose interpretation --
In a sea of motherfuckers, man, you were no salvation

code by corvus| art by riot

Dad. His heart stops, so too did the world around him as he feels his gut constrict up around itself. He has suspected it all but to hear the damning confirmation drives a knife into Fearne's heart. His mummy was going to kill Orei's dad. Orei's dad wanted to kill his mummy. He sees the shadow, his shadow, beside him and it looks alien. Fearne doesn't belong here at the side of a Saxe. They aren't supposed to be friends.

I can fix you- we can fix this. He cries, trying to keep his emotions from lending his voice too much volume. He knows they can't do anything, that he is as helpless as @Orei. There is no fixing this, not for any of them but especially not for two boys barely with hair around their necks yet. He feels like he is choking, he can't get a good breath down and oh it feels like he wants to be sick in the dirt before him. He does not want his mother to die, but somehow it seems easier to be the boy with a dead mother than the son of an executioner. He looked at Orei, trying to block out the sound and smells of the fight around him that begins to rage with his mother's arrival. The clock begins to tick down, counting merciless the last seconds of friendship, of being best friends with this Saxe boy.

Fearne reaches over, trying to grab and hold onto Orei's forelimb, drag the boy closer and back into contact with him. Please no no no. He mumbles over and over in a nonsensical craze. He's begging. Don't let him kill her please. But he doesn't know how, he knows he has no chance of stopping his mother but it doesn't seem impossible that Orei could stop his father. It made no logical sense but his mind felt sharped and pained. Nothing made sense. I'm not leaving you. It's all that Fearne can do. He cannot save his mother, he cannot save his friend's father. He is losing his best friend no matter who death claims today but in retaliation to nature Fearne wants only to cling to him and fight back... if only there were an enemy to actually fight.

ART BY SPU, CODE BY LARS

Man, he hasn't seen a battle to the death in.. ever, actually. For some reason it had never occurred to the gargantuan lion that death matches were an actual thing; he couldn't fathom ever disliking someone so much he wanted to expend the energy to murder them in front of a crowd. He understood murdering them behind closed doors, sure, but the whole gladiator spectacle thing was a bit much. Ah, well, it didn't really concern him one way or the other. Colsun was simply attending as a Firnen member and settled onto his haunches adjacent to the queen, eyes peering down to the arena that would soon become someone's tomb.

there's a darkness and it follows me

I'm never gonna let you in

code by corvus

Eisa stands there, her rage and ire bubbling in her stomach as she seethes at Aeistrios, as she stares him down- waiting for Morrigan to come and stomp him into the earth, to make him disappear in a bloody stain in the snow, when another joins her. She glances to the younger female -@Etain , a slight curl to her lips at her words. {"Morrigan is the strongest lioness I have ever met. He's a fool for thinking he can stand against her."} She murmurs.

She hears a garbled voice on the wind, and the insult to her grandmother will not stand. Eisa is turning towards the sound, is moving towards the speaker with nothing short of rage in her eyes, and doesn't even really address the presence of @Kireena, but doesn't mean to be rude- it is rage she must allow to come out.

She only hesitates, when she sees @Kvare throw himself into battle, and her mother - @Cassandra belt out a challenge for another. Eisa shakes her head, and wishes her luck silently, before she belts across the pit- her eyes on the pink female who had spoken in support of Aeistrios.

If she wanted to talk shit, she could get hit.

Eisa aimed straight for the colossal female, not hesitating because of size, or because she didn't wish to cause harm. That part of her felt dead- as if she'd never wished to be a huntress instead of the fighter she'd been forced to become. She aims to slam into the left side of the female, her jaws parting in a massive snarl, as she aims to bite into the side of her neck, or shoulder whatever she could possibly reach.

Eisa vs @Toblerone
For Minor Maim {tbd}
Round 0/4
Hits:

Rolling 8d20: 16 + 4 + 18 + 15 + 10 + 13 + 8 + 5

Dodge:

Rolling 4d20: 6 + 12 + 1 + 3

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 18 + 6 + 9 + 5 + 1

Permission to edit for the stupid italic code given by Ice

Evren is actively looking for a fight up to minor/major (can be discussed) maim. Just please dm me first.


She seemed pleased with his presence next to her, which only made his chest flutter even more. His smirk pulling into a grin as she spoke. "Always." He’d answer, such a puppy. A love struck puppy. He didn’t mind her thinking that he was beneath her. Really, beneath her, beside her… It was all the same in his young, teenage mind. He was content to look around as more and more and more lions arrived. Young and old, one child was dumb enough to initiate a fight with someone much older and he snorted softly. Fool. Of course, it was then that he noticed the shift in @Faustine, how her energy suddenly became… angry?

As she moved, Evren watched with a sharp eye, eyes darting around to make sure none others interfered with the bellowing claim to that dumbass once the adult was done with her. His ears pulled forward listening to what his girl and @Elaine ♔ would say. The teenager would shift, wanting to join, but knowing his presence wasn’t needed- not unless someone else joined in to even or tip the odds in the strangers favor.

He would look around, shifting to a slightly more readied stance, looking every bit like he wanted a fight. He knew Andal was the enemy, but…he didn’t see many of the purple mans followers with him. Evren would chew on his lip, uneasy at the thought. What if the cubs weren’t safe? Dont even think about it. You are staying this time. He snapped silently to himself, pushing the concern for cubs he didn’t know away for the moment.

ART BY RABBIT, CODE BY DEE, MODIFIED BY GUNNER

She was cold. Her toes were cold. And when her toes were cold, she got angry. Did nobody care that she had driven such a creative invective toward the fashionably late opponent? No! They all cared about... about stealing stupid little cubs, and threatening some stupid lioness from the Oasis! Her yellow eyes sweat bullets and her whiskers twitched indignantly. There was a little quiver in the corner of her mouth. Anger... abandonment, insecurity, but she wasn't a psychologist so anger was what she was calling it. She saw this runty dried-blood colored specimen racing toward her and spun her defenses into place. Mostly instinctual, mostly angry. She was still being ignored by one lioness short of everyone.

The runt-thing came at her left side and Toblerone exhaled a soprano sniff in anticipation of the impact. Which hurt quite a bit more than her drama anticipated. Her skull jerked up, chin down, fangs bared. Her tail waft out and her hindquarters pivoted to catch her balance and aimed to bring them facing closer to head on. "Awww, is mommy's little pants fetcher trying to bite?" Actually she was being bitten pretty damn hard; her entire left shoulder throbbed, damp with blood and bruising ringing through the bone. She had thought her ribs had healed from being squished by Aeistrios. Thought. Apparently they had not healed because that slam made them hurt again. Why did fighting have to hurt? Specifically: why did it have to hurt her? "You know I'm bigger," she hissed simpering, the sound transmuting into a growl as fangs attempted to retaliate by trying to bite into that pitch mane atop the crown of the forehead. Bigger meant better at pulling hair.

@Eisa vs @Toblerone
Minor maim
1/4

Hits:

Rolling 6d20: 12 + 18 + 17 + 14 + 4 + 2

Dodges:

Rolling 4d20: 17 + 12 + 3 + 16

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 2 + 18 + 12 + 10 + 9