A challenge for Lilliana? What could possibly have possessed someone to go after a member of Alexander’s family?

Heart pounding, Thella reached the rim of the pit to look down upon the battle already underway between Alexander and the calling male. He was a stranger to her and she didn’t recognize the scent that wafted up, mixing with those of the Hollow. She couldn’t see Alex’s face but his movements held a certain fury; she couldn’t blame him.

Hastily, but taking care to watch her footing, she picked her way down the goat path until she hit the bottom and glanced around at the others watching from the sidelines. It was @Reti ♔ that drew her attention first; she had missed his presence since his departure and felt a comfort in seeing him again. Moving in his direction, she took note of who else was there: Lilliana, of course; Karsa, also not surprising; one of Alexander’s other children, who’s name escaped her; and most surprising of all, the little snow cat, Mosrael.

"Do you know the man?" she asked, sitting down beside him but keeping her eyes fixed on the combatants before them.

art by moogle, code by lars

Aphrodite moved through the territories. Knowing this had been her doing once again. Did it bother her? No not really but she was surface and show herself to the crowd. Large form slithered through the group, the first she spotted was @Reti ♔ - the woman sitting next to him - and she would move towards in with grace and brush against him. Of course, Aphrodite was not aware of the conversation he had with her wife so how could she had known? You looked troubled. She took note of the woman, so this was the woman he called his wife. Could she explain that she offered to come to the Hollows to ask for her freedom? Would that even work?

code by corvus

Fiery rage consumes The Viper as she hears the call. Her eyes blaze with intensity as she charges forward, desperate to intervene. But once again, she arrives too late. Frustration courses through her as she lets out a fierce roar of disapproval, her entire being bristling with anger. This was not her decision, not something she would have allowed. The fire in her eyes speaks volumes as she glares at @Reti ♔, her tail lashing behind her in agitation.

Il n'a aucune idée des conséquences de ses actes. Je n'ai jamais donné mon accord pour cela, He has no idea of the consequences of his actions. I never agreed to this, Miaran's voice is filled with righteous anger as she speaks for only his ears. Her gaze then shifts to her wife, a mix of fury and disappointment etched into her features, a storm waiting to be unleashed.

Her gaze remained fixed on her wife, a mixture of anger and disbelief etched onto her face as she approached @Aphrodite. Her ears were flattened against her head, her sharp fangs exposed in a show of aggression. What have you done? Haakon had been warned about the Hollows, a pride to be cautious with. So why would he risk angering them by attempting to steal one of their own?

table code by daanyen

She has no dog in this fight outside of curiosity. It's unusual for a challenge to be for a woman, she thinks, and it makes her blood boil that men in Amaryllis see them as nothing more than currency. Had anyone asked the woman what she wanted? Had anyone bothered to speak diplomatically? She doubts it. Men are irrational creatures and she isn't entirely convinced their frontal lobes ever fully develop; but it isn't the fact she finds it all stupid that gives her pause when she comes across the scene. No, it's the fact there's a pale man with stripes.

Is it him?

Nyaxia's blood runs cold as she peers into the pit, ears twitching anxiously. It's possible, she tells herself, but the uncertainty gives her pause.

It's one thing to spy upon private matters in the home - another to witness such brazen disregard on public grounds. Although in this case, Reverie is perhaps more tactful than the last occasion... She does not deliberately hide in her spectators seat, however the lilac woman does choose a vantage perhaps easily unseen by some rocks on the edge of the pit. Day by day she feels more weary; courtesy of whatever shadowlings grow within. "If you lot don't stop squirming, so help me." She mutters to herself, ears cupping forward before she eases to the ground with an annoying huff.

Gods how did her mother do it, felt like she was growing an elephant. There's no discernment of the faces gathering but the beast in red she recognizes with ease, a man with authority, a man clearly looking to quell whatever disobedient chaos this challenger has wrought forth. Though perhaps more curiouser was the arrival of more Caladanians. One looking quite displeased with another and it doesn't take a genius to all but feel the tension pouring out of the silver woman, regardless of whether they can hear what she's saying.

[ Reverie is spectating ]

** smells like the badlands and dunes

ART BY RABBIT, CODE BY DEE, MODIFIED BY GUNNER

It wasn't her intention to come this way, call it twins intuition or whatever but Levana had felt the pull towards the middle.of Amaryllis, and she'd made it just in time to hear a male call for her sister, a claim on her sweet, timid sister. The woman snarls, entering with a tense gait, her eyes seek out the one who dared to seek claim over her flesh and blood, though Lilli was more than just regular family, she was her twin, they'd shared a womb, and after that everything up until coming here.


She finds @Lilliana and moves to take the spot beside her, pressing in close as she eyes the fight, her lip still lifted slightly, she slips her gaze to the side to catch her sisters eyes, "What has happened Lilli." She speaks gently, though her voice is tensed, her claws kneaded the ground below her, she was smart enough to ask first, but still her fur had rose, the flush hair made her seem just a bit bigger, she looks to @Karsa and gives him a gentle smile, greeting him with kind eyes before turning
Back to the fight

Daedric didn't typically involve himself in pride politics, but he was getting a bit older now, more prone to learning as opposed to playing or exploring. In this instance, the drama was occurring between his family and the pride in which he currently resided. It would be important for him to be here, to observe the interaction between the two.

The growing youth would find himself settling away from the fighting, observing his father, the red king, as he fought to prevent the theft of one of their own. It had been many months since he had last seen Alexander, since he was a small boy. As much as he might like to properly greet him, this was not the time or situation in which to do so. He would not wish to distract him from the fight.

For now he would simply sit and observe everyone, noting the leadership of the Cove seemed upset about this challenge. So was this lion challenging a liability then? Would he alone be punished for this, or would the whole of the Cove be marked an enemy for it?

BARBARIAN EXP
+5 Observe a fight

And I'm feeling good

Birds flying high, You know how I feel, Sun in the sky, You know how I feel, Breeze driftin' on by, You know how I feel, It's a new dawn, It's a new day, It's a new life, For me

code by corvus

I put my armor on, show you how strong I am

This...was not what she'd expected. None of this was. Had she been a different woman, maybe she'd have stayed away. But she was who she was and for all her acceptance of pride politics, even with her disdain for it at times, the pull was something she never denied.

That pull towards the song of blood. Towards the one place that always promised a beautiful symphony of ivory and red. The dance hadn't yet begun when the shieldmaiden left, even the call hadn't rung out yet. Perhaps it was the instinct of a warrior raised on blood. Or perhaps it was that he drew her there. Whatever it was, by the time she arrived, his call had long gone silent and the scents of others were strong.

She didn't need to see them to know. She'd heard the call and something just...clicked. Verdant gaze lingered on the fighting forms as the warrior queen gracefully wove her way through the crowd. But it were the quiet words of a lioness clearly in relation to the Hollow's King that gave her pause. His wife. Carrying his cubs. Near @Lilliana, the scarred valkyrie paused, hackles raising as a deep growl vibrated in her throat. No, she'd not sink so low as to harm a pregnant lioness, but she made her displeasure clear nonetheless. "Savante, I should have known," she sneered, baring sharp fangs as she stalked by the little group. Gracefully she slipped closer, a movement that to others may seem as if she were affectionately brushing against the other lioness. "If this ends with my warrior losing, you'll regret ever getting near him," she whispered for only Lilliana to hear before slinking away.

That growl still vibrated through her entire form as she stalked towards @Miaran and @Aphrodite, where she then settled into a sit, claws dragging against the ground, ears laced against her skull. "Did you know?" A question asked of both of them with a voice that was forced into something calm, though the tension of her body betrayed the fire flaring within. Blazing verdant gaze fixated on the fight, following each move of the fighters, though seemingly far more focused on @Haakon.

code by flea, art by irish

She is there, a silent force of fabulous fury. Though, with the finding of her lifemate - there seems to be something tempered about the woman. The Savante Matriarch did not come into the scene with fangs bared, with claws ready to rip into the closest body. No, she is the picture of perfect grace, of fierce beauty and calm. It is almost eerie to look upon.

The ghoul remains in the quiet shadows, peering out amongst those who had come to view her nephew thrash this foolish beast who called for their kin. Her chest held the whisper of a growl, but it remains there. For the moment. One by one, more and more show up - all confused, all seemingly upset at this surprise challenge.

It was only the sound of outwardly voicing displeasure at her family. At the Savante. That calm shattered within seconds. The temper of the furious ghoul igniting with a spark and then erupting into a full fledged volcano. A snarl rips from her gullet as the Matriarch moves to stand near @Lilliana protectively - the hair along her spine raising.

Fangs bare offensively at @Lagertha, salivating all the while - those glistening beads dripping from teeth along her lips, toward the ground. "Keep our name out of your mouth." No threat was spoken, but it was there - hanging in the air. Talons dig into the Earth, her single red eye never leaving Lagertha's form.

coded by flea + background credit + art

cain

savante

Cain heard the call from the pit, his ears twitching. The young prince moved with purpose as he approached the pit, his tail lashing slightly with irritation and maybe nervousness. He wasn’t entirely sure why this man was challenging to take his cousin, but his father was already locked in battle with the pale-furred stranger.

His red gaze scanned the pit, and landed on the gathering of his family. Swiftly he moved to join them, sitting a bit near @Karsa. The oceanic scent of Caladan was strong in the air, filling his nares. His eyes narrowed and his jaw clenched with stress. As much as he wanted to speak, to question all of this, he remained quiet. Instead, his eyes were locked on his father battling.

He remained on high alert though, listening to the words spoken around them all.

- ★ -July Y12 | 11 m/o | Obsidian Hollow Royalty
+5 Paladin: Observe a fight. (Alexander vs. Haakon)

_{BG — CODE}