CREATOR OF MY OWN MASS DESTRUCTION

The woman only succeeded in biting down harder as their tussle continued. Her teeth made uncomfortable waves of pain radiate through his forelegs, causing him to partially lose feeling which was NOT good because he was trying to use them. He dropped his right paw to the sand when it had achieved what he intended it to, and while she was still busy chomping into his back, he used that moment to dig into her exposed neck.

Aiming a bite, he attempted to sink his teeth into what he could of the left side of her neck (or face). He raised his left paw and aimed to sink his claws into her shoulders (kinda around the same area that she focused on him) to hold her there, for grip, not being careful as to how they pulled against her skin. He still felt the surges of pain down his left arm as she chewed on some nerve-endings along his spine.

He could feel needle pinpricks in the area where her claws were buried into his mane. Thankfully, he had thick hair there, so her claws weren't doing too much damage, but still, they were in there and he was beginning to feel them.

---

Grimm vs. @Isla ♔
for @Cassandra
Round 2 of 3
Hits:

Rolling 7d20: 17 + 1 + 2 + 19 + 10 + 13 + 15

Dodges:

Rolling 3d20: 16 + 15 + 4

Luck:

Rolling 6d20: 18 + 2 + 9 + 5 + 19 + 11

+1 luck from Anya

I SET IT ON FIRE AND WATCH IT BURN

code x art

code (c) daanyen

It had been some of the pride that trickled towards the challenge. His mother had been there as well as Auntie Elaine, but not too many of theirs had deemed this affair as important. As he approached the Lagoon's borders, however, he wondered why they didn't come to clean up the dead when the affair was over. Yellow eyes feasted on the violence and chaos that took up most of the border, every inch, every corner. He tried not thinking that his father would see this and simply rush into the fray and attack the first living lion that didn't have a fighting partner.

That wasn't his plan for his visit, but he at least hoped to not be pulled into some bullshit he knew nothing about. As a precaution, he had coated his claws in the juices of the Adam and Eve plant.

His eyes followed the fight @Elaine ♔ was in, and he noted that @Tripfire was guarding his mother. He aimed to find a quiet patch of sand far enough away from the fighting to eavesdrop on the drama at hand.


-Arsene is not actively looking for a fight, but is OPEN to fights!-


[assassin xp (potential)] (doubled)
+20 Successfully poison someone (non-lethal)
+10 Tell a lie without being caught
+10 Gather information about a character

hear their lies, your truth, these games

Not that he kept up with his brother's whereabouts, but when he found him travelling westward towards the Lagoon, he followed... if only to provide backup should the man need it.

The beach had been quiet... until a white lion showed with his posse and then all hell broke loose. He watched as Scorpius was quick to jump into a fight, but Artaemis did not follow. He did not know the lions involved or why his brother involved himself. It was best to stay out of Scorpius' way... but again, as mentioned, he was there as back-up should it be needed.

His mismatched eyes swept the sandy beach at all the lions engaged in battle around him. He sat his bulk down, content with how far he was from the drama. He was only there to watch, since he barely knew that many out here. He had to brush up on his lion politics.

When the wind blew, it wafted a heavy scent of foliage that stuck to his coat, hiding the dusty scent of the desert. As he sat there, he let his eyes wander, using his nose to locate where the pride border must've been now that so many have crossed and trampled over it. He studied the way the sandbar and the beach connected, and what was within the Lagoon was similar to how the Oasis had been laid out. The territory was engulfed in trees and the meat of it all was a body of water within... except this kind couldn't be drank.


[sleuth xp] (doubled)
+10 Study the landscape of an area
+10 Practice hiding your scent
+10 Learn the extent of a pride's border

I know every secret nobody sees

code & art x inspo

+10 20 Sneak into another pride's territory without getting caught
+10 20 Successfully stay hidden for the duration of a thread
+5 10 Practice covering your scent
double exp from Peregrine's presence

Oh, now this was a proper brawl.

It seemed individuals came from all directions, materializing out of the darkening landscape in response to the call from their leaders or their friends. Nico had never witnessed a real war before, so it was interesting to see how well he could track the distinct sides.

Turned out not all that well. There were plenty of scents reaching him, but since he didn't actually know which prides they belonged to (aside from the lagoon scent itself), he really couldn't guess who hated who here. There did seem to be a lot of personal grudges getting a good airing, though, and he wished he knew more about those involved so he might better follow the unfolding drama.

Honestly, all he needed was a light snack and this was a fine way to spend an evening.

On second thought, a few of those present seemed to be fighting with lethal intention, which made him a little less inclined to stick it out until the end. Nico liked his head and skin and all his other parts just where they were, after all. He'd rather not risk having something damaged (or, worse, removed) in the name of spectating.

Sand still stuck to his fur, helping to cover his natural scent and conceal his presence. The shadow of the boulder still helped him to blend in with the encroaching dark of night. And his own good sense and desire for survival let him know the few minutes he'd managed to watch were probably as good as he would get. He should slip away while the majority of those present were still distracted by their little war.

Cautiously, quietly, he'd creep backward, back outside the border line onto neutral sands. His pace would remain cautious and Nico would remain on high alert until the pride was out of sight. Only then did he turn to walk forward, rather than backward, though shifted his path so that he would be walking through ankle-deep waves to hide his tracks and help to ensure his scent remained hidden until he felt he was far enough away he wouldn't be tracked.

-exit-

-hidden, i'd really appreciate him not being found for the exp-

It's all fire and brimstone baby

so let's go outside

code by corvus || ref base by vlinnyy

Go with her. Dio thinks she hears a voice in the back of her mind. Unimaginably quite given the chaos around them all. Given the screams, the cries, the impossibly loud sound of heartbeats that all at once seem to hit the beat of a drum. And yet it is the clearest thing in the world to Dio. She feels the tug of the spirits, the will of something ethereal that wants her to go to Vermeda. To the land which has consumed the bodies of so many Valour ancestors buried there year after year, death after death, for generations long before any of them. They call to her.

"You do not know what you've done." She whispers. Know the way? We are the way.

Regardless- she does not got entirely cooperatively to her birthplace. There's plenty of times @Arcania ♔ could likely notice Dio eyeing up escape paths, time to bolt and run. If the Brook Sovereign thought this would be easy she was sorely mistaken.

/exit

ART BY RABBIT , CODE BY LARS

Fearne had hoped that Orei might accompany him tonight to his cousin's wedding. A night for the two of them to celebrate and unwind together, as was becoming more and more frequent. (Both to make up for lost time and at least for Fearne, to avoid talking about their difficult past). But he could understand Orei not wanting to attend for the wedding festivities. Maybe a little too much Valour all at once for the Saxe?

Oh how he wished he'd pushed a little harder now so that he might have been here soon, so that they might have arrived together. Fearne had stalled in leaving Illyria and then once he had there had been a wayward journey to gather his outfit. Now that he arrives, late, and there's oh so much blood on the sands. With a festive speckling of flower petals in his brown mane he begins to race amongst the fights, around the scene, to try and take stock of what was happening and who was here.

"Mummy? Mama?" He calls out but cannot immediately find either. "Diomedeidae? Radahn?" His family? His pride? Even amongst lions that were allies it hard to find anyone specific. You could find a friend but to pluck one out of it all was like a needle in a haystack. So of course fate takes Fearne's paws towards @Orei and @Aneistri. He spots them and runs. "OREI!" Fearne shouts both at relief for finding someone but also alarm at the fight the large lion seemed to be getting into. Fearne was confused what his friend was trying to do, but then again there was little he was witnessing around him that made any sense at all.

( near but not entering the theft fight - open to fights according to his pvp )

ART BY RABBIT, CODE BY LARS

Anniston worked to piece together the scenario even as chaos unfolded around them, Ahyarë's heated touch against her side serving to anchor her where panic might set in. It seemed one of their deadly prisoners cared enough about this wedding to flee her cell for the ceremony. Though she could not imagine being so invested in anyone's affairs to put that kind of target on her head, she supposed they must be family – why else would everyone be shouting about these Sigrúns and these Rike? Purple pelt pressed instinctively closer to her companion's, as if the woman could shield her entirely from the dizzying salt and blood and adrenaline in the air. It was one of those scents that would stay stuck for days.

It was the sight of an approaching, lumbering lion that managed to catch her focus more consistently. Anniston tensed into a defensive position as she watched the dark-maned man amble toward her. Though it was not a face she could readily pick out in a crowd, with thoughts reeling long enough, she was able to place him as Alaric Stärke – former Ecrosian king, former friend of her father.

"Why? Why would you stand with him?"

She bristled into a ball of garnet fur, apprehension and defensiveness all flying across her expression in a moment.

We have a son.

"He's your son, isn't he?" Anniston spat, desperate to throw the spotlight back in his face where she could offer no real answers.

Then came her name on the wind. She swept her ears back defensively, craning her neck in search of who dared that challenge to possess her. Anniston swept that gaze of magma across the crowd until at last it honed in on a massive lion, so dark he nearly disappeared into the night air. Her expression was painted in rage first, then recognition, then confusion, then ––

She was bowled into the sand. Whatever came of that challenge for the leash around her neck was far beyond Anniston as she went flying forward, a small, bullet-like weight knocking her utterly off balance from behind. Her eyes were wild and wounded as she stiffened in an attempt to go dead-weight, not even the bubbling laughter hot in her ear enough to stop the wind and release of her right elbow, attempting to jab it forcefully into her attacker's ribs. She scrambled to try and roll to place herself on top of the smaller cat, her expression twisting into something like an injured animal as recognition finally had its way with her.

"Olive?!" It was not the first time her name had been a snarl upon her lips. Anniston looked upon her, umber furs creased with her own alien attempt at a snarl, and the mere sight of her proved more a wound to the lioness than teeth or claws ever could. All logic left her. Desperate to hurt as she had been hurt, Anniston attempted to strike the woman across the face with her left hand, claws unsheathed and spiteful.

---

ANNISTON vs. @Olive
Minor Maim - scarring
Round 1 / 4
Hits:

Rolling 5d20: 2 + 1 + 16 + 19 + 3

Dodges:

Rolling 5d20: 13 + 10 + 19 + 17 + 11

Luck:

Rolling 7d20: 4 + 2 + 15 + 18 + 8 + 9 + 14

- Anya - Medic Master Perks: Healing expertise keeps all pride-mates in peak physical condition (+1 luck for pride-mates in fights when medic is present, once per character per thread)
@Ahyarë @Alaric @Colsun
+10 - Learn about another family's traditions (double xp via Peregrine)
+10 - Observe and study a new scent (double xp via Peregrine)
+20 - Participate in a raid or war (double xp via Peregrine)

code by corvus

She'd known more and more freedom from the hovering of her parents as their children crept closer to adulthood, but Khal had made this occasion known to her, that it would be important to him for her to be there, and would serve as a good opportunity to meet her kinfolk outside of bloodshed. Or so that had been the plan. What she found waiting in the Lagoon was a mere remnant of those intents, washed over by a tidal wave of blood far greater than she had witnessed prior.

A feeling like stones sank into her stomach as she looked at the battlefield, young mond reeling at even beginning to make sense of it all. In the midst of it she saw her father, saw him bleeding for the first time. So much else was happening alongside. Spectres of some kind lingered near her grandmother where she fought a much younger lion. Death lingered in other places, too, waiting to claim victims of the more brutal fights. It was chaos, and as the initial shock began to fade, Dresden found it replaced with something else.

The blood pounding in her ears turned once more to the roaring of nearby waves calling to her, and her expression and posture shifted, lips pulling back from her sabers as she searched faces more closely, listened more intently around her. Searching for a target. It was nearly impossible to be certain who was who when everything was drowning in the scent of blood and salt water.

Except for one. Dresden's mismatched eyes locked into the familiar figure with a light snarl.

This was their fault. This is exactly what the Rike did. She'd been a sentimental fool to ever allow herself to think otherwise. That perhaps her teachings had been wrong. The yearling stood near a much older man who looked similar, but Dresden did not have the knowledge of the Hodari her own ancestors had. Nor did she acknowledge the scent of the Hollow anymore than had previously. It was the blood in her veins Dresden was worried about.

Are you hurt? @Roan had asked as Dresden began to weave her body through the throng of violence towards her chosen target. "Not yet," the Sigrún growled in answer as she attempted to lunge, aiming to launch herself in a tackle towards the older but still smaller yearling, attempting to roll her into the bloodied sands away from her support.

@Dresden vs. @Clove
For DOMINANCE
Round I / III
Hits:

Rolling 7d20: 7 + 19 + 10 + 2 + 5 + 8 + 1

Dodges:

Rolling 1d20: 9

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 5 + 18 + 16 + 6 + 11

coding by flea

Matti took in a ragged inhale of breath when @Lathan's weight was finally lifted, but there was no time to dawdle. He scrambled up, ignoring the pain in his lungs, the pain in his shoulder, the pain in his snout and mouth. Ignored the blood dripping from everywhere it felt like. He eyed the stunned man as he reached, again for the coconut, hoping he didn't fully regain all sense to attack for a second time. Once he felt the hard shell in his grasp, he swung it up, feeling the same shock to his hand when it landed.

He eyed Lathan, now slumped at his paws. He was at least still breathing, right? Wi, still alive. He could see the rise and fall of his sides, enough indication for him to be done with this man and set his focus elsewhere. Stepping away, he looked up to all the chaos; it was worse than before. More lives were in contention, more ferociousness from all sides was coming through. Frozen in place, he focused on the last place he had seen his wife. She wasn't there. Where then—

Matti!

With all that was happening, he clung to the callout over the snarling of combat and looked to its source to see—@Aymond? The man neared quickly, a grin plastered across his face, but it took Matti a long time to register just who he was seeing. "Aymond? Frè?" Brother? He stared, confused. What was he doing there? "Mwen pa konprann" I don't understand.

art by drifty | code by me

"Cocodrie told me you was geddin' yourself married, but there ain't no mariée here, unless that preddy young thing you was dancing with belong to you." He gestured to @Lathan with one outstretched claw, his coppery eyes narrowed judgmentally. The blood dripping down from his brother's face was enough to place a sour taste in Aymond's mouth. Preddy young thing dripped sarcasm as readily as Matti dripped his ichor.

"So why don' you start an' I'll do da following. Where do you need me? I think I saw ol' Remi Lachance at this fais-do-do too and he ain' gon' be more useful dan mwah." @Matthieu

cocodrie: alligator (used for crocodile in this case)
mariee: marriage
fais-do-do: cajun party

art