The longer Bruno thought on it, the more furious he became. How had it taken so long for him to see? He had taken up the mantle of Ecrosia as if to control his fate, and yet doing so was only playing into exactly the part they had written for him. It was no great statement. It did nothing but chain him further to the shadows of sire and firstborn, defining him in contrast to them.

Bruno was something else entirely. His heels kissed silently against jungle foliage as he made his way forth with a purposeful stride, mind echoing with words of the dark apparition and of the boy-king both. He had claimed to want control, and yet the life of a rogue had anything but – life under a wily king would give him anything but. His word had meant something once, and he was determined that it would again. If Tai was not keen to stick around the man he had become, why hold himself back any longer?

"Cut your strings. Take. Choose."

The words hissed in harmony with the war-drum of his heart as he marched through dense canopies awash in radiant dusk. He did not bother leaving the green – had never liked the feeling of open air. Though he averted his sights from Ecrosia for the moment, he need not go far.

"Defend your forest," came booming summons. He knew nothing beyond the land itself, mentally fortifying himself for what griping calls were to come. Friend or foe, this lion had something Bruno wanted.

---

BRUNO vs. @Lucifer
for FIRNEN RAINFOREST
Round 0 / 5
|| vague y13 | five years | rogue lion | at firnen rainforest ||

something here stank and it wasn't the rainforest or faustine's pelt wet with the blood of birds. no, it was the rancid and acrid smell of untamed men, half of whom was that curly maned boy in the middle. faustine was also certain the high sovereign was a man too, because no woman would leave her queendom so disheveled and desolate. this would not be a good fight, but faustine dieudonne would rather watch and learn than ignore for the reason of misandry.

if she was lucky, if fate was here with her, she could find a chance to fight too. time would go faster when faustine was engaged into a brawl and she really, really desired that special magic to make it so.

[open to dom and maim matches1]

code: cala | art: editjackson@dA

(Outside of territory to watch)

The wanderlust sprite gracefully moved from one place to another. The soft calls in the distance barely registered in her mind as she carried a twig of wormwood and a small, wriggling rabbit in her mouth. She had just managed to catch it, holding tight enough to keep it safe but gently enough to avoid causing it harm. Staying on the outside fringes of the territory near a pride's boundary, she carefully bit down on the rabbit to stun it before placing it down at her feet alongside the twig.

Benedici questo luogo e chi lo governerà oltre questo giorno con abbondanza. Bless this place and those who will govern it beyond this day with abundance. With a calm demeanor, she chose to observe and wait.

[ rogue yearling | winter - february y13 | cleric exp ]
+10 Cast a blessing on a character/group
+5 Cleanse an area of bad omens (Firnen Rainforest)
+5 Sacrifice an NPC creature (Rabbit)

code by corvus || back ground image

And so it begins, and Sif was ready to see Lucifer fight for his pride, and show others what he was made of.

Sif wasn't going to interfere for this was his fight and she trusted in his strength though anything could happen. She arrived finding an stranger, one she had not seen so she had to stay cautious but again, she wasn't going to do anything. Just watch and wait for the results.

She took a seat to watch, but also paying attention to anyone who might wanted to pick a fight with her. And as always she wasn't afraid of that, she even craved fights sometimes._{BG — ART — CODE}

((Vague about pride))

Khadija had been worried about her husband being someone's prisoner, why would they pick on him? She needed to go retrieve him.

Khadija wondered how the male would do with his recovering leg which seemed to had healed well since she treated it. She knew nothing of him yet she couldn't help but check on him and see how he had been.

And for what she was seeing he was fine, fine enough to seek a crown..

Knowing nothing of those who called this place their home she held no real interest of who she wanted to get the throne. But maybe the guy she helped might had better chance though she knew she shouldn't come to conclusions this soon. Anything was possible in this world.

And like that she watched the fight.

+5 observe a fight

BG — ART — CODE

[[his claws are coated in a mix of hemlock, calbar bean, and manichineel sap, but as he doesn't have the assassin task or perk, this is mostly for flavor and can be incorporated or not <3 ]]

---

Ah. So that's what it felt like to be on the other end of that call.

Lucifer hadn't actually been in the rainforest when it went up. He'd made the trip out to the small den he still maintained in the rough center of the jungle, clearing out his stores of poisons and tending his little garden and picking out things to bring back to Firnen and keep in his pride den. So when he heard the summons, he'd pause and place the little parcel he carried on the jungle floor to access the contents.

The star of the show was the same mixture he'd used against Gauthier: a base of manichineel tree sap for the internal bleeding and throat constriction, into which he'd mixed crushed calbar bean for the seizures and respiratory failure, and crushed hemlock for the paralysis. He'd gone much heavier on the hemlock this time, though, hoping for a faster onset. Each claw was dipped in the mix, and then the concoction was wrapped back up and tucked away under a small hollowed log.

As was his habit, he kept to the shadows, moving as silently as possible as he approached his borders. His home. He'd been born there, what right or claim did this stranger have to the place? "Why is everyone's first tactic to resort to violence?" His voice would drift out of the brush where he remained hidden, out of sight behind the stranger, tone flat. "If you need a home, you could just ask. Or is this a case of one's ego overriding civility?" Was this greed? Desperation? He'd acted in anger against Gauthier and it had cost him, but he didn't know this man, so there was no anger. Only a cold curiosity colored lightly with frustration - he'd only just gotten the place back and it seemed he'd barely been allowed to breathe properly for the first time in a year and a half (give or take).

Lucifer vs. @Bruno ♔
Firnen Rainforest
Round 0 / 5



Sleuth Master Perk: Watchful eye (use the Sub-Master perk of another trade once per 3 OOC months)

• Ambassador: Home-turf advantage (+1 luck to pride-mates and allies when fighting in their pridelands)

Bring your big nerves

But stay wild if you do that

code by corvus || art by drifty

Eyes skipped past each new face to arrive the moment he was confident they were not the one he called for, uncaring to read their expressions for disdain or otherwise. It felt like only seconds passed before a voice echoed out behind him, instinct demanding that he whirl around to face a threat approaching from behind. He was met only with the vast green he so coveted – green, and the scent of familiar poisons looming in the air. It seemed the incumbent was not above playing tricks to get his way.

"Why is everyone's first tactic to resort to violence? If you need a home, you could just ask. Or is this a case of one's ego overriding civility?"

"Alright: please give me this home," Bruno remarked with a wry smile. All the while his ears craned to take in every decibel, gradually honing in on the context of the lion's location with each word he spoke. "You would not need tricks if you intended to hand it over."

He launched himself at that voice in the brush, relying on his hunter's senses and the familiar scents of his favored tools to try and locate he who wished not to be found. Bruno attempted to land upon the mysterious opponent, claws extended so they might tear down either side of the lion's neck and jaws parted to try and bite at the right side of his face.

---

BRUNO vs. @Lucifer
for FIRNEN RAINFOREST
Round 1 / 5
Hits:

Rolling 8d20: 8 + 5 + 2 + 14 + 15 + 17 + 7 + 3

Dodges:

Rolling 5d20: 2 + 10 + 11 + 20 + 16

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 19 + 3 + 20 + 18 + 5

Clove Stärke-Vandiir ...

He wanted them to be together, he had said. He wanted to repair. Clove would not have expected this to be the way to accomplish such goals – would not have ever guessed that calling for a territory yet-unknown to the girl was the answer to the problems of Stärkes and company. He could have joined Caladan with Dalila and Drauhir, he could have challenged her traitorous uncle for their birthland, and yet Bruno chose this.

Clove moved toward the commotion like a wraith. Her ears roared with a thousand unspoken words as she crept through the thick forests, stopping just shy of the heavy brush as the spectacle came into view. Though she was no spy and merely stood apart from it all, Clove did nothing to attract unneeded attention to herself. She did not know that she had the words for chatting when it took all of her will to keep from flying into a frenzy of panic and fury at the sight of the battle. It's not like last time, she told herself, but how could it not be?

For all the confidence Clove had in herself, she had little in the care and consideration of men.

---

|| vague y13 | two years | vague pride | at firnen rainforest | half-hiding ||

code | art | background

"Hm. Ego, then." A beat, "Or envy. Either way, it's an ugly look." With that, he'd fall silent, shifting his position in response to the other's searching. There wasn't time to move far, just a step to his own left to take him out of the direct line of sight. Whether or not he expected to win was something best put out of his mind for the moment. All he could do was try, and he'd use every single trick in his book if it meant a better chance at clinging to his home.

The man was a brown blur crashing through the brush and coming right at his face, and Lucifer had just enough time to release one steadying breath before rushing to meet the stranger's charge so that the man's claws would land more along his shoulders than his naked neck. Chin tucked as he winced, teeth gritting against the unwelcome sensation of skin parting and the heat of blood escaping the body, as he borrowed a move from his father - attempting to slam the top of his head directly into the stranger's nose in an effort to keep his teeth away from Lucifer's face and to hopefully cause enough damage and swelling to hinder his breathing, if only slightly. For the young king, it would mean a wicked bruise and throbbing headache should it connect.

At the same moment, his own right paw would lift and attempt to slash at the point where the stranger's left leg joined his chest, more toward the back side/ribs. The rest of his legs spread and and braced to keep his balance steady.

Lucifer vs. @Bruno ♔
Firnen Rainforest
Round 1 / 5
Hits:

Rolling 6d20: 14 + 11 + 18 + 5 + 7 + 2

Dodges:

Rolling 5d20: 17 + 11 + 3 + 1 + 5

Luck:

Rolling 6d20: 16 + 12 + 9 + 19 + 7 + 1

Sleuth Master Perk: Watchful eye (use the Sub-Master perk of another trade once per 3 OOC months)

• Ambassador: Home-turf advantage (+1 luck to pride-mates and allies when fighting in their pridelands)

Bring your big nerves

But stay wild if you do that

code by corvus || art by drifty

code (c) daanyen

Pride challenges had been a constant in the past weeks or so, this being the third or forth she had been into and she wondered why where they so common out of the blue. And this made her imagine her own home could be on somone's sight. But it was better not to be too pessimistic.

She arrived not crossing the borders, keeping it respectful. She wouldn't want to bring trouble to her dad. That could not be. Even if deep inside she wanted to check it all, as jungles were places she had never been at and that alone picked her interest and curiosity.

She had brought a bone, and sitting down she chewed on it to keep her teeth clean of any dirt, while she checked on the fighters for any wounds.

+5 Attend a fight or challenge to asses the wounds
+5 Observe a fight
+5 Take care of you weapons(Fangs)