SAVAGEST OF ANIMALS [C]

[Lyric Shikov]

If nothing else, the Keeper's had a sense of humor.

They had left that morning. Clear skies for a week, sunny days, cool nights--for seven days. But now? It had been overcast at the crack of dawn, and had been intermittently drizzling since. It did nothing to improve Lyric's mood--he didn't understand this damned mission, quite frankly. It seemed like a waste of his time.

Go to Bellator territory. Examine their numbers, their ranks. Do the same to Analoya. He had mentally sneered at the thought, but acted like a good little Delta and simply nodded when given the order. Wouldn't it be easy for a couple of scouts to do? But Eris was coming along. He suspected that had something to do with his previous conversation with her; Hell, maybe the mission had been her idea. Either way, he thought that it could have been worse.

By now, the two of them had trekked most of the distance, and in the dusk he was hoping that the rain would relent. "We should get some water before we continue," he said, quietly, looking up at the gunmetal gray of the clouds. His fur was damp--no, not damp, soaked through. He moved smoothly across the plains, keeping his eyes open for the Bellator herd, as he slipped towards the river.

Several things happened very quickly. The sky broke open. That's what it seemed like. It broke, the clouds shedding a sudden, heavy burden. Lyric couldn't see an inch in front of his own nose, much less hear above the roar of the torrent. He shifted abruptly into his human form and blindly grappled for Eris--his fingers closed on her arm, then his feet fell out from under him--no, the ground!

Mud and dirt and grass, all of it suddenly absent, and then the shock of cold, rushing water. The river. He had that thought abruptly, and then his head went under.

He was suddenly, blindly panicked. He couldn't see anything but the rush of water, the bubbles, he couldn't feel anything but the freezing cold of it--his head came up by a miracle, he got a breath of air, and then down he went again--he kept his iron grip on Eris.

Don't let go, don't let go, don't let go. His head broke the surface, he saw the bank, but then the river twisted and he was thrown down, down, down.

[Eris]

The cheetah clicked and purred and hissed, going through an array of cheetah-sounds and finding herself disappointed that she was the only African beast with out a mighty roar. No, instead she was left with small sounds affiliated with cuteness, and this had her disgruntled. Although, despite that, her cheetah form was a sight to see. It was considerably smaller than the cougar beside her, but it was the marks of bold spots and black tears that truly made her a sight.
She walked with a little skip in her step and music in her mind. It was the first time she had seen the day-light since a Keeper had to take her in and assess her miscarriage. She'd been frightened, angry, and confused. Afterwards, the situation had left a shell of a girl. Her skin looked ill and her hair flatter. Her eyes could not find a reason to shine. It took her time, but she reminded herself the only thing better than the little creature that had been her's with in her was the mighty creature she served now.
It was of little comfort, but it was something. She glanced over to see Lyric was also thoughtful and she grinned slightly. Always thoughtful- but what were those thoughts about?
She tried again and again to shake her fur out from the dreaded rain- uncomfortably being soaked but nodding towards him in response.
With in the next few moments, the intense rain dropped down upon them and she couldn't see him. "Lyric!" She growled protectively, frustrated before he gripped her arm tightly. "We need to back-track and-" She couldn't even hear herself speak before they were taken under.
For the longest time, she couldn't comprehend anything around her- space, time, or existence. She was simply whipped violently to the will of the rushing water. She could not feel his intense grip on her arm, and she fought the currents as well as she could- but strength was not on her side. Suddenly they were dragged upwards, where she caught a glimpse of him staring towards the bank. She coughed and gasped for air, both of them looking like drowned rats- not so mighty after all. Eris already looked spent, physically fighting consciousness before being swept under deeper and deeper with him.
When push comes to shove you are about as strong as a Fallen girl. She slowly lost the fight in her, wondering what she had. You can see... She opened her wide, fawn eyes and looked around as she was dragged deeper with him. Her vision gave her the ability to see everything in detail- the light source and every detail of her mission partner.
You ARE strong. She pushed to get closer to him, slipping her arms under his own from behind him and pulling up with all her strength, edging towards the surface even as the current pushed them violently from side to side. It was the current itself that at last surged them towards the surface. She was now perched on his back like a child. "Lyric, we have to-" And they were back under again. The concern grew that Lyric would lose the fight in him as swiftly as she did. She continued to fight, grabbing ahold of both of his arms from the front this time and continuing to swim against the water's will. Another surge of water tossed them violently against the rocks.

[Lyric Shikov]

He'd never felt so much like a ragdoll. The river was suddenly pushing him to and fro, dragging him under and then back up, and it was only Eris' grip that kept him somewhat coherent of direction. Each gasp of air was like salvation, desperate and violent.

Trying to swim was useless. It was more like flailing then anything, and Lyric realized just how much he wasn't accomplishing; just wasting energy, his clothes heavy and dragging. The minutes flew by and he became extremely thankful for the endurance the Keeper's had given him, but even that would wear thin with time.

Shift. Maybe it was instinct that compelled him, or maybe a bit of common-sense. Lyric abruptly shifted into his mountain lion form, making sure that Eris had seized him by the neck before doing so. His kicks became stronger, and the next time they jerked to the surface they managed to stay there for longer than a few seconds. He angled his body towards the bank, and came so close to it--his claws sunk through the mud and grass before catching on a root. He had heaved himself half-up out of the water, Eris in tow, when it snapped.

It threw them violently back into the water, and the bank that he had his stomach against now collapsed all around them. He sank with the stones, quite literally, unable to get up or around and then, and at the bottom he felt any entirely different snap.

The air rushed out of his lungs at the pain, a scream that was nothing but a silent rise of bubbles. He jerked his foreleg out from under one of the larger rocks, writhing, and then he pushed off the bottom with his hind legs. Eris. Her name pierced him, because shit, he wasn't about to let her drown! When he broke through the surface, however, there was no one there--and then, clinging to a different area of the bank, he saw her.

His brain was full of the pain of it, but adrenaline was keeping him going. He kept his left foreleg pinned to his side as best as he could, fighting the current with three good legs. With a final surge of strength (she was slightly down-stream, to the left) he managed to cling to the bank and push himself up, his shoulders trembling, coughing water. As soon as most of his body was out of it, he collapsed, heaving breath and on his side. He just laid there for a while, his feet in the flooded river. "Thanks." Meaning those few times she had hauled his head out of the water with sheer determination. He coughed, exhausted, and rolled onto his back while he shifted.

His arm was worse then he thought. And from the looks of things, the river had washed them deep into Analoya territory. He groaned.

[Eris]

The rocks did much less damage to her, only receiving two gashes on her back which she was unaware of. She clung to the edge of the bank, looking around desperately for him, finding it in her to pull herself up and rush over to him. She knelt down, using a small hand to push his hair out of his face and catch his gaze sympathetically. "Should've checked the weather." She chuckled half-heartedly, stepping over him and wrapping her arms around his waist to pull him up further out of the water. She then knelt down beside him, investigating the damage. "We have to move, and then we'll fix this." She promised, her finger tips just lightly brushing his shoulder.
She slipped under his good arm to help pull him to his feet, well knowing he would be more weak and worn than herself. She pulled forward, both of their gaits unsteady but her own pace determined and strong. She searched her mind to find something to distract him with, imagining the pain he must be feeling. Although, many of them were used to pain, it didn't make it any more enjoyable when they endured it again. "So... What do you like to do?" She grinned at the thought. Like any Carna member had time for anything other than raiding, scouting, hunting, etc. They weren't exactly the "long walks on the beach" sort. "I like exercise." She grinned and giggled before her smile fell at the sound of a snap in the forest. She did not freeze up, but rather she searched more diligently for a place for them to hide and gain some shelter from the unpredictable rain. "There." She pulled forward, releasing him to his own means of continuing. Between two sequoias there were moss covered stones, and between the stone, moss hung over what could only be an opening- a small cave. She purred with delight, morphing into her cheetah to work at digging through enough of the growth towards the bottom to get through but not disturb the unknowing appearance. She morphed back after this completion.
The next hour consisted of her sitting him down carefully deeper with in the cave and working at building a small enough fire to see and stay warm, yet not be sighted by too much illumination and smoke. It was a careful process but she worked nonstop to create it, digging at the rocks in the back of the cave for enough ventilation.
Eventually the place looked almost homey enough for a stay.
It took awhile but eventually she looked exhausted, and crouched down beside him.
"May I?" She looked from his wounded arm to his eyes, her own wide eyes looking both curious and falsely innocent. And still, she touched him very gingerly. His arm was swollen, broken and bloodied. All she could do was make him a sling, but beyond that was past her realm. She tore her dress off shamelessly, leaving her in under-wear though it didn't seem to phase her. She worked a while longer, ripping off the bloodied parts of the clothing and ripping the clean bits into many fine strips.
She waited awhile for the strips to dry by the fire before focusing on weaving them through one another, tight and supportive yet soft enough for comfort. She looked delighted by her invention when it was at last complete. The mix of blues and flowery patterns had her giggling. "This is stylish stuff- hold still!"
She found this the most enjoyable torture she'd ever accomplished, still remaining very gentle as she worked the sling over his opposite shoulder and under the arm, supporting from the elbow to the wrist.
"Sassy." She yawned at last, shivering lightly in her near-nakedness.
The fire seemed almost warm enough though and she leaned her head back against the stone cave, uncomfortable but content enough. "I wonder what comes next." She smiled sleepily, thinking about the Keepers and their games with controlling weather and happenstances. They had it out for them right now. She wasn't sure why, but she always found it an adventurous challenge to defeat their odds.

[Lyric Shikov]

"Would've made it easier if they still had reports in the morning," He replied, clenching his teeth against the pain of it. He continued to grit them as Eris helped him stand, and then remained catching his breath. They began to make slow progress towards the shelter of the trees, leaving the roaring river behind. He was soaking wet and not pleased. Was it bad that he was almost wishing for a pair of dry jeans more than an unbroken arm? The pain was bearable. The chaffing, less so.

He choked on laughter, both at his thought process and what Eris asked him, and then her response to her own question. He thought that it was more a brand of gallows humor, than anything else. "Drink. Fight. I'm not a very deep person." It was with half sarcasm and half seriousness.

There. Her efforts had worked. Talking had conveniently distracted him from the pain, at least for the moment. Lyric stood and cradled his injured arm, following at a more leisurely pace. Exhaustion was creeping in on him. Even with his endurance, battling the current for what must have been several minutes... or longer? He didn't know. Either way, wasn't for the faint of heart, and it certainly wasn't for a weak swimmer, which he could have been considered. He had never been very fond of water...

And his thoughts were rambling. He stood there, feeling useless, watching as Eris deepened the small cave. There were bits and pieces that were absent in the next few minutes--the transfer from the standing position to the cave, the jarring of his arm, and so on. He simply was engaged in the throb of his arm as his natural endorphins wore away. His tawny eyes had followed Eris and her movements, admiring that she was still lively despite the turn of events. He was mentally thanking the fact that he was with her in contrast to another Carna member, as strange as the thought was. Lyric had the feeling that he was in fairly good hands. It took some swallowing of pride, even to admit this to himself.

May I? Lyric only nodded. He figured she would have proceeded, regardless. At the sight of his arm, he visibly winced. It would heal, he was sure, but it would make it hell to get back to Carna territory. He offered her a grudging smile. "At least I make it look masculine." It looked comical, and he could admit that, but at least it propped his arm in a more comfortable position.

Lyric didn't know why, but being injured could bring out either the best or the worst in him. He didn't like to sulk about pain, and although his arm was throbbing his eyes were bright with a combination of alertness and the mere sharpness of the injury. He looked at Eris, slight and pale with a lack of clothing. She was a beautiful girl. For some reason, the sight of her filled him with an ache. It made him consider Aurora, and then dismiss the thought, because the girl before him was entirely different.

By now, Lyric had noted that she no longer seemed in pain, and he wondered at that. She was not as unpredictable as she had been during their previous encounter. Had she been sick? He was recalling how she had seem lackluster at points in the past.

"Probably the stuff that legends are made of," Lyric replied, looking seriously. But there was a sarcastic edge to his voice. He stretched out his legs and leaned against the cave wall, glancing at the small fire. It smelled like woodsmoke and rain and earth, and he found that his clothes were drying, even as the rain pattered outside. "We'll make it all the way back to Carna and be considered heroes, right? Fight off packs of Analoya and Bellator on the way there! One handed, in my case."

He had turned his face vaguely to the side, speaking into the flames. In all reality, it would be much less glamorous.

[Eris]

"Heroes?" She'd never considered such a thought- and who on earth would look at her as a hero anyway? "Yeah, heroes." She smiled weakly, exhausted. It was with in the next minute that she had fallen asleep.
When she woke to a sound, she found herself purring pressed up against another person. She couldn't place who it would be at first, but delighted in the warmth for a few moments. By the time she heard the sound again- a growl from the outside- she remembered who she was with, what had happened, and the risk they were at now.
She moved gracefully around Lyric, in an effort not to disturb him. The fire had turned to burning coal, although now it was very dark outside with less rain. Another growl. Eris's eyes widened and she immediately shifted, the hair on the back of her neck rising. A split second passed before she shot out of the cave, tackling the creature that had made the sound. It was a young, male tiger, and she found herself in an instant fight. He snarled at her and she hissed and chirped, lunging for his neck as swiftly as she could. He roared and swatted her side with a paw, leaving three long cuts there. She chirped when she hit the side of the stone cave, darting swiftly from side to side before pouncing again towards his neck. It was the only chance she had against a larger cat, and at last her jaws clenched down on his throat where she locked as he writhed in distress.
Several minutes passed of him thrashing her around- but she would not let go until he at last lay motionless.
She shifted back to a more petite self, pushing up to stand straight and strong before crying out softly at the sharp pain in her bleeding side. It wounded her pride more than anything else, and she sulked back to the cave. It was cold now with the fire out, but she curled up near clothes-less on the right side of Lyric. "I think our trouble has only begun." There was a spark of delight in her eyes, of desire and passion for the fight. She was not sure if Lyric had woken yet, but she found herself exhausted once more- yet excited for what lie ahead.
She looked up at Lyric from the cave floor, studying his delicious features, wondering about him, and wondering what thoughts and dreams could possibly trouble him. She wondered what stories had created who he was. She wondered about his family and how he first discovered his shift...how he was caught and what he thought of this special home. She pondered when exactly he arrived and if he enjoyed it as much as she or if he felt trapped.
She wondered why she was thinking about him at all.
Her eye-lids grew weary but she could not sleep. She was on guard for certain, awaiting another chance to pounce- to kill. She was not sure though that she could handle another large cat if it came... but the time would come and she knew she'd rather die trying than walk away.

[Lyric Shikov]

Lyric hadn't meant to doze, but he was startled out of it by the sound of the growl outside, barely muffled by the now-light rainfall. He registered Eris against his uninjured side, but she was suddenly up and moving, and--

He could hear the fight outside, and he was guessing from the baritone nature of the snarl that it was a larger cat. In comparison, her chirps and hisses seemed almost comical. Lyric winced and drew himself away from the wall, reaching for one of the knives at his side with his uninjured hand.

Then, silence. He waited. It would either be the Analoya ramming through the overhang of moss, or Eris. He remained poised, tense, until the lithe cheetah slipped through. "I wonder what gave you that idea," he commented. She was bleeding, but it was too dark to see where.

Now, when she curled against his side, Lyric put an arm over her thin shoulders. He did not bother to stay awake for long, merely slit his eyes half-closed and dozed. He remained close enough to consciousness that it could only be considered an unrestful sleep, but it was enough.

The rest of the night was relatively uneventful. By the time morning broke, however, Lyric's eyes were open. The fire was dead, and it was cold from the rain and the earth. He was shivering slightly, and could only imagine what Eris was feeling like. In an act of compassion he untangled himself from her, and shrugged gingerly out of his jacket. It took some maneuvering, but he managed to remove it and drape it over her bare frame.

He slipped out into the morning light, all too aware of his surroundings. He nearly tread over the dead tiger on their doorstep, and he shook his head at the sight of it. Little Eris. She was a force to be reckoned with. How else would she have Manic's balls in a vice? The thought was there before he could help it, and Lyric mentally corrected herself. But it isn't like that. She's the one he's got under his thumb.

"Come on, Eris. We need to be moving." He waited for her, quietly, standing outside to observe the morning. Lyric turned his head, and--

Shit. The caracal saw him at the same time he saw it. The little feline dissolved into a mess of hissing, spitting fur, and then was up and over a nearby log, disappearing into the woods. "Eris!" Lyric's voice held new urgency. The knife was in his right hand before he could blink. "We're about to have company..." As if to add emphasis to his point, a lion's roar broke through the brush where the caracal had disappeared.

He watched as the male lion emerged, followed by a jaguar. The aforementioned bounded forward in two long strides, closing the distance substantially. Lyric braced himself, knife in hand, and just as the lion leapt up Lyric ducked and twisted to the side, slashing a gash in the animal's side, but it turned to roll at him--then his hand brushed the male's shoulder and zap, a current of unbridled, barely controlled electricity ran through him.

The lion collapsed with a yowl, but the jaguar rose up. just as Lyric stumbled. His eyes took in the yawning jaws of the cat, and he thought very clearly, I am going to die.

[Eris]

It was so cold. Her body did not want to wake. She continued to shiver violently until a wave of warmth washed over her. She immediately purred in her sleep, interrupted by a voice. "Eris!" What on earth? What would be the purpose of waking her up on a week-end? Her eye-lids fluttered open. Oh, no. She hadn't meant to fall back asleep. "Lyric?!" She jumped up and pushed her way through the moss outside in time to see the lion shocked into stillness. Her eyes widened- surprised and humbled by his skill. She had never seen anything like it in her life. She felt her chest tighten in anxiety as he stumbled and the jaguar leaped for him. "No!" She growled, jumping up and morphing into her powerful, cat form mid-air. She collided with the other cat with a powerful slam, teeth as ready as the other cat's. They both hit the ground in a flurry of tossing clawed paws, yowls, snarls, and chirps.
The jaguar pinned down her cheetah form against the earth, and she responded by morphing into her smaller, human shape to slip out from underneath him swiftly.
The jaguar roared and morphed into his human form as-well, laughing deeply. She tilted her head with wide, fawn eyes, wondering why on earth a retro would morph into a human half way through a fight.
Unless of course he didn't find them a threat- and there were more to come. Her thoughts had her stunned in place long enough for him to make a move. A loud crack echoed through the forest as his fist made contact with her face and she hit the earth faster than she could recollect her thoughts.
More felines arranged themselves through-out the woods, creating a formation. Anything from lynxes to panthers- they were all there to protect their territory and avenge their fallen soldier.
Strategy...She thought. They needed a plan and they needed one fast. And yet, she couldn't find herself to get past the pain from her "insta-bruise" on her cheek. Still, it wasn't enough to keep her down. She morphed back into the cheetah, standing back up strong and tall before stepping in front of Lyric with a defensive hiss. She glanced at him through golden, feline eyes that asked him if he had a plan. She focused on the enemies. There were about seven. The odds were not as bad as she thought...if they did not get more back up. They were Carna- their tactics violent and unorthodox.
This would be good for their new Delta- certainly such a situation would build his confidence. A panther stepped forward towards them boldly and Eris fluffed up angrily, spitting and hissing as viciously as she could muster. She gave her mission partner one last reassuring glance that said "We're unstoppable. C'mon, it'll be fun.". There even seemed to be a little smile on the cheetah's muzzle before she turned around and leaped full-strength at the closest panther.

[Lyric Shikov]

The two spotted bodies collapsed into a twisting, biting, hissing entanglement. Lyric regained his balance, his eyes wide. He guessed he didn't have an appointment with Satan that afternoon, then. He watched from behind her, the thought of intervening in the forefront of his mind. But there was something fascinating about watching her in this way. She was an unorthodox fighter, but she had to be--she made use of her size and her speed and her sheer tenacity. Ly didn't flinch at the punch, merely stepped forward, preparing to intervene--

Eris realized something was wrong before he did. Stupid. Lyric's eyes jerked up to see the assortment of felines emerge from the forest and his lips lifted in a silent snarl, more cat than man. His fingers tightened on the knife, and then loosened. He adjusted his stance, kept his footing life, and accommodated his injury by angling his body. There had been times in Lesta's ring when he had been forced to fight one-handed... But that had been against one opponent.

There were so many of them. He didn't have quite Eris' confidence, but he mumbled under his breath. "The river." It was the only strategic thing that they had at their disposal. He heard it rushing in the near distance, and if he remembered how unstable the bank was, it might be easy enough to utilize it to their advantage... Or end up back in the depths of it, depending.

He couldn't think about it for long. One of the other cats--no, two--had slipped around the panther and now approached, snarling. One was a lynx, the other a cheetah. He recognized the formation that began around them, the more experienced members on the outside--the lynx and cheetah looked young, uncertain. He took advantage of this, lashing out before they had an opportunity to do so. He swung his foot out, caught the lynx on the jaw, deploying as much strength as he had left--crack! The head of the cat snapped to the side, the neck broken, but then the cheetah let out an outraged hiss and leaped. It savagely threw Lyric to the ground. He tried to hitch his leg up between the chest of the animal and his throat as he fell, but his knee slid--his defence became his uninjured forearm, braced against the cheetah's throat. The thing snapped at him, forcing his body into the dirt--

He made a risky move, angling his knife and then removing his forearm suddenly, sliding the knife and the side of his hand across the throat of the cheetah in the process. It let out a strangled cry, and Lyric shoved out from underneath it. He rolled to his feet, breathing through clenched teeth. He didn't know how much more of this he had in him. Some of the felines were looking at their injured comrades, furious, taken aback by the tenacity of the two Carna. They were all solitary animals, he realized. They didn't know how to work as a unit.

The jaguar coughed something out. Two other cats started forward uncertainly. Lyric jerked his head in the jaguar's direction. "He's the leader, or the closest to one they've got!" He backed up slowly, keeping an eye on the approaching cougar and caracal. His face and arm were bleeding, his hand dripping with it.

[Eris]

Eris managed to maneuver around the panther slick enough and then pounce under his feet where he was sent tumbling into the stone wall, smacking his head and passing out. She chuckled in good humor before turning in time to watch him slice the cheetah's throat. Her eyes looked up at Lyric sadly, a strange instinctual ache with in her, and a desire to avenge her fallen. She reminded herself of the enemy and forced herself to ignore the familiarity of the corpse covered in similar spots and designs. "He's the leader." She heard and crouched down, realizing the massive size of the four felines in a mess around them- a lynx, a tiger, a panther, and a cheetah. There were four others but she could smell a possible one or two more coming.
She jumped up towards the jaguar and he morphed into a human again, lifting a spear and jutting it out over him for protection. By the time she realized what was happening it was too late. The spear pierced her with a sickening sound of flesh through her chest, above her heart but near her shoulder. The massive cat screeched and the leader morphed back into a jaguar, grasping the spear with his teeth and using it to maneuver her into the stone wall, where the spear broke shorter on the parts sticking out.
She pushed off the wall with powerful back legs and grabbed his face with her jaws, ripping off a considering about of skin. He yowled in agony, blood blinding him.
She looked up at Lyric. They were running short on precious time for his strategy. "I'm the fastest one here." Her eyes seemed to hint her thoughts as she hurried between his legs and pushed up, urging him to hold on as she darted off at an insane speed- although it paled in comparison to best abilities. Being such a lithe creature made it difficult to carry him, and the spear through her chest made it impossible to run with out small squeaks and chirps of agony.
She made it nearly there before tumbling to the earth, sending them both down.
Eris was spent...but being spent never stopped her. She shrunk down into a much smaller shape of her human shift, her chest rising and falling frantically. She pushed herself to sit up and failed, crying out and sinking back down. "Run for the river and don't look back. Make your way to the safe-house and stay there until you are sure you're safe. Go!" She growled, using her little hands to pull the spear out of her. In reaction, the wound poured out with bright red. She felt soaked but tried not to look as some felines caught up with them.
A lynx leaped up and she jutted the broken spear up towards the lynx's chest, who handle it far worse and hit the earth, crying in defeat.

[Lyric Shikov]

As soon as Lyric heard her scream, he was pretty sure he was on his own. He kept his eyes fixed on the felines at hand, watching as a pair of lionesses stalked toward him, cold fury in their eyes. He was snarling, backing away, well on his way to being more animal than human. If not for the sling, he would have been already, and he would have been doing a hell of a lot better if he weren't an invalid!

He swallowed, and shifted his grip on the knife. "Davay!" he snarled, and the growled, low in her throat. Her comrade followed, and Lyric crouched, readying himself for their attack--

The cheetah ran up from under him, and Eris very nearly ended up with a KA-Bar in her side--only, his fists clenched in the fur of her neck and he tried to distribute his weight more evenly, because Christ, he felt like he was going to break her! Moments later, when they both tumbled, he was fairly certain he had. Lyric drew himself up quickly, trying not to grimace visibly at the jarring his arm had just gotten. He rolled his uninjured shoulder and turned to face the cheetah.

Jesus! He'd never seen determination quite like it, and if nothing else she earned a fraction more of his respect in that moment. Her command fell on deaf ears. "No. I'm not leaving." Lyric squared his stance, turned in the direction of the pursuing Analoya. There were three of them left, minus the lynx, and his mind immediately assessed their surroundings--there, there was a half-fallen log crossing the river. Lyric came up beside her, the KA-Bar gripped firmly in his hand. "Make for the log, quick--run across. The river is too wide for them to jump at this point, and I can--"

He broke off as the same lioness lunged at him. Instead of running, he charged into her, taking the brunt of her chest on his uninjured shoulder, feeling her claws slice through his side like butter, but he had caught her by surprise. They hit the ground side-by-side, and Lyric drew himself up, striking her in the side with the blade. It sunk deep, and he struggled to jerk it out as she howled, but he managed it, and then he was up and running towards the log. The other two Analoya had been farther behind the lynx and lioness--they were still easily fifty yards behind the two of them.

He made it across the log soundly, pleased to discover that the entire thing had been made unstable by the flood--it wasn't even two inches above the water. Once both of them were across, Lyric kicked it, and when that didn't work he lowered himself and gained leverage by placing his one good arm behind him, bending his knees and stretching his legs out at an angle--

Crack.

The end of it broke away from the bank, and momentum sent it into the opposite bank. He watched, grimacing, as the whole thing disconnected and began to float down the gushing river.

The two other Analoya had reached them too late. They stood, hissing and snarling, on the other side of the bank. Lyric was breathing heavily through his nose, and when he realized it, he was absurdly embarrassed by how out of control his breath was. He stood, sore and stiff, his heart beating in his throat."They'll find a way across. Come on."

He gingerly began to walk upstream, keeping a good distance from the bank. He was thinking that, if he believed in God, he would be thanking him for his life right about then.

translations: Davay! - Come on!

[Eris]

Complete chaos to an intense stillness- that's how it felt for her in the next few moments. Noise, movement and colors all twirled and rushed around her in a mess of unreadable senses. The lynx leaped back up to drag its claws against the back of her legs, and Eris snarled, pulling out her small knife and jutting it at the smaller cat's face. It was enough to distract the cat long enough for her to get up and follow Lyric's orders of getting across the log. She hurried, agile and lithe with quick, small feet. As she reached the other side of the log, the last of her energy failed her. She slipped and clung to the rocks on the other side with all her strength, hearing battle snarls and yowls both close by and far off. Blackness tickled the edges of her vision and she nearly nodded off a couple times, slipping slightly back down into the water. "Lyric?" She lifted her head, chin still slightly in the water. Her eyes were tired and she was weak. She felt the bruises form in the spots where she slipped against the rocks, but concern overwhelmed most of her senses. The blood from her chest wound seeped into the water, dying it bright red. "..." Her head dropped back down as her vision both doubled and blurred. 'Come on.' She heard, and her doe eyes fluttered back up, glancing up at him in an irritated manner. She wanted rest and she wanted it there and then. Her mind did not exactly focus on the rationality. When the knowledge of the severity of the situation returned to her and she could focus enough to see nearly straight, she morphed into her cheetah to hide some of her weakness, limping beside him with stubborn, silent strength and a quiet demeanor.

'Safe house...' She thought and chirped, glancing up at him. He was damaged as well, and she nudged his knee encouragingly with the side of her furry, spotted head, ears flicking back and forth. It grew dark, and she fell down a few times a long the way. Every time she shakily pushed back up to her paws, she gave him another reassuring nudge and a "chirp-chirp", but ultimately, the travel was silent on her side. She refused to morph back into her human shape until the safe house was on the horizon.
She morphed back slowly, painfully, clutching the still-bleeding puncture under her shoulder and above her chest. The blood still oozed between her fingers, though she did not look. She held Lyric's free hand with her free hand and pressed forward with ambitious strength, forcing the door open and shutting it behind them. She blocked off the door with an old chair, wincing at her pain in spite of her pride. She checked all the windows and cautiously pulled the tattered curtains closed, pausing at one window, frozen in considerable awe at the scattered stars all across the dark sky. She cracked the window and returned to Lyric, pulling him into the main room and sitting him down on the bed. She fixated her gaze on the gashes in his side, reaching with a delicate hand and then hesitantly pulling back, fawn eyes gazing up at him weakly- and yet beneath her physical weakness there was a spark. She sat down beside, fighting consciousness.
She thought about him and how he'd shocked two felines down with a power she was not familiar with. It was not the greatest power she'd ever seen, but it was certainly notable and strange. She visualized how he'd broken the log to keep the felines from pursuing them further- how he'd stayed with her even as she ordered him to leave. A soft growl rumbled in her throat at this thought. "You disobeyed me." She mentioned, in a way that would seem random to her train of thought. "Fool." But his own order had gotten them both safely to the other side... He had taken charge. It had also put him in graver danger than he needed to be in- caused him extra pain that had been avoidable. He had shown a loyalty to a stranger that was not common in the Carna, but would hold them all tighter together as a ring if it were.
She was going to say more, but she'd passed out in her thoughts, bleeding out profusely from her wound with mixed thoughts of anger, concern, desire, and an uncharacteristic gentleness. She purred in her human form as she slept, her head pressed up boldly under his chin and her weight (or lack there of) leaning against his better side. Her long, wavy hair tumbled over her shoulders and on to him. She looked soft and deceivingly harmless in her slumber, skin smooth and golden, eye lashes long and dark against her cheeks. She was slender and fragile, and quite fawn-like in nature.
Eris only had one Master- one that she would die for and kill for. She found flaws in all others- her experience giving her a right to judge as harshly as she did... No one else could have her rare loyalty and love.
But in that single moment, Lyric had won her over.

[Lyric Shikov]

Zivon did not have the energy to argue with her, not even in the relative safety of their shelter. His body had gone numb from a combination of pain and exhaustion, and even upon sitting down, he knew that he could not rest yet. Technically speaking, he had disobeyed her. But if he remembered right, he outranked her. It was not the time for a debate, though. He merely arched a brow and waited for exhaustion to take hold of the petite Carna.

It had only taken her a few minutes, not that he blamed her. If he could, he would have slept as readily as she did. Instead, Lyric untangled himself from the woman, and set out to searching the Safe House. He found some leftover medical supplies in the kitchen, perhaps left by a rouge or some Keepers, and he returned to the room to begin treating her wound. He'd been passed around enough as a tenderfoot to know the basics of being a Medic.

Eris' injury was bad, but not as bad as he had thought. It had missed any major artiest and while deep, it was not particularly large. The best he could do was disinfect it, and proceed to wrap it in the only bandages he had been able to find. The most difficult part of the whole damn thing was lacking the ability to use his broken arm.

After all that was done, Lyric set out to treating the gashes on his side, to the best of his ability, but it was very difficult for him to do alone. He He cleaned them and applied some disinfectant, and wrapped some gauze around his torso. His shirt was shredded and bloody, and he managed to untangle himself from it and meticulously rip it into strips, so that when they woke up, they would have replacement "bandages". It was better than nothing.

After that, he allowed himself to lay down, his body aching. He curled up beside her, careful of both her injury and his own, and fell asleep like that.

- - - - -

Lyric woke up some time later, he could not say when, feeling like he had been beaten by a sledgehammer. He was a little confused by the fact the length of his body was pressed against Eris', and then he remembered the previous evening, and what a mess both of them were. Lyric straightened himself.

"Eris, wake up. We need to get up." He gently nudged her shoulder. She looked so... well, harmless in her sleep, beautiful and harmless. He looked at her briefly, shoving Rory, for a moment, to the back of his mind. Thinking about it callously, he could say that Eris was a strong woman. Attractive, flirtatious, fiery. But what did it matter?

He didn't even know why he was musing on it. Lyric nudged her again before throwing his legs over the side of the bed with a groan. He felt beaten black and blue.

[Eris]

She felt a gentle nudge on her shoulder but her body refused to wake her fully until the second effort to wake her. She turned over, feeling him pressed up against her- warm and pleasant. Her sleepy eyes batted open and focused in on his face. The light from the one open window streamed through and created a golden outline on all sides of him. It took her a moment to really see his face. By the time she’d collected her thoughts and blinked the sleep from her eyes, the pain returned to her as well as the cold as soon as he had left her side, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. She grumbled her objection to this and comedic-ally flopped back down on the bed, tousled hair. ”Why!” She mumbled and hissed, turning over a little too quickly and feeling the sharp pain of her wrapped wound. She looked down at the wrap, surprised, and back up at him. She observed his inability to use one arm and lifted her eyebrows quizzically at how he had accomplished such a task. She felt intensely groggy, beaten, and exhausted, and she imagined he felt worse. He had perhaps taken the worst of the hits, and stood up slowly in front of him to look him over.
Who was he anyway… This creature that appeared to take high position with in a ring she protected dearly? What made him so special to rise above the rest? Other than what she already knew and had already come to learn, she was at a loss for any continuing knowledge.
They had been and still were no more than mere strangers in the light of things. Did she care to know him further? Not particularly. She never cared to know anyone further. No one else was of concern other than her direct duties. She lifted her head in a dignified matter, looking around with lack of interest. But surely enough, those doe eyes wandered back to meet his and she grinned, not understanding it. ”C’mon, tenderfoot.” She nudged him too roughly for their injuries, and winced a little before chuckling and running ahead to make her way out the door.
They wouldn’t really return as heroes, she realized, but they would return differently amongst themselves. What that meant, she had no idea. She morphed into her cheetah and leaped down the stairs, pausing at the bottom to look back at with bright eyes and a feline grin. ‘C’mon, Delta.’ She thought, chirping twice and running ahead of him.


---END THREAD---