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 Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2007 4:19 am
The mountain tribe was a buzz with action. The spring season was here and all the game that helped them survive through the winter had returned. They could hunt again to fill their stores. Theta was ordering the elder hunter's around and corraling the kittens to be divided amongst those leading the groups.
This was one of the most important hunts for Quicktalon as it was their largest and most fruitful. They normally did not get to eat as well as they'd like except for this time of year. Vixa was preparing the homemakers for their foraging, as well as making sure they had enough cougars to lead the kittens on their hunt. It was serious business and they had to be taught correctly.
Rules
1. Adults have final say in all matters.
2. Stay with in the area you are assigned
3. If you have questions, PM Byagane.
4. Please remember that kittens cannot be left alone.
Hunt Rules
1. One adult or one teen will lead a group of 2-3 kittens out into their assigned areas.
2. All teams lead by teens will be within calling distance of at least 2 adult areas.
3. Teams lead by an adult can catch up to medium size animals.
4. Teams lead by a teen can only catch small game.
5. This is a time for kitten training, so no sending them to kill a bear.
6. If two teams happen to meet, the head of each team may try to kill a larger animal but without the assistance of the kittens. Kittens must be kept safe at all times.
Areas
1. Sparce area of the mountain, good for catching birds/small mammals. Also good for veggies and plant gathering since it has more sunlight.
2. More mountainous area, getting closer to the cliffs. Good for small mountain goats/large birds/lizards.
3. Tree line, only adults can go with kittens here. Large game such as wild cats/deer/bears. This is the most dangerous area due to its proximity to Dewclaw territory.
Teams
1. Theta, 2 kittens. Area 3
2. Kimae, 2 kittens. Area 2
3. Delila, 2 kittens. Area 2
4. Lyka, 2 kittens Area 3
5. Jei, 2 kittens Area 1
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Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2007 3:00 pm
"Shina! Keep close now!"
Delila's warning probably wasn't necessary, as Shina was content to cling to the teen's leg amidst the chaos. The tribe members were scurrying about to prepare for the hunt, with adults and teens chasing deliquent kittens and trying to get them to stay in their designated areas.
Delila's eyes were sharp as she watched the chaos from a higher viewpoint. She'd been trusted with watching one of the hunting parties and training the kittens within it. She didn't want to let her elders down, especially after they'd trusted her with such an important job.
Glancing down at the kitten clinging to her leg, she let a rare smile cross her muzzle. Something about this kitten... Maybe it was the pattern of her stripes, or perhaps the rare black and red markings in her fur... She realized that the chances were nearly impossible, but she couldn't help but wonder...were they truely related? Afterall, it hadn't been that long ago when she learned that her mother could be alive somewhere. Was it really all that impossible that she might have other siblings out there that she didn't know about?
Shina, on the other hand, never even considered these possibilites. For her, she was just happy to have Delila looking out for her. She had no past, no family, and without Delila, she wouldn't have had a future either. She owed the Shadow Huntress her life and Delila was quickly becoming a strange combination of sister, mother, and hero to the young kitten.
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Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2007 4:09 pm
Cesara managed to get herself out of the frey that involved almost the whole village. She gave her head a few small jerks to right her short, mahogany hair, then looked over her smirked a little and rolled her eyes.
You'd think by the way they're all acting they've never been outside the village before. She thought to herself. Though she knew she couldn't judge them too harshly for she was excited too. She'd been outside the perimeter of the village but not as far as they're supposed to be going today and just thinking of the new places to explore energized her- though she wouldn't let it get he better of her like it had some of the others.
Delila was the name of the girl who'd be with her. Cesara had seen the girl around but had never had the opurtunity to talk to her. Looking around Cesara saw her with another kitten hanging onto her leg and guessed that younger was going to be the other member joining them on the hunt. Walking confidently over to them she stopped about two feet back from them and started her introduction. "My name is Cesara and its a pleasure to meet you Delila." She inclined her head slightly as she said this. Then to looking at the girl about her own age, "Though I'm afraid I don't know your name." She admitted looking at her expectently.
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Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2007 4:24 pm
Meanwhile, in a dark cave where the wild ones brooded, a skinny bloodstained teen stayed silent in the darkness. Eris would not be going on this hunt, just as well considering her past hunting experiences, but now with her maddness, no one trusted her to be alone with someone. But all the excitement was causing the pains to return.
She let out a loud scream and pulled at her restraints. Lyka had removed her hands from the stone over a week ago, so now only ropes held her to the wall. But they held her strong, her body too weak to break the cord. She was fighting her own battle, following her own path, and finding her true powers. Small bits of what little remained of her thought of Jei, Delila, and Lyka. She wondered every so briefly if they would even remember her.
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Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2007 12:02 am
'Well, she's certainly a polite one. Kind of unusual for a kitten in this tribe...' Delila hid her slight amusement, nodding back in equal politeness. "Pleasure to meet you too, Cesara," she replied quickly. "Haven't seen you around before, but we'll have plenty of time and opportunity today to get to know each other and our hunting styles. We'll spend a lot of time learning to analyze each other's strengths and weaknesses."
She felt like an instructor already. Not necessarily a comfortable feeling. Why in the world did the elders pick her to do this?!? She was a loner...well, used to be...and was again. Right? Sighing softly to herself, feeling completely out of her element, she pushed Shina forward to pull a little attention away from herself.
The dark blue kitten stumbled forwards a bit, head down. "Err...Shina," she mumbled. She wasn't ready to deal with all these new Cougars yet, but she refused to leave Delila's side and her 'hero' had to be here. So here she was too. That left Delila with just the one other kitten. Not so bad for her either, right?
Glancing down at her silvery-haired charge, Delila felt a wave of nostalgia wash over her. Was it really all that long ago that she had cared for another white-haired kit? No...and not so long ago that she had washed blood from each set of pure strands. What had happened to her old friend...where was Eris now?
Shina glanced up, feeling Delila's fingers in her hair. Smiling, she fingered the small braids at either side of her head, believing that Delila was just checking to see if they'd come undone. Shina had been thrilled when the dark teen had wanted to do something with her hair before the hunt. Delila had seemed a little awkward though in trying to put it up. Perhaps because her own hair was so short and she'd never done anything with it before. She didn't know that Delila was also thinking of practicality and how necessary it was that Shina's hair was up and out of the way while hunting.
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Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2007 8:48 am
Theta walked around barking orders to the kittens and giving out the area assignments to each group leader. They may not have many groups but the animals they hunted provided much meat. She stopped at Delila's group and gave her a serious look. She knew of course about her little charge, and bad memories of another kitten in her and Lyka's company made her worry.
"Delila, I trust you will take good care of these two. Keep them away from the cliffs and in your assigned area."
She glanced over at the cave where Eris was bound. They had been trying to bring her back from whatever had attacked her mind, but all they had really succeeded in doing is keeping her more quiet. Vixa had suggested she was gaining control but her mind was lost, she would forever been insane. It wasn't a comforting thought but if Eris could take control of her abilities, they could send her out to cause some trouble with other tribes.
"While I do not like leaving so few at the villiage in case something...or someone...starts trouble, we need this hunt to be a success. Do you understand?"
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Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2007 5:59 pm
Cesara tilted her head a little to one side as she smiled. "Its's nice to meet you Shina. Are you excited about going out on the hunt?" She asked Shina while trying not to seem too eager about going out.
Cesara looked over at the older cougar as she came over and talked to Delila. Starts trouble? She thought to herself. Who would start trouble? She decided it better not to voice her questions. The elder woman didn't seem like the kind of person who would answer the question of a curious kitten, or at least without a few stern looks before answering.
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Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2007 11:02 pm
Delila took a deep breath, her jaw clenched tightly as she slowly released it, nodding. Her eyes were locked intensely on the ground as she kept her head lowered in respect. "Yes, Chieftess. I understand completely." The dark teen had been taking a lot of double-edged warnings from the elders lately; not that she could blame them. Afterall, what evidence did she have to offer to support her case? Nothing that she could think of. Lots of negative events, however, seemed to follow her through life.
Eris. Cloaked spirit cougars. Eris. Mysterious mountain winds. Eris. Eris' disasterous teen ceremony. Eris' attack on both Jei and Delila after her ceremony...
Okay, so technically that was related to Eris, not Delila, but the black teen couldn't help but feel responsible, at least in part, for some of the events. Why hadn't she seen the signs? Why hadn't she gone to the elders sooner? She'd known that something was wrong, even if she had just assumed it was her natural discomfort with anything...mystical. Strange for one who was supposed to be guarded by the Shadow Panther himself and gifted as a Shadow Huntress.
And who else could the Chieftess believe would cause trouble in the village? None other than the poor, restrained teen. None that Delila could think of anyway; though how she could cause trouble from her bound state in the Wild Ones' cave was beyond her. Unless...the Dewclaw ninja! Could Theta believe that the Dewclaws might make their move during the festival? Could any tribe sink that low? Were they that desperate to attack the Quicktalons? Delila frowned, recalling the night that Lyka returned from her first adult patrol carrying the body of her mentor, Moriean. Yes...perhaps they were that desperate...
Ignoring the adult talk for now, Shina tried her best to focus on talking with Cesara. Perhaps if she could learn to deal with one other kitten, she could eventually manage to deal with others without having a panic attack.
"Excited?" She tilted her head, looking thoughtful for a moment. How did she feel about today? She hadn't actually taken the time to consider it yet. She'd simply followed Delila here, worried only on keeping an eye on her hero and protector. "I...guess so?" She shrugged, sounding none-too-convinced. To be honest, she was a little afraid. She still had nightmares about the night...the night Delila had found her. Yes, that was how she would refer to it. The howls of her hunter still haunted her dreams at night, however. Her wounds had healed for the most part, or else she wouldn't have been allowed to take part in the hunt today. Delila's had too; for that she was glad. She would have never forgiven herself if Delila had been seriously or permanently injured just to save her. Was she even worth the trouble of saving? Who knew...it wasn't as if she could remember anything before that horrible nightmare anyway.
"Are you...excited?" She struggled to keep the conversation going, feeling overly awkward about this whole 'social situation' thing. It was better than having to face the frightning Quicktalon Chieftess though. The warrior mage scared Shina for some reason and she couldn't help but shrink back in fear from the elder Cougar.
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Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 5:46 am
Lyka waited silently for her two young charges to appear, alert and ready, although she occasionally twitched an ear towards the Wild One's cave. The caves swirled the echoes of Eris's cries into their own indecipherable message although the pain and confusion were clear. A muscle in her cheek tightened almost imperceptibly, the Quicktalon version of an emotional wince.
The spikes on her gauntlets were freshly whetted and she had even exchanged the progressively heavy cuffs she had inherited from Moriean for the slightly lighter, sleeker ones she had been given at her Adulthood ceremony. She would be taking kittens into the treeline for the hunt and the Cliffs cougar had made a point of practicing her skills extensively until she could bound from tree to tree almost as easily as if she were navigating narrow sections of a gorge. They would be close to the DewClaw border. Too close for Lyka's taste, but there was no other way to come across such abundant prey. Hunting was a priority, that was why she was taking the kittens out there in the first place, but protecting them was a whole new game. Where Lyka was concerned, protecting the kittens was her first and foremost concern. New hunters could always be trained, maybe not as effectively, but it was possible. Quicktalon kittens were not coddled by any means, but there were so few of them that they had to be guarded carefully. She had to be ready to fight, especially in case that Ninja showed up again.
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Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 9:12 am
Cesara had a feeling that Shina wasn't very comfortable. Is it the hunt? Or is she not used to talking to others? She wondered. Well either way she wanted to get to know the other girl better. "Oh yes I'm quite excited actually. I hope to be a huntress when I get older. It seems like an interesting job. Do you know what you wanna do?" She asked the other with a smilehoping that she wasn't talking too much or sounding too childish.
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Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 8:49 pm
Scanning the crowd once more, Delila caught sight of another familiar, if serious, face. Lyka. The mere sight of the cloudy-blue adult brought back another wave of memories...both pleasant...and not-so-much.
She sighed softly to herself. For all things considered, they'd really been through a lot together. More than Delila had shared anything with any other members of the tribe anyway. Eris and Lyka had become the closest thing she'd ever had to a family. Then, Eris went mad and Delila didn't see much of Lyka anymore following that chaos. She'd been left all alone again. Alone...with the exception of the nightmares that haunted her rare moments of sleep.
Shina seemed bewildered yet again. "What do I want to do? When I'm older?" She frowned, tugging at one of her pigtails as she thought. She glanced up, watching Delila's serious, pensive look. Suddenly, the answer was obvious. Why hadn't she realized it before?
Smiling genuinely for the first time, she turned back to Cesara. "I know!" Her voice was sure and confident now and she nodded before speaking again. "I wanna' be just like Delila! I'm going to be a Shadow Huntress! Just like her!"
Delila tuned back in just in time to hear this remark. Wonderful. Decisions weren't made that simply or that easily...but for today, she could let them believe it was. She could let them dream.
Was she going soft?
Shaking her short hair out and tucking it back behind her ears, she focused on her two charges. "Okay, you heard the Chieftess. This hunt is not for playing or for childish behavior. We are here to learn to hunt and to kill, so that we can eat. If we don't eat, we don't survive. It's that simple. This is serious business." She crouched down to talk to the kittens on their level, balancing delicately on the tips of her toes.
"We will concentrate on learning the basics of stalking and hunting. We'll only be taking small game today, so we won't worry about weapons. You'll have plenty of time as teens to find and perfect your own weapon technique. Today, we start with fundamentals: teeth, claws, and instincts. Are you both ready? Good, let's go." Without another word, the Shadow teen stood and turned to walk away. Her pace was sure and even, both confident and humble, as she passed through the remainder of the tribe, trusting her new student to follow closely.
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Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 6:05 pm
"Alright Quicktalons!! Move out!! Make your tribe proud with the blood of our prey!"
Theta marched off with her two kittens while the rest started to scatter.
Off in her lonely cave, Eris just sighed, someone atuned with what was going on.
"....good luck delila....."
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Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2007 1:37 pm
Cesara's smile widened as the other girl smiled. "Wow that sounds like a neat job. I'm sure you'll be good at it too." She replied. Shadow Huntress sounded like an exciting job just by its name, but Cesara didn't want anything more than to roam around outside, thats why she wanted to be a huntress. So she could wander around outside.
As Delila bent down Cesara turned her attention to her and listened carefully to every word she said. She was a little surprised when the teen stood up and just walked away but got over it quickly and followed close behind, happy that the hunt had finally begun.
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Posted: Wed Mar 21, 2007 9:02 pm
Delila moved swiftly and silently, balanced lightly on her toes as she tread delicately over the rocky terrain. Her eyes and ears scanned the area, alert for any signs of possible prey for the kittens to practice on, as well as anything that might present a real threat to the young ones that she would have to handle on her own. She traced her fingertips lightly over the handles of her twin daggers, smiling darkly at the reassurance she drew from them. There was a strange wave of warmth that washed over her at the same time, and while she puzzled over where that had come from, she dismissed it as the thrill of the hunt and the promise of plentiful food tonight.
Shina followed along eagerly, nowhere near as quiet or graceful as the dark teen. Loose pebbles scattered beneath her paws and she seemed oblivious to the noise that she was creating.
"Shh!" Delila stopped suddenly, dropping to the ground and signaling the kittens to follow her. Ahead, she spotted a rather large bird, pecking at the rocky soil. Although they could be loud, these birds were rather slow and if one could take them by surprise, even a kitten could bring one down before it could take to flight. It was all a matter of surprise and disabling its wings. Eyes narrowed, Delila judged this one to be quite plump from good feeding, probably from neighboring lands. This one would make a good treat for the kittens...if they could manage to take it down.
"Here is your first challenge," Delila whispered to the kittens. The three Cougars were sheltered behind a decent-sized boulder, out of sight of the bird. "There is your prey. I know you are young, but this should be no problem...if you work together. Cooperate to take the prey by surprise and bring it down. If you do, you will both be in for quite a treat at dinner tonight." Flashing the kittens a rare half-grin, the Shadow Huntress nodded. "Show me what you two are capable of. Now go. I'll be watching."
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Posted: Mon Mar 26, 2007 1:59 am
She eyed her two kittens critically and they eyed her back just as harshly. Both were confident, but quiet. Their ears forward and eyes focuses on her for the most part although their attentions did wander. The dark greyish one even attempted a timid half-snarl and displayed tiny baby fangs. All in all, a pair of nice normal young Quicktalons. Good.
Without a word, Lyka strode off in the direction of the hunting grounds. She stuck to mostly flat rocky terrien and kept at a moderate pace, glancing back once in a while to make sure the two kittens were following. Their paths were sporadic and wound back and forth between every little thing of interest along the way, but as long as they managed to keep up, Lyka did not stop them. A little curious exploration was good for kittens and there would be hardly time for that once they reached the treeline.
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