[split] [SE] still wild

Hunting sounds fun.

But...not here. How about somewhere else?

hold me close smother me, my little dracula wrap your arms around me

A hunt would be nice, it was tradition almost. When things were going alright, the future bearing a warm glow, the two gathered for a hunt. An activity that allowed them to stretch their predatory tendencies, to accomplish and conquer the wild world while indulging in it's wonders. Aisha looped back to fly near him, to accept the offer and begin the scouting, but when she turned she found she was looking at him in an entirely different surrounding.

The world around Deimos had changed, the eagles great wings flapping not in the light of the sun but in the shadow of a canopy. She gasped, eyes leaving him and darting to their new environment. The foliage was more vividly chromatic than anything she'd ever seen in the natural world, the sound of water trickling below drew her attention down to a network of softly rippling streams.

The fuck, she growled through the bond, hovering nearer to the eagle and taking up position at his side. Cautious, unsure, and ready to shift to something more capable if they needed. What the fuck is this?

AISHA

DEIMOS

One moment his sharpened gaze had turned towards scurrying prey in fields of grass, and the next spun and vanished, spiraling into the soft trickling of water, the humid canopies –

I think I know where we are. It was a bewildering sensation though, semblances of other worlds blending and binding together, and the apprehensive endeavors curled back into the midst of his throat. Chaos made him calculate. Confusion made him all the more readily apparent and conformed to measures, to Machiavellian designations. So he ceased mid-air, catching his breath, landing along an elongated branch for survey, for observation, for striving to understand.

How had it happened? One instance they were staring and launching off of rock towers, and the next, melded and molded into something else altogether. Not unlike a portal, but those were always planned. Walked within. Seen. Heard. Known. Even when he and Kiada had been thrown into a book, there’d been a reason – the tome itself.

This, to his knowledge, hadn’t been prompted by anything.

And he could have his suspicions – the Voice, in particular, but with nothing else to go off of, he folded his wings, talons gripping hard into the wood. His stare took in Aisha, the stream, the wake of everything else colliding inward; the bright hues and elongated ferns, fronds, was a familiar recollection. We might be near Torchline. If it was the same jungle atmosphere he’d briefly explored with Aurelia.

"who's gonna let you?"

they asked. i said

"who's gonna stop me?"

hold me close smother me, my little dracula wrap your arms around me

Know where they are? Aisha hadn't gotten that far yet, she was still reeling over the fact that they'd teleported at all. She hadn't seen a portal, no reflective mirror-like pensive, and she certainly missed the signposts allowing them to decide a direction. But here they were, transported to somewhere new. A trick of The Voice, or the whims of a spirit? It was frustrating, but also a bit exhilarating.

Deimos mentioned Torchline, Aisha hummed lightly in agreement. She hadn't been there in some time, but this did remind her of the jungles that caressed the beach and ocean. If they could reach Haulani they'd be only a portal away from the grounds or Halo. That was comforting, but first they'd have to figure out how to escape. Up she went, flapping through the branches and twirling vines with practiced precision, I'm going up, he'd understand why, no need for explanations.

The flying fox broke through the last line of leaves, hovering above and looking down at the dense jungle below. The fox's vision was good for this, to the south she could faintly see the white of an ocean horizon. Ocean, she called, waiting for Deimos to join her and confirm her observations.

AISHA

DEIMOS

More moments, more instances, where he inspected, examined, and scrutinized. Another few breaths, his piercing eyes maneuvering along the boundaries, the fringes, of where they’d been sent and plucked. When there was nothing overly threatening, or bridging anomaly, the beast followed, wings unfurled, shooting straight towards the canopy. Brushing through leaves, fronds, and boughs, he burst outward on a rush of speed, until he was clear of the greenery, and staring out over the horizon.

Ocean he confirmed too; which would’ve been the ghost of a smile had he been human. The haze, though indistinct and far off, signaled waves and currents, tides and sands, and the relief flared through his chest, lingering between the Attuned fixtures. They weren’t so lost. They weren’t so far gone. This wasn’t a shuddering, apprehensive second; save for the bizarre nuances that led them here.

He hovered for a moment, before landing on a stronger, sturdier branch at the top of a massive piece of timber. The Sword wasn’t certain if they’d discover the answer of the enigma distorting through his mind, nor was he aware of how long it would take them to return towards the portal – but based on the distance, likely a day’s trek. What do you want to do? An offering of their process: to stay and explore, to hunt and linger, or to start wandering towards known aspects.

"who's gonna let you?"

they asked. i said

"who's gonna stop me?"

AISHA

she grabbed a razor for me
and she did it, just like that

Thank goodness for their winged natures, their keen eyesight as well, the faint anxious rippling slowly faded away. Her relief mingled with his, the bat turning to look at the eagle once more as they settled into these changes. Still lost to her was the reasoning for this sudden movement, the portal without a portal, some divinity having decided they'd be better off somewhere more tropical. But that was a problem for later, there wasn't much they could acquiesce as a bird and a bat in the middle of the jungle.

What to do then? They'd planned to explore King's End, they might as well explore this new place. No wasting time, I wonder what we could hunt down below, she replied, a slight playfulness to her tone as she shot down and into the jungle leaves, passing pinks and yellows and beautiful hues as she soared back towards the rivulets of water at the jungle's basin.

When she reached the undergrowth she shifted, the leopard perching elegantly on a long twisted root. There she awaited her companion.

when she want something
she don't wanna pay for it

this is the reckoning

We will have to ask around when we get home. A thought, all those machinations and meticulous, Machiavellian quandaries surrounding his mind. Eternally immersed in calculations, the Sword’s thought patterns often consisted, persisted, and existed in those layers, and corridors. What could happen next, rather than giving in to impulse. See if anyone else experienced the same. And then where to go from there – if anything at all.

But rather than instantly heading towards oceans, portals, and subsequently mountains, Aisha seemed much more apt to continue the previous prompt of hunting. A very muffled sort of laugh rolled through again, before he followed on wings and plumage, ducking and diving down below the treetops, billowing through canopies, and then landing upon the jungle floor.

No longer talons, however, as he shifted too – avian form changing and altering into hellhound precision. The Stygian form slunk along shadows, nose instantly to the ground, predacious mind already colliding and collaborating with the senses of the world around them. Unfamiliar and strange, indulgent and worth pondering, catching a scent on the wind. No need for his own elegance, poise, or mastery along roots, but for the mastered composition of a hunter, of a beast, canine, wolfish intervals yearning to be unleashed. Something is this way, to which there was a very juvenile challenge settled within, as he glanced at her, and then began to maneuver away.

DEIMOS

wolf image credit

AISHA

she grabbed a razor for me
and she did it, just like that

Which predator would join her in the underbelly of the jungle? The tiger, the bear, even the eagle, Deimos had an arsenal of skins to adorn and conquer in. It was the fiery one that settled by her side, or rather sprung to life. Immediately he set to the ground, sniffing and tracking and so she did the same. Rather than using her nose like the canine did, the leopard used her keen hearing and vision. As he pointed out the direction, she took zeroed in on the shuffling of something pointed against the leaves.

The challenge was issued in the glance he shot her, who would get the prey first. In a body built for jungle hunting, Aisha was off as soon as possible, leaping up onto the roots and following the scratching sound she'd locked on to. Up closer now she saw the prey, some sort of jungle fowl, a small grouping of them pecked anxiously as some of the wiggling roots. Birds, she called out in the bond, dropping low and blending in to the brightly colored foliage.

when she want something
she don't wanna pay for it

this is the reckoning

Tracking and rummaging, he was not a creature of the jungle; more prone to the sea, to the mountains, to the forests. Not this humid world with opulent hues and the grasping unknown, but there he embedded himself within anyway, figuring they could hunt until they’d had their fill, and then fly onwards towards the ocean.

His challenge was met with an equal provocation, and he muffled the lightest of laughs, giving into the indulgence of stoking and chasing. The rapacious edges of his form contentedly sauntered deeper into the fronds, blending more into the shadows then the mighty fronds or the basking canopies. He sauntered next to her, sinking deeper into the foliage, accompanying the aspects with his hidden, quiet fringes; recalling days of hushed, brimming savagery, beckoning it towards the surface with ample, persecuting prowess.

Then – they didn’t have to.

Because the unknown fowl must’ve heard or noticed or spotted them in some way – and instead of escaping, tearing off into the undergrowth, or flying into the beckoning boughs, they attacked.

This time, he did chuckle and roar in the rush of the Attuned bond, as the birds flew at them, ducking his head, and then snapping his teeth at plumage flaring nearby.

DEIMOS

wolf image credit

AISHA

she grabbed a razor for me
and she did it, just like that

Whatever the fowl had noticed, whatever misstep or unfortunate coincidence, it didn't matter now. They were being swarmed, the colorful birds with their blunt little talons fluttered up and flocked their way. Aisha snarled, just as amused as her companion. Throwing away any plans or organization, she embraced havoc and lunged from her not so hidden place beneath the leaves.

Yellow eyes bore into the feathers a fat bird, searching for the fresh meat beneath. She wove her way through the cloud of birds as they swooped by, choosing to avoid them rather than engage. She had a new goal, a new target, and with a practiced claw she snagged it from it's path towards violence. Plucked from the crowd, the bird squawked and hit the ground, Aisha was upon it before it could attempt to get up. Quick and hopefully with little pain, the bird had waged war and lost.

A sharp talon did make it's way near her ear, pulling her attention from the fresh kill and back up towards the others. They were more anxious now, another roar or two and they'd move on to pester something else.

when she want something
she don't wanna pay for it

this is the reckoning

Perhaps this way of hunting was best - for no sooner had the birds launched their outcries, their dominion, their prowess, did the two do the same in ample accord. While Aisha engaged, dove, and caught, the Sword made his own maneuvers, ducking low to avoid sharp talons, pressing himself into the midsts of shadows, and when there was something close enough, he snagged.

It was a small jump into the air, but a necessary, apt, and swift one. His fangs came down upon plumage, and he could feel the tiny bones snap against his teeth as he ferociously trapped them in his jaws. The fowl flapped against his face, his features, striving desperately to survive the incoming onslaught, but all he had to do was push it down into the ground, snare deeper and further, until the struggle ceased entirely. Fight or flight might’ve been an apt term, but not for the individual the hound had mauled and maimed.

Lifting his head, he surveyed the rest of the flock, some dissipating and veering off entirely, noticing the hastening and loss of their own. All right? Not worry perhaps, but the faintest of concerns, uncertain if she had escaped unscathed or had some injury they’d have to attend to at some point. Zuriel wasn’t with them (likely very comfortable at home, before the fire, or judging other fighters within the barracks(, which meant wounds might be more of a gamble, more of a trepidation.

DEIMOS

wolf image credit

AISHA

she grabbed a razor for me
and she did it, just like that

The cacophony of squawks and screeches began to bleed away, muffled by the canopy and the hum of the jungle as the flock ascended. The last few birds circled before lifting off, leaving Aisha and Deimos with their kills. The leopard's teeth bared, she watched the tail feathers disappear before turning her attention back to her fowl, it's blood soaks iridescent feathers ruffling in the residual breeze.

Yeah, one got me but I'm fine, she replied, no trace of disappointment or frustration in her tone, only the hum of adrenaline as it faded away. The fowl were not built for fighting, their talons blunt compared to other raptors. The cut would ooze a bit of red into her fur, then stop quickly, and she'd forget about it soon. She purred and sat, pulling her bird closer to begin to eat, That was interesting, she added with a snort.

when she want something
she don't wanna pay for it

this is the reckoning

He watched, waited, and listened in habitual routines; ears twitching back and forth, piercing eyes narrowed in rapt precision as the rest of the birds hastened away, leaving them with their kills, still in the midst of nowhere. His gaze flickered back to her at the assertion that she was fine; he could always have Zuriel mend whatever was left and torn when they returned. If nothing was serious, then the beast would merely nod, and maneuver forward, snatching and clutching at his fowl.

He snorted at her insinuation, while his jaws plucked at feathers, removing them in clumps, absorbed in the tug and pull and devastation, where he could unfurl the ravenous inclinations, where he could unleash some deplorable, horrible ministrations and the world carried on.

Different murmured in his response, while he pierced through skin and flesh, fangs ripping along boundaries of fowl. Perhaps they do not have many predators. Or hadn’t come across creatures like themselves; merciless and Attuned. The unknown to them and to the rest of the void.

DEIMOS

wolf image credit

AISHA

she grabbed a razor for me
and she did it, just like that

With a predator's rashness Aisha dug into the carcass, ripping away at the feathers until only down would remain. She didn't mind swallowing a bit of fluff, the leopards stomach was built for such oversights. And it was the predator she played now, ears ever alert to the sounds of the jungle, tail lashing behind her.

Deimos replied, offering a suggestion to which Aisha paused and glanced over at him, In this jungle? I'm sure we aren't the baddest things here. They couldn't be, not in a place so teeming with life. There were likely all sorts of dangerous beasts, hiding in the bushes or watching from above. But it wasn't an unsettling thought, here in nature she felt comfortable, and in this skin she felt home.

when she want something
she don't wanna pay for it