Toehook floats away, his last thoughts fluttering like...well, butterflies. His last thoughts are on gossamer wings. What else would a young hunter prey upon?
The battle fades away with a vague sense of having done his part. He falls into memory-the layer below the conscious one, which is already hazy and blood covered and growing cold. He flees deeper into his mind.
He remembers his father telling him to be patient when hunting, and quick-waiting till they land. Otherwise they would fly away. A clumsy jump meant more waiting. Sometimes it was almost enough to drive him mad, but he persisted. He always considered himself persistent. He recalls in perfect clarity, the first one he caught-a large one, with large beautiful wings of red and gold, like the time of year where the leaves changed and the wind was cold. He examines it once more, feeling the same joy he felt so long ago. He'll show his father and mother later...though, there really will be no later. On some level he knows this. On another, he knows this will never end. This echo will reverberate for an eternity, even when his conscious body fades-the flash of a neuron knows no constraints of time and space. He will leave this echo as a marker of who he was, and move on.
The coldness sinks deeper-the sky turns blood red, then black. The world around him fragmenting, as his body slowly dies-only echoes and shades remain. This oblivion he knows he cannot outrun...yet, he is not afraid. There is time for one last journey. He goes. He goes deeper-back to the nest, the first scents, the tastes. His first mate. His first real kill. Even in the mind of such a creature as he, there are many rooms-many places to explore...but, he only has a short time, however. Deeper and deeper he must go, to the very center.
At last he comes to a place very familiar to him-a warm place, with no memories and no pain. The only constants are the sound of his mothers heartbeat, as steady as the waves on the shore. A thin, yet hard barrier between him and the cruel and beautiful and amazing world he was born into-fragile, yet enough to shelter his little life. He coils into this sanctuary as the waves of cold and dark close in, and let's himself sleep in its embrace, letting go, falling, drifting. The last thing he hears is the first thing he heard-the heart, beating.
And then, it stops.
He at last remarks birth and death seems not so different, after all.
[/i]
(( *Sniff* Beautiful. ))
Kill the sister. Make her pay with all my Fury.
You wrestle with Sister, it isn't going well and you can feel her claws on your hide. Then she slowly goes limp.
(Attack 3+1 vs 7+1, Miss)
"told you id beat you." sighs pariah to red before staggering off exhaustedly.
Defend, move away from sister and mate if possible.
You walk, slightly unsteadily over towards where Maxinum is also resting.
(12 Vigor Recovered, nice roll!)
Maxinum continues leaning on the tree and starts licking his wounds. (+4 Vigor)
With my last breath...
With blind rage, Sister strikes at the nearest combatant that was involved in her sister's death. Then she faints, her lifeblood seeping from an overwhelming number of small wounds.
(Attack 5+3 vs 7, dmg 4)
(Vigor deep into negative, loss of consciousness, death.)
((Ding dong, the queen is dead!))
Ironclaw smirked, or rather opened her mouth slightly, which raptors do instead of smirking. "We have defeated your queen. Run, Big Ones, run."
Intimidate. Charge at, leap at, and attack Sister's body (Lead/Fury attack. -5 Vigor.)
You fail to do damage, but she faints anway from injury and overexertion.
(Attack 9+0 vs 10+1, miss)
Sister is in no condition to pay attention to your threats. ((And OOC Mate doesn't care, at least yet. He saw Red go down, but there is no way he would consider retreat until he can inspect her and be sure she's dead.))
Run up attack someone near Red's body. Be desperate.
He grabs hold of mastahcheese and starts tearing into him.
(Attack 9+3 vs 7+1, dmg 16)
--------------------------------
((At this point there are 4 of you that could attack Mate next turn. And he can only take 8 more damage. The odds of him surviving even one more round are very slim So...))
Mate claws Mastahcheese one more time before the rest of you regroup and tear him to bits. (Attack 5+4 vs 5+1, dmg 12)
This area of the forest is a mess. The ground torn by the scramble of clawed feet. The ferns and tree trunks splattered with blood. Six bodies, of friends and foes, predators and prey, lie here and there amongst the underbrush. You have won.
Victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be; for without victory, there is no survival.* This is the way of The Arena.
*Thank you Winston Churchhill.
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Topic: Dino Arena - Round 2 Turn 19 - Denoument (Read 45247 times)