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 Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2006 6:38 pm
((Picking up where we left off... biggrin ))
The young hyena sat contentedly on a small hill in the shade of a small tree, tail twitching idly as if to shoo away nonexistant flies. Her tongue lolled out as she watched the plains below. There was a dark blot on the horizon -- a herd of some kind, wildebeests perhaps. Certainly nothing she could tackle, but there was always the possibility of scavenging someone else's kill later.
For now she was quite satisfied. Her patience had been rewarded earlier that day, when she managed to ambush an unlucky warthog piglet. She yawned, stretching her forepaws out. The life of a wanderer wasn't very easy, but this place seemed nice... and better yet, unclaimed by any other hyenas.
Tree? Treetreetreetree. Tree in the middle of the plains. Slowly, the spotted youngster fixed his pink eyes on the tree. Youngster? Yes. As young as he had been? Nope! He had grown, yepyep! The gray hyena started to lope towards the tree, his pink tongue lolling out the side of his mouth. Normally, he didn't behave so silly. Okay, so he did. Who cared? He didn't represent a clan!
However. before he began his ascent up the hill, a smell hit his nose. Something was up there. Someone perhaps? He hadn't seen anyone other than a few nomads here and there since his encounter with the litter of pups when he himself had been little. He climbed slowly up the hill, sniffing slowly. He spoke not, peeking to where he could see the other hyena.
Putrid. Rotten.
Dark.
Deca wasn't feeling well, hadn't been feeling well for weeks. Eternity. He was near starving, his pawpads covered in sores. He belonged nowhere, to nobody. Left behind by his mother at a very young age, it was likely she could sense something was wrong with the cub. Not physically.. there was something else wrong with him.
Seeking shade, the withered cub moved towards an unlikely source. A tree. Small and straggling, but it would suffice. He made no attempt to scent for danger, seeking only respite in the death-heat of the barren desert.
Dozing off beneath her tree, Lilah didn't notice the sound of the other hyenas approaching until they were closer than she would have liked. She half-leaped to her feet, preparing to flee, and then subsided. They were only young hyenas, like her! They could have a mother somewhere around, she supposed, but there had been no scent of another Clan around this place. And she wasn't about to give up her nice new spot for some nobody loners.
She flattened her ears, waiting for the others to draw closer. The gray hyena, closest to her, was a male around her own age. The other was too far away to see clearly, but it was small and weak looking. Hmmf. She focused her attention on the gray male. She wasn't sure if she could stand against this hyena... what if he had some friends waiting in hiding? But she certainly wasn't going to back down, at least not yet.
Teruno saw the female hyena suddenly get offensive. He pushed his body almost flat against the ground, looking up at her. There was someone else nearby. He could smell them too. Who? He didn't know. The scent was far from familiar. He didn't speak still, not sure what to make of the brightly colored female. He tilted his head to the side, small tail wagging.
Deca wasn't close enough to discern what was going on just yet. He was single-mindedly working his way to that one single tree. The promise of the shade was far more than he could pass up, and it wasn't until he drew closer that he noticed the space was occupied.
Occupied by two larger, healthier hyenas.
He couldn't let that sway him. Instead his hackles rose the slightest, lips curling back to reveal small fangs and pale gums. He limped forward even faster, ears flattening back against his skull.
He would have the shade.
The strange hyena's submissive posture and friendly tail-wag made Lilah feel a great deal better. So he was just a loner, like her. Raising her ears slightly, Lilah considered the intruder. She could probably drive him off, but there seemed to be plenty of game in this area. And it might be nice to spend some time with another hyena. She yipped in greeting, cautiously wagging her tail as well.
"Heyou! Who're you? An' who's your friend?" she barked, rolling her eyes at the younger hyena now limping towards them. Though she assumed the cub was with the nice gray male, there was something she didn't like about him. For one thing, the little creature looked sick. Lilah had seen beasts poisoned by radiation, and she didn't want to get too near to anything that might contaminate her with that sickness!
"Friend?" Teruno asked, relaxing a bit, looking at the snarling cub. He took a step back, tilting his head to the side. "Friend? Teruno's friend?" He asked, a confused look passing over his face. He didn't think he knew this creature, the hyena, but if the female said he did... Maybe he'd forgotten?
Deca paused for a moment, slowing as he drew near. "Shade." He growled gutterally, ears now flat against his head. He wasn't asking, he was taking. And though he was young, there was a drive, an urge that was deep down in his soul that drove his need to survive. Survival at this point in time meant shade.
"Get outta here." His words were slurred and rough. It was obvious he wasn't in the habit of being in the company of other hyenas. And for a moment in time, it was almost as if he grew larger, his form blurred as if he was out of focus.
Lilah snarled at the cub, her ears going flat. The gray hyena -- Teruno? -- seemed friendly enough, but this little jerk definitely rubbed her the wrong way. "You get outta here, cub. This is my place." She rose slowly, tail held stiffly out behind her and hackles rising.
It was obvious that the little beast wasn't Teruno's friend. It didn't seem like it was capable of being anybody's friend. And it smelled unhealthy. Wrinkling her nose, she bared her teeth in a warning. "Teruno, you can share my place. Maybe you could share too, if you were more polite. But you aren't driving anyone away," she snapped at the cub.
Teruno looked at the pup, fur bristling slightly at the mean (friend?) and hostile looking creature. The pup seemed to grow and blur, and it began to frighten him. His fur was still standing as he heard the female's offer. She had called him Teruno! How had she known? Had he told her his name? He didn't think so...
He bounded to the shade, out of the heat. His ears pinned against his skull in the same fashion as her's, his lips lifting to reveal white teeth.
Deca snarled back, showing no fear at the duo of hyena. Lips pulled back even farther from discolored teeth and gums. He took an offensive stance. It probably wasn't smart to take on two very healthy hyenas, but he had a few tricks up his sleeve that he wouldn't hesitate to use.
That is, if he could stay standing.
Lilah was relieved when the gray hyena decided to join her. In the face of a threat, all her uncertainty about the strange male had evaporated. And while the scrawny little cub snarling at them proabably wouldn't last long in a fight, she didn't want it biting her. It looked diseased.
She looked at the hyena beside her approvingly. He looked like a strong, good hyena, not at all like this weird little withered creature before them.
"Hey cub! You better not try anything. We could step on you and smash you like a meerkat catchin' a bug," she snapped, clicking her sharp teeth for emphasis.
Teruno blinked his pink eyes as the unhealthy pup. This little one wanted to hurt him and the female beside him. Why? There was enough shade for them all if the pup would just be nice. He added a soft "Yep," to the female's threat. They might could. They might would have to. He wasn't sure... He had never fought with another hyena before. Sure, he had passed nomads and other wanderers, exchanged greetings, gone along his way. Who hadn't? Clan members... Eh. He had never found a reason to attack another... and yet, that seemed what the little one wanted.
Not one to back down, Deca stood his ground. Again his form blurred, grew larger. Bulkier, even. The change was so minute that to blink would miss it. It wasn't frightening in the least, just.. odd.
Now that he was close enough, the blood shot eyes and other assorted sores were noticeable. Other hyenas didn't take kindly to Deca because he was different in ways both visible and unnatural. The fact that they were speaking to him threw him off in a big way.
But he was tired and sick, and it was obvious. The hyena swayed on his feet before sinking down, moving to rest on his side.
Lilah frowned at the wavering cub, dismissing its blurring as an optical illusion. The sores and mats on its scrawny hide certainly weren't optical illusions though. Her growl slowly faded as the small cub sank to the ground. It was rude and unpleasant, that was for sure, but she wasn't going to attack it now that it was down.
"You can stay, but you better not get nasty again," she warned. Dismissing the cub, she turned to the gray hyena and looked at him appraisingly. "My name's Lilah, by the way. And you're Teruno, right?" She wagged her tail slightly. This Teruno seemed nice, and she had missed the company of other hyenas -- especially hyenas her own age.
She turned and walked a bit closer to her tree, satisfied that the other two hyenas were not a threat. "There's some water, a little pond kinda thing, down the hill that way," she tossed over her shoulder to the other two. She did feel a little pity for the sick little hyena, but it had better not expect her to carry it to the water.
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Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2006 8:00 pm
The cub flared up again a tiny bit, the sights blurring. Yet, as he did so, Teruno observed sores where other creatures had inflicted pain upon the smaller creature. The...different younger hyena was soon on his side, resting.
It was a few seconds into Lilah talking that registered the words. "Teruno. That's me! Lilah's a pretty name." Teruno nodded, his little tail wagging. At the mention of water, he was tempted to give it a try. The little pond was appealing in sound, though Teruno was not yet particularly thirsty. "Have we met before, Lilah?" He asked, putting more emphasis on the second syllable than was regular.
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Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2006 8:37 pm
Deca merely huffed, listening to the irritating drone of the other two hyenas. He was hungry but too weak to kill, thirsty but too weak to defend his watering rights. He was even a bit lonesome, but too ..different to make friends or even join a clan.
With effort, he rose to his feet, growling softly at the two. It wasn't a malicious sound, just one of discontent.
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Posted: Wed Jan 04, 2006 6:45 pm
"I dunno. We might've, when we were cubs, but I don't remember." Had she met Teruno before? It was possible, but Lilah hadn't made many friendships as a cub. None that she remembered, anyways. "Teruno's a good name too." She sniffed at the pathetic little hyena, now wobbling on its feet. If it had a name at all, it probably wasn't a good one. It was probably a name as crusty and sore-raddled as the ugly little beast's hide. Lilah usually didn't harbor such nasty thoughts, but she didn't like the creature at all. Not one bit.
"Wanna go to the pond? Maybe we can catch some fishes or something, too." Though Lilah had never successfully caught a water-dweller, she liked to chase them for fun sometimes. It would great to splash around with another hyena. "You can come too, little weirdo. Y'look like you need water. Don't fall in and mucky up the water though," she shot at the other hyena, wrinkling her snout at it before trotting slowly around the hillock to the little pond.
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2006 3:30 pm
The spotted hyena watched as the cub got to his feet. His tail offered a small wag as he turned his attention to Lilah. "Feeshes?" Teruno asked, following after the female. He had never had a name pinned to the little swimming creatures that were too hard and slippery to catch beneath the water's still surface. Weirdo? Was that the other hyena's name?
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2006 8:41 pm
Deca grunted and rose to his feet. Fish sounded good. "Not weirdo. Name is Deca." He didn't dare get too close to the water; there was no telling what would happen if he got into it. For all he knew, all the fish in it would go belly up and then the other two would really make fun of him.
The wouldn't like him if he got angry.
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2006 8:52 pm
"Feeeshes are good! I never caught one by m'self, but I've found a few dead ones. Fun to chase, anyways." She rolled her eyes at the beat up little cub, ignoring its statement. That one didn't look like it would have too much fun splashing around after fishies, it would probably slip and drown. The thing looked like it could have drowned in a mud puddle.
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Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2006 5:07 pm
Teruno blinked at Weirdo (now Deca). He was getting up. Good! When Lilah started talking, he turned his attention yet again back to her. "We'll catch a feeshes, Lilah." Teruno said confidently, starting to dart towards the pond.
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Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2006 3:06 am
Deca merely snorted, limping carefully towards the water. He didn't move very fast, though he was driven by thirst. Taking a few experimental laps at the tepid fluid, the torn up little hyena drank vigorously of the delicious water.
It tasted much better than the other stuff did, the stuff he'd had weeks ago.
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Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2006 8:22 pm
Her head filled with thoughts of shiny slippery feeshes, Lilah bounded around the water's edge like a newborn cub. She had drunk earlier and wasn't all that thirsty. With Teruno here, she might actually catch a fish. That would be fun! Lilah always enjoyed tasty fish when she could get them, but they were just too fast for her to catch on her own. She circled the pond thoughtfully, scanning the shallow water for fish. When she came to Deca, she simply leapt over the shorter hyena and continued on her way.
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Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 2:42 pm
Teruno looked back at Lilah and Deca, seeing the smaller hyena headed for the water, eager to drink. Lilah was cirling the water, searching for a feeshes. Should he? Teruno crept forward, looking at the clean depths of the water. He remained unmoving, staring at the water, every ripple that registered movement causing him to search closer for a feeshes.
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Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 6:52 pm
Deca merely grunted when the peppier hyena leapt over him, though his eyes were watchful for fish, as well. His grumbling tummy reminded him how long it'd been since he'd eaten, and he wasn't strong enough to capture his own prey. Living on carrion was his get-by scheme, but boy, did fishies sound awfully delicious to his cramping belly.
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Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 8:45 pm
Seeing that the other two hyenas were searching for fish as well, Lilah nodded sternly. Her mood had lifted and she no longer felt much resentment for Deca. The smaller hyena was behaving normally now, and seemed to be keeping an eye out for Teruno's so-called feeshes. Good. Lilah was sure they could get some fish if they all worked together.
Her inital excitement was wearing off, and she settled herself by the water's edge, peering intently into the pool. She could see some little moving dots right by the bank, but no fish. That seemed to be a good sign; if the pool could support tadpoles, then hopefully it could support larger and much tastier fish.
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Posted: Fri Jan 20, 2006 9:14 pm
Teruno stared at the unmoving pond, waiting for a feeshes. After a few moments that seemed to drag forever, Teruno began to stare. With staring came the drifting off. And with the drifitng off came the surprise of the thing that brough him back.
It started as an irritation on his paw, one that moved when he batted at it. When he looked down he saw a beetle crawling upupup. With a jump in the air, he slung his paw, sending said beetle to flop in the pond. "Do feeshes eat beetles?" He asked quietly.
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Posted: Fri Jan 27, 2006 9:53 pm
Deca eyed the bug hungrily, "I eat beetles." Of course, they were foul-tasting and utterly bitter, but the boy did what he had to. Beetles, dead things. They all started to taste the same after a bit, especially the ones closest to the purple water. Sweet purple water, cool and plentiful. It made him wonder why he'd strayed so far from it.
"Hurry up, I'm hungry," he whined, black eyes watching the water carefully.
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