Cai sat under a bright Autumn moon, gazing out into the moorland outskirts. He was on duty for sentry tonight, and so far, it was a quiet night. There was a nip in the air that chilled his black nose. Their neighbors, the wolves of Aerie, were quiet neighbors so far, and if he squinted, he might catch the occasional vague wolf shape patrolling off to the east, but well away from the borders. Or maybe he was just seeing things. He thought Caelia might be on her way—she was slated to join him soon enough, staggering the sentry shifts slightly. Aurielle had left half an hour ago to patrol, and so there would be thirty-minute intervals, at random, where only one sentry sat guard at the passage. He glanced over his shoulder as the thought occurred, smiling hopefully as he thought he heard his sister’s paws on the ground, coming toward him. Unfortunately, it wasn’t her. Shit… How had a lion slipped in without being spotted? Who was supposed to be at the southern pass and wasn’t? Were they okay? He howled a sharp alarm as he whirled on the wall and dove straight at the big cat, glad for the armor he was wearing. Those paws had big sharp claws and he didn’t fancy wearing their marks. He didn’t hesitate, even those his heart was pounding with more than a little fright and adrenaline. The big maned cat snarled as the chocolate splotched Adravendi charged into him, ducking as one of those paws came at him. He felt a claw rip through the tip of his left ear and bit back a snarl of his own before he dove in and sank his teeth into the other paw and ripped his head side to side, growling as he released it to bound out of range of the next volley of paw-slaps the tawny beast sent his way. Shitshitshit, sis where are you! He couldn’t spare a glance to see if she was coming, or if maybe Aurielle had heard the howl and come blazing - literally – in to sink her canines into this trespasser. The lion held all his attention, which e knew was bad—one needed to be fully aware of his surroundings in a fight, lest there be more enemies attempting to flank him. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Despite the fact that Valhalla had been peaceful for quite some time now, Caelia was having trouble sleeping on this particular autumn night. Though she was due for sentry duty soon, she was having trouble settling down at all long before she was due to meet up with Cairo. Any rest tonight seemed like a far-off possibility, though hopefully after sentry duty she might be tired enough to sleep. Currently she was trekking through the moor, grateful for the quiet night to hopefully help stifle her anxious thoughts. So far, it seemed to be helping - the brisk cool autumn air, at least relatively cool for the western lands, was a welcome distraction. Occasionally she paused to search the territory ahead, though with the lazy interest of someone merely passing through, not the high-alert of someone on guard duty.

But an unusual sound alerted her that something unexpected was happening. The voice was familiar, but not distinct enough that she could pick out exactly what - or who - it was, not from this distance. Brows furrowed as she wheeled around, cautiously heading toward the noise. It increased in volume, and only then did she realize it was Cairo. Shit, she was supposed to be heading to meet him soon anyway, wasn't she? Instinct took over as her pace increased, frantic and worried as she headed toward the sound... though she slowed as she eventually neared her brother and the creature he was currently facing off against.

The lion's silhouette was visible even from a distance, and it become clear all at once that this wasn't just any intruder, but something much more dangerous. Though she knew her small frame was no real match against the lion, at least on her own, she had to do something - sitting idly by and letting her brother get mauled wasn't even an option. A loud growl of warning ripped from her throat, ringing out with far more raw aggression than she'd expected, as she lunged toward the canine's flanks - hoping to grab hold of one of its paws and at the very least cause it to divert its attention from Cairo for a moment.

He didn’t quite hear his sister’s growl, but the lion was definitely distracted by her teeth, whirling in a flutter of mane and a thunderous roar, aiming a volley of front-pawed, claw-filled smacks for the female. Cairo, given the brief moment to gather himself, let his attention spread enough to take in his surroundings more, even as he dove in to tag-team the lion. With Caelia’s help he was able to clear his mind, and listen above the clamor of roars and rip of claws and scuffle of paws in the peat as he sought to snatch the tuft-ended tawny tail in his jaws. He felt the appendage crunch between his teeth and set his legs, jerking and shaking his head side to side, letting go as he spotted the big feline turning away from his sister with a squall of pained agony. Cai kept one eye on his sister around the lion’s shoulder as he backpedaled, drawing the lion away and giving her an opening again to implement her teeth. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Luckily enough, her bite landed, though her weight was hardly enough to really cause the lion to lose balance in any meaningful way. Though her teeth dug into the cat's ankle, suddenly she felt him twisting around toward her, instantly aiming his large front paws at her. Immediately they collided with her face, sending her stumbling to the side, nearly causing her to lose her balance entirely. Luckily the claws hadn't quite snagged her skin, though she felt the dull ebbing of pain beginning to sprout where the claws had attempted to dig in.

Before she really had a chance to react, Cairo was lunging for the feline's tail, trying to distract the beast just as Caelia had. Luckily the attack was successful in drawing his attention away from Caelia's face, and fluidly he turned back to Cairo. She didn't have time to think, only to react on pure instinct and adrenaline - lunging toward the lion's rear, jaws parting as she tried to grab hold of his hind left flank. She used all of her much-smaller force to really put all her strength into the bite, hoping that it might at least give a strong enough message for the lion to retreat... because she knew the two of them couldn't take this beast down entirely.

They worked well as a team—barring the scramble of inexperience and adrenaline. When the lion whipped back to meet his bite on its tail, Caelia dove right in and landed a hold on the lion’s flank. He saw it whip back toward Caelia and saw his chance. It was stupid, risky. But the lion was not backing down or showing any sign of leaving. As it wheeled back to face the smaller wolf, Cai lunged alongside and dove in for a risky, risky blow. He could only hope Caelia would back him as he landed the bite in the soft spot behind the lion’s jaw. The first bite he only got mane, but he readjusted quickly, helped as the big cat jolted to face him and shoved its neck into his mouth. But he took it. Biting down, he felt the fleck sinking down on his teeth, to the hilts, and the flood of blood just about choked him out with the thick mane-fur stuffing his mouth. The lion reared, slinging him, but he held on grimly, wrenching and shaking his whole body to render as much damage as his canine teeth could deal before he was flung free. The damage was done, and he realized dazedly that his right cheek stung, just below the ear. Had the lion gotten him there? He scrambled to his paws again and lunged as the lion staggered. He wasn’t sure if he’d managed to kill it, but it seemed less aggressive and far woozier. Crimson painted its mane, dribbling quickly from the tips of the shaggy hair. Even as he watched it sagged, haunches dropping to the ground. He looked for his sister as the lion flopped, eyes wide and dilated as he gasped for a breath, adrenalin still thrumming through him. What the heck did you do at this point? Make sure it was dead? Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Caelia wasn't quite sure how they'd proceed, but it became clear what Cairo was thinking as soon as she dove for the lion's flank. Somewhat recklessly he dove for the feline's neck, pushing through the mess of fur and flesh to find its vitals. She couldn't back down now, so she bore down hard on the leg she'd found hold on, feeling the slight relief of blood trickling over her tongue. At the very least they were agitating this beast, and hopefully with enough careful hounding he could let off and flee.

But Cairo was insistent apparently, and Caelia followed his lead, readjusting her position and briefly letting go of where she'd been biting down - veering toward the lion's side and going in for another attack, parting jaws aiming somewhere near the lion's ribcage. It wasn't the kind of blow that would end him, by far, but hopefully coupled with Cairo focusing on the beast's neck it might cause it to lose focus momentarily. Beneath her teeth all she felt was flesh and ribs and nothing really she could hold on to, and her teeth skimmed his pelt, leaving mild lacerations on his side.

All at once the lion stumbled, trying to lunge forward before collapsing. Was it dead? Caelia had no idea, but it was hard to imagine the two of them had taken down a full-grown lion. Her own adrenaline was pumping hard, echoing in the form of her heartbeat ringing between her ears, as loud as thunder. "What now? I say we leave it. Tell Aurielle," Caelia choked out, trying to catch her breath. "It looks injured enough I don't think it'll do more than crawl away once it regains consciousness, if it does..."

He found his sister to be well, if breathless and frazzled. At her words he gazed at her, still a little dazed before his eyes went to the still form of the cat. The face was still snarling, but there was something familiar in how unmoving the cat was. Blood pooled around its head and neck, soaking into the moorland soil and when he’d gained his wits, he shook his head, stepping closer with his ears cocked forward. “It’s dead. I don’t hear a heartbeat and it’s still.” His voice was shaky, his legs were shakier. But he made his way to Caelia’s side and checked her over, wanting to make sure she wasn’t injured. When he was satisfied he flopped his rump down and leaned, waiting for the high of battle to come down as he watched the dead lion. “Hell of a start to a sentry shift, right?” Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Trying to fully catch her breath was difficult, but she managed to slowly calm herself between shaky inhales and exhales. Had they really killed a lion? She'd been training, but she didn't know she was that strong, even with Cairo's aid. Caelia was speechless. The cat remained still, blood pooling from its neck and onto the dirt below, and Caelia stood and stared, mouth slightly agape. "I.. I guess it is," Caelia concluded, as if saying the words aloud might somehow make her believe them fully.

Caelia gave him a quick look-over too, but it was clear they were both uninjured, at least on the surface. As the adrenaline wore off she had no doubt they'd be quite sore and tired - she wondered if Aurielle would be okay with them cutting sentry duty short tonight. "I should go find Aurielle. Are you okay to keep an eye on things for a few minutes?" Who knew if there were other lions lurking around their lands? Caelia certainly hoped not, but she couldn't be completely confident in that assumption. With that, Caelia turned to set off and find Aurielle, deciding better than to just call for her, just in case.

-exit Caelia-