Silently, the big wolf moved across the plain. Quiet and slow, her quarry in sight. She had been stalking the buck for some time and was waiting for the opportunity to kill it with the least amount of effort. Warring with other bucks had left it injured and bleeding, but with all of its legs still working, she needed to outmaneuver it before she could spring her attack.

Creeping ahead of the buck was a slow, arduous process, but she had done it. As it grazed, it gradually moved in her direction. The moment was almost upon her and her muscles bunched in preparation. One step. Another. She could see the small hairs on the bucks chin. It was time. Springing from her place, the buck startled and started to run. Without solid footing though, the massive canine was on it in an instant. Teeth bit into its throat and, though it kicked and thrashed, its life ended quickly.

Ah, but Resin wasn't the only hunter about. Ever the opportunists, a lion decided that the meal should be hers instead. The big cat dove out of the long grass with a growl and Resin, acting instinctively,  leaped away from her meal. The one-eyed fae snarled and bristled, stalking forward once more. This kill was hers and she would have it. The cat attempted to grab the deer and drag it off, but the maned fae sunk her teeth into the feline's haunch, blood welling into her mouth. The cat squealed and spun, lashing out with its wicked claws. Now it was angry. Meal forgotten, it was intent on a fight. Very well... she was ready.

Coding|Alice. Art|Resin.

Now that Nausicaa and Philomena had been reunited and his mother was somewhere he knew she would be safe, it gave him the peace of mind to go explore on his own again. It gave him the time to go though the lands he used to frequent when he was last in Boreas to see what had changed. There were new packs to take note of or perhaps some that had moved to other lands, but for the most part things were similar to how he remembered them. He hadn’t made it far enough to take a closer look at the volcano yet, but other than that everything felt familiar.

The sound of a growl near by made his hackles bristle and stopped him in his tracks. His ears perked while he listened, his paw lifted mid step. It had been mostly quiet throughout the day so far so the sudden, furious growl easily grabbed his attention. It was the yowl from some kind of large feline that got him moving. He wasn’t sure if it was more curiosity or worry for someone else’s safety that got him to run toward the fighting, but either way he was quick to find the large gray and black woman in a face off with a lion. The downed deer near them painted the picture and he was able to put the pieces together easily.

When Ulric pushed though the grasses he had ended up behind the lion in question and made the split second decision to lend a paw to the stranger. He wasn’t sure if his help was wanted, but he would rather act now and ask for forgiveness later rather than leave the woman on her own. The large brute took the opportunity of having the lion distracted to lunge at the feline from behind, latching his jaws onto its hind leg. His teeth immediately sank into its skin and he could taste the blood in his mouth. He heard a similar, pained sound that he had heard before and quickly released his opponent so that he could hop back out of the way of any swinging paws. He landed in a defensive stance, ducking out of the way of the dangerously sharp claws that were now turned toward him. He shot the lion a snarl and the massive brute bristled with a deep growl, doing his best to distract the lion so the wolf on the other side of this fight could make her move.

As seemed to be the trend lately, another wolf showed and jumped into the fray. Thankfully, he was a big man, so she wouldn't have to worry about him as much as she would a smaller wolf. He wasted no time, rushing forward to place a bite to the cat much like she had initially. Good. While the lion's attention was pulled in his direction, she would barrel forward to snap at one tawny hind leg. That was how she took down large predators. Take out their legs with her serrated teeth, then everything else would fall into place after. With cats, however... their front end was always dangerous.

Having severed the tendon in one back leg, the feline screamed in pain and threw itself on the ground on its back, teeth and claws pointed upwards to protect itself. A typical cat tactic. Casting her golden gaze to the earthen brute, the woman simply growled, "Distract it." She was careful not to draw the cats attention back towards herself and stood still, thick muscles bunched and ready to spring.

Ulric gave the scarred woman an approving glance when she landed another blow on the feline’s hind leg, this time doing enough damage that the large cat screamed in pain and fell to the ground. His silvery gaze went to the gray female again, his ears flicking forward to catch her rough voice. Distract it was an easy enough task and he gave her a quick nod to show that he understood. He looked back down at the lion in front of him now that it was in this defensive position, all of it’s sharp weapons facing outward and ready to slash the closest thing it could reach.

He did his best to stay just out of reach while still staying close enough to seem like a threat. He kept his hackles raised and a vicious snarl on his lips while a deep growl rumbled in his large chest. Ducking down low, he swiped one paw toward its head, his paw pads connecting hard with the side of the lion’s head right against its ear - sure to cause some disorienting ringing at the very least. It wasn’t enough to cause any kind of real damage, but that wasn’t his goal. His goal was distraction. The lion reached toward him, one dangerously sharp claw connecting with his cheek as he darted out of the way again. It caused a fairly deep scratch and pulled some blood to the surface of his skin, but nothing he was really worried about. Thinking quickly, he lunged forward and caught the lion’s leg between his teeth before it could pull back again, giving a solid bite around it’s ankle before ducking back out of the way again. He didn’t look up to see what the other wolf was doing, just focusing on the lion instead to make sure he was watching for any of its flailing or swings.

The man thumped the cat in the head and it slashed at him in retaliation. It happened to catch him and she saw the blood well to the surface, but it didn't look deep and was far from life threatening, so she paid it no mind. He caught her command to distract it and was doing a decent job of it.

With the cat back upright once more and focusing on shaking the wolf off of its front paw, the big fae leaped forward once more. This time she dove onto the cats back, crushing its spine beneath her weight, but her real aim was to sink her teeth into its neck at the back of the lion's skull. Serrated teeth sank down to bone, her powerful jaws crushing the back of the skull ever so slightly. Again, the cat wailed in pain and tried to get the woman to release it, but when her jaws were locked around something, there was no shaking her off. From her position, the cat couldn't get its claws on her. She couldn't stay here forever, but she could stay here for a while. Blood ran unto her mouth and she poured every ounce of her strength into crushing the skull and spine of the would-be kill thief.

Ulric did everything he could to keep the lion's eyes on him so the fighting-worn woman across from him could line up her attack. He swung his paws towards it's face, made lunges toward its legs, and anything else he could do to keep its attention while still staying out of reach of its claws. It was a careful dance that the massive brute wasn't used to doing since he wasn't the most nimble brute around, but he was so far successful in his endeavors. The scratch on his cheek was barely even enough for him to think about so that remained far from his attention. Now he was just trying to keep himself from gathering anything more substantial from their opponent.

Luckily he didn't have to keep it up for much longer since as soon as the feline was on it's paws again the gray and black wolfess leapt on top of its back. He caught a glimpse of her abnormally sharp teeth as she latched onto the lion's neck at the base of its skull. The cat's screech of pain echoed in his ears and he fell back into a stance that had his muscles coiled to spring at the next opportune moment. The hold the wolf had on it's neck was solid and certainly doing a massive amount of damage, but he worried that the lion might hurt her in the process. Even if it couldn't get it's claws into her, the thrashing it was doing in its attempts to get her off may very well cause the fighter some sort of injury to her neck or jaw.

The lion slammed his front legs into the ground and threw its head back in a vain attempt to throw the warrior off it's back and that was when Ulric took his chance. He lept forward and landed with both of his front paws on top of the cat's front leg, crushing the limb under him and keeping it from being able to use it to swing at him. He felt the bone begin to give under his weight and heard the lion wail yet again, but Ulric kept his momentum going. Right as the lion flung its head back once again, he reached forward to bite into it's throat right at the top of its neck, where its jaw and throat met. He heard it's yowls turn strangled and tasted its blood filling his mouth, but before he could do as much damage as he had wished to cause he felt the paw of it's remaining foreleg connect with his shoulder, leaving a long set of scratches from the top of his shoulder blade down to his elbow. The pain of the wound was dulled by the adrenaline, but it still stung enough to make him stagger with a sharp growl, forcing him to release its throat as he staggered backward several steps.

Well, the man kept the cat distracted, that was for sure. Resin was jostled about as the cat flung itself this way and that, but she kept hold. Teeth ground against bone, but were severing vital internals at the same time. Once the brute was slashed by the claws and the cat shifted again, the woman's grip slipped as well. No longer biting the back of the cats skull, she only had a grip on the spine, which she did her best to crush.

The lion, sensing what was going on, threw itself onto the ground in an attempt to get its attacker to release, but that simply wasn't happening. Finally, her teeth broke through something, for the cat went rigid, its body hard but its tail still twitching. Resin tentatively let go and stepped back. Now she felt all of the aches and pains coursing through her body. With her damaged, arthritic joints... the pain was fairly intense.

Though incapacitated, the cat wasn't dead. She could see its eyes still moving and wide with fear. Moving forward, she took up where the brute left off and sank her teeth into its throat. Air cut off and blood flowing freely, it was soon dead and gone.

Settling back, she looked at the bloodied man. "Thank you for your assistance." Black ears flicked forward. "I'm not a healer, but I could take you back to my pack if you believe it's necessary." It was the least that she could do to thank the man for helping her against the lioness.

Ulric gathered his bearings and looked up in time to see the woman finally snap something in the lion’s spine that made it’s body lay completely still. He stood back and let the gray and black warrior make the final blow, sighing softly once it was finally done. It gave him a moment to take stock of his injuries, turning his head to look down at the long scratches the lion had left on his shoulder. It seemed like they weren’t too deep, just enough to spill a decent amount of blood down his leg. It certainly wasn’t the worst wound he had ever received, but it was enough to sting quite a bit when he tried to move.

His silvery gave lifted back to the other wolf, his eyes connecting with her singular golden eye. He nodded in acknowledgement, saying, ”Of course, no need to thank me.” He didn’t have it in him to find someone in need and simply walk the other way - whether she was a stranger or not. He gave his wound another glance. His first instinct was to wave off the offer of help, but as it was none of his family really knew that much about healing. He knew enough to get by and if she hadn’t offered he would have been fine on his own... But he needed to get better about taking help when it was offered.

Ulric looked back up at her with a small nod. ”I would appreciate that as long as your pack won’t mind. I don’t want to cause trouble.” He looked toward the deer that had started his whole brawl and added, ”At least let me help you carry that back. I’m sure that lion did a number on you as well.” Without waiting for her response, Ulric padded over to it and slipped his head under the buck’s side, rolling it onto his back. It’s hooves might drag along the ground, but it would do just fine for a short walk back to her pack lands. He turned back to her with a small nod. ”Lead the way. Oh! I’m Ulric by the way.”

With the cat dead and the pair beaten and bruised, Resin did her best to quickly skin the cat. She was practiced in this and so it didn't take her very long at all. She rolled the uncleaned skin and bid Ulric follow her back towards the Armada. He gave his name and she gave her own before picking up the skin between her bloodied jaws. As they came closer to the Armada, she dropped the skin and raised her muzzle. Releasing a long, low howl, she called for one of the many healers.

Once a form began to approach, she turned to the man. "Thank you again. Should you ever wish to return for a visit, I'll gift this tanned lion skin to you in payment." He deserved it. Not only had he helped her kill the cat, but he had gotten himself injured in the process. Finishing the pelt and giving it to him would be the least that she could do. Once she passed Ulric off to Odette, the giantess turned towards the deer that Ulric had carried with him. She still had to drag the carcass all the way home. It would be a long trek, but filling the kill den for winter was a necessity. With a final nod, she took her leave.

Ulric waited patiently for Resin to finish skinning the lion they had just killed, impressed by the ease with witch she worked. He was a fine hunter, but he had never really taken the time to learn any of the finer skills of it. Once she began to lead him back to her pack he followed along behind her with the deer draped across his back. Luckily it wasn't that far of a walk, but it was enough to put a bit of strain on the cuts he received and make them bleed again. By the time they stopped and the gray-hued woman howled for someone to come meet them at the border the blood had trailed down his leg and covered most of one side in the dark red liquid. It still didn't cause him too much pain, but the bleeding had made it look much worse than it really felt.

He shrugged the deer off of his back, letting the kill fall to the ground with a thud. His silver gaze looked up to Resin when she mentioned gifting him the lion skin once it was tanned if he wanted to return for it and he grinned, giving her a small nod at the offer. "Thank you, that's very kind... Take care of yourself," he said in parting, watching her for a moment as she departed before shifting his gaze to the healer that had come to answer her call. He gave the ivory and tan woman a polite nod and a small smile, saying, "Sorry to bother you with this. I'm Ulric. It's not that bad of a wound really, but none of my family are really healers so when she offered to have someone look at it I had to take her up on the offer."

Ulric turned to let the healer take a better look at the claw marks the lion had left behind on his shoulder. "A lion attacked Resin over the deer and I happened to be passing in and hopped in to help," he explained, realizing that there really hadn't been any kind of explanation of why he was here in the first place.

The call for a healer nearly had Odette jumping out of her skin due to the fact she was so close. If she hadn't been, perhaps she would have ignored it and let the other experienced healers deal with it. But the call came from another member of the pack, one that Odette knew of, but did not personally know. It sounded urgent enough, and with Odette only being a hop and a skip away, she felt obligated to see if she could help. Turning to her feline companion, "can you rush home and grab some of the first aid supplies I put aside? Should be on the shelf to the left." The sand cat grumble her disapproval but jumped into the grass regardless, heading towards their home as fast as her tiny sand cat legs could fly. When Odette came to the pair, she frowned softly at the sight of a loner traveling with the warrior, and even more alarmed at the sight of his wounds.

Odette, prone to stay silent unless spoken to, waited until the female warrior departed and the stranger turned his attention to her. She nodded at his name, Ulric, and decided to commit it to memory in case she would run into him again. She knew very little about the female warrior that had called her there, so as far as Odette knew, this male could be a lover of some kind, or perhaps a new recruit waiting to join. "It's no problem. My feline companion will be here shortly with supplies." Cerulean eyes watched as the male turned, letting Odette get a full scale of his injuries. The fawn woman took a deep breath as she took in his red stained hairs, and sighed softly to herself when she realized should probably get closer to get a better look. "My name is Odette. I am going to start touching it, let me know if it hurts and I shall stop." It was more of a warning that she was going to... touch.. the stranger than anything else. It was strange and Odette felt slightly uncomfortable with it, but if she ever desired to be a battle medic she would need to get use to it.

His explanation let the fawn woman relax a little, her body letting go of her tense muscles as she realized the scope of things. He had helped Resin in her time of need, as such, he should be awarded with more kindness for saving her pack member, right? "I see. Thank you then, for helping my pack mate. I know cat scratches can be nasty business, even the tiniest of claws carry loads of infections. We will need to clean this wound before I dress it." As if on cue, Cordonia slipped back to the area, her tiny body covered in the first aid supplies Odette had put aside. "Thank you, could I bother you for a fresh bowl of water?" Odette recalled the feline's mood swings, and generally kept her requests to a minimum, but in the company of others, she had hoped the feline would comply willingly. Instead, the sand cat narrowed her eyes for an exaggerated moment, showing her displeasure with the idea, before stomping off to get the water. Swallowing a nervous lump, Odette would turn back to the male, laughing awkwardly.

"Cats, huh? Moody little things." Moving towards the male's shoulder once more, Odette parted the hairs along his wounds, taking a glob of sap she had collected and smearing the hairs away like a gel. "Hair and debris in wounds practically begs for infection in normal wounds. They turn into terrible abscesses later on, and have to be drained frequently. So I'm going to keep the hair parted near your wounds with sap and then we can rinse it out. I hope you don't mind having a bad hair day or two." It was the woman's attempt of making the situation lighter, however she sincerely hoped her actions would not offend the male. Last thing she needed was getting a bad rap for her beside manners.

"Speech"

Art by Adillion, Table by Sea

Odette has a Sand Cat companion named Cordonia, and a Welsummer Rooster named Dash. Unless mentioned, it is safe to assume they are not  with her. 

Ulric gave the healer a quiet nod when she mentioned that her companion would be bringing her supplies and he decided to sit back into his haunches so he could remove all of the pressure from his injured leg. He gave her a small smile and made a mental note to remember her name when she introduced herself. ”It’s nice to meet you, Odette. Don’t worry about me, I’m tough.” He chuckled softly at his own vague attempt at lightening the mood and then held still so she could do her work. The large male was pleased to see that the explanation behind his sudden appearance at her pack’s borders seemed to help her relax. He knew that his size could be a bit intimidating at times and the last thing he wanted to do was come off as a threat. He was as sweet and gentle as they came as long as he wasn’t in a fight of some kind so he did his best to put others at ease when he could.

His gaze flicked up to look at the feline that then appeared, indeed carrying the supplies Odette had mentioned. An amused smirk pulled at his lips as he watched the irritated glare that her companion gave her when she requested a bowl of water, doing his best to hold back the snicker that threatened to escape him until after the cat was out of earshot. He grinned more whole heartedly at her comment on how the feline was moody, chuckling at the thought. ”Certainly seems like it... I kind of like the attitude though, it’s pretty amusing.”

He listened to her explanation while she worked, his silvery gaze drifting to the wound to see her parting and flattening his plush fur with the sticky substance. ”That’s fine, whatever you need to do,” he replied, offering her a warm smile before letting his eyes shift away again. He kept himself still and only showed a slight wince occasionally as she worked around the tender wound. It wasn’t the first injury he had received and certainly wasn’t the worst. A large brute like him that wasn’t the quickest to dodge tended to gather quite a few injuries here and there from hunts and fights so he was used to it by now.