Deathbelle’s ankle was long healed by the time she started this long term scouting mission. Now that they were in a complete different position on the continent she wanted to get to know the surrounding area better. Maybe she shouldn’t have gone on her own, but she didn’t expect to be gone very long. Thistle was flying in the sky, if anything happened she could quickly alert Sirius or the rest of the pack.

With the volcano slowly retreating back into its hibernation she wouldn’t allow her guard to fall. If anything letting herself into a lull would make her more susceptible. It was a good thing too, Thistle didn’t see the tigress stalking her master, and only the sound of weight breaking a stick brought the Empress’s attention towards it. Only have enough time to fall into her defenses Belle was suddenly on the offense as the tiger attacked. Jaws snapped and claws swiped as the Empress avoided attacks just barely.

The scenery around her reminded her of her childhood. It had been a while since she'd ventured outside of their territory, but the change of pace felt welcome. There was no particular errand or impetus that brought her this way, just whimsy, which was why the sound of the cat's snarl caught her off guard. She'd been busy admiring the waterfall when another female had fallen under attack. Never one to leave a stranger in peril, Theory jumped to the offensive and closed the distance between herself and the dueling pair. She curled her lip at the tiger and gave a blood-curdling snarl, but the beast wasn't phased. In fact, the glint of its fangs made her a little nervous. Pushing down her fear, she called out for Alouette. The raven, always closeby, soared down from the skies and aimed talons and beak at the cat's face.

A successful hit! Alouette's talons found their mark, tearing bloody scratches across the cat's face. It hissed and recoiled in surprise, momentarily distracted by the raven's assault. It aimed its massive paws at the bird, swiping here and there as Lou dodged artfully. Theo grinned up at her bird before going on the offensive herself, darting in to nip at the cat's heels and thighs. She didn't give the other female another look - there was business to take care of first.

The Empress dodged out of the way of the cat’s claws as the sudden appearance of the raven distracted it enough for Deathbelle to regain her bearings. The short eared owl Thistle screeched and joined in the raven’s game. Belle only spared a glance at the she wolf that threw herself into the fray before she returned her attention to the tigress. Thankfully it was female, making it a few hundred pounds smaller than her male counterparts.

Belle returned the cat’s attacks with a few swipes of her own impossibly sharp claws as Thistle continued to harass with the raven up above. With two birds and two wolves, one of which was nearly the size of Ashen’s Warlord, the tiger was beginning to second guess herself.

They were closing in on the tigress from both sides now. Theory ducked and aimed a well-placed bite at the cat's rear right ankle and sank her teeth in deeply. She was rewarded with the tell-tale crunch of crushing bone. The cat yowled and kicked back with the same paw, catching her hard in the chest. Theo gasped and fell back briefly. She could feel narrow wounds opening up in her skin, stinging and bleeding freely. It hurt more than she'd expected. With the birds working in concert with each other, they seemed to be at a fair advantage. She hoped it would be enough to drive the cat off. They couldn't last for long in a full-frontal assault against a big cat like that.

The other female seemed to have her own formidable set of weapons. Theo could have sworn that she saw her claws flash in the springtime sunshine, fully extended, just like the cat they were fighting. But that couldn't be right. Her eyes must be playing tricks on her. Lou raked her talons across the cat's face again and then grabbed hold of its left ear with her beak, tugging and pulling hard. The cat made a strangled meow, frustrated and annoyed with these bold wolves and their birds; her patience was running low.

The tigress wasn’t happy about the continued assault from behind, in front, and the birds above. She was slowly realizing her plight was doomed, but to her credit she had only anticipated attacking one wolf. Deathbelle continued to strike out with her paws after the cat did to her. Deathbelle attacked with ferocity as the tall yearling was kicked back. The tigress believed herself making progress but then the wolves were on her again.

Deathbelle aimed herself at the cat’s neck when she found an opening. Using her retractable claws she aimed to grab hold if its shoulder as she opened her jaws and aimed to take hold of the cat’s throat. She’d nd the battle once and for all if she landed.

As Deathbelle caught the cat by the throat, Theory used the open to her advantage and let go of the cat's back leg. Momentarily caught off balance, the cat swayed slightly to the side. Theory sprang atop the tiger's back. She wobbled slightly before sinking her teeth into the tiger's neck, deeper and deeper until she found the linchpin of all life: the spine. With a hard wrench of her head, she snapped the cat's neck. It must have been an older, weaker thing after all. Logically it shouldn't have been quite this easy to fell the giant beast, but Theory ignored that uncomfortable fact. They'd gotten out of here safely and that was what mattered.

She unhinged her jaw from the cat's neck, squinting with discomfort. It had been quite the effort to open her mouth that widely. The cat had fallen to the ground when her neck had gone, so Theo gingerly stepped off of its corpse. "I'm Theory Destruction, alpha of Abaven," she panted, only slightly winded. It was adrenaline than anything. Alouette alighted on the ground near her master and fried, cocking her head curiously at Deathbelle's large owl. "I'm glad I happened upon you, that could have gone badly." Now that they had time to get a good look at each other, Theo found that the older female was almost disarmingly attractive. She tried to ignore it.

The cat’s life was swiftly ended as both wolves latched onto its neck. With a little luck and more skill the girl finished the deed and the cat fell limp at their feet. Deathbelle’s chest heaved heavily after the exertion and adrenaline pumped thoroughly in her veins. She sighed with efort as she tried to unwind from the sudden exertion.

Her attention shifted from the huge cat to the she wolf who had taken it upon herself to jump in. Deathbelle might have been able to hold the tiger off for a while, but Sirius might not have appeared before it was too late. ”Deathbelle Klein, Empress of the Ashen Empire.” She spoke proudly, but her labored breaths were apparent in her voice. ”Yes, you have my thanks.” Not that she planned on offering up some unpaid debt. She hadn’t asked the young alpha to get involved. ”The world is a better place.” Belle chuckled softly, her gaze returning to the creature. A nice trophy for her new palace.

Theory was eyeing the pelt, thinking it might make a good lesson for the children of the pack. She wasn't sure how to preserve such things, but Brandr was an excellent crafter. He'd love something like this, and perhaps he could make her something in exchange for it, as long as he showed the pups his methods. They could have a healthy trade route if she could effectively bring down creatures like this. She'd have to speak to Twig and Corvus about it. Lost in her thoughts, Theo almost missed the stranger's name. She lifted her head and offered the empress a smile. Interesting title. New neighbors? They had been fairly isolated in the east for some time. The name seemed to ring a bell, but she couldn't quite place where it had come from. "It certainly is. It's always a better place when two leaders have the pleasure of meeting. Where have you taken up residence?" It was a fair assumption that they were new arrivals. Shaye would have told her if they had closer neighbors or she would have stumbled upon them herself. "Hmm... I might have trouble bringing this home on my own," she remarked casually. As she'd dealt the killing blow, it only seemed obvious that the spoils should go to the "winner." Their lands were close by. She could always call for Corvus if she needed help.

The young alpha seemed to only half hear her and even though she had just jumped into a deadly scene that didn’t mean Belle was less offended at not having her full attention. However, the girl's interest in Belle and her pack made up for it enough. Where the Empire rested was no secret, if Theory only walked a bit further south she would find the four territories that settled under the Empire’s name. ”With the volcano finally returning to its rest the Empire has settled in the heart of the south.” She offered up as the girl mentioned she was going to take the cat home. Deathbelle smirked.

”Seems like we’ve come to a disagreement.” She started, shifting her shorter form to stand over the dead cat. ”Fight me, Theory.” Deathbelle was still high on the endorphins that coursed through her veins. ”To the winner go the spoils?” She raised her light colored brows in her silent challenge. It was all the warning she would give the yearling.

With no more tells Deathbelle aimed to leap over the tiger and grab hold of Theo’s shoulders with her retractible claws and her jaws opened to aim at the young alpha’s throat. She had no desire to give any permanent injury to the young woman, but she wanted the tiger skin.

Deathbelle Ravage Klein vs Theory for Dominance (tiger skin)
Round 1 of 2
Age: 1+
Size: Large
Build: Light
Companion 1: Short-Eared Owl, Female - Flying
Companion 2: Madame Berthe's Mouse Lemur, Female - Battle
Mutation - Offensive: Cat claws
Skills: Expert Fighter & Expert Healer

The heart of the south. That was close by. Interesting. Theory would have to speak with her confidantes on the matter. She didn't want to be hasty in making an alliance or sullying any kind of relationship. This would have to be dealt with, but with the utmost care. Hopefully Poem would come home soon and she could counsel her sister as well. Wasn't she due for a visit? Deathbelle took ire with her claim on the tiger and went quickly on the offensive. Her comment seemed cavalier and although Theory wanted the pelt, she'd be willing to part with it in order to build a sense of trust between the packs... but before she could even offer, Belle had leaped at her.

The alpha enjoyed the thrill of a challenge. She ducked her head to protect her neck and Belle's teeth glanced off of the bridge of her nose. A small cut opened up, but her throat was safe. Theory planted her paws firmly and soaked the blow to her shoulders. Deathbelle had latched on, but she was closer than ever to Theo's jaws. She opened her mouth wide and tried to grab Belle's entire right upper leg in her mouth.

Theory Cavaliere-Destruction vs Deathbelle for Dominance (tiger skin)
Round 1/2
Age: Over 1 year
Size: Extra large
Build: Medium
Companion 1: Raven, Female - Flying
Skills: Expert Fighter & Beginner Healer

What Theory might have said didn’t matter much to the Empress, she was itching for a fight. If Theo had insisted on giving her the pelt she might have lost a little respect for her. Knowing she wouldn’t back down from a fight caused the fiery she wolf to grin through her attack. Her teeth bounced off her opponents nose, but she also managed to wrap her arms around the girl. Her shoulder wound up in Theo’s mouth and with the clash of teeth and flesh Belle cried out in pain. Already punctured Deathbelle aimed to shove her arm further into Theory’s mouth to over extend her jaws.

Deathbelle tried to sink her claws in a little deeper and pull them back suddenly to gouge through Theo’s shoulders. If anything the young alpha wouldn’t forget her encounter with the Klein goddess.

Deathbelle Ravage Klein vs Theory for Dominance (tiger skin)
Round 1 of 2
Age: 1+
Size: Large
Build: Light
Companion 1: Short-Eared Owl, Female - Flying
Companion 2: Madame Berthe's Mouse Lemur, Female - Battle
Mutation - Offensive: Cat claws
Skills: Expert Fighter & Expert Healer

Theory grunted as she felt Deathbelle's claws rend her shoulder. They were strange - far sharper than any wolf's had a right to be, as if she'd stolen them from the tiger they'd just killed. She hadn't been prepared for that at all. Her shoulder smarted something fierce and began to bleed as Belle rammed her leg further into Theory's mouth. Luckily she was just larger enough than Belle to take it. She gaped her jaws, then bit down and shifted her bite downwards in the same motion. If her teeth found purchase she'd tear a good-sized wound open on her opponent's leg. They would both leave this fight with scars they'd not soon forget.

Theory Cavaliere-Destruction vs Deathbelle for Dominance (tiger skin)
Round 2/2
Age: Over 1 year
Size: Extra large
Build: Medium
Companion 1: Raven, Female - Flying
Skills: Expert Fighter & Beginner Healer

And the winner is...

Deathbelle

Theory must give up by submitting, fleeing or passing out. Totals: Theory: Adjusted roll: 59.85    15.75    49    95.7 Theory's total: 264.36 Deathbelle: Adjusted roll: 91.3    57.75    79.8    13 Deathbelle's total: 290.22

[Lazuli]