Once more Resin had decided to invite Malalia out. She had really taken a shine to the young wolf. They had been tracking an injured buck through the lush landscape of the gulley but had lost the trail. Nose to the ground, Resin tracked the ungulate. It would be an easy meal and killing the buck would be a mercy. Some other creature had gotten to it first. The wounds that it sustained were thick scratches across its hindquarters. Those wounds would eventually fester, bringing about a slow, painful death. At least they could give it a quick one and it wouldn't suffer more than it had to. Casting her singular gaze to Malalia, the maned woman motioned to a thicket ahead. Brambles and vines made the path narrow. They would have to take turns. She was confident that the deer was inside. The scent of its blood and panic was thick in the air. Crouching low, the ashen fae crept through the passage. With no cover here, as soon as the buck fell into her line of sight, she took off after it. Even injured, the deer's survival instincts kicked in and it ran for all it was worth. The going through the gulley was difficult for a wolf. Much easier for a deer. They would manage though. They just had to be smarter than the deer. Head low, Resin leaped this and that, altering her course for the path of least resistance as she gave chase. "Speech"

Mal trailed after Resin, tail wagging intermittently, muzzle hovering above the earth as she tried to parse out the scents, trying to pick up where the buck had gone. They'd been on its trail for a good chunk of the day, but the yearling was happy to accompany the woman whenever she called for her.

Eventually, they picked out the buck's location, and were pushing their way through the brambles. Mal planned her ears back as she made her way through, the trailing vines tugging at her fur. Resin was ahead of her when the buck sighted them and sprang away. The yearling chuffed, scrambling to her paws to pelt after the woman and their target.

She lifted her head, panting with effort. Perhaps they would simply have to run it down, let exhaustion bring down the beast? But, far ahead of the trio, within the thicket, a hill rose and cut sharply to the right, curving the path of the gulley. Did she have enough space to go ahead of her? Can we cut it off?

It was a hard thing to make their way through, and a bit more difficult for the shorter wolf to vault over the growth. Still, with her speed, she might be able to do it if she pushed herself. The young woman chuffed to Resin, indicating the path she wanted to take. If she agreed in that second, Mal would veer to the right of their path, aiming to eat up the distance, and cut the buck off before the deer made the turn.


"Speech"

[ooc: jeeeeeez sorry sorry. i'm having a hard time visualizing this lol]

Right on the bucks tail, Resin lashed out, jaws wide. She managed a light bite, teeth grazing the ungulates haunch. The deer gave a bellow of pain and kicked back, catching the grey woman's cheek and leaving a bloody gash in its wake. The big woman's gait faltered a bit but, with a growl of determination, she threw herself back into the hunt. The buck was now several lengths away from her, though it was now bleeding from both her injury and a set of heavy claw marks across its haunches. An attack from a big cat, possibly? The sound from Malalia brought Resin's attention to encompass the girl as well. She noted the question in her movements and gave a quick nod before turning her full attention back to their prey. She too saw the upcoming turn, though she didn't know Malalia's plan. She trusted the young wolf to make the correct decision. If whatever attack she made didn't work, they would run the deer aground with their endless stamina. With another loud growl to frighten the buck even more, she stayed on its white tail. "Speech" (No worries! The post looks great to me!)

With the woman's approval, Malalia bolted forward, doing her best to surmount the undergrowth as she cut ahead. Resin's hold on the deer, and the buck's own exhaustion added her advance, and the distance steadily grew between the young woman and their quarry.

The earth was hard beneath her paws as she cut ahead to the right of their trajectory, the undergrowth flying by and whipping at her ears, her nose, her eyes. Suddenly she wheeled around, pivoting on her forepaws to come dashing back for the deer, her angle cutting off the option to make the turn.

Unseen and unexpected as she was, the buck tried changing course and shifting to its left, but was driven further into the wall of the gulley instead. The she-wolf would gun it, closing the last stretch of earth between them before her teeth pierced the soft skin at the joint of its foreleg and side. Dodging a sudden kick, Mal ducked down, snapping backwards and then up, to secure a hold higher along its foreleg, and jerking backwards to drag the animal to its knees.


"Speech"

Soon she realized what Malalia's intent had been. As the curve came ever closer, the young woman dove out onto the bucks path and latched into it. The beast stumbled, knees scraping the ground. That was all that Resin needed. With a burst of speed, she reached the pair. Pushing off of the ground, the hefty dame landed heavily upon the spine of the deer. It grunted in pain, but it knew that it was done as it crashed to the ground. Teeth found their way to the hollow between throat and jaw. Resin pressed her body hard against the bucks, not allowing him room to pull back and kick with his spindly front legs. As they skidded to a halt, the grey woman dashed her head back and forth, ripping a large hole within the throat of the buck, allowing its life blood to flow out ever faster. "Speech"

[/quote]

Dropping the buck to its knees had been all they needed. Only a few, weightless heartbeats passed, Mal half-suspended in the air, before the gray woman came crashing down on the buck's spine, bringing the whole of the animal to the dirt. Yes! Mal threw out her hindlegs as she landed, and widened her stance as she sunk her teeth more firmly into the deer's right foreleg. Her own forepaw slammed over its left, preventing it from lashing out, and further cutting off their quarry's escape. It bucked and brayed, but between Resin's weight and her own grip on its forelegs, the deer had not much to worry about. The whole ordeal would be over very, very soon.

In a matter of moments, Resin's teeth found purchase in the soft flesh of the deer's throat. A coppery tang bloomed in the air, and the buck jerked wildly, it's one last-ditch attempt to flee, even as the life literally flowed out of it. Still, she and her mentor held fast, and its movements slowly, slowly stilled. Malalia felt the weight of the dead deer's head fall onto her shoulder, and she tentatively lifted her fangs from the leg, licking her jaws as she pulled backwards.

She wasn't usually one to get sentimental over her meal. They had given the buck a quick death and secured a meal and a pelt in turn. Her tail thumped in satisfaction as she took a moment to catch her breath.


"Speech"

The kicks and squirms of the deer slowed as the blood leaked from its body. Eventually, it stilled, brown eyes going glassy with lifelessness. Releasing her hold, Resin gave her jaw a wiggle, the joints a little sore from biting so hard. She looked over to Malalia, checking for injuries. There hadn't been time to see if the girl was out of the way before she and the deer went crashing to the ground. Seeing that her companion was whole, the grey woman collapsed onto the grassy earth, panting to catch her breath. Hunting was definitely a workout, especially so soon after her own injuries from the cave bear. She still felt pain in her ribs and foreleg, both of which had been shattered. Behind the woman, her tail gave a thump of pleasure in the grass. They had managed to bring down the buck. It was a big one too. "Are you alright?" She asked anyway. Just because Malalia hadn't been crushed didn't mean that there wasn't some unseen injury. Now that her breath was caught, Resin sat up, giving her thick pelt a shake. Though they would take most of the deer back to the Armada, the pair had earned the right to eat their fill. Moving back to the kill, Resin settled upon her stomach at the deer's spine where she would tear into one haunch with her teeth, splitting the furred flesh to reveal the rich meat beneath. Pulling off a strip of still hot meat, she would chew and swallow. When she was going in for a second bite, a grating roar from behind pulled her attention away. Stalking into the gully was a lioness. She looked young, but was quite large. Casting her golden gaze towards Malalia, Resin spoke. "Be on guard. Hopefully we can run her off." Resin didn't kill unless it was necessary. It would be difficult to kill a cat this large with just the pair of them, but they could definitely make it flee. "Speech"

"All good here," she panted, smiling through her breaths. If anything, she received more licks from the brambles they'd crawled through, tiny scratches peppering the less furred parts of her body. She might have copped a few bruises from the buck failing its forelegs around, but it wasn't anything major, not by a long shot. They'd probably hurt more once she came down off the adrenaline coursing through her veins.

While Resin settled down to eat her share, Mal planted her paws down, and leaned back in a satisfying stretch. Though there was a chill in the air, winter hadn't yet gripped this place, and as her gaze swung lazily around, she saw that the gulley was rife with undergrowth and plant life in various stages of growth and decay. It was interesting, getting to see different parts of Boreas. She didn't get out as often as she wanted to, as much time as she set aside for training, but these excursions with Resin had been pretty nice.

Minus getting attacked by some strange, clueless bear creature, though to be fair that had been an adventure in itself. She snorted faintly, turning to Resin with a comment about the creature, when a roar turned her ears instead. Malalia twisted around, hackles rising, to see a lioness in the distance, stalking towards them.

The girl had never seen a lion, though she'd heard many tales about them. This female didn't look too much different from a mountain lion to her -- with the exception of being lighter in color, and of course, much bigger. She tensed as she lowered herself, ears twitching at Resin's instructions. "Hopefully so," she returned. She'd never even fought a lion, and Cairo's tales had been as exciting as much as terrifying. Still, she took a single step forward, bristling to make herself look bigger. A bubbling growl erupted from her throat, growing into a loud, rumbling snarl of warning, a clear threat.

The lioness answered by loping steadily towards them, slowly gaining speed.


"Speech"

Resin swore under her breath. She was a magnet for this type of thing. It was getting more than annoying. Not in all her life had she run into so many predators in such a small area. At least Malalia was with her. The pair had fought off the strange bear thing, the pelt of which was now lining her bed within her den. If this thing continued to happen when they were together, at least they would know what to expect when fighting alongside one another. The big cat came loping towards them, its eyes on the prize that was their kill. Rolling to her paws, Resin moved to stand beside Malalia, her own pelt, already thick with winter, bristling to stand up even more. The grey dame released her own snarl, legs splaying and head lowering. The cat faltered in its steps for a moment, a flash of hesitation running though it, but it didn't last long. The beast decided that it was hungry and, ever the opportunist, it would have this already caught meal. There was no point in waiting for the cat to come to her. Planting her hind paws, Resin lunged forward, jaws wide. Saliva trailed from serrated teeth as she snapped and snarled, startling the feline. It jumped backwards, but reacted with swiping out one wide, clawed paw. It caught Resin's left shoulder and she winced, the force of the blow sending her staggering sideways a few steps. The claws had caught hold and she could feel the warm welling of blood dripping down her scarred shoulder. The cat didn't continue forward though. Again Resin snapped and snarled, holding the feline's attention so that Malalia could further dissuade its approach. "Speech"

The girl kept her snarl steady, emboldened when the one-eyed woman joined her side and added to the chorus. The pair were formidable, and had it been a mountain lion, Mal was fairly certain that it would have slunk away. One wolf was easy enough for a big cat to face down, but two? Not worth the trouble. Unless of course, you were this particular she-cat. Rearing at the sight of them, the lioness weighed her options for only the briefest of moments before continuing its advance, having decided that the buck was hers and that the she-wolves were mere obstacles to that fact.

If it were possible, Mal's snarl increased in volume, but she hesitated, looking for an angle. It was no good throwing her life away by attacking the lioness head-on, not with her stature, and yet Resin blasted forward. She couldn't very well leave her to face it alone.

The gray woman had only taken a few steps before Malalia followed suit, curving around to the right. The lioness caught her eyes for a moment, only to be distracted by Resin's snarling, right in its face. Mal took this chance to dart inward, rushing the cat from the side. Her teeth caught the lioness on its ribs in a glancing blow. But quickly, much quicker than she'd expected, the beast twisted its front side to swipe at Mal's haunches. She grunted, biting down the scream of pain that welled in her throat as the flesh opened up on her left thigh. The worst thing she could do was run, to show the cat she was afraid.

At least the swipe was sufficiently distracting, though. She was betting that Resin could get in a few good blows while it turned to scratch at her. In the meantime, the girl would settle behind the she-cat. Perhaps if they fought it from both ends, it would be too overwhelmed to beat them. She could only hope.


"Speech"

Seeing Malalia bleed due to the strike from the feline steeled Resin's senses. With the attention on the bleeding young wolf and off of herself, the larger fae lunged forward again, this time sinking her teeth into the shoulder of the cat. She didn't let go immediately, instead giving her head a shake to cause enough injury that the cat wouldn't walk well for a while. It would serve as both a lesson and reminder that the feline shouldn't mess with wolves. With the bite to its shoulder, the cat yowled, spinning its attention back to the larger of the women. Placing paws against the cats body, Resin pushed, sliding herself backwards and the cat away just in time to avoid another swipe. Without missing a beat, Resin went with the momentum of the swipe. Diving forward, she slammed her skull hard into the lioness's face and blood instantly welled in its nose. The grey woman then skirted around the side, trying to redirect the cat away from their kill and further into the grasslands where it had come from. "Speech"

The she-cat's yowl of pain was music to Mal's ears, and she grinned as the cat turned right back around to the ashen woman. In the meantime, she lunged for the lionesses' hindlegs, her teeth finding the left tendon and delivering the hardest bite she could muster, the stink of feline blood muddling her sense. She growled deep in her throat when the hit landed, but was suddenly and sharply yanked forward when it lunged for Resin. Her hindlegs scrambled weightlessly for purchase before she found her footing again, staking her paws into the dirt.

And then the lioness jerked back as Resin gave her the headbutt of her life. Mal winced at the sound of knocking skulls. That woman is not playing games.... Mal jerked her own head back, twisting and ripping at the leg, and letting go when the lioness attempted to kick out at her with her free paw, claws swiping the air just where her shoulder had been. Not again, not today.

From the corner of her eye, she saw Resin pivoting to drive the animal away from the kill, and Mal followed suit. She skidded around to the opposite side of Resin, lunging forward with a few quick snaps at the lioness' belly. She danced out of the way, tongue lolling, spit stained with blood as the lioness swiped uselessly where she'd just been. It did manage to clip her shoulder, but the wound was a scratch compared to the gashes on her thigh.

Even so, the beast was losing. With a bum shoulder and a limping back leg, it put up a brave face of snarling, eyes narrowed to slits, slick yellow canines flashing at the wolves. But there was a tremor in its wails, and it only ever moved backwards, trying to guard its injured limbs. The girl snapped forward, jaws wide in a snarl as she sunk her fangs into the same place Resin had, rolling her shoulders forward to protect her neck.

It would seem she'd had enough. The lioness ripped away from her, leaving a trail of blood and spit as it twisted around, heading back the way it came.


"Speech"

The headbutt landed and the feline staggered back with a wail and a snort. Now it understood its mistake and was hastily making its way to a safe place where it could retreat. It swiped again and Malalia was there, delivering yet another bite to that same shoulder. The feline squealed, a sound that Resin had yet to hear from a cat. It turned and began running off. Resin was right on its tail, seeing it it out of the gully, but not without one final nip to its rear end. The wounds on the cat would heal. If she had a pride somewhere, she would be fine. The wolf's own wounds would heal as well. Aside from the slashes in her shoulder and the headache blossoming from her headbutt, she was okay. Turning back, the older wolf, now thoroughly exhausted with her adrenaline flow lessening, moved forward to check on the young woman. Lowering her nose, she sniffed the wounds on the girl's thigh. "Are you able to walk?" She questioned between pants, fighting to catch her breath after the annoying encounter. "I can go retrieve the cart if you need." It would take time. Malalia would have to stay out here alone all night if she was unable to walk. Black ears flicked forward as she waited for the girl to make a decision. "Speech"

Malalia was pelting right alongside Resin, a ripple of snarks and barks ripping out of her throat as they made sure that the cat had left the gulley for good. Once the bobbing tail had left their sight, she growled lowly where she stood. Her guard hairs were alight all over her back, as if she were still in the midsts of the fight. But the once-roaring predator, who'd squealed like a housecat, was gone. Mal snorted with satisfaction, and raised her muzzle. "Yeah, and stay out!" The call, admittedly was less humorous than she'd intended, and a little more... wheezy, as she struggled to catch her breath. The girl sank forward, onto her knees, with a shaking exhale for the effort. "Oh thank the gods that's over."

Not that she was particularly religious. And hey, was the world spinning...?

The girl took a few moments to gather her bearings, when the she-wolf's sniffing sent her flinching, yanking her leg closer to her body, and subsequently earning a hiss of pain for the effort. Oof, she was starting to feel that a little more. Fresh blood began to trickle from the movement, and she licked at it idly before Resin's question finally registered in her head. "Ah... I think so?" She certainly hoped so. She didn't want to stay here if there were other lions lurking about.

Malalia rose to her paws, took a few steps forward, and ... it hurt, but it was bearable. She winced, but waved her tail encouragingly at Resin. "I'm okay. I can manage..." She might have to limp, but she was sure she could make her way back. Mal tilted her head, eyeing the claw marks on Resin's own shoulder. "Er... are you okay? I should probably patch both of us up while we're out here..."

In lieu of an actual pack, she'd taken to stuffing her bracelet with dried herbs folded into doeskin cloths, and had a little bottle of honey tied to it. What she wouldn't give for a proper kit right around now, but at least it would hold them over.


"Speech"

The burning in her shoulder wasn't terribly noticeable until the adrenaline wore off. The trickle of blood as it flowed from the wound was irritating, but she could deal with it. Malalia's wounds in her thigh were much worse. Though the girl was still chattering after the cat and catching her breath, Resin imagined that the wound was rather painful. Thigh meat was tender and pulled every time you moved, just like shoulder meat. Malalia decided that she was okay enough to walk and offered to clean up both of their wounds. It was a good idea. Cats claws were dirty things, she knew. Many a prey animal had festering wounds after escaping a feline's clutches. The healer asked after her own wounds and Resin merely nodded. Of course she was okay. Resin dropped her big body to the ground, laying on her stomach to make things easier for the young healer to see. She noted that Malalia was carrying her herbs around in a wristlet rather than a pack. If she was going to be a healer, she needed to be able to carry things with her. "When we return, you should ask Iolaire for a bag. The girl hoards everything. I'm sure she has a container that she can put a strap on for you to carry your supplies in." Though she knew that Iolaire wouldn't deny the girl a pack, Resin could drop off a fur in payment for it. "Speech"

"That's.... true," she admitted, ears planning sheepishly. She'd been putting it off, what with her patrols and her fighting practice, but there was really no reason she shouldn't have a bag of some sort by now. She'd have to pick up on her healing training again. "I'll make sure to ask for one once we get back."

It the meantime, the wristlet would have to do. Mal nipped up one of the skins, wetting it with clean water before hobbling over to the ashen woman, wincing with each limp. Gently, but thoroughly cleaning the wounds in Resin's shoulder.

She started preparing a salve on the smooth side of another skin. "Just our luck to run into a lioness," she muttered, half to herself. First that bear creature, and now this? She'd gotten lucky with the former, barely coming away with any scrapes. Her thigh was growing more painful by the minute as the adrenaline wore off. Helping Resin carry that carcass was going to be a drag...  

She moved to smear the salve, sticky with honey, over the torn flesh of her shoulder. "Have you ever fought one before?"


"Speech"

The grey dame noted the pain in the girls leg as she moved and furrowed her brow in concern. She let Malalia tend to the wound in her shoulder and then set about preparing the carcass for transport.

Though a lot of the innards could be used, they didn't have the luxury of taking them with them this time. With her teeth, Resin bit open the body cavity, allowing the guts to slide out. She disconnected the plumbing, so to speak, and pushed the guts aside. Scavengers would eat well today. Once that was done she set about chewing off the lower legs as well as the head. Unnecessary weight. With those things removed, she would have less trouble transporting the carcass.

Ears perked as she was questioned about her interaction with big cats. The woman snorted softly. "Yes, more than once. I try to give every predator the opportunity to retreat but they aren't always very intelligent." That was how Iolaire ended up with a tiger skin to warm her through winter.

Scanning about, Resin looked for vines. Finding some decent ones, she pulled them down, biting them free with her teeth. "When I have the deer on my back, you can bind the legs beneath me. I should be able to carry it back." She would definitely need breaks, however.

Once Resin was done, she set about cleaning and plastering her own wound with the poultice. She twisted around to reach her thigh and smear the paste over the open flesh, wincing at the sting of it. That was alright, though; if nothing else, it was significantly better than dying of infection. Too, she would make a point of seeing Iolaire to take a look at the gashes, and hopefully grab a proper bag, finally. She idly wondered how well it would heal, if there would be a scar left behind. She might've been intrigued, and maybe a bit proud, if her leg didn't feel like it was being bit by a thousand fire ants at once.

A soft snort served as her only reply to the woman's answer. She was sure, then, that Resin had many notches under her pelt, if any of them had been like that witless black-and-white beast. Maybe it was a bit of a drag to keep running into these predators, but if she had Resin by her side? Mal had nothing to worry about.

Thankfully, the Resin was already thinking ahead, and had begun to prepare the carcass for transport. Malalia packed up her supplies in the meantime, and took the loose vines in her maw. Whenever the woman was ready, she'd tie them underneath her as Resin had instructed. Mal felt a bit useless for foisting all the work on her, but it's not like she wasn't relieved. It'd make the walk home easier for her. Hopefully they could close that distance as soon as possible.