Well, fuck... Desponia's ankle ached. Her habit of doing her best to be off the island had left her still rather clumsy when climbing over the rocky ground that dominated the majority of the island, though a mild autumn the cool wind blew here still and sometimes froze water overnight. The frozen crust would remain during the early hours of the morning and in her desire to escape from view yet again for the day Desponia had not considered that the dangerous ice would lead to her slipping on the stone and landing heavily on her right foreleg, her angle twisted at an odd angle under her own weight. The woman grunted, biting down on the exclamation of pain, not wishing to arouse anyone's suspicion or draw their attention.

Gingerly and carefully the woman lifted herself off her leg, rising back to her full height before gently attempting to put her right paw back on the ground, so far so good. Then she leaned forward, and... Yep! The woman bit down another pained yelp as it tried to escape her lips. Forcing a breath through her nose the purple woman would begin to hobble towards where she knew the land bridge to be, her movements painfully slow and she was aware of the sun creeping its way high into the sky and she knew that with each passing moment the chances of her being spotted by her sister or a member of her family who might have a reason to want to keep her closer than the mainland territory grew.

WC: 260 (260/2500)

Speech

Image by Lipton23

It was very early in the morning when Avacyn started making her way back toward home. She wasn't usually one to be out all night or not come home before it got too dark to travel, but her own curiosity and interest in finding the last finishing touches she needed for her new weapon of choice kept her out far later than anticipated. She traveled all the way out to the mountains in the north after hearing whispers of caves that hid gemstones and precious metals, hoping she might find the right kind of metals or maybe even some crystals she could include in the fang covers she was making to match her father's. She wasn't even entirely sure what she was looking for, she only knew that once she found it she would know that's what she was looking for. If nothing else she'd be able to find some stuff to add to her collection and to make other projects with, but her top priority was finishing the serrated fang covers she felt like she had been working on for ages.

The only thing she didn't really anticipate when she set out was just how far away those mountains were or how long it would take for her to look for what she needed—not to mention how hard the work was to actually mine those stones and metals out of the rocks around them. By the time she had enough stuff to fill the small satchel she brought the sun had already disappeared. She sent one of her ravens on ahead of her to let her parents know where she was so they wouldn't worry, but she didn't have any supplies with her to spend the night out in the wilderness. She didn't think to pack any food or something to sleep on and hunting with it being this dark was nearly impossible. Stubbornly, she started making her way back toward the island through the night and by the time she reached the land bridge the sun had begun to rise and she was exhausted from no sleep on top of the headache she had from squinting through the dark all night.

As she began to cross the land bridge she looked up toward the opposite shore and spotted Desponia walking toward the land bridge like she was going to leave the island. Avacyn blinked and squinted at the woman that was technically her half-aunt or something of the sort, wondering to herself where she could be going. She didn't particularly care where Desponia went or why she was leaving—it wasn't like it was her job to keep up with someone her mother named a slave... or was it? What exactly was included in her responsibilities as Gnata? She was too tired to remember so just to cover her bases she met Desponia before she could start to cross and stopped her, barely noticing the limp she had as she was slowly walking. "Where are you going?" she questioned, attempting to hold herself like she wasn't actually ready to just fall over and go to sleep on the sand.

WC: 520
Total: 780/2500

"Avacyn Mendacium"

Well, double fuck... The only wolves she tried to avoid more than anyone else was her sister and her "happy little family", including her niece and nephew, and yet here she came, the girl herself. Though if Desponia had to be honest with herself she hated her nephew more for embodying all the hypocrisy she felt her sister held... For being allowed to be alive, being allowed to be free when she was stuck atoning for sins she'd never committed. It seemed the sins of the parent only mattered when the parent wasn't Manea. Still, her absolute detestation of her niece briefly flashed across her face before she bit it down. No doubt her sister hadn't failed to notice or at least surmise Desponia's true feeling but for her own survival, the horned woman had made a point to not let it bleed out too much. But it festered, it bubbled and roiled and threatened to overflow from time to time, why did this child, this yearling get to have everything she didn't? Somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew that being angry at the children her sister had was the wrong way to go about it, that just as she felt it was unjust that she was being punished for her mother's sins, they didn't deserve to pay for their own mother's...

Still, logic was not exactly winning out right now, the yearling had stepped into her path and demanded to know where she was going. Desponia grit her teeth to keep herself from exploding on her niece. She took a few breaths, needing to stop herself from launching herself at the girl, if she did she knew well enough the little freedom to roam she had would soon be lost to her. "The mainland territory." She answered curtly. "Why?" She countered snappily, openly running her gaze over the younger girl and scoffing. "Am I not allowed? You planning to stop me?" Okay maybe she was looking for a reason to pick a fight with the girl, even with an injured leg she'd enjoy taking out her anger on her niece. The woman hoped the girl would take the bait, she knew she could never justify launching an attack on her niece but certainly she couldn't be held in contempt for self-defense.

Desponia shifted her weight backward a bit, taking the pressure off of her injured wrist and allowing herself to lower into a bit of a crouch, she kept her expression light, slightly taunting for the moment but she allowed herself to stance up, hindlegs shifting to a little wider, she'd need to rely much more on the power in her haunches than her shoulders here if a fight was to break out, her balance was already compromised so she'd rather root herself here than risk destabilizing herself on the already slippery sand. She gently pushed her forepaws under the surface level of the sand, spreading her toes, actually trying to dig in with her left forepaw and give the illusion of doing so with her right while she kept her weight light on that one, forcing herself not to wince at the twinges of pain that shot up her leg. Her tail swung out behind her to help maintain her balance, lining up with her spine. She kept her head up for now, watching her niece with an open smugness. Regardless of how ill-advised she knew challenging the girl was right now considering her physical state she relished the possibility.

Desponia vs Avacyn for Dominance
Round 0/?
Age: (Only include: over 1 year, under 1 year, or under 6 months as applicable)
Size: Large
Build: Light
Mutation 1: Ram horns - Offensive
Skills: Beginner Intellectual & Beginner Fighter

WC: 585 (1367/2500)

Speech

Image by Lipton23

Desponia's displeasure at being stopped by her was visibly obvious in the woman's expression and the way she stiffened as if the question offended her. Avacyn didn't know the full reasoning or why's behind Desponia's current position in the pack or why her mother hated her so much, but it also wasn't really her job to question it. Her mother's word was law and if that's what she had decided then Ava was perfectly find with following that directive until told otherwise. Desponia very clearly didn't like that response and was combative and argumentative right off the bat. If she had just calmly replied that she was going to the mainland Avacyn probably would have just shrugged and let her go since she was far too tied to deal with anything else today, but because she went on and pressed her luck and insinuated that Avacyn wouldn't be able to stop her it made the Gnata's hackles bristle and a snarl tug at her lips. Slowly Avacyn felt like she had begun to put in the work that would let her prove herself to their family as their heir, but she hadn't done much in the way of real shows of strength or proving how her training was going. Most of her work had been mental and social up until now. Physically she didn't really know if she would be up to a fight, but she felt like she had been presented with a challenge and if she backed down now she felt like she'd look like a push over to a slave.

"You think that I can't?" she questioned in response with a scoff of her own. She hadn't seen Desponia fight, but she could see easily that other than the horns that curled back from her head there wasn't anything particularly special about the other woman. She was several inches shorter than her and their builds were similar in their light, willowy frames. In comparison Avacyn felt like she was far more prepared for a fight—even with her exhaustion dulling her reflexes. Desponia started to sink into a defensive stance and Avacyn felt like she had no choice in the matter. They were going to fight now whether she really wanted to or not. She snarled as she settled into a fighting stance of her own with her larger, feline paws sliding into a more widened, even stance with her toes spreading to grip the uneven terrain. Her head lowered to be more even with her spine and to protect her throat, her hackles bristled and shoulders rolled forward as well. It was a good thing she had put in so much time with her parents training and practicing these things so that they came so second nature and she didn't really have to think about them. If she did she probably would have missed something or got her stance all wrong.

As it was she already wasn't thinking super clearly and wasn't sure how to even start the fight, but after a couple of moments of seeing if maybe Desponia would start it instead she finally got herself to charge toward the other woman. She growled as she crossed the space between them, hoping maybe some intimidation could be on her side. When she was close enough she attempted to slam her right shoulder into Desponia's chest, barreling full speed into her opponent and using the hard scales that capped her shoulder a bit like a battering ram. She also threw her head toward the back of Desponia's neck in an attempt to grab ahold of her smaller woman's scruff and get a hold of her so she couldn't try to back away or run. It wasn't her most elegant beginning to a fight, but she also just wanted to get this over with and get Desponia back onto the island so she could say her work here was done and she could go to bed.

WC: 659
Total: 2056/2500

Avacyn vs Desponia for Dominance
Round 1/2
Age: Over 1 Year
Size: Extra large
Build: Light
Companion 1: Raven, Male - Flying - Boosted
Companion 2: Raven, Male - Battle
Mutation 1: Scales - Defensive
Mutation 2: Spiked bone ridge horns - Offensive
Mutation 3: Tiger paws - Offensive
Skills: Advanced Fighter & Intermediate Intellectual

"Avacyn Mendacium"

Hook, line and sinker. Maybe it wasn't really honorable, scratch that it was a completely petty thing to do but damn if it wasn't going to feel good. It seemed her niece was perhaps more gifted than she was, the spirit was strong in her or whatever it was that her sister actually believed, Desponia had only a tenuous connection with her mother's beliefs, as far as she was concerned it seemed like there wasn't any actual consequence to picking and choosing what they wanted to follow. But all that aside she did not fail to notice the various natural benefits her niece sported, she had no doubt those scales on her legs would make it hard to get a good grip there and she sported the same ebony bony ridges ran along her head. This would be a rough one even without her injury. There was an awkward time of uncertainty as neither of them moved from their battle ready positions...

Then finally Avacyn charged her, but if she thought Desponia was going to balk at her the girl was mistaken, the woman dug her paws deeper into the sand, gritting her teeth as Avacyn's armored shoulder slammed into her chest, biting back the screech of pain that threatened to escape her lungs as her wrist complained angrily, the pain shooting up her leg. She doubled over herself a bit, hiding the pain in her leg by focusing on the pain in her chest. As she ducked she felt her niece's teeth tug at her fur, managing to avoid getting scruffed. She felt a flash of indignation at that. She was so over being treated like a petulant child and the idea of being scruffed by her younger niece made her already battered and bruised ego rise up in anger.

Desponia tilted her head, trying to tuck it under her niece's chin and then try and slam the side of her horns into the girl's lower jaw, she wouldn't be able to hook anything from here but maybe she could get a good smash of bone on bone in. Weird paws aside, they didn't look quite as protected as the rest of Avacyn's forelegs. The woman grimaced, it was a dumb move, it would almost certainly cause her injury to get worse but she was starting to run on pure instinct, a desire to sink her fangs into her niece. She shifted her weight to lift her right foreleg and aimed to slam it down on Avacyn's toes with all her weight.

WC: 423 (2450/2500)

Desponia vs Avacyn for Dominance
Round 1/2
Age: Over 1 year
Size: Large
Build: Light
Mutation 1: Ram horns - Offensive
Skills: Beginner Intellectual & Beginner Fighter

Speech

Image by Lipton23

Avacyn's shoulder hit home to Desponia's chest as her opponent made no move to dodge her attack, but when she went to grab her scruff her bite fell short and all she caught in her teeth was violet fur. On a good day this probably wouldn't have been much of a problem because she could pivot into another attack or follow after her as she ducked down to bite at her scruff again. But when her teeth snapped together nearly on nothing her original plan was foiled and trying to recalibrate to think of her next move just wasn't coming. Her tired brain felt like it was at a stand still. She didn't react fast enough to avoid Desponia's attack as her head tilted and she swung her head back, the curve of her ram horn hitting into Avacyn's jaw. Ava winced at the impact with a grunt of pain, staggering back as stars flickered across her vision. Without really even noticing it, she had moved out of the way of Desponia's paw as she was knocked back from her, at least avoiding the crushing blow she could have gotten while her jaw ached terribly. Avacyn gave a shake of her head and attempted to jump back into the fight by lowering her head and attempting to head butt Desponia's shoulder to stab her with the ridges of bone along her head. She knew that trying to bite anything right now would be a terrible idea with how bad her jaw hurt and she didn't trust herself to be dexterous enough to attempt anything with her claws so this seemed like the next best option.

WC: 275
Total: 2725/2500

Avacyn vs Desponia for Dominance
Round 2/2
Age: Over 1 Year
Size: Extra large
Build: Light
Companion 1: Raven, Male - Flying - Boosted
Companion 2: Raven, Male - Battle
Mutation 1: Scales - Defensive
Mutation 2: Spiked bone ridge horns - Offensive
Mutation 3: Tiger paws - Offensive
Skills: Advanced Fighter & Intermediate Intellectual

"Avacyn Mendacium"

Success! There was a satisfying feeling of bone hitting bone, her head aching a bit as the collision shuddered through her horns and skull, but she could tell it had had an effect on her niece as the girl stumbled back, unfortunately, this meant her attempt to slam her paw into her nieces left Desponia with nowhere for her injured paw to go but down straight into the sand. The purple woman bit back a snarl of pain, but tears sprang to her eyes as she had no doubt made the sprain injury worse as she tucked her head and tried to rein in her breathing, trying not to completely double over. The sensation of her pain was so overwhelming that she failed to notice her niece getting herself back on track and was only shocked out of her stupor when she felt something hard and pointed collide with her body, she was holding herself at just an angle that not only had Avacyn's headbutt connected but as Desponia jolted the ridges on the younger wolf's head slid into the soft connecting tissue between at the front of her shoulder blades.

Fuck! Desponia bit her tongue to keep herself from exclaiming out loud but she was sore all over. The woman recognized she had little enough time left to try and turn the tides, no use hiding her injury now. With her injured ankle held to her chest, the woman tried to awkwardly, mostly because she was hopping a little bit, reposition herself. Her momentum was killed but still, Desponia would aim to try and swing her hips into her niece, hoping to knock her away.

WC: 276 (Count met in previous post)

Desponia vs Avacyn for Dominance
Round 2/2
Age: Over 1 Year
Size: Large
Build: Light
Mutation 1: Ram horns - Offensive
Skills: Beginner Intellectual & Beginner Fighter

Speech

Image by Lipton23

And the winner is...

Desponia

Avacyn must give up by submitting, fleeing or passing out. Totals: Avacyn : Attack Roll: 33 Defense Roll: 16 Agility Roll: 28 Perception Roll: 78 Total: 155 Attack[33] + 25% Bonus[8.25]: 41.25 Defense[16] + 15% Bonus[2.40]: 18.40 Agility[28] + 5% Bonus[1.40]: 29.40 Perception[78] + 30% Bonus[23.40]: 101.40 Total[190.45] + 15% Bonus[28.57]: 219.02 Desponia: Attack Roll: 100 Critical attack! Defense Roll: 33 Agility Roll: 79 Perception Roll: 60 Total: 272 Attack[100] + 10% Bonus[10.00]: 110.00 Defense[33] + 5% Bonus[1.65]: 34.65 Agility[79] + 5% Bonus[3.95]: 82.95 Perception[60] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 60.00 Total[287.60] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 287.60