I'm Going Viral

He was pleased by how quickly Justice responded to his call. A smile crossed his jaws at her words, and he dipped his head, winking slightly at the girl. “Thank you, Justice.” He turned to face Gwenevere, adding “Now, Justice, this is Gwenevere. She wishes to join as a fighter. Protocol states that I, or a high-ranking wolf in the fighting lines, must test her in a spar to see if her skill matches her words. But we need a witness to verify the outcome if she’s asked. So I called you.”

He cast a smile down at the dark girl. “All you need to do is watch. This is also a chance for you to observe a spar and take notes on attacks, so watch closely.”

He nodded to Gwenevere, adding, “I will warn you; this will be a hard-hitting spar. I don’t mind if you make me bleed or give me bruises, and I hope you don’t mind either, but it will help me get a better idea of your skill than if we bat about like pups. I assure you I won’t maim you or break limbs.” with a gentle grin, even as his initial defenses fell into place- his tail leveled with his spine as his paws settled into a squared stance, just slightly outside of his shoulders and hips.

The claws spread on each paw as his toes also spread, furthering traction and grip on the footing. His elbows and hocks bent slightly, lowering his center of gravity and loosening his joints for freer movement. His hackles raised from the base of his skull, all the way to the base of his tail, and ears that had been perked in good natured attentiveness now flicked back, pinning against the risen fur, nestled safely as his head lowered to align with his spine, matching his tail. His jaws parted slightly, teeth baring as his jowls lifted and his face wrinkled into a protective scowl around his eyes as they narrowed to slits.

As his shoulders rolled forward, and his neck scrunched back to protect his vertebrae between the shoulder blades, the action rolled his scruff into a protective layer of flesh, fat and fur around his neck, and his chin tucked to guard his throat from the shorter female. These defenses were all set into place with practiced speed as he asked of his opponent “If you’re ready?”

He waited no longer than it took for Gwen to nod or make some other kind of confirming gesture or word before he launched himself forward, wanting to close the five feet of distance swiftly and come at her face-one, with him angling just slightly to his own left. He sought to bring himself slightly lower, legs bending to accomplish the feat as he threw his right shoulder forward, dropping it slightly and aiming the bony point of the shoulder for Gwenevere’s chest, seeking to thrust hard into her outer right breast just under the base of her neck, wanting to hook the point of his right shoulder against the inner side of her own right shoulder and shove her backward with his momentum and force.

Simultaneously, his head tipped sharply to his own left, muzzle pointing to his right as his jaws parted and he sought to lunge his head forward and down swiftly, seeking a firm hold on Gwenevere’s scruff, upper canines seeking a placement on the left side if her scruff, a hand’s breadth above her shoulder blades, and the canines of his lower jaw seeking a similar spot upon the right side of her scruff. He wanted to obtain a good, solid grip from which he might be able to do further damage to her in the future, or restrain any attempts to get away and use her smaller size and agility against him.

His right foreleg rose quickly, while his other three limbs compensated, hind legs squaring and left front paw placing itself under his center of gravity as his right front paw sought to hook around the inside of Gwenevere’s right foreleg at the ankle, wishing to jerk it sharply toward himself and out from under her to unbalance her, before he sought to drive forward and shove the whole right side of his chest into her right shoulder, wanting to further unbalance her, and maybe even shove her hard enough to fall back onto her rump.

He hoped, and didn’t doubt, that Justice was watching closely and learning from being a witness, and just as much, he hoped Gwen was as good as she said she was, because they needed her even more than she knew.

Extra Notes: Distance agreed upon by Tealah <3

Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think