Sirius left Zee in charge of the place, and took Io on his hunting trip. He would have taken his Wife, but someone needed to stay and keep an eye on things, and there was no one he trusted more then Zee. besides, it was good to sneak Io away from Deathbelle for a bit. He was still having jealous feelings about what was growing there, no matter how much Io attempted to placate him. It took them a day and a half to make their way down to Auster, tracking the herd of Ox to where they had camped out in the wake of the earthquake. The squeaking of the cart behind him had accompanied them all the way. They had left it behind once they got a little closer to the herd, no point scaring away their quarry. The two of them huddled in the bushes, in sight of the herd, but out of hearing. Bast was at his side, and Marshal sat in the trees above them. Now that they were here, it was time to make a game plan. Running still wasn’t easy for the brute, but standing his ground in a bull-headed way had always come easily to him. “Okay, that one to the left would be easiest to cut from the herd. You flush him out, Marshal and Bast harry him from the sides to keep him on the path, as you chase him right to my hiding spot, i’ll take him down from there” he said, looking to Io to see what she wanted to add or change to the plan. "Speech"

Iolaire had been genuinely surprised when Sirius asked her to accompany him on a hunting trip. There were so many wolves more suited to the task. Hell, all of them were more suited. He seemed to want her though, so she agreed. Though she was a bit worried about his leg, she knew that the giant was going stir crazy. If he rebroke it though... well, she was just going to have to leave him there.

Leaving the poledrag in a safe place, the pair stealthily approached the herd of displaced oxen. Ears swiveled as Sirius laid out his plan. It was decent. Before replying, Iolaire thought for a long minute, eyes scanning the terrain. An idea began to form. Something that could save them time and effort.

The woman turned her attention to her massive sibling. "I also have an idea." She motioned to the right with a point of her dusty blue nose. "If we cut two from the herd, we can run them that way. If we're good and we distract them enough, we can run them right over the side of the cliff. Minimal effort. Then you can finish them off if they're still alive. Cart. Home. Done." She was okay with either plan, but it didn't hurt to have options.

He frowned heavily at her as she pointed out the cliff, with a big enough dip to break bones, or hopefully their neck if they got lucky. The more he thought about it, the more he frowned. “Where’s the fun in that” Feeling for a moment the urge to sulk. Her plan was too practical to ignore, but he had been rather looking forward to taking on something head on and letting out some of his pent up aggression. Sometimes you just needed to take something apart with your teeth to make you feel better. But, at the end of the day, feeding the pack was more important, and he wasn’t about to throw another sulking fit in front of his sister. “It’s a good plan” he grumbled. Hopefully they wouldn’t both die on impact. It seemed almost… wrong. Cunning in a cruel way. He had to respect her ingenuity. Slipping back into the role of Commander, the Warlord nodded his head, rising slowly from his crouch as he considered the best way to implement her plan. “Okay, you take the far side with Bast, i’ll take the center and break them from the herd, harry them from your side and i’ll harry them from mine. Marshal will be a wingman and help either side that needs it. His flight is the signal” he said, casting his eyes along the hunting team to see that everyone got the idea. Once he had their approval, he crawled forward on his belly, wincing at the awkward position it put his leg in, as he moved around and into position. Once he was in position, and Io and Bast must have been as well, Marshal burst from the trees above them, and Sirius dove into action, howling as he ran between the herds, cutting off the two easiest to single out as he frightened them from behind, tearing up beside them to cut off their natural instinct to run to their herd. "Speech"

Sirius began to sulk a bit and she thought he was going to shut her plan down completely. She prepared herself for it and was surprised when he agreed that it was a good plan. The small woman grinned and shot him a wink. "Those are the only kinds I have, big brother." So full of herself.

Io listened as Sirius laid out the strategy and nodded in agreement. The woman shot a grin at her partner, Bast. She really did like the big kitten. If the pair worked well together, this should be fairly simple. As Sirius began to creep away, she called out softly after him, her tone full of joking chastisement. "If you rebreak your leg, I'm not carrying you back." A joke and an underlying warning to take care of himself.

Nodding to Bast, Io crouched as well and moved into position. They would begin when Marshal took to the sky. Muscles tensed in anticipation. One eye was on the herd. The other, on the sky.

“You be careful too” he warned, understanding the sentiment behind her threat. He would let anything happen to Io, and he couldn’t let his thoughts wander to the accidents that could happen in a hunt. Marshal shot from the trees, and the hunters were off. Bast kept in line with Io, making the smaller wolf a bigger threat then she would have been alone, and snarling at the two beasts to keep them running, and to keep them from cutting at the side. Sirius made efforts to cut them off from the herd, but the instinct to run to their strength was strong. When the leader started to veer and the Oxen a few steps behind followed, the Titan warlord let out a blood curdling snarl, and dove his fangs into the side of his rump without slowing. The creature bellowed and angled towards Bast and Io. the leopard let out a warning snarl, picking up her pace as she prepared to attack it if it kept on its angle. The cliff approached ever closer as the team drove them forward. "Speech"

The sign was giving and the game was begun. Io and Bast moved fluidly together, the small wolf's legs blurring in a flurry of motion. She was tiny, but she was quick. She watched the pair of oxen, but she also watched Sirius and Bast. Situational awareness was key to a hunt without injury.

As the pair of beasts yearned to be with their brethren, their course began to alter. Sirius took action, sinking his teeth into a running haunch. This brought the oxen veering her way. Putting on a burst of speed, Iolaire snarled and snarled, correcting their course. She wouldn't get too close to the legs as one kick could easily kill her. She did, however, latch onto one dread-like lock and give it a hard pull. The beast bellowed and age pulled away, giving it enough room to feel secure, but also keeping it from going off course again.

The cliff edge was grown ever closer. The real trick would be to keep them from seeing it until it was too late. Once they came within a reasonable distance, Iolaire's snarls and growls increased in volume. The eyes of the beasts rolled white with fear. Just a few more yards and the siblings would be victorious.

As Io picked up the volume of her growls, Sirius would do the same, his deep voice a threat of violence and Marshal screeching eerily above. Bast keep past with Io, acting as her support, and adding to the general ruckus. As this point, the unlikely team of predators had scared away the rest of the herd. He could still hear the stampedding of their retreat, and knew it would be a few lands over before the beasts settled again. No matter, they had what they wanted. Marshal let loose a different pitched cry, a warning of the cliff to come. Sirius kept at it until the end, veering at the last possible second, setting a skittering of stones over the edge, and almost the loss of his balance. He was a heavy set monster who didn’t turn as easily as Little Io or Bast. The cat easily reached the end, and diverted her pace along the edge of the cliff. The Ox would see their fate at the last, driven by fear and pain in a blind panic, and then the cliff was upon them. The leader didn’t stand a chance, thundering head first over the urge with a sickening crack. The second came to a sudden stop, teetering upon the edge, until Sirius threw a back kick into its side with all of his weight, almost going over a second time as he sent this Oxen after its companion. He then turned, and ran along the side, chasing the long way down the cliffside, where he intended to find the one he could still hear thrashing after its fall. He had to let his bloodlust out somehow. "Speech"

Victory was within reach. The thundering behemoths careened headlong towards the edge. It was time to pull back for the larger of them, but Iolaire kept right along. The first oxens hooves slid over the precipice and that was it for the leader. The other had begun to halt. Sirius gave it a shove but Io was already in mid air. All four snow dipped paws pressed into the furry rump of the oxen and she pushed off as it fell over the edge.

Feet touched back to the earth. Adrenaline was still turning through the woman's veins. A blue tongue lol led out and she panted to release heat. Her pace slowed as she followed her brother down the winding path to the bottom. The bellowing cries of the beast that remained alive would soon cease, she knew. Sirius would get a bit of what he wanted. He'd get to kill something.

Seating herself off to the side, Iolaire began putting her fur back in place. As she did so, her nose wrinkled. "Those things will have to be washed before we use them for anything." Oxen were stinky things.

His leg ached as he moved down the hill, the descent did it no favours. He ignored it as he hit the bottom, picking up his pacer as he got closer to his prize. He would see the first one dead on its side, and turned his focus to the thrashing one. It’s broken legs keeping it from escaping. It wasn’t much of a fight, he timed between its thrashing as he dove it, and the Warlord kept it swift as he pierced its throat and ended its life with minimal mess. He stepped back and surveyed their catch, panting lightly. He was definitely out of shape. He needed be on the top of his game if he planned to keep his pack feed and warm. Sniffing about the Oxins as he decided what to do best, Io would appear at his side, wrinkling her nose, leopard walking easily at her side. Marshal landed heavily on his back, and the warlord grunted, shifting to take the massive birds weight. He didn’t pause for long, prowling between their kills. “Smart, very smart Io, and increased our haul, twice as much as could have caught otherwise” pride for his sister in his voice. “How about you and Bast grab the wagon, and i’ll start cleaning the meat?” he offered. He needed the coats as well as what was on their bones. He would be cleaning and preparing the warmer oxen coat for Io herself. He would need to cure and clean it carefully so it retained none of its current smell. Zee still had his thick beer coat, and he had already collected many coats for the Empress. The second Oxen coat would be a spare for any of his new members. Banshee, perhaps. He nodded his head in approval at the thought. "Speech"

Sirius praised her plan and Io grinned, taking a break from licking one foreleg like a cat. "Those are the only kinds of ideas I have, big Brother." A low chortle rumbled in the woman's chest. This whole situation was terribly amusing to her. She couldn't hunt large animals to save her life, yet here they were. Two Oxen dead. Minimal effort. Everyone was safe and whole. Now they'd just have to get everything back to pack lands. At the mention of getting the cart, Io nodded. Casting a look towards Bast, she gave her skull a tug in the direction where they'd left it and her healing bag. "Don't overdo it. If your leg really starts hurting, take a break. Those things aren't going anywhere." He had seen to that. Back up the slope the woman went. It didn't take long to reach the cart. The harness was large enough for Sirius, so it was definitely large enough for the woman and cat to walk side by side in, the vine harness resting on their chests. "Thanks for always being so helpful, Bast." Io appreciated the cat. She'd grown very fond of her. So much so that they often napped together when there was time. Or when Io could sleep. It seemed to help her, actually, and she considered acquiring a companion of her own. Back at the bottom of the hill, Io shrugged out of the massive harness. The cart had been easy to pull when it was empty. Once it was loaded with meat and furs, however... eesh. Sirius would need to take it easy and she would insist on lots and lots of breaks. "Speech"

That’s why I keep you around, little sister” he teased lightly. She was clever, his Io, and she thought outside of the box. He wasn’t always game to try her ideas, but once she convinced him, he realised she really did know best. It almost made him laugh, sometimes it felt like they really had been raised together.

There was no point taking the entirety of the weight of the large Ox. he didn’t need every part of them. He stripped their coats, hanging them to dry by the time Io returned with the wagon. His cat companion was hanging close to his sister’s side, and he could hear a purr vibrating in her throat. He didn’t see her get along so well with anybody else.

“Help me cut out the meat, the scavengers can pick the bones clean, and we won't have to lug so much back.” he said, explaining his thoughts to his sister, and pointing at the two hanging coats. “We can wrap the meat in one of those” and by the time they had finished carving the meat, the coats would have finished dripping. He could finish the curing process later.

"You mean it's not because of my dashing good looks or my stellar company?" She faked a pout, her lower lip jutting out with the action. They were a silly pair. She was incredibly lucky to have found him. And, if she did say so herself, he was lucky to have found her.

Sirius began cutting the meat away and asked that she help. Not a task that she would have chosen, but the small woman didn't gripe.  She worked alongside Sirius, processing the carcass and leaving the bones behind for the scavengers. Little creatures needed to eat too, after all. He indicated that they should wrap the meat in the furs and she nodded before beginning to load the cart with their haul.

Having loaded the cart, Iolaire took a moment to seat herself and rest. "Good hunting, brother. We didn't do too badly. This should be a decent haul to add to the cache." It had been easy too. This was a practice that they could use often and the pack would never go hungry.