Falling back on fighting and training was easy. Stalking out of the pack's owned lands in search of some kind of opponent was easy. Dealing with the aftermath of his familial relationships and sorting out the electric draw he had felt toward the monochrome male were difficult. He had spent so much time over the last several weeks lost in thought and pondering every possibility and outcome - he was sick of it. For just a moment he wanted to just feel the pull of muscle and get lost in that familiar strain of a fight. He wasn't even sure what kind of fight he was looking for when he set out that morning. Anything that would keep him from overthinking for a moment would do. He moved at a quick trot along the bank of the Rio Grande, long limbs striding forward with a mission even though he wasn't sure what that mission was. He found his answer soon enough when he spotted a lioness a good distance ahead of him and he slowed his pace for a moment. Diverting his path, he found a large rock to duck behind, though he was lucky enough to have a pale coat that blended in with the winter weather around him fairly easily. The large feline was crouched at the edge of the river, getting a drink or perhaps watching a fish swimming just under the surface. It didn't really matter what she was doing, all he cared about was the challenge and this was challenge enough for him. He rolled his shoulders as he pondered his next move, getting his black leather armor to settle against his body a bit more comfortably. Going against a lion on his own was not a wise choice, but he had been so dead set on getting away from his own surroundings for a moment that he didn't think to bring one of the other soldiers with him. He hummed softly with a frown, disappointed that he was going to have to go looking for another predator to take out his frustrations on. Talk

The Rio was a truly massive river Azriel had discovered. No matter how far he walked along its banks, the flowing river seemed to go on endlessly in either direction. Fel had been gone for about a week by now, having returned to her pack for what was no doubt another round of self-inflicted punishment for whatever reasons she thought she had... That left Azriel with only a few things to actually do: fuck Sibyl, explore, spy, or fight. Today he opted for the second after having indulged the first, though he had traversed these areas so much over the most recent months. Biting cold chilled the air, cutting through even his dense coat and stinging his skin whenever the wind blew. This time, however, the wind brought about something besides a bitter chill: the scents of two apex predators. One was distinctly wolf, a smell he knew well. The other was different, something he hadn't encountered before. A brow raised in curiosity. Well now, this was a change of pace for the day...

Azriel stalked towards the smells, staying downwind and doing his best to avoid stepping on any clusters of dried leaves, dead grass, or sticks to avoid giving away his presence. The scents grew stronger with each step, steel grey eyes staying up and cautious to find his quarry. The lupine scent came up on him first. There, up ahead and ducked down by a large boulder was a white-furred wolf, completely unobscured against the grey and brown of his surroundings. It was almost so ludicrous that Azriel scoffed. The brute was obviously hunting something... but what? Creeping silently up closer to the wolf, Azriel was able to see the tan form of a massive cat by the river's edge, bend down to drink. His eyes widened; this wolf was stalking a lioness?! He blinked a few times, brain trying to register what he was seeing. Was this wolf psychotic? What did he do now? Just stand by and watch as the male got mauled to death? Would he even attack the lion in a one-on-one, or was he not that stupid? Or... did he offer his services? Sibyl would have a fuss if he got hurt... but this was the perfect chance to avoid some boredom and to hone skills he hadn't gotten to use in months.

He made his mind up to at least speak to the wolf before he committed suicide by leonine, slinking up closer to the boulder until he was close enough to speak in a low voice so as not to alert the lion. "There are less painful ways to kill yourself, you know..." he said to the wolf, looking at him with snark in his expression and a half-cocked smirk. "You're not actually going to try and attack a lion on your own, are you? Whatever her name is, she isn't worth it." He snickered to himself; he had seen brutes do stupid stunts for a fae's attention before, but this was asinine. He doubted this was that situation, but he couldn't resist a good chance to be sarcastic.

"Speech" | Thoughts

The sound of paw steps made the alert man's ear twitch back toward the sound and when he glanced back over his shoulder he spotted the silver eyed stranger that had approached him. He raised a brow at the brute and returned the smirk he gave before glancing back to the lion in front of them. "No, I'm not planning on attacking it on my own," he replied just as quietly after a moment, "And it's not for a fae, just for myself." He didn't really expect anyone else to really understand his rationale of wanting to push himself just to see if he could and just for the chance to have a distraction from everything else in his life. He of course understood that a lion was a pretty drastic solution to the problem, but the sudden cold weather had driven most animals away into hibernation or warmer climates so finding something or someone to fight was a bit more difficult than usual. He turned his emerald gaze back to the stranger with a questioning look, wondering if the sarcastic male might be the answer to his lack of a wing man for this impromptu fight. "Are you interested in joining me?" he questioned, giving a small nod to the lioness who had now stood and was beginning to slowly pad away from the water's edge. "You can keep the pelt or whatever else if we kill it... I'm just in it for the fight." Talk

The other male noticed him when he approached; it was fine, Azriel had done nothing to attempt to conceal his approach anyway. Fortunately, the snowy brute seemed to have an equally good sense of dry humor, simply smirking at the striped man's comments. His responses were terse, and Azriel appreciated that. Why bother mincing words when they didn't know one another. Deep green eyes met silvery grey and when the other wolf offered him the chance to take on the lion with him, it piqued his interest. He briefly pondered the possible outcomes, from glorious triumph or horrific failure and every shade of grey in between. He didn't know if either of his ladies back at the den would appreciate a fresh lion pelt or not—Fel might actually be against it, given her predilection towards felines—and the corner of his mouth turned up in an amused smirk. "We can discuss divvying out the spoils afterwards," he remarked, coming up beside the other brute and studying the lioness for a few beats. "What's your plan of attack? Have you thought of a strategy to taking down such a creature, or were you planning on winging it?" He didn't bother introducing himself as the other wolf had not done so either. Names were unimportant now. Perhaps if he desired, they could exchange pleasantries when the area was a little less... hot.

"Speech" | Thoughts

A slight grin pulled at his features when the stranger accepted the offer with a simple comment about figuring out where the spoils would go once it was all done, his more stoic expression quickly returning as he focused in on their target. "Lets just get as close as we can before she notices us and see how it goes. A study in thinking on your feet if you will," he replied quietly with a glance before nodding toward the trees that grew more thickly several feet back from the river's edge where the lioness was lingering. He led the way as he curved his path away from the river and into the trees, treading carefully and lightly to not make to much noise. Soon enough they were positioned directly behind the feline, crouched in the shadows of the trees as he peeked through the foliage to watch her. After waiting several moments just to make sure she had no reaction to their presence. The air was fairly still today, but what breeze there was kept them downwind all the same so things were lining up nicely. He gave his partner for the moment another glance and a nod before beginning to inch forward, staying low to the ground and stalking forward to quietly cross the short distance between him and their prey. At the last moment the lioness finally noticed their presence and tried to hop up to turn toward them, but it was a just a moment too late. Plague managed to lunge forward before she could turn and landed on her back, grabbing a mouthful of the lioness' scruff and biting down hard on the skin while pressing his weight onto her back so it would be harder for her to get up or move. Talk

At the pallid wolf's lead, Azriel followed him through a copse of trees as silently as he could, each paw measured to ensure no step created any sound while they stalked closer towards their quarry. The wind was in their favor, keeping them downwind while blowing the leonine scent toward them so they could keep track of the lioness. Silver eyes peered through the trees and branches to watch the golden-beige fur by the river's edge, and once the two wolves were in position, the brute's mind began to plot. Would the stranger want to charge in and catch her by surprise in a brash violent attack, or would he want to risk attempting stealth on the cunning predator? His question was soon answered when the white wolf nodded and began a slow approach. Ah, so he was the sneaky type, eh? Azriel could appreciate that. Following behind his de facto leader, the two wolves gradually closed the distance between them and the apex predator. The lioness didn't seem to notice them—until she did.

At the last second, the lioness looked up, yellow eyes spotting the two wolves just as the stranger lunged for her, a feline roar breaking the peaceful silence when he grabbed her by the scruff. The lioness began to thrash and flail immediately, deadly paws of razor-sharp claws swinging in all directions. Azriel's mind began to simulate every possible outcome. He could also rush in to aid his companion, but those murder mittens gave him enough of a pause, and putting himself directly in their way didn't seem wise. He could also go for her opposite side, but those fangs snapping at the air also seemed like something he'd like to avoid. But if he circled around, he could get her hind legs, trapping them, immobilizing her. Azriel decided that was his best option and sprung into action, rushing around behind the other wolf until he lunged forward and grabbed the lioness by her hind legs, teeth sinking into her flesh. The lioness roared in pain and tried to squirm free, but the two wolves were holding her securely.

Unfortunately for them, the lioness managed to get one of her hind legs free from Azriel's grip, kicking those clawed paws out and catching the brute in the face. Azriel yelped in surprise, just managing to avoid getting claws in his eyes and instead taking a kick to the bridge of his snout. He felt the claws tear through his skin and he reflexively released the lioness' leg, giving the lioness the leverage to throw the white wolf off of her, taking a swipe at the other wolf's face with her claws before taking off through the forest, blood dripping from her hind leg while she fled at impossible speeds. Azriel snarled in frustration, pressing a paw to the stinging cuts on his muzzle to find he was bleeding. Fuck... That was a stupid idea... He glanced over at his companion, caught between wanting to chastise him for just rushing in when they were caught and wanting to see if he'd gotten caught by those claws as bad as he had. "You hurt?" he called over to the other male.

"Speech" | Thoughts