A rude awakening
#1
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Southern Dampwoods, Regner is Optime and Adelle is a puppy so permalupus.

Word Count :: +490


Normally the dampwoods would be quiet and peaceful this early in the day, the sunrise accompanied by no noise other than the singing of birds and the gentle scuffling of the forest's denizens quietly making their way through the woods.


Today however, the dampwoods were alive with noise. From a certain clearing where Regner had decided to spent the night came a veritable torrent of noise, a mixture or roars, snarls and, somewhere in the middle, the terrified screams of a small child.


~


Regner stood his ground, teeth beared in a terrible snarl and arms set in the classic Broderskab battle stance, stretched out wide as though inviting a hug, axe in his left hand and shield in his right. To his back was Adelle, curled up in the hollow of a tree, still wrapped in his thick fur cloak from the nights sleeping arrangements, screaming her head off at the sight before her. Before him, claws still dripping with blood from a light wound scored to Regner's face just above his eye, teeth bared in a snarl to almost match Regner's own, was a cougar.


Regner watched, eyes narrowed, as the cougar jinked from side to side, trying to provoke Regner into circling it, an invitation which Regner resisted. Speed would serve him little against an opponent as fast as this, his only hope was standing his ground and drawing the creature in to here he could grapple it, making use of his muscles and the knives hidden about his person.


Regner did not know why the Cougar was attacking, he had simply woken up this morning with the beast stood but a meter away, snarling angrily at him. The cougar itself provided no answer to the question, jabbering away in feline-accepted speech that Regner likely couldn’t have understood even if he had been fluent in English; though the cougar could have been speaking frnech for as much as Regner understood it.


Suddenly the cougar darted forward and Regner reacted. As always his axe was too heavy for the old man to swing about with abandon like he had in his young so he was forced to think carefully, acting with strategy and economical movement. An overhead swing made some of the axes weight do the work for him and when he missed, the cougar backing off quick as a flash, he arced the blade so his momentum carried him around, his shield intercepting the cougar with a solid overhead blow as it moved forward, believing him off balance.


Regner bared his teeth in a feral grin as the cougar backed off, stunned. He may be old but he had a lifetime of experience fighting to draw back on and enough tricks to fill a book. Deciding to go on the defensive Regner opened his mouth and roared again, the load call booming out of his lungs and echoing around the woods, a sound of bloodlust and defiance.


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#2
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omnomnom


The near silent pounding of dark pads on the snow swathed earth was a soothing sound to the young male to which the paws belonged. It had been very difficult for the Stormbringer to leave the safety of Ichika once again, but there were a few things he needed from the dampwoods that were lacking in the vast lands of Ichika. They were severely lacking in Cat's Claw, the little yellow flowering plant used to treat tumours. While Saul had never dealt with anyone with any kind of cancer, he'd read about it recently and knew that he should at least have some kind of reserve of medicine in case someone showed the symptoms. He'd also exhausted the Milk Thistle up in Ichika for this year and he'd already decided that he would try to convince Nayru to take some to help her lactate.


He felt the commotion before he heard it- the tiny changes in atmosphere that alerted him to the fact that something wasnt right. In the brief seconds afterwards, there was nothing else that would have tipped him off about the commotion. However, the terrified scream, that continued on to terrified screaming, echoed deep in his ears and Saul skidded to a stop. It sounded too high pitched to be anything male and therefore Saul had to assume that a female pup was in danger. A soft growl echoed in chest as he ghosted forward, careful not to make a sound now. He wanted the element of surprise that silence offered.


It took him little over three minutes to find the owner of the terrified screams. A little pup lay curled up in an over large fur in the base of a tree, while a dark male stood over her, facing off against a cougar. Saul watched as the cougar made a swift slash across the males face, before the older luperci roared in rage and barrelled forward. A small part of his mind was beginning to list herbs and plants that would help stem the flow of blood and stop infections, whereas the larger part of his brain kicked into instinctive bloodlust. With a deep growl in his chest, he stalked forward, dangerous and slow, shoulders rolling softly as he allowed his lips to pull back over his teeth.


"Leave" He snarled, not knowing if the cougar would understand him. Like Regner, Saul couldn't speak much Low Speech and he didnt know if he'd managed to get across the need for this cougar to turn tail and leave. Just in case it hadn't understood, Saul launched himself forward, teeth aiming to grasp the fatty chunk of flesh around the shoulder blades. Perhaps it wouldn't like the idea of being outnumbered.


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#3
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What form is Saul in?

Word Count :: +477


Coppery eyes stared into hazel as Regner stared down the cougar, his mouth opening and letting out an aggressive huff any time the lithe animal dared to approach, his muscles tense and ready to react to any movement that the cougar might make. He was so focused on his prey that he didn’t notice the newcomer until the grey and brown wolf barrelled forwards, lunging at the cougar with snapping teeth.


Regner was surprised by the newcomer but the soldier in him reacted to the precense of an ally automatically and Regner started to circle, flanking the cougar as the newcomer's jaws caught it around the shoulder, the cougar responding be hissing angrily and trying to claw at its attackers neck and face. Regner didn't stop to see if the cougar's blows had hit and instead charged forward, his axe singing through the air in an upwards arc.


What happened next took Regner off guard. Somehow the cougar had noticed the approaching danger and as Regner swung it tore itself backwards, tearing chunks of flesh and fat out of its own shoulder as it moved back and reared to up dodge the axe, spinning to face Regner as it did so. The elderly dog barely had time to drop his axe in an attempt to regain his balance before the cougar was upon him, powerful jaws clamping onto the dog's right arm just below the shoulder.


Regner let out a roar of pain and then dropped violently into a crouch, the movement both shaking the cougar and slowing Regner to reach the dagger strapped to his calf. With a defiant bark Regner shoved the knife upwards into the cougar's gut and jerked it, the animal backing off with a yelp of pain and taking the dagger with it, though Regner quickly drew a second from his shoulder, ignoring the ache from the cougar's bite and the strips of flesh it had raked off when it had retreated.


The cougar was a dead animal walking, the wound in its gut almost guaranteed to kill it through blood loss or blood poisoning as the contents leaked out through the painful wound. From the enraged look in the cougars eyes it knew this as well and with a shriek of rage is launched itself forwards, aiming between the two men at Adelle.


It was all Regner could do to get in front of the Cougar and raise his shield, catching the angry feline on the flat of the shield where it stuck, hissing and spitting angrily as it tried to reach round and claw Regner. Barely able to support the weight and unable to move without dropping the cougar onto himself Regner was left in the unenviable position of supporting an angry cougar, his legs bent as he fought to stay upright and claws whistling inches away from his ears.

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#4
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he was in his lupus form, but he's shifted into optime halfway through this post <3


He didn't exactly have time to register the scene at hand, although he found that his mind absorbed each detail distinctly as he threw himself forward towards the cougar. Saul had only ever come into contact with the felines from afar and he'd never had trouble with them like this. But the powerful muscles beneath the beasts tan hide swore to tear apart the little female that it seemed intent on. Briefly, the youth wondered what on earth would cause another sentient being like the cougar to go for a small pup, especially when she had an able protector. He was more familiar with animals that would back off when they recognised that the end was nigh. It seemed the animal did not have the same self preservation instincts that most animals did.


He landed with a thud against the cougars body, his canines clamping down on the thick muscle of it shoulder. He was positioned in a way that made him vulnerable to the swipes of the cougars deadly paws and he recognised this. He strengthened the hold he hand on the shoulder, causing the feline to yowl in pain before he moved to position his body almost parrallel to the animals own body. It made it difficult for the cougar to get any leverage on swinging round to claw at him properly. Saul began to tug softly, feeling the resistence in the thick muscles and knowing that he could probably proceed to drag the beast out of the clearing and away from these unsuspecting animals. Of course, he never would have predicted what happened next. Having his eyes only on the cougar, he couldn't see what the elderly male behind him was doing.


The cougar gave a great shudder before yanking his body away from Saul's own, leaving behind a large chunk of his muscle and flesh. Saul could see the glint of the cougar's shoulder bone before the blood welled up and blocked away anything but the raging wound. He would be losing a lot of blood soon enough. It didn't stop him from launching himself forward, jaws closing around the elderly males arm near his shoulder. Saul heard the roar of pain from the male and flinched before they dropped and roll, the cougar shaken free and the male able to grab a dagger from somewhere on his body. Saul watched, shocked, as the knife he'd produced was thrust up into the cougar's belly. It backed off for a moment, although Saul couldn't see fear in the animals eyes. It seemed more determined.


Like something half crazed, it launched itself towards the male again, aiming to get between the dog and his younger ward. The cougar collided with the dogs shield with a strong thud and the male clenched himself tighter to try and stop the animal in its tracks, With calm breaths, Saul settled himself and began to shift upwards. Once he had hands that would work properly, he moved toward, grasping the cougar by its hips and dragging it backwards. It lashed out, twisting its body around to try and slash at him but to no avail. Saul released the animal long enough to attempt a grab at the knife in its belly. If he could thrust it up into the thoracic cavity, it might reach high enough to pierce the heart and end this mad attack.



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#5
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Hope you don't mind the PP, if you do then say and i'll change it.

Word Count :: +471


The weight of the cougar upon his shield was a burden that Regner was happy to be rid off, his relief coming just before his legs gave out from the strain. In his younger years Regner could have thrown the smaller animal clean across the clearing, now it was all he had been able to do to hold it back for as long as he did.


Regner caught his breath and looked back up just in-time to see the stranger delivering the finishing blow, driving Regner's knife up and under the cougar's ribcage. The animal thrashed all the harder for a brief moment before it drooped forward, falling still.


Despite his gratitude for the help Regner ignored the stranger for now, instead dropping his shield to the floor and rushing over to Adelle. Dropping swiftly into a painful crouch, his joints and scar protesting the movement, he began to stroke the distressed puppy, Adelle whimpering and leaning into his hand as it ran down her spine, Regner punctuating the calming movement with a lick to his granddaughter's ears every now and then. The smell of his blood and the fright of the experience had left Adelle frightened but eventually she calmed down, laying still under his touch and gazing curiously at the stranger, hr usual enthusiasm for new people still present but muted slightly by recent events.


With the puppy calmed somewhat Regner turned his attention to the stranger, his muzzle dropped as he faced the younger wolf but his erect ears marked the gesture as a grateful one, not a sign of submission. "Thank you for the help, it is appreciated. I am Regner" The English words were awkward coming out of his mouth, his Danish accent thick, but the gratitude in them was evident.


Regner cast a regretful glance over the dead cougar. Despite his inability to understand the feline's speech Regner knew full well why the feline had attacked and kept coming even when it was outnumbered. It seemed only fair to tell the other who had taken apart in the fight, "A day ago I came across a cougar nest. The nest was empty but had fresh scent around it and a stock of prey hidden within." Regner had taken the food, feeding Adelle as much as he could make the puppy eat of the bounty. Here Regner's tone shifted, becoming a mix of defiant and defensive, "I am too old and slow to hunt, I will not see Adelle starve because of my shortcomings. I will do what I must to keep her safe and fed." Regner hadn't actually introduced Adelle yet, but it should be fairly obvious who he was talking about. Regner was regretful that the cougar had died, but at the same time did not regret either taking the food nor his part in killing the animal, valuing Adelle's life far above that of a feline he had never met.




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#6
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<3


His muscles protested as he drove his knife up under the animals ribcage- the mighty weight of the animal was difficult to take all on his own. As the dark male in front of them dropped, his legs giving out, Saul took on the majority of the weight. It did the trick though, for after a few breathtaking seconds, the light in the cougars eyes began to die. Saul loathed to take another animals life so unnecessarily, but there was nothing else he could have done. The older wolf clearly had not the strength to fend off the larger animal and Saul had had to step in. The whimpers of the little girl wrapped in furs was still prominant and Saul didn't blame the man for going to see to her straight away. While the man was occupied, Saul lay the cougar down on the ground, leaving the knife in its ribs for the moment. Aside from the slightly ruined shoulder, the cougar pelt would serve him well he though. He was interupted by the males words and Saul glanced back up at him.


"Its not a problem Regner. I'm Saul."


He said in return, although his eyes were already assessing the damage to the man. He would need to be bandaged up, but would he allow the younger, strange man to treat him? Saul wasn't sure. It seemed the man needed to explain what had happened and spoke of coming across the cougars nest not long ago. The Ichikan nodded softly, sympathy in his eyes. He couldn't think about how one day, he would be too old to provide for his family. That one day, he might have someone who depended on him solely, like the little girl for the man, and he would be unable to hunt for her properly. It caused him to shudder softly, although he nodded once again as Regner finsihed.


"I understand. I would have done the same, in your situation."


He said, before crouching down and removing a few things from his bag. He wouldn't need much to sort the mans cuts out, but he needed his permission first. "I'm a medic from Ichika no Ho-en. Would you let me help you?" Saul asked, green eyes filled with concern for the man. He was old, that was obvious, and leaving cuts alone, especially those from a feline, was tempting fate.



OOC ENDING
Regner allows Saul to heal his wounds, whilst telling him about his granddaughter Adelle. Saul in turn tells him of Ichika. Saul skins the cougar and leaves with well wishes for the man and his ward.




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