Suicide of the Greifstricken [or.. not.. XD]

[Tilyn]

~*~ Kivuli - Luvuvhu River - East ~*~

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| ~*~ Luvuvhu River - East ~*~ |
|----------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| |
| Water is life. |
| |
| The river seems to come from somewhere in the north-east, its long |
| journey and pounding consistancy having created a deep crack in the ground |
| where the water flows wildly. It's a long river. It's a wide river. |
| It's a deep river. The water is still clear and fresh here, east of the |
| waterhole. It seems to be rather cold, actually, which means it has |
| probably traveled here from the mountains. |
| |
| The water is moving too fast and is too dangerous for one to drink |
| here, but seems like it calms down further west. Several footprints of |
| hooves and paws lead in that direction and a few animals can be |
| occasionally spotted in the distance. If thirsty, why don't you just keep |
| following the river? |
| |
---------------------Type 'khelp' for a list of commands.---------------------
[OOC ] Mizuka, male adol. lion [IC ] Sytobi, male lion
[OOC] Kiet, male white lion [IC ] Sekhmet, female adol. lioness
[IC ] Usiku'baridi, female adol. liones [IC ] Kieleaji, female elder lioness
[IC ] Ausikifa, male adol. lion [IC ] Seth, male lion
[zzz] Upaji, male adol. lion [zzz] Raiyan, male adol. lion
[IC ] Zira, female lioness [IC ] Jemadari, male adol. lion


It had taken her quite a good amount of time to get there, after the supposed conversation with Eris and Tambo. Her stamina for traveling long distances is almost nonexistent anymore, considering her age; but her stubborn attitude more than made up for it. Eventually, the graying lioness reached the grounds she'd been seeking -- only to find, much to her disbelief and subsequent anquish, that the young lioness wasn't playing some terrible joke. Despite the passed time, the savannah was still drowning in his blood, the air rank to the point of nausea with the smell of it. Having actually been briefly sick, Kieleaji then dragged herself here -- and is now sitting, absolutely still, along the riverside. Silver eyes gleam like diamonds, drowning with tears she simply refuses to shed, muzzle drawn down into a furious frown. Upon the topside of both forepaw, lines have been torn into her flesh, and the elder bleeds freely in silence, her front feel slowly being stained crimson.

The scent of blood indeed hangs in the night air, and while Zira's nose is not sharp enough to distinguish Kieleaji's blood from that of her mate's, her eyes have been focused on the older lioness since she arrived a while ago. The sunset had given way to near darkness while Zira and a few of her pride had stayed hidden in the tall grasses to the south, not moving so much as an eyelash as various leonines came to mourn at the site of Ronan's death. Luckily, the reek of blood in the air had hidden their presence as well, and their wait had not been in vain. With a single flick of her ear, Zira signals Jemadari forward towards the lioness facing away from them to do as he had been previously instructed, as silent as the moon's journey in the sky.

A solemn nod and ears pin back with the young male's advance. Paws quietly pull Jemadari forward as he slinks towards the elderly lion; the second in the past couple fights. A curious note rings through the young male's mind to show more respect to his elders; as he prepares to bash Kieleaji's skull in.

Opposite the pride leader, as she were, Ausikifa remains hidden in the long grass on the other side of the mourning Kieleaji. His ears are laid flat, his eye narrowed into thin slits that almost wholly cover the darkness of his eyes. The boy's attention has remained upon the lioness for hours, but now it flits briefly towards the slight movement that he knows would be that one called Jemadari. Because he doesn't know the male well enough to evaluate his performance in the assassination field, Ausi' inadvertantly begins to lean to one side, his muscles bunched and ready to spring should the lioness somehow make an escape. The slightest breath ruffles the bangs from his eyes, and the adolescent waits.

Usiku'baridi moves forward, trailing behind the others but soon decides to move off to the side and further forward, staying low to the ground, eyes narrowed and ears held back. Large paws silently dig into the earth, tearing it up behind her, tail twitching as she scents the air and catches the odor of blood. Yes, this was definately going to be fun and interesting all at the same time.

Despite her lack of youthful speed and power, Kieleaji's senses are still fairly sharp -- and perhaps she would have heard the movement of Jemadari, had the location been different. But as it is, she is too close to the waterway, and the sound of the water's motion serves as enough background noise -- and it drowns out the little indication of additional leonine activity. Her eyes don't waver away from the indeterminate point on the horizon which she so avidly stares at, the only motion given at all being the slow movement of her shoulders as she breaths, and the welling of the blood from the self-inflicted wounds in her paws.

Absolutely undetected? Things are good in Jemadari's own little world. A venomous grin marches across his muzzle as his paw violently shoots out to bash the lioness unconscious.

Hmm. A grin slides upon Ausikifa's muzzle, watching in a difficult to control fervor, his claws kneeding the ground underneath him as the vague form of Jemadari slipping through the grass towards the lioness. The boy doesn't really know her well, but it doesn't matter to him. Ausikifa finds himself rising a bit from his cover, his ears pricking forwards and his eyes trained through the darkness as he waits and watches for any moment where he can jump in.

Usiku'baridi's eyes narrow then widen quickly once Jemadari makes his move, a slight chuckle trying to force its way from her mouth but she stifles it just as fast. She continues forward and proceeds closer and closer towards the fray or where it will occur shortly.

But just because her ears do not alert her, that doesn't mean her other senses don't lend their part -- even if it is a bit delayed. At almost the same instant, Kieleaji catches a flickering of movement in the farthest reaaches of her peripheral vision; and then, with Jemadari's proximity, her nostrils are filled with the smell of an unknown male. Having been at least somewhat on guard thanks to Eris's warning, the elder doesn't even release a gasp of surprise. She simply moves, instinctively and without sound, spine bending abruptly -- and cracking aloud in protest -- as she ducks to avoid the blow. But she isn't nearly as fast as she used to be, and Jemadari half-catches her on the crown of her head. She staggers aside, fumbling to her paws as she tries to skitter away from the assailant.

With the blow not knocking the elder out in one swoop, Zira decides it's time for Plan B. While the older lioness may not realize it, she's just made her death a trifle worse; instead of slipping away while unconscious, she'll have to be forced into her drowning. With a growl just loud enough for the others to hear, Zira leaps from the grasses towards the elder, aiming to help subdue her before she starts making noise.

He'd been watching, and when the plan didn't go exactly as planned Seth began to circle around the small group, silently, watching. Any noises may bring someone around, thus the male keeps his keep pinned to the surrounding vegetation, waiting, watching. Ears flicker backwards to the small commotion before rounding fowards, features emotionless.

This is the second spry old person in the past couple assaults, this is getting repugnant. A low rumbling growl grows in Jemadari, bursting forth as he lungs to the lioness to pin her to the earth.

Wonderful. The growl from the lioness is heard, giving Ausikifa the opporunity he had been waiting for. Fun. A snarl falls from his muzzle as he rises, cutting off Kieleaji's possible escape from one side, while Zira is on the other and Jemadari behind. His claws rip up the earth in his haste, wanting to draw blood but keeping his blood lust in tact. From his side, he lifts his paws to help Jema' tackle the lioness to the ground.

Usiku'baridi simply jumps forward, ready to help subdue the older lioness if the need arises but until it looks worse or it appears they need her help, she figures her pridemates have it handled without needing too much assistance from her.

Spry? That might be pushing it just a bit. She is -- or, perhaps more accurately, was -- younger than Ronan; but her body has always been lighter, more slender, and more inclined to fragility. And considering that she hasn't done much in the past few moons to keep her physical self up-to-par, she will prove far less of a challenge than her mate was. But still, she will not be easy. Pivoting on her heels, the river is now at Kieleaji's back -- though she suddenly finds her front blocked by Jemadari, and the sides by even more leonines. And yet, facing this opposition, she does not look afraid; in fact, she only looks annoyed. She was MOURNING, d**n it, and it's rude to interrupt! Backpedaling as fast as she can, she can only rear back and attempt to brace somewhat against Jemadari's charge -- but she is, of course, bowled completely over.

Once Kieleaji hits the ground, Zira is quick to move and press her muzzle against the muddy bank in an attempt to keep it closed. "Now then. We can do this the easy way, or we can do this the hard way. The easy way entails us knocking you out before drowning you. Either way, we're doing you the favor of sending you to meet your mate faster than nature would have allowed you," Zira hisses. "So, what'll it be? Blink once for easy, twice for hard."

Jemadari moves not to kill Kieleaji, but to restrain her; claws moving to prevent any of the lioness' limbs from assaulting his pride mates. Eyes widen with glee as he digs claws in, just to remind her that there are far more than just Zira here.

As the elder lioness topples to the ground, Ausikifa's paws remain upon her shoulders as he presses down in an attempt to keep her still. The adolescent pushes as hard as he can, his tail snaking behind him in a sick kind of blood lust, and slowly he eases himself down so his forelegs do the job of holding Kie' down. A paw moves towards the lioness' nape, his claws tickling through her fur and his grin widens. "Hush, hush, sweet lioness," comes his whispering, lilting purr, "Go quietly into that goodnight."

Honey-amber eyes begin to glow in the night light now that she can truly scent the smell of blood upon the air. Those eyes peer at the elder lioness and the two males to either side of her, holding her out of the water's grasp, likely helping the blood flow a bit more, then the honeyed-orbs turn to her leader at the head of the lioness. Ears flick forward before she slowly begins to move towards the head of her pride, keeping low to the ground but still up high enough to sashay slightly as she walks. A glance is given to the 'prisoner' before she turns her attention back to Zira and a soft chuckle escapes as the ultimatum is given. "Of course, we could just make it hard for the fun of it," she states, her voice low and sultry on the evening air. A light glimmer of Usiku's eyes betray her hope for the difficulty being raised, knowing she would enjoy herself immensly.

[Tilyn]

So far, throughout the entire beginning of the ordeal, Kieleaji hasn't uttered the slightest sound. In truth, the only noise that has eminated from her has been the sound of her body impacting against the earth -- and that wasn't even really her fault. As before, the elder does not appear frightened as Zira squashes her muzzle into the damp soil, or as the others press their weight down against her body, the edges of claws just barely cutting into her flesh. Brows crease and eyes narrow in ire, but she doesn't blink at all -- only stares up at Zira out of glinting silver eyes. Well, now; if she is to die, then why make it a boring thing? Ronan certainly didn't, and Kie' hasn't yet lost all of her spunk. Perhaps Zira can feel her muzzle twist beneath her paw into a sadistic grin for a brief moment -- before Kie' does her best to twist her head free and simultaneously clamp her fangs down on Zira's forefoot.

As the lioness below her moves, fangs bared, Zira retaliates with a quick swipe across the cheek with her other paw. "I'll take that as two blinks," she spits. "Make a sound, and I'll rip out your vocal cords as well." It's a bluff, but hopefully Zira can get the lioness into the water before she decides to test that theory. "Help me pull her head into the water," the Mbaamwezian queen commands, her paw remaining a heavy weight on her muzzle until the rest move to drag Kieleaji as directed.

What's a subordinate to do? A wary glance is given to the limbs he is restraining; turning to Zira with uncertainty. "Where is that other 'king?' Perhaps he can make himself useful at this instance, m'lady?"

Sekhmet makes her way onto the scene late.. Well she had to make sure no one was following the mouring lioness now didn't she? Hearing Zira she makes a beeline towards her queen and the rest gaze snapping over the ones here and then the lioness they have pinned. "Darn.. I always seem to miss the fun.." The guard grumbles a bit wondering why she was stuck on look out duty.

The adolescent cuffs the lioness upside the head behind the ears, none to pleasantly either, while a deep chuckle is all the answer he gives to Zira's command. A flick of his ear is all he gives to the approach of Sekhmet, sniggering to himself as a, 'Ha, ha, got here before you, nyah.' Still, though he isn't too keen on taking orders from anyone, he does enjoy the passion of the kill. His teeth bare, a low rumble eminating from his chest as he grabs at Kieleaji's neck, dragging along with Zira.

Usiku'baridi turns her gaze to Jemadari and glares slightly at him before nodding to Zira's demand to help move the head of the lioness into the water. Since the hill behind the silver-eyed feline slopes downwards into the water from what she can tell, she should be able to maneuver her back and down so the task can be completed. Slowly, Usiku lowers her head down and opens her mouth wide, intending to get a grip on the other felines muzzle to both control the noise that can be made along with adding some pain to her as she moves against her body to push backwards. While this move is somewhat impractical, it would add some pain to the experience, though if she was unable to secure the muzzle, the likelihood of a snap at the legs of the leonines would increase.

And now, she will do as much to be obstinant as possible. While she cringes out of simple reaction as Zira and Ausikfa strike her, Kieleaji is readily staring upwards again as soon as the blows have passed -- but now she looks more than annoyed. She looks completely irate. But even more worrisome than that, for the Mbaamwezians, is the remaining fact that the elder looks less than perturbed. This isn't likely to go well for them if their victim isn't scared into obedience, is it? And as she feels the group begin to try to relocate her -- well, perhaps the most accurate word to describe her reaction would be a 'seizure'. She suddenly erupts with movement, adrenaline restoring some of her youth, legs and head and teeth and chest and claws flailing outwards in every direction. But even so, escape doesn't seem to be her goal -- but rather to inflict damage upon any of these interlopers. At the same time, heavy growlings and snarlings boil free of her chest. Perhaps the abrupt appearance of such violent moveme
.. movement and noise will take them by surprise.

It certainly does surprise Zira, but she's got a task at hand that she's not about to let some old lioness' epilepsy deter her from. At least she's not being loud about it. Jemadari redoubles his efforts, ignoring any wild claw-swipes that come his way, to drag her the last little bit down towards the river. Bracing herself for assault, Zira steps towards the flailing elder, her paw moving to once again press against her head, claws retracted, but this time to hold it under water. "Roll her over on her stomach; she'll have a harder time slashing at us when she resists."

Sekhmet shoots a dagger ridden glare at Ausikifa.. One of these days he is so going to get his. She moves over to take up the back end of the dear epileptic lioness so she doesn't try to scramble backwards incase she gets a bit of freedome. She pulls her head back to escap any punching and swinging paws and snorts some while moving to try and grab hold of one of kicking hind limbs to help pull the lioness over onto her belly. Maybe that brat Ausikifa will take a few hits.. Though if that happened she would have to stop herself form laughing..

Ausikifa didn't do anything to Sekh', this time. Though the boy attempts to move out of the way of randomly flailing claws, his determination not to let go of Kieleaji's neck gets him a few shallow cuts along his forelegs. Bah. It doesn't seem to bother him, though, it doesn't even look like he noticed, as he shifts his grip on her neck to one of her paws. Clenching down, Ausi' pulls at her leg in an attempt to quell the quaking, while his paws push her spasming body in the other direction. His tail lashes violently, a snarl seeping from between Kie's paw in his jaws, and a mumble, "Silver ghost," is Ausikifa's address to the elder, "your struggle is honorable, but death is indifferent to honor." Hookay, looks like Seth's got a winner of a son. x.x

Now, finally, she begins to talk -- despite the fact that her voice is a terrible rasp, thanks to her shortness of breath, the abuse delivered to her neck, and the fresh wounds inflicted to her face. Metallic eyes shifting to Ausikifa, she offers him a slow, methodic smile. "That is where you are wrong," she whispers. "Death sees everything, hears everything, feels everything, and knows everything. It is the most intimate lover of every lion. And it is the ultimate judge. Death will decide how you are remembered." There is a pause, before she wickedly drops, "How foolish of you to not have known." Having abandoned her hysterical movements, Kieleaji instead concentrates on stiffening her body -- for when Zira instructs and the elder is rolled onto her stomach, she then does her best to push all of her legs down into the soil, thus making movement to the shoreline even more difficult.

"Save your breath for when you're underwater," Zira grunts as Jemadari continues tugging the lioness with the help of a couple other leonines down to the river's edge despite the difficulty of her using the mud to her benefit. Finally at the bank, Zira lifts a paw once again to the lioness' skull, pushing down with her paw in an attempt to force the lioness' head below the river's surface.

Sekhmet does her best to help push the lioness towards the water from the end she has, who knew the old bitty had so much strength left her in. A ear twitches as she catches some of what Kie says but she doesn't give it much though. Why would she listion to the words of a soon to be dead lioness? She grunts some while using her weight to try and help keep the lioness from moving about to much. Though she's sure a soon to be drowing lioness will still thrash around a lot.

"And he is your last lover, silver one. Pity that it's pleasure is ours, not yours," whispers the boy into the lioness' ear, sweetly, his breath ruffling her fur briefly before they constant pull against her drags her down towards the water. A snigger slips from his maw and he pulls and tugs with the rest, his claws ocassionally brushing through Kieleaji's fur as a comb might, not drawing blood but allowing him to use those talons nonetheless. Ausikifa's dark gaze focuses upon the aging lioness, not a flicker of pity running through his heart or soul, nor does he care. There is a darkness in that body, behind those eyes, that allows Ausikifa, son of Seth and Suki, to aid in murder. It's wonderful.

Now, finally, she begins to talk -- despite the fact that her voice is a terrible rasp, thanks to her shortness of breath, the abuse delivered to her neck, and the fresh wounds inflicted to her face. Metallic eyes shifting to Ausikifa, she offers him a slow, methodic smile. "That is where you are wrong," she whispers. "Death sees everything, hears everything, feels everything, and knows everything. It is the most intimate lover of every lion. And it is the ultimate judge. Death will decide how you are remembered." There is a pause, before she wickedly drops, "How foolish of you to not have known." Having abandoned her hysterical movements, Kieleaji instead concentrates on stiffening her body -- for when Zira instructs and the elder is rolled onto her stomach, she then does her best to push all of her legs down into the soil, thus making movement to the shoreline even more difficult.

"Save your breath for when you're underwater," Zira grunts as Jemadari continues tugging the lioness with the help of a couple other leonines down to the river's edge despite the difficulty of her using the mud to her benefit. Finally at the bank, Zira lifts a paw once again to the lioness' skull, pushing down with her paw in an attempt to force the lioness' head below the river's surface.

Sekhmet does her best to help push the lioness towards the water from the end she has, who knew the old bitty had so much strength left her in. A ear twitches as she catches some of what Kie says but she doesn't give it much though. Why would she listion to the words of a soon to be dead lioness? She grunts some while using her weight to try and help keep the lioness from moving about to much. Though she's sure a soon to be drowing lioness will still thrash around a lot.

"And he is your last lover, silver one. Pity that it's pleasure is ours, not yours," whispers the boy into the lioness' ear, sweetly, his breath ruffling her fur briefly before they constant pull against her drags her down towards the water. A snigger slips from his maw and he pulls and tugs with the rest, his claws ocassionally brushing through Kieleaji's fur as a comb might, not drawing blood but allowing him to use those talons nonetheless. Ausikifa's dark gaze focuses upon the aging lioness, not a flicker of pity running through his heart or soul, nor does he care. There is a darkness in that body, behind those eyes, that allows Ausikifa, son of Seth and Suki, to aid in murder. It's wonderful.

She can only struggle so much, and for so long -- and perhaps she even welcomes an event such as this, to some degree. Kieleaji has been tired for a very long time, and here is the respite that she subconsciously desires. "You are too young yet to know what pleasures death can bring to the one who receives it," she murmurs to Ausikifa, before detatching her eyes from him to rather contemplatively view the water. It's a bit of an oddity, after all: born into desert, and dying by water. She actually snorts a laugh at the thought. Silvered eyes pivoting to Zira, she almost amiably says, "Tell Seif that the time to mark his shoulders is here. For the passage of his parents has not come in peace, and such is the tradition of his ancestors." But then, the water is in her nose and face. Ears slick back, her breath stolen as her head is roughly submerged.

The words ignored - Zira's not telling anything to anybody, since as far as she's concerned, this is meant to seem like a suicide - the Queen keeps the lioness' muzzle completely submerged, not allowing for any possibility of air to sneak in through her mouth. As the water splashes up over her paw as well, her face is twisted into a grimace, as though the job of executioner were not hers by choice. She holds Kieleaji's head where it is with the appropriate force to match any final struggles, holding it long enough under to make sure she's past the point of revival.

He'd been on the fringes of the clearing, keeping stealthy watch as the struggle had gone on to shuve Kieleaji's head into the water, he'd waited to see if their voices and the few growls and snarls would draw any attention. Aparently not. The lion now watches from the shadows, ears twisted back and a smug grin settled upon his features. -- He's not alone in the shadows however, but someone else watches, amber eyes ablaze. No one of flesh and bone, but one of the shadows, of where he'd always been at home. The transparent figure shifts his bulky form from paw to paw, his eyes nothing but a glow, nothing the living could see anyway, maybe feel. The vauge outline of an ear twitches, his now younger face, free of the scars, turned into an emotionless glaze as he waits patiently, a slight sadness soon overcoming his amber eyes.

Sekhmet helps Zira hold the lioness still, as best she can that is. A faint rumbling growl escapes her throat while her narrowed gaze rests on the lioness and the water. Tell someone something? Oh please if they did that then the pride would know this wasn't a suicide now wouldn't they? Her tail lashes as she wonders how long it'll take for the lioness to drown. Well, not like she goes around drowing others all the time you know.

She keeps surprisingly still initially -- until, of course, pure instinct overtakes any underlying desires to die. Without any direct instruction from her mind, Kieleaji begins to struggle again as her need for oxygen becomes dire. But with the weight of so many upon her, and with so much physical strain having already been suffered -- her final attempts at freedom are quite feeble. There are a few upward heavings, a handful of limb-twitchings as she tries to lash out. But ultimately, her body falls still, a myriad of final bubbles emerging from her nostrils to burst at the surface. But of course, it is not so simple -- for soon after, unseen by the mauraders, a fresh and young Kieleaji rises away from the battered and crippled body still half-submerged in the river. She totters, dazed and perplexed, glowing silver eyes flashing outward. Yet the only thing that might be perceived by Zira and the others is a gust of distinctly cool wind, there and gone.

Golden, eager eyes flick to Zira as a tongue flicks over a fang. "Can we eat her?" Jemadari enthusiastically asks his queen as he gives the body a smack. "It's /our/ kill, right?"

Once the muscle twitches cease, Zira lifts her paw, moving to grab the lifeless body by the nape of the neck and drag her further into the water, soaking her entire pelt with water before letting her float along the rapids and come to rest with her body halfway on the bank a few yards down. As Zira reemerges from the water, her own fur dripping from her underside and torso, she begins to head south to the Mbaamwezi lands. Jemadari's words are seemingly ignored, the only words issued from the Queen's maw a curt 'Let's go.'

Seth finally leaves the shadows to swagger over to the limp form of Ronan's mate. He glares down at her before scoffing and turning to follow the Mbaamwezian Queen. He turns however, using a paw to smuge any tracks left behind and clear his own until he reaches the grass, turning and slowly catching up with the rest, ears turned backwards. -- The shadow finally emerges, Ronan's shadowy spirit smiling to meet his mate, a sad look to his face. "I'm sorry Kieleaji.." he murmurs, his voice a hushed whisper. He moves to nuzzle her however, pressing against her side, a final happy smile to his face.

Sekhmet makes sure the lioness has infact stopped moving before she lets go. She steps back eyeing the now rather dead and floating lioness as Zira pushes her further into the water. A half glance is offered to Jemadari and a shake of her head offerd while she turns to follow after the Queen.

Unsurprisingly, it takes a few minutes for her to orient herself. It's not every day that one suddenly finds themself dead, after all. Kieleaji -- the young, spirit version -- watched rather curiously as her elderly frame is dragged into the river, and then allowed to ground further down the embankment. And it's as her own corpse comes to it's final resting place that she understands. "I .. I am dead." It's said rather incredulously, before she turns to look after Zira and her departing crew -- and she offers them a parting word that's distinctly un-Kieleaji-like. " .. Punks!" Snorting, and unsure of what to do now, the spirit-lioness turns about .. and finds herself facing her mate. " .. Ronan!" His embrace is welcomed, before her features fold into her classic How-Dare-You expression. "What were you thinking, going off and getting yourself killed! What foolishness! Honestly, Ronan, I expected better of you. And what a mess you made! You never could do anything neatly, you know."

<3

[Yllan]

Good GOD. Saibh is going to DIE when she finds out her mother is gone. x.x