The Hunt (IC)

[Spartan 999]

"No need to tell me again." Sorsa said, already sprinting after Til. Til and the moonbeast came into sight, encouraging Sorsa to run even faster. He drew an old fashioned bolas, whirled it for a second, and threw it. The bolas flew through the air, scraping the side of Til's head before snaring the back two legs of the moonbeast.

[Huka]

Snarling from being nearly hit in the head by flying bolas and forcing the chase to be cut short, but time is precious. "My thanks, Sorsa! You made it much easier to have this beast as another trophy!" Til roared as he jumped through the air with his spear primed on the shrieking beast.

Suddenly, to the young Sangheili's surprise, the moonbeast rolled to the side, barely dodging Til's spearhead at it dug itself deep into the ground.

Roaring, Til watched as the moonbeast rolled and flailed at its legs' bondages till it broke free.

Finally a fair fight, Til left his spear where it was, and grunted. "Come, beast. I want spill your blood personally." He snarled as the beast got itself on four, rearing and hissing in frustation, blood dripping from a wound on its side. Possibly the same from Til's first spear.

The beast's scales shone in the moonlight, its fangs glimmering, and claws grinding on the ground.

Til opened his arms wide as if provoking the beast to wound him.

The beast took the bait just as easily. Pouncing through the air, the moonbeast was a magnificent predator to behold, but Til wasn't scared off.

He was determined to prove his skills!

At the last second, he grabbed one of the beast's arms and neck, and thrown it over his shoulder. Counting to three, he grabbed its passing tail, and swung it hard into a tree.

If close enough, one could hear the crushing of tree bark and wounded scales.

The moonbeast cried and hissed, wounded but alive. Flipping back on its feet, it looked with its multiple eyes to see Til already upon it.

Curling his taloned fingers into a fist, he punched the moonbeast across its beak-like muzzle with all of his might, knocking a couple fangs out, grabbed its moving head, and slammed it hard on his knee.

Catching a muscular arm, Til twisted its wrist, and backhanded its face, but it retaliated quick, raking its other arm's claws upon his face.

Feeling the blood dripping free from the claw wounds that managed to bypass his helmet, Til let go of the moonbeast's arm, and grabbed both sides of the beast's head. Drawing his head back some, he slammed his helmed head into the moonbeast's head, "Is that the best you got!" He roared before throwing it back.

The beast was beaten badly, it was strong and swift, but being in a war college demanding absolute dominance in hand-to-hand combat, Til wasn't no novice.

The moonbeast, dark blood pooling out of its mouth, tried to get up and escape, but Til jumped into the air, and stomped on its spine, feeling it curve under his weight.

Kneeling down, he gripped its head carefully.

"I have defeated my first prey in true combat, may its valiant soul travel to the world beyond this one. As I end its life, may it strengthen my walk to the Great Journey." He prayed before savagely snapped its neck.

Then he let out a chuckle, "I think I over do these battles some times. A kill is a kill, I guess."

[Spartan 999]

"Indeed." Sorsa mused, looking over Til at the dead creature. He knelt down and retrieved his bolas, then coiled it up and holstered it. He scanned the forest, not seeing any movement this time. "I'm going into the trees; keep an eye on the ground."

Sorsa jumped straight up, catching the lowest hanging branch. He pulled himself up, and nimbly scrambled to dissapear into the foliage.

[Huka]

Til watched as Sorsa scaled the trees and disappear ahead. Then he looked down at the Moonbeast's corspe. "I will come back for you when the time is right." He said to himself before retrieving his spear, its tip dulled from the deep impalement early, and went after Sorsa.

He couldn't wait to see Sorsa find a Moonbeast.

[Spartan 999]

Sorsa found a moonbeast several minutes later, directly below him in the tree. It didn't seem to notice Sorsa, but was instead monitoring Til's progress on the ground. The other sangheili stalked to only a few meters from the tree, head looking back and forth. The moonbeast crouched in anticipation, tail flicking from side to side. Sorsa repositioned himself, guessing what the creature would do. It tensed, then leapt at Til, claws extended.

Mid air, the beast was tackled by Sorsa. They fell to the ground with a muffled crunching sound, Sorsa straddling the beast. The spiked tail whipped around, slamming repeatedly into his back. Sorsa caught the tail, holding it in a vice grip. Claws slashed, scratching against the sangheili's armor.

Blood spurted from the moonbeast's snout as Sorsa headbutted it. Stunned, the creature flailed its limbs weakly in an attempt to ward Sorsa off. He grabbed the neck of the moonbeast, exposing the vulnerable chin, and jammed the spike of the tail into the jaw of the beast. Blood cascaded from the wound, drenching Sorsa.

With a snarl, Sorsa pulled his arm back. A blade extended from the gauntlet he was wearing, extending several inches past his knuckles(think Predator). He stabbed the moonbeast in the eye, the tip of the blade piercing through the opposite side of the skull.

The moonbeast's struggle ceased almost instantly, fingers twitching slightly. Satisfied, Sorsa removed his blade and the tail spike from the moonbeast, blood still seeping from the wounds. He stood up, and examined himself. Several long cuts were oozing his own dark blood, but they were mostly superficial. Sorsa cracked his neck, then turned to face Til. "Your turn, I believe."

[Huka]

Clicking a tusk after witnessing Sorsa's swift kill, Til chuckled, and replied, "I do believe it is, my friend. I praise your swift and efficient kill."

Walking ahead, he looked eagerly to further his score. His sharp eyes was looking for any detail that would catch his attention. Then he winced as a gust of cold air hit his wound from early, he should get that dressed soon.

Suddenly he heard a shuffle of leaves. Turning his head, he saw a flash of dark scales and claws lunging for him. Unable to move his entire body, the attacking moonbeast knocked him to the ground roughly.

Growling as his shoulder hit the ground, Til could barely keep the wild beast as it snapped its fanged jaws at his face. Spreading his lower tusks in a challenge, he pushed the beast back enough to move his other arm.

Inhaling, he was fortunate that he was under the weight of the moonbeast, it was more trying to bite his face, putting its weight on him to get closer, leaving him unharmed by its wicked claws or its flailing tail.

With his free hand, Til unsheathed his curveblade, and stabbed its blade into the beast's stomach with all of his present strength.

The moonbeast screamed as the Sangheili's blade and some of his forearm was now lodged into its belly, the most of his blade sticking out of its back.
Til could feel the heat of its innards, scorned in disgust, twisting his arm slowly, watching the moonbeast die, its body stopping, and its hissing ceased.

Seeing that the beast was dead, Til ripped his blade out, and pushed the body aside. Looking down, he saw his cloak was drenched in blood and smelled, making his face cringe, then he looked at his weapon arm and his blade, it was just gory, steam rising from the blood, and the blade was covered with innards.

Raising to his full height, Til ripped his cloak off to reveal his armored form, everything underneath it perfectly clean compared to the rest of him.

He wiped the blood and gore off his arm and short sword, laughing.

Looking at Sorsa, he gave the Sangheilian form of a smile, "I believe we are even now."

[Spartan 999]

"Based solely on kills, yes." Sorsa said, wiping residual blood off his armor. "But for how one killed the beast, I believe that I am ahead in that regard."

[Huka]

"Indeed," Til laughed, holding out his cloak to Sorsa(one he sees as a friend and possible mentor if allowed), "We are even. But you are recongized as the skilled one between us. I wish to learn your skill sometime. I might even join the Special Operations when the time comes for me, but the hunger for knowledge urges me on to ask what is your insightful advice on that, Sorsa?"

[Spartan 999]

As Sorsa opened his mouth to respond, a savage hiss sounded from the forest, followed by several more. "That does not sound good..."

A small pack of moonbeasts emerged from the darkness, surrounding Sorsa and Til. Most were juveniles, but there was one adult. It was massive compared to the others, spines raised in anger, head level with Sorsa's. "Blood of the Forerunners..."

[Huka]

Til back towards Sorsa as he looked at the surrounding beasts with a nervous smirk, "By the Gods indeed." Pulling out one of his last two spears, he held that in one hand and his curveblade in the other, Til chuckled and asked as he eyed at his targets, "Finally a challenge, would you agree?"

[Spartan 999]

"Yes." Sorsa growled, swords drawn and extended. "Now let's try not to die, hm? I still wish to bring some trophies home."

The adult moonbeast snarled, and pounced.

[Huka]

"Indeed!" Til agreed as he watched the Alpha and some of its young attack. Using all of his strength, he slammed his spear across the faces of three mid-air moonbeasts, knocking them off their course, and watching his spear literally explode into shards, leaving only the lower half intact. Looking to the Alpha, he screamed to Sorsa, "Move!"

[Spartan 999]

Sorsa dodged the Alpha, bringing his swords across to slash its flank. One bounced off, the other carved a small furrow into the armor. The tail whipped around, crashing into Sorsa. He was hurled through the air and crunched into a tree. Sliding to the ground, the Alpha stomped on top of him when he tried to get up. He extended a spear and stabbed the Alpha in the vulnerable underbelly. It roared, tail coming around again.

The tail thudded into the tree beside Sorsa's head, luckily getting stuck in the process. Sorsa rolled away, claws right behind him. He flipped up, stabbing an incoming beast with the spear. It slumped to the ground, blood pooling. The Alpha pulled its tail from the tree, roaring furiously. Sorsa knelt down to retrieve his swords, then met the Alpha's charge head on.

[Huka]

Slamming the back of his fist across a Moonbeast's face, making it spin around on its front legs, Til roared as he stabbed the remainder of his spear into the back of its neck, severing its spine in the progress.

Another jumped at his side, but that didn't hinder Til's bloodlust as he sliced its neck with his curveblade. A third jumped on his back, bit at his neck, but-thank the gods-its fangs only came in contact with his pauldron.

"Sneaking wretch!" He roared as he stabbed his curveknife back into its skull. Seeing a fourth moonbeast rush at him, Til thrown his previous kill across the air, slamming its corspe into the attacker, leaving his knife in its head.

Ripping a pair of his throwing daggers from their bandolier, he twirled them in his hand, as he eyed at the multiple Moonbeasts that crept around him.

"Lucky Sorsa. He have the real prize." He growled as the next Moonbeast charged at him.

[Spartan 999]

Sorsa was thrown around yet again, thudding into the ground. The Alpha was far stronger than he, and just as quick. He feigned exhaustion, stumbling slightly. The Alpha approached slowly from behind, teeth bared. When it got close enough, Sorsa whirled around to slash at the face of the Alpha. He managed to slice an eye and cut the snout. The Alpha slashed him with its claws, ripping off his helmet and his chest piece. The tail came around again, and slammed into Sorsa.

As Sorsa flew through the air yet again, he sighed in his head as he crashed to the ground. The Alpha was in the air behind him, claws out. He stuck a spear in the ground and rolled, but the Alpha was too close to avoid the spear. It was impaled on the spear, the tip extending from its back. It screeched in agony, squirming on the spear.

Sorsa approached the dying Alpha, and ended its pain by lobbing off the meter long head. A fitting trophy, if he survived the night.

[kartoffelfogel]

Legra watched the two Sangheili defeat almost an entire pack of Moonbeasts on their own. They were truly worthy warriors of Sanghelios.

And they had just about committed suicide.

They had killed the pack's Alpha--and Legra knew what was to come next. The ba'knwa were not dangerous unless provoked, and the killing of the Alpha male was definitely a provocation.

Crouched in a tree, he leaped down, severing a young moonbeast's spine in a single fell swoop, the curved edge of the blade pricking through the scales.

The moonbeasts reacted fiercely at the death of many of their comrades. A high keening swirled about the forest.

Legra walked over to Sorsa, and knocked the Alpha's head out of his hands.

"Do you know what you have done!?!"

The keening intensified.

"Moonbeasts are only dangerous if they are provoked! And you have struck down their Alpha! They will becomes as strong as Mgalekgolo and fast as Kig-Yar!"

The keening grew even stronger.

"You think that the Alpha was a difficult kill? What do you think you are hunting? Scorpions? Wolves?"

The moonbeasts all took a step back, and the keening grew to an unearthly howl.

"I myself lost my father to the wrath of the moonbeasts--to the wrath of their greatest leader!"

Seeing that his companions were not reacting, he bellowed at them:

"The ba'knwa are matriarchal! And they are calling their Queen!"

The moonbeasts screamed, and far away, their tumult called their Queen.

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City of Ascended Obelisk, Four-Moon High
www.-WEBSITE LINK NOT PERMITTED!-.com/gallery/Chronicler-of-Mahar/HaloRPGpics/ascended_obelisk.png[/img]


The Magistrate held her head in her hands. Next to her, the Huntsmaster, Ktas 'Adantai, stood, his head bowed.

"What does this mean? A Queen has been called?"

"Yes." 'Adantai's tones were solemn, the words escaping his mandibles softly.

"But how? We have not ordered an Alpha Pursuit!" The Magistrate wheeled her chair to face him.

"Our Observitor cameras have picked out a single party of Sangheili who have succeeded in killing an Alpha and many of its pack."

The Magistrate leaned back in her chair. This was shocking news. How had a single party of Sangheili done this?

"Who?" she croaked.

"I ran a search, and identified the Minor Til 'Muramee, a young warrior recently graduated with flying colors from the Academy, and Legra 'Adantee, a Major and a cousin."

"Who else?"

"I ran a search on the last individual, and was denied access. Whoever he is, he is beyond my security clearance."

The Prophet leaned back again in her chair. This last individual could only be a Special Operator. It would displease her superiors if, through carelessness, she had allowed such an individual to be killed hunting.

"Huntsmaster!" she cried loudly, as if he was standing a kilometer away instead just in front of her. "Quick! Gather a posse! You cannot allow these warriors to be killed!"

[Spartan 999]

Sorsa looked down at Legra, eyes narrowed. A Queen...interesting turn of events. And not for the best. "How do we fight the Queen?" Sorsa asked, retrieving all of his spears. "And I assume we have to fight, because even the juveniles are faster that us."

[Huka]

Til, after hearing Legra's news, looked about. As the cries shrieked through the forest, it felt like his hearts fell into a dark, deep pit.

This Queen,

He could tell already,

The Queen of the ba'knwa is a beast of unknown terror. This world's devil.

Quickly recovering his curveblade and any other suitable blade from the corspes of his kills, Til drew back towards Legra and Sorsa, mostly concentrated on the horrid screaming rather than his comrades' conversation.

He never felt like this before. Never truly afraid, the last time he felt like this was during his first hunt for the Dune Crawlers back home.

"What do we do?" He asked with widened eyes, looking to Legra and Sorsa for any kind of answer with a heavy swallow to quench his parched throat. "I feel her wrath in the very air."

[kartoffelfogel]

"Queens are not normally angered, and are generally only brought out for the climax of the hunt, as the seven moons begin to conjoin."

Legra said, answering Til, as the moonbeasts shrieked around them.

"The Huntsmaster or the Magistrate generally issues an Alpha Pursuit. Killing an Alpha often brings out the Queen."

"But it appears as if you've done so without the help of a fully armed Pursuit. You truly are a capable warrior: the question is whether you are capable enough."

Legra raised his blade.

"Let us first deal with these juveniles. Then we shall await the Queen--perhaps, if we are swift, we may ambush it."

So saying, he dived for one of the moonbeasts, his blade describing a massive arc.

[Huka]

Til inhaled thinking what his uncle told him once;

In the time a Sangheili tastes fear, one can harness to strength. Fear is a distaste source, but transform it to a channel to survive, rage, power. A warrior's greatest ally is his heart.

Focusing his mind, he felt the chill of that distaste warm up to a powerful and primal feeling that he have felt a moment ago. The rage of being afraid, that rage will strengthen him to move onward.

Looking to Sorsa, he nodded, and charged into battle as well.

[Spartan 999]

"So be it." Sorsa growled. He extended his swords with dual shwinging sound, using them to disembowel and decapitate a moonbeast behind him. He seemed to fly over the ground as he rushed the moonbeats, roaring his mightiest battle cry. Once he entered the melee, it became apparent why he was a swordsman.

Sorsa became a dervish of metal, blood splashing onto the ground. He dipped, ducked, and dodged the claws, tails, and teeth of the beasts. He retaliated in kind, with a whiring fan of blood drenched swords.

[kartoffelfogel]

The juvenile's head parted from its body in a flurry of blood.

Often, the ba'knwa had to be hunted, chased. No longer.

Another moonbeast leapt, and was torn in two.

Legra roared. His battle rage grew.

He proceeded to throw another moonbeast over his shoulder. Another was run through.

And the battle was just beginning.

[Huka]

Til slashes a moonbeast through the mouth with his curveblade, cutting its jaw in half, and slammed his armored fist on its head viciously. Snarling, he readily stabbed into of its many comrades' skull, but in his attack, several moonbeasts pounced on him. Roaring in dismay, he elbowed one in the face, stabbed a second in the eyes with his metal talons, and kicked a third in the chest, knocking it back several feet. Despite his fighting, he was kept down by the weight on him.

[kartoffelfogel]

Legra rushed over to Til. He swung his curveblade in a whirling arc, and as the moonbeasts hissed and spat at him, he kicked one off Til and batted the others away with his sword. Suddenly, more of the arrived, all giving the same high-pitched yowl that would call their Queen.

His mind in a panic, he frantically assessed the situation. Although most hunters had to struggle to find moonbeasts, suddenly they were surrounded by them. Predator had become prey--hunters the hunted. He wheeled about to face Til.

"Quick, my friend! Stand! The other hunters must surely hear this tumult! We must simply hold on!"

OOC: The fight, or flight, will go on until Monkey gets his profile RE-approved and he leads a rescue party.

[Spartan 999]

(Ooc: Gotcha)

There were too many, even Sorsa and his dual blades were making little headway. Still, that didn't stop him. A massive tail bloomed in his vision, giving him a split second to realize-whack!

When Sorsa landed a meter from his comrades, he realized two more Alphas had led the charge for a new pack...and one had slammed its tail into the Special Operator. He rose to his feet, stumbling a little. When he regained his balance, he did so just in time to bisect a smaller beast and behead another. Just then, lead Alpha stiffened, making the quills on its back poke forward, and somehow fired them. They thudded into Sorsa's armor, one penetrating at his stomach. "That's new..."

[Huka]

(OOC: Understood)

Til flipped to his feet, exhaled heavily, "I will gladly fight to the end, my friend." He said to legra as he brandished his last spear, this one was different from the others; it had a metallic grip in the middle of its wooden shaft and a waving blade on one end and a straight short blade on the other.

Seeing another Alpha attack Sorsa, he growled, and charged in to assist.

[kartoffelfogel]

Legra looked in horror as the razor-sharp bone quill stabbed into Sorsa. The wound did not look bad, but Legra knew better...

...an Alpha leads and disciplines its pack with the use of poison spines.

He gave a gasp and turned once more to Til.

"Til! Quick! Hold them off! Seek not to kill, but to sting and disorientate!"

He turned to his wounded comrade, blurting out words in a panic. "Sorsa! Can you run, or walk? Do you feel an odd, almost pleasant numbness?"

OOC: They can fire quills now? Awesome. Let's make them poisonous too.

[Spartan 999]

OOC: I was thinking just the Alpha's and Queen would be able to launch them. Sound good?

Sorsa rolled from another volley, stopping in front of Legra.

"Why do I always get the big ones!?" Sorsa growled, then realized Legra had said something. "What? Uh..yeah, little bit numb. But why-" He looked at his wound, seeing a dark orange liquid mixing with his blood. "Offspring of a demon... Poison, isn't it?" At Legra's frantic nod, Sorsa sighed, shoulders drooping.

A wave of dizziness overcame Sorsa, and he clutched onto Legra for support. "I don't suppose the symptoms include lightheadedness? And drowsiness?"

[Huka]

(ooc: things are getting better and better. Awesome fight)

Til roared as he sliced a moonbeast's arm off with his snake-blade and impaled another in the face with his smaller end. As he began to be accustomed with his more battle-accustomed weapon, he was a impressive blur of blades as he whirled his staff with calculated strikes and parries.

In his flurry of attack, he moved with acrobatic agility that seemed like a bladed whirlwind to the naked eye.

Slicing the front of a Moonbeast's head off, he kicked the Alpha across its face, puncturing one of its eyes, and blackflipping off its roaring form, landing infront of Legra and Sorsa.

"I have your back, brothers. I-I can't keep this up for long though." Til said with controlled breathing, looking at the crawling Moonbeasts that weren't attacked by his onslaught.

Rarely to do he use his more acrobatically techniques due to it draining his stamina quickly. He pray help come soon.

[kartoffelfogel]

OOC: The Alphas can launch them. I have something special in mind for the Queen.

Legra looked at Sorsa's wound, keeping down his fear. It would not do for a Sangheili to feel fright.

...and yet, the wound was bad. The quill had hit him square in the abdomen, meaning that not even a tourniquet would stop the poisoned blood from flowing through Sorsa's veins. Even the fiercest warrior could be brought down by a single quill...

He turned, and shifted his weight to accommodate Sorsa's bulk. "Yes, it is poison; and light-headedness and drowsiness... I've not seen those effects before..."

For a space of a moment, he pondered it, and then the truth struck him.

"You are an off-worlder! There is no telling how you might react to the poison! It may kill you, or it may not. It is not like the poisons of the beasts of Sangheili; for the ba'knwa venom is different for each Sangheili, and effects are only similar among those of the same family or clan."

"There is an antidote, easily synthesized: but I must be given time to search for it." he said, the wrods coming out in a stream. "But first, we must minimize the poison's impact. The quills of an Alpha come with something similar to an anesthetic, or perhaps it acts more like a tranquilizer in your blood. Most warrior's don't notice it immediately."

Having muttered the previous words in a single breath, while Til battled the moonbeasts, Legra drew in air, filling his lungs. He had to act now.

"The quill takes time to deliver its full range of power."

Best do it now, he thought. Surprise him and get it over with.

"This will hurt."

So saying, he sheathed his sword, and gripped the quill that protruded out of Sorsa's stomach.

He pulled.