Blacktail Deer Plateau Moose Battle

Bored, please join :)

Two sets of moose tracks left a winding path through the trees. One belonged to a yearling calf, while the larger tracks were left by its mother as they walked side by side. The hunter moved through the trees at an easy trot, leaving his own prints behind in the melting snow. Koda had been tracking the pair all day, and the sun was beginning to slip behind the horizon. Moose were constantly on the move during the day, but soon they would stop for the night.

A pile of fresh droppings was the first clue that he was closing in on them. Koda sniffed the poop, and curled his lip back in disgust. It was reeking of sickness, whoever left this mess wasn't feeling so good. There was an advantage to being a predator in the winter months. The harsh weather and lack of food helped kill their prey for them. He moved on, feeling slightly more confident with this new information.

Koda found the pair bedded down in a thicket of alders, the calf keeping watch as his mother napped. The hunter positioned himself downwind of their location observed them as he thought out his next move. The cow's labored breathing seemed to indicate that she was the sick one. More good news, hopefully she wouldn't be able to put up too much fight. Still, he wasn't going to be able to take the calf alone.

He howled for backup, hoping it would come in the form of able-bodied men. Dante or Finn came to mind. As far as he knew, they were both still pissed at him, but surely they'd be able to set aside their differences in the name of food.

i've been neglecting poor finny omg i suck -- also heyyy

[size=medium]"If I had a heart you're the one who should break it"[/size]

[size=small]It could not be denied that during the past few weeks, Finn had been nothing but a ghost in the Plateu. And while the reason that lied behind his recent inactiveness in the pack could not be justified he made really no attempt to do it anyways. Unless it was Dante or Lasher who questioned him, he'd lean towards the silence. Maybe, it had been the cold stiffness of the last weeks of Winter (which he had realized was perhaps his least favorite season) what had caused his stillness, or maybe the mere fact that, again, the monotony of life in the Plateu was consuming him and threatening to damage his rebellious soul.

And while the invernal months had not seen much of his crazy stunts, as the fading snow and the sprouting grasses announced it was time for rebirth.
Time to make up for, ironically, the lost time.
He just needed to know how to begin.

Go fuck up some shit in the neighbouring forests?
Or go fight a bratty Silvertip wolf again?
He was silently beginning to plot all sorts of wreckage-related actions he could perform in the forests (and have a bonus points if they were near Silvertip's borders) when the call for a much more interesting plan reached his ears.
With his lips molding into his signature crooked grin, the Ollivander saved his malicious scheming for later and began to trot in the direction of Koda's call.
A hunt, even if he wasn't particularly hungry at the moment, always sounded like a good plan -- especially if what you sought was to let off steam.


Soon, his olive eyes spotted the male, seemingly still alone and waiting for companionship -- which the Ollivander was more than happy to provide. Unlike many, if not all of those thathad witnessed Koda's sexist rant in the past pack hunt, Finn was not remotely pissed at him. He did not agree with the words he had said or the way he had handled everything (especially since it was his hosted hunt) but neither did he make a point, or effort in calling him out. Dante had already done so, and honestly, when internal conflict regarded Finn had already learnt it was best to keep at margin.
After having dealt with Junior's idiocy, he preferred not to take sides --or at least not vocally.

"Hey man" he woofed softly as he approached, briefy nudging the man's shoulder before taking a moment to assess the situation.
Almost inmediately he was greeted by the foul odor of the animal's fecal matter.
Wasn't this supposed to be a hunt?, he thought silently scrunching up his nose in distaste as he questioned himself if he would really want to eat or feed the pack with the meat of such a rancid-smelling animal..
[/size]

[size=xx-small]*plays horn* Lupa here! :3 Was I allowed to join? .-.[/size]



She was walking around the quiet wood for awhile now. She had taken a day off, relived from her usual duties. She wanted to give her all to her new Pack. She wanted to earn their trust, feel respected by her piers. She had only been hunting small prey, mostly rabbits and squirrels, but she didn't give a fuss. In these harsh times, the more prey the merrier. Her ears pricked up as she heard a howl cut through the air calling for some kind of help. Happily and cheerfully, she ran over, quietly and swiftly, towards the sound. When she had arrived, there was Koda and a silvery male she had never seen. She nodded at Koda and looked across to the mother and her calf. Her mouth watered and her fur prickled in anticipation. She bent down lower to the ground and whispered as quiet as the whistling wind, "What's our target?" She was very excited for her first hunt with her new Pack. She struggled to contain herself and keep a serious image. It reminded her of her first ever Pack hunt with her siblings. It made her glow in pride when she knew that she was helping out her Pack. She would give this her all.

Thanks for joining guys :) Let's kill some moose!

Koda continued to watch his prey as he waited for backup from his pack mates. His howl had awakened the sleeping mother, who got to her feet and stood protectively in front of her frightened calf. The animal bellowed, lowered her head and raised her hackles at the wolf in warning. Recognizing the danger, Koda retreated to avoid provoking a charge. With a comfortable buffer zone between them, the beast calmed down, but never took her eyes off the lurking wolf. Apparently, she wasn't very sick after all. Maybe she'd just eaten something bad.

It was then that Finn came on to the scene. Koda was pleased to see him, his fellow gamekeeper had been a valuable asset during the last pack hunt, even landing the killing blow. He greeted the man with a nod, but did not return his friendly nudge. Koda was loath to touch another man; he was afraid one might misinterpret the friendly action as something more.

"Hey Finn, glad you could make it," said Koda.

Lupa showed up shortly after, looking eager to join in. Koda had met her not long ago and thought her a nice, pleasant girl. Under any other circumstance he would have been happy to see her, but this was a dangerous hunt and he still wasn't convinced that females had the killer instincts needed to be hunters. But, he'd promised Kesuk he would stop treating women like they were weak, and so he greeted Lupa with a nod

"We're going for the calf," he answered. Their target chosen, Koda began outlining a strategy. "We'll surround them. Finn and I will focus on leading the mother away from the calf." The idea was to use themselves as bait, to give the angry moose something to chase while someone else rushed in to attack the calf. It was a dangerous part to play, one that demanded quick reaction. Too slow, and you'd be trampled to death.

He decided to assign the less dangerous role to Lupa. "Lupa, you focus on killing the calf. Jump in and attack whenever you see an opening. Stay clear of the mother."

He thought he'd done a decent job explaining himself, but he decided to make sure everyone understood their roles. "Any questions?"

also, please don't take any of Koda's homophobic/sexist thoughts personally

sorry sorry sorry ;_; i was busy

With his eyebrows arching in a throughtful way, the Ollivander tried to make out whether the rancid smell coming off the animal's feces was attributed to disease -- as he had originally thought and feared -- or if it was perhaps just the product of a bad meal as Koda interpreted it.
Quickly, he turned to face the male again, the relaxed smile dangling from his lips suggesting that he had not been in the least, offended or affected by the man's refusal to nudge him back. The gesture, had been at most ignored, because while Finn shared his apprehension towards same sex partners he did not however share the disgust the man seemed to have.
He did not share many things, but one he did share and did matter, currently, was his desire to hunt.

Soon after the man, in his own way, returned his greeting the soft steps of an approaching wolf made Finn's ears twist around. The pale wolf that now awaited besides them was one the Ollivander was not familiar with, yet that did not stop the platinum male from making her feel less welcome. 
Contrasting with Koda's sharp, dull response towards her question, Finn waved his tail with glee, welcoming her silently as the manin charge of the hunt, Koda, proceeded to lay out the logistics.

"Let's get 'em" he barked at last, his head bouncing as he shook his head no and took a glance at the unsuspecting mother and child. 

  She had been picked for the lowest of jobs. Typical. But soon enough the Pack would see her as a strong and noble fighter. She nodded her head in agreement. "Sounds good." Her ears folded onto her skull as she silently moved, circling around the mother and child a couple of times.

  She stopped in the back of the pair, her eyes narrowed and her tail stiff. She silently awaited for the two to lead the mother away.

it's ok :) let's make the rounds short and get this done quick cuz I'm probs getting kicked out soon

After receiving confirmation that everyone understood their roles, Koda led his little band into battle. His paws ripped up the dirt and his proud tail waved like a banner as he raced toward the pair of moose.

As Lupa circled around the prey, Koda rushed at the mother, fangs flashing as he snapped his jaws viciously. The beast turned toward him, lowered her head and charged. The huntsman nimbly evaded the moose's thrashing limbs, and kept her attention on him for a few precious seconds, allowing Lupa an opportunity to jump in and attack the unguarded calf.

Finally, the speaking part of it all was over.
After the roles and plans had bee established and the targeted objective had been cautiously chosen the three wolves began to move. Koda's tail rose slowly as he took the lead and Finn, accepting the male's leadership in the activity, began to fall behind him, his own tail swishing in rythmn as they approached.

As they moved along, like a perfectly coordinated, well-oiled machine, Finn had a sudden urge to take off first and land the initial blow of the ambush.. However he contained his impulse, knowing better than to ruin Koda's desire to deliver the inagurating strike. Which came to Finn's opinion at the most precise instant, when the mother had lowered its head and turned its eyes from the defenseless fawn.

It was then that Finn knew that it was ow time for his entrance.
Using his hind legs as his propeller the silver male leaped out towards the bucking animal, his quick feet trying to get him close enough to nip at the ankles yet far enough to avoid getting a hoof stamped on his forehead.
This was now Lupa's job.
Their dangerous dance with the kicking animal was her cue, and as Finn ducked and evaded the erratic kicks of the doe he could only hope she did her job.

Slight pp to finish off the thread, since Lupa is inactive. Last post.

Finn and Koda managed to corral the cow away from her calf, now all that was left was for Lupa to rush in and deliver the killing blow. But she took no action, and stood frozen in place as if too afraid to jump in. Koda shouted at his pack mate from within the fray, hoping to spur her into action. "Lupa! Now!"

But their window of opportunity had closed. The moose broke free of the wolves and stood protectively over her calf, using her own body to shield her offspring from harm. Though they were both skilled gamekeepers, Koda and Finn were unable to break the beast's stalwart defense. Two wolves were just not enough to take on an adult moose.

Seeing the futility of their struggle, Koda called off the attack. The wolves pulled back, allowing the mother and child to escape. After the pair had disappeared, the gray hunter turned to his two comrades. "Can't win 'em all," he said with a shrug. He tried to play it cool, but the loss was hitting him hard, especially because it would have been a victory if Lupa had done her part. "Maybe next time," he added with a forced smile before turning to leave.

'See? This is exactly what I was fucking talkin' about,' Koda grumbled to himself as he trotted briskly through the trees. 'A woman just can't do a man's job.'