In the clouds above he had curiously followed their paths, knowing he was more than welcome to join them on the earth, but feeling more comfortable in the sky. From his vantage point Kaj could spot any threats before they could, and was more than able when it came to taking them out. They'd spoken of exploring for a while, Resplendence being more hesitant than Kahlua, and of course the gentlemanly Quilyan followed wherever his beloved went. Kaj didn't know why he came, after all Resplendence was more than safe with Quilyan around. Perhaps he was wanting an escape from the Edge, or just something to occupy his mind? It was relaxing, watching them like a circling hawk with the friendliness of a sparrow, keeping them safely in his sights from the heavens. Time passed so quickly when one was floating on invisible air currents, the trust of his natural instincts nearly lulling him into a dreamlike state. When he shook himself awake, the trees had thickened too much for him to see more than glimpses of each singular hide, and Kaj frowned, worried. Surely nothing had happened since he could still see all of them in flashes of branch gaps, but it didn't sit well with him that they were gone from sight.

Folding his wings he let his weight and gravity work together to bring him towards the earth, flaring out to let his walkers make contact with the ground in a harsh, discordant way. He's lost sight of them, even from the ground. Tension plays along his shoulders, muscles rippling as they cord up anxiously, and there's hardly a second's pause before he is striding forward as fast as he can without actually running. Should he run into them, he doesn't want to seem paranoid. Maybe that was his worst mistake.

Their scents are strong and fresh, and he hears voices very, very faintly. Tracking them isn't difficult, it was one of the roles all males had to learn in his homeland, but his relief is strong enough to breathe a sigh into the cooling air. He's just glad they're close enough to be heard. Chatter must mean they're okay, he reasons as he begins to slow a little. That was his second mistake.

Screams pierce his ears like a knife, and though he experiences none of it his body ripples with agony, because oh Gods he knows the beautiful souls those awful sounds are coming from. And suddenly he's moving, though he doesn't remember it, doesn't even recall taking that first step that shoved him into a sprint. Ears are pinned so far to his neck they've disappeared in his mane, eyes sharp like ice daggers, neck arched and nostrils flaring as he pushes his body faster, faster, faster because the screams aren't stopping and even if it costs him in blood and life he will kill whatever is causing them.

The hole is only immediately obvious because of the entrance of the three others, and Kaj knows somewhere in the back of his mind that he should heed the age-old warning to 'look before you leap', but his heart rules his mind, and he would sooner be stuck at the bottom of that damnable well than let his beloved friends suffer. The slope is slick and hard to navigate, wings cramped and scraping harshly against the grainy walls, but the pain only thickens the roaring of blood in his ears. The lion had broken free of any docile chains that had once restrained it, and with fangs bared it thirsted for blood, ready to protect its kin at the cost of its life.

All at once the cavern bursts open, and predatory icy blue eyes take in everything at once, old instincts and battle memories fresh in his mind, blotting out all awareness of time aside from his time as a soldier and the present. Kahlua and Resplendence are incapacitated, and though he normally would have run to them, he is in battle mode, and instead zones in on Quilyan. He is fiercely engaged in a battle with a shadowy traitor, whose voice seeps out like a poisonous miasma. From his throat echoes a scream of challenge, as fierce as he can manage, and he is so bloodthirsty that nearly everything goes black around him. His hooves pound the floor like a vengeful Poseidon, shaking the earth in the tremors of his challenging bellow. Like an archangel he flares his wings as he passes the girls, completely bypassing Quilyan as if he is invisible. Now, there is only the desire to punish, rend, destroy. Murder.

Dark hooves lift into the air, teeth bared and open, ready to bite down upon either the jugular or crown of this demonic fool. Forelegs strike for his opponent's right knee, no longer playing nice. This was no spar with a herdbrother. This was no reminder to an invader that he was strong. This was a battle meant for death. Kaj would either walk away victorious or not walk away at all. There were no other options. He is thunder too close to home, lightning setting a fire ablaze on a hot night, blood streaming down a wounded hide, the silent promise of extended claws. He is the avenger, the protector. This is his heart ripping from his ribcage, opening wide like some sick and gruesome butterfly, displaying the brutality that had always been tucked away beneath an exterior of kindness. He will shake the cavern with his rage, stain it with the blood of the bastard that drew forth such horrific screams, and leave it to weep in shock as the lifeblood rains off his coat like acidic downpour. This is the lion Ink had seen upon his entrance to Helovia and the Edge. This was the real WingLeader, the beast behind the lamb. As his hooves touch earth he aims to shove his left shoulder into the brute, preferably into the magma that glows behind him, and simultaneously slams his wing down towards the dark, twisted face. If he can stun and blind him during the shove, he can get the advantage. Teeth now free after his attack, landed or not, he roars into the bastard's ear, ready to fight dirty and cheap to win and become champion for the helpless dames he values so dearly.

"YOU WILL DIE HERE!"

He is no longer Kaj. The world has fallen away and in his place stands a devil of celestial bronze with eyes of electric vengeance, mindless and with a thirst for the blood of the threat to his family.