Ki'irha

When your time comes to die, be not like those whose hearts are filled with fear of death. Sing your death song, and die like a hero going home.


The blue remained stoic, as always. Other than a coy smile or a flicked tail, she was not one to wear her heart on her sleeve. She did not allow the haunted stallion to wear on her. Plenty of stallions throughout her life were convinced they knew more than she due to the anatomy that dangled vulnerably between their legs. They were convinced she was a pretty face playing soldier, a girl who belonged off of the battlefront to nurse injured warriors back to health, to cheer joyously at the sidelines, to be won and courted by brutish displays of brawn and strength. She had all of the motivation she would ever need for a lifetime. What motivated her wasn't anger, or resentment, or even proving all those stallions wrong. It was her pride that pushed her into battle, kept her fire burning, encouraged her to put every ounce of her being into each blow. He was one more face in a crowd, another ghost whose words would fade away like the changing of fall into winter.

He kicked and lashed out as she pursued him. His hindquarters hopped up, and as she pulled away he still managed to clip her lower jaw. Her teeth were already clapped together, so the assault merely forced her head upwards. The blue fell back, slowing, chewing the air as she ensured nothing was broken or bleeding. The hurt in her chin lingered, but not for long. She elongated her strides as she watched him slip away, trying to catch up, until he nearly careened into a tree.

The way the brute was built would make Ki'irha believe he was an agile thing, but his clumsiness in avoiding the tree and the river seemed to prove her wrong. As he dashed into the ruby waters, she managed to slide to a halt at the frosted bank. The water churned and frothed angrily, forced by the current to change and flow seemingly against its will. Water was unpredictable, and the ruby-littered floor surely would not help with footing as one fought against both an opponent and the tide. She was not stupid, and knew that taking their spar into the river was a dangerous idea. It wasn't that Ki'irha was afraid. She craved danger and adrenaline, fed off of the bloodlust and tactics that came with battle and it's ever-changing components. But still, she knew better than to plunge into untested rapids.

She scowled, unimpressed in the slightest. "Get out of the water, you fool. You'll catch your death from hypothermia or drowning. And I certainly am not following you, or testing my chances against the ice for a mere spar."

She considered simply walking away and leaving him to freeze in the icy water. But she was stubborn, and believed he would assume to be the better warrior should she call a truce. She looked around, seeking a better option thank joining him, and her silver gaze fell upon the trunk of the tree Nox had gracelessly luckily avoided. She followed the curves in the bark, looking at the length of the tree as it reached upwards into a frozen canopy that reached out over the water. The boughs were coated thinly in ice, appearing like frosted lace, and some held remnants of soft snow across their length. Some held twinkling icicles along their undersides, which caught beams of light and made them appear to glow.

How convenient.

She turned her haunches towards and kicked. Again and again she beat her rear hooves against the tree, and each jolt loosened the icy sheaths of the branches. The thin pieces fell towards the blackened stag, and the snow wafted down in an obscuring flurry. Ki'irha knew the ice wasn't heavy nor sharp enough to cause any real damage, but between the ice and the mini-blizzard, it was sure enough to hinder him, and cloud his sight. Several small icicles, though not large enough to kill, could certainly cut and slice if they found their mark. Once content with the dumping of the load, she sprang forward, horn bared and eager, bracing herself at the edge of the water. She considered he may come ploughing out of the river, in which case he would come meet her defensive stance, and they would continue the spar appropriately. If not, she would need to further her plan, and perhaps she would need to join him in the water. For a moment she envisioned the water turning even more crimson than it already was, and she smiled.

Either way, she was waiting and ready.
_______________________
Talk
WC:: 765
Attack Post 2/3
Setting:: Blood Falls in the morning. Clear sky, chilly weather. They're by the river in a small clearing surrounded by trees. The river is knee-deep where they are.
Summary:: His bunny hop is successful, and he bumps her chin leaving several minutes of pain.  Ki'irha refuses to follow him into the water. Instead, she kicks the trunk of the tree by the river that Nox avoided, and shakes loose thin pieces of ice, a flurry of snow, and several small icicles. She then braces herself by the water with her horn directed towards him, and waits.
@Mortuus Nox  ~