Round Stone Crest A Soldier On My Own, I Don't Know The Way

OOC: PP with permission!

Moraxia seemed to feed off of the very same energy in the air, and Raela found herself appreciating the woman's light-hearted reaction. She was still very sure that her decision to bring in this new recruit had been a good one. With a tongue as quick and playfully cutting as her own, the challenge was accepted with zeal. The words themselves dug at her somewhere deep down, but she swallowed it. It was nothing but a tease as she herself had given. Nothing more. Yet it was hard to not feel the tinge after a life of hearing the same thing spoken seriously. Nevertheless she moved past it with a continued smile.  All of a sudden the situation was real, and still the older woman felt much less fear here than she did with Gent or Aeus. Moraxia was new; distant in relation to her compared to the others. There was less pressure to look good in front of her, and since the air felt of nothing but good-natured sport, it put the normally frazzled female at relative ease. She grinned back with an inquisitive lifting of one brow. She'd have to be swift; have to keep her body out of the woman's reach for as long as possible or it would be game over. She could feel that the other woman wanted to make the first move; her body practically radiated with the building tension as the moment of conflict neared. Raela's sharp golden eyes were trained on her adversary as Moraxia's hulking form abruptly left the ground and barreled ahead.  Fully ready and prepared for the attack she danced to the side; but didn't find herself predicting the body-slam. Instead of teeth or legs she collided roughly with shoulder, stumbling to the side as the would-be guardian swung past. An idea clicked into place behind her glimmering eyes, and she lashed out. Her teeth closed squarely and tightly around the mammoth's tail, and Raela gave it a good tug more out of mischievousness than a desire to wound or to win. The smile on her face was broad as her eyes flicked upward in preparation for Moraxia's imminent and certain retaliation. She found herself wanting to chuckle a bit at her successful jeer.  Image © Chris Smith Photography Manipulation © Jenandra

(This post was last modified: Sep 24, 2015, 06:10 PM by Raela.)

            

The woman had predicted her attack, dancing slightly to the side as Moraxia hurled herself toward her. Clipping Raela with her shoulder, a breath of intense relief passed—right up until the moment she felt a tug upon her tail. Teeth now fully barred, she spun to face Raela in an instant, letting the wolf’s jaws to remain tightly locked around her tail. The taunt mid-fight was joyful but infuriating to Moraxia, knowing she would have to step up her game in order to prove herself to this woman who was carelessly making jokes. The red-backed wolf shot her a glare of pure annoyance, considering how the lighthearted mood had suddenly turned extremely competitive in Moraxia’s mind. Seeing the harmless, teasing smile on Raela’s face reminded her to maintain her best behavior.

Returning a smile of sheer confidence, she let out a low growl. As quickly as she turned, she was leaping again into the air towards Raela; jaws parted open as her teeth aimed for the scruff of the wolf’s neck. The female’s powerful legs propelled her at maximum force in the direction of her target.

If the canine remained ahold of her tail, the exposed skin of her scruff would be perfect for knocking her down. If Moraxia succeeded in planting her jaws firmly around the woman’s skin, careful not to hurt her, she would use her weight to overcome the smaller wolf and dislodge her defensive stance or perhaps even knock her down. Raela was definitely a worthy competitor in Moraxia’s eyes, and she couldn’t help but enjoy every second of their good-spirited spar.

(This post was last modified: Oct 06, 2015, 12:02 AM by Moraxia.)

OOC: Spar 2/3

The look on Moraxia's face at first surprised her a little, but as soon as it melted into a smile her concern vanished. It was irritating to be sure; to have another make a joke out of the first few moves of a fight. Still, she hoped that the fact that it was just a joke, would stick. Moraxia meant business, and now Raela would have to as well. Rae returned the growl with a high-pitched rumbling of her own and a toss of her head with the female's tail still held tight. When the other wolf moved, Raela's grip pulled her along. The huge woman was now barreling toward her, and sure to land a hit. Hurriedly her jaws parted to release the appendage, though she was still in Moraxia's path.  She moved only fast enough to escape the full force of the impact. Her opponent's limbs still struck, but on the side of her shoulders. The lighter girl was sent staggering to the side on jostled feet, her head whipping around to face the attacker. Had she been any slower she might have fallen over, or worse; grabbed. Balance was maintained but only barely, and the force behind those massive paws was probably going to leave a bruise. Oh well, all in good fun! Thinking quickly; and knowing that Moraxia was likely to push her advantage by charging again while Raela was still recovering, she swung her hindquarters away; trying to face her head on. If there was less space to hit, there would be less chance of being hit.  In one fluid motion she continued the counterattack; lunging for the female's side in much the way she had done to Vitani. This time though, she wouldn't be applying enough pressure to break skin. She was aimed instead for the patch of extra fur behind the shoulder, lifting her front limbs and trying desperately to get herself above the mammoth girl. Though there was always the danger of retaliation.  Image © Chris Smith Photography Manipulation © Jenandra

            

Her legs struck the female harder than intended, sending Raela staggering away as she fought for her balance. Coming to rest not far from her, Moraxia panted heavily as she smiled and gave a quick shake of her body. Allowing her muscles a chance to recuperate the wolf intently watched her opponent as she swung her body back around to face her. Sizing up the woman, Moraxia began to take another step forward to attack. Just as she did, Raela rushed toward her in an instant with her jaws parted and aimed for her upper shoulder. Jettisoning herself backward to compensate for her previous move the cream-faced woman took only seconds to calculate her movements.

In an attempt to be both quick and precise, Moraxia moved to get out of the way of the attack only to trip over her disproportionally large paws. She began to falter back, legs frantically pawing the air as Raela came crashing down on top of her, jaws locking around a scruff of fur on her shoulder. Rebalancing herself mid-fall, the wolf noticed an opportunity to flip the competitor onto her side or at least throw her off and allow the canine time to regain her composure. Her large paws thunderously collided with earth as she braced herself, giving herself a moment to maintain balance.

Collecting a large pocket of air in her lungs, the wolf again pushed her paws forcefully into the ground and spun on her back haunches. A slight bit of pain darted into her shoulder as the woman maintained her hold; this made it slightly more difficult for Moraxia as she attempted to move her body into the wolf with force. Claws gripping the dirt floor below, she parted her jaws once more with the hopes of catching the side of her neck. If she succeeded, the woman would succumb to pressure and fall onto her side as the large brute pinned her. Throwing herself at her target, the intimidatingly large canine hoped for the best as her body had begun to grow tired.

(This post was last modified: Oct 06, 2015, 12:06 AM by Moraxia.)

OOC: Spar 3/3 - Take it home! 

It was satisfying to feel that her teeth had hit their mark despite the much larger woman's retreat. The moment was short lived however, as the female came into motion all at once. Knowing full well that an attack was coming, she opened her mouth only once Moraxia had pulled her aside. Her cranium swung away, trying to bring the rest of her body with it but she was a half-second too late. Teeth closed on her scruff and yanked the smaller woman back with a force. Planting her feet firmly on the ground did little to prevent the weight the Guardian-to-be was now putting on her neck. Her face wrinkled into a grimace as she called on the bulk of her muscles to resist.  The weight then changed, and Moraxia was trying to pull her off balance; to knock her to the ground. In a panicked last-ditch effort to do something, the subordinate lashed out with her teeth; trying to get one last hold on the woman's neck in return, but she closed her fangs on air as her smaller frame fell. The next moment her body had hit the ground with a thud, and Moraxia was above her. Once Raela's eyes had opened again post-impact she stared upwards at the victor. The fact of the matter sunk in, and a grin slid slowly across her face. As was customary, her tail came to rest against her stomach and her ears went back. Moraxia had earned it.  As soon as she felt the other's teeth leave her pelt, Raela giggled with a wider grin and rolled over so she could get back on her feet. With a brisk shake of her pelt the dirt was sent flying, and if it hit Moraxia then she would only laugh. Her body was still charged after their scuffle, and having fought someone for sport instead of training or aggression was a lovely change of pace. They'd have to tussle some more some time. Finally ready to get back to what they were doing, she rounded on the mammoth female. “You'll make a fine guardian,” she said with some degree of mock pomp and circumstance while bowing in exaggeration. The mischievous grin was still plain on her face. “C'mon.” she chuffed at last, turning back to the borders and breaking into a jog.  -Fade-  Image © Chris Smith Photography Manipulation © Jenandra

            

The woman’s attempts to stop the brute from knocking her down amused Moraxia. Her body was much larger than Raela’s and in turn much heavier as her legs finally gave from underneath, her form toppling to the ground. The victory was sweet and exhilarating as the wolf tucked her tail and offered a friendly grin. Graciously returning the kind spirit with a smile of her own, Moraxia chuckled, releasing the female’s fur from her jaws. She stared now politely at Raela as she took a step back to allow her time to get up. A sudden shake once the woman had finally stood up sent dirt drifting her way. Giggling along with her previous opponent Moraxia clicked her teeth in her general direction playfully, giving herself a light shake as well.

“You’ll make a fine guardian,” Raela said as she turned to face the hulk of woman before her. The tone was lighthearted and silly just as the rest of the morning had been between the two wolves. “That’s the idea,” Moraxia returned before stretching out her legs and uttering a teasing yawn, grinning as wide as she could. Giggling happily as the wolf turned to leave she obediently followed close behind, legs now slightly sore from the force she had applied while fighting. Raela was quite agile and proved to be quite the challenge for the large wolf. Vowing to spar with her again in the future the female made note of her strengths and weaknesses in the back of her mind. ‘You’ll make a fine friend.’ Moraxia thought happily as they trotted quietly off toward the border.