{stampede} vargas gang vs. two deadly stallions

[[nyte]]

R A D I S H : 

He was the fire. A temper blazing as bright as the ginger cascading down his back. Cloven hooves leaving deep imprints within the damp riverbed as he greedily lapped up what water remained upon the dampened dirt. Indignant that he had been forced into such conditions without even a second's notice. He almost missed the lavish laboratory to which he had been birthed, at least there meals were plentiful and water was as common as the sand surrounding this dreadful arena. So what if he had taken a few fingers in his time? He had not recognized them as Capitol forces and therefore were fair game. How else was he to sate the bloodlust which they had implanted within him, using their pointy sticks and buzzing instruments. Completely unfair! Uncalled for! Radish was  certain he did not deserve such conditions as this. Perhaps the only saving grace was the stallion beside him, pressed so closely to his own pelt that he could feel each quivering breath Petunia took. They had been inseparable as foals, working and training together endlessly. He couldn't quite remember when the two had become an item but for the most part of their adulthood they had been faithful. No matter the mares they shoved under his nose, Radish had eyes only for one admittedly feminine stallion. And he'd be damned if anyone could tear them apart. 

It had been oddly peaceful since the dreadful bang, one that hurt his ears and sent he and his mate galloping toward the bank which they now lingered. The night had come and gone, the familiar high pitched screeching filling the air as the moon crawled into the velvety sky. He and Petunia had dozed under the barren sky, watching as bright symbols illuminated the night before falling into a peaceful doze. But now, he smelt them. The dirty, musty stench he was trained to loathe. He knew nothing more than to hate them, and hate them he did. Movements as quick as lightning, he stood positioning himself in front of his mate as though to take the brunt of the enemies attack. Only two things were on his mind as with flared nostrils, he charged one of the tributes unlucky enough to stumble upon their resting place. 

Protect Petunia. Kill the traitors. 

[attacks nocturne -- charge(blunt)]
2kZLwhARblunt
[Bruised Left Hand -- 2.0 damage]

P E T U N I A : 

He was the breeze. Calm tempered as the nonexistent wind which rustled the silver lying dormant along his spine. Always logical, always tactical. The yang to Radish's yin. They worked well as a team, the insatiable rage programmed in the both of them outletting in the most polar of ways. Petunia had not asked to fall in love with such an insufferable stallion but here they were, his muzzle lying safe and warm underneath his mate's. The silver stallion did not smell the approaching tributes as Radish had. A fight between the two of them had ended in quite the injury. Leaving his nose nothing more than a thin line upon his snout. But his mate's cry of rage and sudden movement was enough to instill the greatest of panic within him. And when he saw the humans, gray eyes recognizing none of the familiar capitol attire he had been occustom to, he too let loose a cry. 

Be safe love. He sent a silent prayer to the ginger steed rushing toward one of the traitors. A word the capitolites had used to describe any non-capitol man. Then, turning his attention to the one not dealt with. Petunia knew he lacked the strength of Radish, his charge would do little more than a bruise to the despicable things. Gathering up the courage Radish had taught him, relying on the instincts which had been programmed into him, he ran, turning sideways at the last possible second to wound the traitor with the his rawhide-like tail. 

He only hoped they would get out of this alive, or go down together. 

[attacks erebus -- tail(whip)]
whip
[Block -- 0.0 damage]

blunt�whip

[sbeeg]

Erebus Turner

The night was uneventful save for the large parachute that had drifted down to meet Nocturne in the desert. The poor thing was laden with all kinds of... crap. It was total crap. Items that might be good accents for a Capitol outfit but no where near the top of Erebus' list of "Things I want Sponsors to Send Me." However, knowing Nocturne, the boy probably requested the outlandish gifts himself. Only he would demand such items in the arena. Erebus himself had a tiny silver parachute float down into his hands revealing itself to be a water canteen that was, unfortunately, empty. He shoved it in his satchel excited he now had something to actually put in the bag. A quick glance over at Vargas picking up skulls of some sort of cattle and Erebus couldn't help but notice the differences. The Turner boy with his empty canteen and Nocturne with his pile of seemingly useless gifts and souvenirs plucked from the sand.

Erebus was proved wrong when Vargas pulled two medical kits from his pile of gifts and handed one over to the District Five tribute. The boy was thrilled to have such a valuable item, but also to have something to keep his empty water bottle company in his bag.

As the sun dipped below the horizon and the stars began to stare down at them, the anthem blared throughout the Arena. Erebus flinched at the sound, reminded of all the parties that the anthem had played at, how it would fill the background as Lethe walked out on stage in some District or another. It was never a song he associated with face he hardly knew flashing in the sky to signify they had died. Five. Five had died including his district partner from Five. Erebus wasn't superstitious but he didn't like his hometown number popping up quite so much. Frowning at the sky he tried to mourn the girl from his district but he couldn't find it within himself to shed a single tear or even feel disappointed by her death. He hadn't known her and he shouldn't pretend like he had. Besides, he had cried enough for his own fate before the Games, he had nothing left for other tributes.

The boy didn't feel like calculating the number of kids that would have die for him to hug Lethe again, or figure the odds of him dying in the next few hours. Instead he watched his ally toy with his new hat. Nocturne was a good distraction, that's for sure.

~*~

The morning brought with it more heat and little else. Walking and sun do not mix, but there wasn't a whole lot he could do about that.

By midday they had reached a dried up river bed. Well, not completely dry- there were a few puddles and muddy patches here and there. Something told Erebus that this was their best bet for a drink anytime soon. The Arenas were always arranged like that to force the tributes close together. There were probably ten of them somewhere else down the river's length trying to quench their thirst with muddy water.

Erebus didn't remember Lethe having to eat mud but then again times change and the Capitol needs more action. Watching kids boil water for an hour is not very exciting- watching tributes slowly die of dehydration well now that is a show.

Stepping off the sandy bank of the struggling river, Erebus started to look around for something to pass as water when a sound reached his ears. It was a familiar sound he was used to on the Turner ranch in District Five, but not one he expected to hear in the Arena.

Hooves on hard ground, heading somewhere fast. Whipping around, Erebus was able to see the first mutt brush past Nocturne knocking the tribute in the wrist. It was a horse, but like none he had seen before. This one was nothing like the old mares he sat with in the stables, this one was huge. It had to be more hands high than any horse he met in District Five, and it moved faster too. It moved as if it were such a hallucination caused by the heat, galloping past in a blur. Erebus was so in awe of the creature he didn't hear the second one come up behind him and fly past, sending his hair flying every which way.

One on hand he was mesmerized by the creatures, wondering what it might feel like to ride such a steed. However, the other part of the boy was absolutely terrified. Their hooves could crush a skull easily, they were too fast to out run and it didn't look like they'd leave them alone any time soon. Erebus' fingers wrapped around the hilt of his knife, slowly pulling it from his belt. It was what the Gamemakers wanted him to do, what everyone watching wanted of him. Despite their size and speed, they closely resembled a regular horse, an animal he held in high regard. The horses back home had always listened to his problems when no one else would. He found comfort in their manes and saw a life in their eyes.

Stop being sentimental. It's a mutt and you're going to have to kill it or it will run you into the dirt a voice in the back of the boy's head screamed. The unwelcome feeling of tears gathering in his eyes came over him again. If he couldn't kill a mutt how was he supposed to kill a person?

Taking a breath, Erebus took his knife in both hands and charged up the bank of the river, closing his eyes as he brought the blade down.

[Attacks Radish]
dzYacANVknife
[Block -- 0.0 damage]

knife

[L△LIA]

Five faces in the sky and Nocturne Vargas doesn't know them. In the Training Center, he hadn't spoken to any of those Tributes — not a joke or a lie or even the most off-hand nothing type of comment. Sure, he probably smirked at one or two of them in passing, showing his teeth off everywhere he went as if the chipped enamel were actually something to be proud of, but that's not why their deaths nag at him.

If he were back in District Nine, he'd be buttoning up the shirt of his frayed, dusty old suit right now, preparing to attend their funerals. Nocturne Vargas is a party crasher. Birthdays, wedding celebrations, graduations, baptisms, and any other event he saw mentioned in the local paper or rumored about in town — including funerals. Always, he was looking to steal the kinds of memories from other people that he'd lost, attempting to make up for sixteen years of lost time as if such a thing were possible.

He won't ever admit it (mostly because he never speaks the truth, not because he's ashamed of it), but he thinks he likes funerals best. There's something about being among a lifetime's worth of people all gathered together in one place, wailing over years of memories and beloved time, that feels at once familiar and like the pinnacle of his daydreams. He knows he has been one of those people before, crying over someone he can't remember but must have loved dearly, and if these five children had died back home, he would have pretended each and every one of their faces into the empty space he lost.

Erebus falls asleep first and the Vargas boy sits watch next to him for a while, suddenly realizing that if he lives long enough to see certain other faces lighting up the sky in this way, he won't be pretending anymore. Even if he dies today, his won't be the last heart to fail. There's a difference between the five deaths haunting the sky and the promise of the one beside him and he doesn't like it, the poetic romanticism of his backwards ideals falling away as he reaches over to ruffle the younger boy's hair. The gesture is as familiar to him as the pangs of knowing that coursed through him when he used to watch the children of strangers blowing out their birthday candles — he has done these things before. Not only was he a child with birthdays of his own in the past, but he had younger siblings once too. He knows this.

When he finally drifts off, it is mid-thought:  —

—

WIP WIP WIP

Sorry! Tornados have been giving me some technical internet difficulties, nbd, fttttt.

[Attacks Radish]

mq|hArnqspear

[Shallow Cut on Stomach — 4.0 Damage]

spear

[[nyte]]

R A D D I S H : 

They surrounded him, claws held in front of them like the savages they were. He manages to keep the short-claw off of him, but the longer claw burned his abdomen. What right did they have to go after him?! The traitors had wandered into their territory, not the other way around. Radish let out an enraged screech, his throat blistering under the sheer force of his cry. He did not want to do. He was not going to leave Petunia. These monsters needed to die. He would deliver them to the underworld himself if it was the last thing he'd do. He felt a duty to both the Capitol and the stallion beside him. His masters would not have placed them in his path without just reason. Petunia could not survive without him. He had to fight. Ignore the pain, the red beads dripping from his skin. Fight. Fight. Fight.

[attacks nocturne -- charge(blunt)]
uf|MfWcXblunt
[Block -- 0.0 damage]

P E T U N I A : 

He was in pain. Petunia could hear his cry. He'd never felt such panic and rage as he did now. The scent of blood drove him onward, even if he wasn't sure of the source. The silver stallion refused to be forced into death. He refused to watch the only thing he cared about injured. They weren't going to die. Petunia couldn't think of his life ending in such a violent way. He simply wanted to live the rest of his life in peaceful service to the Capitol. Just think. Just win.

[attacks erebus -- tail(whip}]
whip
[Welt on Right Forearm -- 2.0 damage]

blunt�whip

[sbeeg]

Erebus Turner

His knife hit air and Erebus could not have been more relieved. Looking at the horses, the boy could not help feeling sorry for them. They weren't wild per say, they were owned by the Capitol and forced into this Arena. They were beautiful creatures and Erebus did not think he had it in him to kill one.

That is, until one of them let out a blood curdling screech that echoed inside the Turner boy's mind over and over again. No horse has ever made such a sound before. Of course not, because these beasts in front of him are not horses- they're mutts. Goosebumps spread across his skin as he took in the animal. This is not normal, this creature was made in a lab, spliced together and taught nothing but rage. This mutt is not the horses from home that Erebus and Lethe used to ride around the Turner property. This beast was a man made killer and did not deserve any of Erebus' sympathy.

The one that had shrieked at him, charged towards Nocturne; an attack the District Nine boy had narrowly dodged. Erebus had to do something, he couldn't stand here all day with a moral dilemma while he and his ally got trampled.

Galloping up behind him, the second mutt tagged the boy in the arm loosening his grip on his knife and sending the blade into the dirt of the river bed. Dropping to his hands and knees, Turner wiped the dust from his knife and held on tight to the hilt. Lethe's advice ran through his head as he charged the muttation- "Don't try to be someone else."

This time, he'll have to.

[Attacks Radish]
MooRtY0aknife
[Shallow Cut on Left Thigh -- 3.5 damage]

knife

[L△LIA]

No time to write until after work tomorrow, sorry sorry sorry. I swear to fill these in ASAP. D:

Filler, blegh.

[Attacks Radish]

Au|ecO3xspear

[Miss — 0.0 damage]

spear

[[nyte]]

R A D D I S H : 

He'd always been the one in control, the one they feared. The capitolites bended at his will with the loudest of whinnies, they rewarded him with pets and treats. Was it too much to ask just to be left in peace? To destroy these monsters and soak in the sun's rays next to the gentle murmur of the drying river? It made him angry that they weren't going done. Furious that their claws dug into his skin. Leaving nothing more than shallow wounds which stung and ached. Their fight seemed nothing but fumbles and lucky shots. Radish was going to change that.

[attacks nocturne -- charge(blunt}]
AwraJ6|lblunt
[ Gash/Bruised Right Arm -- 3.0 damage]

P E T U N I A :

Petunia was frightened for the fiery stallion. They flocked toward him, silver claws digging into his flesh. He snorted and growled, attempting to turn their attention away from his mate.Life without him was a life decidedly not worth living. There was only one choice left, Petunia was sure... and he hoped Radish was as well. These monsters wouldn't let the both of them live. So they had to die.

[attacks erebus -- tail(whip)]
whip
[Welt on Right Bicept -- 2.0 damage]

blunt�whip

[sbeeg]

Erebus Turner

The boy knew he wasn't any good at fighting, but he thought that with both Nocturne and himself armed they could take down at least a mutt. Turns out certain things are easier said than done. The two boys could hardly land a scratch on the muttations, much less kill one.

What had Lethe done when she went up against a mutt? She had fought some, right? Didn't she go up against one those hellhounds?

No, it wouldn't help him now to remember what Lethe did nine years ago. Erebus had to think for himself and decide the best course of action. There was no getting around this, he had to fight these creatures despite their resemblance to the gentle creatures back home. If he could kill a mutt, he could kill a tribute.

[Attacks Radish]
rv3c7jl4knife
[Block -- 0.0 damage]

knife

[L△LIA]

I lied, no time to write yet. Filler part two.

[Attacks Radish]

rHlpbqHzspear

[Block — 0.0 damage]

spear

[[nyte]]

R A D I S H: 

They had both missed. There was no pain... just blood drying upon old wounds. Radish felt almost bad for the little traitors, for the fate they had been doomed to by crossing their paths. Putting up the best fight they could, but would either be good enough? Perhaps they were at a stalemate...

Was it sympathy he was feeling for the traitors? The longer they faced them the angrier he became. He just couldn't kill them...

He needed to kill them...

Kill them....

Kill

[attacks nocturn -- hooves(blunt)]
m4mIDtAVblunt
[Bruised Head -- 3.5 damage]

P E T U N I A : 

What was this ever going to amount to? Why wouldn't they fall?! More than anything Petunia wanted his mate to live, to run off into the sunset with the stallion he loved. Couldn't these things simply go down with one good blow! He was failing everyone! The capitol, his mate. Hatred for both himself and the creatures making a fool of him bubbled within his chest.

Look at me! His thoughts were released in a hoarse whinny, hooves kicking up the dirt beneath him. Was he not good enough to be attacked? Not a threat?!

Why was he never good enough? Always second best. The one to be protected.

Well this time, he was going to be the hero.

[attacks erebus -- tail(whip]
whip
[Shallow Cut on Left Thigh -- 3.5 damage]

blunt�whip

[sbeeg]

Erebus Turner

blurp blurp wip

[Attacks Radish]
JGxfQOckknife
[Stabbed in Bicep -- 8.5 damage]
thank ripred

knife

[L△LIA]

Filler #3.

[Attacks Radish]

ct_Pk8kGspear

[Shallow Cut on Forehead — 4.5 Damage]

spear

[[nyte]]

R A D I S H:

It hurt. It hurt so bad. They weren't to be pitied. No they were monster. Monsters trying to take him away from his love. Fuck them. He was dying, his whole body aflame. All he could see was red.

[attacks nocturne -- hooves(blunt)]
rhTYZwqIblunt
[Bruised Right Shin -- 2.0 damage]

P E T U N I A:

No. No. No. They were killing him. Petunia couldn't live without Radish. Couldn't live without his fur pressed against him. A warm hoof to hold him on cold nights. Pure magic.

Please don't let this be the end.

[attacks erebus -- tail(whip]
whip
[Welt on Right Forearm -- 2.0 damage]

blunt�whip

[sbeeg]

Erebus Turner

filler filler filler

[attacks radish]
LIKe9_Mgknife
[ Miss -- 0.0 damage]
wow.

knife

[L△LIA]

After yesterday's injuries, the violence of these bruises feels like nothing and everything all at once. Each smash of the mutt's hooves into his body echoes straight through his skin and into his bones, reverberating back out to the still healing stab wounds from the Bloodbath. Maybe this kind of blunt vandalism is something like luck in comparison to the blade that buried itself in his stomach as if trying to make a sudden cemetery of him, but the slow build of days and damage still hurts like hell.

[Attacks Radish]

ZNecOyDVspear

[Shallow Cut on Right Forearm -- 3.5 Damage]

spear