Sunkissed Creek

[Omari]

Midnightpaw
Shadowclan
She/her
69/100

Midnightpaw inhaled sharply, her green eyes narrowed into slits as she took in their surroundings. She noted Hawkbite’s question, and she inhaled again… “Fresh scent… And, there’s… There’s gotta be more than one around here.” She just wasn’t one hundred percent certain, so she didn’t put an exact number on it. The only time that she had ever scented fox was off the pelts of her clanmates… So, at that point, stale and sometimes accompanied with the scent of blood, too. This was odd, different–fresh. Invigorating and anxiety inducing.

Her eyes flicked to Hawkbite, watching as he shot a look to Moonmeadow–and, monkey see monkey do, she looked to them as well. She noted the way that the warrior’s fur was spiked up, and she felt that anxiety and excitement bubbling up within her once again.

Her claws unsheathed into the dirt below as she pulled her attention from her companions, taking in their surroundings again in an attempt to catch the sight of fur slinking along the perimeter of this chunk of territory. The scent was so fresh here… She wondered if the foxes were already aware of their arrival?

[ @SuspiciousMindz @Dolomedes i am back from my hiatus friends I AM SO SORRYYY!! LETS GET THE BALL ROLLING WOOTWOOT ]

[SuspiciousMindz]

[Hawkbite]
Enforcer Commander
Shadow Fiend | Agatha Kitty

It was perfect timing. Just as Midnightpaw had answered him, Hawkbite caught sight of the duo of foxes prowling the area. They hadn't noticed them yet, but they approached the creek to steal a drink. It was a mother and what appeared to be a younger adult, perhaps her kit.

Gesturing to the pair, he stole a glance at Midnightpaw and Moonmeadow. There was a knowing look in his gaze; they were definitely going to be fighting these foxes.

"Moonmeadow, we're going to either chase them off or kill them, no questions asked," Hawkbite spoke hushed, but stern. His gaze shot to the warrior, filled with warning. "I need to be able to rely on you to distract or chase off the bigger adult. I'm going to train Midnightpaw how to properly fight a fox today," Hawkbite finally revealed his plans for this patrol.

His gaze shot to Midnightpaw now. "You and I will attack the smaller of the two. I'll make sure you don't get hurt, but you need to go into this fight prepared, are you ready for that?" he inquired. Giving Midnightpaw time to accept, he'd crouch down into his battle position and focus his gaze on the duo. The foxes still hadn't noticed them, they were distracted by the splashing of the water against the creekside.

"Foxes move quickly, but their only real weapon are their jaws. Avoid those teeth at any cost. Move quicker and stay to their side or behind them. Approaching them head-on is a fatal mistake, I've seen it one too many times," Hawkbite spoke, still hushed. The instructions were aimed at Midnightpaw, prepping her for what's to come. "Their weak spots are their legs, specifically their ankles. You can also get onto their backs, but stay close to their neck so they can't whip around and bite you. The quickest way to kill them is a bite to their throat, hold on until it collapses from lack of air, or to inflict many wounds to the neck so they bleed out."

Hawkbite began creeping forward, gesturing for the patrol to follow his lead. Moonmeadow had her instructions, but Hawkbite had a plan. "Moonmeadow, I need you to get the adults attention and I'll fly in and grab the smaller one's attention," the Commander spoke, his eyes never leaving the target.

"Ready when you are."

@Omari - Midnightpaw | @Dolomedes - Moonmeadow

[Dolomedes]

Moonmeadow
| She/they | ShC warrior | Moons: 22 | Purrks: Shadow Fiend |Beefed Up Tier 1 |

Alright, so not what she thought the game plan was going to be but it was a plan nonetheless. No big deal, Moonmeadow fought adult foxes on her own every other day. Yep. No biggie. Well, honestly it doesn't matter what she thought, the enforcer gave her the plan that she had been wondering about so that was the plan. Like the shadow fiend that they were, Moonmeadow gave a swift nod of her head to Hawkbite before following his lead in creeping forward to the pair. It would be easy enough to get the jump, Moonmeadow could dash in and leap on its shoulders. The warrior was not going to allow the thing to run off and potentially cause an annoyance down the line. Better to take care of it now.

Distraction time! She grinned, though it was a bit less friendly than they normally were. Once Moonmeadow felt close enough, she took quick bounds from her hiding spot in the undergrowth. With a yowl, she leapt forward while her sudden appearance was still a surprise. The bigger fox had whipped its head up but, Moonmeadow was already on their tail. [ D12: 12! ] The warrior managed to land on its shoulders, digging her claws in as she planted herself right up on its neck. They felt the snap of its teeth beside her head, as it attempted to twist and turn to get them off. [ D12: 10 ] They held steady on its shoulders despite its attempts to throw Moonmeadow off. How's that for distraction, both of them were trying at her! The little one seemed to have plans for Moonmeadow if the others didn't step in soon, though.

[ @SuspiciousMindz - Hawkbite | @Omari - Midnightpaw ]


Moonmeadow gif made by ramen!

[Omari]

Midnightpaw
Shadowclan
She/her
70/100

The fur along Midnightpaw's spine stood as soon as she laid her eyes on the foxes. At this moment she came to the realization that this would be her first, true, bona fide battle. Previously she had only ever partaken in training, sparring, you know the drill. But never an actual battle… She could die here. Well, she didn't think she would. Hawkbite would protect her, but.. The possibility was still there, right?

The fluffy black molly nodded her head as she listened to Hawkbite's words, but she couldn't tear her eyes off of the foxes before them. She couldn't even dare to, not even for a moment–what if they moved and she lost track of them? She couldn't slip up like that, no.

Midnightpaw creeped along after the two warriors, pawsteps a tad bit uncertain until she could recall her mentor calling her out on her lack of confidence. Remember, perfectly perfect…

Moonmeadow had gone off and attacked–an effective distraction, to say the least! She couldn't help but watch for a moment, her eyes lighting up with an almost child-like awe. Warriors are so cool. Her head whipped in the direction of the smaller fox, watching as it's eyes trained on the aforementioned warrior–uh oh! No good, no good at all. Her eyes flicked to Hawkbite for a moment before she swiveled up behind him and darted past him entirely, aiming to nip at the smaller fox's back ankles. Hey, she had to do something before Moonmeadow ended up being fox-bait!

[ @SuspiciousMindz @Dolomedes ]

[SuspiciousMindz]

[Hawkbite]
Enforcer Commander
Shadow Fiend | Agatha Kitty

Everything was going smoothly. Hawkbite would make sure no one got hurt during this practice and he simply hoped Moonmeadow was skilled enough to hold her own. Surely, if Dawnstar was looking to recruit her, she had to be. This would be a good test for that.

That aside, Hawkbite would catch a glimpse of Midnightpaw doing as he instructed and nipping at the ankles of the smaller fox. He made quick work and darted at it's side, slamming into it harshly. The smaller fox would let out a howl of surprise and start snapping aimlessly into the air, but Hawkbite was faster. He leapt away from the fox and waited for the perfect moment. As it squirmed on the ground for a moment, he'd steal a glance at Midnightpaw to see what she was doing.

"When it's still half-way down and trying to get up, leap onto it's back, Midnightpaw. Practice some of those battle moves and get a killing bite on it. It's small enough!" Hawkbite would call, swiping in the direction of the fox to keep it's attention on him.

Just as he predicted, the fox rolled onto its legs, ready to get up and back into action.

@Dolomedes - Moonmeadow | @Omari - Midnightpaw

[Dolomedes]

Moonmeadow
| She/they | ShC warrior | Moons: 22 | Purrks: Shadow Fiend |Beefed Up Tier 1 |

Luckily she wasn’t left to be really fox bait as expected, she let out a limited cheer as the apprentice darted in to get the first bite on the younger fox. Nice! The little thing’s got bravery and was a good listener, good marks for an even better warrior. The shifting shoulder blades of the furry creature beneath her had Moonmeadow’s hazy eyes shooting from the apprentice and back to the adult fox just as she heard the younger fox howl. The warrior growled herself as she dug her claws in deeper, using one to wrench at the creature's shoulders and slicing across the flesh. Just needed it to turn to snap at her. The creature made its attempt [ D12: 7 ] to shake the warrior off as it hurled itself to its side, likely trying to slam her but Moonmeadow managed to jump off and roll to the side just before it landed with a harsh thud.

Hah! Moonmeadow didn’t very long before darting to the side to be at its back with a slide. Then she dove forward as it attempted to jump back to its paws, hoping to jump up with it to be right back on its shoulders again. This time when it snapped back at her she would duck and tear out the poor thing’s throat. [ D20: 12 | Very much so pass ] The fox lifted just as Moonmeadow jumped and once more they were dancing the same dance and fighting to the same rhythm. It lashed out, swinging its head around to bite at her [ D12: 12 | Also very good ] and before she could get up on its neck and out of range of its teeth it connected her tail before she could pull it out of the way. She hissed and made quick time to react, slashing her claws across its eyes and face. [ D12 : 8 | Pass ]

The fox recoiled as her slice connected, slicing across one of its eyes and she relished in the way it cried out. Her tail burned but most of the pain was likely being covered by adrenaline currently and she needed to take advantage of that now. As it lifted its muzzle up and away trying to keep its eyes from being in range again it left its throat wide open. Pathetic. With strength of several warriors,” Moonmeadow dove forward for the opening, latching on her teeth and digging them into the softness of the creature’s throat. It cried loudly and wailed as it tried to tear Moonmeadow off, but she held strong. Her claws digging and tearing at the fox’s shoulders as it tried to tear away Moonmeadow’s hold. In honesty, it probably did more damage freaking out than Moonmeadow’s original bite. The iron taste was overwhelming and soon the beast was falling to the floor under the warrior. She didn’t let go until it had stopped its convulsions.

She turned her attention to the other two but Moonmeadow was more than sure they had it handled. It was painful that the fox had gotten a good bite on her tail before going down but in the end it went down and that’s what mattered.

[ @SuspiciousMindz - Hawkbite | @Omari - Midnightpaw ]
[ Idk how long you wanted Moonmeadow to take for the take down but uhhhh if you didn’t want her to kill it so soon just let me know and I’ll rewrite the post o7 ]


Moonmeadow gif made by ramen!