The Fox and The Hound (Vulpesen)

[Slot 12]

Paw to earth. Paw to earth. Faster than the creatures flying above her. Paw to earth. Paw to earth. Still the creature gained. Neshoba knew that she couldn't run forever. But this was a massive beast, much larger than her. Facing it alone was akin to suicide. But it was going to catch her no matter what she did. If only there was somewhere to hide!​

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Hunting in the Shadowlands was never going to be easy. That was why Nesh had come in the first place. It was about time she received a challenge. But she hadn't expected this beast to be here. It was a hulking mass of armored hide, spikes, talons, and horns. And she had no idea how to beat it.​

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[member="Vulpesen"]​

 

[Vulpesen]

Hand to earth and hand to earth, Vulpesen ran in a similar fashion to the white wolf, though his form had yet to take that of the beast within. As zorrens could naturally run on four legs, he simply resorted to his agility to move quickly through the trees. While he, like [member="Neshoba Nodi"] had no idea how to beat the beast of the shadowlands, he didn't intend to run from it. Up above the wookiees had tasked him for downing the monster. But the one thing they didn't mention, was the company that he would meet.

 

[Slot 12]

((OOC: Terentateks man. Always so annoying! ))​

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Neshoba could hear something else running with her. She glanced for a moment toward where the sound was coming from. Was that a man? She refocused on the path ahead of her. Oh no. It was a ridge, enclosed on all sides. If she could jump high enough, maybe she could jump to safety. Nesh ran a little faster and then leaped with all her might. But the ridge was still too high. She slid down the side, adamantly trying again and again to climb up it. By this time, the beast was already upon her.​

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It grasped her with an enormous taloned hand, digging fairly deep into her hide. She let out several loud yelps before being thrown into the steep ridge wall. The impact was so forceful that it actually left a shallow crater.​

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[member="Vulpesen"]​

 

[Vulpesen]

Vulpesen growled as he caught sight of the beast, and the white form being slammed into a wall. Cringing a bit, he drew out his saber, activating both blades while he flipped off his current branch. Spinning through the air as a glowing pinwheel, he would bring his saber to bear on the monster's arm, easily recognizing it from the old Holos. A tarentatek. Despite his love of the force, he knew it wouldn't do him much good right now. "Are you alright?" The question was shouted out as his body made its way to a tree and one hand shot out to dig sharp hardened claws into the wood.

[member="Neshoba Nodi"]

(figured there was a 95% chance it was one of those... couldn't think of too many other spiked monsters on Kashyyk)

 

[Slot 12]

Neshoba stood up, dizzily staggering to stand still for a moment. A ringing coursed through her ears, her vision blurry and out of focus. This quickly ended as she came back to her senses. she shook her head a little and then got in an attacking stance. She snarled, barring her sharp teeth at the beast before lunging at it with unnatural speed. Her teeth found purchase in the beast's shoulder, causing it to screech in pain and fury. Nesh's sensitive ears flattened in pain from the noise.​

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[member="Vulpesen"]​

 

[Vulpesen]

Vulpesen's hands clenched further and he let out a similar painful growl. As she leaped forward, he got a better look at the person, or what he thought was a person. "Ok, this is new."In the force, he could sense a sentient being, something that didn't quite fit in a wolf's body. Or did it? "Never mind, I can actually join this party!"

Focusing his being into the amulet he called out to the spirit within while leaping at the beast. "Varos, help me!" It took a moment of blinding pain as flesh and cloth burst into brilliant jet black fur. A growl leaped from his throat as his alf ton of weight crashed into the sithspawn and a set of five bonecrushing tails swung around to slam into its ribs. The ferocity of a veran fox could be awe inspiring, especially when driven by a zorren mind.

[member="Neshoba Nodi"]
[member="Neshoba Nodi"]

 

[Slot 12]

That man... He was like her! Neshoba was momentarily shocked by the man from before turning into what looked like a giant multi-tailed fox. She'd never met another person who could turn into an animal before. It was a strange feeling.​

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The taloned beast shrieked even louder. The sound was so deafening and painful for Nesh that her grip loosened. This allowed the creature to slash her stomach. She fell to the ground, landing on her back. There was something off. Her body was getting achy and weak. She was starting to feel sluggish, like she was tired. It was a lot like... Poison. The beast must be venomous! Nesh stood up, but she couldn't see straight. Her instincts told her to sleep. Yes. Everything would be okay if she just... slept. ​

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Nesh practically keeled over, her back to the fight, and fell asleep.​

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[member="Vulpesen"]​

 

[Vulpesen]

Vulpesen let out a growl as he saw his compatriot go down. Not good. Not good at all. The Tarentatek's attention turned to him as he continued to slam his tails into its body.Just die already! He turned his body while one tail went to intercept a sweeping claw and brought his fangs into its neck, biting down as hard as he could. Hopefully he could end it now, and in time to help the poor wolf on the forest floor.

[member="Neshoba Nodi"]

 

[Slot 12]

The mighty Terentatek let out a final gargled screech, waving it's arms wildly and trying to hit the fox. It backed up several paces before finally falling to the ground.​

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The wounds that covered Neshoba's body had completely healed. Her body shifted back into a semi-humanoid form, with her wolf ears and tail still present. Her long white hair covered the majority of her unclothed body. Nesh had been forced to sleep off the toxin so that her body could function normally again. It had only been a short nap, but it still left her a bit weak.​

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[member="Vulpesen"]​

 

[Vulpesen]

Vulpesen panted and rose back to his human form, staggering a bit. Still odd moving from heavy to light in an instant. Stumbling over to [member="Neshoba Nodi"], he called the force to steady him as he checked for a pulse. "Please, don't be dead." He felt her skin rise as blood pumped up to her brain and let out a sigh of relief. Now having more time to focus on the non-life-and-death things, Vulpesen could notice that the girl was in fact, completely naked.

This new revelation meant two things. One, it was obvious that she didn't have a pendant, further adding tot he mystery of what she was. Second... he currently had two fingers on a bare unconscious woman, a thought that turned his face red as a sith's saber. "Ummm..." His arms moved quickly, pulling off the coat that he always wore before he quickly laid it over her for some sort of decency. With that done, he took her shoulder and gave it a light shake. "Umm... are you alright?"

 

[Slot 12]

Neshoba's eyes slowly opened. She could hear the man asking is she was alright. She turned her head, her groggy ruby eyes looking up at him. Hm... why was his face so red? Was he sick? She'd better make sure.​

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She suddenly sat up. The coat fell from her body, her hair being the only thing keeping her covered as she moved closer to the man and began sniffing him. She made a thorough examination of his scent, stopping within inches of his nose. Her eyes studied his for a minute. Nope. There wasn't anything wrong with him. So then, why was his face colored like that? Was it natural? Nesh whimpered in curiosity.​

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[member="Vulpesen"]​

 

[Vulpesen]

Vulpesen's back straightened a bit and he rose his brow at her. "Ok... May I ask what you are?" Whatever the answer it was quite clear her species had no idea of personal space, and just as much about modesty, though thankfully her hair worked well as a shield. His hand lifted up, placing a finger on her forehead to gently push her back



[member="Neshoba Nodi"]

 

[Slot 12]

Neshoba blinked a few times as the man pushed her head back with his finger. He must not like her face so close to him. People were weird that way. She continued to stare at him. He wanted to know what she was. But she didn't even know what she was. Nesh decided to tell him her name instead.​

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She squinted her eyes a little, concentrating on his mind. She wasn't the best at Telepathy, but she'd grasped the basic concept so communication would be easier.​

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Neshoba.​

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[member="Vulpesen"]​

 

[Vulpesen]

"Neshoba?" Anyone else would have assumed that was her species, but Vulpesen had spent years among the ashlan wolves, one of which was curled up in the trees, watching the spectacle. Constantly speaking mind to mind, he easily caught the nuances of a name rather than a species. "I'm Vulpesen. Are you hurt?"

[member="Neshoba Nodi"]

 

[Slot 12]

Nesh shook her head. She was a very fast healer. She stood up, rubbing her eyes and shaking out her tail. Still weakened from the shift, she had yet to notice another creature near them. Nesh continued looking at the man, still very curious about him. Did he heal fast, too? Was he weakened when he returned to humanoid form? What kind of foods did he eat? All of these questions were swimming through her mind even though she couldn't utter them.​

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[member="Vulpesen"]​

 

[Vulpesen]

Chuckled and used his tail to lift his coat which was placed around her. he could feel the curiosity like waves from an ocean. "I take it you're not used to meeting those in the outside galaxy." He motioned to her form. "Which explains your fashion choice." While surprising to be sure, Vulpesen could adapt, especially given t he strangeness he'd already encountered in his life.

[member="Neshoba Nodi"]

 

[Slot 12]

Neshoba looked down at her now coat-wrapped form. She'd never really understood fashion... She looked back up at the man and gave him a curious and energetic growl. She really wanted to learn about this man that could do what she could do. You don't just meet someone like this every single day!​

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[member="Vulpesen"]​

 

[Vulpesen]

Sighing a bit, he walked over to the Tarentatek and called his expended sabers into his hands. Activating the blade of one, he drew it across the belly of the beast, rolled up his sleeve, and reached in. "My name is Vulpesen Torrevaso, valde of the Vitae Alliance, and alpha of the Zorren race. May I ask who you are miss Nashoba?"
[member="Neshoba Nodi"]

 

[Slot 12]

That was a lot of titles. Zorren? Never heard of them. What was a valde? And who were the Vitae Alliance? Neshoba was perplexed by it all. But mostly because this man named Vulpesen asked who she was, even though he'd already said her name. Should the name tell him? She didn't have all those fancy titles. She wasn't even sure if she had a last name. So, Nesh just shrugged.​

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[member="Vulpesen"]​

 

[Vulpesen]

More questions in her mind. "I suppose, I should break who into more questions. What are you besides a name? A traveler? A survivor? What are you doing here?" He grimaced ass something inside the tarentatek squished around his hand. "Surely you're more than a name." Other than her name, he knew as little of this mysterious maiden as she knew of him.

[member="Neshoba Nodi"]