S E T T I N G: Ice Empire Territory
T I M E O F D A Y: Late morning
C H A R A C T E R S: Chara- Ice Empire Leader,
Northstar2014 Tolmi- Ice Empire Gladiator (ahh!)
Rowan-Feather TolmiTolmi inhaled, breathing in the sharp scent of the snow and the moist earth below it. She then exhaled it all out slowly, calming herself. The apprentice had gone through so much worse than this, so why was she so apprehensive? This was Chara, her leader would never hurt her. Hadn't she trained for this? Wasn't this all she had been preparing for, since the day she stepped into her Empire? Nagging doubts ran in the back of her mind, regardless of her reassurances.
You'd never be smart enough. You were captured once, weren't you? What makes you think you're stronger now? Her paws kneaded the ground beneath her as she prepared for the beginning of her last assignment, golden eyes flashing alive with the excitement and fear for this upcoming moment. It didn't matter if she thought she could do it or not, she
had to either way, so she could better protect her empire and the ones she loved within it.
Look out Chara, you've got another thing coming! Doubts finally pushed aside the best she could manage at the moment, the spotted feline started forwards, devilish gleam in her eyes.
CharaChara sighed softly as she readied her herself. This was probably her favorite thing about being Leader. Watching as apprentices completed their final task, evolving from a snowflake to an avalanche. The Leader was always proud of those apprentices, even more so when it came to apprentices that had not only worked their way out of the city as well. Tolmi was one of those apprentices that managed to escape, and Chara knew that the younger female was ready. And despite her pregnancy, Tolmi would have to work hard to outwit the lioness. Not many knew about the pregnancy still, and Chara would keep it that way. With one last deep breath, Chara placed the sapphire necklace around her neck. From the distance, Chara saw Tolmi. "Tolmi," She began. "You have chosen to challenge your leader, to become a gladiator. Once a simple snowflake, you are ready to become like an avalanche, brave and strong." The leader's voice rang through the forest. "In order to become a gladiator you must be able to outwit me, and get the blue sapphire. Who ever, you must not attack me. Attacking me means you forfeit the challenge, and must try again. Are you ready?" She asked. "If so, you may begin."
TolmiTolmi nodded, making sure to over exaggerate her movement so that Chara could see it. She was ready now, she could feel it. Her heart thudded out a rhythmic beat in her chest, and as she began walking, Tolmi felt it speed up. *She could do this. She could do this. She* had *to do this.* her pace sped up, but she was not aiming towards her leader. As she rushed past, she grinned at Chara, tongue stuck out of her mouth for the briefest of moments. She stayed just out of reach, though Tolmi couldn't attack Chara she wasn't sure if Chara could attack her or not.
CharaChara chuckled a bit when she saw the apprentice stick her tongue out at her, shaking her head a bit as well. As the young feline began to rush, the lioness stayed still. She had placed the sapphire around her neck, making it easy to grab if Tolmi knew how to get it off that is. The lioness was ready for this.
TolmiSurprise... hmm what could surprise Chara? The leader seemed almost unshakable... what would catch her off guard? A few ideas immediately came to mind. She did, after all, pull frequent pranks that required catching cats off guard. Tolmi was a master at distractions and diversions, though usually she had Griffon at her side to help her. Now, she was on her own. Time to go with the simplest tactic, Chara would see through it undoubtedly, but perhaps not in enough time. The cheetah hybrid made a sharp turn, almost in place, without breaking stride. She was aimed at Chara's left hindquarter, legs propelling her towards the lion as fast as she could make them. And then, she pushed off the moist earth! Her body was sailing over the leader, jaws aiming for the necklace. The cheegar wasn't sure if she could make it... but Tolmi had always been about risk.
CharaThe lioness stood there, almost frozen. She did not move a muscle as the young female began to go for the leader's hindquarters. In one smooth motion Chara grabbed the chain of the necklace and pulled up, turning to left as she did, moving the necklace away from the cheegar. The lioness grinned at the apprentice. "Gotta be quicker than that Tolmi if you want to be a gladiator." She said teasingly.
TolmiTolmi nearly lost her balance as she soared towards the earth, but managed to right herself with an adjustment of her rather fluffy tail. Her eyes narrowed in friendly determination, grin never faltering for a moment. "Quicker, hmm?" She kept her eyes trained on Chara, as to not give away her next plan by the line of her sight. Instead, she recalled her surroundings. Ah, a large tree! That would be absolutely perfect! To distract Chara, she made a few swipes at the necklace, moving quickly to be able to reach it. The attempts were halfhearted, but not so much so that it was obvious she wasn't trying. And that's when she began her next move.
CharaAs the younger female moved quickly, trying to reach the necklace, Chara kept dodging. It was not secret that the lioness was very swift for a lion, and the Leader always took advantage of her speed. However, she was not one hundred percent. After a few dodges, Chara's breathing started to get heavier. Her pregnancy was beginning to slow her down, though she refused to show that to Tolmi. She would make the hybrid work a little bit longer, moving slower and slower. "Come on, Tolmi." The leader taunted playfully. "You're faster than this."
TolmiTolmi let out a huff, eyes concentrated in the necklace.
I know, I can do this. I will do this. And that's when she began her next move. The cheetah missed the necklace one last time, carrying herself forwards using the momentum from her swing. She sunk her claws into the bark of a tree only pawsteps away from the pair, traveling upwards a small distance before pushing off the tree with her front paws, then hindquarters. The cheetah hybrid twisted midair, sailing dangerously close to the top of the leader once more. But this time, she reached a paw down to hook onto the necklace, leg extended as far as it could go to reach it. "Oh please Glacio please..."
CharaChara could feel herself slowing as the hybrid began to once again rush at the leader. If Tolmi was truly paying attention, she would have noticed Chara had began to pant slightly. As the younger feline pushed off of the tree, Chara tried to move fast enough. However, she was not quick enough. The leader could feel a paw hook into the necklace, and it was then Chara knew that Tolmi had done it. However, she did choose to hank her head away trying to make it seem like Tolmi had missed. With a soft
snap the necklace broke away from Chara's neck.
TolmiTolmi's heart dropped for a split second, before she registered the feeling of the chord in her paw. She felt it slipping from her grasp as it snapped away from her leader's neck, and swiftly scooped her paw upwards to transfer the gem to her mouth. There it resided as she touched back down to earth, feeling as though she had just gotten back from the top of a mountain. Her heart beat at a quick rhythm in her chest as she realized what the heavy weight in her mouth signified. She was finally a gladiator. And now, finally, the Hunters would know what she was made of. Tolmi opened her maw and let the pretty gem drop to the ground, panting slightly from the aerial show she had given her leader.
Her leader. She could hear the slight hugging coming from the lion and tilted her head, looking her over in a discreet fashion before looking fiercely into her eyes. Amber met blue in a fiery display of determination, and she bowed her head to acknowledge her superior. "Thank you, Chara."
CharaBlue eyes starred into the amber ones, and the Leader smiled a the fiery display. The lioness took a deep breath, trying to keep the panting hidden. With her head raised high, Chara stepped in front of the apprentice. "Tolmi," Her voice rang just as it had in the beginning. "You managed to outwit your leader, and receive the blue sapphire. It is my honor to promote you from apprentice to gladiator. Once a snowflake, learning and floating, you are now an Avalanche; brave, strong and ready to protect your home. Tolmi, I welcome you into the rank. I, your North Star, am very proud of you. You will do well to protect the Empire."
TolmiTolmi calmed her breathing, eyes shining brightly in the sunlight. "I look forwards to being a gladiator under your leadership, North Star." She liked the sound the two words had made when Chara had spoke them. Yes, Chara would lead her and the rest of the empire through thick and thin. And Tolmi would be there through it all, fighting and serving her empire as an avalanche.
An avalanche! The eagerness was evident in her posture, paws shifting from one to the other subconsciously. Chara was proud of her, and Tolmi would make sure to live up to that. She was going to make her Empire proud.
T H E E N DTOTAL WORD COUNT:1,639
Am I supposed to count up Chara and Tolmi's responses separately too? I'm not sure</strike>
Wow ok so.. this is Tolmi's last apprentice assignment. Insane, right? She's grown so much, come so far... and she still has a long life ahead of her. Sure, she may be a gladiator now, but you can still expect plenty of surprise attacks from above around camp!