YOU NEVER TRUSTED ME ★
BUT I’M OVER IT NOW
[sub][W]isker[/sub]

BURN
BRIGHT

Ninazu busted her way out of the tunnel system into the black pyramid itself. Dirt and coal clung to her sandy pelt, but, regardless, her green flames harmoniously flicked around her neck and shoulders. She grimaced to herself; when she’d been ardent, she’d stuck to tradition and lived in splendor. It was a shame to see the black pyramid looked as though it hadn’t been lived in for months. Insects had begun nesting amongst the furniture. Vines and greenery crawled through the stones, beginning the long campaign of reclaiming the pyramid in the name of mother nature.

“Marilyn, keep the tunnel open for our exit,” Ninazu said, nodding to the npc caracal. She grinned as she looked to the rest of the crew. “Everyone else, let’s bring this place down. And if you’re going to loot anything, do it quick.”

Ninazu took the opportunity to fling a couple of gold, platinum, and other sorts of jewelry into her sachet. Even if Gael rarely used the pyramid, it still contained treasures from past ardents, and Ninazu grabbed a golden skull eerily reminiscent of one of her favorite ‘trinkets’ from her own throne room. Well, it was hers now, whether the original or not. But she stopped there, keeping her satchel

Her claws sunk into the ground. Stones cracked, boulders ripping free from the floor, and plumes of smoke rose up. The plants and vines rapidly grew, their roots smashing through the weaknesses in the pyramid’s stone, shaking the pyramid and the surrounding area. Pieces of inner walls fell away, their lack of support intensifying the trembling, and clouds of sand kicked up both outside and inside of the structure.

Expression fixed in a grimace, Ninazu concentrated and bit her lip. Blood oozed out of her nose and ears as her fearsome mane died down to little flickers. Concentrating on the earth and plants took more willpower than she’d anticipated, and she didn’t have the energy to maintain her firey appearance. She huffed, centered herself with her breathing, and grinned when she felt the tremors intensify beneath her paws.

© MADI

The Irishman had been about to gather a hunting patrol.  He knew Gael patrolled the borders on the daily, but he wanted to be useful, provide those helpful paws he promised to -- especially now, when he felt he had the worst timing in the world.  He had been about to gather a small crew and set off, when an interruption occurred.

Kian flicked his ear.  "You know," the pirate began in a particularly bored tone, "if you put half as much effort into this little displays, into some actual contribution to the group, you might make a half-decent marauder."

The wildcat often had more patience but felt particularly low on tolerance today -- he had only heard of Vale, in his time among the Pitt, had wanted to form his opinion and felt irritated.  Kian hardly minded distractions, but at the end of the day, it was important to put work towards the community; otherwise, what was the point of banding together in the first place?  All he had heard of Vale was zer these displays for attention. 

"Too bad you don't inspire much in the way of loyalty."

His eyes narrowed.  He kept his distance, remaining in range to call out, but uninterested in getting too close to those he had little reason to trust.  When the ground trembled, the faerie tilted his chin. 

"Aine!" The white temple was hardly far -- if she were there, hopefully, she would hear.  "If there are trespassers in the tunnels, collapse them.  Bury them alive."

The cold words felt out of place to the pirate, but he had no tolerance for this today.  He stood for a Pitt that stood together.  Not one that sounded suspiciously like they were bringing enemies into their own camp -- that was simply treason.

After Ninazu, the Kingpin himself crawled out of the tunnel system and made his courageous entrance. His slitted hues traced the pyramid, narrowing in on the untouched areas. What had happened? When Stryker and Ninazu led The Pitt, they always lived in glory. Hell, at least Jervis kept the place tidy. With a soft grumble, the lion followed his lover further into the pyramid with his eyes on the lookout for any onlookers. So far, they were clear.

As the guru went towards the jewelry, the former Pittian ardent sauntered towards the back of the room and let his eyes wander around the area in search of anything interesting. The lion wasn't particularly materialistic. A subtle grunt left him as he reached forward, stuffing his own satchel with small trinkets and knives to dish out when they got home. Some of the things he grabbed his children would enjoy too. Satisfied with his finds, he shifted his focus back on the mission and readjusted himself to focus on Ninazu.

Stryker's paws sunk into the floor below. A green colored gaze disappeared behind his eyelids and the ground began to tremble underneath. His heart raced and his mind pushed along furiously, focusing all his concentration on the earth below. Muscles tensed. Claws drove their way into the floor. All his might rushed throughout his body and released cathartically with a roar that echoed throughout the pyramid. Stone around the lion shot up out of the floor and slammed ruthlessly at the walls. Ninazu's vines also led their own damage. Their combined efforts causing the earth around them to shatter and kick up into the air. The walls around them began to crumble. Jagged monoliths the remains started to bolt downward. With their repeated efforts, the valiant lions' destruction came to be.

As Stryker's breath faded away and his echoing roar deafened, the world around them began to fall apart. Thus it was time for The Pitt's downfall.

BURN
BRIGHT

The crumbling pyramid cut Ninazu’s attempted thievery short. If the lioness had her way, she’d’ve dragged out all the gold, platinum, and bone crafted items in the pyramid. They belonged to her, after all; a fact cemented, in her mind, by the fact the current ardent left the place to gather dust. And no matter why Vale’d asked for their help, Ninazu would follow her own goals of stealing her bloody jewelry back.

She jumped back when a rock dropped down and crunched a decorative skeleton. With a grimace, she flicked her tail and added one less jolt of power to the vines ripping the place to shreds; they writhed, wiggled, and the rain of pebbles increased threefold.

“Time to leave, my love.” After rubbing her cheek against Stryker’s, the lioness slipped out of the crumbling pyramid and darted for the tunnel’s opening. Fortunately, the Pitt hadn’t seemed to care one lick about their pyramid coming down, since the way remained clear. And once she was in, she was in; the combined earth elemental power of her and her husband would keep them alive, despite any aftershocks or instability their destruction wrecked on the underground tunnel system.

/ out

© MADI

YOU NEVER TRUSTED ME ★
BUT I’M OVER IT NOW
[sub][W]isker[/sub]