sweating bullets | TAKEOVER

[Dimitri]

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"DUPLICATE" DIMITRI

Dimitri had had... rather negative opinions about Atbash lately. It wasn’t her fault, and he knew that, it was just broken-hearted and trying to blame Donovan.
They hadn’t seen Dimitri since the incident, and he wasn’t in the house. The next logical choice was the city or the forest, and they were still trying to find him. He didn’t want to come out.

Which was why, at the notion of this... takeover, Dagon’s drunken gaze lumbered to the group, There’s that fucking bitch with the knife problem... His eyes went to yoga and he felt a bit of drool leave his mouth. Get yourself together! Give me the body! Dagon complied, too fucking drunk to deal with this as Delta started to front with him. She did her best shake off his drunk buzz as the bones of Dagon’s body broke and and reshaped, a scarred tiger standing with them and releasing a snarl from her throat.

Bold to assume I’d give a shot about Atbash. Shut up!
The tiger rushed forward, head shaking once more to attempt to shake off the whiskey, leaping for Stryker and aiming to pull his legs out from under him if this worked, she would try to get ahold of Atbash.

TAGS • PLAYLIST • WALL OF TEXT • PENNED BY OWLIE

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© LEXASPERATED

[MirrorEdge]

[align=center]

She hated this. This feeling of uselessness, and she took a few steps forward, towards Toga and Butch, to prevent them from getting to Stryker.

"S-sorry, but if y-you want to help h-him, you have to get p-past me." The lack of powers was something that put her at a serious disadvantage, and while she hated confronting people, watching Stryker slam a paw down on Atbash's neck, a Snowbounder's neck, lit a fire in her, and a fury was hidden deep behind those blue optics, and with that, she'd launch herself [member=1737]Toga[/member] first, aiming to send her paw towards the Pallas cat's forehead, hoping to force her head back, and maybe even cause a concussion.

If it was her against Toga, she would probably be fine, even with the lack of powers, as she had the advantage of size and speed, while Toga had the advantage of experience and a weapon. Even now, as much as she hated actually doing this, she hated the fact others were getting hurt, and she wasn't doing shit to help them more.

[NUI HARIME]

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SNOWBOUND
FEMALE
POLARHEART

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[div style="width: 360px; font-family: verdana; color: #FB9B85; text-align: left; padding-top: 15px; padding-left: 10px"]I AM IN CONTROL!

well this was just absolutely glorious.

There were few things in life that Nui managed to get a kick out of, and this happened to be one of them.

Nui had lived through a few takeovers in her life; in fact, she had been on the giving end of these interactions. Watching as Ragyo's corporation tore a blazing path across companies; dominating the markets and trampling other businesd-goers beneath her polished, high-heeled shoes.

Now, she was on the receiving end of a takeover. Or, Snowbound was, moreso or less. And this revelation made her ecstatic.

Snowbound never failed to please when it came to theatrics. Stryker was back, strolling through the mess hall like a triumphant overlord, and she had missed his handsome little face so. So terribly much that she'd wonder if he'd appreciate the fact that she would go through so much effort just to destroy his smug little expression with a few, well placed, savage swipes to the head. He'd appreciate that, right? She believes so.

Atbash hung numbly from his jaws. Like a rabbit. Like prey caught between the jaws of the wolf. Undeniably weak. Overpowered so pathetically, and Nui quickly dismissed her. It was to be expected, after all, for one as timid as her.

What was unsurprisingly even more expected, was the disgraced exiler using his captive as a ransom. It was almost cliche, in the simplest of ways. Villain threatens life of an important loved one. Villagers and friends revolt, possibly getting themselves hurt in the effort. Wash. Rinse. Repeat.

Yes, it was banal, but perhaps the most awful thing about the whole ordeal was the fact that she was enjoying it.

Her heart thudded faintly against her little ribs. The burning, quiet resentment and fear that had taken the hearts of so many of her felloe clanmates was found to be lacking within the sewist. She instead watched the scene with a calculative little glint in her eyes, gaze flickering from the Pitt members, to the cocky little griffin (she had decided, in that moment, that she liked him), and Sicaron's lean form slinking forward to face Stryker. Challenging. Daring.
So was Winterwolf, standing to his side like a loyal ally.

In all honesty, she was waiting to see how this played out.

Nui knew not his motivations, but cared little for them, she had. He was parading around his own unsure victory, and long before Sicaron attacked, Nui knew that there was nothing to concern herself with. One did not get anxious over peons. To be 'subjugated' by a menial race was truly a highlight of her life. And hopefully one she wouldn't forget soon.

They were moving all at once. Sicarion, then Dmitri, blood pumping through their veins. Who would win? Who would win? Her eyes flickered to the scene feverishly.

As it was, jumping into the crossfire could risk confusion. Too many bodies at once. She could risk hitting an ally-- or an ally could, her. She was nimble but chaos has mercy for nobody. A no holds barred brawl could be a brutal-- and entertaining scene.

And then Gwen, the calm and fair one of disposition leapt, and Nui felt her gut curdle, like something good and awful was 'bout to go down.

// oof I got ninja'd but if an all out fight is to break out nui is open for attack

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© MADI

[ATBASH CIPHER.]

ATBASH CIPHER

i know i should stop believing
i know there's no retrieving

Everything was happening so quickly. Snowbound was quick to defend their tribe verbally and Atbash couldn't help but feel a sense of pride as she watched her tribe react in such a way to Stryker's doings, even if she was at fault for not fighting the lion back. However, that pride disappeared almost as soon as it came as Stryker pressed a paw against her throat. Panic flashed through the Hailcaller as he heard the words he spoke towards Snowbound, and even more panic went through her as she felt herself loosing air. Atbash closed her eyes, her mouth agape as if she was trying to get air. Unfortunately for her, it was nearly impossible and by now, black dots started to pop up in her vision, and everyone's words slowly started to get fuzzy.

bio | female | hailcaller [leader] of snowbound

© madi

[toboggan]

For the last day or three, he had thought that Snowbound was going to the pits. A few people had gotten the idea to kindle a bit of activity by holding training sessions and such, yet they all felt so bland.

Fast forward a day or three, it appeared that Snowbound really was going to the pits, as in being taken over by a hostile group that called themselves the Pitt. Funny. The wolverine joined this place a week back due to its peaceful reputation, though today, he was now seeing how ferocious some of his clanmates could become. Hell, Gwen, who was perhaps the most serene one in Snowbound’s snowy territory, had just launched herself at one of Stryker’s cronies.

What had brought this Stryker to Atbash’s stomping grounds anyway? The lion was despicably parading into the banquet hall, convoying the limp figure of Atbash in his disgraceful maw. There was a sense of bitter vengeance in the way the large feline spoke, causing the mustelid to believe that the lion was once involved with Snowbound’s business, howbeit any backstory he had, Wendell didn’t know, as this was all before his time here. What he saw in Stryker was a coward, a fool who couldn’t move past the affairs of the days gone by. Snowbound, a pacifist group, was always ripe for the picking when it came to takeovers, as they were all so vulnerable with that notoriety for tranquility they all had. All it needed was one nutter to come and make the place fall arse over tit, and it appeared that was happening right now. He acknowledged that the villain was going for the classic “witty bad guy” trope, yet he came off more as a “child cranky because it’s bedtime”.

There had been battles for home that resulted in Pyrrhic victory, and there had been those that ended in harrowing loss. This takeover would be none of those, as Wendell saw to it that outside help would be acquired. As soon as there was a clear in the brawl that had broken out, he would dip, and make a break for the closest friend the group had. He hardly called here home for a week, but it looked like he’d be on the road once more, this time for the greater good.

"Show those wazzocks who’s who!" he’d cry proudly. No, he wouldn’t be offering his strength presently, though there was always time for encouragement.

Impatiently jittering, he waited for his moment, wishing that conflict will avoid his direction.

//even though he’s fleeing, feel free to attack this guy!

[WINTERWOLF]

[align=center][div style="width: 500px; text-align: justify; font-family: arial; font-size: 9.5pt; line-height: 1.4;letter-spacing:.1px"]He's not ashamed of the fact that for a moment, Winter simply watched the fight unfold. Amusement brightened the boredom radiating from him for a moment at the banter between himself and the dragon. Then Floris attacked with an odd sort of grace (was he strange to call headbutting graceful?) for someone as torn up as he was. After him comes chaos, stuttering, strange messes of people picking up their spirits and fighting back. He almost grins, though his expressions are limited by his own choice. Just a twitch of his mouth. Perhaps Stryker was right to say that this was a reminder of what they were, but not Snowbound — violence was an individual's choice, and Winter had only recently managed to escape a life that had been so tangled around that singular concept that there was no escape. He has no trouble falling back on old patterns. Everyone else was seemed to just be accepting it, though he could keep Nui from that list. It's not as if she's doing much in terms of the battle right now. He's not either. Watching, delighting in it. They might have more in common than he first thought, though her manners were still beyond him.

Except now it's time to step up. He knows nothing about the one that suddenly shifted to a tiger, but he assumes they can manage if they fight with the mutated dragon, not undermining his actions. Still, the other battles don't concern him quite yet, and he's not entirely willing to abandon his blind side. It takes a second for his paws to move, though it ends up being in the opposite direction. Not into the fight, just towards peace. Like the majority of the people in this fight, he puts his attention on Atbash. Get her out of this, take away half the weight to Stryker's words. So the massive feline circles around behind the fight with even strides, watching for Stryker to fall. Pale blue eyes flicker between everyone who has yet to jump in, simply waiting. He's itching to get into it, sink his teeth into something solid. Where he stands, his paws tense until sharp claws flex into the ground. Someone try, adrenaline begs, but Winter reels it in enough to wait for his moment — either Stryker falls and the tiger succeeds in pulling her to safety, or he jumps in and adds to the weight on the other lion's body.

[pallid-i]

One Chance

Well this was certainly the predicament. The leader strode into the camp and watched the fighting as he smiled softly to himself. Where was Dante? He was sure his little protege would revel in this kind of chaos. They could both laugh about it, even. This was something Dante would enjoy watching, right? Yes Man should probably say something, but he'd rather sit and watch the show for now.

/tracking

code by spacexual

[Stryker]

[align=center][div style="width: 60%; text-align: justify; font-size: 11pt; font-family: georgia;"]☣ — The headbutt missed, but the side of the dragon hit him offcenter and Stryker wavered in his spot, releasing his paw from the throat of the Hailcaller. With a growl, he fell to the side. Sadly, since he was pushed away, the attack from Dmitri flew past him. Even so, the lion chose to outreach towards Dmitri while he laid on his back, aiming to slice at his chest as he flew by as a warning. He was still far from Dmitri when he tried to attack the other big cat. It was likely to miss. Still, his priorities were not focused on attacking Dmitri and Sicarion, along with the others that had chosen to speak up for their supposed 'strong' clan. A little lesson didn't hurt though.

Once again, he was generalizing the fact that Snowbound was peaceful and pacifist, but yet there had been a few chosen animals that had decided to allow their claws to fly. For as proud as he was, Stryker still wanted the power he craved. Not only this, but the attention and pain that would come with this wonderful takeover of his, as it would provide him with a significant leverage within other resources of his. To have a leader bend their knee wasn't so easy... at least to him, it was, but for the other pussies out there, he was sure they couldn't compare to his glory.

Stryker rolled back on his feet. Venomous fangs flashed as a warning, ears pulling back and his tail slashing from side to side. Someone thought it was wonderful to interfere. Truly, that is what he wanted, but he wanted to at least get to the fun part with Atbash before they gutted him. Oh well... He still had time to do that anyways. The lion didn't plan on leaving. Snowbounders thought otherwise, especially Sicarion and Dmitri. Afterwards, his gaze would shift towards Sicarion, offering him narrowed neon eyes in return. A smirk met his lips. In the meantime, he didn't notice Winterwolf's attempt to join in during his weakness.

He strode his way over in a cocky gait towards Atbash, aiming to throw his paw back down on her throat. By now, Atbash should be able to squirm and move to her will because the effects of his venom should of worn off. Even so, Stryker still was the dominant accuser in the situation. "I told you that they would make my job easier," came his hoarse tone. With the paw that had her by the throat, the Hailcaller would be picked up off the ground in an obscenely tight grip and held up for all to see. "Atbash, I told you before that you ignored the world around you, as if chaos meant nothing to you... as if your allies were nothing." With his other paw, his claws would begin to trail up from her lower body and up to her face slowly as he spoke. "You took no action against those who hurt us..." Neon eyes narrowed at the Hailcaller, a low growl reminiscing from the back of his throat in fury. "Snowbound's pacifist ways do nothing to those who harmed our clan, our home." As he spoke, his pointer claw began to encircle the leader's face, zoning in on one specific area. "Leigh knew it..." Closer. "Jacob knew it..." And closer. "And you know it now." For a moment, his claw pulled back and he let out a dramatic sigh. Stryker's eyes grew soft. "You looked away when our friends and family died to the savages of the world." He grew frustrated again, claws flexing and his grip growing stronger on her neck."And you did nothing but turn a blind eye on us."

In one sudden movement, that claw that pulled away would jam itself through her pupil. His claw skewed the eye, slowly pulling it out with a satisfying rip of the optic nerve. Obsidian blood began to flood from out of the socket, running all over his paws and down her chest as she dangled within his grip. Atbash dropped from his grip, piling on the floor. Blood splattered in all directions.  A blood soaked face leaned down to meet Atbash's good eye, the claw with her eye on it dangling for her to see. "Before I take the other one, you're going to watch them suffer," Stryker spat. 'Just like I did.' That said, he looked toward the crowd, hoping for a reaction after watching their former clanmate stick their leader.

//permission given for powerplay

[ATBASH CIPHER.]

ATBASH CIPHER

i know i should stop believing
i know there's no retrieving

//Small trigger warning in the 6th paragraph for gore!

People were lashing out, attacking and protecting their tribe. It really did warm Atbash's heart to see everybody like this and they honestly gave her a surge of hope. The Hailcaller struggled underneath Stryker's paw, though of course her movements had no avail, and she briefly stopped struggling as she was picked up. As she felt his grip tighten around her neck, Atbash tried bringing her forepaws to wrap around the arm that had a hold of her, a defensive measure. She was faintly aware of the claw that was being drug up her body as the rogue spoke, her eyes wide with fear as his words hit her ears. They meant nothing, but the aggressive tone in his voice as well as well as his grip is what scared her, made her worry.

"Atbash, I told you before that you ignored the world around you, as if chaos meant nothing to you... as if your allies were nothing." Stryker had said that and Quantum of Sunhaven had implied that, as well. Atbash didn't mean for her actions to be seen as this; she truly cared for Snowbound's allies, however The Typhoon was not one she could get under. The Typhoon was a warbound group and opposed her views, though she was completely unaware that Leigh had allied with them in the first place for protection. The Typhoon housed her brother, the one who attacked her. It was no surprise when Atbash called them off as allies and although she wouldn't admit it out loud, her brother was the main reason she no longer wanted to be allied with The Typhoon. With Jacob gone, they had no reason to be allies and she didn't want Caesar to get any closer to her. Of course, that was her mistake, because that left Snowbound open for attack, assuming The Typhoon wanted to. They were pirates, they did whatever they wanted, regardless of their victim's thoughts.

"You took no action against those that hurt us..." Atbash didn't want to. She didn't want to risk her already small tribe's lives. Snowbound was so tiny compared to The Typhoon; they would easily be obliterated. Atbash knew there were a few Snowbounders that were for fighting - Stryker was proof that when he lived here, and Nui was current proof - but that was just a select few. Atbash couldn't - didn't want to - risk the lives of her tribe. Unfortunately for her, this left her seen as weak, both inside and outside of Snowbound. Although she had no idea Caesar said this about her, but he was right: she would lead Snowbound's to its death due to her incompetence and inability to protect herself. If she couldn't protect herself, how could she protect and take care of an entire tribe? Barely, that's how. Atbash thought she had been leading well for the past month, however her assumption was clearly wrong, as evident by what was going on now. Atbash only made Snowbound weaker.

"Snowbound's pacifist ways do nothing to those who harmed our clan, our home..." The reason Atbash had joined Snowbound in the first place was due to their pacifist ways. She didn't want to live in chaos anymore, with her brothers. No matter where Caesar went, he was the cause of chaos, and Vigenere was usually dragged into it, no matter how hard he tried not to. However, if Vigenere never chased her off, she would still be with him. But alas, Vigenere had chased her off, and Snowbound is where she went, just because of its pacifist beliefs. Unfortunately for her, it seems like she took that too far. Snowbound was now facing the consequences of their actions, by facing a former warrior who believed in the exact opposite of what his tribe believed in. Atbash wished she could explain her reasoning to him, but it was obvious he wouldn't listen - which was why she exiled him in the first place. She was scared for Snowbound if he had stayed; how many more would have to face his wrath if he had stayed?

"Leigh knew it... Jacob knew it... And now you know it..." Atbash tensed up as much as she could in Stryker's grasp as his claw moved closer to her face and she briefly closed her eyes for a moment. "You looked away when our friends and family died to the savages of the world." Atbash opened her eyes open noticing Stryker's much calmer voice, feeling him release his grip on her slightly. She relaxed, in a false sense of hope that he would release her. Of course, this false sense of hope would only hurt her much worse.

Atbash wasn't able to let out a scream as Stryker tightened his grip so suddenly, but she did bring her paws back up to try and grab his arm again. The Hailcaller barely registered the lion's next words as he growled, her eyes wide as the world seemed to slow down around her. It didn't, of course, but it certainly felt that way. Stryker's paw went through her eye, and her body was immediately wracked with pain - actual, physical pain. It shot through her like electricity and instinctively, her claws flexed, trying to dig into STRYKER's arm (assuming she even had a hold of it in the first place; if not, disregard that attempt). Stryker pulled back, and Atbash could feel the nerves and tendons in her eye rip and it hurt, causing her body to twitch in Stryker's grasp. The she-cat instinctively closed her (now) good eye, tears practically pouring out of it. What remained of her other eye was nothing a socket filled with and pouring black blood out of it. Atbash fell limp to the floor as Stryker dropped her and everything at this point was a blurry mess. She opened her eyes to see Stryker peering down at her, however she couldn't exactly make out what he was saying. The only reason she knew it was him was the hazy figure of a lion, as well as his voice, as distant as it sounded.

Atbash couldn't take it anymore. The she-cat's good eye rolled to the back of her head as she felt herself black out. Her vision was dotted with black-and-yellow before it slowly succumbed to the darkness, to which Atbash couldn't feel, hear, or see anything anymore. The Hailcaller had passed out.

bio | female | hailcaller [leader] of snowbound

© madi

[toboggan]

Ensuing his leader’s eye literally being torn out of her head, all confidence had drained from his complexion. This absolutely gutted the wolverine, but he had to stay strong. Seeing that Stryker was obviously going dethrone Atbash, if she was lucky enough to not be murdered in cold blood, Snowbound would need all the help they could get. He’d bolt past Yes Man, dashing out the door into the cold air outside. It would be a while until he returned, yet when he did, he’d optimistically have some allies.