SECONDHAND SMOKE — JOINING

[ninazu]

BURN
BRIGHT

Ninazu smelled the intruder before seeing the cheetah – the lioness took to patrolling the rainforest whenever her head needed clearing. Occasionally, that meant dealing with an ornery slave while already in a poor mood, but her outings usually provided nothing more interesting than prey to hunt. Today, obviously, failed to give her a peaceful moment; well, at least that kept the boredom demons away.

Lashing her fire-tipped tail, the lioness calmly walked towards the lithe female. With the desert smell clinging to the other’s skin, she doubted there was any need to rush. Besides, cheetahs weren’t known for their endurance, and Ninazu stubbornly tracked her prey no matter the initial headstart or distance.

“The jungle and everything else here belongs to the Pitt. So, what are you here for?” she asked, voice clinical and clipped. Right now, the lioness didn’t see a potential recruit to the ranks – instead, the cheetah looked to be a desert wanderer too green to remember to pack water. Of course, Ninazu knew plenty of people joined the Pitt that way; when she worked as the group’s primary healer, she saw plenty of dehydrated newcomers. But she wasn’t about to offer help or the like without getting something in return.

© MADI