<div class="floatleft">(http://elliquiy.com/elluiki/images/b/be/Reia-SonLahleli_Posting01.png)</div><strong>Character name</strong>: Son' Lahleli<br/><strong>Who:</strong>Ts'itu, L'aen, Astir, Kon<br/><strong>Where:</strong>Forest near Sadghan Lake<br/><strong>When: </strong>Midday, Eighth Day of Hunger Moon<br/><strong>Warning: </strong>Blood; Various injuries; Tearing out of throat, with<em>teeth</em>.<br/><hr/><br/>When Astir threw the young wolf's pack at Son' Lahleli, she caught it easily and searched through it, keeping one eye on the pair the whole time. There was nothing of consequence inside the pack so she neatly put everything back inside and settled the bag across her shoulders. As Ts'itu arrived, something inside of Son' Lahleli relaxed and she felt more at ease knowing her Alpha was there in case anything went wrong.<br/><br/>She stayed alert, barely glancing at Astir and Kon when they were sent off, a further point of stress finally being dispatched. The way Astir had handled the boy had set Son' Lahleli on edge and she wished she could have had the authority to have done something about it.<br/><br/>"You've likely answered this already, little sunshine omega, but what's your name?" An Omega, a young one, and very far from his home; that alone was strange enough but then the boy started to talk and a growl built up in Son' Lahleli's throat. Threats. Directed to her pack, to her Alpha, and she forced herself to listen before giving in to instinct and attacking. She could almost feel Ts'itu's anger, a palpable scent growing in the air that sent shivers down Son' Lahleli's back.<br/><br/>The rope that had been tied around the boy's hands landed at her feet, snapping her out of the growing red haze of anger, and she picked it up, reaching back and slipping it into the pack. Her senses were so tuned into the world around her that at the moment Ts'itu froze, Son' Lahleli tensed up, crouching back down close to the ground. Something was wrong, the low snarl Ts'itu let out had her hackles rising and she had to force back the change, knowing that sometimes it was better to stay in her human form. Time seemed to slow as they waited, a snapping branch had her twisting around but she immediately recognized her fellow wolves, both wounded and bleeding, as they limped their way back towards them.<br/><br/>Son' Lahleli moved out of their way and looked towards Ts'itu, her eyes letting the Alpha know she was waiting for orders. "Bind up their wounds. Don't fret with neatness, only make sure it will staunch the bleeding and stay on for a run." The words were directed toward the Omega boy and Son' Lahleli took off his pack and tossed it towards him, stepping closer to Ts'itu as she did so. The tight grip at her shoulder helped her center her anger and she tilted her head to the side to take in her Alpha's orders. "I'm going to have to carry Astir. You will bring up the rear. If the omega tries anything untoward, though I doubt he will, you must take him out. If any escaped from the skirmish they may come back. Be alert."<br/><br/>With a nod she stepped back and watched the forest around them, waiting as Ts'itu took Astir and Kon gave his report. They set off almost immediately, their instincts telling them to head for safety and protection. Son' Lahleli made sure to keep far back, her eyes on the young wolf walking with her pack mates ahead of her, and her other senses turned to the sounds of the wilderness.<br/><br/>They were closing in on the village when the unmistakable crunch of snow came from her left and she froze in place, turning as slowly as possible and using the well-worn track, and the therefore slushy snow, to somewhat mask her movements. Narrowing her eyes, she let some of her wolf take over, senses going into overdrive as she made her way closer to the tree line on the edge of the path.<br/><br/>A sharp whistle and then a burning pain in her shoulder, quickly followed by another hot point in her thigh, had Son' Lahleli growling out a loud warning for Ts'itu before she rushed to the trees. A blur of movement and she spotted the archer, a smaller nimble human that was jumping from one sturdy tree limb to another, quickly making his way towards Ts'itu. So focused on her hunt that she didn't notice the small indent in the snow and when she stepped on the patch, her foot went straight down and twisted on itself as her body kept going forward.<br/><br/>With another growl she forced herself back up and kept running, ignoring the sharp jolting bolts of pain shooting up her previously uninjured leg. The fall had slowed her somewhat, but even so she managed to catch up to the archer and with sheer force of will sped up and leapt, catching him mid-air with her claws, both of them crashing down onto the ground. Son' Lahleli rolled for a bit and when she stopped she pushed herself up, one knee on the ground, other leg up. The sound of slowly approaching footsteps made her pause and she looked to the left to see the archer, bruised and bleeding from a gash at his side, pointing another arrow at her, this one aimed at her head.<br/><br/>"You'll rot, Nadaecki, just like all of your pack will as well." His arm pulled back and Son' Lahleli knew that if the arrow loosened, it would end her life in mere seconds. Snarling and pushing past the growing pain she leapt towards him just as he released his arrow. This time she was able to use her strength to take him down properly and was soon holding the struggling man down.<br/><br/>Son' Lahleli leaned down into his face and let him see her golden eyes, teeth elongated in her mouth. When she spoke, her voice was deep, a rumbling anger laced through the slight lisp her canines gave her. "Your people have no idea what they're up against. The Nadaecki are stronger than you could ever imagine. Your pack<em>will</em>pay."<br/><br/>He laughed and spat blood in her face, his features twisted in an ugly rigorous expression. No longer inclined to keep him around, Son' Lahleli bent down and clamped her teeth at his throat, ripping it out in one swift jerk of her head. She spit out the meat and climbed off the man, hot blood dripping down her neck and her injured arm hanging limply at her side. Once assured he was dead she stumbled back and turned around, her fumbling feet taking her out of the trees and into the path.<br/><br/>Ahead she could see Ts'itu but she couldn't tell how far her Alpha was or if she was moving away or towards Son' Lahleli. She blinked once, twice, before realizing that it wasn't helping to clear the blurriness in her vision. Opening her mouth to call out she instead coughed up blood, this time her own. Confused she glanced down and saw the third arrow sticking out of her stomach, her simple hunting tunic stained with blood, the harsh red mark around the wound growing as she stared, stupefied, at the injury.<br/><br/>The next step had her faltering and Son' Lahleli fell to one knee, a small rock tearing through her leggings and into her skin, before listing to one side. Cold snow shocked her as she crashed into a deep bank on the side, the feeling a harsh relief to all the burning points of injury on her body. From far away she could hear shouts, maybe howls, and she gave a weak one of her own, calling to her pack for help.<br/><br/>Thick forest trees towered over her and things seemed to spin as she fumbled a hand to the wound on her stomach, hissing in a breath when she pressed against it to try and hold back blood. It was unlikely that she would die, but all the same Son' Lahleli found herself thinking about who would watch out for her Scele, her Tudi Ggaay. She was all he'd had in life and she hated the thought of leaving him alone.<br/><br/>Darkness finally started to haze in and as the world started to slip from her Son' Lahleli found herself wishing for Tsaghani's rich voice, her memory of meeting him carrying her over into unconsciousness.