The Chase(Ravaska)

[Shazzar]

28th Brightening of Imperos
Autumn of Era II
Era XIV P. F.

It had not been easy, but, Shaz had managed to find a quiet, fairly secluded part of the city, where, in the relatively cool morning he had come to get away from the general buzz of Arakmat. His second brigthening in the city, and already his nerves were near fraying. So, before the suns arose, he had set out to find a place such as this. He had roamed the area, taking in the various scents, and, to his relief, it seemed a little used spot. He had simply sat there, soaking up the stillness, for a few candlemarks. His thoughts ran amok, as they tended to do, he had learned, when he found himself out of his element. Namely, within the confining walls of the city.

His first brightening here had been mostly uneventful, aside from the chance meeting with a very sensual and intriguing cheetari female. She, like him, hailed from beyond the city, in the wilderness were the katta, in his opinion, belonged. But, for whatever reasons, she, like him, had found her way into the realms of the smoothskins. He tried to recall her name, but, only her scent tickled his memory. Names were, as far as he was concerned, rather unimportant anyway. He knew her scent, and that was enough for him.

The suns were up, casting their heat upon Arakmat, and already the air was hot and dry. He stripped out of his clothes, heedless of what any passerby's may think, and sprawled out on the ground, soaking up the heat. He had done this many times, sharing the joy with his mate, north of the desert he now found himself. That was several months ago, and he no longer had a mate. He was the last of his tribe, and so he had to survive. And to survive, he had to think of the here and now, rather than what had passed.

He flipped over onto his stomach, spread his legs behind him and placed his left arm behind his back. Pushing against the ground with his right hand, he raised his body. He began a series of one-armed pushups, switching periodically from his right arm to his left arm and back. Afterall, he had nothing better to do.

[Ravaska]

Her weight settled upon his back as she jumped lightly from where she'd tracked him through the city and stood watching him trying to find a way to approach. Her laughter was light and her weight slight as she settled cross-legged upon his back, clutching his shoulders and laughing lightly. "If you can do these one-handed, you should add more weight until its a challenge." His lack of clothing didn't bother her, nor did the fact that he was exercising. His scent was mingled with sadness and determination, as if he'd been remembering something sad. It troubled her slightly because she decided she liked his laughter almost as much as she liked his primal growling.

She paused then, and took a breath. "I approve of your choice of spots. I like it here. But tell me Shazzar... why are you so alone in the city? Someone like you should be surrounded by katta, and yet you are not. Do you want to talk about it?" She asked, rolling off him not wanting to hurt him with her weight and sprawling out onto the grass. She nuzzled his discarded shirt, taking in its scent, and then snuggled down on the rest of his clothing, using the pile of fabric as a pillow.

She took the time to take in his appearance. Cheetari weren't muscular at all, not like he was. None of her tribe had Shaz's build and depth. Tigron were big... mass and weight important to them. Parreyon was big too, but more sensual than powerful. She contrasted the two males in her mind easily, noting both their strengths and weaknesses. They were as different as night and day, and she liked both of them. This wilderkatta though, wasn't a bit tame.... and she liked that about him, liked it alot.

So she smiled, broke into a purr, and thought it would be a really good day for a run... a chase even. And as her eyes roamed his form, she wondered how she might just accomplish that.

[Shazzar]

He had detected her umistakeable scent shortly before he found her upon his back. He sank a bit with the sudden addition of her weight, but, it was only a temporary hinderance. He pushed against the ground again, forcing both of their bodies up. He continued with his exercise as if she wasn't there, effortlessly switching arms again. Her question caught him offguard, though.

As she rolled off of his back, he lowered himself all the way to the ground and crossed his arms under his head, his eyes watching her intently. She had tracked him here, there was no doubt. It was too far out of the way for it to be coincidence that she found him. "I am alone because there are no others like me. Their scents are all wrong. Not like mine. Not like yours." He inhaled slowly and closed his eyes. "City life has made them soft. They forget what it is to be a katta."

He rolled over onto his back, his eyes still closed. He could hear her purr and smiled his typical half smile. It seemed as if the tigron had only recently learned the expression, and had yet to grow comfortable with it. "Why did you track me here?" HIs question was sudden, perhaps unexpected. There was no anger or agitation in his voice, only curiousity.

[Ravaska]

A warmth settled against his side and he felt a delicate chin rest on his pectoral. She was making free with his personal space again, though her demeanor was far more mild mannered and respectful than it had been previous. Hair, the color of sand and sun bleached wheat spread out across his stomach as she watched him thoughtfully, taking her time in answering his question.

"I was cast out of my Pride for two eras because I made a foolish mistake that almost cost an important male his life. I went to PA because it was the nearest place I could go to get training in what I wanted to learn. I hated that city... almost as much as I missed being on the grass. I did not live well there, and lost much weight because I didn't understand coin and that the job I held only paid me enough to survive one day, not ten in a cycle. A pantheri found me there out hunting in a park. I was living off pigeons. I liked the challenge of taking one or two each meal. He took me in and taught me about coin, about Inns, about travel and about the city. That is Parreyon... he was the Pantheri back in the Cat's Pyjamas. I am here with him, helping him to find his family. But more importantly, I am here to teach him about what it is to be a wilderkatta... what it is to be feral and free and everything our origins made of us. He in turn teaches me to survive with the silkskins and gives me enough information to live well among them. He needs to go back to his roots. Shazzar, you and I are much alike. You are now like I am, though I suspect you are wiser and indeed know about coins and Inns. I want you to come with Parreyon, with all of us. You are alone, and that is a very bad position for a katta like you. Parreyon needs another male to guide him. You could do worse than a mentor like him. Prides are unhealthy without multiple males and females, without the proper mix. You are something of what we miss. Even Felina saw it. Thats why I come here... why I can pick your scent out of all the others in the city and follow it." She smiled then, and lifted her head so if he opened his eyes, he could see her bright ones dancing.

"Besides, I lied in the Cats PJs. You do smell like spice... like rich exotic spice, and its something I find very pleasant." To back up her statement, she ran her forehead up and across the scent glands under his arms and nipped him where his rips ended. Her voice was sincere, and her scent was peaceful but nervous... "I want to find a way to talk you into joining our Pride. Parreyon needs you, just as you need him. I need you too... we all do. But most of all, I just want you around. If you disappear too quickly, we will never have our chase." And with that, she licked at his chest fur again... though he could tell something was cooking in her mind. There was a slightly mischievous look in her eye, one that spoke volumes about trouble being on its way. Still, she did nothing but listen attentively to his response... not only with her ears, but with her eyes and with her body pressed against his. She could hear his heartbeat and breathing with little or no effort.

[Shazzar]

He purred as her body pressed against his, her head on his chest. His lips curled back into a smile, or something like a smile, and he listened. He liked the sound of her voice, he decided. And, as was obvious, her touch as well. He did not act on this, however, he simply took in her story. She belonged in the wilds, but, circumstances drove her into the softskins world. His heart, which was beating strong and steady, went out to her. It was not like him to feel this concerned about others, especially strangers, but, as was his way, he hid it. These were feelings and emotions reserved for his mates, and she was not his mate. Not yet, at least.

His eyes opened at her request. Join their pride and help guide the pantheri from the Cat's Pymamas back to his roots? His heart fluttered briefly. To be part of a pride again, to have that comraderie. It was almost too much to hope for. Yet, here it was, voiced by the sensual cheetari. Join our pride. We need you. But, did he need them? In his youthful pride, he knew the answer to be no. He needed no one. He was strong. He needed nothing from them. He was wrong, of course, but, consciously, he would hear none of that. He would, however, help Perryon find his way back to his roots. He was pantheri, after all. Wilderkatta. It was a travesty that he had fell under the sway of the softskins, losing his true self. Of course, he would never allow the others to know he fully supported Perryon's search. And, deep down, he had already joined the pride, whether he would admit it or not.

His eyes met hers, and he purred again as she licked him, his body stretching with pleasure. His thoughts were washed away as he sensed something from her. Mischieviousness. Something was brewing inside her, and his curiousity piqued. He knew what she wanted.

"I'll give you three breaths head start." His heart beat faster in anticipation of the chase. To match his strength and determination against her agility and speed. To test both their skills, and will to succeed. His eyes glimmered with excitement.

[Ravaska]

She purred slightly, not disappointed at his lack of an answer. His casual demeanor spoke volumes. Wilderkatta thought things through and didn't jump to conclusions over important decisions. Ravaksa knew that. What disappointed her was as she licked the fur across his pectoral, she had taken the notion that a well placed nip to a certain sensitive spot on his chest... one she'd avoided with her tongue... was being cut short as the Tigron read her body language and generously offered her a head start. Males! Silently she seethed, cut off from sinking teeth into a nipple, manipulating him into a chase, and taunting him into fury. Thats how Cheetari won. They remained cool and calm while they infuriated their opponents. And Shaz had out maneuvered Rav mentally, quiet neatly in fact...

Ravaska blinked, slowly smiled, and decided then and there Shaz was a going to be a friend for life, no matter how annoying he was.

The Cheetari didn't dwell on her annoyance. It didn't pay to dwell on such things. Instead, she sat bolt upright, leaped to her feet, and was off running a half a breath later. Three strides... she took them in leaps gaining distance, and then poured on the speed as she hit the small street outside of where they had been lounging. Duck and weave... it was an art that limited her speed slightly but if she could get to a main city artery, she'd win.

It struck her suddenly that there was no destination in mind. Was he that confident he'd catch her? She growled, poured on more speed, and turned onto yet another larger street, paws pounding the paving stone cobbles.

She glanced back over her shoulder, grinned feraly, and put her heart into it. He'd not catch her. Not at all.

[Shazzar]

She was up and nearly to the street before he had even scrambled to his feet. He grinned and snarled anxiously as his powerful legs drove him forward. He was fast, but, she was cheetari. She was built for running, and, more specifically, running at high speed. Here, on the smaller streets, that advantage was taken from her. She was still faster than him, but, she had to weave through the crowds, careful not to collide with anyone or trip over pedestrians. If she did, he would have her, and they both knew it.

Where she dodged, he barreled straight through. Not many willingly stood in the path of a massive, naked tigron, moving at full speed. And when the street looked to be too congested, he let loose with a bone-rattling roar, which was, in general, more than enough motivation for the softskins to scatter out of the way. His muscles rippled beneath his skin and his legs pumped, propelling him after his quarry. Her course was marked by sudden changes of direction, his was a straight line. By the time she had reached the larger street, he had gained considerable ground on her. He was close enough for her to see the feral glint in his eyes.

The wider street gave her back some of her advantage, though. Here, the people were not as closely packed together, and so she had to dodge and weave less. But, even that advantage wouldn't last long. Cheetari, like their more mundane ancestors, the cheetah, could only attain their high speed for a short period of time. This he had learned from the Old Man. Within a candlemark, her speed would falter, and then it would become an endurance race. That was his plan, and the reason why he had failed to designate an ending point. It would still be far from easy, he knew, to catch the cheetari, but, catch her he would. In his mind, it was inevitable.

[Ravaska]

After the first look, she didn't have to glance backward. Twitching her ears back, she could well track his progress by his crashing and the gasping of the crowd as she menaced his way through the streets like a bull accidentally let loose. The Cheetari let out a laugh, dodged yet another pedestrian, and felt her body start to warm. It was a mistake, she realized, not asking him the length, nor the duration... nor the goal. Neatly manipulated, just as she'd wanted to manipulate him.... it was a rare feeling for the clever girl, and one she wasn't sure she liked. Next time she'd get a goal from him... a length... all he had to do was outlast her, wait until her body overheated, and he'd have her.

Ravaska growled.

Neatly leaping an apple cart, she ducked around an extravagant fountain and headed straight into the crowd. She lost herself there for a moment, came out and poured on the speed. Her kind could run up to seventy miles an hour, but the duration was short... twenty seconds... twenty breaths at most. She was far from top speed, but she was still blindingly fast.... ten seconds... longer... her body felt increasingly warm. She knew what that meant. Her muscles were fatiguing, their protest was heat, and soon she'd be too warm to run... too warm to pant. It vexed her as she ducked into a tea shop, crossed through it, and out into an alley. The warm inviting scent invigorated her a moment, distracting her.

That was the problem with Ravaska's youth and her wilderkattaness. She was easily distracted. All wilderkatta were when young and life found them full of adventure and energy. So it took her two strides down the alley to gain her speed once more... but by then everything was protesting. Pain laced up her legs, and her lungs heaved for breath.

But it was the heat in the end that defeated her. Hot... so hot. She stumbled, tried to right herself, and then looked around for someplace to hide. The Cheetari's form was burning hot. Her scent was pungent and filled the air as she frantically searched right and left, still jogging lightly.

There had to be something, somewhere... to hide her form and scent. Was that.... an incense shop? Ravaska glanced behind her to see if Shaz had made it through the tea shop first, and then casually ducked into the store filled with too many overwhelming scents to allow Shaz to pick out her own.

She leaned against the door frame trembling. Her body was designed to eat now. Run, eat.... sleep. She groaned lightly at the heat within her, then turned her golden eyes onto the shops interior. Surveying it for safety she decided it was fine, and stepped back into the shadows of the corner, where she could both see the passerbys out the window, and the interior of the shop without being easily seen herself.

There. That take a notch out of his arrogance.

[Shazzar]

He could see her there, farr ahead of him, and was pleased to notice her speed beginning to slow. It was only a matter of time now, before he caugh up to her and won their little game. His blood was boiling, his heart pounding. Not from exhaustion or the great heat of Arakmat. No, it was the thrill of victory that coursed through the tigron's body. His course never wavered, he ran a straight line, eyes fixed on his target. Until she ducked into a building. He growled and ran faster, afraid he would lose time in tracking her.

He dashed through the door of the tea shop, people scattering in fright at his sudden appearance and the feral look upon his face. He inhaled deeply, trying to locate Ravaska's scent. His nose twitched in agitation at the numerous and almost blinding scents of the tea shop. But, he caught her smell, and followed it, emerging into the alleyway behind the shop. There, he easily identified her scent, and his lips curled back in delight. She was becoming exhausted and frantic. And the scent was strong. She was close. He stalked down the alley, eyes alert for his quarry's lithe form, nose sniffing out her scent.

Suddenly, he stopped. He raised his nose in the air and searched for her scent, but, was blocked by the overpowering..stench...of the incense shop. He growled in agitation. He was so close. He moved on, then, still searching, until he reached the end of the alley. There he found no trace of her scent, nor any sign of her in the crowd. His ears lay back and he swiveled back around, facing the alley once again. His golden eyes scanned the corridor. He needed to get a better view of things. He located what he needed; a stack of wooden boxes and crates against the wall. They would serve him well. He bound for them, and a few quick, powerful leaps found him on the roof of the incense shop. He hurried to the edge nearest the street and scanned the crowd below. There, just below, he saw the cheetari.

He didn't think. He just leapt over the side of the building, and dropped to the street below. He landed in a deep crouch, on all fours, and snarled at the cheetari in victory. It was cut short, however, as the frightenend cheetari yelped and began to run. It was not Ravaska. He stood slowly, clearly irritated at his mistake. She was close, he knew. She could not have gotten that far ahead yet. No, she was close.......

His eyes snapped to the streetside door of the incense shop, and his body followed. Inside, he found his sense of smell useless. Too many strong smells assaulted his nose. The shop was empty, except for the lone clerk who just stared, wide eyed, at Shazzar's naked form. The clerk didn't interest him, though, and slowly moved through the shop, making his way to the back room.

[Ravaska]

She heard him hit the roof. The ceiling vibrated and the Cheetari cringed. But he moved across it and leaped down, off on some other distraction. She was up then, when his weight ceased creaking across the top of the ceiling and looking around. There, by the door, hung a floor length cloak the color of sand. Ravaska, remembering Parreyon's careful teachings, tossed coin on the counter to pay for it, and slipped it over her body. She then was out the back door, snuggling the hood deep over her head and tucking her tail carefully against her body and curling it around her legs. Then she walked off, swiftly but not hurried, towards the nearest crowd of people.

If she could just... loose herself in the crowd... she'd not be caught. Though the Cheetari was still overheated, and panting... that didn't stop her from walking. And she did, turning at the end of the alley and heading west, joining the mingling crowd heading down the main street towards the market. If she could just get there... if Shaz would just miss her unbooted feet sticking out of the cloak... she'd probably evade him. Probably.

[Shazzar]

He stepped into the backroom of the shop, nose still searching for Ravaska's familiar scent. He searched the room, eyes piercing the dim room, and found nothing. He couldn't have lost her. His pride wouldn't allow for that. He ran out the backdoor, into the alley once more, head turning to look both ways. He chose a direction mostly at random, though, he would have said it was his natural instincts that led him, and was rewarded with the faintest wisp of Ravaska's scent.

At the end of the alleyway, he stood stock still, nose in the air searching. He turned west, and began stalking down the street. He was sure she had come this way. Then, his eyes caught something familiar. He watched intently as a cloaked figure moved away from him. Something about the way it moved.....

He growled loudly, and darted forward, focusing solely on the cloaked figure.

[Ravaska]

Ravaska was playing it cool. The only way she'd be able to evade him was to pretend she wasn't evading him... that she wasn't worried about him at all. She wasn't, not really. If she had just a few more minutes, she'd be ready to fly again, hitting the place Cheetari lived for... the space between Telath and the Sky, where they could pour on the speed and be untouchable for 20 to 30 seconds of time. It was worth everything to them, and it was why they valued freedom and open landscape.

Distracted easily, her nose tasted the wind that was blowing into her face and she closed deeper into the crowd. She had no idea he was so close, or that she'd been spotted. If she looked back and indeed he was there, she'd give herself up. Ravaska wasn't about to do that. The people around her moved differently, jointed vastly differently than her own form was. Ravaska tried to mimic them, though it was awkward and very uncomfortable to do so. She felt silly even as she moved with the crowd into the very beginnings of the open Bazaar, a place she'd been wanting to go but had yet mustered up the courage to find. If nothing else, Shaz's pursuit had brought her this far... and she looked around curiously, completely distracted from the chase.

[Shazzar]

In a few long strides he was upon her and in one swipe he snatched the cloak from her form. His victory snarl was cut short, however. Again, he had targeteted the wrong person. A young human woman looked at him with wide eyed terror, then shrieked loudly as she slowly backed away from the menacing looking tigron. He growled in disgust at his own mistake and carelessly tossed the cloak back to the woman as he turned from her. She broke into a run as soon as his back was turned.

He scowled, not that one could tell as he nearly always scowled. In the wild tracking was so much easier. He knew all the scents there, he knew what to expect, and there was not so many distracting forms moving about. For only the briefest of moments he thought to give up the chase. To acknowledge her as the victor. But, only for the briefest of moments. He shook his head in anger at himself for harboring such thoughts, then thrust his nose into the air again, searching.

[Ravaska]

The Cheetari wasn't always good at being the pursued. She loved the chase, but for a hunter, they didn't do so well being the one hunted. Ravaska kept track of the Tigron, and as he attacked the woman, she moved, getting into position behind him.... downwind, masking her scent. Then she began to follow. He didn't seem phased by the woman's screams and her backing away. Ravaska couldn't help but smother a laugh with a lightly spotted hand. Shazzar was ... unique... that much was for sure. She moved closer, watching him ... fascinated by the way the Tigron moved.

He wasn't a patient hunter, stalking things over time and waiting until just the right moment. She once heard a silkskin term... Bull in a China Shop. That was Shazzar. He was intriguing, the way he went directly to the point, not deviating and certainly not taking his time in the hunt. There was a pleasure in the stalking, a thrill that was indescribable. He missed it completely. She could tell fully... because he had a narrow search parameter, an even tighter focus, and let his lack of patience hinder him.

She moved closer.

He wasn't a grassland predator. The Cheetari could tell. He was too direct. Jungle then, she decided immediately. Straight through the foliage, following scent, following the trail. Ravaska didn't think Shazzar would make the best hunter... he didn't have the patience for it. It was the thought that crossed her mind as she moved closer, so close he'd hear her soon. She reached out slowly, trailed a hand down his spine, and stepped closer, raising on her toes to plant her lips up against his ear. "Gotcha" She said softly, trailing her hands out across his shoulders, down his back and then slipped them around his waist. Ravaska pressed her whole body up against his, letting him feel her length before she spoke again. "You'd be dead if I was really hunting you...." She said with a purrr, keeping the contact going.

[Shazzar]

His whiskers flicked, his tail echoing them, his eyes darting about looking for the cheetari. She was close, he knew it. She had to be. But, her scent had completely vanished now. He stalked slowly through the crowd, searching in vain. It wasn't possible for her to have escaped him. He approached, quite rudely, several cloaked figures and sniffed them. None, however, dared to challenge him over it, instead, hurrying off to get away from the tigron. Each failure only served to agitate him further, but, he refused to abandon the hunt.

Then, a slight hint of the cheetari's scent, which faded quickly, and the sense of someone behind him. Before he could react, he felt a touch on his back, the hand trailing down his spine, causing his body to stiffen. A low snarl began to erupt from his mouth when he felt lips pressed to him and heard Ravaska's soft, sensual voice in his ear. He had lost their little game. It was impossible. It was incomprehensible. It was..........not so bad. her body pressed against his, her arms wrapped around his waist and her purr vibrated through his body. Losing wasn't so bad after all.

For once, he let his surly demeanor slip, and he purred in response to her presence. "Maybe." His body was more relaxed now, here in her embrace, his breath coming more quickly and his heart beating strongly. "What is your prize, spotted one?"