Blazing Fires [possible blood/gore]

[paperboat]

((Feel free to hop in anyone! Nahara's a flesh-eating equine and a nasty piece of work though, so not for the faint hearted!))

Bio: allequineroleplay.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=bios&action=display&thread=103&page=1

The deer fell to the ground almost as instantly as it had left it, and it kicked and struggled feebly. It had been taken by surprise, quietly grazing in a desert oasis, when the black hellion had launched itself out of the small amount of cover and knocked it to the ground. It wasn't the kind of predator the deer was forced to look out for in its day to day life; it was a herbivore, and an equine, something that usually shared the deer's habitat without any bother or trouble. But its mistake had cost it dearly.

The large black mare had her sharpened teeth sunk into the animal's neck, lazily avoiding the kicks and convulsions her prey was giving her, and waited patiently as the life blood began to seep out of the wounds and onto the sand, staining it a tastful colour. There was a last bray from the dying animal before it slumped to the ground, lifeless.

Nahara removed herself from the carcass and smirked, the blood dripping down her muzzle and onto the speckled form of her prey. She hadn't been able to get a decent meal in weeks, and she had finally gotten an opportunity she wasn't going to miss. She stepped over her kill and scoured the landscape, aware of everything. She knew she was coming into heat soon, and she didn't want any pointless and stupid stallions coming to try their luck. She had her meat; she didn't want a fight on her hands. With one last snort of satisfaction, she sunk her teeth into the carcass and began to eat ravenously.

[lemuria]

Hooves sounded across the desertic landscape... pounding on the dry ground and lifting clouds of sand.
A roan pony was galloping trough the lonesome landscape, he wore a humble rope halter on his head, a burlap sack full of rice was still attached to his back.

The gelding began to slow down steadily until he finally stopped, he was sweating, his sides heaving and his head held low... he was out of breath "I'm getting old for this..." he breathed in and out several times, focusing his mind... letting go of his initial panic...

He had come to this strange land with his master to sell rice, their caravan had been attacked by robbers and he, together with several horses had broken loose.
Panic would only make things worse, he had to clear his mind if he wanted to see his master again.
He twisted his neck around to bite at the rope tying the sack of rice to his back and pulled and bit at it until it came loose, he bucked off his load and shook his whole body sending dust flying everywhere.


Once he regained his breath and steadied his mind, he lifted his heads and perked his ears, sniffing at the dry air that burned his nostrils, he caught the scent of water not too far from there and without a second tough, cantered towards it.
The old gelding stopped just before reaching the shade... something was wrong.... he could smell blood coming from somewhere mixed with the scent of a mare. His ears shifted uncomfortably... perhaps someone was in trouble.
He approached silently, the sand muffling the sound of his small hoofs as he walked closer to the oasis....

[paperboat]

The black mare wrenched her head out of a cavity she had made in the deer's side and took a number of vital organs with her. She immediately spat out some of the less appetising things, such as the stomach, but dived back in to seize the heart. The irony of a heartless mare having a particular taste for heart was almost painful, and as she got it between her jaws she stopped, her ears flicking back as she listened. Something didn't seem right... it almost felt as though there was some other soul here...her nostrils flared, and her maw, stained with blood, was lifted up to the air as she smelt nervously. She cursed at it seemed the wind was not in her favour, and she returned to her meal suspiciously, her ears still very much alert.

[lemuria]

The pony cautiously advanced towards the oasis, his head was still too hot to think properly but he had enough sence to remain hidden when there was blood in the air... perhaps it was just some predator, the blood didn't smell equine.
It was the smell of the mare that worried him, maybe she had not seen the predator yet.

He approached the shade slowly... it was a refreshing change from his marathon trough the desert, the cool sand was like a salve to his sore hoofs. He could smell water nearby, his weary body screamed to run towards it and roll around in the shallow banks... but he had been taught self-control, even tough his head hurt from the heat he threaded carefuly, as not to step on anything that may give away his presence....

Then he saw the water... instinct finally won the battle against training.... he smiled and began trotting towards it.
Then froze abruplty as a dry twig broke below his foot.

[paperboat]

The sound of a twig breaking made Nahara's head jerk upright as she snorted in surprise. She had known something was around here...she cursed her laziness and peered through the fronds of vegetation nearest her. She breathed heavily, labouringly, the blood from her muzzle dripping onto the sand and staining it scarlet. "Who's there?" she called out, lifting her head up high and proudly as she surveyed the area. If it was a predator she really wasn't in the mood. The deer had been easy pickings, but she hadn't eaten in days and was feeling rather tired. She would put up a good fight against an enemy, but at the moment it would be wasteful to use up all her energy.

[lemuria]

Taro turned his head towards the call and neighed loudly to announce his presence, water could wait.

He walked towards the voice, his head was spinning slightly but he ignored it, he made his way trough the brush until he reached the clearing and stopped abruptly.

He stood a few feet away from the mare, his guard went up immediately as he saw the blood on her muzzle... he held his head high and looked at her in the eye, hiding any sign of fear.

He carefully evaluated the situation, she was much larger than he was and definitely better adapted to this environment, it was easy to tell by her short coat and her slim build.. perhaps horses of her breed had to be fierce if they where to survive here...
judging by the scent of blood and fear on her she had just killed something... he had smelt that before on the coats and armors of many warriors, if she was capable of bringing down something that bled so much then picking a fight with her in his current condition would be suicidal.

On the other hand... right now, perhaps she could be her only chance of survival... he was out of stamina and he was still wearing his halter!

He held her dark gaze with his head still held high "who are you" his voice was clear and his stance confident but not threatening.

[paperboat]

Her nostrils flared as she suddenly caught the smell of an equine in the air. She raised her head up and reared, bringing her forelegs down into the sand a little violently to show she was capable of taking care of herself. If it was a stallion she would only be too happy to show him the backs of her heels...but as the individual appeared from the undergrowth she ad to bite back a smirk. A pony! That was it, a pony. And a very hot and bothered looking one too. She flicked an ear back at his rather blunt attitude, and pawed the ground gently.
"Who am I? You can't be serious", she scoffed, flicking her tail irritably behind her. "Then again..." she reconsidered, "you don't look like a local...no local would think of interrupting me mid-meal. I am Nahara, the Blood Mare of this desert, and you are very lucky. I've just caught my meal." She lowered her head and ripped another chunk free of the carcass. Once she had swallowed it down her eyes narrowed as she looked him up and down. "Who are you, nomad?" she asked.

[lemuria]

He tried hard not to cringe as Nahara swallowed her meal, in all his years he had never seen anything like her "My name is Taro, and you are correct, I do not belong here, I come from far east, beyond the sea" he held her gaze for a while, afraid he might offend her if he broke eye contact, he had never heard of a blood horse before but judging by the dead animal before her, he would need to thread carefully around her...

"I did not mean to intrude, I got separated from my group and this is the only place with water and shade I have come across" he stepped forward towards the water with his head low, but still maintaining eye contact, his heart was pumping fast... his whole body ready to respond quickly if she chose to attack... it was just then that he noticed a sharp sting on his tigh, he could feel something lodged there, tearing into his muscle as he walked... the adrenaline from his race trough the desert had faded enough to allow pain to kick in... it was a bullet, the wound wasn't bleeding but he could feel the steel cutting his muscle...
still he kept his face calm, ignoring it as best as he could while continuing to walk towards the water.

[paperboat]

"From the East, are you?" Her voice was a thick drawl laced with poison, and she kept the eye contact with the pony as she bit into her prey again, tearing flesh from bone in the process. She was a flight animal by nature, but if he made one wrong move she wouldn't hesitate in defending herself. She couldn't tell if he was an intact male, but if he was she would be forced to do something, especially as she close to coming into heat. She snorted and chewed thoughtfully. "The oasis is a place for all. Go and drink if you want, brave one", she said, finally tearing her eyes away to swallow another chunk whole. The carcass was slowly becoming unrecognisable as a deer, and by the time she would be finished there would be nothing but bone. She smelt blood in the air that wasn't from the kill and looked towards the pony with interest. "You're bleeding..."

[lemuria]

"that's right, from beyond the sea" he never broke eye contact, but he made sure his head was held respectfully low while moving forward untill he reached the water "it's very different from this place" he lowered his head and drank from the oasis... the cold water lifted his spirits and he could feel some of his strenght returning.

he lifted his ears at her mention of blood, he tensed immediately... ready to jump out of the way if he had to... whatever it was she was feeding on he didn't want to end up like it... he could feel some blood trickling from the wound, he turned quickly to look at it... it didn't look too bad but he knew he had to do something about it "it's nothing"

[paperboat]

Nahara moved away from her kill for the moment and walked towards him, head low to show she wasn't truly of any threat...yet. She had already eaten and she wasn't in the mood for pony...he looked far too gamey anyway. She sniffed at the wound and inhaled the scent of fresh blood, but as she looked at the pony she smirked. "It's most definitely not nothing. You've been shot", she said simply, "by the men with their metal wands. Those fools." She lowered her head to the wound and snorted lightly. "It's buried in pretty deep too", she commented. Wheeling back to her kill she flicked her elegant tail behind her, ignoring the pony for the moment. "If you want me to get it out, I can try", she said simply. "And don't worry, I won't be tearing chunks out of you. You're not my type."

[lemuria]

Taro stood still as the dark mare approached, his heart was racing but he was determined to hide his unease, he never took his eyes off her as she approached the wound, ready to kick and run if he had to... not sure if he should believe her words.

"That won't be necessary I think I can take it out myself" he turned around and began biting at his thigh, using his small teeth to dig for the bullet, pain shot trough his whole leg, from hip trough hoof, he kept at it for a while, his muzzle became stained with his own blood but he still could not dislodge it.

he gave a tired sigh and rubbed his muzzle against one of his forelegs to clean it "it's no use..." there was no way around it, he needed the mare's help... he had to risk it, if the bullet stayed there the wound would fester and he was as good as dead, but if he accepted the mare's... there was a chance her words were true and those sharp teeth of hers could get the job done, he decided a humble approach would be the best, seeing how proud she seemed to be "... you where right, I could use your help, if you are willing to give it" he lowered his head respectfully but kept his whole body ready to fight or flee if he had to.

[paperboat]

Nahara smirked in triumph and turned back to face the pony. Her nostrils flared and her eyes gleamed, whether for mischeif or darker means it was unsure. "But of course, I knew you would need my help eventually. My teeth are sharp enough to pick through your flesh and snatch the bullet away." She walked to him with languid movements, her strides long and relaxed, and when she reached him she lowered her head and licked the wound experimentally. His blood filled her senses, but she was true to her word and didn't act upon it. "You have sweet blood, brave little pony", she said with a snicker, "but not to worry, I have eaten my fill. The deer satiated my hunger. Now, to get this out." She nosed to wound carefully, before baring her teeth and plucking the bullet between her teeth. She moved her head in one swift, savage movement and the bullet flew free, zipping into her mouth. Nahara coughed and hacked, spitting out the vile metallic taste out onto the sand. "Disgusting", she sniffed, and then licked the wound in a curiously careful way, rather like a mare would do to her newborn.

[lemuria]

The old gelding cringed as she licked the blood on the wound, his heartbeat was racing... his muscles tense, ready to kick any moment, then he felt her sharp teeth piercing trough the wound but made no attempt to move...


So her words where true after all, he gave a small sigh of relief... once she was done he walked away from her a few steps
"Thank you, Nahara-sama" he bowed his head, a gesture of thankfulness and respect he had been taught since birth.

He approached the water once again "...sweet blood huh?" he smiled a bit and shook his head "if you like young meat you're losing your time with me" he took a few more drinks from the cold oasis and moved towards the shade of a palm tree, shook his mane and took one last glance at the throbbing wound "I am so old I cannot continue, I have no choice but to rest here and travel at night" he was glad to have come across equine company, but still couldn't tell if the tall, graceful mare before him meant salvation or a death...

Either way, she was his only chance... and as much as he hated to show any form of weakness, his legs needed rest if he hoped to find his way back... so without taking his ears or eyes from her, he bent his knees and slowly lied down in the shade, ready to stand and run in a second if he had to.

[paperboat]

Nahara felt a flush of pleasure that the small male showed her a bit of respect- it was nice to see that at least <i>someone</i> understood her importance and high stature without having to be reminded. She lifted her head proudly and sauntered away from him, her meal looking as though it would need its bones picked soon enough. She looked back at him and snorted. "You are welcome, traveller", she said stiffly, and lowered her head to nibble at one of the bones nearest her. "You do not interest me in the slightest, small one, so you needn't be worried. I would have to be desperate to attack someone like you, and I mean that in a complimentary way." She smirked, baring her sharpened teeth to him, before rearing up and breaking one of the leg bones with her hooves. She leered at the marrow inside and licked it experimentally. Salty, but pleasing.

She watched Taro sink to his knees and sickeningly crunched at the bone absent-mindedly, the marrow dropping from her chin every now and then. She let out a grunt of happiness and watched Taro with great interest, almost like a full shark swimming alongside a seal. "So, where are you headed, wanderer?" she inquired.