Raptor at Heart - Unfamiliar World

[GathersIngredients]

"Oh, you mean the brown one, with the red and white stripes [Alex]? I remember them, too, but I don't know their name, nor have I seen them after they followed the bashful little one.
Anoki," Lauren called out to the raptor that has been around longer than her, and who had already proven their reliability to Lauren, "I think I asked you before, what was the name of the little one that ended up on the three-horn's horns? Also, there was this other one, dark blue with emerald feathers who tried to comfort me upon waking up [Terrence]. What about them, are they new like us, or were they part of your group? And do you know their name, perchance?"

[nikohl]

"Yeah, that one. I'm glad you remember him. I mean, I wouldn't have been very surprised if it turned out I hallucinated him completely, after all this... but yeah. Him."

Brigitte watched Anoki and Lauren speak, taking a few moments to assess the way their new raptor bodies moved - it was the first time she had really had time to stop and look around without being confused, or being in a hurry, or being attacked. She took note of how their limbs worked, and how they balanced - how their little arms were barely useful but still protected their ribcages, how their smooth-scaled rounded bellies were dangerously exposed when they stood tall, how their tails were wickedly poised to swipe around and heavily weighted to give them balance, how their hook-claws curved up as if on a springed hinge and glinted like daggers in the dim light.

She sniffed and took in their scents, then turned and did the same to Niyazaki and Baik, noticing several subtle differences between all four. She could scent the others from a little further away, as well as the slowly-fading copper tang of blood and the musty rot of the stagnant pond, and fresh green leaves on the breeze. She nodded to herself, surveying the group and their environment. This was alright. She might think differently later, when they were undoubtedly running or fighting or arguing again, but now... It was alright.

[kurik]

Brock mulls around, not sure of what to do while the others talk. He mostly just fidgets about, oddly uncomfortable with the lack of action. He leaps straight up once or twice to see how high he can get before looking at anyone watching him with a crude approximation so a sheepish grin. "Sorry, I'm not used to having this much energy."

[Theis2]

Hmm, might as well get some water while we wait... or not John thinks to himself as he sees Baik contaminating the pool.
He then drop his haunch of meat into his hands. A bit awkward but it should work, and the mouth is free to do whatever.

John moves to the water and notice what the others have dragged into the pool but decides not to act on it for now. Now it's just a matter of time to figure out what the connection between Brigitte, Baik and the dead raptor is. But for now it seems we need to wait for he others.

[BeanDip]

"If anything I think Hoff should be the alpha. He's the one who took down the trike", said Sam. Hoff shook his head

"Being a killer doesn't make you a leader," Hoff said, "I was doing my duties as a soldier, nothing more. I am a Killer, I am a Soldier but I am not a Leader," Hoff looks at Baik, "Still, I'll be damned before I turn leadership of this pack over to someone who I just met twenty seconds ago."

He points a claw at Lauren, looks her in the eye, "You. I'll serve under you for as long as you keep us alive and stay useful. Don't fuck it up, Alpha."

Normally Hoff would be more respectful of his COs but Lauren hasn't earned his respect yet but at least had some of it, being the first to stand beside with Doug. Lotta balls on that girl. She'd need some hazing, still.

"Good to see you're safe, cowards," he says to Bridgette and Niyazaki. That was not hazing.

[Mereneth]

Jorge twitched and spun in place, an action that brought immediate regret as pain flared through his leg from the sudden movement. As the white glares of pain faded from his sight he noticed the speaker, Alex, and stared at him questioningly. He couldn't be entirely sure, but something about this raptor was familiar.

"Are.. are you one of the group from earlier?"

He drew himself up and steadied himself as best he could to avoid further pains. He needed to at least pretend to be strong, just in case this wasn't one of the group. However, as he was about to say something else, he watch in bemused terror as a small pack of miniature like raptors burst out of the undergrowth and swarmed happily around the newcomer. Unable to actually try to do anything about it, he simply stared, waiting to see blood. To his further surprise, they simply scrambled over him, screeching incoherently, yet happily. He couldn't help but find himself staring, open jawed, at the debacle.

Finally, one of the mini's perched itself on the raptor's head and leaned her head down and upside down to stare into one of his eyes and cheep to him, though the clarity of the message wasn't very obvious to him.

"We Return! Fed well, but heard strange. Investigate. Way BIG there now. Makes all bleed. Not safe return. Keep this way or become BLeeD."

She nodded fervently as she delivered her message, a motion echoed by her pack as they abruptly grew still and stared up at Alex.

► Show Spoiler

Badge, when you guys make long posts I LOVE it. It is much easier to create a good interactive experience when you guys make larger posts. The shorter the posts, the more I have to wing it. The more I have to wing it interacting with someone, the more dangerous it is =p [besides, I just like longer posts, period.]

Also, for everyone, there is no way to say technology in 'Raptor', or some related words without literally spelling them out. ie; you would need to spell out 'computer'. A lot of this 'no word for X' stuff is usually self definable, but i'm not going to go after anyone for missing something. This is more of a fluff thing, so if it makes it too hard to RP otherwise feel free to overlook it.[/spoiler]

---

Anoki looked about at the group and felt the urge to speak up,

"Hey, ATTENTION here."

She practically screeched as she moved into the middle of the group, in between the new split up of the pack,

"I don't know your backgrounds, and I sure as hell don't know where we are now, but one thing I DO know is that if we keep splitting up this group we're all going to die. Whether we like it or not, we are in this together and we can't go around charging off on a whim one or two at a time."

She started to pace, puzzling over things as she strove to keep the group together,

"Baik, you called us a pack. We're a group that has to work together for our survival, correct?"

Baik nodded, wondering where the female was going with this. He knew one thing, she might make one KyR'EokE of an Alpha one day if this was the kind of raptor she was at heart. He motioned with a forward nudge into the air with his snout for Anoki to continue,

"Well, then we need to make our decisions as a group, as a pack. We can't leave a raptor behind, but we can't just get ourselves killed to save them! We've lost Alyssa and Doug already."

Niyazaki, quiet and still up until this point, steps forward from Bridgette's side and chirps his input, not willing to be left out of a group decision.

"We left Master Jorge, though. I don't want to just forget about him. We should wait for him and the other one. They deserve that chance, right?"

Bold streak past, he steps back to Bridgette's side and stares at the ground. He lets the slur from Hoff wash over him and his shame for having fled.

Anoki bobbed her head, happy to get a response towards her idea, though she wanted the newer raptor's input, too.

[SamWiser]

"Well, then we need to make our decisions as a group, as a pack. We can't leave a raptor behind, but we can't just get ourselves killed to save them! We've lost Alyssa and Doug already."

"We left Master Jorge, though. I don't want to just forget about him. We should wait for him and the other one. They deserve that chance, right?"

Sam waits for Anoki to finish her speech before he replies.

"I agree with most of that. Still, I think that turning this into a democracy isn't the correct answer. The pack dynamic needs an alpha. One strong leader to tell people what to do. When times are dangerous, we won't have time to vote or make a decision as a group. If we were making group decisions, then that triceratops would have killed us when we were discussing the risks and benefits of fighting it. Historically, and logically, democracy doesn't make sense when in dangerous situations. We need a clear leader. We also need a leader that cares about the good of the pack. I would suggest one of the people that stayed to help Doug, as they have shown that they are prepared to risk their life for another, and that is a quality we need in a leader."

Sensing that the next few minutes might be important, Sam watches the reactions of the other raptors, trying to see what they feel about his differing viewpoint.

[kurik]

"Not it." Brock chirps up jokingly. "I agree we need a leader, but I don't think we really know anyone well enough to make an informed decision. So as far as I'm concerned, at this point anyone who wants it can be alpha." He drops his stick and picks up a smaller stick, and rolls it between his hands experimentally. "But the way I see it we have 3 options right now, stay here and see if the others show up, go looking for them, or leave them behind. I'm not in favor of that last one, but it's there. Personally I think we should wait here for a bit, though I'm liking that choice less since someone peed in the pool."

Waiting for the others to decide what to do, Brock looks at the stick and thinking to himself. I wonder how long until it gets dark, and who knows what's out there. We may have the bodies of predators, but that doesn't mean we're invulnerable. It just takes friction, right? I might need some help but hell, if Tom Hanks can do it, so can I! Speaking up when there's a lull in the conversation, "Does anyone want to help me try to get a fire started at some point? It seems like something that could come in handy out here, and we'd probably be the first ones to have it, considering..." he gestures around the clearing with his stick, "It could be one hell of an edge on the competition. Plus, triceratops has gotta taste better cooked."

[Mereneth]

Baik raises a feathered eye ridge in puzzlement at Brock's comment.

"So? You're not guzzling from a Big one's dripper or something. Just drink from the pond if you're thirsty, whiny little shell-head."

He snorted and snapped his jaws to add emphasis to the minor insult, despite ending it more akin to a mumble. Seriously, what was a little piss in the water going to hurt? Besides, he- Baik cocked his head sideways at the unfamiliar chirps[words] and found himself further puzzled as he watched Brock manipulate the sticks.

"Fy Er? Kook dead? Wait, I thought only two of your group were dead? You're not talking plant eater or something are you?"

[kurik]

"So? You're not guzzling from a Big one's dripper or something. Just drink from the pond if you're thirsty, whiny little shell-head."
"Gross." Brock doesn't show any sign of even noticing the insult, he heard worse when he was human. If anything, Baik was making him nostalgic for kindergarten.

"Fy Er? Kook dead? Wait, I thought only two of your group were dead? You're not talking plant eater or something are you?"
"Oh boy. Okay, Fire. It's the hot bright stuff that makes smoke and burns things. Sometimes during a storm lightning will hit a tree and the forest starts burning, and everything panics and tries to run, even the big things. That's fire. And if we can make some, we can keep threats away when we sleep, or frighten big ones off kills, and cook." Brock stops for a moment to check that Baik is following what he's saying. He doesn't want to upset the unstable raptor by flooding him with to much new information. "Cook means using fire to make meat hot, and tasty."

[GathersIngredients]

When Brock jumps up and down, commenting how he isn't used to having that much energy, Lauren can't help but smile at him, but at the same time she thinks: And it's a good thing, too. We are all going to need as much energy and maneuverability and speed and whatnot, if we want to stay alive in this hostile world.

When Hoff points his claw at her and declares her as (his) alpha, Lauren is taken aback a bit. Part of her wants to snarl at him and tell him that she isn't going to be talked to like that, especially if she is going to be his superior, and that he should be more worried about not fucking up, himself. Part of her is flattered that they seem to think of her, Lauren, as leader material. Part of her shies away from the responsibility, it was bad enough watching Doug and Alyssa die without having to blame oneself for that.
However, her hesitation on settling for one reactions deprives her of the opportunity to pick and act out any of them, as Anoki suddenly speaks up, demanding the attention of everyone.

So, the little dead one's name had been 'Alyssa', Lauren thinks and nods, finally having her question answered. She would try and remember that, out of respect for the dead. It was the right thing to do. Subconsciously she turned her head to check if both the feathers she had plucked for the dead bodies of their fallen comrades were still in place, still safe and sound among the ones making up her own fluff of neck feathers.

"We're not going to leave them behind," Lauren states flatly, when the conversation comes to Jorge and the other one [Alex]. "Jorge got hurt in the fight with the three-horn, he might take a little longer to get here. As long as there is no impending danger, we might as well wait for him, or even go and try meet him half way. And I agree that we need to stick together all the time, at least until each of us has gotten a bit better at looking out for ourselves. No one is to disband from this group, no one is to take any walks on their own, no one is to leave sight of the others, agreed? No more peeing in private, we all know how that ended for Alyssa."

When Brock start talking about making fire, Lauren chimes her girl scout experience a little. "While having fire at our disposal would be quite a boon, I don't think our physiology right now is suitable for the stick method. You might have better success looking for a flint or two and try to make sparks."

When Baik is puzzled by the words "fire" and "cook", Lauren chuckles a bit, and shakes her head. "No, fire is something red and hot, that sometimes happens after lightning struck a tree, or near a volcano's eruption. It spreads fast and consumes everything in its way, driven by the wind, if uncontrolled. But if controlled, it can be a useful tool, at source of heat and safety, because most creatures will shy away from it. Also when you leave meat next to it, for an appropriate amount of time, it turns brown, it becomes softer and - at least to our previous forms - more tasty and safe to eat. This process is called cooking. I don't know how our raptor bodies would react to cooked food, though, it might even be bad for us."

After this little lesson to the native raptor, Lauren's attention turns back to the pool, the pee, and most importantly to the corpse in there. "I've been meaning to ask this before, but what is the story about this dead raptor, and does it have to be disposed of in the pool? I'm sure Baik isn't the first one to pee into the water source, and I'm sure he isn't going to be the last, but dead bodies can really contaminate water very badly. In the medieval times, cities often had huge problems when the fluids from their dead sank into the ground and soiled the ground water, or even wells. Plague often was a result of that." Lauren recited what little she remembered from some of her history classes.

► Show Spoiler

Dang, got nija'ed about the fire and cooking part.Oh well.

[nikohl]

"Coward? Hah. Like I said to your buddy, little man. There's a big difference between being brave and being dumb. None of my guys are dead. Hell, I'm one up to your two down."

Brigitte snorts in contempt at the smaller raptor's words and flicks her tail, then looks towards Brock. "Whatcha gonna do once you've started a fire? We don't have hands. How are you going to control it? I like cooked food as much as the next guy, but I don't want my new feathers burnt off trying to grill trike-kebabs. We should get used to living like this, not try and be human again. Next thing, you'll be wanting little dino pants and shoes." She grins, or at least bares her teeth in a sort-of-grin.

(ninjad by Gathers!)

[kurik]

"Why would I want to wear pants?... Nevermind. I get what your saying, but there's something to be said for remembering where you came from. If we can mesh together the best parts of these bodies and our human minds, just the basic things. Fire, domestication, farming... Okay, not farming. But herding! You can't tell me herding couldn't work once we've settled in."

[nikohl]

"Like sheepdogs? You might have something there. Tactics and stuff."

[kurik]

"Yeah. Hell, PBS said dogs were the main reason humans were able to advance as far as we did. I watched a lot of PBS."

[BadgeAddict]

As Alex waiting for an answer from the spooked raptor the minis bum rushed him from the undergrowth taking him by surprise. They swarmed all over him making a cacophony of words and sounds. Oddly enough to Alex they seemed happy to see him, almost as though they missed him. A strange feeling rose up in his chest and he thought that, if we were still human there may be tears in his eyes. Alex remained still as the minis swarmed his so as not to crush any of them.

In a few short moments, the he had started calling Queen, the leader of the minis stood atop his head and in a few short chirps told him what had happened. It seemed as though there was something that made all bleed in the clearing now. Alex thought about this for a moment and realized that something similar to a t-rex or other such large carnivore must be eating the tri-horn. After thinking for a moment Alex spoke back to Queen. ÔÇ£Thank you for the warning Queen, I have no desire to become a Bleed, I will continue following my pack until I find themÔÇØ

After speaking in the strange chirping language of the minis Alex turned back to face the other raptor.

ÔÇ£Hello there, my name is Alex, I didnÔÇÖt mean to scare you, I just want to know what you are holding in your handsÔÇØ Alex tried to speak as calmly and non-threateningly as possible. ÔÇ£I am one of the group that woke up in the clearing, the one with the dead tri-horn in it, IÔÇÖm trying to find the others and I believe that they came this way.ÔÇØ While speaking Alex slowly, as not to knock Queen off, nodded his head in the direction he believe the group was in. ÔÇ£Will you be able to make it or will you need some help?ÔÇØ Alex asked in what he hoped came off as a nice question. Though in his mind he was wondering if he should just go ahead and kill this wounded raptor as he would only slow him down, ÔÇ£perhaps the minis are hungry againÔÇØ he thought, ÔÇ£Though perhaps it wouldnÔÇÖt be a good idea to allow them to continue to get the taste for raptor.ÔÇØ

Alex spoke again in the high-pitched chirping to Queen ÔÇ£How often do you eat Bleed?ÔÇØ After speaking, Alex went quiet and waiting, rather impatiently for an answer from the wounded Raptor.

[BeanDip]

Hoff sneered at Bridgette, revealing sharp teeth, "They weren't just 'your guys'. They were Doug and Alyssa. People. With Names. We fought to save Doug, you ran to save your own tail. I don't know where that new guy came from or who that dead body is but it seems to me that you're just as lucky to be alive as we are."

He addressed the others, "I agree we need a CO. I vote Lauren. She kept her head during battle and was the first to stand up with Doug, even when he ordered us away. She's been excellent so far and has been proving that she can handle both the battle side of leadership and the communication side. She actually cares about the Pack."

He glanced at Bridgette from the corner of his eye, "At least some people do."

[nikohl]

"You know what? Fuck you. I went back to him to try and stop him from basically committing suicide and he ignored me. You all did, except Niyazaki and Terrence. You ignored the man you claimed to be following and you lost people in the process, so don't talk to me about being a pack and don't call me a coward just because you were stupid enough to try and fight a triceratops before you knew how to walk."

[SamWiser]

"I think we do need to choose a leader. Right now, we seem to have two candidates. Bridgette, chosen by Baik, who is apparently a part of our pack now, and Lauren, chosen by Hoff. As of right now, I would choose Lauren too. Also, Bridgette, we could make torches using sticks, such as the one that Red is carrying right now. It probably wouldn't be too hard."

[nikohl]

(It's Brigitte, it's French... it's pronounced Bruh-zheet, rather than Bridget, hence no D.)

"I never said I wanted to be your damn leader, alright? Baik pledged himself to me, whatever the fuck that means, and dropped this whole Alpha thing on me. I didn't expect any of you assholes to do the same, I didn't -want- it, so stop acting like I'm trying to be your boss. And stop acting like you're human! Torches? Cooking? What the hell is wrong with you? You're a goddamn cold-blooded lizard living in a jungle and you're flapping about like you're at a neighborhood watch meeting."

Brigitte flapped her little feathered arms in exasperation, then seemed to calm down and make a decision internally. "Fuck it. I don't want anything to do with you crazy people any more. Whatever this is, it's permanent, and the last thing I want to do for the rest of my life is spend it with a bunch of freaks carrying sticks and taking votes. Baik, your pack's south of us, right? I'll take my chances with them." She turned on her heel, dug her claws into the mud and strode purposefully in the direction she had come from, head down and feathers flattened in anger.

"Later, losers."

[GathersIngredients]

Lauren, who has been following the dispute attentively, even though so far she had decided to stay out of it, now quickly runs a half circle, cutting off Brigitte's route and ends up bodily blocking her way, looking the angered raptor straight into the eyes. "Stop." she says as loudly as she never has spoken before, not even in the fight with the three-horn. But fear drives her, fear to lose another two warm and able, allied bodies, and one of them - if not both, judging by the raptor corpse in the pool - actually being the one who could probably teach them how to survive here best. "... please?" Lauren adds in a much softer voice with a lot of reasoning and perhaps a hint of a plea in it, repositioning her body, backing away somewhat, so Brigitte actually has a choice to go past her, if she wants to.
"Look, I didn't ask to be leader either, and frankly, I'm not sure if I am cut out for this, but since both of us have some of the others put their faith into us, maybe we could work together, at least for a while? I respectfully ask of you that you not take away Baik from the rest of us, there is so much we still have to learn from him, just in order to become able to stay alive. Please don't rob us of that opportunity. Give us a chance to survive. If you still can't stand us after most of us have learned some basic survival skills, you and Baik can still leave and try your luck elsewhere."

Lauren moves out of the way now completely, and tilting her head looks questioningly towards Brigitte awaiting her reply. While she is waiting, she spots Hoff in the corner of her eye and motions him to come towards her. Whether or not he is approaching, she speaks loud enough for him to hear: "Hoff, if you want to follow me, know this: I will not tolerate you calling Brigitte a coward, because she made the decision to run. All of us had to make a decision back there in a split second, using their best judgment. All of us have done so and those of us who are still breathing now will have to live with the consequences of this decision. But there wasn't such a thing as a right decision and a wrong decision. This is about survival, so all of us who still are alive, have made a somewhat good decision, at least.
This is not the army. This is not about drilling each other or roughening each other up, sharpening one's own edge on the others. We work together as a team, the best we can, we take care of each other, we look after each other, we have each other's back. If you want to follow me, you will apologize to Brigitte right now."

[kurik]

Brock takes a few steps towards the fighting raptors "STOP IT! BOTH OF YOU! NONE of this is HELPING ANYTHING! We're all stressed out, this is a FUCKED UP situation, but it's not going to get better if we fight among ourselves like this! No one is to blame for what happened back there, we woke up and five minutes later a RABID GOD DAMN THREE HORN busts in on a rampage, be honest, you can't blame someone for running under those circumstances, OR not being able to leave people to face it alone. Hell, I did both. So can we PLEASE just calm down? For me? " He seems almost taken aback by his own outburst, and shrinks back a bit.

► Show Spoiler

ninja'd

[Mereneth]

Baik had been about to move out, simply following the lead of his chosen Alpha, until Lauren dashed in front of them, chirping away in some hatchling's plea for something they had been denied. He snorted, but listened to her words despite himself. As she turned her attention to the youngster, Baik stepped over to Brigitte for a word.

"If we're going to join my old pack, we need to leave now or we'll be killed. Maieieh and I were supposed to return to the nests by now; if we're not there by nightfall, we'll share Maieieh's fate if we show ourselves. Out-hatchers have to earn their place daily. Maieieh was hatched in those nests... I wasn't."

He dips his head, seeking her understanding. He wasn't going to dispute her decision, though if they returned he'd not be able to treat her as his Alpha unless she stripped the spot from the Lika... Something he wasn't so sure she'd be ready to do if she tried too soon.

Niyazaki, torn by the division of the group and his own loyalties, shot his eyes from one group to another, dancing from Anoki and Lauren to Baik and Brigitte as uncertainty gripped him with vice-like jaws. The struggle, however, turned out to be brief as he shot apologetic looks at Anoki and lowered his head in shame as he darted past Lauren to Brigitte's side. He wanted to say goodbye to Jorge, but with all that was going on and his friends absence, it looked like that might not be possible.

---

The mini's simply danced around Alex happily, no interest of food on their minds given their still stuffed little bellies from only a short time before. Queen nestled down into Alex's neck feathering and snagged her needle like claws in his feather and hide as she settled for a bumpy doze on his back.

Jorge could only stare at the spectacle instead of respond to the question. Had he lost his mind? Pets? Baffled and wanting to forget it already, he turned back to his path and plodded on, offering his answer as he went rather than keep standing there.

"An MP3 of some sort. I think it is what spooked all of those little dino's before...like the ones you've decorated yourself with."

[nikohl]

Brigitte continues to walk away while Brock approaches, shouting about getting along - then stops abruptly and stares at Lauren as the other female gets in her way, neck-feathers rising instinctively and making her narrow head appear larger. She lowers her neck and tilts her head up, breaths hissing from between part-opened teeth, while Lauren speaks and Brock continues to rant from further away. She shakes her head once and then a second time, stepping past Lauren briskly and then turning to regard the group over her shoulder.

"You call me weak, but the one you've 'elected' as your leader begs me to stay and help, while you stand around hoping you'll wake up in a warm bed like this was all a dream." She barks a cruel laugh, eyes shining brightly, and looks back to Lauren. "Silly human. It's not me robbing you of your chance to survive - It's them!" She flicks her head towards the gaggle of raptors stood around the pond, then turns and stalks away, followed by the two males.

She nods sideways to Baik and Niyazaki as they walk, speaking quietly to them both - "Let's move quickly then, if we're on a deadline."

[Theis2]

John smiles to himself when the unknown raptor show his confusion about the concept of fire and cooking. He is just about to start explaining what it is when he is interrupted by the others beating him to the point.
"Cook means using fire to make meat hot, and tasty."
John is just about to talk again about how the heat denaturates the meat making it easier to digest but is interrupted by the other raptors with an increasingly aggressive tone.

He slowly but surely moves a couple of meters away from the group to avoid getting dragged into this whole mess. He looks for a large rock or anything like that to stand on, to get a better view over the place. As he stands and looks around he tries to notice what direction the wind is coming from, and looking for irratic movement in the terrain that doesn't fit the wind. He also tries to discern the suns location in the sky if possible.

He notice three of the raptors leaving, but focuses on looking for possible danger, since someone should at least do something productive, or that is what he tells himself anyways.