ORIGIN

Scout was grazing, her usual boring activity. Either she was eating, sleeping, or gardening, and didn't do much else. She was... kind of useless.

The springbok lifted her head and scratched at an itch with a hind foot, before walking forward to snatch up a leaf and chew on it happily, ears flicking away flies. She continued to eat and gorge herself on the fauna around, completely and utterly oblivious to anything, so focused on her task and her own thoughts that she didn't once think that perhaps, she should be a bit vigil.

I wonder if I could make a peach-banana hybrid... a peachnana. A beach- no that's already a thing. A banach?

Even her thoughts were boring.

Scout shook her head and slowly walked forward, her gait high as she tripped over logs rather than walked or jumped over them, perfectly content to meander where she pleased. Besides... no one would hurt her.

No one at all...

@Orthoclase-Alpha

... no one, but the monstrous hybrid skulking about in the undergrowth, startlingly quiet and careful for something so large and bulky. It had to meander through alternate routes at time, pause to sniff out its quarry again at others.

Alpha eagerly took every opportunity to hunt. The intention was to ensure the spawn had a steady supply of food until they grew large enough to safely catch the rats of Canis; but, it found itself... selfishly enjoying the break from routine. Child-rearing not being its forte was at the forefront of its reasoning for this, but there was some deeper meaning to it. One it hadn't quite figured out, yet - like what festered beneath the wound across its face. At least, that'd dulled somewhat, even with the protective flare-ups as one design meandered too close to their Master or even went so far as to launch an attack.

Rather than catch rats and run back and forth to deliver their quickly-decaying corpses, it'd figured that temporarily paralyzing larger Lessers was a far more efficient way. Work smarter, not harder, as they say. It worked out, too, that the good Doctor was seeking different varieties of subjects. Hoofed creatures might heal differently, what with their delicate-looking frames. The Overseer brought an extra deer for him from each excursion, usually the oddest-looking of the bunch.

It'd slung two prior catches across some high-up branches before moving on for a third: the current subject of its attention. Every motion was practiced and came easily. Muscle memory was nice in that it didn't require much thinking. Or any thinking at all.

Only what thinking required it to dodge a stray branch on the ground or to remember to concoct its venom before springing. Alpha sniffed again, then licked at its chops until the bitter taste of acid started to rise up, but to no avail. Not yet. Its quills flared slightly. It'd get closer and try again in a moment, then.

@Scout

Scout slowly made her way back to her garden, nosing at the haphazard spread of seedlings and replanted vegetation. She made herself useful by starting to nibble at the weeds growing between the plants, some of which were weeds themselves, actually. How she told the difference was a miracle, but in her teeny tiny brain, there had to be some semblance of organization in the mess.

She held her head up and frowned, glaring at a small grub that had latched onto the stem of a flower, and bit it, tossing it away with a grunt before digging through the rest of the plants in search for more. Once she'd done that, she sprung forward over the garden and towards the nearest stream, thirsty from all the work.

Once she'd drank, she picked a spot in the grass and lay down, nibbling on nearby plants as she settled down to rest, eyes falling shut as she chewed leisurely.

@Orthoclase-Alpha

permission to spam ephemevenom until i succeed and pounce lmfaooo granted

Alpha crept after the ungulate, licking at its chops quietly the whole way - but not from the anticipation of food in its jaws. No, no, it was another attempt; one that had it so intensely focused that it stared straight through its quarry's rather sentient-seeming house-keeping. Well, it moreso just did not register as intelligent behavior. For all it knew, the beast could've just missed on grabbing an extra bit of protein.

Lessers were always emerging, of course.

Settled back into a hunter's crouch, haunches primed for launch, it tried again. Bitter acid traced its tongue on the next swipe, and its quills nearly lifted with self-directed pride. There was its paralytic venom.

This would be simple and clean, then.

ok damn bud

Hooked claws curled into the earth, trepidation crawling up its frame. Anticipation for the impact grew with every second as its muscles ran through the calculations - jump too hard, and it'd overshoot. Jump too short and its quarry'd bolt faster than it could recover and give chase. Alpha was many things, but an endurance predator was not one of them.

Quills prickled (with care not to rattle) and it exploded from the undergrowth, overly long arms outspread to slam into Scout. May as well abuse what reach it had to get that pin down, yes? Catching deer with the intention of capture didn't allow it to be so brutal. Biting off the cuff could have it striking a vital on accident.

This way, at least, the worst was a broken bone; if that even happened.

@Scout

Scout lifted her head at the sound of leaves rustling, pausing before letting out a shriek, bleating wildly as she flailed and squirmed, her sharp horns like two uncontrollable daggers as she tried to gore the beast. Despite her struggles, she failed to catch him with her horns, her hooves doing little against his hide anyway.

In her panic, she forgot that y'know, speaking was a thing, instead crying out and letting out guttural grunts and bleats, her black eyes wider than sundials. Or saucers. Your pick, really.

Her attempts to escape were futile, and she could only thrash and kick, her legs in a position too awkward to do anything but annoy the Overseer.

@Orthoclase-Alpha

Alpha tensed involuntarily at the bleating and squealing - but from a streak of empathy for the (apparent) Lesser, or the fact that it would spook the whole jungle? Birds fluttered around in a frenzy, and there were distant hoofbeats and kooru! calls. It was a good thing it'd gotten what it'd come for, and already had its other deer cached - assuming they didn't wake up and escape from the treetops.

Shifting its weight atop the ungulate, the orthoclase paid little mind to the bucking and failed goring. Claws settled down, and then adjusted so that the shoulder was easier to reach around itself. Its head lurched down to bite Scout and start the venom's course.

Teeth scraped against her thin hide before rather gently sinking in and staying in place. No need for its prey to die of blood loss before it got it back to the Doctor.

@Scout

Finally, she found her voice.

"RELEASE ME YOU STUPID SACK OF-", was the beginning of a long string of increasingly vulgar curses, ranging from things about Alpha's mother to how small its ahem was.

She swore and tossed her head, flailing about like a rat shaken by a dog, just without the dog. It was amazing how much she could move while actually going nowhere. Though it grew less impressive the more droopy she got, her words slurring and her limbs weakening.

Paralyzed, she couldn't move, her eyelids falling as her chest rose and fell rapidly. But she felt no fear, no... she was annoyed, angry, maybe. Anything but fearful, the stupid thing.

Finally, she was out like a light, limp on the ground with her tongue flopped out, eyes closed and ears haphazardly splayed.

@Orthoclase-Alpha

Muscles seized beneath its jaws and - eyes widened at the pure vulgarity of this creature that was, as it turned out, not actually a Lesser. Her words may as well have continued to sound like bleating, but they were words nonetheless, and that gave Alpha pause despite her going still. With Scout unconscious, the monstrous hybrid backed up and straightened. Quills flared up, eyes searching the undergrowth.

Greater meant companions. But - it didn't call for help. No confidence in others coming to the rescue. Or... thinking that being attacked was more an annoyance than death. She didn't believe that she was being hunted.

The orthoclase huffed through its nostrils. It didn't intend to feed this one to the spawn, anyways. Doctor would... appreciate another subject that could complain.

It crouched down to pick up the springbok in its jaws, and shoved through the undergrowth to its other cached deer. Perhaps, the zoisite would be more amenable to landing the killing blow on a deer... ?

exit Alpha with Scout