someone should have read the news

Small creatures, that's all that Beta had been getting. One bigger thing, sure, but everything was just Lessers and tiny things. If it wanted to impress Vargas, it needed to go for bigger things. And it also needed to just get stronger. The bigger the challenge, surely the stronger that it would get. Of course, it could as Alpha to spar with it, but it would rather have it gem ripped out of its chest then have to ask its sibling for help. The jealousy was burning hot and heavy and so unnatural in its chest. It didn't want to be an Overseer, no, that would just be a pain in the ass, but it didn't want to fall behind. It didn't want to be discarded. It didn't want to be useless. Not like Palefur, no, it would rise above her failed legacy.

Monoceros was sure to have something in it, right? There was sure to be bigger creature lying in wait. It seemed like a good a place as any to hunt bigger prey. Not that the cave was as big as Orion, but such powerful winds would only be a home for the toughest of the survivors. Which probably meant bigger. It wasn't quite sure. There weren't as many places to hide so it chose, instead, to just move slowly and make itself as small as it could, pressing against the wall as it searched for prey.

This was a strange time, living it Monoceros. It was so different from Pisces, with its damp air and many waterfalls and pools and the close to freezing air. Here it was windy and dry and verging on unbearably hot, at least for her. Thick, insulating skin did a great job trapping in the heat and she had to constantly be cooling herself down. The corner that she had Svartis had frozen over had certainly helped a lot, though, retreating to it whenever she got too hot. Flights helped too, the wind was at least good for blowing against her hot skin.

She was flying now, enjoying the intense blasts of wind against her hide, cooling off the heat that had been building up earlier, but now thirst was growing in her throat. She'd spent enough time glaciating more areas of the wall earlier, using some of her own stored water in the process, leaving her parched. She angled down until she was diving, and straightened out before she hit the ground, landing heavily near a small pool of water, not far from where the hunter was waiting. She didn't notice them as she leaned forward to drink from the water.

It eyed the dragon as she landed not far away from it, eyes narrowing with glee. This was perfect - she was huge! If it took her down, or at least successfully hunted her, then it would be in the green with Vargas, wouldn't it? Such an impressive creature would certainly get it good marks! It began to make its way over to her, quietly climbing over some rocks and nimbly jumping from one shadow to the next. It tried to warp the light around it, to clock it in shadow, but the spell quickly failed. That was...a little frustrating, but it's fur was dark enough to blend in with some of the darker areas.

Still, it was risky. If she turned, it most likely wouldn't be so hard to spot it.

The water felt so wonderful - despite being just lukewarm, it might as well have been ice cold as it traveled into her stomach. Refreshing and revitalizing, almost like a clearing in her head. She felt what senses had been a bit dampened by an excess of heat slowly begin to work again. She breathed in deeply and lifted her head, drops of water dripping from her chin. She took a few deep breaths, just sitting there and recharging herself.

Her senses alight, taking in the world around her, gave her the sense that something was nearby. She glanced around her immediate vicinity before turning her head around towards where she thought she'd heard the noise. It only took a moment to notice it - it stuck out against the gray and brown of Monoceros when it darted between the shadows. And it wasn't exactly small.

Rage poured into her bones and she immediately got to her feet, scorpion tail uncurling behind her. She would recognize it anywhere - the purple color, the spines, and the strangely shaped head. It wasn't him, thank the caves, but if it was one of his spawn, then it was coming for them. "YOU," she bellowed. "You're one of Vargas's aren't you?! If you know what's good for you, leave this cave right now!"

Shit, it's been spotted. The dragon just turned her damn head right around and saw it crawling over the rocks. Fuck, why didn't it have a spell that could help it blend in? Or maybe it could figure out a way to do that without magic, since it didn't seem to have much luck with any kind of spells.

Well, it wasn't going to win in a one on one fight with her, no fucking way. And it wasn't going to risk its life just to try and take down a damn dragon! Beta whipped around and hurled itself back where it came, leaping over rocks until it found a small cavern that it scooted into, in case she gave chase. If it could just get out of her sights, then perhaps it could redeem itself and try again.

She honestly hadn't expected it to just turn tail and run, so she was caught pretty off guard when it did. She was standing there, frozen for a moment, before she snarled and ran after it. She wasn't exactly ready to just let it go without some kind of a fight! Even just a couple of nips to take home to its parent would be enough for her!

Asimona opened her wings and launched herself forwards, but it only took a moment for her to realize that she'd lost it. Snarling, she whipped around. She could have sworn it had gone this way? Hadn't it? "Where did you go, you coward?" she hissed, turning on the spot and beginning to stalk around the ground. "Are you hiding? Too scared to face me head to head?! COME OUT!"

Beta pressed itself against the wall of its little cave, effectively invisible in the shadows...well, besides the bright colored spines, but it was fine. It was hidden. She was near, it could hear her voice bellowing from right outside the cave. She was too close, too close for it to get ready. Too close for comfort.

Holding its breath, it reached down and carefully picked up a pebble that was sitting by its feet. It chose a moment when she was looking a different way before hurling the stone as hard as it could towards the opposite wall. The stone clattered loudly against the stone and fell to the ground, making it seem like someone had just climbed up that way and dislodged it.

Asimona immediately turned at the sound of the pebble hitting the wall and shot forward, roaring after it. "You won't get away that easily!" She couldn't see it, but it was definitely over there somewhere, so she sucked in a great breath and shot a blast of powerful air over the entire vicinity, hoping to hear some kind of sound as it knocked her enemy off its feet.

Perfect, she'd fallen for it. It flinched at the blast of air that the dragon emitted, but slinking forward, then, in an attempt to get behind her and hopefully get close. It took a step out of its cover and began to slink forward, keeping its eyes fixed on her, in case she turned around while also looking out for that pointed tail. Unfortunately, though, that meant that it wasn't looking at the ground. About halfway there, its paw caught in a dip and it tripped forward, instinctively letting out a sharp hiss as it almost comically fell face-first to the ground.

Asimona immediately whipped around at the sound and was surprised to see the creature right behind her, exactly where she didn't think it was. She didn't waste a moment though, turning around and roaring, hurtling a stream of freezing air and shards of ice directly at it. Freeze it to the ground, maybe, or scratch it up with the ice, it didn't matter. As long as it left with some wounds to bear.