(Backdated to before Cry Havoc)

Enoki had been on their way to Eridanus. They'd visited before, though not often -- mostly, they sought out trees that might have been strong enough to hold their weight, in a way to practice getting better at climbing. It was in the hybrid's nature to climb, but the simple fact of the matter was, there weren't many places to climb in Canis and they were too heavy to do it very well. Thus, creativity was needed.

But in the meantime, they were passing through Polaris. Enoki didn't like taking Tunnel K, as something about it was just... gross. Now, though, they were pausing on their way. The thing about having so much weight and muscle in such a small body was that, unfortunately, one needed to eat quite a lot (or, at least, more than most Gembound -- as Gembound didn't eat all that much to begin with).

Enoki had stopped to start scratching at some nearby mosses, munching on them while they looked around. They didn't like to chase after prey if they could avoid it, because of the energy cost, so they were mostly looking for good opportunities to strike. Or maybe strike up conversation, if the mood struck.


@zhusha

In his entire life--which, to be fair, hadn't been very long--Zhusha had never seen something with grey fur. There were many colorful ones who made a "kooru" sound, and there were white and blue-silver fish, and there were... giant insectoid meat-beasts... but this one was unlike all the animals he had encountered.

"You eat moss?" Zhusha questioned, alighting a cautious distance away from the creature. This one did not look monstrous, but it was good to be sure. They had the feet of a meat-eating creature, but were they like a rat, in that they could eat anything?

They looked significantly cleaner than a rat, though. Good; Zhusha did not like dirty things.

@Enoki

Enoki looked up at the bird, leering over at them. They were familiar with birds -- most of their family were at least part bird, and so the long legs and long neck and long beak didn't startle Enoki in the least. In fact, he sort of looked like Auntie Damask! They offered a toothy grin. "Sometimes!" Enoki held up the clump of it. "Mostly I eat meat, but sometimes I need a pick-me-up and pretty much anything green'll do." They took another bite and spoke through it, "Except the poisonous stuff, anyway." They'd had a couple of run-ins with nasty stuff before.

They chewed thoughtfully and swallowed. It was best to begin on good terms with others, so they made a mental checklist of polite things to say. "What's your name? I'm Enoki." Then, they added, "I'm part of the Bonebound," because that was very important to them.


@zhusha

Zhusha tilted his head. "Poisonous stuff?" He had never encountered a poison before. Grasses, berries, and his favorite--fish--were all mostly safe. At least, those that he had been eating. "Like rats?" Mangy, disgusting things, he thought with a shudder. They could probably make him keel over with some unknown plague if he poked one with a twenty-foot stick.

"Enoki. It is good to meet you--I am Zhusha." The second half of their introduction, though, had the young crane frowning. Who were these Bonebound...? The name didn't sound all that nice, but Enoki was nice. This was rather confusing.

"And I am not bound by anything," he added, with a hint of disdain. Not for Enoki, no, but for the idea of being bound. Zhusha's life was his own, thank you very much. "What are the... Bonebound?" And then, because it was utterly inconceivable that anyone would be bound of their own free will, least of all to bones: "Do you wish to be a part of them?" He would have to find a way to help free Enoki, if not.

@Enoki

"Some plants make you sick," Enoki explained. "I don't know if rats are poisonous, I don't hunt those 'cause they live in big groups and would probably maul me if I tried. I mostly eat rabbits and mice." They smiled brightly. "Nice to meet you, too, Zhusha!"

Enoki inclined their head slightly at his apparent disdain for the word bound. Everyone was bound to something, including their bones. "The Bonebound are my family," Enoki explained. "Of course I want to be part of them." They paused. "Oh, wait! You must not have ever been to Canis, huh? There's a whole room totally full of bones sort of that way," they said, pointing. "The Bonebound live there -- we honor the dead and tell their stories while trying to keep each other alive." Enoki grinned boyishly. Where they'd gotten that was a mystery, but they clearly thought it was funny.

"I've actually been trying to practice fighting and magic and stuff so I can get better at protecting them, but there's not very much stuff you can fight without dying in these caves."


@zhusha

Ah! Family! An odd choice of name, perhaps, but they seemed to be a benevolent--if slightly eccentric--group. But the description of Canis... this worried him. "An entire cave filled with bones...?" Brown feathers fluffed with mild alarm. Zhusha had known there were dangerous things in the caves, but how could so many have died? Then again, he had barely survived that encounter with the insect. He was fortunate it had decided to let him go; otherwise, he might have become a pile of bones himself.

Enoki did seem like a good person, and the Bonebound must need protection if they were living in such a cave. He had to help somehow, Zhusha decided. He did not want to see this one or their family reduced to bones. "Would you like to practice together?" he offered. "A friendly mock-fight, if you will, to help us learn to defend ourselves." He shuddered at the thought of how easily he'd been overpowered by the giant insect. I must become better, in order to protect myself and the innocent.

@Enoki

Enoki's eyes lit up. "Oh, sure! We can be fighting buddies! I have another one, too -- his name is the Sentinel, and he's a fast learner! He's, like, a really big dog." They set their moss aside and stretched, eyeing Zhusha. "I'll have to be careful," they acquiesced, "'cause birds have fragile bones. No bad wounds, okay? Little scratches and shallow bites are fine, but nothing that'll take longer than a few days to heal."

They stretched and settled lightly -- their back feet were flat on the ground, and their front paws were just touching enough to support them. They were watching Zhusha, prepared to leap out of the way if the crane got too close. "You go first!" Enoki offered, not revealing that they were already prepared to dodge.



Round: 1/?
Attempt: Prepare to parry!
Defense: Ready to dodge
Injuries: None
@zhusha

Birds have fragile bones? Zhusha glanced down at himself, uncertain. This was news to him, as he'd never broken a bon; but now, thanks to Enoki, he would know to be careful. "No bad wounds," Zhusha agreed, though scratching or beating with his wings seemed a bit lackluster next to his default stab it with the beak. "If one of us lands a blow that would seriously injure in a real battle, stopping at a touch or tap will do to end the fight."

Since Enoki had offered to give him the first move anyway, Zhusha took a moment to consider what he should do. The obvious difference between them was that he had wings and Enoki did not, but how was he supposed to use that to his advantage when his greatest weapon was his beak?

With a mental shrug, Zhusha decided to just get started and do whatever seemed best in the moment. Picking up a clump of moss in his beak, he flung it at Enoki's face as he lifted into the air and flapped toward the koalyena. With luck, it would make for a good distraction while he closed the distance between them.

Round 1/?
Attempt: throw some moss at Enoki's face
Defense: ^, I guess
Injuries: none

@Enoki

Enoki had been prepared, light on their feet and watching Zhusha carefully. While their dodge was a bit clumsy, more of a duck than a graceful side-step, Enoki was more than ready to pop up and strike. They surged more or less upward, aiming to meet Zhusha when he came in range to strike -- assuming, of course, he didn't dodge (or they didn't misjudge his trajectory).

Ultimately, his distraction hadn't worked, and regardless of what the effect (or lack thereof) of Enoki's attack was, they chimed off, "Don't let your opponent get the first strike anyway!"

Round: 2/?
Attempt: Scratch him when he gets close!
Defense: None
Injuries: None

@zhusha

The moss had no effect, but Zhusha had no time to think about that now as Enoki surged upward. Claws scraped along his chest, leaving ruffled feathers and several shallow scratches in their wake. They stung, but they were superficial in the end, and did not really bleed.

Enoki was within striking range now--of course--and again Zhusha hesitated for a brief moment. Were this a real fight, he would be stabbing for their face. But for practice, even a gentle peck with something so sharp at a place filled with sensitive areas seemed too much. Instead, he beat his wings fiercely around Enoki's head, trying to drive his opponent back. His head was lowered, beak pointing out protectively in front of his neck. Conversation was forgotten for the moment: Enoki might have been confident enough to talk, but as a young bird new to fighting, it was all Zhusha could do to focus on the physical attack.

Round 2/?
Attempt: flap wings in Enoki's face
Defense: lowered head
Injuries: lightly scratched chest

@Enoki