Blood is Thicker Than Water

[Narifia]

Mahiri's immediate reaction to Nyota's statement was a disgusted and nearly vicious snarl.

"I don't ever want to hear you talking like that again, Nyota. If Bashiri or the King heard you talking like that, Prince or not you'd get your hide rearranged, if not banished."

There was nothing in this world that Mahiri hated more than the hellish monster that had murdered their mother. Hamali's bad blood was one thing; he didn't ask to be born with the Ghost Lion's vile traits. However, Mahiri would not tolerate Nyota wishing to be like the monster, in any way.

"However useful those powers may seem to be," she continued, her voice still full of disgust, "you must remember that they're the creation of demons and evil spirits. To ask for powers like that is the same as selling your soul to the Dark One."

Mahiri stared daggers into Nyota's eyes, hoping that her words would pierce his very soul. She couldn't afford to lose one of her allies to the charms of the Ghost Lion's vile powers.

[Kai]

The young prince looked thoroughly scolded. His ears went back, and he backed away a little defensively at his sister's anger.

"I'm only saying it would be useful...."

Hama only shook his head, angry and disgusted at the very idea.

"All right, so just how are we supposed to defeat powers bestowed on him by demons and evil spirits anyway?" Nyota inquired, hoping to steer the conversation in a new direction and towards an atmosphere that wasn't quite so tense.

[Narifia]

Mahiri's dagger-filled gaze lingered on Nyota for a moment longer before she snorted and broke the stare. She raised her head, closed her eyes, and in a matter-of-fact way she answered, "The answer is very simple, and it all goes right back to the lesson I taught you both the other night when I threw you into the ocean."

She turned towards them and looked at them both as she explained, "The only way to defend our thoughts against the Ghost Lion's power is to abandon all thought and rely on pure reflex and instinct instead."

Mahiri paced in a militant fashion in front of them as she continued, "By the time we finally face the monster, we will have mastered our skills so intricately that we will no longer need to think about our moves before we make them. Before that happens though, we must first learn how to think as one. We will move as one and act as one, and we will drill again and again until our skills are perfectly ingrained into our beings. Only then can we ever hope to surpass the Ghost Lion."

[Kai]

The two brother's gaze followed her as she paced, listening intently. Hamali's expression became serious, as he realized his sister was right.

"Then we're going to have to train harder." Hamali said.

"Even harder than we already do?"

"Many times harder. To achieve that kind of unity and instinctive action, will not be an easy thing. But against an opponent that can read our minds, it's the only strategy that makes sense. If he can see what we think, then this plan needs to be so prepared and well planned that there is no more thinking to it." The more he thought about it, the more it made sense.

[Narifia]

"Hamali is correct. When it all comes down to it, our final battle plan will be made once we have finally found the monster and studied him and his environment extensively. However, we will always have to be prepared for unexpected happenings that will alter our battle plan. In the case of the Ghost Lion pulling a surprise on us, we will not only need to react and adjust our strategy, but be able to do it as one and without thought."

The very thought of attaining that level of expertise and unity was overwhelming, even to the steadfast and stone-faced Mahiri. She herself still had many things to learn from Zengea. Not only that, but Mahiri was under the intense pressure of having to learn faster than Tunza and Byron, teaching her brothers all that she had learned, and eventually somehow making sure that the three siblings surpassed Tunza, Byron, and even Zengea herself. And it all had to be done before Zengea saw fit to send her brood out on the mission.

Pressure indeed.

[Kai]

"So that means training more often." Hamali said, a certain eagerness in his voice.

"If I'm falling asleep during Grandfather Hadhi's teachings, he might be suspicious." Nyota pointed out.

Hamali growled, "So make up some sort of excuse. This is more important. Unless you want to get killed. We're up against something huge here, Nyo. This isn't just any lion. This is the ghost lion, we've been told stories since we were cubs. We have to be prepared for what we're facing." His expression changed ever so slightly for a moment. "Don't worry, we'll be sure not to muss up your fur or make you bleed too much so Hadhi won't notice."

Nyota rolled his eyes. "Hey, make jokes all you want, do you have any idea what would happen if he found us out?"

[Narifia]

"He would kill Hamali, banish or kill me, and likely try to put Nyota through some sort of de-brainwashing process," Mahiri said bluntly, "It's risky enough to meet as we have been for all this time. It would be pushing our luck to meet more frequently. No, I'm afraid Nyota is right on this one, Hamali."

Mahiri gazed up at the moon. She told them, "Our training sessions won't get any longer, but they will be more brutal and more focused. After tonight, we won't waste precious time on idle conversation as we have been. As soon as we step paws onto the sands of this secluded beach, we will be in immediate combat and training with one another. In other words, be prepared."

She looked back at them with her stony orange-red eyes, "Hmmph. Speaking of wasting time, that's exactly what we are doing right now."

With that, Mahiri leapt up and sped off, her powerful legs carrying her away with a precise speed. "The two of you have an objective to fulfill! Work together to bring me down. That is, if you can!" she yelled at them as she ran, not bothering to look back at them as she spoke. She already had a good lead on them, so they'd have to catch up. Inwardly she chuckled at how flustered they must be right now at her sudden and unpredicted takeoff.

[Kai]

Nyota's muzzle split in a mocking smile when Mahiri said he was right, but it just as quickly dissapeared with his sister's retreating form.

"Wha!? Bu-"

Hamali interrupted his brother's babbling, "Shut up and run!" He sped off in pursuit. When Nyota was close enough, he tried to speak quietly enough so she wouldn't hear. "You're faster, so you catch up and try to run her into that patch of shrubs, where I'll wait to ambush her."

Nyota seemed to be reluctant about following orders. He was supposed to be the Prince after all. But he knew arguing would get them nowhere, and they needed to act quickly. He ran full speed to try and catch up to their sister.

[Narifia]

Mahiri kept her pace and focused her hearing. Pawsteps were rapidly approaching her from behind, and from the sound of it, only one set. Mahiri concentrated; the pawsteps were lighter than hers. Nyota.

'Left your brother behind, have you?' Mahiri wondered with a frown; it sounded exactly like something Nyo would do. Then again, while Nyota certainly hadn't changed overnight, he had learned a valuable lesson lately. She wondered on, 'Or is it that the two of you have split up? Interesting.'

Mahiri changed strategies. Even if they weren't working together, Hamali's pawsteps still evaded her ears. He could be anywhere. Except, perhaps, near the ocean. Mahiri smirked and turned, heading out more into the open and nearer to the crashing waves.

[Kai]

"No, no, to her flank Nyota! Run her towards me." He shouted in his mind as Mahiri ran. When she veered towards the ocean he growled quietly in frustration.

Their original plan thwarted, Nyota rushed after Mahiri to take her head on. It felt like a foolish thing to do, but they didn't have time to revise their strategy. He only hoped Mahiri would be distracted enough wit him for Hamali to get an edge.

Hama crept out from the bushes, trying to stay behind Mahiri and out of her field of vision. Since they'd already mucked this up, maybe he could use some stealth to salvage it.

[Narifia]

Mahiri's ears noted the sudden change in Nyota's pace. It was obvious that her change in direction had not been a part of his plans. He was rushing her now, perhaps out of desperation?

'Sloppy move. They're definitely not working together, then. And even if they are, then they're not synced at all,' she concluded in thought.

Mahiri sped up a bit; she hadn't been running at her fullest speed. She hoped that the change in speed would prompt Nyota to overexert himself and tire out. Nyota could easily outrun Mahiri, and in fact he was already nearly on her heels. However, his stamina wasn't as high as hers, and since she hadn't been using her full speed he wouldn't be expecting her to speed up at this point. It might just be enough to throw him off.

She kept her ears out for the sound of Hamali's familiar steps. She heard a very faint rustle from the bushes behind her. Was Nyota meant to be a distraction? Mahiri kept her senses out. A strong gust of salty sea wind kept her sensitive nose from detecting Hamali's scent. It was hard to tell whether that rustle a second ago had been from the wind, or possibly from Hamali. In either case, she kept her guard up.

[Kai]

Nyota started panting, his energy was running out. If he kept this up too long, he wouldn't have the enegery to face her if he caught her. The Prince was becoming desperate, because he was really unsure now. He summoned up some reserve strength and sprung off of his back legs, leaping towards her in hopes he might be lucky enough to catch her.

Hoping Nyota had her occupied, Hamali seized the moment to rush at her.

[Narifia]

'There!'

The sand had stirred up a distance off to the side. Hamali. Not only that, but at the same instant Nyota had made his move. Mahiri would have grinned if she wasn't preoccupied with the training at the moment; their timing wasn't bad. It wasn't anywhere near perfect, but it wasn't bad.

Nyota was nearly upon her. Reacting quickly Mahiri stopped dead and ducked, hoping that the sudden action would cause Nyota to sail right over her, thus giving her enough time to turn and face Hamali head on. It was a narrow chance, but it was a chance. If it worked, then with enough luck she could have Hamali somewhat dealt with by the time Nyota recovered and got back onto his feet. If not, she'd have to fight Nyota off quickly enough to be able to deal with Hamali.

And it all depended on what happened in a mere fraction of a second. In either case, she would have to fight her way out of one tight corner or another, the latter case being the more difficult of the two.

[Kai]

Mahiri's trick succeeded, and the Prince landed face first in an undignified heap. He frantically tried to clear his nose, eyes and mouth of sand and various sea debris.

Hamali saw her dodge Nyota, and he knew he had been discovered as she turned in his direction. He had been hoping he had her back, but he wasn't going to stop now, even though he'd lost his edge. He ran full bore into her, hoping to knock her over or knock the wind out of her.

[Narifia]

Mahiri was glad for the momentary reprieve from Nyota, no matter how short it would end up being. She answered Hamali's charge with a charge of her own. Increasing her speed little by little she charged directly at him, and for a moment it seemed as if they would end up colliding into a head-on battle.

She was a mere breath away from Hamali when she very suddenly cut to her right and snapped at Hamali's ear. Now that she was on his left, she could conceivably hope to pull or lure him around to serve as an extra bit of shield against the recovering Nyota while she attempted to wear Hamali down.