The hunt is on

[SOPHIA FLYNN]

Sophia sprinted through the woods, twisting effortlessly between the trees. The metal Pauldron on her shoulder making the slightest noise as she ran. She twisted around a tree, digging her claws into it slightly to help with the turn, tearing up some bark. She paused, sniffing the air for a moment before turning, and slashing at the figure that jumped from a nearby tree. Jumping back, she saw that she had left a pretty good wound on the things chest.

It charged forward at her, and she charged for it. She pulled the knife from her side as she ran, spinning and digging the dagger into the mans chest, causing him to fall over. She hadn't hit his chip, that much was obvious. She tore into him, hunting for the chip. After a few minutes, she found it, destroyed it, and took the mans energy. She watched as he faded, and grinned. The feeling of superiority she got after winning a fight was almost intoxicating...

She paused, as the man finished fading, and looked around. She was in a beautiful clearing, pretty deep into the woods. She hadn't seen this place before. patches of flowers grew along what seemed to be a small creek, adding an ambient sound to the area. She smiled softly and walked over, laying by the creek, and staring upward at the treeline, contemplating where to go from here.

[TYGER WEATHERBY]

Here Tyger was, exploring the depths of Willow Woods. It was such a serene site to him that he eventually let his guard down. Sure, it wasn't any kind of modern marvel, but it was a “natural” wonder. The rumors of hauntings did not stop this feline from entering the woods either. It was as beautiful as most of the Sirens and couldn't be ignored. There was something about the Woods non-methodical nature that spoke to him. Willow Woods did not abide by the rules of engineering physics, it did not have specific values to make it work. It just worked, and flowed.

Tyger sighed as he lazily lounged in a tree. There was something he was lacking. He felt pretty empty, and only these serene sites and Rosie could temporarily resolve that. What it was is clearly missing Ally, and felt rather down about it. Tyger's contemplations involved becoming a virus himself to hunt down Ally. He knew that idea was rather insane though because for every Virus there was at least 10 residents hunting them down.

So, here the feline was, lounging with his lab coat and black cargo pants, as well as his weapon put off to the side for now. Perhaps he was in the forest for motives he didn't even realize. What if he was hoping to be taken away by a Siren? If the stories are true, the Siren's Cove hide somewhere in the forest. There was no way he would tell if this was a real hope or just a fantasy.

[SOPHIA FLYNN]

Sophia shifted slightly, and snapped up into a seated position, aware of what was going on around her. Everything moved so... naturally. There was no way this was simulated. She stood up, and looked at her clawed hands, sighing slightly. It was simulated, but why did it seem so... realistic.

Suddenly, she stopped, looking in the direction of a nearby tree. Someone sat in it. Was this person watching her? No, he would've attacked when she wasn't paying attention. How long had she been enjoying the clearing? She must have lost track of everything around her, she didn't remember the man sitting there when she first arrived.

"You there!" She called out, a growl in her voice. She kept her distance, just in case the man was hostile. "Were you following me? Who are you working with?" She called defensively. Her hand instinctively reached for a pouch on her side, her claw slipping into the metal loop of one of her throwing knives. She was ready to pull it and throw it if the other turned hostile...

[TYGER WEATHERBY]

Tyger was enjoying the scene until something disrupted by someones shrilling demands. His tail flickered abruptly at the disturbance as he poked his head up to look at Sophia. Tyger laid on his side, on the branch, his firearm close by. However, he didn't think he would need it. He lazily looked at Sophia and sighed.

“No need to be alarmed... Dear” he said, bright white and black striped tail flickering lazily about. “I don't work for anyone... I don't think.” He was thinking about the question, and was positive he wasn't part of any organization.

He noticed that she was also a beast. Suddenly, he wasn’t so sure that he would make it out of the forest alive. However, if she wanted to kill him, she surely would have and not interrogated him. He looked around, and noticed that she seemed to be alone.

“I am Tyger, and I have not been following you” he said, “Although, someone as lovely and majestic looking as yourself, I just might start following you. I imagine it'd be wonderful to watch you fight...” His mind set off in a part day dream, as he imagined her fighting a group of leeches. He suddenly snapped back to reality to look at Sophia again.

With a questioning “Hmmm” he went on to ask, “And what might your name be? Who's hunting you?” He thought with all the defensive questions, someone might be stalking her. It was logical enough for Tyger to think so.

[SOPHIA FLYNN]

Sophia heard the man as he spoke, raising an eyebrow at him. She raised a hand to her neck, idly tapping on the metal collars that she wore. She shifted uneasily, taken slightly off guard by the compliments. He had asked her name, and who would be hunting her. How did she answer the second half of that? She pondered on a response for a few moments, before turning and looking toward where she had killed the man she was chasing.

"My name... Is Sophia. And to answer your question, anyone could be hunting me. I've killed members of plenty of organizations..." She trailed off. This man wouldn't want to hear about that. He seemed too... Regal? No, that wasn't the word. Sophia shook her head, getting rid of the thought. "You don't want to follow me... It may not be the best thing for your health." She said, the growl returning to her voice. She didn't trust this man... She didn't trust anyone, really... Except for her 'family' in the Fort...

[TYGER WEATHERBY]

Health. Tyger thought about this for a minute or so. His health was never really a concern to him. After all, here he was lounging in the middle of Willow Woods waiting for a Siren to come along and enchant Tyger.

“Health was never a concern to me, why else would I be here? Talking to you?” He asked, examining her further. He fiddled with his wedding ring, looking down at it and frowning. With a soft sigh, he threw the assault rifles strap over his shoulder and hopped down from the tree to face Sophia.

“Sophia...” he repeated, “I like your name”

“Wisdom” He smiled, looking at her with a soft gaze. “Organizations are after all of us beasts, regardless... You might be more infamous that I, but we face the same risks.” He noticed her defensive nature.

“Does it really look like I would be any harm to you?” he chuckled, giving a soft gesture and stepping forward. She didn't seem to talk much, and he did enjoy the sound of her voice. It was almost soothing to have someone else around, as Tyger spent most of his time alone anymore. He too was paranoid, but just uncaring at the moment, due to mood.

“May I ask, do you have any family?” he went on, giving a slight frown again, “I have a daughter, wife is lost to the viruses, people say she's as good as dead.” He wasn't sure what was starting to bother him more. However, it was true that in this society viruses are as good as dead. He gave Sophia a weak smile, as he listened to the surroundings.

[SOPHIA FLYNN]

Sophia took a step back as Tyger took a step toward her. "Looks can be deceiving. You're not from Defray... Your clothes are too... clean for that." She said, watching him carefully. "Family..." She paused, thinking about the question. "The Beasts from Defray... We treat each other as a family. They gave me shelter when I was weak. They allowed me to stay there. I help protect the Fort from Viruses." She said, a sharp tone to her voice.

She blinked, an almost sorrowful look washing over her as her hand trailed idly up to the collars again, fidgeting with them. "I had... A brother and sister. They were taken by a different government project before the conversion... I got these collars when I was told they had passed..." She said, staring into space, almost forgetting about Tyger for the time being.

[TYGER WEATHERBY]

He gave Sophia a sympathetic frown, as she talked about her biological family. He knew how it felt to lose someone, and that was already made clear. However, he felt like he could cope better than some people. She seemed truly traumatized for the moment, at least. He figured that the trust could be mutual, after all if something was going to happen it would have by now.

“I'm sorry to hear, my dear, we all have losses though...” he looked to the ground, “it's rather sad.” He looked back up intently at her eyes, wanting to catch their color and pattern. Eyes intrigued the feline because they were all so different and wonderful. He gave a soft smile, as his fangs were slightly visible, and his eyes spoke no violence, but compassion.

Tyger walked toward her to put his hands on her shoulders when she seemed a bit distraught. Whether or not he would actually get that far was beyond him. He figured that some physical contact might ease her nerves though. Tyger wasn't particularly violent, unless he needed energy, and even then he would wait until the last minute.

[SOPHIA FLYNN]

Her mind was still set on Darius, and Beatrice. Her claws brushing against the metal of the collars. She didn't realize the other beast was getting closer. That is to say, she didn't realize it until he put a hand on her shoulder. Her eyes widened as she snapped back into reality and with a quick movement brought a knife out, slashing at the mans chest and jumping away from him. "DON'T TOUCH ME!" She warned with a growl.

She crouched low, in a defensive stance, her knife held out toward the man. She hadn't hit his chip, and she wasn't sure if she was slightly relieved by that, or just downright irritated. "What do you want from me. You ask me of my family. You lull me into a sense of security, and when Im lost in thought, you touch me." She said, trying to make sense of his actions. Were they genuinely kind, or was there some ulterior motive at work here?

She felt a bit uneasy, conflicting feelings welling up inside of her as she tried to figure this cat out. She kept her defensive stance, but her scowl lightened a bit. "Why do you show me kindness when Ive shown you nothing but spite? im not deserving of anyones sympathy." She said, putting the knife away after a while. If she needed to, she had other skills, if this conversation went south.

[TYGER WEATHERBY]

He smiled brightly at the few seconds he had his hands on her shoulders, gently rubbing them. It had been a while since he had good physical contact with another being on this aggressive world. He was thinking of how she'd react, however he wasn't expecting what was to come.

Tyger flinched at the knife to his chest, as he brought a hand up to cover his wound. There was a slight change in the air as Tyger's fur was unnaturally shifting and there seemed to be a slight visual spark. He frowned as he listened to her.

“But, love, I haven’t harmed you... Even in your trance. I suppose I had that coming though... I believe that if I give someone a chance perhaps they'll warm up to me.” He brushed his fur, “Awe, look what you made me do...” He was referencing to his fur sticking up from static electricity that he activated as a defense mechanism. He grumbled as he frantically forced his fur to lay down again.

[SOPHIA FLYNN]

"YOU HAVEN'T ANSWERED MY QUESTION! Why are you showing me compassion. I'm not deserving of it. You don't know me, know what I've been through, the number of people I've killed, both guilty and innocent." She growled at him, her voice harsh. "Killing them was easy, I did it, and didn't feel worse about it. You don't want to follow me, or show me compassion, because we're DIFFERENT. We'd never be compatible, and you'd be good to remember that."

After her long winded explanation she watched the man, judging his reaction for a few moments before turning, and starting to weave her way through the trees to get away from the Cat that kept pestering her. "A cat should not be showing a dog compassion. Dogs chase cats, Cats HATE Dogs." She muttered as she walked, unsure if the cat was following or not, and at this point, she didn't really care. He'll pester the wrong Beast, and they wont be as nice as Sophia has been.

[TYGER WEATHERBY]

Tyger looked a bit disappointed when she started to yell at him, and rather put down by the speech. “I was looking for love” he attempted to tell her before she got too far. He was being quite honest, or at least he thought he was. “I was debating on whether or not waiting for a Siren near their cove was a good idea or not, something to fill the void, someone to take my mind off this world. And it's your differences that make you so... Appealing.” He said with a weak smile, “Your differences that make you so exotic to me.”

He sighed as she walked, sitting near a tree and watching her trot further off into the distance, wondering if she caught any of that or not. He listened to what she muttered and frowned at the statement. It seemed quite pathetic, but she did ask for an honest answer with nothing being obscured implied.

[SOPHIA FLYNN]

Sophia paused, looking back as she heard Tyger speak. She was far enough away he wouldn't be able to see her, she was sure. She leaned against a tree and pondered what he had said. 'Looking for love'. She had been without companionship for so long... She had a mate at one point, after the conversion. He was another wolf Beast... But he had lost his life defending her from Viruses. She had cast aside her love and compassion, not wanting to fall for anyone again, so she didn't feel the same heartache...

She realized after a few moments she brought a hand to her eye to wipe away a tear. This... Cat... Tyger... He was looking for love... He had lost his wife to Viruses, but that didn't matter to him. He moved on... Sophia should be able to do the same thing... Move on... Love again...

She sighed, and moved toward the man again, looking toward the ground. "Sirens aren't the best out there for love... They show false love..." She started, looking at him, looking as if she were deep in thought. "You really find me... Appealing?" She asked softly, looking into his eyes, hoping to see if he were lying to her. She shifted again, moving toward him slowly. "Im not leaving Defray... and it may take you some time to get me over my paranoia of other people..." She said, looking at the spot she had cut him with her knife. It wasn't that deep, thankfully, so it wouldn't take much to heal... She shifted uneasily, wondering what he would say next...

[TYGER WEATHERBY]

Tyger had been sitting at the tree, waiting for something or someone to come by. He hadn't seen his wife for quite some time now. He was certain that she was probably killed by a group or organization by now. Besides, there was no way to cure viruses even if she was still around.

His poor girl though, Sophia, she's lost more family then Tyger had. He only has Rosie and Ally, she seemed to have more, cared for more. It seemed like she went through several traumatic events in her life by the extent of her paranoia. His ears twitched, as Sophia was wandering back over. He nodded sadly at the statement about Siren's, knowing all too well that it was probably true.

“Of course” he said, smiling widely at her, his tail flickering happily. He noticed that she was moving toward him instead, and decided it was probably best that way, unless he wanted a knife implanted into his arm. He listened as she told him about not leaving defray and taking time to become more trusting. Which, was also fine. From all the violent and careless souls, she seemed to have most of her humanity intact. Only violent when the situation called for it, with the exception of one account of assault against Tyger.