Ouroboros Spine may the gods strike me down if I forsake you

@Aiolos @Shikoba or @Kukutux maybe? This thread is set for late afternoon today to account for travel times!

This was the final place he could smell.

A final warning.

His legs hurt, but he did not allow it to change his path. He would sleep tonight knowing his duty had been fulfilled. He would sleep knowing that he’d accomplished what he’d been sent out to do.

And then, that was where his thoughts stopped. He could return to Akashingo, return to being a shadow clinging to the wall, wishing to be alone, never wanting the touches and eyes of the others in the palace to be upon him for more than five seconds, or he could chase a wild lead to his father’s side and get orders directly from the man he trusted most. He shook his head slowly.

His life felt like it was torn in two. A before and an after of the cat, of the witch, of every bad thing that had ever occurred in his short life. And at the end of it all..what would he end up doing?

Who are you becoming, oh Brutus?

He shook his head again, vigorously this time, the motion coming into his thick coat, before he was back to trotting up to the borders. He gave them a good sniff for a moment, before he threw his head back, letting his voice sizzle in the air before he plopped down on his haunches.

tagging for visibility and slight pp if allowed <3

she did not wish to ever leave her newest little pair, but in her pregnancy and parturition, work never stopped its flow for shikoba. there was only so much she could entrust to inutsuk with her own duties and titles. she could not give him her roles as star hunter, but perhaps the role of a father.

she whispered that she would be back soon enough after her children drank enough of her milk to fall asleep. and she would tuck them against the belly of their tataa @Inutsuk while she went to the borders. and with his best attempts to perhaps keep her bedridden, the woman would refuse.

nights often felt sleepless, though shikoba took peace in the fact that her children breathed and ate and were content. when she comes to the borders to look upon the face of the stranger, the woman raises her hackles and comes to stop before him, chin raised and sulfuric eyes questioning.

"what is your business at Moonglow?" she comes to ask him, her tone clear as day.

He was breathing harsh, panting really, the run he’d taken to get here burning at his muscles. He took to his feet when a scent drifted near, looking into the face of a woman.

She asked his business. The boy drew the bearing of a soldier around his shoulders like a weathered cloak, face schooled into a grim mask. He held the air of a young officer, leaping off his horse and taking off his helmet.

Ma’am He started in his crackling voice, breaking around the words with his scratchy throat.

I am Aquillius, from the mesa. Akashingo. I bring to you dire warnings. He didn’t stop there, continuing to barrel on even if the woman tried to speak.

Days ago, the leader of Akashingo ousted a high ranking military official as a traitor. He has since fled in an unknown direction, but this man is dangerous. He is known as Khaba, he is tall with a black coat and silver eyes. Akashingo wishes for his blood and his head. Aquillius had never met the man himself, only knowing his appearance through the court proceedings, but he knew Makono would spare no one in her hunt for the former Jodai.

for a moment shikoba wonders about the facade the boy puts on before her. a messenger of war, drained from his days of travel and leaving his voice weary and dry – she has seen many of these in her days of youth.

she did not interrupt him and waited until everything was out in the open. and when he finally pauses for his breath, the woman wears an expression of concern on her face. she has heard of akashingo, but has certainly never spoken about the land of the reeds beyond that. 

shikoba shifts her legs. moonglow did not harbor such a man, nor had she seen one. but whatever crimes he committed to cause the need for his head must be something of concern. "we have not seen him," she comes to say to the boy, "but we will heed this warning, and send word if he comes near."

she would not partake in a war that wasn't hers without the counsel of sun man and moon woman. but she could promise that her family would be safe by the tips of her canines.

"do you need food or a place to rest, Aquillius of the mesa?" 

The woman accepted his warning, and he breathed a little sigh of relief at the thought. They now knew how to avoid the dark thunder of war that seemed to lurk on the horizon.


Aquillius took a breath.

No, but thank you for the offer. I need to hurry back. Though…

I have one more thing, a question if you do not mind me asking it? He cleared his throat, wishing more than anything that he hadn’t ever hunted that cat.

I’m looking for someone. We have the same build and height, but he is a bit more grey than I am. His name is Germanicus, he’s my father, have you seen him? Or heard that he has come this way?

he denies the rest and food; it seemed a bit striking to deny such things, but perhaps the boy had bigger fish to fry and could not spend even a few mere minutes or hours to allow himself to relax before he rides upon his horse to his next destination.

instead, he searches for answers. his questions bring about a quizzical expression on shikoba's face, for she has not seen a man as described near the spine as of late. she would shake her head towards aquillius. "no man of the name or stature has come by Moonglow, but if we see him, we will come to find you."

it was hard to promise these things as the wilds were so big and the wolves who inhabited it were too unique. this germanicus could be anywhere, perhaps on the other side of where Moonglow resides! however, she would not break such sad-sounding news to the boy, she knew better than to destroy his sense of hope.

"where does akashingo thrive?" she comes to ask, hoping that the travel from here to there would not be too long if the occasion ever arose.

His father was not here.

Disappointment was not something that touched his face, but it thrived in his eyes. He swallowed down the lump in his throat.

He puffed a small breath.

The mesa, in the flatlands. It is not hard to miss such a place. It towers above the land. He said, folding one leg to touch his chest in a wolfish salute.

Thank you, for the assistance. May your hunts be fruitful. His mind was a thousand miles away. Where was Germanicus? He had not come to the Mesa, he didn’t seem to have come this way at all! His nose wrinkled, just a bit, at the thought.

fade here? <3

he comes to thank her and wish her the best.

"travel safely to your mesa." more advice than anything, though she hoped this young boy would find what it is he is looking for. in the meantime, shikoba would have to keep an eye out for this germanicus and perhaps even speak to her celestial leaders about what they wish to do with this information.

Thank you for the thread!!

He dipped his head to the woman, offering her a strained smile. Aquillius would then turn and begin his travel back down the Spine.

By the time he reached the bottom, his mind wasn’t made up. He needed more time to think. With a shake of his head, the boy turned north instead, and began to lope slowly that way.