Redsand Canyon detected

@Kallik maybe? :)

truthfully? maxim had...skirted around the other men. for no other reason than boyish wanting to watch the women or flex his muscle for them. it was more rewarding, to his spring fevered brain.

yet still he knew he must build into the brotherhood of soldiers here.

so he set out with that in mind. eager to see who he found first, and whenever he did find them, he'd offer a greeting in the form of a deep chuff.

Kallik had taken to doing light patrols of the borders closest to the tablinum. He was supposed to be resting as much as possible still, but there was just no way he could sit around doing nothing anymore. He kept the patrols short, and when his body was done, he returned to the healing den. Training was still off limits, though, which frustrated the scutarius more than anything else. 

He had just started today's patrol when he caught the scent of one of their newer soldiers. Kallik picked up his pace a little, tracking the other man until he saw him in the distance up ahead. 

The soldier chuffed to announce his presence before coming up beside Maxim. He greeted the principales with a nod but said nothing else.

a man. pale, large and muscular. maxim did not know which one he was, but he would be welcomed all the same by the principales.

you are strong, he noted with obvious admiration for the man's stature. are you — ah, em — what words had towhee used for titles?

guardian, soldier or tactician?

Kallik wasn't sure how to respond to the other man's first statement, so he said nothing. It wasn't until the principales asked about his direction in Mereo that the soldier spoke. Guardian, he answered. 

What about you? he asked. He knew very little about the other soldier, and if they were to work together, he should change that.

he would beam at the man's response before he settled into a stoic look once more. his facial emotions always just blips, small glimpses into his mood.

guardian too. he boasted with his own hint of pride.

we will patrol together?

a question, an open offer despite his wording.

Kallik was always up to patrol with a fellow soldier, so he nodded and continued on his patrol path. Maxim was a guardian too, so they would likely be doing this often. 

He supposed this was the time to ask questions about the principales, but that would leave him open to answer the same in return, and Kallik preferred not to discuss his past. 

We should spar sometime, as well, he offered instead.

that we should! boomed with eagerness. as if he was a toddler attempting to make his first friend, it was the way he was with other men.

how long have you guarded here?

his head tilted slightly, before he paused. a leg hiked up for the obvious marker.

Kallik paused to allow the other soldier to mark an area of the borders that needed refreshing. When they had started to walk again, the scutarius answered his question. I have been here since the beginning. I found the imperator when it was just he and Glaukos here. He had been set on not putting down any roots or committing to anyone, but the idea of being trained as a soldier had been too much for him to pass up. Now he was married and a guard of Mereo; he regretted neither, though. 

How did you find Mereo? Kallik asked after a moment.

ah, so the pale soldier was a high standing member. maxim would look upon him with a high respect with this newfound knowledge.

it was time to leave home, this was the first place i crossed. it was simple, but maxim was a simple man when it came down to it. i met the imperator and he told me this was a place of soldiers. i like that. he answered with a brief grin.

So they were both drawn here for similar reasons—becoming a soldier and living among other like-minded wolves. Kallik could respect that. He thought they should patrol together more often and get to know each other better. 

The scutarius stopped to mark a patch of cacti, moving back to the other soldier's side when he was done. Do you have a favorite place in Mereo? he asked. Kallik liked the forest. He also like the tablinum for obvious reasons, but he would keep that to himself.

a favorite place? he had not given much thought to such, especially as of yet.

no. do you? he inquired, genuinely curious. maxim could think of a string of favorite places for a soldier. the borders, the sparring arena. all places that he imagined they would spend copious amounts of time.

The forest, he answered without much thought. It had always been his favorite place. Have you been there yet? It was likely he had given how much they all patrolled, but the scutarius wouldn't assume. 

If he hadn't been there then Kallik would show him.

would u maybe wanna wrap this and get something new sometime? <3

he had only loosely visited the forest, more for business than any sort of sight seeing.

i have a feeling you will know better places in it than me, his teeth exposed in a friendly manner. it was also a loose invitation for him to be shown the place better on their patrol.

perhaps kallik would take him up on such.

sure np! i'm up for a thread anytime <3

Kallik nodded. Showing him around the canyon sounded much better than awkwardly asking him questions about himself. 

This way, he said, turning to change his direction. It wouldn't take them very long to get to the forest.