Hideaway Strath tum yaad rakhna kahin bhool na jaana

backdated to 07/01

aditya came to the saints' territory bearing gifts: a pair of rabbits, swinging limply from his jaws. if he was to exist here, he wouldn't have their warriors accosting him every which way. he was no threat to them; he ate little, and had no aspirations of conquest. and he was alone.

he dropped the prey at the border, smiling faintly as he thought of @Ramesses. what fortune that he had found pharaoh again, here! it was much better to stumble upon a friendly face from the past, than an old adversary.

the elder howled for an audience with the leaders of this place, wondering who would greet him. 

if they were anything like the pale woman in the swamp, they were to be feared. and yet, as he grew closer to death, he feared very little. fear had instead given way to regret—and a grudging sense of duty to those who would come after him.

poor Aditya lol Nyra is everywhere

 


A howl at the borders. 
The Gates were a place of death in and of themselves, alongside the Strath. Her curiosity grew with sinister amusement and the Warmaiden took off to greet the visitor with a brisk trot. 

Seeing the same man she attacked in the swamp, Nyra couldn't help but grin as she came closer, stopping a few feet from Aditya. Time to put on her manners...probably.

"I am Nyra, Overseer and co-leader of the Saints. What brings you to our doorstep?" She considered adding her title as Empress of the Archangels, but what she had already said was a bit of a mouthful already. So, she said nothing else. Instead, waiting for the elder man to speak. She also kept an ear out for Kynareth, figuring he too would come to the call in time.

cameo!

ramesses kept his distance from nyra where possible. her duties as of late seemed to be taking the form of rigid patrols, and he used the excuse of the shimmering, weighty heat to keep at his den.
but today he found the woman's footsteps leading toward their border, in answer to the call of aditya which had rung for the leaders. why return after an attack?
but the older man knew the names of gods and undoubtedly many other things. the appearance of his wind-whisked self at the border, juxtaposed against the existence of satsu — that had been her name — was enough to intrigue ramesses. 
he kept to the foliage, and soon drifted out of earshot. pharaoh would find aditya once he had undergone whatever trial nyra would set for him.

Vein heard the voice of a wolf he hadn’t though much about after their encounter but he though rather fondly of the wolf at any rate so he trotted in the direction. He passed by the wolf he desperately wanted to converse with about his take on the gods. But he had a quest in mind to greet the newcomer to the saint’s packland and so he did not take the time to address Ramesses with anything other then a respectful nod

He come upon Nyra and called out amicably in his deep baritone voice if not for any other reason then to provide distraction “Aditya my old friend, How goes the hunting” He grinned seeing his answer plain as day in the gifts the old wolf had brought.

Vein placed himself at Nyra’s side, though he was friendly towards Aditya he was speaking loud and clear upon who’s side he’d take if a fight were to some how break out though he very much doubted it’s come to that.

the infamous nyra greeted him now, courtly and proper as if they had never met before. but they had, and he gave her a nod, a faint smile of his own echoing her grin. 

a gift, for the saints, aditya responded, gesturing with his muzzle toward the prey at his paws. and to—

a familiar face materialized beside her, all of a sudden, and he blinked before letting his expression brighten further in recognition. vein, he replied, and tried to balance a pleased tail-wag with deferential posture toward the saints at their doorstep. i was lucky today.

returning to the matter at hand, he continued: i am an old man, no threat to your family. but i do mean to travel this area for a while, exploring, until something takes me elsewhere. i will not cross your borders, nor hunt in your neighboring territories.

all i ask, he said, with a respectful dip of his head, is that i can travel in peace.

Nyra looked upon the elder man as he spoke, as Vein came to her side and greeted Aditya.

Perhaps one day Nyra would know the desire for peace like Aditya did. But she was still young and had much to experience alongside motherhood.

With a soft hmm, she spoke again.

"I accept your gift, and by extension your request for peace. None who wear our name will attack you on my watch. The territories you will need to avoid for now are the Sweep, the mountains around the Strath, the Falls to the northeast and the Copse alongside the falls. Other than those places, you should be fine." Nyra mused. There were no guarantees, but she'd do her best to keep her word.

Whoops my turn sorry

Vein nodded happy to see the gift was accepted, Aditya seemed to be a good guy. By right the grandmaster should receive the other rabbit but he was secretly hoping for the free meal. Vein knew better then to ask though, Vein knew his place and he was a stickler for rules and rituals, it was Nyra’s right to decide what to do with the rabbits.

“Care for some company?” He asked Aditya  being sure not to even look at the gifts “I can at least guide you back to the very outskirts of the pack territory.” Vein grinned, he had hoped one day Aditya would join the Saint’s however this one seemed to enjoy the Loner life more, not a bad option either but harder in winter.

he noted the demarcated territories, although thought to himself that he'd probably not keep them all straight. best to keep some cushion between himself and this area, just in case. still, he nodded at nyra's request. 

pharaoh's explanation had shed some light, at least. she was a mother. he knew that surge of protectiveness that came with rearing small children. she had chosen to take it to a level he'd never considered—but he understood the impulse.

thank you, aditya responded, then turned his head to vein. am i not on the outskirts now? he asked, one corner of his mouth lifting in a wry smile. or do you mean the outskirts of all the land you claim?

thin ice, perhaps. but he had just brought them food, and declared himself not a threat. any pack that would harm an old, lone wolf were surely damned.

Nyra chuckled softly at Aditya's questions.

"I'm afraid all our claimed land will need to be avoided. We are a territorial bunch, and I don't want to risk your hide after I just gave my word to you." Her smile remained, but it wasn't malicious or even bared in a warning. Just simply...at ease, perhaps. 

Short post from me, sorry guys ;w;

well, it was best to follow the woman's instructions. he'd high-tail it out of there as soon as his business here was finished—which, it seemed, it was coming to a close. his eyes creased with half-feigned mirth at her chuckle, then he looked at vein.

well, lead the way, aditya said. a glance back at nyra. best wishes to your pack. i won't trouble you any longer.

ignoring the growling in his stomach as he caught another whiff of the offered prey, he turned and let the warrior see him out. the two of them chatted of neutral things along the way, and once he'd reached the edge of the saints' massive claim, he departed with a friendly farewell.

he thought of pharaoh as he left. how long would the wayward young man last in such a rigid environment!

pping vein since inactive - last post from me!