or has the the weight of all the years left you hollow? [QUEST]

MONTHLY QUEST 2: A number of dead fish have been washing up on shore. What does it mean? This is a non-mandatory quest, all participants with 3 or more posts will be rewarded 20 EXP for this pack activity. There is no posting order, post as much as you'd like, any time you'd like.

Aktaie had told Caiaphas earlier in the month that she had come across several dead fish washed ashore. At first, this had not seemed anything out of the ordinary -- but as more fish surfaced, the female felt a vague sense of apprehension.

She had quickly stripped the cache of the dead fish they had found -- upon sniffing it she found no malodorous or significant scent that would lead to conclusion of the fish's death. With a frown she pulled the fish in a small pile, and adopting a lengthy trot she made towards the small inlet where the dead had first appeared.

As she went she sent a series of short yips in the air to cajole any packmates into joining her -- if nothing else, it would be a worthy way to spend the afternoon and ensure that no illness or disease would breach their residence.

Nishu was following a randomised patrol path in hope of finding something interesting to report. He spotted Caiaphas pulling fish out of the cache as he was walking by. It was odd but it wasn't questionable. Fish wasn't something he enjoyed eating which is why his patrol paths are picked more inland so he could catch other animals. He was going to continue to the coast but then the "new leader" called out for others to follow her.

He had no interest in following, she wasn't his leader. He was hopeing he didn't have to. He slowly kept going on this path to the coast. He wasn't quite sure what would happend if he didn't choose to follow. He took that risk, and kept going but at a calm pace and with a watchful eye. He didn't want to get involved with anything fishy but did coming close by already involved him?

Caiaphas bent to her work like a crone, reedy and threadbare -- her yellow eyes white-rimmed with intensity. Each sea-spewed fish she came across was thoroughly inspected from gull to fin, and tentatively she clipped with precise teeth, flaying them from bow to stern. These actions yielded nothing, and in frustration Caiaphas scoured the shore-line.

She was not quite surprised to see Nishu Inte deliberately ignore her -- had she known of his quarrel with Aella she would have killed him right then and there. But as it stood, she was miraculously in the dark -- but this did not deliver him from her belittling gaze.

"Are you not planning on eating any time soon, Nishu? The fares of the pack mean little to you?" She stared him down ruefully, disgusted by the calm and deliberate manner in which he had tried to walk right past her without lending aid.

It looked like there was no way to just pass by. Of course why did he think he would be able to in the first place? He didn't understand what made him take the risk. Now he had to do something. The best would be just to answer to her to avoid any more problems, that's what he believed. So he stopped and turned to face Caiaphas.

"uh, I've already had a little snack from the forest as I patroled around and I was planning to continue to the coast." but after that he wasn't sure what to say and managed to avoid saying anything more for a bit. It was true that the pack isn't at all his priority. His focus was to assist Tethys in all ways possible. The only time he would assist the pack is only if that helped Tethys too.

But it the end he couldn't stay quiet. "Tethys is my only priority, I will do whatever it takes to assist her correctly and to be there when it is required." he said calmly. Basically Nishu Joinned Tethys, not Ankyra Sound itself.

This male never failed to stump Caiaphas, though never for the right reasons. She stared outright at him in disbelief as he finished his statement -- not even scorn ebbed the look of incredulity that consumed her thin countenance.

Had the male stated such a blasphemous thing in front of Aktaie, Caiaphas was sure the Matriarch would have ripped his throat from his body and left him bloody on the cold shore. But Caiaphas was not Aktaie -- and as much as she tried to emulate the fierce Matriarch, she would never come close. Retaining her fury, she only stepped forward -- her head tilted to the side as she posed a dangerously soft-spoken inquiry. "Does Tethys not need to eat, either?"

"Tethys eats from the stored food here.." he said as he looked at the fish. He never did like fish, they smelled and didn't taste that good. The fish there did smell rather odd. If it was up to him, he wouldn't eat them. "If I had to recommend something to her, it wouldn't be those fish you pulled out. Is there a reason that they smell?"

He couldn't help be feel like he was still doing something wrong. What did the alphess want? He took a few cautious steps back. He didn't want any farther troubles but had no idea how to even avoid them.

Her defensiveness somewhat resolved as Nishu Inte seemed to realize her point -- slightly mollified by his question (and surmising it meant interest in the subject) Caiaphas allowed her eyes to drop to the fish that were pulled up along the strand.

She had no answer for why they had died, unexpectedly -- and why now, they smelled more foul than usual. Her brow wrinkled in faint frustration -- and admitting her ignorance, she spoke. "I don't know." She conceded, inspecting one with an upturned paw. "But they were found here dead -- something, not someone, is killing them."

The attention was redirected towards the odd smelly fishes. The reason they were that way remained unknown since Caiaphas herself didn't have an answer. With a bit of thought he came up with a seasonal idea. Perhaps some animals just don't do well during a time period. Like summer and winter, everything had to adapt to survive or die trying.

"Is there a season where fish become weak for a time period? It could explain their condition." He said, offering an idea. He wouldn't try to think any farther beyond that, It felt like it was good enough to know that fish may have a difficult time during this period. This meant it was wise to not eat any fish for a while. Atleast until they shown signs that they are normal again.

Caiaphas considered Nishu Inte's venture of an explanation for a moment, correlating it to any other experience in her life. Deer did not have a season, nor did ermine nor stoat. She cast him a brief look that was too clouded to know which emotion overtook it for certain.

But there may have been intelligence to his conclusion, however loathe Caiaphas was to admit it. The sea was a different beast, and the monsters that sprung forth from that watery world were all unknown to her and no different than aliens. Perhaps they had displeased the gods, and this was to be their punishment. But Aktaie had not said anything late of curse or famine -- with a frown scrunching her brow she poked again at one particularly putrid fish. "Or perhaps we have displeased our Mothers."

If he had to compare the ideas given he would say that his idea was alot more logical than Caiaphas. Nishu had no faith in her idea, He didn't believe the 'Mother' would ever do something like this even if she existed. For some reason he thought it was the fish who actually did the displeasing. If that was the case then the 'Mother' must have killed them and made them unworthy to be eaten. So even if he supported the idea, He didn't think the wolves were the ones who displeased.

"If it was aimmed towards us, I doubt it would be just the fish that gone bad. Be thankful that it was noticable, or else the situation could have gotten worse." He said as he looked out towards the coast. There was nothing to worry about if it was just the fish that's gone bad, as long as no one eats them of course. It be smart to get rid of them just in case. Afterwards they would need to wait a while before they could eat fish again.

want to plug one last post in and ill archive?

Be thankful the slate colored male intoned. With a scoff Caiaphas' gaze fell to the sea in disbelief -- and for a moment stayed there, wondering of the pelagic might that settled within the sea's depths. A might that the world could not, and would never fathom.

Cognizant that Nishu Inte had no faith in her religion, she looked at him squarely -- at the very least he did not denounce the culture vocally. "Be thankful, indeed." Caiaphas echoed dully, overturning the fish. With that she concluded the conversation, culling the rest of the fish in a small assembly. Once Nishu Inte departed her company she would perform a small ritual in the name of the Mother Sea, imploring the goddess to lift her hand from the deceased and see fit to reward the Nereides for their unwavering faith.