Lion Head Mesa shadow and bone

looking for leadership @Toula or @Senmut <3

intrigue played havoc with sullivan's mind since his meeting with legend; try as he might to tuck it away and ignore it.

the blackbird had tried to give himself the illusion of choice but his path had been set and landlocked the moment he'd crossed paths with legend and she spoke of akashingo.

he strides towards the mesa; steps slowing to a stop as he approaches the borders.

a thump of his heart, a draw of crisp, cooling autumn air and his head tips back to let out a howl, announcing his presence upon the borders.

Neither the girl-queen or her prince-priest were attending the palace, so the individual who came upon the soot-covered stranger was none other than Nazli, having escaped the gaze of her protector for the time being.

She was slow to approach but not because of fear; there was a healthy curiosity within her, and she only wished her body were strong enough to withstand it. The stranger gave a howl and Nazli listened to it until it faded, basking in the sun while she recouperated some of her energy, and set off again.

Finally she came to the steppe, and had to sit again. This puny gray girl, looking very much like a breath of wind might tumbleweed her back the way she had come; and the stranger, by all comparisons a storm cloud on the horizon of Akashingo.

Nazli called out, Hello! Please, come closer. I don't have it in me to climb. She was warm and inviting to the stranger; at the same time, her voice carried and there came a distant shout of some kind of expletive behind her—Kiaxe, her caretaker, realizing her ward had escaped!

What brings you to Akashingo?

a elfin sylph of a young woman calls out to him from within the territory, warm and inviting. bi-colored gaze lifts to her; studying. cautious. to sullivan, who has not played the game of court intrigue since he was a child hesitates.

uncertain. unsure.

guard up, he lingers a dark marble statue for a moment longer before a decision is made.

cautiously, he climbs to her level as she has requested.

a muffled curse causes his ears to slick back to half mast against his skull, muscles in thick shoulders stiff. tense. greetings, breezily pushes past his lips. i am sullivan neverwinter, a slightly rushed introduction; gaze skimming past her in case others joined. i was hoping to join the pharaoh's court.

The stranger was certainly impressive! The closer he got the more adjusted Nazli expected to feel with his presence, but he seemed to get bigger and bigger; she saw the moon and sun in his eyes, and the tone of his voice was pleasant.

Oh, well, now she was entirely out of her element; Nazli had never done this before, and while it was thrilling to tempt fate on the edge of her world, she did not know how the mazoi typically conducted their business on the fringes, nor what to divulge to a stranger about the whereabouts of the nobility.

As a result, Nazli was an open book.

I am certain you would be welcome, she began with warmth and hope, naturally. They are—unfortunately—not... home? Ahaha, she gave a nervous smile with teeth, almost childish. But I am sure I can call for someone to help you! Just—hold on a moment, please, cue hold music.

Nazli turned her back on the newcomer and drew a breath, then called for @Khusobek and @Legend, as they would be best equipped for this.

she shares, perhaps too much. that her leaders were not presently in residence. a small tilt of his head is given. strange, and bold. perhaps even arrogant. or their hold on their subordinates is strong enough that they would not be usurped.

legend had spoken to him that they were strong and eluded to an unknown faith. perhaps it was this faith that kept the others in check.

perhaps, sullivan thinks, not every kingdom needed to have dregs in their ranks.

i see, drawls the shadowed general. while we wait perhaps you could tell me about akashingo's religion? he encourages, hoping to learn more than the riddles legend had offered him prior.

She did not know how long they would have to wait, so it was nice when Sullivan asked his question, and gave Nazli a chance to reflect and to have a conversation in the interim. It was also quite a pleasant change from the constant grumbling of Kiaxe or the rough medical antics of Gil; while Nazli was not the most well-versed on the gods, she thought she could keep a conversation flowing.

She thought of @Senmut and what bits and pieces she had picked up from him. Her voice steadied as she considered those memories of attending his morning calls to the sun, and tending the reeds, and all the work he had put in to such things while she worked.

I... can tell you a little, she admitted.

Our pharaoh speaks for the gods. They are divine in their own right, and... the rest of us, we serve them honorably. This is the first time Nazli has ever had to explain this to an outsider and she hopes she can find the correct words! There is Ma'at, who stands for truth, justice, harmony, and balance. It is the pharaoh who works to maintain balance for the sake of the goddess. Beyond that, there are many that the people worship; we have gods for all things.

Nazli thinks of those that Senmut has spoken of, or praised, and while she herself has never thought deeply on faith, she upholds the values of Akashingo for it is all she knows. Atum, also called Ra, is the lord of all gods. He is the creator, and he watches us from—there, you can see Him, she motions to the risen sun, beaming down from the sky. At that moment a distant hawk could be seen wheeling through the air.

That there, is the hawk god Horus. He is the god of the sky, and war, and — his father is the god of the dead, called Osiris. She did not mean to overburden the newcomer with all of this, however once the information started to spill forth Nazli could not stop the flow of it. There is Isis, who betrothed Osiris. She is the Goddess of the Throne, and the Mother of Gods. Her many children hold great esteem here.

She pauses, letting all of this sink in before finishing with, I am no priestess, so I cannot... Tell you much. I am sorry for that. Perhaps if you were to meet with the High Priest you could study with him? A smile.

khsobek arrived in the middle of nazli's retelling.

he stepped in a rumble to her side, flicking his eyes over the stranger. well-made. strong. a rival for any man.

but it was akashingo where he stood. khusobek did not speak of the queen. "who is this?" he asked of nazli instead, cutting through their conversation.

she delves into what she knows, stating that she is not a priestess and therefore couldn’t tell him much. still. what she does tell him is enough to spin a webbing of a picture. it is … different but sullivan finds that he is nothing but intrigued despite never holding much of a candle to religion of any kind.

thank you for sharing what you can — the blackbird cuts his words off as a male approaches; bicolored gaze lowering to the ground in deference.

as the question is directed towards the woman, sullivan does not answer.

As she takes a breath and prepares to speak further on the topic, the mazoi arrives with a question.
Ah - this is one, Sullivan Neverwinter. He was asking about our people and their beliefs.
Suddenly Nazli felt like a child being caught in a forbidden place. She did not think the gods were meant to be withheld from others. She wanted to step back and let Khusobek do the talking now, feeling the urge to bow and silence herself as a fellahin was expected to do - but, held firmly there.

"well, a mazoi cannot answer that for you. you will have to come to muat-riya."

khusobek bestowed a glance on nazli and then turned his focus back to the stranger. "i can take you there, if you really want to know these things."