Lion Head Mesa [allies] meridianus

official arrival thread of the mereo contingent! also tagging @Bronco in this so u can toss him in depending on what he decides in our other thread <3 and also tagging @Qiao for visibility in case she tagged along or wanted a message carried if she stayed for a bit in the canyon, lmk <3 consider tagging all ur threads in AK w [allies] to differentiate them, not a requirement ofc! and from this point on, the mereoans can start any new threads. when everyone has replied to this one ill put ramesses in for assignments. sorry for the length of this post, i am compelled to set scenes. this is also open to all/any akashingo wolves, maybe for a single post to say u were here (trying to keep the thread from too many rounds!)

the journey from mereo had been uneventful. 

now the mountains gave way first to hills, then to slopes, and then at last to flat land. akashingo had been visible for near an hour at this point. the illumination of moonlight would soon change.

"we will be there just after dawn," he said aloud. the plains were deceptive in their horizontal nature: what might appear a short distance from above was several hours in reality.

they had rested for some hours the night before and the palace would provide them with rations. germanicus was not concerned with another respite. he trotted on, leading @Glaukos, @Phox, and @Killdeer toward the great scarlet mesa rising in the distance.

***

the imperator did not stop at the borders. he led his squadron toward the very front of the place. three large stone steps hewn from red stone led up to the open-air throne room. it was here that germanicus stopped and turned toward the others. he had debriefed them upon the culture of akashingo and their hierarchy. coyotes were servants. the wolves of akashingo served many gods. that they might be offered wine or other pleasures and that they were to decline.

now he looked at each of them in turn. "we will be separated from one another while we are here. i may call for a meeting before our time is complete. be ready. and listen. akashingo is our ally. they are not our friends."

he tilted back his head to call for an audience. the shadow suddenly curled against all the edges of his mind. but crowfeather no longer lay beyond those walls. germanicus found himself pained.

it was a woman named tavina who answered, a purple-eyed wolf with black fur who introduced herself as sesh and physician. and it was she who led them up the steps, carefully skirting the thrones. that is where she was found. step carefully.

the doctor led them through a small arch. the path dipped down, and the internal maze of akashingo was revealed. wailing echoed with a loud haunting through the rooms and the hallways. an unseen child sobbed. someone was singing a prayer in a language that was not common. the flowers crushed underfoot had only just bloomed, and filled every notch of the underground kingdom with a perfume that would only be choking as the sun grew hotter.

the throne room lay ahead. tavina stood aside. the soldiers filed into the chamber. it was expansive and made of the same stone as all the other things they had seen. the ceiling arched high. flowers had been scattered here as well, immaculate. but pharaoh was not here.

he is with her now, the sesh said softly. the priest is preparing her for burial. i will go and tell him you are ready.

tavina left. the soldiers were alone.