Lion Head Mesa or the house burns down

slight pp of sanguinex — let me know if you'd like anything changed! also, please let sanguinex reply first! <3

in the early threadlings of a new dawn ingram sends up a howl for @Sanguinex, task for the dagger hopeful ready. your task, deathbringer, is to be my guard on a diplomatic mission that we are undertaking now. surely, ingram could've given him a bit more time to prepare but the job was straightforward enough and the dreadfather wanted to see how in measure how he'd do.

i know nothing of our nearest neighbors, thus, it seems prudent to be prepared all the same. he was ready for word of basilica to spread: whatever that word may be.

nearest was relative; perhaps even a bit of a stretch. it was a trek all the same. during their trip, the dreadfather is quiet, speaking only when he is asked something directly; concentrating on their path before them and rehearsing what he is going to say. he was not a diplomat by nature and perhaps this was a job better suited for syrax but he had his own task.

as they near the borders their steps slow; the dreadfather is careful to leave a respectful distance between their borders and himself. he looks to sanguinex once before he tips his head back and alerts the wolves of akashingo to their presence.

Forgot to add this in before, but Sanguinex can be skipped unless addressed!

His task. It was given. The deathbringer was to act as guardian to his dreadfather whilst they traveled. Simple enough; almost too much so, but he wouldn't protest.

Along the way, Sanguinex stuck close to Ingram's flank. There was enough space for comfort, but a closeness to ensure any threat would be forced to go through the druid first. Occasionally, his eyes would swing from side to side, careful and observant. It had been quiet.. peaceful.

Then when they approached the heavily marked borders, a call is sent to announce their arrival. Sanguinex would wait in silence, still hovering close to shield his assigned ward.

pping jakoul this thread! she won't be doing much but standing guard :)

she had wanted this.

the politics, the guests and so she stirred at once upon the call. intrigued who had come to them. especially when the figures were two masculine men upon their border. she wondered if lord pharaoh @Ramesses had spotted them — if he might join her.

regardless, with her stood a shadowy, slinking guard (@Jakoul) as she arrived.

you have come calling to akashingo. i am shabti, queen of scarlet road. her eyes remained warm despite the royal introduction. enchanted by wild men. who has given me the pleasure of a visit today?

wild men indeed. 
their virility was not lost on ramesses, who came with jawahir trotting elegantly beside him. the jewel, received at least once back into his good favour. 
his steps were confident, the banner of his pale body an obelisk to the tribute demanded by his presence. "who are these fair young gods come to the house of akashingo?" he said with a laugh, seeking his shabti with a kiss to her cheek in the next.
that one of the men matched him in age did not matter. 
flattery? mockery? a gentle, probing test.
yes; possessive. "i am pharaoh." he did not speak his name, for they would soon know it. his title was enough.
like marble he gleamed alongside the forest goddess drawn from her trees to sit at the helm of their land, lapis eyes observing openly the fierce pair before he and treva.
jawahir, to his left, missing nothing.

the dreadfather watches as he and deathbringer are greeted swiftly by two women, one of whom launches right into introductions: of the pack and herself; followed soon a man and another woman. four comes to greet two.

though these odds unsettle ingram, he does not let it cow him. nor does he let the fact that he dislikes being outnumbered show upon his scarred visage. as ever, he is like carved basalt. unmoving and unmoved.

i am the dreadfather and this is deathbringer, he finds some sort of twisted, dark delight in using these names while introducing them. we hail from basilica which has laid claim upon the plateau. he gestures in it's general direction with his muzzle. it is no secret, now. their presence grows as he hopes their reputation will.

we are neighbors but not so close as to fear an infringement upon hunting grounds, at least, ingram would hope that neither basilica nor this akashingo as they called it, would travel so far for food. still, to introduce ourselves and open diplomatic dialogue seemed like the neighborly thing to do.

my bad on the hold up, i missed the edit on heretic's post!

pharaoh was there and brought warmth like the sun he radiated as. she did not falter beneath his affection before the men. leaning into it for a moment with only a brief glimpse to jawahir, then one to jakoul. the odds ever in their favor as they stood upon akashingo.

before —

dreadfather. deathbringer.

how grim! she was not a sheltered woman but such names were odd to carry. did it announce intent right away? or did they name themselves such to be a show of some kind of force? she did not expect such diplomacy from men with such names! only excitement. and yet.

i agree and i am glad you have come to open that dialogue. thrilled in every way that her wishes came to her doorstep. perhaps she should have deferred to pharaoh now, but her heart soared as her mind did. i would like to hear the things you might tell of basilica. is the trek very long?

a chance to welcome them among the halls, to see them to rooms for rest and find entertainment.

"my queen has a head for entertainment." ramesses had seen many of treva's moods. "we welcome you as friends. jawahir," he went on grandly, "go to prepare the throne room."
his lazuli eyes drifted with seeming laziness over the others. did treva look on them in aplomb or otherwise? "come, dreadfather and deathbringer. sup with us. we will share all manner of talk between us." his teeth flashed in a grin. jawahir had already set off back to the palace, an amber emblem of his power.

the basilician pair are met amicably enough, so far as to be invited within their borders to break bread and salt while they delve into diplomacy. a look is given to the deathbringer: a silent warning to keep an eye open. ingram is not without logic and caution. though he does not anticipate trouble, this does not mean that he does not believe it impossible. they were strangers walking into a well established village, after all.

it is a bit of a journey, ingram replies to the queen's question, offering the information in the hopes of reassuring that there was no threat of either pack breathing down the other's neck. but the flatlands are ripe with providing neutral territories.

he follows after the leader pair, beckoning the deathbringer to his side with a small gesture of his muzzle, glad to have the dagger at his side in an unfamiliar claim.

she hummed in humor at the pharaoh's words. her head for entertainment kept them afloat too, no? but she did not feel slighted, only seen. for what she had wanted had finally come to her.

in the fine form of strong men.

that they are! what type of place has basicilica claimed? what kind of place is it at all? good natured, lively, as she offered the darkest of their visitors a warm, royal smile. charming and charmed.

the two strong men were led beneath the mesa and into the halls still faintly scented with flowers. 
the servant he had sent ahead had not prepared his throne room; instead, the small party was redirected to treva's own apartments, the spacious first court before her bedchamber.
ramesses was unsure that she had ever held her own guests here. but it was lovely, already set with meats and the drink of fermented pine needles.
now he deferred to her; sat where she indicated, and while ramesses meant to keep the scene, he centered it now upon his lovely, persuasive treva.

we have claimed the plateau, not too far from the coast. ingram responds to the queen's questions graciously, flanked by his deathbringer. it has plenty of woods and fresh water creeks that trickle through it. prey, also, seems to be drawn to it ...though as our presence grows i expect them to branch to the neutral territories nearby.

but he wasn't a skilled deerstalker and could not say that with infallible confidence.

how to describe the many layers of basilica! he's done it time and time before but it blossoms and grows: in what he's imagined to it be but also what the wolves within it's ranks make it as well.

basilica, like those who call it home is multifaceted. though primarily religion based; it's a cohabitation of religions of those who join; be it following the bear gods atka & sos or the multi-faceted daedra of my own faith.

if his fellow daedra princes or ash paw's atka and sos were affronted by this cohabitation: they had yet to make their displeasure known to the dreadfather.

she loved the palace, deeply.

yet her heart yearned with grand greed as the visitor explained his home. how grand it sounded! how badly she wished to have a hold on it for her own selfish visiting purposes.

as they settled in, she gestured for their guests to settle. indulge and enjoy! she motioned for pharaoh to settle close to her right side. close enough for touch.

and how does this work in practice? your cohabitation. when you gather to celebrate under divinity, who reigns?

a brow pitched softly with genuine curiosity.

she meant no offense, even if it may be taken.

skipping ramesses w/ebony's permission! edited a conclusion for archival. <3

at the gesture, ingram settles in; beckoning for the deathbringer to stay close.

the queen had many questions and ingram, ever delighted to speak about his beliefs and basilica, is all too happy to oblidge.

we haven't had any sort of big celebration to truly put it to the test, ingram admits. but for now, it works. ingram informs her. we have alters set up in a large clearing, dedicated to each deity worshipped by our wolves. thus far, there have been no tensions, speaks the daedra prince. between basilicians or the gods.

a long pause is given.

and what of your pack? are you the pious sort?

his questions answered, the dagger and the dreadfather linger beneath their hospitality for a few hours longer before beginning their trek back to basilica.