Lion Head Mesa cling to his chest, home to his heart full of pride

@Makono

Akashingo.

He knew little of the place, save a vague idea of its location, and knowing they were allies. Last he knew it, they sent soldiers here. 

The black serpent, asp in the grass, hawk flying above, Aquillius watched the Mesa, knowing little of what went on in its halls. The wind tugged at his fur, moved the grasses that caressed his chest. His single eye focused on the red curl of the distant sands.

The Romanson began walking, imperator boy becoming inquisitor, striding towards a place he had no business being. He should go home.

But home came with emotions he did not want to parse through. So here he was.

He only stopped when his paws hit a scent barrier, and there he would stand, waffling from side to side, back and forth, chewing on his lip as he ran it over and over in his mind.

It seemed a good idea. So he tipped his head back, and howled.

feel free to join or not @ tagged party! i can also pp if wanted <3

if you had told her to expect a call on this day, she would have spat sharply upon the earth. now someone came knocking and she wondered at the black smudge upon the mesa's horizon. had osiris come down to them?

she gathered @Senmut and set out at once.

the pharaoh of akashingo greets you. it felt acidic on her tongue in that moment, even if she spoke it with some loose sense of confidence. a look upon her features asked after his arrival.

a cameo, skip me!

senmut had not taken a single snippet of sleep. instead he had called upon the sesh for a restorative and the false energy carried him now beside makono.

the one who came was darkfurred and young. senmut regarded him with judgement.

The Pharaoh was as young as he was, but who was he to question such a thing. Maybe they did things different here.

He didn’t know enough to dispute that.

His single eye watched her, as she drew closer, inclining his head in a respectful dip. For a moment, he was lost for words.

I wish to integrate into the ranks of Akashingo. He grated out after a moment, shuffling in a side to side motion. 

I am called Aquillius, Pharaoh. Aquillius Brutus Redsand. He knew she had been in Mereo at a time, would she recognize the name? Or was this not the sibling who’d been in Mereo? He hadn’t cared enough to learn at the time, and he was kicking himself now for not.

no, surely not! she bit her cheek to halt some sort of mad sounding laughter. that was the last thing anybody needed to hear from her right now.

had the roman intentionally sent a son to her? did this boy know who she was and the things she had woven with his father?

you have left behind mereo. she noted with a contemplative look over him. did you complete a soldier's training there? or are you seeking something else? something shinier than the canyon.

He gave a half smile, barely even a living thing on his face. Had he knew what the pharaoh thought, even he would have laughed, thrown his head back and let it cackle.

As it was, the smile sloughed off his face like snow from a tree.

Yes. Her eyes flexed over him, and he twitched at the scrutiny, but did not let it show on his face.

My training was…interrupted. He raised a paw to indicate his blinded side.

Mereo knows not I am here. Perhaps they believed him dead. He pretended not to care.

I have been on the shore, recovering, since. But I killed what did it. I am trained in the methods of my father as well. He felt a bit like he was trying to sell his very self to this woman.

mereo knew not that their wayward son had fallen into her lap! so fresh into her reign! what would germanicus make of it when word eventually ran up the creek to him? she could send word right now.

the exhaustion of her grief made her cruel, it seemed.

come. she ordered with a sweeping motion of her head. she would guide them under the watchful gaze of senmut.

do you mean to continue these methods? or do you come to make your own mark, aquillius? akashingo is not a place of only soldiers.

He would walk beside the Pharaoh with a suspicious eye for just a moment, before he let the look fall away.

Mereo is not either. He thought of Lady Aquene, of others like her. The Plebians of Mereo.

His face soured.

I intend to expand upon it. I am not my father, it would be foolish to copy everything he does. He did not have the weight to throw around. He learned that the hard way.

you will be called mazoi for now, for the skills you already have. she decided with a soft roll of shoulders as they moved in sync towards the palace.

akashingo is entering a time of mourning, but do not let this dissuade you from learning from the people. if you have want to move beyond mazoi, speak it to me.

she looked to him now with a sharp lapis gaze. did he understand?

He was a soldier at heart, so to bear the title again was a relief. Being alone surrounded by others in Sweetharbor was a concession he could not make.

He dipped his head in understanding, eyes sharp upon the woman.

Understood, pharaoh.

He did not let the relief show. He did not let anything show. But it was there.

a fellahin was not far. she summoned them close, instructed them to take the newest mazoi to the wellspring and then to the barracks. where he may find a place to settle.

visit when you have settled.

but she wished to be alone once more and all she offered was one last long look through lapis eyes. the handsomeness of a rugged soldier was not lost upon her, but her mind was quick to go elsewhere.

She invited him to visit, when someone came and brushed him along towards somewhere.

He followed the new creature, watching them with a raised brow, but he looked back to nod at Makono when she spoke. Then, he would follow the creature deeper into the Mesa.

It was fine. He could be a soldier again.