Sun Mote Copse you were made for starlit things

for @Arunik'ra

ar-khalba had coupled with her religiously, and would have continued at it had not eshamun turned him aside with a growl and sent the man away to hunt. she herself took the time to bathe in the stream and greet her sister, who had set about decorating their encampment.

however, restlessness settled upon the wolf -- she stole off into the forest as was her lot, to explore and to pray to molech that khalba's seed had taken root within her. she gave chase at the sight of a weasel and lunged after it with long strides of her slim legs, pulling up in a welter of dust with nothing to show for her efforts.

arunik'ra had tidied their makeshift den, stealing back and forth through the sun-dappled copse on hurried legs. molech had not lead the small harem astray; while the vegetation was sparse even arunik'ra could see the promise here. it was clear their god had great designations ahead, and arunik'ra would not leave molech wanting.

the red priestess had noticed eshamun's return; she wished to witness the flush of her sister's efforts herself, but kept herself busy until eshamun was ready. finally her impatience got the better of her, and she stole towards eshamun's direction. her sharply triangular ears fastened ahead as she heard the efforts of her sister amidst a small bloom of dust. "hale, ekar-aji." she proclaimed solemnly, canting her slender muzzle to the side in deference.

"and to you, res drunak," eshamun intoned, licking the dirt-motes from her crimson fur before smiling widely at her sister. they had no enmity between them, she saw, no competition; in her mind, theirs was a true loyalty, for arunik'ra had her role, and eshamun her own. there was no need to squabble over ranks or fight one another for status. 

"i hope that it is molech's will i soon conceive. take ar-khalba when your time comes, sister. he is a good choice." or perhaps the priestess would steal off into the night to find a rugged man of these odd lands. it mattered not, only that arunik'ra returned with her belly filled with children for the pleasure of the eight-armed one.

arunik'ra returned her sibling's smile, though it lacked the beauty eshamun possessed. arunik'ra had always admired her sister -- and her voracious appetite for pleasing molech. it brought arunik'ra great pride to serve the many-armed god alongside such a powerful disciple; a discple that had in turn spearheaded the eternal reign of their kingdom.

she was pleased to learn by her sibling's brief words that ar-khalba had done his duty; with this known, arunik'ra would soon begin the rituals to capture the all-consumer's benevolence. "he is." the red dagger rejoined, agreeing wholly with her sister's proclamation. "we will pray for molech's mercy tonight at sunfall; but first," the wolf paused, a grave look of solemnity crossing her features but for a moment before it vanished in a roguish smile: "first, food."

though arunik'ra did not think herself beautiful, eshamun thought her sister was possessed of a certain poised beauty the queen lacked. where the ekar-aji was devoted, zestful in her intentions, the priestess was calm and logical, cool water to temper the fire-brightness of eshamun's devotion. they complemented each other, the woman decided.

"food," she nodded. "the stream is our best chance at such," eshamun murmured, sliding into a slow lope in the direction of the waters. arunik'ra would follow, but she set a gentle pace for the two of them, that they might talk as they searched for sustenance.

arunik'ra fell in step behind eshamun, appreciative of the gentle pace the ekar-aji had adopted. arunik'ra's paws were still raw from their trek, and her limbs sore -- it would take many days for the exhaustion their travel had induced upon them to entirely leave their bodies.

but it was all for a good cause: molech's cause.

the stream seemed as good an idea as any, and when they neared the soft coursing of the river's bank arunik'ra could not help herself -- she tossed her limber body into the cold and rejoiced, for it brought a sharp clarity to her senses that her fatigued had fogged. "oh, look at me, silly as a pup." the scarlet priestess proclaimed, splashing the water with a lean forelimb: "i've gone and chased the food away." she turned her slender muzzle upriver, wondering if her outburst had affected any of the fish up stream.

eshamun sighed as arunik'ra's slender form danced into the water, rolling her eyes skyward upon seeing the lash of fins downstream. "i should say you have," the melekh remarked with a grin, lunging into the shallows after her sister. with a dash of her paw, she hurled a wave of the life-giving liquid toward the other, and in that moment she sought arunik'ra's humour.

for a time, she intended them not to be ekar-aji and res drunak, but sisters, littermates born of the same mother, who would romp awhile in the waters to celebrate their good fortune, despite the roiling protest of her travelworn sinews.

she relished the icewater's kiss, the sharp intake it forced from her lungs. a rare laugh gurgled from her throat as her sister slid into the water alongside her. a wry smile slipped across her narrow muzzle and with a large heavy of an angular forelimb arunik'ra sent a splash in eshamun's direction, though it was deliberately misguided as to not assault her countenance. like eshamun, arunik'ra just wished to forget their deportments, their duties -- and for a moment in time enjoy the extraordinary life molech had bestowed upon them.

eshamun laughed then, a ringing peal that resounded through the air as she sought to dodge her sister's watery blow, weak as it was. the canaanite fell blissfully into it all the same, feeling the sun-warmed water soak through her crimson pelt, and gasped as the waters briefly wrapped about her muzzle. snorting it from her nostrils -- she had not meant for that to happen! -- the woman gave a girlish chuckle and sent another wave at the priestess.