Lion Head Mesa tepidus

when he parted ways with the crown prince, it was to seek queen @Treva. germanicus had no gift which was an oversight he regretted.

but gifts could come in many forms.

he waited to be admitted into her fine personal throne room, her apartments large and spacious inside the sprawl of akashingo.

she had the ear of sayf when word entered her room of his arrival. she did not fancy herself for him, but she was comfortable and regal.

at one side sat the architect she conducted work with. to the other was a guard.

the imperator would be invited in and welcomed with a warm gaze. her gaze! she lounged upon her throne. still the fitting image of a woodland queen than one who ruled the palace alongside a pharaoh.

imperator, she hummed in the tone of a songbird. i wish i had been better prepared for such high company.

germanicus bowed low. she seemed a pagan idol, sitting flanked by strongman and servant.

"the esteem is mine. i wish i were here upon pleasantries. i seek the herbal stores of akashingo."

and he felt that mereo had given much in trade. but he would wait for the gentility of the queen to make itself known.

"my apologies that i could not attend your wedding, divine one."

she shifted, sitting taller now.

it can be forgiven. she informed him with a soft laugh. you sent me lady aquene. she is a fine face in place of you. and this was truth. the woman had been a delightful type of company and source of knowledge.

what has you coming all the way to us for herbs, imperator?

genuine intrigue and warmth. she feigned nothing before him.

"a dire injury in mereo. a lynx. it was put down. but i want to ensure our stores are diverse."

his features welcomed the talk of the matrona. "she is. lady aquene has been fiercely dedicated to us since the beginning. i am pleased but unsurprised that she represented us so well."

her features fell, ever so slightly. such a grim thing. the claws of a cat were vicious, made to tear the flesh of their prey.

she told me she was medicus when she was here, on top of the many other things she tends to. she purred in thought, sending sayf off to either fetch or order a small meal to her room.

for two. she would not send the imperator away without some show of kindness.

have you come on her behalf for supplies while she tends to the dire injury?

"i have. mereo has its own stores. but i mean to have all the plants that might help."

his voice gave nothing away. "she is as skilled a physician as she is a leader. i am pleased to have her at the helm of the plebians." 

it felt as though he had nothing else to say.

as you should be,

movement outside the entrance signified the pieces for their meal had been gathered. fellahin would work to sort them before the pair.

how is mereo as a whole?

she sought to keep him longer, with talk and meal.

would he be so bold as to reject?

"we fare well."

the word of ruenna hung in his mouth.

he could not say it. he would not.

"a new pack has formed to our south. paleo. it is populated almost entirely by a married couple and their young children. we have established trade with them. i will speak on your behalf to them if this is wanted."

paleo.

she tucked this knowledge away, smiled kindly at his offer.

i will not burden you with more work while you are already tending to dire matters, imperator. her voice was genuine. raw warmth. she could tell pharaoh of paleo, let them decide who to send that way or which child might show up as diplomat.

matters of the state.

eat. tell me what paleo trades and then i will set you free. she laughed with a honey sweetness.

she did not hold him prisoner and yet she knew he would not leave so freely either.

"it is not a burden, good queen." but germanicus would deliver no more pushback than this. he respected her kindness as well as her rank.

he dutifully took several bites. he would never be used to the way that servants worked in akashingo, much less the glib way in which they were ordered about.

"paleo has possession of a rich poppyfield. the man mahler harvests for us. we help him with hunting in return."

poppyfield.

you have men of many talents hidden in mereo. she hummed with a warmth, almost like they exchanged secrets. but there was hardly ever secrets in the halls of akashingo! fellahin spoke and royals convened.

is he a kind man, imperator? have you any doubts of him?

she did not demand him to share, only encouraged softly.

germanicus shook his head. "he is a wise and aged man, happy to be free of a wilder life."

in many ways his peace was not something the eagle envisioned for himself.

his eyes were humoured. "what do you mean by many talents, royal one?"

a freer life.

some part of her wondered, of course. yet she had found herself so far from that. peace had never been for treva. a woman so prone to boredom in those stretches of silence.

it was best that she was here.

soldiers, hunters, ambassadors. nor are they an ugly bunch.

she dared to say!

oops she's awful

no shes great! <3

humour flirted with the eagle's gaze.

"has a soldier caught your fancy, great one?" the imperator's voice was a gentle tease. "the men of mereo are skilled." and there he left it.

and the roman played!

she laughed louder now. enamored!

i will say no such thing! lest i distract a soldier from his duties, hm? perhaps a show of respect to his own men, more than she might ever give directly.

"the women of egypt are a weakness for roman men " he said it directly though did not include himself in their number.

save for a single time he had not been tempted by a woman of akashingo.

the queen was objectively beautiful. germanicus let himself envision the placement of a handsome young soldier in her retinue, a man who might serve her and mereo alike. 

but it went beyond his morality to do more than consider the effect of a secret roman child carried by the queen of akashingo. it would end ramesses.

the tactician broiled.

it was enough to perk her, her ego. given all she could ever dream of and still she plucked meat off the bones of the roman's words.

i would not know.

she dared to say, lips quivered into a momentary smile.

but perhaps i will.

it did not have to be him. she was not sure if she would have picked him anyway. too politically disastrous. but a lowly soldier given her blessing?

perhaps a political boon.

he heard the desire in her voice. the leap of power.

did they think so similarly?

germanicus was unsure that he should play along and offer them as pieces upon a board. suppose his own son should fall into her grasp when he came of age to tour in akashingo? he was protective of his troops.

and yet the idea of sundering the pharaoh lurked far too brightly.

"you will have another soldier come to do his work before long." and they had been instructed not to lie with the fellahin.

there was a desire to lean closer, to feel the warmth and heart beat. as if she leeched off of the power of such things.

but she remained composed, regal despite the wild wisps of earthen fur.

do you only humor me, imperator?

riled, eager, hungry.

it was not hidden. it all laid in her gaze.

"i would not toy with a queen, great one."

his voice was somber. treva was dangerous. she manuevered him and he was ashamed of his weaknessess.

for the second time he was tempted, even vaguely so.

it was her ambition.

"may i call upon you again in the spring, divine lady?" he asked, ending their meeting on a firm but unassertive note.

she had the upper hand. he did not care for this.

the man had a head about him.

it was what brought her to pharaoh. it was not what brought her to snake pit of romans.

now he spoke of spring. her gaze fell into one of bright humor. surely he knew his own words, the sound of them.

the divine lady will allow it.

she wished for no more of him, she thought heavily of her husband and intended to politely see out the roman now. before either one lost track of themselves.

he had no way of knowing that he would return to the mesa a married man.

and like a man he blindly saw nothing in his mention of the spring.

he rose. he bowed lowly. "yours is a pleasant company."

and then he was gone, removed.