[SRP] Family Meeting (Dione x Tethys x Arimathras)

[Epine de Rose]

It was with a certain amount of inevitability that the white male had made his way towards his sister's den. He could no longer avoid his mother, or his sister, and to attempt to do so would have ended up in disaster. While his sibling wouldn't have made a scene, his mother certainly would have, and she would continue to do so until she was given the pleasure of his company. Far be it for him to deny his family an audience, particularly when they were well within their rights to be concerned.

Suffice it to say that the events surrounding the last few months had been less than favourable. It was with a certain amount of apprehension that his mother regarded his outings, and his sister no longer jested about foolish injuries. For all intents and purposes his expeditions had become a concern, and one that neither was entirely sure he would come back from alive.

His final expedition prior to his elevation to Captain had come with the most important fatality as of yet.

...Now they deserved the full story.

With the death of his captain and his ascension had come a renewed sense of purpose, he had a promise to keep, but the only way to do that would be to gather his wits and seek counsel. His sister was one of the smartest lionesses he had the privilege of knowing...and as for his mother; well, suffice it to say that she was one of the most traveled and worldly.

He would not request they battle with him, on the contrary he had made a sworn promise to protect them... But they may very well be able to be of use to him through other means. His mother at the very least should know of something or someone who might help him, and his sister had always been astute. Combined, who knew what they might be capable of?

Words: 321

 

[Epine de Rose]

There he was - it had been their mother who had finally summoned him. There were to be no arguments from either of them, and her steely demeanour had ensured that she had made it abundantly clear of her intentions. Failure to comply would result in their exposure, the entire pride would know that they were not so ordinary as they would like for others to believe. In the end the Stormborn may dismiss it again, but it would jeopardise their reputations and Arimathras had known neither of them wanted that.

...To be ordinary was one thing; to achieve everything on your own was something far more precious. There were too many who might be swayed elsewhere by their lineage and they would do anything to keep their anonymity in that respect.

Suffice it to say that the deity had already blown their cover once, but only to one individual.

Thus, Dione had secured herself a morning of freedom to discuss immediate matters with her family. Kluna had been understanding in that respect, particularly given the prevailing circumstances. Now she stood at her door, waiting expectantly as her brother gradually made his way towards her home. With her mother already inside they would at least be able to begin quickly rather than wasting any time. Fortunately, it didn't appear that any party intended to waste time on this occasion...

Words: 228

 

[Epine de Rose]

He was here and at the assigned time, she was satisfied with that, but she was not about to let the pleasantries get in the way. No sooner had her daughter caught sight of her son, than the white lioness had strode from the den and was gazing expectantly at her offspring. Dione and Kluna had done a fine job of repairing him the first time, this time the healers had done as admirable a job of patching him up again.

Regardless, the events that had transgressed in the roguelands had not gone unnoticed. Her identity in the Stormborn afforded her a level of anonymity that she wouldn't otherwise have, and that 'invisibility' had allowed her to observe as her son had come home. He had been different, darker, the loss of his Captain had struck him much more deeply than many may have realised and while he might in time come up with a number of excuses to explain away this pain, the deity was not going to afford him the opportunity to do so.

No... On this occasion she would have the truth.

Headstrong as her offspring might have been (a trait from their father), they would always be honest when truly confronted, and in a time like this she would not suffer vague explanations.

"You had best come inside," she ordered as she motioned for her children to move back into the den. "Before the weather changes, better to be warm and comfortable," she paused and shook her head.

"And be afforded a measure of privacy." She finished.

Words: 261

 

[Epine de Rose]

He didn't waste any time, on the contrary, he simply slipped inside and made himself comfortable as the pair of females followed. The den was as warm and tidy as always, Nanabe and Sima busying themselves with their usual duties. All in all, nothing had changed during the periods he had been away and they had all definitely settled comfortably into the pride. Small favours at least, he was glad that they liked their time here.

"I'm just going to cut to the chase," he said at last as he regarded both of the females. "When I asked you to remain in the pride mother it wasn't simply because father had asked it of me," he paused briefly and took a deep breath. "Since arriving here, father has been pursuing a number of creatures that are considered highly dangerous and a little too inclined towards our particular appearance."

He paused.

"I don't know exactly who or what they are yet, but their interest in those of us here has grown considerably. As far as I'm aware, they used to ignore those of us in this region and he's not entirely sure of why this has changed," he grimaced. "However in light of this shifting interest, it would appear that we are now at risk and I can no longer ignore that -" he motioned to his scars and dragged his paw through his mane. "I believe I may have attracted some unwanted attention when I discovered father."

"...And now I'm part of their little game," he cast a glance towards both mother and sibling. "As are those around me whether they like it or not."

Words: 274

 

[Epine de Rose]

"Why us, precisely?" Dione enquired as she listened to her brother. While she was glad for the honesty it was all a little vague, were they simply impish creatures around that sought to cause destruction or was there something else that drove them. Perhaps something else drove them, it seemed illogical for them to simply cause chaos for the sake of it, after all, those who favoured anarchy often grew bored of it after a while... It was there to receive a reaction more than anything, or that was what she had observed.

That being said, they were the offspring of a deity and given that Destati had requested that Arimathras remain with them, perhaps that was what drove these beings. God hunters perhaps? An attempt to purge the world of any immortal blood, hell, an attempt to purge the world of gods?

"And are we the only ones?" she tilted her head to the side. Logically speaking, it was highly likely that they were being targeted because their father had made an enemy of them, as a consequence, they were reasonable targets to pursue in order to get to him...

Words: 191

 

[Epine de Rose]

Arimathras tapped her chin with her paw, her expression thoughtful. She had often pondered what their father had been up to, though he had remained vague when queried. At the time it hadn't been of vital importance, he had always been around and within reach, however now that the children were of age it made perfect sense that he would return to whatever it was he did - by the sounds of it, it was some sort of duty.

...Though if he was truly pursuing god hunters of some kind then one did have to wonder why on earth he would consider exposing himself to the possibility. That aside, if they were not god slayers and simply anarchists, then she could see the logic behind their sudden interest in an otherwise untouched land. At least here they could receive a reaction of some description.

That being said...

"What exactly was your father doing when you found him?" she challenged at last. Dione might have asked some of the right questions, but Ari suspected that understanding what her mate might have been up to, would provide her with a little more clarity.

Words: 191

 

[Epine de Rose]

"It's because we're white," Tethys stated in a rather flat tone. "They're some form of cultist, dad really didn't have much time to explain what they were in detail, but he was able to convey that they care about our fur," he motioned to his mother and raised a brow. She was even more white than there were and as a consequence she would be a prime target... Immortal or not. "Whatever the case may be, they hail from the same region that dad does and he's been hunting them ever since they came here," he explained.

"So, in short -" he peered at his sister and shook his head. "We're not the only ones, they'll go for anything that fits the description now," he clarified. While he had yet to discover why these cultists were so preoccupied with the colour of fur, he already knew that there were more victims than just 'him', he'd seen the corpses after all... or rather, he'd felt them.

"As to what dad was doing..." he took a breath.

"He was in the caves like you said, but he was hunting them," he frowned and cleared his throat. "He killed one just as it came for me so I guess that may have been one of their chosen locations at the time..."

Words: 217

 

[Epine de Rose]

"And during the period that you were talking to him, they saw you," Dione concluded and grimaced. That was the perfect amount of bad luck, something that could only have been achieved by her brother. He had a certain finesse when it came to timing... This was apparently no exception. It brought her some small comfort to know that they weren't alone, but at the same time she did have to wonder why he hadn't been able to defend himself?

"Did they come at you from behind or something?" she quizzed, raising a brow. Quite frankly, it seemed most unlike him to be completely exposed, he had relatively good awareness when it came to everything around him, so to be caught off guard to the point that their father had to intervene seemed a little strange.

"Why would white be so important...?"

Words: 142

 

[Epine de Rose]

Arimathras was rather quiet, her expression grim as she received the answers to both her daughter's and her own questions. While she couldn't quite put her paw on it, there was something vaguely familiar about this. She wasn't entirely certain of what it was yet but she was sure that in time it would come to her and perhaps it might even be useful.

"Sometimes, individuals have interests or place importance in things that we may not understand," she murmured vaguely. She'd had a mate who had been unusual, obsessive over certain things and even terrified of others. The dark had been one of those things, and while she had never been able to comprehend why he had been so fearful she had grow to accept it.

Eventually he had wandered off, without so much as a whisper he had disappeared into the night and though she had searched for him, she'd never been able to find him. Somehow the lion had managed to disappear without a trace...

"However I feel it is necessary to point out that there are more than a small number of white lions in the Stormborn, if these individuals know you are here, then surely they will know that these lions are also present..."

Words: 209

 

[Epine de Rose]

"Which is why I will be taking the fight to them," Tethys addressed his mother's concern immediately and grimaced. "Too many have already been hurt because I thought the first assault was a one off, given that a second occurred, it definitely means that someone is watching," he closed his eyes and released a heavy sigh. He might not be able to see where they were hiding, if he could then he would have dug them out by now, but he had already made up his mind on the battlefield.

...There was a reason his brothers had allowed him to ascend before them.

"I have no doubt that the Stormborn are more than capable of defending themselves but I would sooner that I dealt with this the correct way," he pointed out. "So I will be going after them, I may not be able to see them at the moment, but I have an idea of how to make them visible," he frowned and cast a glance towards both mother and sibling. "But this is why it is all the more important for you both to remain here where I believe that it's safe."

"...If I don't come back then you will at least be able to warn the pride in my stead...but failure really isn't an option."

Words: 220
Total Words (Tethys): 1032

 

[Epine de Rose]

He couldn't see them? Dione raised a brow at the incredulous remark, if they were living being then they would have a form. With such a form came heat, sound, a general sense of an entity being there and yet here he was claiming that they were invisible. She would be lying if she said her curiosity wasn't piqued, but there was also a certain level of danger involved in combating something when you faced a clear disadvantage.

"Run that by me again...?" she asked curiously.

"Phantoms." It was a statement, not a question. It came from their mother as she regarded her son, she'd had some sort of epiphany, the pieces of the puzzle had fallen in to place and now she was able to ascertain why it was so familiar. What he was describing was the very thing her first mate had been so frightened of. Invisible, silent...bewitching.

"Floating red eyes...and then death comes. If you are what they seek, you are carried away on swift wings," she murmured and closed her eyes.

"You are going to need more than just luck to find these beings," she said at last. She had always assumed that Spectre had been disturbed, that he was hallucinating, but it appeared that he was not. "You are going to need to find a way to counteract their magic," she clarified.

"They are made invisible in every sense; sound, taste, touch -" she frowned.

"Magic is only a thing gods can achieve mother..." Dione interjected.

"Yes, and that is why we are going to have to work out their tricks," she pointed out with a dark smile. "So before my darling son goes off too far into the world, we are going to have to do a little bit of digging first."

"Well then," Dione sighed as she made herself more comfortable. "We had best start from the beginning. Tell us exactly what happened when you met dad, and I mean everything, don't miss anything out," she ordered.

Suffice it to say, they might be in for quite the long week of hard study...

Total Words (Dione): 713
Total Words (Ari): 861