[PRP] An Informal Welcome [Tethys+Snakes+Misc]

[Kimaria]

"Well," the purple snake declared in his usual obnoxious voice, "this isn't awkward at all..."

He peered down from his perch on sun-bathed rocks to where two reavers lay in the shade. Normally there would be plenty of banter and the snake could join in, offering his unwanted opinion here and there to keep things interesting. Today, however, things seemed grim. The skull-faced female was uncharacteristically glum and the shadowy one..well...was moodier than usual. Apophis knew things had not gone partiularly well as of late and the stink of blood was a tasty little reminder of that fact. Still, it could have been worse, right?

They could all be dead!

"When did you say the captain would be back?" he asked, attempting to lighten the mood. At least the sun was warm on his scales. The touch of it on his back was delightful.

"He didn't," Xochipepe replied, lifting her head up from her paw, "did he even say he was going somewhere?"

Zili shrugged, let his head sink back against his paws and closed his eyes.

The snake sighed over-dramatically, and turned away from the miserable, furry creatures to look out across the landscape. True, his eyesight was poor, but he could still see the world through the scents carried across to him.

Epine de Rose

I'll RP Rokopelli-snake once Tethys has entered. You can safely assume she is either still on his back or following him closely.

 

[Epine de Rose]

All things considered, Tethys was in reasonably good form. He hadn't had any other interruptions since he had, bizarrely, found himself surrounded by trees with no real recollection of how he'd managed to get there. He was fortunate that he'd gotten used to unusual events at a very young age, more so now than ever, and he had merely walked away from it without so much as batting an eye...albeit accompanied by a bizarre, amnesiac of a snake who legitimately had no recollection of who she was.

...Either that or she spoke in riddles.

Nevertheless he was able to make his way back towards his band quickly enough and with the initial business already settled and a select few sent with Tala to return her to her home, they were very much left with only one further matter to deal with. To their credit, a fair number of those in his band who identified as scouts in disposition had already taken it upon themselves to fan out into several teams in order to pick up on subtle leads that might have been missed before. As of yet they hadn't returned, but it was a period in which the rest of the band were given a rare opportunity to relax; the gods only knew how long it would be before they could again.

After all, once Tethys had a lead he had already determined that this would be the point in which he would begin to hunt it down, relentlessly. Alas, no sooner had it seemed like he had embarked on his journey to return 'home', than he spotted two familiar faces, both of which were looking decidedly glum. Hmm...but they had been that way ever since they'd found Tala and he could only assume that the reality of what he had decided to face was finally upon them.

"You both look like you are in dire need of a holiday," he called out as he came within earshot...

Kimaria

 

[Kimaria]

Zili, Xochipepe and Apophis all looked up at once, their expressions brightening a little to see their captain returning in one piece. Not that they'd really thought he'd return any other way, but still, it was good to see him all the same.

"You should have taken me with you," Apophis hissed from his vantage point on the rock, eyeing the black and red lions distastefully, "it has been rather...miserable here." It might have been deemed a little rude to say so out loud but the snake had never been one to watch his words around others. "Please say you have something interesting for us to do. I don't think I could bear another day like this." He paused a moment then, tipping his head curiously and noticing - for the first time - that there was a new scent amongst them.

Of the snake variety.

And sure enough, with Tethys was a golden snake. A new recruit, no doubt. Ah, well, that had already brightened the day! "Who's your new friend?" he asked.

Xochipepe had pulled herself to paws at her captain's greeting and gave him a smile. It was unlike her to be so down and she clearly didn't want to be so. "A holiday or something to get our minds off of recent events would be great."

Zili said nothing, but he did get to his paws.

"These are your people?" The golden snake asked Tethys, dropping to the ground and lifting her head to inspect them. One had a scary face. The other looked...dull. The purple snake, in truth, was a bit of an eye sore, but it was good to see another of her kind at last.

"Ah!" Xochipepe lifted her ears, "nice to meet you."

Epine de Rose

 

[Epine de Rose]

"I'll keep that in mind the next time I wander off," Tethys replies mildly to Apophis as the golden snake dropped to the ground and approached his Reavers, and by extension, their reptilian ally. "Admittedly I don't really recall where I went," he shrugged his shoulders; it had been a puzzling experience but he'd grown so used to these things that it was par for the course.

However, when Xochi remarked that she could do with a legitimate holiday he did raise a brow. Perhaps he was now immune to the brutality of the Scourge, or his apathy had simply reached new heights, but the lioness they had found had certainly left an impression. Fortunately she would make a recovery, it wouldn't be a quick one, but she would live. This was in no small part due to the intervention of both Xochi and Zili... Though they had later advised him of the fact they had been led there.

The scourge had some unusual tactics, and he didn't entirely understand them. It seemed like something within them had changed, or a new player had come on to the scene and revised their current tactics. His father might know, but he had yet to cross paths with him.

"You are entitled to a holiday if you would prefer, I have seen other Captains release their Reavers from duty," he replied after a few moments before nodding towards the snake. "And yes, these are my allies," he confirmed. "The red lioness is Xochi, the black lion is Zili and this is Apophis," he finished.

"They are three of several companions."

Kimaria

 

[Kimaria]

Xochipepe's face went blank at Tethys' response, as if she had not truly considered it a possibility before that very moment. Take a break? Return home for a while? Allow them to go on without her help? She did not respond immediately, though eventually she shifted her gaze to glance briefly at Zili. The dark lion was not looking her way, however, for his focus was on the new snake.

"A strange bunch," the golden snake observed after a moment. Then, with a smile, she added, "I think I shall fit in nicely."

"You don't...recall?" Apophis replied skeptically, glancing between captain and snake as if trying to discover some secret.

"Does it matter?" Renenutet replied, shifting forwards to slip between those who had gathered. "Your captain is back now and I wish to accompany you."

"Did you...tell her of the dangers?" Xochipepe replied, lifting a paw hesitantly as the golden snake slithered so close it seemed - for a moment - she meant to use the limb as a platform to climb up.

"What is our next move?" Zili added, finally moving to bump his shoulder against Xochipepe's in an attempt to rouse her back to her normal chipper self.

Epine de Rose