Sasha had only been apart of the pride for a short time now, but it seemed there was already a change in leadership. The Savante was hardly one to question the decisions of his elders, but it felt odd to be supporting such instability. The whole lot of his kin had not had a lick of consistency since the Empire fell, so concern was obvious as he arrived. Ears sweep back, finding his mother on the outskirts of the gathering. Sasha was no fool, he knew his Mother well. The look on her face, the depth of her violent red eye spoke volumes in the silence. Approaching quietly, he says nothing and settles nearby. Nothing but a nod is offered to her before those pale eyes focus on the others present, then Scorpius himself.

She was hella late to the meeting! Lilliana tried to slink in and take a seat. As if pretending she had been there the whole time. But as she looked around she realized that she wasn't completely last. While most of her family was here, some faces were still absent. The most notable to her being her mother. She guessed the older lioness was back at the cave, perhaps unable to heed the call.

The young woman looked around in both confusion and curiosity. It hadn't been Ronin who had called for the gathering. It had been Scorpius. Yet Lilliana continued to look around. Her eyes moving anywhere but to the new King. Embarrassment revolving around their last interaction still had her ears burning.

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There'd been a shift, one that made the patched to-be-Savante nervous. She didn't know their Heir very well, but noted his scent markers taking up residence at the border all of a sudden. When the call went up, the young woman made her way cautiously toward it, concern etched on her face.

This didn't have anything good written on it. Hopefully Ronin wasn't being challenged. Granted, this wasn't quite the typical way challenges went. Csitri pursed her lips as she paced onto the scene. Blue and green eyes would note her kin, and Ronin sitting near Scorpius with evident injuries.

Worrying her lip, she'd slip in near @Alexander ♔ and sit down fitfully. Her thick tail tapped at the ground nervously. Hopefully this was a peaceful meeting.

When she saw @Septima leaving Oriana knew she had to follow, even before their mom started to shepherd them along. She sprinted across the shifting sands, the endurance ands extra strength she needed to move acrost it giving her cub muscles more of a challenge. And by the time they reached the giant gathering the whitewash cub was panting, thankful for when her mom stopped that she could, too. "What's going on?" As she settled (or more so pushed) her way in between Septima's front legs, Oriana would plop down on her rear and lean her head back to rest on the woman's chest. Indigo eyes peered around her curiously, plucking the appearance of both aunt and uncle.

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Camellia hardly spent much time around the Oasis. Here and there her scent trail could be found but it was usually stale. Since the discovery of the Savante's lair, she had been spending much of her time below ground, tending to the Apothecary. She didn't have much reason to mingle with the pride and in all honestly she felt very little motivation to put in a lot of work towards any sort of pride duties. Despite this seeming lack of interest Camellia was actually quite well informed of the happenings within the pride thanks to Balthazar. Unlike her, he spent a lot of time lurking within Andal hunting snakes and keeping a sharp eye on the inhabitants. She knew which Savante lived within the pride, who had arrived since the last time they had all gathered, and who was missing. She was aware of a shift in tides, and when Scorpius called the pride to gather, she was alerted by her friend of that too.

So now Camellia came strolling in from the wastelands beyond the Oasis, without much hurry in her step. The change in leadership hardly interested her; the politics in this land called Amaryllis were really turning out to be fickle and trifling. How was she to be inspired to loyalty when leadership was placed into the paws of incompetent imbeciles like Ryker, or transients who hardly sat the throne for a season? Her gaze slid over to her brother, fixing him with an indiscernible look as she mused. "Ő a mi királyunk. Ő legyen a király."

But patience was a virtue, she knew this to be true. Having a pride to unite the family and give them a base from which to operate and secure resources was necessary for a family so large. This was why Camellia played along. Her glance would trail over to Veriemä, feeling her angry vibes and catching the scent of infection. She would have to address this, Camellia knew, but she certainly wasn't looking forward to it. Camellia spotted Laerke among the crowd as well, and would seek to meet her gaze and offer a smile and a nod of agreement. She had been made aware of her brother's betrothed returning as well, though she had not had a chance to speak to the lioness yet. She also spotted her daughter and would give a light chuff, inviting her over in case the young lioness wanted to come sit with her.

Camellia would end up settling down next to Anthonius at the outskirts of the gathering. She would give a yawn as she flopped down on her side. "Ne hagyd, hogy elaludjak." She would murmur to her as she leaned backwards, reclining against him.

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@Teodora @Alexander ♔ @Anthonius @Laerke @Lilliana

The woman heard the call, but she had taken her time getting there. She had been at the further borders of the territory, and so the walk took a bit longer than expected. She moved and could see that there were already many lions there. A majority of her family too. She took in a deep breath and tried to sneak her way into the fold, hoping nobody would notice her tardiness. She would silently lower her rump to the soft sand below. Celestia remained silent, but couldn’t help but notice that the man that had called all of them wasn’t Ronin. No, it was someone else, some dark piebald lion with red eyes.

OOC: Please excuse me not replying directly to everyone, I just wanna get this wrapped up :cry:

One by one, they come. Scorpius is thankful to note Ronin still arrives, and Leonie is quick to antagonise and then reassure the man that he will always be welcome here - which is utterly true. Septima also arrives amongst the large number of Savante, Halimede as well. Seeing her without his uncle always caused an ache, but that she was here - and still supporting the family - is more than he can ask for. There’s also a tiger, which is… interesting. But he makes himself comfortable next to one of the Savante so Scorpius assumes he is with them. At this point, nothing about that family surprises him. His gaze skitters over Lilliana, uncomfortable for reasons yet unknown to her and the pride at large. He glances at Alexander, then away quickly and clears his throat.

"Thank you for coming," he says, relieved to hear his voice doesn’t waver when he speaks. Stage fright has never been in his character, but he has never not been supported when standing before his pride. Once as his father’s heir, and then Ronin’s, and now - now he is alone. Sedona isn’t here for him to lean on, to take strength from. "As most of you would have noticed, Ronin has stepped down. Part of our agreement when I become his heir was that he would hand Andal to me when he felt I was ready, so that he can focus on his family and look to taking another pride when the time comes." Whether or not Scorpius felt ready was irrelevant. "Until such time, he will serve as our gentry, if you want that?" He looks to Ronin for confirmation before continuing.

"All ranks can be challenged for at this time. If I don’t attend the challenge, assume the winner has the rank. For now - @Léonie will be my heiress. Fight her at your own risk." He doesn’t ask, but his sister might know the reason for that is less his own need for control and more to do with the fact that he looks at her and says, I need you without saying a word at all.

"That said, anyone that wants a rank is expected to use it. Attend the passage and recruit, fight our enemies for their claims, remove any advantage they might get. Hunting, training sessions, must continue as they have been. Andal had some peace under Ronin, but once my - our - enemies are made aware that I am the king, they will come for us. Wolfbron Bluffs have warred against my father, and they are clearly carrying that war on today. They have attacked me and my family multiple times, they ate part of my sister - Septima. She has children now and they will be targets simply for carrying Miroslav blood. They will not care if you are Miroslav or not, if you are part of Andal they will consider you an enemy - do not give them the chance to attack first. With that in mind, I will be seeking allies after this war. For now, the Bluffs, the Mire and any allies of theirs are considered hostile enemies. Be respectful to other prides, at the very least." He pauses here, letting his words sink in. it is not a rosey speech for his ascension, but he has inherited a pride and war.

"If anyone wishes to leave, now is the time to do so. If you stay, understand that I will protect you as I protect my family - but I expect the same in return. I want to remake Andal as it was in the days of my father, and better." Whatever it takes.

"Any questions?"

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The charcoal Scout watched the crowd assemble around her brother and smiled. She sighed, relieved that the moment had finally arrived. @Scorpius had always been destined to command the Oasis, as their father had. Now, he could really shape their future and reclaim their legacy.

@Halimede joined her, to which Léonie grinned. The pale, striped lioness was as impish as she was, and she quite enjoyed her company. She’d never given her a reason not to. Halimede came with teases at the ready, drawing laughter from the Miroslav. “A beauty worth warring for,” she declared poetically, her smile playful.

Her hazel eyes scanned the audience, noting how disgruntled or otherwise bored they seemed. “I’ve seen more liveliness in freshly-killed prey,” the Scout murmured directly into Halimede’s ear, her voice carefully hushed to keep it from being overheard.

Fortunately, Scorpius addressed his pride and captured her attention again. He revealed that @Ronin had passed the crown to him, per their agreement, and mentioned that the lion would possibly later challenge another leader for their territory. Léonie would’ve been happy to suggest one, beginning with the Mire, of course. For now, he would serve as Gentry, if he liked.

He was welcome to try for another, though — they all were. Her brother announced that any rank could be challenged for. However, she would serve as Heiress. The declaration caused her spotted ears to twitch, almost as if she’d misheard him. Her smile was instantaneous though, and under her grey coat, her heart thudded excitedly. She’d wondered, of course — and hoped, too. Maybe even expected it. Scorpius knew that she would always be there behind him — Léonie was aware of that — yet now she could better support him. She would’ve been happy to remain as Lead Scout, of course, but the fact remained: they were a team.

Léonie, recognizing the unspoken need in her brother, nodded to him as their eyes met. Of course, always, was her private response between them. She would always be there for him.

Her heart continued to flutter as Scorpius continued to speak to the crowd. He encouraged — directed? — those with ranks to use them. There was recruiting to be done, as well as hunting and training sessions. A warning was issued too, regarding their enemies — old news to her, but she surveyed those gathered to see if their collective, dull demeanor had changed any.

Scorpius soon opened the conversation, and Léonie was happy to be the first to speak. “We need a skilled hunter to lead our hunting parties, and an advisor to help overlook training,” she said as she rose to her paws. “If you plan on staying, @Eskel, I would like you to take over as Lead Scout. Unless you have your eyes set on something else … ?” the Miroslav continued, her gaze curious when she looked at the older, hunky lion and smiled.

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Valerian settles in to await the news, sage eyes scanning the sands as other arrive. Dmitri settles near them to no unusual looks from the Savante, though Valerian does see some curious glances from those less familiar with the large tiger.

@Lucanus takes his free side and the pair of them only exaggerates the absence of their third littermate, and Valerian grunts a greeting to him. There are many more of their kin too, and some still missing. At least Csitri seemed in better form since the Cove Challenge. Valerian sighed.

He doesn’t dwell long, for Scorpius was speaking. He had for them an explanation, speaking of the adjustment in titles and how he now led the Oasis. Valerian took it in thoughtfully.

He is interested in the topic of open ranks, but knows he could not rationalise challenging his father nor uncles - even if his ambition had left him dissatisfied with the rank he had earnt previously.

Wolfbron was confirmed as an enemy, as was the mire. Valerian would do well to recall that. Perhaps he could gather information.

The dark Savante remained silent as questions are prompted - he had none. Not for an audience. Further ranks were given out by Leonie, and Valerian listened just as patiently as he had to Scorpius. She was after all, their new heiress.

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Septima beamed with pride as her younger brother began, introducing himself as the new king. She was excited to hear what shifts he would be making, only to find with some sadness that she was not among them. The Miroslav steeled herself against the hurt and wondered what she could have done differently: be a better healer? A better sister? She was good at politics, she'd been trained for it since she was a baby. Was it because they were only half-siblings? Septima didn't know, but she did her best to keep the pride plastered on her face lest the hurt shine through the cracks. Good for Sedona, good for Leonie. She hoped they would serve him well. When it came time for her name to be mentioned, it felt as though it was to immediately paint her as weak. Her ears wilted against her head in embarrassment, ashamed to be so directly named as a victim in front of the entire pride. Maybe Scorpius was embarrassed of her and her failure - that would certainly explain it. She let her gaze drop to her paws and toyed with the sand to keep her mind elsewhere. Deep down, she knew it wasn't personal, but deeper down, she felt a sting of rejection the same as she always had when it came to her own flesh and blood.