The Rainforest was luckily not a far distance from the Cove and Keligan felt that on this day, he would visit @Ryker. The day was just starting, dawn had risen and the blackened beast stepped out of the den that he shared with his wife into the sunshine. She was getting closer to whelping and debated if she should come with him or not. Looking back towards his wife's sleeping form, he went back into the den. Shifting to nuzzle her crown, he whispered, I'm headed to Ryker's pride at the Rainforest. You can come or stay. I won't make you do either. It would be her decision if @Sunder wanted to walk with him or stay in the pride lands. Then making his way out of the pride territory, Keligan didn't know if his wife would follow or not, knowing she was a sneaky lioness.

Once he got closer to the Rainforest, the newly crowned King of the Cove chuffed at the border. Stopping on the other side and sitting to wait. He knew that Gauthier had just finalized an agreement with Ryker prior to the storm, and hoped to continue an alliance with the pride. After this, he would venture south to the Mire. Why not hit two birds with one stone basically. Ears flickering at the sounds around him, patiently waiting.


@Corvus ★

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When was the last time anyone had come to the borders? He really wasn't sure. Firnen itself wasn't nearly as busy as Andal had been, but at the moment he wondered if that wasn't for the best, what with little cubs just learning to toddle around on their own (and moving further and further from the den each day). Ryker had been careful to make sure none of the cubs had followed him out earlier, when he'd left to do his daily border patrol - when they were a little older, they could come along and learn, but this first month was best spent in the comfort and safety of the den.

God, when had he gotten all responsible? Ew.

Shaking his head at himself, he shifted his path toward the call, but the source wasn't much of a surprise. Ryker would arrive with a light grin, Congrats, I was glad to see it go to someone familiar. And to not see the oasis expand their reach. It was annoying enough having Alexander ruling the hollows, though nothing had really come of it yet.

Relaxed in the company and pretty sure he already knew the reason for the visit, Ryker sat. He hoped it might be a short discussion, but couldn't really predict that. I guess you're here to renew the alliance then, yeah? @Keligan had beaten him to it, but in Ryker's defense, he was fairly preoccupied with four bundles of mischief at the moment.

No shackles on the demon in me

I'd rather be dead than average

code by corvus

Keligan would not have to wait long for @Ryker to show. There wasn't much in terms of scents around the borders, which suggested that the Rainforest had little members. Much like the Cove at the moment. As the Gaia lion watched as Ryker arrived, the comment made him smile slightly. Nephthys left with a threat but I will protect the Cove from the reach of the Oasis every time. I'm also going to send out a search party to try to find Gauthier and Kozrain and all other missing Cove members. He had to wait until he was healed up enough to do that much traveling. Nephthys had done a lot of damage to Keligan during their battle and drowning himself with blood from his tongue wounds bursting open would not have helped any.

Then at the question about the visit being for the alliance, Keligan nodded slowly. Yes, I know you and Gauthier had just established one before the storm hit. I plan to talk to the Mire leaders and Amara at the Bluffs to re-establish those alliances. I've already talked to Tiamat to make one with the Lagoon. The Lagoon High Sovereign had been there at the challenge, which made it easy to get that alliance going. Tiamat and Gauthier hadn't talked prior to the storm to make one. But with Keligan's close friendship with Dagge and the support from the Cove members at the Lagoon Challenge, it had helped. Especially since the two beach prides were so close together.

@Corvus ★

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Ryker chuckled lightly, Well, what losing party doesn't want to throw a few threats around to save a bruised ego? He was certainly guilty of it himself, though his own ego was remarkably resilient. He preferred to think of his past threats as promises - and he'd done a fairly decent job following through on them.

He hummed mildly at the idea of the search party. It was a good idea, but he wasn't personally invested in it, Here's hoping he wasn't washed entirely out to sea, yeah? Trapped in the riptide, dragged down to unknowable depths, never to be seen again. Seemed a bad way to go; Ryker would prefer his own end to be a little more dramatic. Killed in battle was probably the most likely scenario, if he was honest. Or through the aftermath - fatal wounds, horrible infection, something like that.

My standard terms are simple: we support you in war, and won't interfere with your claims, and expect the same in return. If you go to war against another of our allies, we'll sit the whole thing out. Unless one of the sides had personally threatened or insulted or wronged Firnen, he supposed. But since we'll probably have a lot of the same friends, I don't see that being an issue. He really did need to get out to the Lagoon and see where Firnen stood there.

@Keligan

No shackles on the demon in me

I'd rather be dead than average

code by corvus

code & bg-credit

When @Keligan first whispered to her telling her that he was headed to the Rainforest she could only groan and cover her eyes with her paws. Her belly was swollen and sore, the cubs inside her womb were moving constantly and the pain from that movement was irritating and intense at times. Her body hardly felt like her own anymore and all she wanted to do was sleep. She told herself just a few more minutes but when her gaze snapped back open it was clear she had slept longer than that. She forced herself to get up and move, knowing that once she got going it would be easier to chase the sleepiness from her bones. She followed Keligan's steps from the Cove, being sure to hang back well enough. Sunder didn't truly have any intentions of interacting with the Rainforest King today, merely observing and allowing her husband to take the lead. By the time she did make her way towards the Rainforest it was apparent that their conversation was well underway. Sunder took all but two steps forward over the Firnen border just so she could see better before she settled her muddied form in-between the cluster of dense shrubbery and bushes. It was a lot cooler underneath the expanse of trees, though she couldn't help but wonder if it was sweltering in the warmer months. My standard terms are simple: we support you in war, and won't interfere with your claims, and expect the same in return. If you go to war against another of our allies, we'll sit the whole thing out. But since we'll probably have a lot of the same friends, I don't see that being an issue. @Ryker speaks and a floppy ear would twitch, at least he seemed to be a reasonable man. So far Sunder was supportive of an alliance with Firnen, at least until she was given a reason not to be.

*Sunder is attempting to hide!


[assassin exp]
+5 Spy on an individual exchange
+10 Successfully stay hidden for the duration of a thread
+10 Sneak into another pride's territory without getting caught

Not known to him was that his wife had followed him from the Cove to the Rainforest. Keligan knew that if @Sunder ever wanted to step down, he's place her as a Gentry or Lead Scout, with her skills. But his focus was on @Ryker and what the Firnen High Sovereign had to say. She can threaten me all she wants. Doesn't mean I won't rip her apart in return. Despite he once upon a time didn't have a problem with the red lioness when she lived in the Mire, once she made her bed in the Oasis, that deal was done. Even with Lucanus, the timing of that friendship was waning.

Nodding slowly about the remark about hoping that Gauthier hadn't been swept out totally into the depths of the sea, he still had to try. Then the terms. Always there were the terms. Which was alright with Keligan. Agree. My enemies are the Summit and the Oasis at the moment. The Brook, I'm cautious with as I'm not invested enough to care but they cast hand at aiding the Summit. Yes, while the Cove members had trespassed into the Summit's pride lands, they went in support of the challenger. The Rike were allies and Keligan would continue that. Especially with Valaine holding the Noble position now.

@Corvus ★

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The Summit again. Hm. He should probably figure out what they'd done to annoy the prides he found himself connected to. The Oasis was in a grey area, too, because he didn't know how many of the Savante still lived there, or who ruled. Maybe he should head out to the desert and do a little light spying one day. And the Brook, again a pride his other allies seemed to be cautious of at the very least.

Ryker nodded, easily accepting the list of potential trouble, Those three are treated with caution, since they seem to have made enemies with most, if not all, of my other allies. I'll add the Hollows to the list, but I'm just making assumptions as far as that one goes. Alexander probably still hates me personally, a light chuckle came with that, because Ryker thought he was a master at holding a grudge, but the patchy bastard seemed bent on beating him in that regard. even though I haven't so much as glanced at him in... he did a bit of quick mental math and laughed again, fuck, nearly a full year. Not since the first time the guy'd tried for the Hollows last spring. But since I'm not the one in the wrong, he can be the adult and come chat if he wants to clear shit up. Doubtful that would ever happen, so they would remain assumed enemies and Ryker would continue living his life as always.

@Keligan

No shackles on the demon in me

I'd rather be dead than average

code by corvus

As long as the Oasis sheltered the red lioness, there would always be an enemy there. At the mention of an Alexander, Keligan remembered the name to a face but nothing beyond that. The lion in question had fought for the Hollows but Keligan didn't stay long enough to see who won. Instead, he had taken his own prize. That was neither here nor there at this moment anyway. From what I've gathered, the Summit and Brook leaders follow some barbaric methods. But I never found out exactly what. Keligan wasn't the type to get too involved and if he knew of exactly what the Sigrun did to their children, he would be seeing red. Even though Gaia cursed those who were red-pelted, maneless lions and maned lionesses, the cubs had once been killed due to superstition but were now banished to exile. But even his own mother didn't curse the red child she adopted and Keligan grew up with Valac and had a child who was a strawberry color.

@Corvus ★

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Barbaric methods? He gave a curious hum, Maybe I'll take a trip and talk to them myself. If only to find out what these 'methods' were from the sources. He could only imagine it to be something really horrible if even the bluffs were against them, and Wolfbron had some pretty dirty secrets of their own. Even if it's just to satisfy curiosity. It was very unlikely he'd make friends with any prides marked enemy by so many of his own allies.

Was there anything else you wanted to discuss? Because Ryker was pretty well satisfied as far as terms and everything went. He'd be glad to add an ally back to the list, even if he assumed Caladan was still rebuilding.

@Keligan

No shackles on the demon in me

I'd rather be dead than average

code by corvus

The comment about figuring out what the issue was, Keligan nodded slowly. My homelands had their own faults, I think all do in some form or another. But there is a reason why the Rike are so against the Sigrun. And I trust Gauthier's intentions of allies. But Gauthier and Valaine never told him about the Sigrun's secrets of why the Rike were at war with them. Though, unknown to him about the Bluffs own secrets, Keligan wouldn't bother in finding those out. At the question, Keligan thought for a moment before shaking his head slowly. Not in this regard no. But let me know what you find out about the Sigrun. There has to be a reason why so many are against them. Shifting to move away from the borders and head south, he looked at @Ryker for a moment and added, I'll see you around then. Dipping his head, he went towards the direction of the Mire. They were the strongest allies of Gauthier and the Cove and he hoped it would be renewed.

EXIT

@Sunder @Corvus ★

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