— Please do not reply to this thread if your character will claim or hurt/injure, et cetera.

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Despite how little she had gotten away from family after losing the Summit, there was certainly a pull that she could feel upon her. It almost felt like she was being led by a rather long tether and that there would be no detour allowed to happen. There was no doubt in her mind that this was Maua's doing and that they wished to show her something. Only Talisa could not tell if it was going to be something good or something bad; the way things had gone, she wasn't so sure which side to expect anymore. Yet, she allowed herself to be pulled towards what looked to be the Jungle. Not at all disappointed that this was where she was being taken given her affinity for the Rainforest but the question of good or bad still weighed on her.

^{ART BY CUSH, CODE BY CALA}

Despite being a member of the Plains now, Atalanta still felt that restless wander's spirit. She hated staying in one place too long, and while for now her loyalties would lie with the Plains, there was no telling what she'd do in the future. But for now, she was happy to stay with her half-sister and the allies they'd made within the Plains.

But here? She'd not wandered here really before. if she had, she had been younger and didn't remember doing as such. As she wandered into the jungle, the fur on her spine started to creep upwards. There was a feeling in the air, and she could not tell what was causing it to do so. Her eyes flickered as she heard the pawsteps of another, and they settled on a battle-worn lioness. A chuff was greeting was given to the other one as she approached.

"There is an... odd feeling in the air. Do you know what is causing it?" She asked, flicking an ear as she spoke. There was an air to the older lioness that made Atalanta think she might know a bit more about what all was going on here.

@Talisa

text. "speech."

Art & Table code by Zodiac

To be met by another was not at all surprising, but as her first interaction outside of direct family for the first time in eons? It did startle her a little bit but it was quickly masked. Talisa had never been afraid of strangers but being so open certainly made her more of a target, especially without a pride at her back. It feels... like the veil has opened, Talisa would not have any knowledge of this if not for the previous years we she had discovered that spectre's and ghosts were given free range to go into the neutral territories. That those having passed on from this world were given permission to go wherever they pleased but that still did not explain why Maua had brought her here. Usually, the ghosts of the past are brought forward from the Grotto hidden within Freyr Peak but I'm wondering if that has changed. And if it had, why had Maua chosen the Scorched Wild where the wildlife and nature had never recovered? Why put the dead in a place that was also? @Atalanta

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Eyes of a medic roved over the still-healing wounds on the frame of the older and smaller lioness in front of her. "Veil..?" She queried back, tilting her head to the side. What was this... veil the lioness in front of her spoke of? "I was not aware that ghosts and such were allowed to still walk these lands." She said, her gaze roving around the land. She'd not encountered a ghost before - and as such she was confused as to what the other lioness spoke about.

"Atalanta Blackmont, of Lorien Plains." She said, figuring she might as well introduce herself. "Is it normal for ghosts to freely walk these lands?" Atalanta asked, taking a few more steps forwards into the land itself.

@Talisa

text. "speech."

Art & Table code by Zodiac

A hum is given to @Atalanta's initial question of the veil, a question that she understood would be on anyone's tongue that was not quite as familiar with the afterlife as she. Oh yes, she brought her head to swivel towards the girl's and nodded her head along with it. The afterlife could indeed walk these lands but they were certain guidelines that they had to follow and a schedule. One that Talisa had thought that she had been made aware of with so many family over the veil but something was changing.

Talisa Valour, of nowhere, apparently came her afterthought as she found that she wanted to say her beautiful Summit but that was no longer hers to bear. Sort of. The Grotto is where they can all be found and some are given the ability to walk among a certain land of their choosing by Maua who looks after them. But... every year or so, they are given free reign to walk wherever but this... Maua sent me here and this feels like they sent me here on purpose. There was something here that Talisa was not seeing or perhaps... someone was not showing themselves to her to see. The afterlife had a quality about them to be able to be seen and be invisible at will so it was very likely that someone was watching them but the two females did not have the privilege to see them.

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She'd been in Amaryllis for most of her life - but she'd gone back and forth and as such she had not really experienced much with the afterlife. An ear would flick as her query about the veil was answered. Interesting. "My parents never taught me about Maua... who are they? My father taught me about Vellen, but I was never told about Maua." She asked, curious as to who this Maua was that Talisa spoke of.

"Nice to meet you, Miss @Talisa." She said, inclining her head politely to the brown lioness. "There is a weird feeling here... It makes the fur on my neck stick up. Is that them?" Atalanta asked, not sure if it was this Maua causing the uneasy feeling - or something more sinister. In her young life, she hadn't really felt the need to worship any god, and as such wasn't very religious. But she was still curious as to what information this lioness could give her, since she seemed very knowledgeable on it.

text. "speech."

Art & Table code by Zodiac

It was that time again, the pull was strong and the young soul unfolded to be pulled toward the souls that he was connected to. His mother once again. She wasn't alone but that didn't stop him from arriving with a gust of wind and bounding towards @Talisa. A smile was on his face as he approached her. He took only a moment to notice that where they were, wasn't the Summit or any place he had been before. Oh well. He could address that later. He moved to attempt to rub along her body, some small part of his memory able to pull forth her warmth as her scent flooded in around him once again.

TABLE BY ICE

The last several years, the work of Maua had been lost on the tip of Talisa's tongue. Words that she did not often speak of, especially to strangers, simply because the entirety of Amaryllis had changed drastically. Some days she felt Maua's presence and somedays she felt something darker at play. The news, however, that @Atalanta knew Vellen was certainly a topic that she wished to touch on before they went their separate ways, though. Maua is responsible for Amaryllis. They created this land, its topography and are responsible for all you see. For generations they had saw this land through and provided for the lions and the many other creatures that resided here and while they still continued to, it seemed that perhaps Maua's hands were fuller than they intended.

It could be, she responds with a nod, it's very likely. Just like that, however, with a few words she feels with great certainty that it is someone. Whether or not they saw fit to approach or reveal themselves, she wasn't too sure what their motives might be but they were very little any could do to them even so. There was a harsh swallow as she felt an eerie wind before she turned her head to look out to her side and saw a young spirit and with a gasp she jumped to the side, Tormund! She shouted, likely spooking her counterpart but there was only glee on her face as she looked to her young son who truly should have never gone to the afterlife.

There will be no evil today, my dear. She looked to Atalanta and breathed a sigh of relief, this she struggled for a second but held her face together as best she could with a mother's happiness, is my son, @Tormund. A boy gone too soon, it was a bittersweet kind of feeling. To have him here beside her but to know the reasons as to why.

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