[private] and in my dreams i've kissed your lips a thousand times // Yidhra

[Kagerus]

Kagerus

{ and in my dreams I've kissed your lips a thousand times }

As if everything (the plague, the exodus, the re-gathering of everyone, the fact that I must be separated from my pregnant wife and she in the place that is not guaranteed to be safe, the fact that my children are now abroad and not under my direct care, the fact that our kingdom is being split in two where once we had unity) is not enough, a sea monster appears during the kingdom meeting.

It feels comical even to say: a sea monster. When first my eyes had landed upon the betentacled witch, my first reaction had been to laugh; but I stifled the mirth successfully before letting on that the chaos of this reality has brought me to mania. When Solace in turn does not address the creature, I push aside the giddiness of terror and disbelief, forcing myself to take what has been given to us and use it to our best advantage. Solace leaves immediately with the end of the meeting, and those who have chosen Hyaline go with her; those who now call the Cove home go off in murmuring groups to find new homes. That leaves only me, and the kraken.

My eyes behold her in her full majesty, with a sobriety that I'd not possessed before in the presence of so many others. The tentacles speak of an aquatic existence that reminds me of Ivar, but with a crueler tang to it; surprising, in that Ivar can be as cruel as they come. But the witch is mighty in stance and in stature, and I give her that, mentally; but the tall crown of antlers atop my head and indeed the tawny leopard which stalks at my side are enough to reassure me of my own might and prowess.

She may be a witch, but I am a Dreamweaver, a Caretaker, a Leopard tamer, a Mother, a Fighter, and so much more. She may be here to recruit for a cause that none here shall feel called to. She may have her own history, her own titles, and her own reasons for her actions; but that is why I approach. To discover her. To uncover her.

To discuss the details of our relationship, as partners in the East.

"Kraken," I say in greeting, not wanting to squander precious time on pleasantries. My eyes go briefly and absently to the tentacles adoring her many features, and then to her own gaze; it pierces me, but mine pierces her, too. "You speak with an authority that I'd not known existed within Pangea. That being said, I am not a fool. If you do indeed hold such an authority, The Sanctuary is interested in parleying with you."

I pause, the steam from my words lifting to the prongs of my antlers where it is cut into many tufts of fog. "You suggest peace. We are wont to accept. The East shall only benefit from such an agreement. However, it must be said that only one kingdom can exist in each region." A moment passes, wherein my gaze says more than my words can. "The Sanctuary, that being centrally Silver Cove, will be that kingdom."

My stomach squeezes, but I do not let on that my own confidence makes me uneasy. For the good of my people, and of my wife and my children, I must present only the strongest of faces.

"However, your fascination with finding a cure is not intrinsically alienated from that which we stand for... If you are willing to function together, and to bend the knee to us and our ways of peace and not violence, then I must admit that I, too, am fascinated by this."

I inhale sharply and with a smile, hoping to cut off any impulsive interjection which may come from this, my last statement - though I doubt that the kraken has an impulsive nerve in her body.

"Of course, in times of war, we will need willing bodies... But please. Tell me your plans for Pangea. As of now, I am functioning mostly on a superficial understanding of your motives."

@[Yidhra]