"But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura
It was only a matter of time until she was wandering in a new direction from Nerine. While her trek began along the same path that she’s often taken to the field it veers away to the north in pursuit of a volcano. It stabs into the clouds, but it is nothing in comparison to the immense Mountain that still hordes most of their magic. When she peers back over her shoulder Nayl can still see it in the distance before she returns her attention to what lies ahead in this new place.
The humidity is what greets her first as it grips tightly to her skin. A smile plays across her lips as she is reminded of the Jungle’s warm embrace, but this place lacks the thick underbrush and wall of trees. It seems almost bare when she reflects on her previous home – her heart – but she reminds herself that it matters not. It is, nonetheless, beautiful here in its own way. It lures her closer and draws her attention into an endless abyss. If it weren’t for a stream splashing underfoot Nayl would have accidentally bypassed all the borders as her eyes stay trained on the volcano (she has never seen one until now). As the water pools around her legs she takes pause and breaks her gaze to instead look down at her own rippling reflection. For a few breaths she doesn’t move as though entranced, but then she backpedals out of the stream and lets her voice ring out in a more or less plain manner.
Her purpose is simple and likely predictable. She wants to explore these other lands and to know what lies in each.
While her own scent of the coastline buries thickly into her coat – the smell almost lost in an eternal memory – she is able to better focus and drink in the warmth and tropical notes of Tephra while she waits.
Nerine had been one of his more anticipated future trips. He had heard mention of it in the Field—first by Celeana who had snarled at him as if he had murdered her own kins and then by Naga who had been more graceful, although quick to jump the gun when it came to recruiting. Still, his appetite for knowledge had not been quenched. The Amazons had been his first family, the Jungle his first home. While it had been years since he had felt the vines upon his back, the love he had for them was deep-rooted, eternal.
He needed to know that they were safe.
Of course, he has no way of knowing Nayl’s origins, other than the smell of saltwater and brine which was far more commonplace than before (Nerine, Ischia, Tephra, and even Pangea were now bordered by the sea) and it would have been impossible to discern. Especially having never been there before.
Still, she was a visitor, clearly, as she stood near their as-of-now undefined borders, and he respected the tradition that called for him to venture toward her. “Hello,” he greeted warmly as he neared her, the water lapping around his hooves, the heavy air resting upon the curve of his muscular back. “Welcome to Tephra.” He glanced around them, to the lush land, the vegetation thick, glossy with humidity.
Looking back to her, he dipped his head, expression neutral but friendly, his smile rising crookedly. “My name is Magnus.” Perhaps it was expected to identify himself as the leader of the land, but he had not done so when he was King and certainly felt no need to do so now. He was more guardian than King here, more shepherd and watchdog than royalty. “Can I help you with something?”
Safe is an understatement. The Amazons collaborated as the world knew they would, but then they tucked themselves away; away from hurtful words, from battles, from any further interaction. Suddenly, their reputation as warrior-women retrogressed into hermits. No one knew they existed and that they survived the Reckoning. Has Beqanna wondered about their Amazons?
Nayl is their messenger bearing answers to their unspoken thoughts.
She wishes that when she arrived that she instead smelled thickly of the Jungle, but Beqanna didn’t agree. The world has bathed Nayl in sand and baptized her in salty water. It clutches tightly to her skin as a relentless reminder of her new origins and her future. She is still adjusting and still telling herself that she lives in Nerine and that the remainders of her family’s history has been destroyed. Her breath wavers and her eyes close as she readies herself and gropes for what is her life and what will be her legacy.
When her eyes open Magnus is approaching. They study one another carefully as is the way of any soldier, but he has far more warmth in his dark eyes. Hers, though lit with the bright colors of autumn, hold a critical and unyielding stare. While he wades across the stream, his back flooded over with sunlight, Nayl takes a last glance at the landscape until they meet each other head-on. A smile plays across her lips and while there is a hint of warmth permeating her pretty face, it’s still rigid. ”Thank you,” her response is silky, ”My name is Nayl.” It’s in these coming months and years that her name will become widely known and not lost in the books. Hearing it spoken from her own tongue doesn’t quite satisfy her as it would by someone else, but to know that ‘Queen’ now occupies the space after offers consolation. She was destined for this.
”I’m from Nerine,” she begins as she had practiced (Nerine, not the Jungle), ”it’s where the sisterhood has gathered to live.” She wonders if he will remember, if he knew what they once were, and if he will at all care. ”I’m wanting to visit. We haven’t quite explored so I’m curious about what surrounds us. Tephra, you say? Do you enjoy it so far?”
Here it comes with no warning; capsize, i'm first in the water
There is something of the old world—the old lives they used to have—that will always tug gently at the back of their minds. For Lucrezia, it was the distant thoughts of the sand dunes she once called home. The Deserts tugs at her sometimes when she thinks of Tephra. If there is anything similar in her old and new home it is that there is something grand. The Deserts had golden sandy hills and a sun that kept it warm all throughout the seasons. Tephra was grand with the small volcano and springs that also provided warmth yearly. In the end, the old world was gone and she was here to enjoy the new one.
Lucrezia wanders across the border. She isn’t sure why she does since she had never patrolled the sandy dunes, and even now she does not know what role she would play in this home. In truth, she knows nothing about the rules and possibility of a system their might be. So she sticks with what she knows best—the natural instinct—and that is to simply follow the old kingdom ways. Her eyes keep an eye out for anything that might be dangerous. She especially looks for those that might come and try to take away this land that happened just a time ago. Lucrezia would not see her new home to come into harm just as the Deserts had in her absence.
Her ear twitches while her nutmeg eyes draw to the direction the voice rings from. Lucrezia does not know the familiar call (and not that she would since she is hardly familiar with those here in Tephra too). The peafowl mare follows though because she knows this call is customary. It is part of the old world she knows. And when she sees the black tobiano and Magnus in the distance she knows she was right.
Lucrezia joins the duo thought she stands closer to Magnus than the stranger. She had caught a little bit of the conversation as she joined them. “Hello,” she greets them warmly with a soft smile. Her eyes first turn to Magnus and she gives him a friendly tilt of her head in greeting. She then turns her nutmeg gaze to the mare. “I am Lucrezia.” A name that could’ve been something if she had ever chosen to pursue her life more in the Deserts. But here in this world she was simply a mare whom anyone barely knew of or about. “The sisterhood?” She asks. The words rang loud and clear, but she had never been to what once had been the sisterhood before the Reckoning. If anything it was only through stories that she knew about the Jungle from her father. Her grandmother, Kagerou, had ruled there many years ago. “Are you speaking about the sisterhood from the Jungle?” It perhaps was an obvious answer but Lucrezia was curious to know what other kingdoms may had formed back.
“I suppose it is time to see what the new world holds for all of us now.” Lucrezia had always enjoyed an adventure. Perhaps she would play a part in the diplomat side again if that ever came to offer in Tephra. After all, she had been once given the job to lead the diplomat caste in the Deserts. “I have liked Tephra ever since I first came here. It is a good place for those who need sanctuary.” She looks at Magnus for a moment and smiles. If it had not been for him she would not be here now at all. “What is Nerine like?” She turns back to Nayl, curiously tilting her head. Perhaps she would visit one day.
Names are a funny thing, fluctuating with weight throughout the years.
Once upon a time, Magnus’ name had been heavy, known. First, as the son of Atrox and Twinge, their wild-eyed Jungle Prince. Then, later as a self-forged Lord of the Chamber and then, in a surprising turn of events, the unlikely King of the Gates. His name had been associated with disappointment when he had flung the heavy crown from his head and fled to serve in the Dales and then with lovers in the star-crossed story of his and Joelle. It had even been associated with tragedy when he and Joelle met their end.
In the new world, with so many secluded and separated, he was not sure what his name meant any more. Certainly, he stood at the helm of Tephra, but it was not a kingdom rich with history. The name Tephra did not bring forth stories of warriors or magic. It, like his own, was fresh, born again after the Reckoning.
At her mention of the sisterhood, the interest carved in his face was plain as day, his ink-dipped ears flicking forward. “And how do the sisters fare? I have been doing my best to hunt down information on your whereabouts, but such information has been scarce.” Anytime he had felt like he may have a lead, it dissolved between his fingertips, leaving him worse off than when he had started. At her own question, he glanced around them to the volcanic land that unfolded around them. “It is…different from what I am used to and yet the same,” a confusing blend of the familiar and the alien. “It has grown on me.”
When Lucrezia joined the group, he smiled. She was becoming a familiar face in the kingdom, and he was now, as he was often, grateful for her steadfast presence. She often was the first to greet newcomers, the first to stand by his side during visits. He was thankful to have her, and others like her such as Longear and Aranea and Rael Fire, to help forge their way in this new Beqanna. He listened at her line of questioning and his heart warmed at her praise of Tephra, her description in line with his vision of the land. “We are lucky to have found a place to call home,” he concluded, watching Nayl carefully.
Nayl almost hopes that she would be accompanied by another Nerinian, but she isn’t at all deterred when no one arrives at her shoulder. For the time being she is content with only the company of Magnus and the towering volcano ahead. Clouds and steam roil around its edges, luring her thoughts to wonder what lies within; never before has she seen one. The sound of his voice, then a mare’s, pulls Nayl’s attention back to the current. Her roaming thoughts funnel as their company expands by one. Sweet and amiable, Lucrezia introduces herself and takes her place at Magnus’ side. They exchange glances and smiles, their eyes softened by the sight of one another, but not enough for Nayl to be led to conclusions of them. They are comrades, family, in this new territory. Together they have faced the Reckoning and survived. Together they have helped develop this land.
Lucrezia asks the inevitable and Nayl cannot prevent the flinch that moves along her at the mentioning of the Jungle. Her heart often breaks as she reflects on what it had once been and what it had meant to so many. If only she had the power to raise it from the ground and to recreate its splendor, but alas, there is no chance of such magic happening. Like those around her, Nayl is forced to adapt to her new surroundings and a new home.
”Yes, the sisterhood from the Jungle,” she finally admits after a reminiscent pause. ”As you know the Jungle crumbled with the rest of the kingdoms, but the hearts of the Amazons remained strong and reunited.” They scrambled like mice trying to find one another and recreate what they once had. Brash decisions were made and they combined their efforts to find solace and sanctuary as the world tried to heal. It was all they could do as their hearts were breaking. ”We’ve always been a strong group of women.” That will never fade.
Nayl doesn’t miss Magnus’ piqued interest when she mentioned the sisterhood. A curious smile almost plays across her lips, but she is able to subdue it and maintain a steadier façade that doesn’t betray her thoughts and realizations. ”We are surviving well enough,” it has been turbulent as of late but that has never truly stopped them, ”and everyone seems to enjoy our new home.” Magnus has been hungry for answers as he searched for them. He needed to know where they were and if they survived. Inclining her head slightly, Nayl can’t resist the temptation of delving deeper. ”Do you have any particular ties to the Amazons that you were trying to find us?” It’s almost rhetoric to ask him as his gleaming eyes divulge what she wants to know. Fortunately, for him, Nayl has spared him further research. She dangles information in front of his starving eyes, willing to admit that they will be strong again under her rule.
”Nerine is beautiful,” her head turns slightly to look at Lucrezia, finally addressing her question. Nayl doesn’t admit that she initially hated the land. It reminded her so much of the beach in which her mother and father’s corpses lied. The salty air stung her eyes and nostrils while her memories relived themselves in her sleep. ”We are far west of here, on the opposite coast.” It was a tiresome venture, but well worth the sights and smells. ”Feel free to visit,” and hopefully by the time they do Nerine will be thriving.
Here it comes with no warning; capsize, i'm first in the water
The mention of the sisterhood seems to be a popular interest for Magnus. She takes a certain interest in the subject as well, though more curious to see how Magnus relates to the sisterhood. Lucrezia has never had a direct attachment to the sisterhood, only by blood that she had never met. It meant little to her, but she knew the importance of such a place could affect someone so much. The Jungle had been very significant to her father just as the Deserts were significant to her.
Her nutmeg gaze turns to Nayl when she speaks more of the sisterhood. She smiles softly when she hears they have come together and have found a home. Lucrezia does know the history of the Jungle. It was thanks to her father she knew much about the old world when she was young—her education from her father had served her well. “It is a blessing to know you have found one another,” she says with a nod of her head. In her heart, Lucrezia wishes she had found the same in this new life. She could have gone with Kreios one time, but something else found her heart—this new home Magnus had offered her. Tephra was her blessing in this Reckoning.
She listens carefully at the questions Nayl asks. There is information to be learned here, but something more important to Magnus than anything it might seems. However, Lucrezia must remember in this new life that all things do not change. While there is peace it may not last long. She remembers clearly how wars come and go—the disasters they bring. It will be no surprise when alliances are made and lands come neck to neck together over something. Now, she must simply learn and wait. The knowledge of these new places and their rulers are at her reach. It was her duty as a member of Tephra to be aware of it all (and a promise she made to dedicate herself to her home without fear this time).
“I shall take up on your offer one day, Nayl,” she says in response to the mare’s offer. Lucrezia would one day visit all of the lands that now touched Beqanna. She would relearn what this new world has been shaped into it. The idea of such an adventure sounds pleasing, but she fears what might lie in the shadows of this new land that the fairies have shaped.
Something in his chest catches when she confirms that they are indeed the sisterhood from the Jungle and his eyes grow a little stormy in thought. The Jungle had been his childhood home and, in many ways, he had always considered it the home of his heart. He had resided in many kingdoms throughout his life, but the Jungle had always been first and foremost in his mind; he still mourned its sudden death.
“I am glad to know that the Sisterhood has survived,” he finally managed, his expression still smooth, his voice seemingly unaffected by the emotions roiling in his stomach. At her next question, he dips his head but stays quiet a moment, letting the thought of it wash over him. Finally, he answers, “I grew up there.” Another pause, “My mother was Queen at the time. I spent most of my childhood in the Jungle.”
He turns his head to look toward Lucrezia and listens as she speaks. It was indeed a blessing that all of the jungle women had found one another again and were rebuilding. At Nayl’s offer, he simply smiles. “I would very much like to see it for myself. Perhaps Lucrezia and I will visit sooner than you think.” Not soon enough to be obtrusive, but soon enough that the offer’s statute of limitations hadn't worn out.
“Is there anything in particular you would like to see while here? Anything you would like to learn?”
Magnus didn’t mean to rush the visit or make her feel uncomfortable, but he also didn’t want to make her feel as if she had to push for answers. She had, after all, come here for a reason and he was not interested in making it difficult for her to find it. There was nothing for him to hide in Tephra.
out of the blue out into the loneliest place that you'll ever know I carried the world just as far as I could but the damage had taken its toll
They are receptive to her offer. They smile and they nod, extending their pleasure and grasping firmly onto the temptation that Nerine enraptures. The kingdom has remained solitary with no outsiders coming to investigate; at times, she finds relief in not hosting multiple diplomatic parties. She, however, has achieved her goal in making others aware of their existence, and of her name that ties itself to Nerine. Now, the other lands will know of the Amazons again and that Nayl is their iron Queen.
But that was not her only purpose. She wanted – hungered for – information about the others that aren’t under her reign. The lives that survived Beqanna’s tumultuous revolution are hardy and persistent enough to still have thrived; she wants to know who they are and where they are. Where do they come from and what do they have to offer?
Nayl’s flurry of excitement brims her thoughts, but is never reflected on her stony, but pretty, face. ”A son of the Jungle,” she murmurs with piqued curiosity and satisfaction, ”Perhaps one day our lands can come together since we have similar backgrounds, similar passions…” Her fiery eyes flicker to Lucrezia as an offhanded smile stretches across her lips. They are both kind, both welcoming, but they also have underlying strengths that lure Nayl to know them better. Alas, Nerine is awaiting the return of its Queen. With an incline of her head, she replies coolly. ”You’ve been gracious,” she has never been keen on manners and formalities, but she sinks her claws into the idea to ensure a better impression. All for Nerine’s greater good. ”Should you have need for exploring or friendships, you know where to find me.” With a departing nod, Nayl turns away and takes her leave.
Nayl
covet and myrina's creation
because I've sucked at keeping up with posts the last couple weeks lmao
![[Image: gqYjsHr.png]](https://i.postimg.cc/KjqNDKxc/gqYjsHr.png)
