Pyralis suggested they go to find Mieu in one of the neighboring packs. Ashmedai shrugged, "Without our protection, I really doubt he even made it to the next pack. He wasn't a fighter by any means, but he was useful for errands and things anyway. I can probably find a better one and maybe even one that won't need as much protection. Obviously you trust Lydia enough with your pups, so she can't possibly be as weak as he was." Ashmedai paused for a moment, "It would be kind of nice though."

Seth, then? One of her brothers was a healer? Ashmedai made a mental note to track him down later when he wasn't 'busy'.

So they didn't glow. They didn't have wings. They didn't even have fangs like Chaos. All they could boast was their height and a pretty coat? Lame gods. Ashmedai tilted his head, "My brother was taller than me too, and one of my brothers had long fangs. I've also met a lot of brightly colored wolves lately; I wonder if it's something in the water in Boreas. Do you know any gods that do glow or have fangs or anything like that?" Ashmedai asked with a genuine curiosity. While he didn't believe in gods, he didn't not believe in them either. Not believing was boring, and believing was dumb. He would just let each wolf believe what they wanted and he'd figure out as much as he could from each of them. ALL of them couldn't be wrong... right?

She asked what happened to his pack. Oh boy.

"Well, if you want to know what I think..." Ashmedai leaned in closer, "I think that when my father made the mistake of carelessly having pups with that... temptation, it caused some sort of unbalance. My family was strong and prosperous and young. We had a siege and no pack measured up to ours. My siblings were strong- many of them as tall as me if not taller, and some with other traits like long, sharp fangs." Ash started to wonder if maybe his family descended fro the gods too. "But then my father had pups with that woman, and a great sickness struck not only our pack, but all of Boreas. My father caught it, and ran off in his delirium. My brother went after him. The pack scattered. My mother died shortly after." Ashmedai's face was grim. It could possibly be all Rhythm's fault. After all, Sparrow always had something terrible happening in her life when Ashmedai stopped by to talk to her. Maybe their whole family was cursed.

Pyralis said that her father would kill any that were unworthy. Ashmedai laughed a little, "If I had tried that, my father would have killed me, no doubt. It probably would have been for the best, though."

Ashmedai wasn't much into healing either. He could at least relate to Pyralis that way. "I have a few friends that heal, and that's about it. I always wanted to be on the other end of things. I wanted to be the person who sent people to the healers- if they could make it that far."

She nodded absently as Ash stated that the wolf he'd been trying to use as a servant was to flimsy to have survived on his own. Oh well, those were the breaks. She chuckled a bit as he mentioned Lydia. "I trust her because she's weak. Though it's her weakness of heart that makes her useful to me not a weakness of body. Lydia is by no means on the level of any of my family in fighting but she has spirit and she learns. You see, Lydia has a soft spot for pups and I've exploited it. I started their training and I roughed them up intentionally. It upset her. She would die for them because she believes it's the right thing to do. Even though they aren't hers or even remotely connected to her." Pyralis let out a great gush of laughter at this. Some mortals and their idiocy regarding morality was truly fascinating. She didn't care for all that self-righteous nonsense. "Besides my family is nearby. It is they I trust and she wouldn't dare make a move against them. To do so would mean a fate worse than death and so I have her completely fenced in." Pyralis felt particular pride about her work with Lydia. It wasn't a perfect job but it was satisfactory and Pyralis wasn't the sort to keep slaves anyway. Too much work. She fully intended to kill Lydia off as soon as the pups were of age. Pyralis ears perked as Ash talked about his family. "Long fangs? No, I haven't heard of any with long fangs but I have met some that seem to glow. I bred with a fire spirit who looked liked he's been cut out of the celestial sky." She shrugged about the water. "I have met some too but you can often tell by their bearing whether they are or not." She thought back to that disgusting little creature Naomi. Oddly colored but blind, scarred and stupid. Clearly no one with the favor of any god. "Some may just be mortals hawking their souls for favor and being marked so." She leaned in as he talked about his pack and she nodded enthusiastically. Everything he said was making perfect sense to her. "I see, perhaps your family garnered the favor of some god in the past for your strength and your skills or it is possible you are descended from one yourselves. When your father erred he earned its wrath and thus you were cursed so and your kingdom destroyed." It was a rather passive god in her opinion if Ash wasn't even aware of it. To give mortals favor only to have them ignore you. If it had been her she'd have acted long before the floosy entered the scene. She nodded as Ash talked of killing the pups. "It would have. You could have appeased your ancestors with their blood. Has your father never talked of a god of his family or of any spiritual lineage?" She chuckled at his talk of healers. "I am the same!" "Talk" "You" Think

Pyralis talked about HOW Lydia was weak. It wasn't her body, or even her spirit, but her mind. Because she wanted to be selfless, she was weak. Ashmedai occasionally felt like that too. He sometimes really enjoyed being the good guy. Other times, he didn't, or simply didn't care. "So it's about being weak in the right was for slaves, then? Different slaves with different weaknesses for different purposes?" Ashmedai let out a half-teasing exasperated sigh, "Why doesn't someone just BREED slaves and then TRAIN them for profit of some sort. Then, when they're young, you can teach them and break them in just the right way and they'll even think it's their purpose to serve and get enjoyment and motivation out of it." In his head, those things worked theoretically. "Then just kill off any of the little rebels, or train them to be slave... recruiters"

Apparently even brightly colored wolves may not be descended from the gods. They may be marked for 'hawking their souls' or something. It sounded a little complicated, but mostly made sense. Some were big dumb idiots even though they were bright, so obviously those weren't gods.

Pyralis mentioned Ash's family may have- at one time- pleased the gods, "... It is possible you are descended from one yourselves," she said. As she explained that they may have fallen from a god's grace, Ashmedai nodded. Maybe their father knew, that's why he was so amazing and prosperous. then he upset them?

"He never told us anything about gods at all period. Or his family at all. I don't even know if he had siblings. What if my ancestors were angry for him not teaching us about our-" what was it called if you descended from gods? "- heritage? Then, when he had pups with a woman clearly unworthy, that was the last straw and my father became sick for his disobedience and his family was scattered because of his betrayal for not teaching us of our lineage? It would explain the double punishment for him, anyway."

Pyralis nodded enthusiastically. "Exactly! You need to know what you want out of a slave first before you can go around getting the right one." She let out a laugh as he talked about breeding them. "I believe there were a group of slave traders in our old homeland but I honestly can't remember much about them. Maybe you can start up a ring?" Pyralis didn't have the foresight or the reliability for such a venture and she really wasn't much about profit. She could probably see some members of her family being interested. Ash's statement relating to his father was a bit confusing. Why on earth would anyone keep such a secret from the rest of the family? "That could be. I have no idea why he would want to keep it a secret but it seems a little strange that a pack such as yours would rise to such great power and then fall so rapidly after that transgression for a mere coincidence. Is there anyone left in your family who might be able to tell you more?" "Talk" "You" Think

Start up his own slave trade ring, eh? That sounded like either a great adventure or a terrible hassle. If he had a few partners, though, it might be a good thing to try. Or even better if he could have some close ties with someone willing to work for him. Solution! He could be the alpha of a pack that traded slaves for... for? Herbs? Well... something. He'd think about it later.

Pyralis said she wasn't sure why someone would keep something like that a secret. Ash thought for a while, "Pride maybe? Maybe my father IS a god, or a descendant from one, but maybe he got into a fight from his family. You said you were descended from a fallen god, right? Could more than one god have fallen? Been cursed to mortal bodies? What if, in the fall, he forgot who he was, but the other gods didn't and when he became proud of his work, it made them angrier?"

There were so many possibilities. Ashmedai's brow furrowed as he tried to figure it out, looking to Pyralis with sincere confusion.

Pyralis rolled her shoulders forward, wincing just slightly at the cut but it was already starting to clot nicely and she was sure the salt water had at least partly sterilizing the wound. She listened to Ash and nodded lightly. "That could be possible." Pride could be terribly dangerous though that had never stopped Pyralis. She nodded. "It is said that the Fallen god we are descended from had many allies and that when he was cast down so were many others. It's very possible there are more." She sat back and pondered Ash's theory. "I think that's definitely possible. I have not heard of any who lost their memories but there are some who are said to have lost their minds so I think it could be possible. If I could help you discover more about yourself I would but I'm afraid I don't even know where to begin." "Talk" "You" Think

Pyralis didn't just dismiss Ashmedai's thoughts. It was nice to not be laughed at for some of this theories. Pyralis explained that there were other gods that may have fallen too. It all made a lot of sense and Ashmedai nodded along as the woman explained. She said she would help, but she wasn't sure where to begin.

"I think my dad did really love us, so I can't really see him hiding something like that on purpose. But I don't know anything about his parents, so maybe they misled him, so he misled us without even knowing? I hope that whoever they are, they aren't too cross with me for not knowing."

Ashmedai laughed a little. A broad smile crossed his face, "Maybe that's why I ended up here, running into you. Maybe... I dunno how that stuff really works," he admitted a little sheepishly. Luckily she didn't seem to be all-knowing either, so that was a relief.

Pyralis racked her brain for ideas. Surely if this man's god had not completely forsaken him, he would send some sort of sign. Pyralis had never held a deep spiritual connection to her ancestor and relied heavily on her brother when it came to the realms of spirituality. Would he know enough of the other fallen gods to help Ash? She nodded at his words. "That's certainly a possibility that your father did not know. I'm not sure if it is too late for you. It's possible your god has abandoned you but there may be a way to reconnect. I just don't know. Visit me in the canyon some time. I'll introduce you to my brother Amon, perhaps he will be able to help you." She shook out her coat and grinned, trying to lighten the mood. "Well, it was a pleasure meeting you. I have to get back to my children." Turning she started heading back east toward the canyon. -exit- "Talk" "You" Think

Pyralis seemed to think for a long time. Ashmedai was hopeful that she could point him in the right direction. After a while of thought, Pyralis admitted that it was possible that Valentine didn't know he was a descendant of the gods. She also said that she just wasn't quite sure what to tell Ash, but that her brother in the canyon might know. She smiled then, and, saying she needed to get back to her children, turned and headed back home.

Ashmedai figured he probably should head on too. He thought he caught the scent of a pack wolf earlier. Maybe he should head there. His paw had been hurting since he sliced it on the cliff, even though the other wolf had helped heal him. Well, maybe the pack would have a healer.

-exit ash-