Ah, exploration. The North is cold and bitter, and Virgil holds little love for it. Alas, she carries herself around its premises regardless. Amenti is starting to bore her, and she is starting to grow restless. The time is coming soon; soon they will need to start a place for Olympians to rise. Soon she will find her hand promises to her husband. Soon they will bring Alacritis to bow before them, and the golden woman will lead them to it. It is a destiny that makes her feel nervous, admittedly, but she will not shrink from it. The gods do not cower; they conquer. After all, these lands are covered in ash, destroyed and ruined. Amenti, meanwhile, sits unblemished by ash and wind, unhurt by volcano or hurricane. The gods are on their side, and if they remain in their path, glory will come to the Olympians. Table by Lu - Image by Poison - Code for Ala Only

Atlas was left in the Sound, this would be a solo trip for the boy. He would not even invite his brother along, not that the recluse would have wanted to come anyway. The ash had all settled on the earth, and it was now only a mild irritant to his nostrils - though his lungs had never felt the same since that day. He mostly noted it when he ran for too long, or wrestled too hard with Atlas or Jigsaw. Even then it wasn't life-threatening, just irritating. His father and mother would not have approved of him wandering so far, and in truth he hadn't intended to - but here he was, staring at a golden hued woman and a raised mound of dirt and rock with a hole in the center. ?What's that?? he queried, all forms of shyness having been lost a long time ago. He wasn't afraid of the woman - perhaps that was his greatest flaw. ?speak,?

It is a boy who approaches her first, a child who is young and fragile. Virgil?s eyes soften upon him maternally; she is without children so far into her season, without a man to warm her bed. She has always doted upon her little cousins, and now that she is within reach of possessing youth of her own, she has none to give them to her. Alas, she tries not to mourn it too much. The gods have their reasons, and if she is not meant to have children now, she is not meant to have them now. The boys asks her what she is looking at, and she smiles. ?It is a Geyser. It spits water from Hades?s lair, and it is not to be touched by any. All those who touch its sinful waters turn into a craven, and then rot,? she says. She knows morbid stories fascinate boys, and she also knows that a scary story will keep the boy from stepping into the steaming water. Table by Lu - Image by Poison - Code for Ala Only

If he could have heard her thoughts he would have huffed at her thinking him as fragile, but alas, he could not - and so he merely continued to gaze at the hole in the ground. It didn't seem very interesting right now, but he had a feeling it had a secret, and he wanted to know what it was. Her smile went unnoticed, for all of his attention was unwisely put upon the thing she named a 'Geyser'. Apparently, its job was to spit water from somewhere called Hades' lair, and it was not supposed to be touched. Of course, this was not a wise thing to say to a boy like Kyarst - until she added on the afterthought about turning into something called a 'craven' and rotting. That certainly changed his mind. He would cock his head at her quizzically, posing a query. ?What'sa craven?? Emerald eyes would note that the hole contained water, and it was steaming - as if it were extremely hot. Ah, so that meant he would likely burn alive if he touched it. So why did she tell him that he'd turn into a craven and rot? ?speak,?

The boy questions what a craven is, and it is an understandable question. He is young after all, and thus Virgil is willing to oblige. ?It is the worse thing any can possibly be,? she says, and there is a cold note to her voice. ?Cravens are those who would abandon their families. They are cowards. They run and hide, and let the world step on them,? she says this, and she hopes the boy will not decide it is something he wishes to become. ?You are far better than that, little one. A boy with your looks ought to grow strong and brave and win himself a beautiful wife and a plentiful kingdom,? she tells him. There is little point to her gentleness, other than she wishes dearly she had a son of her own to tell these things to. Her children will own the universe, and perhaps she needs to win that before the gods will gift her with them. Table by Lu - Image by Poison - Code for Ala Only

Moments passed, and his answer would come. Cravens were the worst thing ever. That sounded pretty bad. An ear tipped back, then the second one followed suit. He didn't like the sound of this. Cravens sounded cowardly, and he already loathed cowardice. the woman would build him up, and it was obvious success and power was painted on his face - as he had previously believed - for she knew it in an instant. A confident smile would rage on his features as his ears returned to their normal upright position. It didn't take much ego-stroking to get the boy off, and he would proudly puff out his chest in response. ?You look pretty nice yourself, miss.? Then an interesting, and frightful idea fell out of his maw before he could retract it. ?You're not one of those cravens are you?? Ah, the innocence of a lad. It was not without warrant though, for this woman seemed to know more about the cravens than anyone he'd ever known. Head would recoil as he asked the question, curling back toward his shoulders. Was being a craven contagious? Would she infect him? ?speak,?

She hopes her lesson has gotten through to him, for the last thing she desires is for the boy to fling himself into the steaming waters of the Geyser. His puffed out chest feels like a victory; and she laughs whimsically at the sight of him. His compliment is met with a dig of her head. ?Why thank you, little lord,? she says. Alas, the next statement is met with a quick rejection. ?I have fought many battles since I was a few months older than you, and I have lost none of them. Nor have I ever run,? she explains. ?What is your name, little lord? I am Virgil,? she says. The boy has little use for her titles or lineage, and so she reserves them for herself. Table by Lu - Image by Poison - Code for Ala Only

She thanks him and instinctively his head drops an inch, nodding to her thanks. He was still skeptical of her - that is, until she proved herself anything but a craven. The woman before him was no coward, and this pleased him. ?You never lost?? Skepticism would quickly fade, replaced almost immediately by awe. Of course there was the chance she could be lying, but that didn't filter through his mind - he hadn't learned to be suspicious of statements adults made just yet. She called him a lord - his mind would automatically ignore the word 'little' tagged on, and introduced herself as Virgil. He would smile and respond with eagerness, having learned that names were of great importance. ?Kyarst!? Whether on purpose or subconsciously, he would leave off his surname - perhaps for his own benefit. She wasn't an Armada, and wasn't in Glaciem - why would she care that he was? The geyser had all but lost his appeal, and eyes would focus entirely upon the golden woman called Virgil, tail swaying gently behind him. ?speak,?