Roots

Harbringr chuckled at her reply and nodded. Yes, she had beaten him back when she was a lowly slave. He had let down his guard and it had cost him. Now that Zee was a fully fledged fighter she would be quite a fierce opponent indeed. She greeted him with a gentle nuzzle and he instinctively leaned forward to return the gesture, pleased and surprised. He'd never really had friends outside of his family and the thought of counting Zeitgeist as a friend was a pleasant thought, though it was a shame she was off in the Armada now.

Being Queen is not easy, I came here for a break.

"I can imagine. I find myself with the rank now of Daimyo and I'm not quite sure how best to go about it. I always expected my older siblings to take care of the upper echelons." She asked about Ashen and he gazed out again at the landscape. It was beautiful here in the lands own special way. The red bands that streaked through the rocks and the strange formations. A hawk called out, circling above a nearby formation. It was beautiful but it was still barren. He was anxious to go home.

"We've been managing since the volcano erupted but I'm ready to go home." He chuckled softly at the mention of pups. "I'm afraid I've been off on my own more than I should be. I haven't interacted with them much yet. That really should change." It was hard though, if he was honest. He loved the pups but they reminded him of the future that was stolen from him. The loss of Costanza meant that he would never have pups of his own.