Location: The Deluge The subtle heat of the coming spring in the western lands was enough to bother the beast. His thick fur never shed enough as the heat built in anyway, maybe Agria avoided the hotter lands because of her time living in Auster. When Kefka was born he remembers it being hot and humid. Though it was something natural to him, he was annoyed that his coat denied him his roots. A damp scent came to his nose and he had followed it in efforts to find the a cooling relief from the hot sun. When he came to the edge of The Deluge he was rather upset it wasn't just right there for him to grab. He scanned the surprising amount of greenery that grew from the fresh water below and built it's way up the walls. He discovered a way down through the thick vines and roots, being careful with his first few steps but quickly gained confidence in his grounding and made it look almost effortless to the bottom. When he made his way to the end, he approached the water and immediately took the quenching drink he longed for. His front paws found themselves inside the clear pool. He'd wait a while down here to cool down before deciding to venture back out to his temporary den with his mother. Walk "Talk" Think

Though Aerie had settled in to their lands in the west some time ago, Thalia hadn't spent a lot of time properly exploring their surrounding territories. Of course she'd scouted briefly, but there were quite a few places she had yet to fully explore. Like... this place, for instance. Wondering how she'd never noticed it before, Thalia perched at the edge of the ravine and peered down below into the mess of roots and rock. While hardly what she'd consider a cave, this place was quite unique in its own right. Between the vines stretching across the top of the ravine she could tell there was a source of water running far below, but how would she go about getting down there?

Eventually she, too, managed to make a descent into the ravine. One careful step at a time carried the Abraxas down into the unknown. Her nose was twitching as she went, testing the strange scent of this place. The air here was humid and smelled strongly of dirt and vegetation, without the promise of an occasional breeze to whisk through and provide some relief. Letting out a sigh as she neared the bottom the ravine, though before she got too comfortable she realized she was not alone. At least - not completely. A stranger stood a good distance away, and apparently he had a similar idea as she did; though she wasn't sure what she expected after such an uncomfortable journey besides a drink. Warily she moved toward the stream, sniffing at the water to ensure it was drinkable before taking a few long sips from it herself, keeping an eye on the stranger as best as she could.

The water came to settle from the ripples his paws had made entering the pool. He looked down at his reflection, quite impressed by what looked back at him. His menacing midnight eyes he admired. He thought he was quite dashing to say the least. Dashing to him meaning terrifying, big, and no-shit handsome. His mirror would be disturbed by a slight shimmering in the water, he'd be surprised when he looked up to see a woman across from him. How he missed her own journey down into the ravine he'd never know. His second of a tense body would ease and he'd waste no time in starting across the stream though calmly. She wasn't much smaller than he was which usually peaked his interest when meeting new wolves. "Come to escape the blazing sun?" giving her a comfortable amount of space. He had a slight grin on his maw which was very abnormal for his usual ear-to-ear clown smile. He was feeling oddly a gentleman today not to excuse his urge to eye the woman up and down and give in to his demonic thoughts. He tried hard most of the time to be polite as his mother, who was very much not polite, raised him to be. "The name's Kefka." He spoke proudly as if he were a star to the people. Of course he knew no one knew of him. Rather his mother sheltered him for so long. But inside he felt the world should look up to him. It wasn't too much to ask for, he thought. Walk "Talk" Think

Almost as soon as the stranger noticed her, he began to head toward her. Thalia was slightly taken aback by the sudden approach, and she raised her brows in silent inquiry as headed her way. Though she had a more straight-forward way of interacting with others, that was only in regards to talking.. she wasn't really the sort to straight up walk up to someone and begin talking to them. Being social wasn't really her thing, though she was trying, for Aerie's sake if nothing else. He grinned at her, and though she tried to mirror his expression, all he really got was a tight-lipped look. "Something like that," Thalia responded, a bit too cryptically. Though she wasn't necessarily trying to escape the heat, moreso she was just trying to explore and get to know the lands that surrounded Aerie's claimed territories.

"I'm Thalia Abraxas," she introduced herself succinctly, without the pride that was audible in his own voice. She repeated his name to herself silently, hoping she'd remember it in case she needed it. "Have you explored this place much yet?" It was by far one of the stranger places she'd visited, and she wondered if it got any weirder the further she explored - maybe he had some idea. "My pack, Aerie, lives not far from here but I haven't quite made it down here until today." It wasn't exactly a landmark that stood out very much, so it wasn't all that surprising she hadn't found her way here yet before, but exploring as much as she could now seemed important.

His chin tipped in interest as she mentioned the name Abraxas, but he was a gentleman despite his nasty intentions that stirred inside and would let her continue to speak as she was. He could tell she was a bit stale but her willingness to speak back eased him as most would take one look at his demonic figure and run for the hills. He looked around quickly, he had never been inside this hole before despite his travels over the years. "I've only seen as much as you see," his dark gaze came back to look at her face, "it's easy to miss down here if you aren't paying attention." He looked up breifly at the decent amount of sunlight that came from the open ceiling before returning his gaze yet again, "I'm not one for the hot weather though." A continued grin as he went through his words. He tilted his head as he became just a bit more serious, "You said you are an Abraxas? I am too." His tone showed some surprise considering he'd never met another one of his true family while on the run. Agria tried to avoid other wolves as much as possible anyway knowing the Abraxas was a force to be reckoned with. Perhaps she would have had it easier if she left Kefka behind with the rest of his family. "I used to live in an empire..." He paused as he thought, "I vaguely remember a man named, Malleus?" His memory questioned him as he was awfully young and his life in the empire was awfully short. Regardless if she knew this man or not, Kefka was very interested in the namesake. And of course he wanted to know more of her pack as well. Did she have more Abraxas behind her? Walk "Talk" Think

Thalia wasn't quite sure what she thought of this stranger - though then again, she generally wasn't sure what she thought of anyone outside of her own small bubble. Other wolves were difficult for her to figure out, and the uncertainty always brought her an uncomfortable amount of anxiety. Keeping them at a safe distance - physically, as well as metaphorically - was a safe bet as she tried to figure them out. She had a feeling though that this particular male would be trickier than most for her to come to any firm conclusions on, and he quite quickly proved her right. Though he admitted he hadn't seen much more than this section of the ravine, what really interested her was his second admission.

He was an Abraxas too? Well, well, well.... She didn't know a lot about the family that had strayed from her own group, but given his age - not too far off from her own, it seemed - she had to assume he wasn't someone that had been born into the Empire, but maybe she was wrong. How curious. He went on though, proving her wrong for sure - he'd lived in Risen as well? Perhaps it had been before she was born. "Yes, Malleus was our leader," she admitted carefully. "His son, Eligos, rules Aerie now." What more did he remember, she wondered? Life before she'd been born... her interest was piqued too, though she was cautious in admitting just how much. "You must've left the Empire when you were quite young?"

She had all of his interest as she spoke even just the little of the Abraxas and that Malleus' line carried to his son. The water had settled around him as he was still and also careful not to splash around and throw water up at her. Though if their places were traded, he would have enjoyed the cooling splash. It was hard for him to believe that it was only spring and he couldn't imagine the heat of the dry, western lands in the summertime. She'd ask him just a simple question of himself, and he had no issue giving her a response in return. He was merely a rogue where as she had ties to protect her pack and her family. He had nothing to hide. "Yes, my mother took me and ran away from the empire nearly a season after I was born." He kept his tone calm, it may have been a clue that he was not entirely happy with this outcome in his life but he wouldn't throw out that he hated her for it. "I don't remember too much from the time I was there." A small grin, almost as if apologetic. His gaze wandered down towards his paws, fur gently rocking around in the water as he tried to think of any kind of memory from his puphood other than his brother and his parents. He then started to move forward, pushing through the still water and going towards the right side of the woman. He still respected her space as he climbed out of the pool beside her and came to sit without shaking the streaming water from under him. His evil urges burried by the fact of Thalia being related to him though the feelings still burned deep within. "I'd like to say I'm interested in your pack and meeting more of the Abraxas. But unfortunately I'm tied to my mother and I don't believe she'd be thrilled to be reunited." The potential of his father being inside the pack sparked a warmth inside his chest. He felt that if he ever met Kaine again he would have a lot more in common and it was almost a dream that he didn't know would never come true. The thought that Kaine would probably seek to kill Agria for her bad deeds brought him joy. Walk "Talk" Think

Well, this was certainly proving to be an interesting meeting. Though she'd been admittedly wary about him at first, it seemed she had less reason to be overly on-edge around him... though maybe his lineage was even more reason to be unsure? Thalia hadn't quite decided yet. She quirked a brow as she regarded him, seeing a familiar look of interest flash in his own eyes as she began to speak. They shared the same bloodline, if nothing else, and that made her curious to know more about him - in a way she didn't generally feel about most other wolves. Her interest in the ravine itself seemed to fade away into background noise, Kefka now in the forefront of her mind.

He admitted he'd been taken from the Empire early by his mother, and didn't remember much. That wasn't much of a surprise - Thalia had trouble remembering her earliest days too. Most of her life, before her parents had left, was largely a blur to her and she had to remind herself that this was likely a shared experience among most wolves, how little they remembered of their childhoods. She remembered her parents and siblings more than anything else, certainly more than what she could recall about the rest of her pack.

What was more curious though was his wariness in reuniting with the rest of the pack - if not because of his own wishes, because of his mother's. Now that was interesting for its own reason. "No? So, your father must be the Abraxas, then?" She was just grasping in the dark for something that made sense, but it was hard to imagine someone of her own blood not wanting to be reunited with their own family. Thalia could barely imagine such a thing. But then again - she was reminded of Pestilence, the woman who was allegedly of Abraxas blood who believed in none of their ideals. Now, she was a family member she'd be happy to never see again. "You seem old enough to be on your own.. yet your mother still controls you?" It was hardly said in a mocking way; she was genuinely curious, her tone mostly flat, as it usually was, without much room to reveal any emotions that might be lurking beneath the surface.

If he had forgotten he had asked what felt like a million times. "Yes, Kaine Abraxas." His gaze went up to the light above them between the stone and tree roots. If only he was a little older when his mother had taken him, perhaps that's why she left. If Kefka had been older and more molded by his father and his culture, he wouldn't be here with her. It was a little embarrassing to him. Yes he was grown. Yes he was more powerful than ever. And if Thalia had looked at both Kefka and Agria side by side, the question would be why he put up with sticking around. "It's complicated." His midnight gaze now slowly churning in the still waters below. It wouldn't take long before he rose looking up at the vines and roots she had journeyed down into the ravine. "I'd be happy to meet again." He'd state very sincerely. "That is, if you don't mind telling me more." He wouldn't mind himself if she wanted to stay down here and chat but surely she had pack duties to attend to and he knew soon he'd have to return to his mother. Perhaps she would even feel more comfortable meeting him with someone else beside her. Either way was fine to him. Walk "Talk" Think

Kaine Abraxas. Hmmm. She'd have to ask Eligos about him - he was a bit older than . her and she hoped he might be able to remember him, in a way Thalia certainly didn't. She wondered for a moment just what sort of wolf this Kain must be; he was no longer part of the Abraxas group, so perhaps he wasn't that great after all, but it was hard to really say without the facts. She felt she could make a better judgement of his mother than of Kaine - even he admitted it was complicated. Thalia wasn't the type to pry too deeply into the affairs of others though, especially when it seemed obvious he wasn't wanting to disclose much more about his situation.

It was strange regardless. "Sure," she offered after a beat, wondering if this meant he truly wanted to be reunited with the Abraxas or merely wanted more info. The latter was a worry to her, but then again she'd be slow to divulge anything that might give him information he could use against her or her family, something she was always wary of. "Aerie's lands are just west of here. Hard to miss. I'm usually there, or close enough to find if you call," she explained. His tone made it clear to her that their time together was coming to a close, and she wasn't going to fight it. "Perhaps we'll meet again, Kefka." She appreciated their little meeting a bit more than she usually. He was blood, after all, and he hadn't proven himself a traitor yet. It was worth exploring further, and she reminded herself as she bid him farewell and turned to make her ascent out of the ravine, than she needed to bring this meeting up to Eligos and see what he thought of it.

-exit Thalia-

A nod in approval as she described where the pack lands were and where to find her. He'd rise as she went to leave, shaking his coat of the still dripping water. He'd go behind her from a distance just to see her make a safe journey to the top of the western lands above. He'd take a moment just standing at the bottom before crossing back over the stream of water and venturing off the way he came. He'd have to find the time away from Agria, he'd even enjoy an overnight if he could. Strange since usually his mind was filled with evil demonic things. And he was being quite a gentleman and information thirsty with this encounter and thinking of more. It wouldn't be easy, but he would do all he could to try and meet again. -Exit Kefka- Walk "Talk" Think