Obi would have never thought he would be sneaking out of the pack lands to try to save a pup who was supposed to be culled against the wishes of his master. The pup had never been anointed. It didn't have a name. It had no claim to godhood other than its blood which was not a sole indicator of godhood by any means. He couldn't understand why it had to die, but he could understand why it needed to be culled. It was... conflicting to say the least. He knew why Tox couldn't do a traditional culling since she lacked the backing of her sister and pack. It would likely be shot down and the measly pup given a chance at godhood which would surely fail and anger Abraxas further. However, what if the pup never was a god? What if it was just a weak mortal pup? Then, in Obi's opinion, it had no reason to die. Toxicity had answered her godly calling. She did what Abraxas would have wanted and completed the culling to the best of her abilities without being able to be tracked by the pack. Now Obi, with no such obligations could perhaps come upon this pup as a mortal. Say, taking it down from the tree gently. Leading it back to a mysteriously killed mother coyote to offer a new suckling. After that, he could delve into the other lands and search for a surrogate. Someone who could take the pup and nurse it up as a single pup- perhaps even their own- as a mortal. Yes, that was entirely possible. So Obi, pup tucked safely like a football in his arms, was whisked through the forest in search of a surrogate.

Pestilence had not been to the woods that stood adjacent to Fireside since Jupiter had told her ghost stories seasons ago. It had been an extremely creepy experience, especially for a wolf such as Pesto who vehemently spoke out against the spiritual. She didn't know what brought her back, though whatever feeling drew her deeper it sure as fuck wasn't to go looking for ghosts. The fur along her spine was bristled, her bright eyes alert and scanning the heavy fog. Obi's emergence through the foliage was startling to say the least, and Pestilence nearly jumped out of her fur in fright. "Fuck!" She swore, muscles tense as she stared down the vaguely familiar monkey. It's not like monkey's were threatening, it wasn't her first instinct to expect harm from a random wanderer primate even in creepy spiritual foggy woods. She squinted across the way at him, her head tilting slowly to the side as she forced the recognition forward. "Obi?" It felt like it'd been so long since she'd seen him last, even though he held such a prominent position in her upbringing. While he once was her beloved archpriest, Archon's death had soured that title and their relationship. "Did Tox send you?" Suspicion and bitterness was thick in her tone, though she forced herself to remain neutral for her late-father's sake. There was a bundle in his arms, though Pesto hardly noticed through the shock of seeing him so close to her new home. "Speech" "Thinking" "You."

When he first ran into the figure, his mind spun thinking that at first it was Toxicity, catching him in the act, and then when the scent was less familiar he thought maybe Venom which was arguably worse. It took a moment, when she said his name, that he realized it was Pesto. He backpedaled, tucking the child under his arm as it whined in protest. His eyes narrowed at her, "Perhaps this forest is called haunted for a reason- are you not supposed to be dead, Fallen One?" He turned to flee if needed, "Last I have heard, you were attacking Toxicity on the mountain before she felled you with Calamity's help."

Pestilence couldn't help but laugh as he repeated the whole haunted myth she'd heard from Jupiter. Oh how she was looking forward to telling the brightly colored man that it wasn't a scary cannibal who stalked the forest, it was Pesto herself. Her head shook, both disagreeing with his words and forcing away the outburst. "Fallen One? You'll need to come up with something better, something that could never be related to that so-called Fallen God." Her lips pinched shut, and she gestured her nose towards the bundle he tried to hide. "Who's that?" Obviously it was a child, though which of her ex-family had bore it? Was Obi simply in the habit of taking newborns out for a stroll outside the territory? Pesto frowned, and decided to belatedly answer his question. There was always the risk he'd go home and share knowledge that she was alive and well, but Pesto did not fear Tox's wrath. "I caught myself on the edge of the cliff." She replied shortly. "They're welcome to try their luck again, if they so desire." "Speech" "Thinking" "You."

Pesto retorted at his words, but he simply shook his head, "I am sorry, but you are the Fallen One still..." It wasn't that he disagreed, but he had a soft spot for all of Archon's pups and wondered what his leader would think of him for allowing one of his pups to slip so far away from the light. Still, she was fallen and he would only- could only- refer to her as such. His lips formed a thin line as he struggled to find anything else to say. Pesto motioned at the bundle, asking what it was. Obi's first instinct was to hide it. His eyes looked around for a quick escape and he briefly wondered if Pestilence would be able to snitch on his broken oath to serve. She was rejected from the family, but it was possible Venom or someone would try to patch things up in the future and then she would have something over him. It was a predicament, but if she were to be involved... Obi slowly brought the bundle forward, unfurling to show the dark blue hues of the pup- its lighter hues would grow in later as it aged- as the babe wriggled away from the sudden cold. "It is... to be culled." His eyes regarded Pesto for a moment to see how she would take the information. "It is unfit to be an Abraxas, but I though, perhaps, there's no harm in it being simply a mortal. We do not often do killing mortals simply because they are mortal, so what is letting one more live as it will? That is Ra'asha, if you remember: the will to survive and thrive no matter what has come or what is yet to come." Pestilence shared that she caught herself on the edge of the cliff and that the others were welcome to try again but Obi shook his head, "Enough pain has been caused Pes- Fallen One. You should go, live, and let live- Ra'asha."