How had she gotten so lost? It seemed that one minute, Mut'salama had been with the group, traveling to... Who knew where. The next, she was completely alone. The brown-marked lioness walked slowly, her age creeping into her step. One day, probably, vultures would be picking at her bones, but each time she woke up, she knew it wouldn't be today. For now, she had the dim comfort of the distant smells of a home long left behind - The Pridelands. Her ultimate goal was to get there, but her ultimate dread was that she was far off course.

The brown-marked tan lioness wasn't the only one wandering. After being left behind by the Nergui, Nebo had been helped by at least two of the other enslaved lions in recovering from his malnurishment. Now he wandered, still thin looking but at least walking. He had no destination in mind, or at least he didn't feel he did. His visions still plagued him, pointing him this way and that, but never did he find just the right place. The only difference from the usual routine, though, was that he spied what he thought was another vision. Then the wind shifted, and he smelled a familiar smell that hadn't graced his nose in a long time. "Tziporah...?"

It wasn't hard for Mut to notice another lion. When she looked at him, she noted that he was a lion that looked as world-wary as she felt. But he had a look of wonder in his eyes, as if he was seeing something wonderful. It made Mut pause, one paw lifted. "Hello, do I... Know you?" A bit of something about him seemed familiar, and she noticed the tiny stone-like shells around his right forepaw. They were similar to the ones a lioness she'd known wore around her neck, but that wasn't technically enough to go off of. Who this lion was, and where he had come from, were important matters for Mut to worry about. She was a lioness alone, any lion she happened upon outside a pride's lands could mean any number of dangerous things.

Stopping in his tracks, Nebo's eyes widened slightly. "You're not Tziporah." He cleared his throat, looking down. "I... I apologize. I must look a fright right now, bones all showing like they are. Scavenging's not easy for me. But that's not why I approached you." He looked back up, tilting his head to the side. "You smell like my sister, or at least... You have her scent ON you. I caught it on the wind. I was wondering if maybe you knew her? Her name's Tziporah, she's about the same shade of brown as I am, with a face marking somewhat like mine in the same dark brown, arrow-like markings on her shoulders, and quite a number of scars."

For a moment, Mut's mouth opened and closed. Eventually, her brain caught up with what she'd just heard. "Tziporah? I knew Tziporah! She was part of the En Gedi with me and several others!" When she saw the hopeful look in Nebo's eye, though, she gave him a sad look. "I'm afraid the pride fell apart. We all dispersed elsewhere, I don't know where they all went. I got separated, you see..." Sitting down, she looked at her paws. After a moment, she looked up. "I'm Mut'salama, by the way." She motioned in some vague direction, not sure she was even pointing the right way. "I'm from the Pridelands, originally, though my parents were both born as rogues, as far as I know." Also on the list of things she knew, her mother had died the day she and her littermates were born. She'd never known Bakhti personally, only truly knowing what the lioness looked like because one of her brothers was apparently her spitting image. Beyond that, the only other information she was aware of was that their mother's half-sister had attacked her shortly after they'd been born - It had left one of her brothers blind.

"The Pridelands..." One ear flicked as Nebo processed the pride's name. After a moment, he shook his head. "Don't think I've ever heard of it." He sat down, to show he could still be trustworthy. "I was born to no pride. Joined one for a while before the God of Hate attacked it and killed my mate... Then I kind of wandered until the Nergui caught me." He gave the lioness a wry grin. "The fact I'm a seer was a point of GREAT interest for them." They'd given up, though, hence his current state and why he was here, not there. "Suppose I've been looking for my former mate this whole time, I haven't seen her in a while, I don't know what she looks like now."

Mut suddenly scooted back, eyes widening and ears folding. "Your mate is dead and you're looking for her and don't know what she'd look like now?" Was this lion crazy?! She should probably run. Her visions, few and far between as they were, reared their head just enough to whisper, but she couldn't make it out. She'd never been a very good seer. Now she wished she were, she might have been able to avoid this lion! "You do realize she'd be a skeleton by now, right? Maybe in many pieces, scattered across the area she died in..." She was pretty sure a number of lions she'd known when she was much younger were the same way. She wouldn't be surprised if her adopted brother, Danzi, were a skeleton now. One of her own blood sisters was, at least.

It was Nebo's turn to draw back in surprise. "I forgot a detail... I'm so sorry, I forgot a detail!" He held a paw up, waving it as if to make her wait. "My mate was a goddess! She fought the God of Hate in order to protect the pride while we all fled! She died as a result, and was reborn somewhere else. I..." He sat back, rubbing his neck under his mane. "I don't know if she's even still female, she said she changes gender every time she's reborn, but the time before she was female, and was worried the cycle of changes was broken. But she might be a he now?" He wasn't ENTIRELY sure.

One paw went to Mut's chest, brows rising. "Well that changes things! And makes that less awk- No, that makes it more awkward." She cleared her throat, then got up. "While chit-chat IS fun, I'm afraid I must go. I'm trying to find my way to the Pridelands, see how many of my brothers and sisters might still be there, and failing that... Find somewhere to live the rest of my days."

Rest of her days... Nebo closed his eyes, feeling a touch of sadness at such a phrase. Or was it sadness? His stance shifted, mind flooded with vision. When he opened his eyes, he looked around. Mut was already a good distance away. He jumped up, hurrying after her. "You're not going to make it to the Pridelands. My advice is to head north toward the Ithambo lands, they're closer."

Coming to a stop, Mut looked at Nebo with furrowed brows. "You got a vision, didn't you?" While her own powers of vision were weak, Mut knew roughly how they worked. Visions of the future were inaccurate, yes, but every vision of the future had potential to be true.

"I did, yes." He hesitated, despite her lack of rebuff, then gave a bow of his head. "I should... I should go, then." As he started to leave, Nebo stopped, looking back. "You never questioned my being a seer..."

"Weak though they may be," Mut turned, starting northward, "I, too, am a seer. I've met others, as well, so I know the power exists. And you have nothing to gain from my going elsewhere, wherever you came from." At least, she hoped he didn't.

Nebo nodded, then smiled. "Any friend of Tziporah, is a friend of mine. Just... Know that your best option is the Ithambo lands." He then gave her a nod, turning and heading off again. "Well, good day."

Mut watched Nebo leave, then let out a humming sigh. As she turned northward, she wondered... Just why WAS the Ithambo her best bet? Why wouldn't she make it to the Pridelands? She only shrugged, starting to walk.