[PRP] Alliances, Old and New (Khombo/Agni)

[Meepfur]

Umkhombo picked his way carefully down the steep, narrow path that led from the northern reaches of Ithambo'hlabathi territory and into Motoujamii lands. The deal - or arrangement, or theft, or whatever you chose to call it - for the spring had been struck before he'd been born, when Gakere and his compatriots had still reigned, and had been the beginning of an uneasy alliance for the two prides. In truth, for all the suspicion with which the native Abazingeli viewed them, the redpelts had...never really done anything for anyone to object to, beyond existing nearby and claiming the spring. In the years since, absolutely nothing of note had happened, and yet distrust of the desert still ruled to the south. Suspicion of anyone and everyone red had gone out of fashion, courtesy of the number of offspring Andhaka had left behind, but the redpelts proper, well...they'd probably always be the subject of looks and gossip.

Personally, Umkhombo didn't really give a s**t, as long as they didn't up and decide to leave the desert and move south. They'd been seasonal neighbors for longer than anyone could remember, and were considerably friendlier than they had been generations ago; though they'd never come into conflict, because his ancestors hadn't been stupid, the Firekin had once been the bogeymen of the surrounding lands, and there was a time when they would have taken not just the spring, but the Bonelanders in its vicinity as well. Let the Abazingeli complain all they liked; it could have been worse. Being both large in number and in individual size, the Firekin could have felled the Abaholi and done as they wished (for all that he was now held up and idolizedin the wake of his death, Gakere had not been invincible, even with Surtak beside him). They still could, although he liked to think it would cost them.

He, Ahlaq, and Faust were all versed in war, and they had Sayilmaz with them now as well, and a fair number of Qyrhyeshti females. Not that it was likely the two prides would ever actually come into conflict, despite the way the possibility was speculated over. As long as the alliance was respected and maintained, there was nothing to worry about. Which was why he was here: as lead Umholi, it was his responsibility now, and so he'd sent Tala to request a meeting. He didn't expect this first contact to be a formal affair at all - that, perhaps, would come later - and would only be meeting with one Regent today (which one, he didn't know, though he'd not have been able to tell them apart regardless). Had it been more of a to-do, he'd have brought his fellow Abaholi with him, potentially even the Omama, but...no, bringing the latter would have been far more trouble than it was worth.

At any rate, his allies had remained with the bulk of the pride while he'd gotten an early start to ensure that this business was done before the migration reached its conclusion and anyone could start mingling and gossiping at the Outpost.

((Helloo hilariously backdated RP. >> Takes place just as the BL migration would have concluded/soon after the Firekin expedition left.))

Ecavi

finally getting around to this one!

 

[Meepfur]

Umkhombo had a basic idea of what to expect from the Regent, appearance-wise: female, presumably large, presumably red. The scars were less expected, but pleasing. A warrior, good. He appreciated that, was much more comfortable with that than he was with the often pristine hides and trivial concerns of most of the Abazingeli and Busisa. He might have grown up with them, but he'd changed in his long time away, while they...they had remained the same. He was already finding it tiresome to a degree, and it was early yet. Maybe, with time, the feelings would quiet, but he hoped not. That would be the beginning of going soft.

"Regent," he returned the lioness' greeting with a respectful nod. There was an awkward pause; he was not a diplomat by any stretch of the word, and this was a very new situation for him, regardless of how confidently he stood. "I am Umkhombo. Andhaka and Bangizwe are defeated, and my partners and I now lead as Abaholi."

Mostly obvious information, perhaps, but he judged it courteous to lead with that. "I...don't expect that much will change between us, but I thought it best that we speak."

There, that was probably not terrible.

Ecavi

 

[Meepfur]

"Honored to meet you, Agni-pariksha." Another stiff nod, but the words it accompanied were sincere. Hopefully, now that they had been exchanged, the titles could be done away with rather than repeated every time they addressed each other by name. In his youth, he would have scoffed at the idea of a female being a true warrior, let alone a leader of them, but fortunately, he had been shown the error of his ways while he was still a scraggly-maned mess of adolescent overconfidence. A healthy respect and even admiration remained, clawmarks in his psyche left by the mate who had died in a desert far away. Compared to her, to any lioness with such a soul, the vast majority of the lionesses of the Bonelands...paled. Perhaps it was overly harsh of him, and perhaps with time the strength of that feeling would fade, but to go from the Qyrhyeshti to the Impibutho to the Ithambo'hlabathi was even more of a culture shock than it had been to leave his birth pride in the first place. Funny that he should return only to feel a foreigner.

"They were always better fighters than the lionesses liked to give them credit for," the dark male replied, circumspect. He knew the old Abaholi well enough to know they could have fought harder, but he also suspected he knew why they had not. It was one thing to fight to the death, another to watch someone you cared for do the same. "They might have come to power in an unconventional manner, but they held it well. I believe in hindsight, some might even remember them fondly, even as they critique the fact that they were allowed to live."

A fleeting quirk of a smile hinted at amusement; the females of the Bonelands could be fickle indeed, and strangely bloodthirsty for all that they regarded warrior-lionesses as such oddities. "I will confess, I'm not...certain what the state of relations has been between our prides, and it didn't occur to me to ask in the moment." He assumed there had been no real upsets of any kind, as he was sure they would have been much talked about! "I've come just ahead of the migration, so we'll be closer neighbors again very soon."

So, for obvious reasons, making sure that everything was in proper order was imperative.

Ecavi

 

[Meepfur]

Umkhombo would have been pleased to know he was doing well; he was used to handling his own people, both the Qyrhyeshti and the Bonelanders, but negotiating with an outside leader, a representative from another pride over which he had no authority...well, that was new, so treading carefully and considering his words were paramount. Their relationship with the Firekin wasn't something he wanted to see go south, let alone be responsible for ruining. What a fantastic start to his reign that would be.

Ears flicked forward curiously when Agni-pariksha mentioned thay Andhaka had done her a favor. What sort of favor, he wondered, could the previous Umholi have done for a Regent of the Firekin? He was intrigued, to say the least, although he would wait for her to reveal the nature of it rather than prying straightaway. "Likely so," he agreed. "I imagine he was also preoccuppied with the drought. I understand it became...very bad, and there were several losses."

He'd also been told that Bangizwe had begun to decline, to act out of character. Andhaka had had his paws full, from the sound of it.

Ecavi

 

[Meepfur]

As far as viable favors an Umholi could do for a Regent, that sounded...pretty well like one of the only ones, so on that level at least, it wasn't a surprise. And it made sense, if they were trying to tie the prides together more closely, or if Agni-pariksha lacked for suitable sires to whom she was not related which he understood was sometimes a problem for their desert-dwelling neighbors. He absorbed the information with a slow nod.

"That sounds like a litter even an Umzingeli would be happy to have." All females, no anomalies - exactly what the traditional Ithambo'hlabathi preferred. There had been a time, years and years ago, when red hadn't been viewed so favorably, but only a very old, very stubborn few still held on to that view. "If any of them were to choose to leave the desert, they would of course be welcome."

A pause, as he considered the implications of favor. Such things were usually meant to be reciprocated somehow. "If I might ask, what was the return favor? Or is that part of what you didn't have the opportunity to follow up on?"

Ecavi

 

[Meepfur]

Umkhombo nodded in understanding. So it had more or less been a 'good faith' situation, not an exchange so much as sharing. Except, since the whole of the litter had been acceptable by Firekin standards, it might well be that all of them would choose to stay in the desert. Why leave for the relatively unknown, when you could stay in the place and with the people that you knew? How much impact, if any, Andhaka having a few Firekin daughters would have on pridal relations, Umkhombo had no idea. It would depend, he supposed, on how much lingering loyalty there might be to his bloodline...or would develop in the future, when he and Bangizwe were looked back on with different eyes.

All things not worth saying allowed, at this point. "Speaking of ambassadors, perhaps we should consider changing them. Su and Machozi have been in place since Gakere and Surtak...and your previous Regents, as well."

There had been changes in both prides, and not just in leadership. Amd Umkhombo didn't see the wisdom in having a male ambassador for the Bonelands, anyway; if they were meant to represent the pride, none could do that better than a female. "Not today, of course but something to think on."  

[Meepfur]

"I'll see if the Omama have any suggestions." Not that he hadn't already been considering this and many other things, but now that he'd said it, it had been lent more weight in his thoughts. He would see if the Omama had any insights, but ultimately, it would be his decision. There were no few factors to take into consideration, so it was worth taking the time to think through.

"Is there anything else you wish to discuss, while we're here?"

Ecavi