Khepri sighed as she and Ajax approached the pavilion that the Maharani was taking refuge from the last rays of the sun beneath.

"Sweet daughter," Bahiti, current Maharani of the Werewolves, drawled as she looked upon her progeny. "How fare our current ventures along the northern border?"

The question was posed to Khepri behind a veil of honeyed words, but the young heiress knew that her mother expected better progress and more accurate reports from her than she did from anyone else. "They go quite well, Your Grace," she replied as she dropped to her knees in front of the Maharani and pressed her forehead to the sand. "Our agent along the border made her way here last night, Mother. She brought tidings of much progress and destruction."

"Did she?" The Maharani grinned, exposing her sharp teeth and predator's smile. "Do elaborate," the Maharani instructed as Khepri rose from her supplicating bow and sat on a cushion near her mother with Ajax standing directly behind her, ever watchful.

"Three moons past, we unleashed two Scalders and headed them directly towards Bastion Keep," Khepri accepted the scroll that held the spy's official report from the hand of Ajax and unfurled it. "Nailah's report states that the Dracgons and their Humans were caught completely off guard by the first one, and even more so by the second."

Khepri paused, feeling encouraged by the smile that suddenly adorned her mother's features. "The first Scalder, given free reign in the chaos, came within almost arrow's distance of destroying Bastion Keep. We chose well in sending the agent that we did, Mother," Khepri informed her. "Between the two of them, two of the Dracgons were seriously injured and numerous Scalder rigs succumbed to their fires and windstorms. There were many Human casualties, and it was not so easy as before to tame the Scalders and extinguish them." Khepri handed the full report to her mother's ever faithful bodyguard, Aten.

"Good." The smile had remained on Bahiti's face, and she sighed contentedly as she turned her gaze to the warriors' training. The Werewolves had truly adapted to their new homeland, and their armies were deadly upon the sands. Although they had favored more covert warfare since the Reckoning, a sizable force meant for traditional warfare had still been assembled and trained daily. "Tell me of our other venture, if you've anything to report. I'm most curious about the Reaper." Khepri's mother accepted a glass of cactus juice from one of her maidservants.

"As you're well aware, Masika left in order to pursue making contact with the Reaper and had seven Wardens in tow," Khepri began, turning slightly to accept another scroll from Ajax. "She made contact with me through the Link last night and informed me that she successfully found him and managed to convince him to follow her here for a meeting with us using the code words." Khepri smiled and almost laugh as she read the last line. "Masika requested that I relay to you that he's nothing but a churlish Feral with a disrespectful streak as long as he is old and fears for our sanity in his presence. She says he hurls insults without thought and has a barbed tongue along with a quick wit, and if we didn't need this meeting, she would have been more than happy to Change and bite a sizable chunk out of his ass before he killed her. Apparently, he likes to call us Curs and needs a radical attitude adjustment. She also states that his presence grinds her worse than sand in a wet cunny."

Khepri couldn't help but to smile as she heard her mother's throaty laugh, accepting a glass of juice from the maidservant when it was held out to her. "I've no doubt that he's as insolent as they come," Bahiti chuckled, startling a little when one of the warriors cried out in pain. The sound was cut short, however, by a solid thump that apparently rendered the man unconscious. "One does not survive so long on one's own without becoming at least a little cynical and I'm certain his lack of manners is simply due to lack of interactions." The Maharani winked at her. "He shall be afforded every kindness and all the hospitality we have to offer upon his arrival. I'll not have him losing reason to anger and destroying us all. Especially not when we're so close to achieving our goals that I can smell it."

Khepri inclined her head in agreement. "He will be honored by us beyond his wildest imaginings, Mother," she promised. "You still mean to go through with your venture to the North, then?" Futilely she hoped her mother had changed her mind. The mission was folly... absolute suicide.

"You know I'm not going to change my mind, daughter." Her mother signed a document when it was presented to her before handing it to the scribe. "Aten and I are both fully prepared for this undertaking, Heiress. I have wholehearted faith that you will govern our people well in my absence and rise to the mantle of leadership."

The words of reassurance meant more to Khepri than she dared to express, she kept her facial expression carefully serene and blank. She sipped her juice before setting it on a tray and sighing. "Mother... I had the dream again," she confessed, her voice low to keep the anxiety out of it. "I can't help but fear that I'm having that dream almost nightly because I might lose you to your quest." She reached out to grasp her mother's hand, her insides warming when she was given a reassuring squeeze. "Promise me you'll be careful. You, Aten, will take care of her." She gazed at the bodyguard, a massive man with a barrel for a chest and shoulders broad enough to be proportionate. He was all bulky, corded muscle and had a vicious streak to go with his temper when stoked; he'd served her mother since before Khepri had made her entrance into the world. He gave her a firm nod.

"Khepri..." her mother gave a sigh. "I know your fears, child. But when my time has come, it will have come. We're gifted with hindsight, not foresight, that art is lost to us. I promise you that I'll be careful while journeying and even more so during the negotiations. I'm trusting you to have faith in yourself and lead our people... and I'm trusting you to lead our people to victory should I fall. Edrice, your many times great grandmother, came into the world shortly before that Bitch Queen murdered the Maharani and sacrificed many powerful beings in order to grab onto power for herself, and managed to escape the carnage and make it back to her people and rule from the time of her infancy. She was strong, brave, and wise; her blood flows in your veins, Khepri. Her memories are flowing to you in your dreams right now."

Khepri nodded, intently listening to her mother's words and making sure that she fully absorbed them. Her hand still gripped the Maharani's, and she was pleasantly surprised that she hadn't pulled away yet. Usually, the Maharani was distant at best when beneath the gaze of her people. They respected her as their ruler, and knew that she would do whatever it took to keep her people safe and reestablish their dominance over their oppressors, her love for her child was not something they required witnessing.

"You're Ascending, daughter," the Maharani continued. "You're of age and ready to assume the mantle of ruling our people should you need to. I hope not to force you into such a role so young, but with the blood of Edrice and our ancestors flowing in your veins... I have no question whatsoever that you will be a magnificent, much beloved Maharani when the time comes."

Khepri nodded her acceptance of her mother's words, squeezing the hand held within her own before releasing her grip. She hoped that her eyes expressed how grateful she was to have her mother's faith in her, and how touched she was by her words. She cleared her throat some before looking to her mother's bodyguard. "Aten, I think it might be time..." she spoke the words with a small amount of dread. "Do you feel that you're ready?" The bodyguard gave his response in the form of another firm nod.

Khepri and Ajax both had been shocked when, six moons ago, Aten had approached them both and formally submitted his request to undergo the rituals it took to become a Scalder. After eighteen years of loyal, unwavering service in his post as her mother's Warden upon the death of Khepri's father, it had seemed that Aten would hold his post until the demise of himself or the Maharani. However, throughout his term of service, he had become radicalized in his hatred of the Humans and the Dracgons that oppressed them. The sacrifices required for a Werewolf to channel the Maelstrom were many and the cost was high.

The first task entailed Aten stepping into the arena usually reserved for entertainment to do a battle of sorts with a mature Keetone. The Humans that served her people had taken their places in the stands along with the Werewolves to witness the outcome, and the stakes of the gambling pool that wagered on the outcome of the conflict had been surprisingly high. Khepri herself had indulged, betting ten Pearls that the Warden would succeed in his first attempt at overpowering the Keetone and extracting its venom.

The crowd had gone wild when the Werewolf took to the sands to stare down his opponent. The Keetone that had been chosen for him was a mature Dreg in the prime of his life; one that had been specially bred by the Humans tied to her people to be both strong and temperamental. A 'Rodeo Dreg', not one meant for war. This particular type of Keetone was known for its hostility towards whoever was inserted into an enclosed space with them, and for its overall dislike of the scent of Werewolf.

Aten had slowly closed the gap between himself and his opponent, staring the beast down as if he expected it to cower in submission from the power of his gaze alone. The moment he had stepped forward enough to be within ten feet of the creature, the show had begun.

The Keetone let out a screech that threatened to deafen all who were nearby and rolled itself into a ball. The outer shell offered much protection, and spikes grew at various intervals along its surface. There was a low rumbling growl from within, and the Keetone rolled itself towards its Werewolf attacker with every intention of barreling him down and inflicting pain with those spikes. Aten didn't even flinch, gracefully gliding out of the way of its assault and turning to run after it for a few paces before leaping onto it.

Khepri had grinned in delight as she watched her mother's bodyguard cling to the creature and attempt to put his large body between its spikes before it rolled over top of him on the sands. The crowd had roared with laughter as both Werewolf and Dreg rolled over and over; the Werewolf refused to let go, and the Keetone refused to unfurl itself. It seemed as if it would go on forever, until Aten channeled part of the Change and his face morphed into that of a wolf. Long muzzle, powerful jaws, and long, sharp canines made of diamond that dripped saliva. The Warden viciously bit through the shell of the beast as they kept rolling, shaking his head and wrenching part of its protection away.

The Keetone's scream of pain was enough to draw an 'Oooh!' from the crowd, and the Dreg's rolling increased its pace along with changing direction every few moments in an attempt to dislodge its assailant.

Aten wasn't finished yet, though. He Changed his hands to sprout the vicious diamond claws that the Werewolves were known for mutilating their prey with; with one set of claws, he punctured the Keetone's shell to give himself a better grip. He plunged his other hand into the opening he had created in the Keetone's shell and dug his claws into the sensitive flesh now exposed, squeezing viciously.

The Keetone screamed again. Both beast and Werewolf were flung onto the sands as it suddenly unfurled itself from the ball and laid in a heap on the ground. The creature grunted and growled in its pain, and the Werewolf lay stunned for a moment as he tried to draw the air that had been knocked out of his lungs back in. The Keetone had momentarily landed right on top of Aten's chest before the Warden had been able to muster the strength to fling it off of him.

Both adversaries seemed to recover themselves at the same time, much to the delight of the crowd. Regulars to the arena all knew that the Keetone currently within had been the meanest of the arsenal; no Werewolf attempting to harvest its venom had been successful in wrestling it into submission during their first attempt. The fact that Aten hadn't had to wrestle a Keetone to harvest its venom since he'd come of age to use as ink in his tattoo and was deemed very out of practice, along with going up against the meanest of the herd, had drawn many onlookers.

Aten stared determinedly at his opponent, quickly taking advantage of the beast's pain, and leaping back on top of it as it attempted to shake its head clear. The Keetone squalled its displeasure as Aten managed to wrap a muscular arm around its neck to slowly begin constricting its airway while digging in his trousers for the special vial, made of obsidian, that would contain the venom without deteriorating. The Werewolf firmly implanted it in the sands, using the grains to hold the vial upright.

As Aten applied more pressure to the creature's neck with his arm, all who were observing questioned whether or not the creature would die rather than submit to the Warden. The whole purpose of this entertainment was just that for the Humans, and a rite of passage for any Werewolf who stepped foot on the sands of the arena. The valuable Keetones were never supposed to be killed or seriously injured, as they were a major part of survival in the Scorch. Aten had already broken one rule by injuring it, and it was unknown to any whether or not the beast's shell would heal from that type of damage.

The crowd waited for what would happen next in absolute silence; the labored breathing of the beast as it was choked could be heard by all.

Finally, at what seemed to be the very last moments of the Keetone's life, it expelled a breath with a sigh and relaxed beneath the Warden. The crowd, including Khepri and the Maharani, let out a sigh of relief. Currency began to exchange hands at a rapid rate, with Khepri herself earning a sizable sum. Mutters of disgruntled crowd members could be heard off and on as either bets were lost, or dissatisfaction with the event set in.

Aten didn't even bother with using the tool that would pry the beast's mouth open and push its tongue back; he wouldn't disrespect his opponent in that matter. He pried the beast's mouth open with what appeared to be gentleness after climbing off of its back and retrieving the vial. He pushed the tongue back and pressed his fingers into the flesh directly underneath it as he positioned the vial over the venom gland. The venom shot forward, and Aten removed his hands from the creature's mouth when it was full, putting the stopper into the vial immediately.

The crowd cheered, a little unenthusiastically, as the Werewolf held his sign of victory in the air. Aten patted the creature's head as it stood up, attempting to console it after violating it, and was rewarded with its tongue protruding from its mouth and a 'thrrrb' noise as it spat at him.

Khepri found herself laughing with the crowd as the beast hobbled off to nurse its injured shell and pride while Aten could be witnessed repeatedly running his tongue over his teeth and spitting onto the sand in an attempt to get the taste of Keetone out of his mouth.