It was dark as two shapes moved through the rogue lands, the smaller one trailing slightly behind the larger. It wasn't often Firekin went roaming beyond their borders but it wasn't unheard of, but these particular lions hadn't set foot on dirt in what felt like ages. Kasoro had grown up outside of the desert but only held a few memories of his youth. Soleil was born and raised on the sand and had only ventured passed the edge of her home on very few occasions to tend to an injured soldier or hunter that had bitten off more than they could chew during a skirmish with a rogue. Despite the fact that they were heading into unknown lands, Kasoro's pace was confident and urgent. Soleil was nearly trotting to keep up with her mate's longer strides, though she moved fluidly so as to not spill the contents of the gourds she wore around her neck.

"Are you certain?" she asked, not for the first time. She couldn't help but wonder sometimes about what Kasoro 'saw'. He'd explained to her over the years that he was a Seer, having been born to a mortal and a goddess, and that he had visions on occasion. Such things were kept quiet in the Firekin and she knew he must trust her deeply to reveal such a secret, but she had a hard time understanding how her mate could see into the future as he did. He'd always been right, though, so she didn't doubt him...but this time what he'd said had made her question him.

"I am certain," Kasoro responded quietly. The pair were fairly soft spoken and others would easily talk over them, but they understood one another and appreciated the fact that they were so similar. "He shouldn't be far from here. I can only hope we're not too late." Kasoro didn't have visions often and when he did they usually centered around those related to him. His children, his mate, his mate's family, and occasionally a close friend. But the lion he'd seen in his visions was someone he hadn't seen for a very, very long time. He wasn't even sure he wanted to help him. But something pulled him and wouldn't let him ignore the vision, leading him to urge Soleil to gather her supplies and some water before they set out. They had to wait until nightfall to avoid any questions from the guards and the pair only hoped they wouldn't be too late.

They walked in silence for what seemed like forever until Kasoro stopped. He looked around before spotting a large rock that he'd seen in his vision.

"He should be on the other side," he said quietly, nodding in the direction of the formation so Soleil knew where they were going. They approached slower, listening intently and sniffing to try to get a gauge on who might be there. The wind wasn't blowing in their favor, though, so finally they pressed forward and rounded the rock. What lay on the ground beside it made them both stop short, Soleil giving a soft gasp of surprise.

Before them lay a lion who was so large it made even them - a Firekin and the son of a god - look small. He was breathing heavily, his eyes were closed in pain, and blood slowly oozed from wounds all over his body. As if the size of the lion wasn't enough, there were two horns sprouting from the top of his head. A god.

"Oh my," Soleil said, her voice barely a whisper and shaky. Kasoro narrowed his eyes as he approached the massive creature, studying the markings on his body. This wasn't who he had been expecting.

"This isn't him," he said quietly as he sniffed at the god cautiously. One grey eye cautiously opened, unbeknownst to either of the Firekin, and Anhunanol surveyed the two. Were they here to finish him off? This was his worst nightmare, being killed by mortals. The lions that had attacked him earlier had certainly been set on seeing his demise, but he'd teleported away before they could do any serious damage. That didn't mean he wasn't in pain and weak, though. Were these lions part of the same group? He'd been terrified to leave the Haven for reasons just like this, and now he couldn't even focus hard enough to teleport back to the safety of the mountains. He was at their mercy.

"Are you sure?" Soleil asked for the tenth time that night. "You...you said you were the son of a god."

"Goddess," Kasoro corrected, returning to his mate's side, now torn on what to do. "My father was a mortal. This can't be him. Though...if it weren't for the blue markings I'd say they could be twins. And the horns," he added with a little snort.

"We should help him anyway," Soleil said, surprising herself. Having been raised as a Firekin she didn't really believe in gods, though now that there was one before her it was hard to deny. And he was clearly hurt. The Medic side of her brain was itching to jump into gear and start patching up those wounds.

"I'll be fine," Anhunanol wheezed, startling both Soleil and Kasoro. The water in the gourds splashed onto the ground as Soleil jerked back and Kasoro bore his teeth in a snarl, ready to protect his mate if need be. "Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to startle you," the god said apologetically, his voice wavering with pain. "I mean you no harm. I'll be...right as rain soon, I'm sure." He didn't want to bother the two although it almost sounded like they'd been looking for him. That the male had been expecting his father?

"Kasoro," Soleil whispered, still a bit shaken up but clearly wanting to help. She looked imploringly at her mate who finally sighed and stepped aside.

"I had a vision," Kasoro said as Soleil stepped forward and bowed her head, letting what remained of the water and the gourds settle onto the ground. "I saw you were in trouble and we came to help. Well...not you exactly. Someone I knew once, long ago."

"Your father," Anhunanol said softly, closing his eyes again. He could remember bits and pieces of his former life and something about this lion was prodding at those memories. They were fuzzy, though, and it hurt to think too hard.

"Yes," Kasoro said after a pause, watching as Soleil went into her pouch to procure some herbs that she'd turn into a salve with the remaining water. "You look a bit like him now that I'm seeing you, though he wasn't a god. Perhaps I was mistaken." As he spoke Soleil got to work making the salve that would help stop the bleeding on the worst of the wounds, mixing the herbs into the water with her paw. She listened intently, still slightly in shock that she was standing before a god.

"Ha...a small world after all," Anhunanol said softly. "I do hope you're not disappointed."

"Can't say that I am. I wasn't fond of my father, what little I recall of him. He didn't play a part in mine or my sibling's lives." Kasoro managed to keep a level voice as he watched Soleil hesitantly approach the god, her mixture ready to apply. She gave him an apologetic smile before dipping her paw into the gourd.

"This will sting a bit at first, but then it will start to numb the wounds as well as stop the blood." Anhunanol nodded and grit his teeth as Soleil began to apply the runny stuff along his injuries. He drew in a sharp breath as the herbs sank into his flesh - it did sting, quite a bit actually - but as promised a few moments later a cool, tingling relief washed over him. The process was repeated over the various bites and scratches littering his hide and finally there was no more pain, only cool, tingling relief.

"Thank you," the god murmured as he opened his eyes, finally able to think clearly now that he was no longer in pain. "I'm in your debt."

"Oh, no thank you," Kasoro said with a huff, narrowing his eyes down at the god. "We don't need to have any gods in debt to us."

"Kasoro," Soleil said as she stood, wiping her paw on the ground. It was pretty numb from spreading the salve around so she stumbled a bit, but righted herself after a moment. "Why would you say that? He's clearly grateful."

"Because gods can be tricky. They say things they don't mean, twist words and minds," Kasoro said, looking down on Anhunanol with a wrinkled nose. The god shook his head, though he knew Kasoro spoke the truth.

"I'm not like those gods, I promise you. I am Anhunanol, the god of selflessness. And you both were so very selfless in coming to help me, even if you didn't think it was me. The fact that you thought it was your estranged father even furthers my gratitude." Now that the pain was gone he felt well enough to push himself up off his side, and after a bit of a struggle to get his front paws under him he managed to do so. He looked at the distrustful male with hopeful eyes and to the awestruck female with thankful ones.

"Truly, I don't know what I would have done if you two hadn't shown up. Thank you," he said again, bowing his head toward Soleil in particular. She'd been the one to insist on helping, after all. The trio was silent for a moment, the two mortals digesting what they'd been told as the god righted himself once more.

"We'd best be on our way," Kasoro finally said, turning his back to Anhunanol. "Come, Soleil. We are not needed here any longer." He began to walk away, unable to shake that strange sensation of somehow knowing the god. Soleil lingered just a moment longer, clearly fascinated by the god, and Anhunanol gave her a small smile. He leaned in to speak softly to her, his voice just barely above a whisper.

"I am in your debt, my dear. Should you ever find yourself in trouble, in pain, ill, lost, whatever the case may be, call my name. I will hear and come to your aid." Soleil simply nodded, unsure of how to respond to that, before glancing in Kasoro's direction. Anhunanol gave a little chuckle and motioned for her to go.

"Best follow him before he goes too far. He does remind me a bit of myself...before...well." He cleared his throat and shook his head. "Best get along now." Soleil trotted off after giving a soft goodbye, curious as to what Anhunanol had meant by 'before'. Trotting to catch up with her mate she let the thought go. This evening had been a strange one to be sure and she knew they'd never speak of it outside of their own private conversations. They headed back as a pair to their home while the place where Anhunanol had laid was now empty, only a bit of blood and water left to mark that anyone had been there at all.

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