ORIGIN

Archimedes peered over the cliffside, studying the fall. It was a sheer one, he noted: the rock face plunged quite some distance before reaching the river below. He turned away, steering the Golden Charger he rode back into the moss-soft forest, allowing himself to enjoy the peace, for the moment.

This place wasn't his sort of place, but not because of anything wrong with it. It was... nice, he supposed. The gentle waters and the wisteria grove were both beautiful, the riverwalk well-maintained despite its age--or maybe it had just been built to last. But he wanted bustle; the rat thrived in busy, vertical environments. He was still considering moving the Organization to Cassiopeia. There were myriad unclaimed buildings, there. It made sense to explore first, though: to rule out any better options he'd failed to look over.

This place, Archimedes decided, was nice enough--but not an Organization sort of place. We need someplace darker. Someplace with areas to hide, secret exits... we're bound to make enemies, eventually. If all goes to plan. Someplace defensible...

Half lost in thought, the rat was nevertheless alert to the world around him; his ears rotated absently, his nose working as he went.

Archimedes was startled enough at the sudden sound of movement--a sound he had little time to react to. The serpent, even, felt the vibrations in the ground: it had stirred in some alarm, but without knowing where it was coming from--and there it was. The Charger recoiled some, tongue flicking, and Archimedes steadied it, though he himself had tensed.

It was feline, and, he hesitantly estimated it (judging by those massive paws) at maybe half-grown. Impressive. The cat would be more than capable of killing he and the snake both, though undoubtedly the Charger's venom would either cripple or kill it in turn. Archimedes had to hope it stayed friendly. And it nodded, in greeting, which was a relief--at least for now. He hoped the sound that it had made was as friendly.

Archimedes nodded back. "Good afternoon." He was about to speak on, but then something occurred to him: he was technically a leader of a decently sized family, and this place seemed empty enough that a chance meeting, while not impossible, wasn't very likely either. "-You were not looking for me, by any chance, were you?" If not, he'd introduce himself properly--but there was of course a chance this massive cat had actually been seeking him out.

Archimedes let out a short bark of laughter, and sat back on the Golden Charger's head. Forepaws raised up, passing through his whiskers briefly to clean them. "If you do not know who I am, then of course not. Unless you were hungry, of course, but you haven't tried to eat me right away. That is always a good sign--though I wouldn't recommend it anyway." One paw patted the Charger, as if to indicate it. But Archimedes' tone was light, unworried; he held nothing of a threat in his words.

"I am Archimedes, and I have enough of a... family, and I and they both have plenty of colleagues." Vague, maybe, but true enough. "I thought one might have sent you to do business. You are just wandering, then?" The latter question was given in the name of conversation, though he showed little more than polite and mild interest.

Archimedes stared for a beat. His whiskers twitched. "Not even a third the size of some of the other rats in these caves," he acknowledged, without tone.

As for the rest--the query of species--he laughed, short but genuine. "Ahh, that--no. No, we are not mice and rats."

For a moment, the rat studied the young tiger with deep amusement etched on his face, and dark humor in his gaze.

"Tell me," he asked, "do you know what a Piano is?"

Archimedes let out a deep, genuine laugh, and waved the idea half-away with one paw. "An object of wood and ivory, intended to make music. -If you know what music is," he amended. "The Piano is one of us. Such an object, come alive. When prey draws near, it shifts from seemingly a harmless object into predator. It's impressive," he added. "So no. We are not just mice and rats. I am the smallest of us."

He paused, regarding Rajani with veiled amusement for a moment. It was clearly not at the tiger's expense--but what Archimedes was amused about otherwise wasn't clear.

"I am searching for a new base of operations for us. For my family. I fear this isn't it. You could accompany me, or come back to meet the others, if you would like. And I'll continue my search." He didn't elaborate, but he didn't rush off, either, as if inviting questions. He certainly hadn't explained why a 'family' would need a 'base of operations,' at the very least. But maybe Rajani wouldn't care, and Archimedes wasn't pushing the topic.