Cliff's Edge - Printable Version

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.

It was places like this that he enjoyed. Places with cliffs and high walkways, places he could jump and climb on, places where he could look down at everything all at once. Those were the types of locations he enjoyed being in the most. He didn't mind how crazy it looked sometimes, with roots jutting out randomly, catawampus rocks poking out of the cliff face, or even how dangerous it could be. If anything, that added to his love of it.

Right now, he was hopping up some of the rocks, heading upwards on the cliffside carefully, using his strong and agile form to perch on small edges and jump from one place to another. It wasn't until he got closer to the top that he caught scent of something, two somethings actually.

Changing his trajectory so that he wouldn't jump up right on top of them, he finally climbed up the last few feet, finding himself not too far away from what seemed to be a snake and his rat companion. Interesting. Nonetheless, he let out a deep chuff in greeting, nodding his head as he did so.

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.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, watching the creature for a moment. It wasn't the snake that spoke up like he had expected, but instead the rat was the one that conversed with him. He paused for a moment at the man's words, but couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at the man's question, a new wave of curiosity crashing over him.

Is there reason I should look for you? He asked in a deep, but thick voice, his words not that fluent as it could have been. The only kind of people that were worried of others looking for them were those important enough to have others to come find them. So either he had a following of some sort, or he was a criminal of some sort. Something big enough that others would try to find him. Either that or he was just a crazy little shit. That was entirely possible too, Rajani just had a think for overanalyzing everything.

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.

He snorted slightly at the comment of eating the creature, and shrugged. No offense, but you're a bit too small to be worth the trouble. It wasn't meant to be rude, just a truthful comment. He was a large creature and though not fully grown still, the trouble gone into stalking and catching him while also keeping out of the snake's way was way too much for how small of a bite he would get.

Just traveling. He raised an eyebrow at the man's words of a family, something that he found himself wanting though there was still a internal pull that made him want to be alone too. It was a weird struggle. Family? He cocked his head to the side for a moment, clearly curious though rather reserved in his questions. Is this family more than just mice and snakes? Perhaps he could find a way to join, though he was unsure what that would entail.

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?"

He snorted softly at the rats comment about being small, though he doubted he would be able to eat a cave rat after this. It just seemed.... odd somehow.

He nodded as he heard the group wasn't just rats and mice, though before he could even process saying anything, the man spoke again and his words just left the tiger staring at him in confusion. A.... what? He blinked a few times, trying to wrap his head around his new word. It wasn't often something caught him off guard but for some reason this did and no amount of searching in the back of his mind could tell him what the hell this... piano ... was.

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.

His eyes furrowed as he listened to the mouse, trying to understand more about this... piano. Interesting. He said simply, cocking his head to the side for a moment, wondering if he could see this piano in person one of these days.

He seemed to think for a moment before nodding, figuring he really didn't have much else to do with his time. Sure, I do not mind accompanying you. He flicked his tail for a moment as he continued to speak, his voice relaxed but his ears constantly flicking back and forth, listening to everything around them.

Care to lead the way? He nodded his head, figuring that letting the duo before him head out first would probably be best. Perhaps you can tell me more of this 'family' along the way. He had a small smirk on his face, figuring this would be the best way to learn more of this creature and the group that he led.