She never saw it coming. During her many travels amongst the foreign dimensions and galaxies, she thought she would be experienced and careful enough to be wary of rogue meteorites floating in the vast expanse of space. However, now she was hurdling down to the ground faster than she thought possible. Her wings burned by the flames gathering around the meteorite under which weight she was pinned, unable to detach herself from it. All she could do was endure and pray her physical body could withstand the impact which would inevitably come. She closed her eyes shut, bracing herself right before the space rock hit the ground. A dull pain and the crackling of flames around her was all that accompanied her before the world went completely blank.

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The sight of something too-bright and too-close hurtling out of the sky had been impossible too miss, even if one's eyes had not been already trained upward. Evacuation measures to get the rest of the pride away from the flames spreading from the falling object's impact point were already underway. Vast of the Endless Sun, however, did not flee with his pride. Breezily leaving Misty Morning and Dawning Antumbra in charge, he had instead begun to amble his way towards the source of the fire, an utter lack of urgency to his movements. Stepping around approaching paths of fire and through air rippling with heat, the lion's paws soon touched only charred earth, where the fire had already burned away the dry savannah grasses. All the same, he was quick to spy the crumpled form of a stranger as he neared the impact point. Only now did his steps hasten, moving more quickly to reach the stranger and grip her by the scruff, pulling her out of the crater and away from any lingering flames, making an effort to haul her away from further danger, as well as the smoke still lingering thick in the air.

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Astraea did not wake when she was being dragged away from the flames. She did not open her eyes when the stranger from this foreign land took her to safety. However, she was aware at that point. It was only her immense exhaustion and pain still spreading through her body that kept her from waking up. She knew she was alive, but too weak at that very moment to do anything, as if paralyzed by the pain. She couldn't feel her wings. They must've dematerialized when she fell. Shame about that. It meant she was stuck here for a while.

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(I'm done with my part btw. Feel free to continue yours )

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A broad paw briefly pressed to the stranger's neck assured Vast that she still had a pulse. That was good. The king sat back and put a little space between himself and the stranger, now settled on the side of a blackened, burnt hill, watching the fire move further across the Lushlands in the distance. The Sun's rays gleaming down from overhead were steady, unrelenting, familiar – and kind, today. Though the fires in their lands would hurt their hunting in the future, no one would die on this day.

He shook himself slightly, flame-colored mane ruffling, before he leaned slightly over the stranger again, still keeping some amount of distance. A polite, mild, "Are you alright?" was all he offered. If he received a response, it would tell him the answer. If he didn't, it didn't confirm the reverse. She was alive. That was certain enough.

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At the soft and mild tone of the stranger, something in Astraea snapped, making her attempt to lift herself from the ground. Her eyes fluttered open, as every muscle screamed at her to stop what she was doing. Slowly she lifted herself off the ground and stood upright, facing the lion that found her. Her wounds have already begun to heal, burns and bruises on her body sizzling away as though reversing the process in which they appeared there. She didn't pay much mind to them, instead focusing her dawn-colored eyes on the stranger before her.
She was slightly taller than him even without the help of her wings and the draconic tail which now were absent from her person. She looked -mostly- like a regular lioness with jasper ornaments adorning her head and neck. Yet, there was something about her, a different type of energy that made determining if she was just a lioness or not difficult. One thing was for sure, she was no 'regular' lioness.

"I should be alright," She answered, her voice slightly rough in sound, but not in tone. "Thank you" She said, lowering her head respectfully.

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(Feel free to continue when you can. I'm finished with my part for now)

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Vast’s eyes tracked the movement of the stranger as she rose from where she has lain crumpled across the ground. Looking up to meet her eyes did not elicit any reaction beyond an acknowledging blink. He was not an enormous lion. Many lionesses within his pride fell on the smaller side, but the few who didn’t stood above his eye level, if not entirely above the top tuft of his mane. He would almost envy them, were envy a feeling he was yet capable of, were it anything worth serious consideration. But a greater height did not mean a greater embrace of the Sun. Even closer to its rays, its warmth could be absent. Forenoon Fog had told him as much, in her stories about her former pride.

The jewelry adorned about the stranger’s form drew his eye momentarily, the shiny ornaments glinting in distant firelight as well as sunbeams. He returned his attention to her shortly, though, and returned the dip of her head with equal respect. “No need for thanks,” he said without hesitation, tone straying a little bemused, like he wasn’t aware what the gratitude referred to. He was aware. Still, the bemusement lingered. It was only right.

His gaze flicked over her and their surroundings again, silently pensive for a long few moments. “You fell,” he observed with certainty. There was no other reason she would have been laying in that crater. It must have been quite a distance. “Why?”

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Astraea searched him with her eyes, distant stars, and galaxies appearing in them instead of the lion's reflection. She thought over her answer for a moment. How to say it so it would be believed and understood by him? She could just say she encountered a meteorite while traversing space, but would he believe her? Should he be trusted with this information? She was in a different world than hers, that much she knew, but she didn't know which exactly. All stars were hers technically speaking, but the one in this sky felt different. Sentient almost. Perhaps it would be better not to tell the entire truth.

"It was... a slight miscalculation during my travels." She answered finally, shaking off the remains of stardust off her pelt before turning her head to the side to glimpse at the destruction behind her. She cringed slightly at the carnage.

Meteorites were indeed a force to be reckoned with. No matter if she got entangled with one or not, it would've struck this planet. Still, she couldn't help but feel guilty for the destruction it left in its wake.

"I apologize for the fires. I realize it must make hunting in these lands harder now than it was before." She said, turning her gaze back to the male lion. Upon closer inspection, she figured he might've been a leader of his own pride. He definitely had something regal about him, and yet strange at the same time. It almost felt like this world's star and he were connected in a way. Stranger things have happened. Perhaps she wasn't the only one attuned to the power of the stars.

(I'm done with my part. Your turn )

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Astraea's hesitation before answering was noted, but not with any particular malice. Vast simply sat, patient and still, for her to speak again, or to get up and leave, if that was what she preferred. Or to go back the way she had come, somehow. If she was a traveler, and there had been miscalculation, then her destination could not have been here. A departure would occur at some point, then. One way or another.

"No need," he repeated, gaze switching over her shoulder when she mentioned the fires. Dawning Antumbra and her cubs would get the pride to safety. Stewardship of the land that fell beneath the Sun's blessing had taught him that fire was occasionally good for plant growth, when new plants could absorb the nutrients left over from razing something to the ground. The pride's wellbeing was assured, in eventuality. In the meantime, he felt a twinge of regret at the thought of some of the pride eating more leanly, working themselves harder to make ends meet. No, a fire was not a catastrophe, but it was not a non-issue, either. The Sun's mercy in the form of rainfall would do them all good.

"Our pride will be well," he added after a few moments of silence. Perhaps that was an appropriate reassurance. Though he was not entirely certain reassurance was what was needed in this situation, it held merit to say anyway. "Are you lost? I can help."

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Astraea smiled at Vast's offer to help, noting his attempt at reassurance. It didn't make her any less worried or guilty but she thought she might as well make it seem like it did.

"Yes, it would appear I am," She answered, giving the lion before her a warm, yet slightly sad smile "Although I'm afraid you can't help me, even if you tried. My homeland is very far away, somewhere that not everyone can reach. But thank you for the offer."

As she said this, she made an attempt to unleash her wings, not wanting to waste any more of this kind of lion's time. She tried to gather the energy inside her needed to summon her powers, however, the sudden feeling of nausea stopped her cold. Her mind clouded slightly, and she stumbled on her paws for a moment, before steading herself again. She felt as though she was about to fall. Her heart pounded in her chest, her breathing became fast and unsteady. She had to close her eyes shut for a moment just to keep her vision from swimming and calm her breath. Something was wrong. Terribly wrong.

(One message at a time is what my rule is, so now it is your turn )

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Vast accepted this with only a blink and a short, slight nod. "Luck be with you, then," he concluded. Perhaps she would simply leave, and he would simply return to his pride to help them settle, regain their nerves, and begin to rebuild things. If this was the last he'd ever see of this stranger, then that was alright.

Her sudden stumbling informed him promptly that that would not be the case. He rose and extended a paw to steady her should she stumble too far and slip along the edge of a hill, taking his paw back again when she righted herself. He gazed out past her, tipping his head skyward for a few moments and locating the Sun easily. He stared into it for a few moments, unblinking, before he allowed his gaze to wander, considering the fact that the stranger had fallen here. His line of sight was still elsewhere when he remembered to ask, words coming out slow like they were absentminded, "Are you unwell?"

He was not certain he could offer herbs with any immediacy, nor food. Shelter was similarly up for debate. Nonetheless, he would not part ways with her yet, if that was the case. The least he could offer was company. He'd found most lions responded well to sympathy.

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Her mind slowly cleared, as the ringing in her ears subsided. Why couldn't she summon the needed energy? Was something blocking her from reaching her stars? No, that would not be possible. Perhaps she was just tired.

She shook her head before she lifted her eyes back to the stranger, "I just need a little rest" She answered "Would you know of any place around here where I can regain my strength safely?"



(Are we only doing the interactions between Vast and Astra, or are we going to include the rest of your pride at some point?)

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Vast watched the lioness slowly blink herself back to awareness and straighten her posture unblinkingly, his own form near perfect stillness. "Hm," he murmured an indistinct acknowledgement. Rest healed many ills, yes. If none of his pride had herbs or the knowledge to apply them to the particular malady the stranger was suffering from, then rest was a wise course of action.

"Our pride's territory is safe," he remembered to add belatedly, tone absent. He turned his head to blink vacantly out over the landscape beyond. Much of the fires had burned out by now, continued flames flickering on only some soon to no longer be grassy hills, moving away from their current location. The land in the fire's wake was blackened and barren. Birds of prey and other scavengers would pick over the land for bugs and small prey displaced, but lions were large enough to not fear aerial predators. Affected as the kingdom's land was, with the fire moved on, it was safe enough to walk about. Though perhaps in this spot in particular, not safe enough to rest. Smoke still lingered thickly in the air.

"You can stay here if you like," he continued, turning back to the stranger with a twitch of his ears. "There will be adequate places to rest."



(Up to you! I don't mind either way.)

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The lioness nodded at his words. "I don't doubt. However, there are still certain threats I worry about" Her gaze trailed off toward the sun. She had a feeling it could give her the answers she was looking for. She'd just have to find a way to connect with it somehow.

A thought appeared in her mind, as she turned her eyes back to the stranger. "My name is Astraea. I apologize for my lack of manners, as I never introduced myself to you." She dipped her head respectfully. "If there is a place in here where I would be safe from the elements, then I'll gladly choose to rest here."


(I would really like to see the interactions she would have with the rest of your pride. Perhaps it could make things more interesting and maybe she'll find some friends along the way )

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