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Desert Hope

Today was turning out to be pleasantly hot. A surprise, considering how fierce the first storm front of the Cold Season had been only the day prior. Perfect weather for flying long distances across the semi-arid Badlands, which helped the pair of Desert Darahken arrive at their destination just as the sun had passed its zenith. Isumar landed first, warbling and grinning so broadly that the yellowish muzzle on a mostly redish-orange face seemed to glow. Habitually, he gave his wings a confident flick, as if to shake the wariness of the long flight from the broad, black-and-beige limbs before tucking them neatly away.

"Er, nice... view?" Akimere announced as she landed smartly behind her brother. "But hardly worth the two hours flight to get here!"

Isumar turned to find her glancing up at the imposing cliffs of yellow and red sandstone that towered over them. As an adult female, her wings were whiter than his own and it flashed in the bright sunlight as she gave them a shake as well.

"I beg to differ! It is more than a nice view if you look closer!" Isumar said, his grin not fading in the slightest. Instead, the anticipation of a grand reveal seemed to get to him and he bounced a little in place, all four of his legs flexing in a disjointed fashion that resulted in a whelp-like, silly dance as he struggled to contain his excitement. A ridiculous display for the powerful frame he had grown into over the difficult time these past few season-cycles.

"You want us to move our shelter here, don't you?" she finally asked her brother after frowning at him for a bit. "You've been talking about resettling for a while now." The last statement came out with a huff of annoyance as she stepped away from his side to look out over the enclosed valley they found themselves in.

The floor of the valley, as well as the slopes that weren't dominated by the striking sandstone cliffs, were still lush and green, even this late into the Cycle where the boundary between the Dry and Cold Seasons tends to get blurred. A small river dropped over one of the taller cliffs into the valley on one side, twisting two or three times before it ran out the other end. Sure, it was little more than a stream that a Darahken could leap across in one wingless bounce, but it ran deep and the vegetation that grew thickly on the banks testified that this was a water source that remained consistent throughout all three the seasons. Something of vital importance and yet exceedingly rare in the arid wastes of the Badlands.

"Of course we should move here," Isumar stated as if it was the most obvious conclusion in the world, finally calming down as he came to stand next to his sister. He looked about the valley, chest puffed out and head held high as he surveyed his find. "The shelter here is better than where our current thatch hut is located, the water is better, the nearby hunting grounds are more fertile..."

"The territories of the scaled ones are also closer!" she pointed out with a disapproving huff. "As is the trade route of the humans living on the far-off western planes! Not to mention that relocating such a long distance will not be easy! What if our Eternal Fire goes out on the way here? After the destruction of our old village, it is the last ember of our faith that still burns! Not to mention that we are on the cusp of the holiest of days for us: Not only is the Longest Night just around the corner, but Aku and Dilgan have started to mate in the sky again! This only happens once every four or five cycles and as the last priestess of Shamabu, I have important rituals to perform!"

"I know it will not be easy to resettle here, but... don't you see them?" Isumar insisted, flicking his snout up at the majestic wall of sandstone closest to them with an excited warble.

"See what?" the younger sibling asked with an exasperated scoff as she glanced disinterestedly in the direction he had indicated. "The cliffs? Sure, these are the most impressive I've seen, but they are still just lumps of stone. You can find more cliffs for miles in all directions around the White Mountains! They practically define the landscape below the Black Cliffs!"

"No, not the cliffs themselves! What do you see up on the side of it?" Isumar pointed out, pressing his shoulder firmly into hers. When she still didn't seem to understand what he wanted her to notice, he leaned in towards her ear and whispered. "Look at where the stone turns from red to yellow..."

"Are those... caves up there?" she finally asked, squinting up at the vaguely darker smudges that seemed to dot the higher portion of the cliff.

"They sure are!" Isumar said, grinning like a whelp still wearing its brown coat, yet who has managed to complete its first successful hunt.

"Nonsense!" Akimere scoffed once again, turning to regard her brother with a disapproving frown. "You know perfectly well that caves like that don't form in sandstone!"

"Maybe not naturally!" Isumar agreed as he momentarily pressed the side of his snout against hers. It was a sign of deep affection more fit for a fully mated pair, yet they had come to embrace the gesture during their time in solitude. A purr threatened to bubble from Akimere, but Isumar destroyed the moment when he pulled away from her with a mischievous giggle.

"Come, I'll race you to the cave by that arch over there!"

"Isumar, wait! What do you...?" Akimere called, but the older male did not wait for her to reply. Instead, the black drake had already taken to the sky once more. She grumbled something about a fair race as she followed her brother into the air, but with her superior speed and agility afforded by her leaner frame, she quickly overtook the male. He laughed in delight as she left him in her wake, the sound so infectious that she found herself also grinning as she sped towards the strangely shaped hole in the cliff. Caught up in the moment, she gave a victorious roar as she reached the somewhat half-oval-shaped cave well before her brother, easily gliding into the cave and trotting to a stop a few steps into the hallway beyond.

'Hallway' was the only way to describe the tunnel that led deeper into the cliff. It followed a similar arched design as the doorway, though larger and yet perfectly uniform in shape as it disappeared into the gloom beyond. Akimere gasped, eyes wide as she just stood there for a second or so to admire the impossibility of what she was seeing. Her eyes adjusted to the darker interior of the cavern and she notice how more caves branched at unnaturally regular intervals off the main shaft. A quick peak inside the nearest one revealed a rectangular room with strange shelves and stands carved directly from the stone.

"Coming through!" Isumar announced himself as his bulk darkened the hallway and he landed with a flurry of wings. Akimere fled into the room she had been investigating, for though the main tunnel may have been wide enough to accommodate two Darahken side by side, it did not allow much room for spread wings. But her worry was needless, for her brother's landing trot came to a comfortable stop well before he stepped into the room with her.

"And… what do you think?" he asked, full of expectation.

Akimere didn't answer. Instead, she walked about the room as if in a daze, looking around herself at something that shouldn't have been. She then noticed a clay bowl lying discarded against the wall and still in awe, picked it up. It was definitely made by some Darahken long ago: The design was lumpy and uneven, and the whole object felt a bit unbalanced as it was formed with their less dexterous claws. However, there was a crack along one side, rendering the bowl nearly useless to anybody now. However, its presence did spark a realization in her.

"Is this... an old Darahken warren?" she finally managed to whisper, but her voice was still soft and careful, as if afraid of disturbing some ancient ghosts from their slumber.

"I think it is!" Isumar agreed with a happy chirp, not nearly as respectful of those who had come before them as he inspected the wall next to him. Absent-mindedly, he traced a claw along some of the clearly visible tap marks, where the softer sandstone was deliberately chipped away with the use of a harder hammerstone from the Black Cliffs. "One of the many permanent settlements our fore-bearers had to abandon centuries ago when the Scaled Ones expanded their territory south into the White Mountains! Or at least, according to what Dad always used to tell us."

Carefully, she carried the broken bowl across the room, the bipedal gait uncomfortable but not impossible for the Darahken and with a needless reverence, placed it on one of the carved shelves. For a second longer, she just stared at the broken pottery before dropping back onto all fours and wordlessly stepping past her brother. He continued to smirk victoriously at her, allowing the female to pass him before following her to the main entrance once more.

"You didn't answer my question: What do you think?" Isumar repeated his query, speaking softly as he pressed his shoulder against hers once more.

"It... it is hard to imagine this is real!" she admitted equally softly, almost as if afraid that speaking about it too loud might destroy this wondrous illusion.

"I could barely accept that this was real when I first laid eyes on it as well!" Isumar agreed, carefully draping a wing over her back as he joined her looking out over the beautiful oasis with its vast yet secret complex of shelters. "You know, you were right... and I was wrong: It turns out that Shamabu did have a reason for us to remain out there in the wilderness."

She looked at him with wide, sparkling eyes and Isumar had to swallow as a sudden lump caught in his throat. He sighed and pressed his snout against hers once more, and the resulting purr from Akimere seemed to dissolve the sudden flair of emotion that had robbed his voice momentarily.

"I don't know why I started to doubt," he continued, still speaking softly as if afraid someone else might hear about his weakness. "I guess my faith had started to wane because I had felt abandoned and adrift out there. We may have lived in that straw hut for three cycles now, but it always felt like a temporary shelter meant to be abandoned sooner rather than later.

"But here," he suddenly announced loudly with a deep, satisfying breath. He lifted his head high to look out over the valley of hidden shelters with a sense of pride as if he had built the place himself. "Here, it feels like I am finally home! I dare say even more so than the village where we had grown up as whelps! It is almost as if I have been looking for this old warren my whole life!"

"Fate?" Akimere asked playfully, nipping at her brother with a teasing giggle before leaning more of her weight against his shoulder.

"I don't know about that," he said with a warm chuckle, his smile making his face seem to glow once more. "But the feeling of belonging is so strong that, for the first time, I feel I have the courage to give you what you have been asking of me since the start of last Cold Season!"

"R-really?" Akimere asked in a higher-than-normal voice, her breath catching as she felt the pit of her stomach clench in anticipation of what he had just suggested. For an anxious moment, she thought he was toying with her, even though he was not the dragon to make cruel jokes like that. But then she felt the plumes on her brother's tail brush up against her inner thigh, making his intentions absolutely clear. "You really mean it? No more being content with just licking the desire from one another? You will be willing to take our mate-ship all the way?"

"All the way, yes!" he agreed as he leaned away from her to place his one forepaw on her shoulder. "Living in the straw hut, I couldn't see myself raising a whelp successfully. But now, having found this long-lost warren still in such a perfect condition, and even with a cave housing a shrine to the Heavenly Twins..."

"A 'True Shrine'?" Akimere gasped, twisting from him to look for the indicated cavern and nearly falling off the ledge in the process.

"Yeah, well... Unlike you, I wasn't one of the anointed who served the Deities, so I can only be so sure!" Isumar replied carefully, hoping the careless comment that had unexpectedly shattered the mood was indeed correct. "But I did have a quick peek inside and there were images carved into the walls that resemble the grass-woven mats that used to adorn..."

"Show me!" Akimere demanded, a crack to her voice making it sound more like a threat than a request as she wriggled out from under his wing to leap from the ledge without even waiting for a reply.

Isumar blinked after her in surprise, groaning with irritation as his scrotum clenched his testicles uncomfortably. Sure, he had expected his sister to have a powerful reaction upon hearing about the shrine he had found, but she had been begging him to properly couple with her for months now and he genuinely thought they would be consummating their relationship in this very cave. Especially when he recalled how upset she always was with him when he didn’t have to courage to face any possible consequences of impregnating her. But now that he was finally willing to commit, her desire to see a True Shrine superseded her need to make him her own. The fact left him feeling a little hollow and for the first time, he started to understand what she had been feeling whenever she had raised her tail for him only to hear that he didn’t think the time was right.

He hesitated for a brief moment, watching her bank her wings to one side and glide in a wide semicircle as she waited impatiently for him. Best to get this over with then, he decided as he leapt into the air after her. The sooner she could investigate the Shrine, the sooner they can return here and make this cave their new home. She acknowledged him with a sharp roar and quickly settled in his wake as he led her across the valley towards a large, natural sandstone edifice that erupted from the side of the valley like the twisting horns from his head.

A sudden clench of nervousness settled over his mind as they neared the entrance to the Shrine and he snorted at his sudden unease. What was the problem now? Sure, it was not that he feared Akimere’s reaction if his assumptions about the purpose of the cavern ahead were wrong. She was not a dragon to hold a grudge or even be angry with him if it turned out that this was nothing more than the private home of the old Chief. She would tease him to no end for sure, but that was a fate he had come to expect from her.

But on the other wing, if it was indeed a Shrine, it would mean that he had entered a Holy Space unclean and uninvited. That was something to be nervous of, he finally accepted as he landed on the ledge nearby a large crack that stretched high above him. But seeing he had not known what it was before, it was not an unforgivable sin, as long as he held his distance and maintained the proper respect now that he knew better.

However, when Akimere landed next to him on the surprisingly wide ledge, he found his newfound determination fade yet again. Though she had been eager to see this shrine for herself, now that they were here, he could see that she also worried about what she would find inside the cliff.

"In there," he said after a nervous gulp to wet his absurdly dry throat. "You, you will find the entrance to the shrine just inside this crack." He motioned towards the rift in the stone which on close inspection was wide enough to allow a single Darahken to step into the cliff with ease.

"How did you even find this place?" Akimere asked in nought but a whisper, stalling for a moment as she stared with wide eyes beyond the crack at the undoubtedly carved entryway into another cavern system.

"I told you," he muttered, turning to look out over the sheltered valley so as not to see the dark cave. "I got disorientated in the storm and had to find shelter..."

"I meant this specific cave?" she insisted. "The others I can understand, but this one is hidden away in nothing more than a crack!"

"I... I don't really know!" Isumar admitted with a defeated huff. "I just... found the crack interesting and... well, yes!" When he noticed that she had turned to look at him sceptically, he tried to elaborate. "Remember when you spoke of giving more credence to that inner impulse of the heart?"

"You mean to say Shamabu lead you here?" Akimere stated carefully, daring to smile but swallowing nervously nonetheless as she turned her attention to the foreboding yet inviting hole in the cliff. "I thought you didn't believe that Shi cared about us."

"I said I doubted Shi involved Hirself actively with our personal matters," Isumar scoffed, inspecting the ledge he was standing on with unnecessary interest. "Especially considering how difficult it was to survive on our own these past three cycles. But," His voice died and he lifted his head to look out over the valley with its amazing complex of carved caverns.

"But... you cannot deny any longer that someone, somewhere had been watching out for us the entire time?" Akimere completed the thought for him, smiling back at him when she looked over her shoulder and saw him nod mutely in agreement. "Someone had led you here, to find this valley with its warren that had been lost for centuries."

"Yes!" Isumar agreed with an uncertain huff, not looking back at his sister again.

"Come, let's see what this 'True Shrine' of yours is like then!" she suddenly announced, her tone making it seem as if she was ordering herself forward rather than inviting him to join her exploration. Putting action to words, she started forward with a determined stride. But her courage failed once more as she reached the threshold of the hidden cavern and she noticed her brother wasn't joining her. "Aren't you coming?"

"I... you know I am not allowed to enter a Sacred Space!" Isumar yelped worriedly, stepping back as if thinking of fleeing and nearly falling off the ledge. "I am not worthy! You have already graduated as a priestess of the Heavenly Twins, while I had been passed over again for promotion as Junior Scout just before the town was destroyed!"

"Well, looking back at the last three years, whoever thought that you were not ready to be a Scout was a fool!" Akimere scoffed, before smirking victoriously at him. "And, you have already admitted to having been inside! So what harm will come from entering a second time?"

"That is not the point!" Isumar grunted, the truth behind the accusation making him flinch with shame. "Then I didn't know what lay inside but now I know better. And even if I had been of sufficient rank everyone needs to undergo a long, drawn-out cleansing ritual before they are allowed inside!"

"Some part of the cleansing ritual should be performed outside, yes. But the True Shrines of old usually had their cleansing chambers inside the complex so that is hardly a proper excuse not to enter the Chamber of the Eternal Fire!" Akimere countered undaunted before she delivered a fatal blow to her brother's worry. "And I know that there is no way that a Flame of the Eternal Fire still burns within this shrine! So, although it still demands reverence from us, it is not sanctified as a Sacred Space in any way as it stands now."

"I..." Isumar wanted to argue, still wary of the spiritual energy the cavern beyond exuded, Eternal Fire or not. But his sister did not allow him to make up another excuse.

"Come," she ordered simply and turned to disappear into the deep gloom without allowing herself to second guess her decisions either. Isumar still hesitated, feeling like he would be intruding on something special meant for her eyes only. But then a startled gasp from inside the cavern banished all worries and with a yelp of his own, he rushed inside after her.

"Akimere!" he called out worriedly as he rushed into the gloom where only moments before, he had feared to tread.

"Isumar!" Akimere called out in wonderment, sitting up on her haunches like a mongoose with her forelegs clutched about her chest. Her head turned this way and that in sharp excited movements, unable to fixate on one aspect of the room and instead trying to take in everything at once. "You told me there was only a mural depicting the Heavenly Twins! Did you honestly miss the others?"

The room they found themselves in was of a perfectly circular design, with three evenly spaced doors about its circumference. In the centre of the unnaturally smooth stone was a raised, cubic dais about the height of a Darahken's chest with a strange, round depression carved into the top of it. But although the sides of the plinth were richly adorned with inscriptions and fancy designs, it was the grand murals opposite the four corners of the central cube that had entranced Akimere so.

"You didn't exactly give me time to tell you of them," Isumar scoffed to hide his relief that she was okay, sitting down on his haunches next to her to regard the other murals. Even in the gloom that filtered in from the entrance of the cavern, he could still make out the exquisite detail of the various scenes depicting the two holy Darahken in various poses.

But as he was looking about him at the wonderous images that seemed too fine to have been carved by Darahken paws, he suddenly recalled where he was. Now that the immediate scare for his sister's safety had abated, he felt the sanctity of the space around him push in from all sides once more. It was almost suffocating him with its intensity while at the same time trying to draw him in deeper into the depths of the halls of stone. He didn't care what Akimere had said about the Eternal Fire not being present, he didn't feel worthy of the presence that he could almost feel still dwelled in this place. He wanted to flee it and be embraced by it at the same time.

"Why the shock though?" he asked with an undignified squeak to his voice as he lowered himself to lie on his chest. "Does it matter that much?"

"Does it matter?" Akimere gasped as she turned to regard him, genuinely astounded by her brother's lack of understanding. "It makes all the difference!"

At first, she stared at him incredulous at his absolute lack of understanding. But when Isumar simply continued to frown at her in confusion, something clicked in her mind. Something the senior priestess who had tutored her directly in the last few months of her training had mentioned more than once. And something she had completely forgotten about, seeing how close she and her brother had been living together since the destruction of their home.

'No one can ever truly understand the divine and worse than that, most people have a completely wrong idea of the Gods.'

With perspective came understanding and uttering a gentle purr, she dropped back down onto all fours to press her shoulder firmly against his in a show of trust and affection.

"This is not simply a shrine, you know," she whispered conspiratorially as she pressed her snout up against his neck in a way she always liked to do when looking for special attention. "It is a full Celestial Temple!"

"A... What?" Isumar gasped, twisting his head around to look at her with even wider eyes. Had he not already been lying down, he was sure he would have collapsed with an undignified thump if the sudden chill in his chest was anything to go by. "You, you're joking, right? The last of the Temples had been destroyed well before our town was even founded... how can you even be sure it is a Temple?"

"The murals don't just depict the Heavenly Twins, but all four of the divines!" she said, crooning with delight as she crouched down next to him.

"All... of them?" Isumar asked, his voice squeaking as he glanced at each image, inspecting them more closely for any clue. Sure one showed three dragons while the other was only a mess of lines. But still! "How can you tell?"

"Mostly the inscriptions above each image," she admitted with a shrug, purposefully ignoring that as a lower guard, Isumar had never been taught to read. "But also what they look like. Sure, I have only heard descriptions of them, so seeing these murals with my own eyes is a delight unlike anything I could ever have dreamed possible.

"You are correct that the one left of the entrance is of the Heavenly Twins," she started to say, indicating with a snout at the famous image Isumar knew. Dilgan, the Darahken form of the large moon was chasing the smaller moon and his twin, Aku. However, the mural was carved in exquisite detail and unlike the woven mat they had always known as whelps, this image clearly depicted Dilgan's excited erection and Aku's four breasts swollen with her pregnancy.

"But that one against the far wall depicts the Great Creator!" She indicated towards the mural that seemed somewhat destroyed, yet was deliberately designed as such. The intricate lines seemed like mist, with a hint of a Darahken sitting up on its haunches and its wings spread wide in invitation as if offering the viewer a welcoming hug. "Ever-present, All-knowing, and yet incomprehensible to the mortal mind.

"Then, the three to the right of the entrance are Shamabu's second set of twins: The Seasons!" Akimere continued, twisting about to look at an image of a Darahken family sitting in a circle with their wings outstretched as a form of protection over each other and the world as a whole within the centre of their circle. "Rathbu, her brother Albu and their young daughter Kashu!"

"The humans think there are four seasons, not just the Wet, Dry and Cold!" Isumar commented offhandedly as he studied the mural with a new understanding. "Do you think it is possible that Rathbu and Albu had another whelp with each other?"

"I, don't know," Akimere admitted thoughtfully. "They are not as promiscuous as the Heavenly Twins, but they are not celibate by any means either. Rathbu's rain has been growing less predictable over the past decades... so maybe she is pregnant again? Or suckling a young one?" She turned to look at her brother thoughtfully. "You really enjoy the company of the humans, don't you?"

"They... interest me," Isumar admitted, ears pulled flat despite trying to play it off as nothing. "We had been told that they are easy push-overs, yet in the past few decades they have started to become quite capable of handling themselves. The world is changing and I don't think it will be wise to remain left behind."

"Just don't mingle too much with them," Akimere warned him with a flick of her tail against his haunch. "Unlike their parents, the children of Dilgan and Aku were never meant to intermingle with each other!"

"It is not like that!" Isumar insisted, glad that the sudden heat on his face and ears would not betray the lie in the deep gloom they found themselves in. It was hard ignoring the sudden flush that came to his cheeks at the blatant lie, and harder still not to recall how pleasant the soft, impossibly delicate hands had felt on his genitals the last time he had flown out to trade green rocks with their passing caravan. It had taken all his willpower and no small amount of pleading from him to avoid spilling his seed that day. Luckily the human he had been with at the time was very understanding of his intentions and had let him go, but not before making him promise that they would finish what had been started someday. "It is just... I think we can learn much from them: How they use the skills of the feral wolves they have started to keep around them, how they make tools from that strange, meltable stones we trade with them..."

"Right," Akimere drawled, obviously not certain if her brother was telling the whole truth. Of course, she had no proof that anything unbecoming happened whenever her brother travelled north to intercept the human caravan, but she had recently started to notice a sparkle in his eyes whenever he spoke of them. A sparkle very similar to when the two of them started to get rather amorous with one another.

"And what about that mural?" Isumar suddenly perked up, cringing at the obvious attempt to change the topic. He indicated to the last mural which depicted a pair of Darahken in a full mating grasp, the back legs closest to the viewer held at such angles as to show in explicit detail what was happening. "If all four the Divinities are present, then that must be..."

"Shamabu Hirself, yes!" Akimere agreed, snorting to herself as she allowed the change in topic. However, at the sight of the mating pair she found herself unable to suppress a grin of her own.

"But... isn't Shamabu a single Darahken?" Isumar asked confused. "One with both male and female parts?"

"Actually, Shamabu was genderless when The Great Creator appointed Hir as Guardian of this world," Akimere explained patiently, looking at the mural more closely. The erotic scene rekindled the sense of desire within her and she licked awkwardly at her snout as she recalled what she and her brother had been talking about before the existence of this Holy Space had been revealed. She glanced nervously around at him, to see if he had caught the scent of a sudden wetness beneath her tail. But the older male still seemed enthralled by the image of a God he worshipped all his life and now suddenly realized he barely understood.

"Shamabu grew lonely and weary of her guardianship, and even jealous of her feral wards as Shi watched them mate and care for the young they brought forth," Akimere continued, shifting to press her shoulder even firmer into his side while using the opportunity to drape her tail across his. The action made him startle and he looked down at her in surprise.

"So, in His vast wisdom, the Great Creator split Shamabu into two personalities: Shamas and Kakkabu!" Akimere continued the creation myth, not even trying to hide the seductive purr that had slipped into her voice. Her heart fluttered when, even in the gloom of the cave, she noticed Isumar's nostrils flair with interest and she dared to touch the side of her snout to his. "Female, and male. Day... and night! Two equal halves, yet they remain one whole for one cannot exist without the other!"

"And so that is how first the Heavenly Twins and later the Great Seasons were conceived?" Isumar asked, allowing a lusty growl to escape him as he pulled his snout away from hers, only to place a deliberate lick upon her lip.

She giggled in delight at his caress and she nipped playfully at him, aiming to catch his tongue and draw it properly into her maw. But he knew from experience what she had intended and he expertly pulled just beyond her reach in the very moment her lips clamped shut around nothing but air. She growled in mock distress, pouting as she stared with overly widened eyes up at her brother. A delighted laugh erupted from deep in his chest and with a wide grin, he rolled his head to one side as he reached for her maw again. This time she reacted like lightning, pressing her lips to his and twisting her head the other way so that she could lock her fangs behind his before he had the chance to pull away again.

Akimere's purr deepened into a contented rumble as Isumar reciprocated the kiss, his tongue pressing firmly up against her own. He was not overbearing and their tongues were not jostling and wrestling for position, instead they glided smoothly along one another in a delicate yet passionate dance. Isumar draped his wing over her once more, using the strong appendage to pull her slightly off balance to lean against him. She meeped in surprise but their kiss did not break and the dance of their tongues did not falter.

They sat there for what felt like too long and yet not long enough, simply enjoying each other. That was until Isumar could no longer deal with the rising tension in his loins.

"Shall... shall we return to the, er... cave? Um, the-the one we explored when we first arrived?" he asked with an uncharacteristic stutter when he suddenly broke the kiss off. The shortness of his breath was understandable after such a long passionate kiss, but it was strange how dry his throat had become, despite the string of spittle that dangled between him and Akimere.

"No!" Akimere replied with a forceful determination that made her brother blink in surprise. "We will share our first mating right here, right now!"

"Here?" Isumar squeaked in shock, looking about himself uncertainly at the religious icons adorning the cavern they found themselves in. How could she expect him to mate with her here when he had felt unworthy of entering such a holy cave in the first place? And yet, at the same time, he felt a naughty excitement trickling down his spine at the thought of giving his virginity to his sister in a special place like this. For a long uncomfortable moment, the two contrasting ideals fought for dominance before his sense of honour won out. "I know you said that without the Eternal Fire, this is not a Holy Space. But do you really want to mate with the Gods around us? Watching us?"

"They are always around us, watching what we do!" Akimere giggled as she wriggled out from under his wing. She hesitated for one moment, glancing unsurely down the dark passage that lead further into the edifice of natural stone "I guess Ceremonial Matings are meant to take place in the Holy Sanctum itself, but for that, we need to be cleansed properly and without a light, both chambers will be difficult to navigate." Then she smirked and with a confident stride, stepped in front of her brother. "And yet, somehow, I feel this must happen here: In the Chamber of the Eternal Fire!"

"Ceremonial WHAT?" Isumar asked with a startled gasp as he willed himself to stop staring at the religious icons around him, only for his breath to catch once more as he saw Akimere step directly in front of him with a seductive sway of her hips and position her rump almost pressed up against his chest. "How... how can you be so certain?"

"I don't know, it just feels... right!" she admitted shyly, glancing back over her shoulder at her brother. "And I have to confess as well: I had always thought my faith was stronger than yours... but seeing all this, I suddenly realize that we were not so different after all! I was too narrow-minded even in my rock-solid beliefs to see, but now I think I understand better how everything is fitting together: Our escape to the Badlands of all places; The trials and solitude of almost three whole cycles alone; Even how Shamabu guided you to hesitate to claim me properly as your mate! I had always been upset and frustrated whenever you refused to take me when my heat was upon me, but now I see that everything has been building up to this very moment: For us to cede our virginities on the most holy of days, and within the last of the Holy Spaces of old!"

"Do you trust me?" she suddenly asked as she lifted her tail and draped the thick appendage around the back of his neck.

"I..." Isumar started to say, but his voice failed as his gaze lowered to the already wet lips she was exposing to him. It startled him how much more powerful the pull of desire suddenly was and he was practically shaking with the effort not to give in and hump her like a mindless animal. Though they had wordlessly agreed not to leave this valley with their virginities intact, there was some decorum to be maintained. He swallowed at the heavy lump in his throat and risked another look at her offered pussy before raising his gaze to her sultry face. "I have always trusted you, more than I trusted myself at times even!" he finally admitted.

"Then show me!" she whimpered, her voice cracking with barely contained emotion. She was not in heat, yet her need to be bred was hitting her as badly as his need to breed was affecting him.

Isumar was not able to reply with a coherent thought. Instead, he offered her only the flash of a wry smile before he lowered his snout and pressed the moist tip of his snout up against her puffy, wet folds. Akimere gasped, her back legs tensing at the touch of his warm breath, the cool rush of air as he inhaled her fragrance once, twice. They were no strangers to each other's genitals. Over the course of the past two cycles, they had often explored each other when the nights became too lonely or foreboding. And more often than not, their interested touches, sniffs and licks tended to end up with one or both finding release to their pent-up sexual energy within the maw or paws of the other. But this was not the time for half measures or teasing delights. Even he could sense that Akimere was right, if there was ever an opportune time to consummate their mateship, this was it!

Suddenly impatient, Isumar pulled from her wonderful scent with a sharp snort and wasted no more time to get to his feet as well. Startled by the unexpected sound, Akimere had just started to twist her head around to ask if something was wrong. But even before she could get a word out, she felt her brother leaping onto her back and instead of an intelligent question she uttered a surprised squeak. Though she had been bracing herself to accept his mounting, Isumar turned out to be heavier than she anticipated and her legs nearly buckled as his weight settled on top of her. As such, the two inexperienced Darahken danced about for a second or so in place, least their first mating was interrupted and they collapsed into an undignified heap of feathers and fur and tangled limbs.

"Are you okay?" Isumar asked worriedly, shaking with the strain to contain his desire. Yet despite his worry for his sister, he made no move to dismount from her rump.

"I-I'm good!" Akimere decided when she was sure of her stance once more. "Just, didn't expect you to be so... eager all of a sudden!"

"Heh, 'The hunt is mostly a waiting game!'" Isumar smirked, crumpling her white flight feathers a little carelessly as he tightened his grip around her middle when he shuffled his haunches closer to hers. With the decision made to commit, he found his earlier trepidations had been washed away in a tide of rising lust and it was difficult to think of anything but the impending coupling. Already his penis was so hard that he was unable to contain himself and the sharp tip of his crown was peaking from his furry black sheath. "And we have waited long enough!"

"That is what I've longed to hear!" Akimere grinned back at him, her eyes sparkling with affection and desire. She dared to shift her hind paws apart for him again and actually breathed a sigh of relief when the stack of Darahken didn't threaten to topple over again. Still, she bit her lip in wanton lust as she felt her swollen folds spread and a trickle of her arousal weep from her body.

"Ready?" he asked her, his voice breaking once more as the severity of the moment made it difficult for him to talk in a calm tone.

"Impatient is more like it!" she snickered, twisting her tail around his haunch in search of his own but failing to find it.

"Then allow me to remedy that!" he replied, his already wide grin growing even more so as he rolled his hips forward.

The intention was there, yet the first press of Isumar's penis was well off the mark and he left a messy smear of precum coating her one buttock. Whether he overcompensated for the poor aim, or if it had been Akimere's shifting hips as she attempted to assist her brother that confounded his next attempt will never be known, but with his second try, his thrust found nothing but air.

"I… got this!" he grunted in frustration, gripping her haunches even tighter and pulling her rump into his groin.

That seemed to have worked, but he was still off-centre and instead marked the inside of her thigh also with a generous squirt of precum. However, he was in position and after a deep breath to calm his excitement, he managed to glide the exposed tip of his penis up into her groin. He found her opening and expelled a delighted hiss when he felt the moist warm touch of her vulva against his glans. The tender caress of smooth and wet flesh against his own exiled all chivalry from him and despite all his earlier struggles, instinct took over. With a dominating growl that didn't suit him, he flexed his abdominal muscles and pushed his baculum out all the way. His penis speared into her vagina and they cried out in unison as he hilted himself within her body in one smooth thrust.

In the seasons long past, there had been the unfortunate accident when Isumar had lost himself in his desire and pushed his tongue too deep and forcefully up her pussy. Though they did not think so at the time, it turned out to be a happy accident for today there was no uncomfortable pain of a tearing hymen spoiling the wonder of her first, hopelessly inexperienced mating. Akimere gave a sharp cry of delight as she felt her vagina stretch beyond what she thought was possible. The sensation tingled throughout her body and her legs threatened to buckle again as the pleasure made her joints feel weak.

Her gasp of pleasure was accompanied by a dangerous-sounding snarl from her brother as he growled in ecstasy above her. The sensation of her walls as she enveloped his shaft and the way the rippling squeezes pressed in from all sides in a way, it was a feeling he had never thought possible!

A vague memory of taking it gently when mating with a virgin drifted to the forefront of Isumar's mind, but by that time he had already pulled his haunches back and shoved himself back into his sister's warm embrace. He tried to ask her how she was but only managed a guttural "Akim'" before his hips slammed forward into her once more. He had often masturbated in years prior, even before they had to flee to the Badlands. And in the past two years, he had often been rubbed or sucked to orgasm. But true sex was a sensation unlike anything he had felt before and it came as a shock to him when, barely ten seconds of feverously thrusting, he found himself already on the verge of release and in serious doubt that he would be able to hold out longer. Yet he was unable to stop himself.

Akimere was not fairing much better. The rough, fast-paced rutting not only knocked her breath away but also cleared her mind of any intelligent thought. She huffed and moaned with each press forward of the penis that felt much larger than it looked, the wonderous tingle of friction making her already weak body feel almost numb in comparison. Then as Isumar gave one particularly spirited push, she became aware of a rather sizable bulbous shape at the end of her brother's shaft. Of course, she knew about his knot, she had often enjoyed swirling her tongue around the strange form and loved to drive her brother mad before allowing him to expend his lust.

The feeling of the bulbous flesh just outside her vulva made her groan with annoyance. She wanted all of him, she needed to feel them lock in a proper mating tie. With a determined hiss, she pushed back into his groin just as he started to press his haunches forward again. They both gasped as her lips strained to accept the already large portion of his dick. The problem, however, was that they were an inexperienced pair of lovers and Isumar had not been of sound enough mind to insert his knot into her before he had swollen to a size too large to fit through her vulva. But instinct, once on fire, did not give up so easily and without conscious thought both brother and sister repositioned for another try to form the tie. Whether it was divine intervention, the determination of their instinct or sheer brute force is up for debate, but the second press against each other did the trick and they roared out in bliss as her lips swallowed him fully.

The pressure of Akimere's vagina around the overly sensitive bulge was too much for Isumar to handle and even as he roared, his orgasm hit him. His knot expanded to a ridiculous size he had never achieved before and he erupted with a force that made his scrotum cramp. The force of his release was unlike anything he had ever experienced before and time stood still as he ejaculated into his sister's vagina, splash after splash of rich, viscous semen spurting from him and coating her rapidly heating insides. Her vagina suddenly clenched and rippled around him as the feeling of a fresh hot, wetness in her most sacred depths pushed her over the edge of sexual stimulation as well.

The two siblings stood there, shuddering and moaning in mindless pleasure as they rode out the most intense orgasm of their lives. A shared orgasm that lasted longer than the active rutting Isumar had performed. But sadly, even the greatest moments had to come to an end.

It was Akimere who first started to recover. She still huffed for breath, only stopping momentarily to lick at dry lips as she took stock of her body almost as if reacquainting herself with it. The sex had stolen much of her strength and her limbs were quivering, barely able to keep the weight of her brother up. But there was a warm tingle throughout her whole body, centering around her abdomen where she could still sense the pooling semen Isumar had spilt inside her.

"Oh, Isumar! That was... was," she said, but her voice came out as a hoarse whisper. Words to describe what she felt, what she thought, suddenly failed her. Nothing seemed to capture it adequately, so irrationally she settled on the least descriptive of them all: "Wow!"

Her voice, though soft and faltering due to her gasping breath, did bring Isumar from his sex-induced daze and he shifted about drunkenly on her back. He grunted in surprise when he noticed a patch of skin on the nape of his sister's neck had found its way in between his fangs. He let her go with an awkward cough and quickly inspected the spot where he had bitten her in the throws of passion, relieved to find no damage had been done. With the crisis averted, he allowed himself to carefully reach out with his senses and feel his surroundings. Akimere was still huffing and quivering beneath his chest and inside her, he could feel his penis still pulsing and drooling more of his seed into her body.

An errant wind had caught at the entrance to the temple and a gentle, cool breeze drifted deeper into the cavern, caressing the two exhausted Darahken and soothing their overheated bodies somewhat.

"Isumar?" Akimere asked again when her brother did not reply.

"Wow, Akimere!" he huffed, forcing his forepaws to relax by rubbing her flanks in small circles as he started to tenderly lick at the spot he had bitten. "That was... you were... unbelievable! I never thought I could feel anything like that!"

"That it was!" Akimere agreed, taking a few deep breaths to calm herself again as she felt strength return to her body somewhat. Her head rose in surprise as she noticed the slight breeze washing over them and after a curious sniff, she smiled to herself.

"Are you planning on getting off me any time soon?" she suddenly asked, grinning mischievously up at her brother.

"Sorry!" Isumar gave an experimental pull of his haunches, but his knot was still firmly locked inside her. "I don't think I'm going anywhere for a while still!"

"I don't mind, I like having you close by like this!" Akimere purred, not even trying to hide a sigh of relief when Isumar slid off her back to stand awkwardly by her side. He flinched as his shaft was bent and pulled at an awkward angle. It was not painful, but it did feel a little disconcerting nonetheless. yet there was nothing he could think of to relieve the strain, so he had to simply endure the discomfort for the time being. Still, the sex had been more than worth it, a sentiment Akimere agreed with as she reached around to nuzzle at his snout in affection. "I just don't want to carry your weight for you!"

"You were fine carrying me a moment ago!" Isumar teased, laughing when he earned a playful nip to his chin.

"Don't try to be too clever for your own good!" Akimere countered without missing a beat, a dangerous glint in her eyes even as she failed to hide her playful grin. "Just remember if you want more of this, you'll have to learn to behave!" She emphasized what 'this' was with a purposeful clench of her vagina that made her brother gasp.

"You, drive a hard bargain!" Isumar relented, liking tenderly at her snout. "Truce?"

"Truce!" Akimere purred in contentment, allowing the bravado they both knew was fake to fade at the loving touch and with a deft twist of her head, she caught his tongue between her lips.

"I'm sorry if I had been a little rough on you just now," Isumar whispered when they finally broke off their kiss and simply stood there, brows pressed against one another. "I had always thought I would have more control of my body when we finally started to mate in earnest... And I didn't last long. You deserve better!"

"Don't worry!" Akimere replied, equally soft. "We were both less prepared for the real thing than we thought. Yet, we both also did great for our first mating." Suddenly she giggled and pulled away from the gentle touch to grin mischievously at him once more. "At least think of it this way: From here it can only get better!"

"Gee, thanks!" Isumar huffed, though he couldn't help but grin as well. "Though I think we will need to get more exercising done!"

"That will not be a problem!" she announced with a lewd grin. "Especially with the special Longest Night upon us, we will not have a lack of training opportunities!"

Isumar stared wide-eyed at her, his mind racing as to what she meant and coming to only one logical conclusion. However, at the moment he wanted to ask her to confirm his suspicion, Akimere's vulva could no longer hold the strain of Isumar's awkwardly angled penis and his knot popped free with a wet shlick and a flood of excess semen that splashed onto the temple floor. They both gave soft, startled grunts as they separated and it took a moment for them to realise they were free to move about independently again. Akimere wasted no time before twisted about and dipping her head beneath his flank to start cleaning his penis for him. He moaned in delight, lost in the moment for a second before he caught sight of her rump. With a grin, he slipped his snout beneath her tail to return the favour. They made short work of the cleaning, an easy task since most of the mess they had made was contained deep within Akimere's body and neither of them wanted that to be cleared up just yet.

"So," Isumar finally managed to ask as he appraised his work one last time. "That training you mentioned? That wouldn't be a form of Ceremonial Mating, right?"

"That is exactly what it is!" Akimere said, licking her lips as she started to briskly walk towards the exit.

"Are you sure the Gods will accept a mating between brother and sister?" Isumar asked, glancing about the chamber where they had given their virginities to one another.

"I don't think they will mind, seeing how this is an extraordinary time," Akimere said, turning back to him just as she stepped over the threshold and into the natural lobby created by the crack in the cliff. "But we can talk about it on the way back to the thatch huts. If we are to establish the Eternal Fire in its rightful place here, and properly inaugurate the Temple once more, we have a lot of things to get ready and almost no time to do so! Aku and Dilgan are already mating and ceremonies need to be performed before they are done."

"So, we are moving here then?" Isumar asked excitedly. He turned to follow her, but then stopped and just stared in awe at his sister as the light from outside caught her. She seemed livelier than normal, her black fur glossier, and the broadest smile and brightest eyes he had seen in several cycles made her face seem to almost glow.

"Of course!" Akimere agreed, seemingly having not noticed her brother stop and stare. "Shamabu has given us a new hope and we will be damned if we allow this opportunity to pass us by!" She suddenly smirked and stood up onto her back legs again to show him how she rubbed at a spot low down her abdomen. "And you are right that this is a much better home to raise our family!

"Now, are you coming or are you going to let me carry all our provision here myself?" she asked, dropping back down into a more comfortable position on all fours.

"Coming!" he replied with a smile, his heart lighter than it had been since the destruction of their old home. He started to follow her outside, but just as she disappeared off the ledge and into the sunshine outside, Isumar thought he saw a movement out of the corner of his eye. Startled, he turned to look but all he could see was the religious icon depicting the family of Seasons.

His excited smile faded into one of simple, happy contentment.

"Our family!" he said aloud to himself as he considered the three Darahken holding their wings outstretched and protective over each other and the world at large. The idea did not scare him any longer. In fact, he already felt a tingle of curiosity at what the offspring he would conceive with Akimere will be like.

Acting on impulse, he turned about and with a soft "Thank you!" he gave a respectful bow to no one in particular. With the simple thanksgiving to the Gods completed, he followed his sister out into the open air.

It was time to put the young, scared and abandoned town guard to rest and embrace the new and exciting phase of his life. Whatever it was that Shamabu had planned for him.

For them.

end