ORIGIN - Soon you'll have a box and you can put me inside

It had 'rested' in a corner of Draco after the events of the meeting. It needed a breather, and it needed to prepare to speak with Vargas. Tripping over its words would do neither of them any good, after all. So it mentally rehearsed its little speech, responses to questions it (assumed) would be asked, and the questions it needed to ask in turn. But sitting in this little corner was starting to feel a lot like hiding in a hut of old, dusty bones. And if it hid, it would be found, sooner or later.

Hefting itself up to its feet, and trying its best to 'clean' the accumulated pool of oil (mostly just smearing it around and mixing it with dirt) before trotting towards the middle of the cave, six eyes scanning the area for Vargas before finally finding the master. It would- somewhat hesitant- begin its approach.

"Master Vargas?" It called "Is this a good time for a meeting?" It assumed so- the master hadn't seemed to be in the middle of any task- but if not it was more than ready to scurry off the way it had came.

@Vargas

- THE LEVIATHAN -

Vargas glanced up, recognizing one of the last of those with whom he wanted to speak. They were still timely--the timing was actually perfect; he'd gone from one to the next fairly rapidly and now he was free for Labradorite.

"Yes! Come," he answered, heartily.

His mood had been bolstered, somewhat, by how well the other talks had gone. He'd gotten to know some of the Forge he'd hardly met, before; made up, in part, for their neglect (or at least started the process of doing so). Part of it was that he'd simply expected Overseer Orthoclase-Alpha to return to its duties, and thus hadn't picked up where it left off.

It was time to stop pretending that Alpha would come home. Its spawn, and those who had hatched alongside it, were his responsibility now.

He shifted to fully face the Labradorite, lowering himself to his haunches so that he sat in his upright, but awkward, hunch. Acid eyes met scarlet as he considered the Labradorite closely. Since last he'd seen, the oiled beast had grown spikes, and fins, and the strange flippers with their hefty claws. More of Farina's gifts--her meddling-? he thought.

Interesting.

"When Orthoclase-Alpha left, I expected it to return shortly after and resume its duties. When it did not, I should have seen to you and your siblings sooner: it is a failing and a mistake that you were all left to your own devices, without guidance. For that, I apologize," he began--a now-familiar refrain, repeated (but no less honestly) throughout the day thus far. "I will begin making up for that now. I have several questions for you!" he added, that cheerful boom still in his tone. "First, I know that you mentioned... digging? That would be a temporary task, at best, but you are welcome to it; I wish to ask why. Is it simply because you are suited to it, or is it something you believe you would enjoy? -Are those Master Farina's... adjustments?" he went on. "If they are, if you aided her, you may be rewarded." It was clear, by his tone, that the 'may' was an offer--a permission--and not merely a possibility.

"I would also ask," he continued, "what you think of the rules, and their punishments--if you find them fair. If there is anything you would change! I will hear it."

From here, of course, he had other conversational plans--to find out what its training thus far had been, and to ensure that it had what it needed (both in teaching and in tasks) going forward. He didn't mention Kethri--if Labradorite wanted to bring it up, they could, but he hadn't seen any signs that they'd been close. If they seemed bothered, he could address that when it came up, of course; but for now he was focused on the topics immediately at hand.

@V-Labradorite-One

It was (supposed to be) a relief that Master Vargas had time for it. The ancient valkhound certainly seemed enthusiastic. Briefly, it wondered the reason for The Levithan's good mood, before forcing its attention back to the topic at hand.

It'd give a polite nod in response to Vargas's… apology? "I should have sought someone out to continue my training, when it was clear the Overseer wouldn't return. And it had, in part, continued whatever training it could do by itself. But not enough, was it?
Now to the meat of it- its new job and everything else that'd need discussing. Deep breath. It'd internally rehearsed this- why did it feel so unprepared? Like it was walking into a lion's den?

"I think I will be good at it, and it is a job that needs doing." It began, simply "And.. I do not know which jobs I am best suited for. I have been trained in a couple things, but most is surface area knowledge. I could do a variety of tasks, but none particularly effectively. I think I need time to.. evaluate myself, and make a decision. " It took a breath, not wholly used to talking so much (or rather, talking so much to anyone other than Zoisite) "By the time the digging is done, I will decide on a more permanent role." Hopefully, anyways.

The Labradorite nodded "Yes… They are 'gifts' from Farina, for assisting." Its reward had almost felt like too much to hope for, but now the offer was up and nearly tangible. But claiming it now seemed.. greedy. Overeager. Although it already had something in mind, itd hold off, just a bit.

Its thoughts on the meeting? It hadn't quite expected Master Vargas to care about its opinions, of all things. "I think the rules and punishments are both fair. I do not think anything needs to be changed about them." It spoke, hoping that'd be enough to appease Vargas.

"If I am to choose a reward, I would like to be able to travel freely." Still too soon? But it didn't want to wait too long, either. you're overthinking it.
Labradorite would wait for a response, a reaction- hoping for approval, as opposed to the alternative.

@Vargas

- THE LEVIATHAN -

'I should have sought someone out to continue my training, when it was clear the Overseer wouldn't return.'

The Overseer still lingering in Master Vargas swooned. Someone taking fucking responsibility?! He hadn't even expected that, not from any of them. At once, his attitude toward Labradorite softened as his perception of it shifted from "creature to be assessed" to "potentially perfect??"

He didn't interrupt, however; he only offered slow dips of his head in acknowledgment of the rest of its words. And once it had finished--once he'd absorbed all the rest it had to say--he gave a sharp nod and replied in his typically businesslike manner. "I approve of your attitude! You are right, you should have, but you have earned my respect even for saying as much. Yes, your reward may be to travel freely! In fact, I encourage it of you. You may learn much. You may dig, as well, then. I have a new creature coming," Vargas continued. "One for Lord Dhracia. It will be aquatic in nature. I was considering training it, and you; you may train with it, if you like. Would you be interested in that?" he went on.

"Meanwhile--what, exactly, had you trained in already?" He paused, thinking. "And you don't yet know what you enjoy--you need time to consider, and test yourself?" It was a summary, tentative, of its own words--a question, 'am I getting this right?'

@V-Labradorite-One

The praise nearly made it froze. It had been expecting disappointment in it's lackluster training and skills, maybe begrudging acceptance of it's decisions. Vargas's approval and acceptance of it hit it like a right hook. Such praise didn't go straight to it's head, but it gave a little boost to it's meagre supply of confidence. It wasn't strong enough. It wasn't good enough at fighting, or stealth, or any of the other stuff it'd been trained in. But maybe it could be. Maybe it would be.

It could travel, then, and it would dig. That it had, for the most part, expected. It had some.. specific trips in mind, it would use these new privileges for, but hopefully it could also find time to train in between them. It'd certainly be easier, with more open access to caves with deeper, more interesting waters. The digging, surely, would take up it's time, but it's 'trips' weren't time sensitive. It could wait for a more ideal time, if need be.

A new creature? A new AQUATIC creature? Memories of Chaos-four, and the brief time it had trained with it, flickered in it's mind. Would this be a similar, but improved, design of its form? Or was this different- same environment, but different purpose? Time would tell, it was sure- it would ask, but that felt inappropriate. And what if the design turned out unexpectedly? Like ~~Khavur and Chaos-Two~~ some had in the past?

"Thank you, Master Vargas," It would dip it's head briefly in respect before continuing, "I would be interested in training with it. There are not many aquatic creatures within the forge I can test my skills against." This wasn't meant as a brag, but rather a statement. It was hard to truly get an idea of your skill in underwater combat and navigation if you're the only underwater creature around.

It's training- a smattering of various skills, taught by absentee overseers and itself alike. "Overseer Alpha taught me some basic combat, before it... left. It also ordered me to practice navigating the underwater tunnels- alone, since it couldn't accompany me underwater." It paused, briefly "Cain taught me some basic stealth, but I do not know how effective that would be now, with the changes Farina gifted me." It'd gesture at it's glowing markings and spiky hide- far from the sleek, stealthy monster it had been. At Vargas's summarization, it'd nod, "Yes, I need time to evaluate my skills and interests." It'd repeat, before quickly adding, "But hopefully not too much time." It did not want to waste time, deliberating, after all, but it needed a little bit of time to think things over, at least.

@Vargas

- THE LEVIATHAN -

Vargas nodded along, a little. "And did you learn to navigate underwater-?" he asked; given the phrasing about having been told to train, it was best to check. At the mention of the glowing spots, Vargas eyed them speculatively. "If Master Farina gave you those, then it was either her idea of a joke, or it is possible to control the light. I would focus on that," he suggested. He had no way of knowing which it was, but he doubted that she would look at a creature designed for stealth and ruin that stealth entirely. Unless, of course, it was to get back at him.

A possibility. Hm.

"What did all of that entail, in any case? What did she want from you, and how did it go?" His reports thus far had been vague, at best; perhaps the Labradorite could do better.

"When we are done, here, report to Pegasus; dig as the gardeners wish, guard the farm along with any other Forge members there. You may give the gardeners orders, but they are not of the Forge, so do not press them or come down too harshly on them. They are... guests, in a sense. I will come and find you when the new beast is ready for training. Is there anything else you would speak of?" Vargas asked, studying the Labradorite with new interest.

@V-Labradorite-One

It would nod, "I did, to the best of my abilities. I can get to Polaris, Cepheus, and Leo easily, using the tunnels, but there are other tunnels I haven't explored as thoroughly." When it was young, it had been afraid of getting lost, in the tunnels. After Alpha had left had just.. stopped using the tunnels much, at all. It hadn't been able to travel without permission or supervision, after all, so there wasn't much use to the tunnels. It could travel quicker using the underwater tunnels than the aboveground ones, but that wasn't saying much considering how.. ineffective it was on land. But the underwater tunnels provided useful shortcuts. Maybe it could be an effective messenger, using these tunnels? But it was much larger than most messengers tended to be.

Master Vargas's next words made it think. It hadn't truly tried to control the lights, but truthfully the idea hadn't occurred to it. It couldn't control the glow of it's other parts, after all. "I will try, but I do not know if I can." Or how it would, if it even can, for that matter.

"She wanted us to rescue her 'Artios' stone from the depths of Fornax. We had to search for a key, which would unlock the chamber where the stone was being held. Guarding the stone was a kraken, which attacked. I do not know what happened after that: I chrysalised soon after it was defeated." It paused for a moment, "Many gembound had come to help. There were baubled items, for those who couldn't see in the dark, and ones enchanted for those who couldn't breath underwater. I didn't take any, since I had no need for either." Maybe it should've taken some, for the rest of The Forge? It was far too late for that, though.

The gardeners- it wouldn't know anyone there, except maybe Maximus. Not that it was necessary to talk to others during the digging- that would probably just make it more difficult. At least it would be able to guard the finished farm with Zoisite- until it chose a more permanent job, that is.

It shook it's head, "No, There's nothing else we need to discuss."

Well that had gone... better than it had expected, to say the least.

@Vargas (Sorry for the wait!)

- THE LEVIATHAN -

Vargas nodded in response to Labradorite's comment--it would try, but control of the lights might not be possible. Acknowledged, then, by that one gesture.

The rest he found... interesting. "Artio," he mused, aloud; "perhaps this nest will be back in proper working order soon, then." With at least four masters doing their jobs, and Astraea doing... whatever Astraea did. Nemean wasn't doing anything of use--well, the Deathmatch would be good for everyone involved but past that? All she'd done was alienate Aquarian, who was now useless to them all. Tenzin was... what, being sad, moping in the water somewhere? Ugh. Vargas would have thought that Lord Dhracia's... admonishments? Punishments?... (Whatever had wound up planting his bloodied feathers in Vargas's care for a time) would have moved things with him along, but alas.

Artio, though. "She was a good master. A dedicated creator. With she and Farina back at their work, this nest will be in working order again very soon. Well done in aiding her; you have earned your reward." He should have gone with them, really, but he was pleased they'd gotten it done in his absence. (That, and he didn't quite trust Farina not to lop his head off once he was down in her domain.) "Come to me if you need anything, then, or if you wish to speak. And come to me for any training you wish," he added.

And he would find it, too, for Baokrish; but that much had already been stated. A nod, and then, "You are dismissed."

exit Vargas;
@V-Labradorite-One