ORIGIN - off to the handlers

Back to the grind.

There was much Pallas could do, much he had missed, much he had learned of the world from hearing what's become of it. Their touch was spreading, and so his interest was too; while yes, he had things to do, one of them was this new being under Mother's protection. It wouldn't take long, right? While he was out here, he could ensure the growth was progressing as it should, reinforce it, multi-task. It would take more than Lessers' hands to work on this. After all, you can't achieve perfection without a focused eye to coordinate with.

But, Aegis. Drone 005 had found xem in the wrong place. Yes, xe'd been nudged in the right direction, and the Hive knew where xe was with the accompanying lessers, but Pallas had to be sure. As assured as he was, he wanted to help. He can help.

It's not hard to find them with careful eyes watching.

He doesn't aim to pose a threat— how can he, when he's so small compared to this beast of a child?— so he doesn't stay in the trees, doesn't try to be mysterious. Instead, he only keeps to the ground and in the clear as he beelines right for her. Ears and head stay up in practiced friendliness, his head cocked just slightly to the left.

"My friend," he begins, voice smooth and welcoming, "how are you? I understand some of our family has been accompanying you." He would look to the Carollers, look for Halcyon, but he doesn't need to break eye contact. It's hard to break it anyway; it's big, and it... probably wouldn't be easily defended by him. But it could defend itself against smaller beings, couldn't it?

Pallas tucks away that worry. He doesn't need it, and it's not necessary to find solutions for right this moment. Instead, he only seats himself a few feet in front of Aegis and dips his head. Nothing but a curated pleasantness thrums from him. "My name is Pallas. Have you been eating well?"

@Aegis (let me know if the pronoun changing is too much)

The cycle spent under Mother's care and the watchful eyes of the forest - and of Halcyon, of course - Aegis had spent doing little but growing. Eating from the grasses and leaves, resting, grooming herself, and when she had the time, she'd been teaching herself some basic moves in case she or her friend were ever attacked. She knew Halcyon would protect her, of course, but she, in turn, would protect them. She was growing bigger each day and had already begun to grow the beginnings of horns on each side of her head. Not too long now and she would be a powerful force.

Pallas would find her feasting now, lazily pulling long grass from the earthy ground and looking fairly blankly into the distance of Eridanus. Lately she had begun to feel this way - fairly empty and content, like everything was right in the world. Her own questions and thoughts had died down a bit and in the absence she'd heard...other things. Thoughts and memories, voices and feelings. When she was close to Halcyon, she found she no longer needed to speak. They could communicate without words. This was, as Mother said, a part of their family. It was a special connection they all share, and so Aegis cherished it.

It could feel Pallas approaching before he arrived, turning its head slowly to watch as he approached. He was...very small, much smaller then Aegis was used to, being around Halcyon so often. But it did not judge as it could feel him so closely - another one of Mother's family, another one of its friends.

It swallowed the mouthful of green it had been chewing on. "Hi," it rumbled in return. "I'm good. Yes, Halcyon is...nearby. It is safe here, though, so I wander." Aegis looked up into the trees briefly, spotting the flash of a Caroler nearby - there was always one watching him constantly, although it did not feel caged or stalked. It really felt comforted by its presence, safe under the watchful eyes. Its heart was warmed by this devotion Mother had for each of her children, even the youngest ones.

Aegis turns his head back down to look at Pallas again, dipping his head at the name offering. "It's good to meet you. I am Aegis." Seeing that this would be more of a chat then a race to another cave, Aegis made to seat himself as well, letting his legs fall to the side and folding his front hooves under his body. "I have. The food here is good, and plentiful. And Mother is everywhere." Even now, he could feel white caps touching his side - not disgusting but like a gentle touch that reminded him she was everywhere.

Yet still...it had felt lonely. Halcyon was good company, but he longed for more. As the voices had slowly awoken in his head, it was like he could feel the distant call of other friends beckoning him to come closer. They were out there, but he was stuck in here, without them. It was the one aspect of his life, at the moment, that felt like it was wrong. "Pallas...when will I meet her? And...others? There are more. When can I see them?"

@Pallas

A smile graced Pallas's expression. It was doing well. That was the best he could hope for— of course, telling through their connection and seeing face-to-face was something much different. "Safe, yes... wandering is good, under Mother's eye. It allows you to see it all; this is a good cave." His eyes lifted to the canopy as her's did. "After all, you shouldn't be cooped up with nowhere to run, should you?"

Ah, but Mother... His expression grew a little more distant as he cast his gaze to the grass, long tail thumping down onto the dirt. "It will take time. Seeing them all at once— that's a lot for someone your age. Mother knows best, and I wouldn't want to see you..." Hm. How should he put it? "Overwhelmed. There is much to learn first. Though— I understand your frustration."

Pallas shuffled down a little further, pulling his paws close to loaf over them. Hm, no, maybe he was making himself too small for Aegis; and with that, he stood abruptly and stretched his neck up to be taller.

The sigh that escaped him was telling. Small, yes, but still distant, still concerned, and that thrummed from him in unmasked truth. "Seeing others, seeing her... yes, you will soon, but we want you to be safe before that. Here is safer. Here you can grow. You know the others wish to see you just as much as you want to see them, but it'll be worth waiting. I promise."

His head dipped to that. For a brief moment, the thought of 'It's only time' pinged in his mind until he shook his head to rid himself of it. "And then you can share everything when they can share everything, too. See, it just takes time for everything to work— don't want to break your brain, after all, with so much to learn."

He reached up and tapped his forehead for emphasis.

@Aegis

It made sense, what Pallas was saying, but Aegis was still upset all the same. Eridanus was safe, yes, but it felt so far away from…everything. Even the cave he had hatched in was a long walk to visit - too long to visit alone, although it had been quite empty when he’d been there. He could distantly sense more places across the caves, like distant lights in an endless expanse of dark, where there was safety for Mother and her children.

Still, he nodded, with a forlorn sigh. ”I know. Mother knows better than I. But you said I should not be cooped up with nowhere to run - there is nowhere to run here. I feel…like I am wasting away.” Here he hesitated, wondering if he should talk to Pallas about the things he’d been experiencing. After all, they’d just met, and Aegis did not know them very well. But any of Mother’s own was a friend, someone to trust completely.

He decided to compromise and only touch on it a little. ”I sometimes think I lose myself - only for a bit. Like my mind shuts down and it’s only my body working. I think it’s because I have been doing so little.” He didn’t understand that it was Mother’s influence slowly taking a hold of his brain and neither did he suspect her of anything nefarious. It was simply boredom taking its toll.

Still, Pallas talked sense and an encouragement from the fungus sidling his brain had him agreeing, again. Yes, of course - it would be overwhelming and a lot at once. He needed to be older, right?

But then his own thoughts interrupted. But what would even change? If he was just here, eating and getting bigger, would he be any more ready to meet his friends? The others under Mother’s care? What would change if he didn’t learn anything, see anything but the grass and the trees?

Time was confusing. How would it make him ready if he just let it pass? His discomfort and confusion were obvious, with ears drooped and a frown in his expression. ”I…guess. Can they come here, then? Maybe…one at a time? It’s just so boring here. Not that Halcyon is good company! But there just isn’t much happening. I eat and walk around. That is all.” There had to be more to life then that, right?

@Pallas