ORIGIN

"Owww," moaned out a voice.

The sound of complaint echoed throughout the cave, its source not immediately determinable among the myriad crystals casting each other's reflections in every possible direction. True to its reputation of being a maze of mirrors, if one were to stand amidst these, quite likely would they be lost without a sign to guide them forward or back to any available entrance. A careful ear was required to realize that whoever was here hadn't bothered to truly set foot into all of this confusion; in a move some jealous landbound sorts would deem as cheating, the individual in question had stuck to high altitudes despite how many crystals endeavored to try scraping the ceiling with their pointed tops.

The consequence, however, was potential collisions like the one Ace was currently shaking off. Not quite able to avoid a tight squeeze between a cluster of the most towering pillars during his current patrol, the Drone had quite ashamedly bashed a wing against a hard reflective surface while flying at full speed. Claws gripped at fungus-riddled cracks as he perched above everything and assessed his pain none too quietly. Stretching out the affected limb caused near instant wincing, the acute sting from the hit making its presence further known at the littlest flex of muscles.

"Urgh."

There was no way he'd be able to carry on his route normally in this shape. Much as he despised being robbed of flight for any amount of time, the best option for now was to give his favorite appendages a rest and complete his rounds on the ground. Making his displeasure known through a rumbling growl, he released his grasp of the crystal top and, gritting fangs against agony, opened wings to their full span. A leap and next he glided to a rough landing at the most open space that could accommodate him: the area in front of Gemini's sole glittering waterfall.

Quite a spectacle due to how the water appeared flowing over the gleaming facets of rock, the Rift's shimmering presence nearby escaped notice from those distracted by the main attraction. Used to gazing down upon this place from a great height and not caring a whit about aesthetics, Ace especially couldn't give a damn about the unique features of where he now sulked and so ignored both. Pure chance was what allowed him to catch the anomaly out of the corners of his eyes, and soon he found himself slinking towards it to examine the strange distortion upon stone.

What thing outside Mother's perfection was this? He prodded at the area with one hooked forearm, daring to court disaster.

Encountering resistance should have dissuaded anyone sensible from wasting energy trying to press into the rift. Headstrong as ever, though, the force shoving back on the claw Ace poked with only presented itself to him as a challenge to be conquered.

"Tricky little shit, aren't you," he growled, shoulder straining as he struggled to drive his way through the invisible opposition faced. "What's the deal? Trying to keep something from us?"

If this had lasted much longer, likely he would have switched to his other arm once his current one tired, starvation preferable over considering resorting to the pathetic option of giving up. Thankfully the inevitability of such a ridiculous display on his part was altered by what seemed to him to be a surrender from his unyielding foe. At the eruption of sparks and an object dropping to the stone floor, a gleeful cackle rocked the Drone's cadaverous form. With a triumphant shout of "Got you to spill, you shifty sucker," he crouched to better eye and gloat over the spoils victory had given him.

"Heh, guess you know who's boss around here," was, of course, the remark made over the dragon depicted on the gold bracelet. Even though it didn't match his design exactly, ego refused to consider a Hive member like Bone would be a more perfect fit to the image. "And, well, what do you know! Team colors!"

Observed by a most uncritical examiner, the presence of warmth and embers was not met by prying questions. Any more cautious minds aware of the discovery due to Ace bragging about it over his link would find themselves brushed off if they tried to warn about messing with unknown magic, dismissed as being unreasonable for rejecting what must be a benefit for him and the collective. He slipped the ornamental piece around the base of his stinger, fangs bared in a wide grin, daring anything to attempt spitting on his achievement.

See if those Oildribblers could pull off such a distinguished look.

His tail had been twisting to and fro to better admire his newly acquired prize when the unusual changes began to make themselves apparent. At first seen as little more than a fancy feature of the bracelet, the sputtering embers drew forth a confused rumble as they transitioned into steady threads of smoke interspersed with short bursts of flame. Miraculously absent of a derisive comment to address this likely defect but also just as lacking in self-preservation, Ace didn't attempt to remove it. A claw tapped experimentally on the surface and, by coincidence, lined up with the exact time a major shift occurred.

Faster than he could even process the possibility of danger, white flame rushed out to coat his stinger. For a few baffled and disbelieving beats, the Drone's touch lingered before he jerked away, indignantly yelling, in remembrance of how fire had singed at close range and threatened burns on the battlefield. Teeth gnashed together at the thought of him being fooled into injury by an item from a mysterious source, and he adjusted his forearm to slip a hook under the treacherous ornament and yank it off.

Then a revelation smacked him in the face: where was the heat and pain?

According to Hive memories, flesh should have been eaten away and the woven threads of Order which composed his structure exposed to the open air. He ought to have been writhing in agony on the ground, driven to drastic measures such as amputating his stinger to immediately alleviate his suffering. Instead not a single blemish marked him. In fact, he felt the opposite of burnt, frozen though not a hint of frost existed on him.

He withdrew his claw from its attempt at removal, lost the sensation of cold, and prodded it back into the flame for a fleeting moment. After a few more pokes, he had a better understanding of the reward he'd been given, and his spirit surged skyward.

"Oh, that is radical," Ace crowed. "Pure white and full of light. Those cowards haven't a snowball's chance in Leo of hiding from us now. We'll ice them right out of their Oil pits!"

"None of that talking tough and wimping out on us anymore. Time to answer for every one of us that had to take a stone nap. And if they don't want to, we'll make sure they do! Isn't that right, Darkpiercer?"

Looked like fire had chosen his side to stand by. Considering his prowess in battle, no better partner could've been taken on. Obviously it had superb judgment.