ORIGIN - I AM ALIVE

Near the waterfall, there is a dark green gem with red splotches sitting imbedded in the rocks. Inside, a fledgling bird begins to emerge. The small thing kicks and thrashes, the crystal around it holding strong for only a few moments before it gives way.

A little brown thing falls out, covered in liquids - it's everywhere but the little thing picks itself up slowly, stretching its legs and looking around. The waterfall nearby is loud, roaring in the new life's ears. Still, it splays its wings out excited.

"I am alive!" The small thing shouts to the world, not as impressive as it thinks it is.

@Loki

Not far off, by fate or serendipity, a second chrysalis held stirring life. This one was a red labradorite: not very large (certainly smaller than the vulture's bloodstone), but shimmering with deep, rich colors. It shone like fire: reds and oranges, a touch of sparking yellow.

More interesting was the stirring inside, a dark shape that twitched and moved when that voice--muffled by stone--reached it.

The 'I am alive!' reached the creature within, and trickled into a half-conscious, just-waking mind. ME TOO! the little brain thought, after the words had coalesced into meaning. Me too! Alive! Alive, but--stuck?

There was a black flutter, visible beyond the shimmer. He fought briefly, and the thin stone cracked and then split, unceremoniously spilling the little raven fledgling out into the world. He hit the rock face-first, then righted himself with a brace of his wings. Fluid-slicked feathers ruffled, and he blinked up and around, gasping and croaking.

The far larger form of the bird of prey should have frightened him but instead he was excited. He put his thoughts into words as he half-staggered, half-fell toward Carcass, scrambling over stone and leaving a trail of wet behind him, his labradorite birthplace at once forgotten. "ME TOO! I--ALIVE!" The nuances of language were beyond him as yet, but for now he did his best to scrabble and clamber to come up alongside Carcass: to fluff up proudly by his side, unless of course the vulture tried to eat him.

@Carcass

When the other bird appears in a wet mass, Carcass scrambles to whip around, pulling his wings in close. Not quite good at moving just yet, he has to stop himself from tripping over his own claws. The raven is a little thing, but so is Carcass.

"YOU!" He says, tilting his head side to side, swaying a little bit. "Small."

Maybe Carcass is just a bully....

The waves from the waterfall rush down, catching Carcass' attention. It splashes into the water, washing away the gross wet from the chrysalis. This is different, good. Cold, but good. Wash the gross sticky away - only to get wet from the water.

Carcass looks around, spotting a shimmering something nearby. His eyes travel back to the dark raven, and then back to the Rift. Ignored for now.

"Name? Mine is-" He has to think a little bit. "Carcass!" Though the vulture can't quite say the word right.

@Loki

Loki's squawk was indignant. Small! he thought.

Well, he was, but it seemed to him that he was very important, somehow, so he shouldn't be. Or at least shouldn't be called that.

...That being said, Carcass was a lot bigger than him. So instead of arguing the point, Loki just squawked loudly; then he tried to bounce around Carcass and give him a brief tug at a tailfeather before hopping away again. Nothing violent, just a little yank. "Loki!" he half-crowed, half-croaked, moving to bounce alongside the vulture. "...My name is Loki!" The words were carefully enunciated; and as Carcass looked around, so did the raven.

The question was, now what? So far his world tally of experienced consisted of crystals, water, and the weird rift, along with the other bird. Loki found himself briefly fascinated by the black scutes shining wetly along his own legs, and then his little curved fledgling talons. He lifted a foot and tried to compare them to Carcass's, to see if they were the same, and-

"BIG CLAWS?!" Loki squawked, amazed, staring at the far larger vulture's feet. Dang, those were cool. He was jealous.

@Carcass

"HEY! NO GRAB!" Carcass squawks back at the other bird, turning around to nip near Loki's space. His feathers fluff up, trying to look like a much bigger bird. (Despite already being larger than the raven).

However, the anger is quickly distracted from as Loki reveals his name. "Loki." He hums. "Good name." Yes, a good name for the little bird. Strong name.

As Carcass looks away to inspect the strange... Thing, above them, he does not notice Loki inspecting their talons. The spot by the waterfall is... strange. The vulture does notice that it doesn't fit within the space. Like there's something on the other side. Instead of going up there, Carcass picks up his foot to inspect his talons at the raven's chattering. And yeah... They are quite bigger than Loki's.

Carcass makes a grabby motion at Loki with his claws, laughing.

"Mine better!" But the teasing is quickly outclassed by his curiosity of the thing above.

Setting his claws down, he instead points with an outstretched wing. The thing up there, he's gotta go look at it! "Look! We go look."

He's itching to get out of this same space.

@Loki

Loki hopped quickly back and away, eyeing Carcass's beak--and then grabby talons--warily. He let out a soft croak-squawk, ruffling his wings--then got distracted, turning to eye said wings with a critical... well, eye. He squinted at Carcass, then, and looked back at his own wings for a moment. "What are these things?" he asked, carefully enunciating these new words.

There was absolutely no philosophical confusion--no wondering how the pair had come to be, or where they were, or what "life" was, or any of that. Just... a staring at their respective pairs of wings, and wondering what those were for.

Loki spread his, following the pointing wing of Carcass, trying to imitate it. Was that what these were for-? Then he flapped, and promptly fell on his face--again.

Oops.

@Carcass

Carcass nearly replies that he has no clue what their appendages are for. Really, neither of the birds have anything to compare it to except for each other.... And with both of them being new life, it seems they may have to react based on instinct alone. Inside Carcass knows that the wings are used for something, though.

The word comes to him after Loki asks the question. "Wings! Wing wing-" He tests out the new word, and watches as Loki flaps them.

"Again!" Perhaps that will do something?

@Loki