ORIGIN

This tunnel was becoming increasingly familiar to the young ave, for he tended to wander out of Canis and through this cave. Recently, he had the spoils of meeting a little dik-dik named Fortune, a new member of the Bonebound... and finding a gorgeous shiny to give to Krakarak. Yes, this tunnel was a good passageway to take to the core. He'd met quite a few Gembound there! But for now, he was wandering off back toward Orion, to perhaps explore that sector a little more. He'd only been at the cliffsides, and he wanted to see what else was in the shimmering room. In the distance, there had been a crystal tower! If only he hadn't set up the Bonebound in Canis, Krakarak could have had a crystal tower all to himself! Well, maybe not to himself, but the bird was free to do whatever he wanted. Aza'zel knew that the raven depended on him to protect him, and the bone prince wouldn't let him down.

Waddling out of the massive hole of the Canis entrance, the bird gazed up at the rearing beast overhead. It was a terrifying warning indeed, but the skeleton king was not afraid of it. It was simply rock! Rock could not hurt you, it could not even move! Obviously, the ave had yet to experience an earthquake or a rockslide. Someday, perhaps, he'd understand. Rufous head turned back to the darkness before him, mist condensing on his rusty feathers already. It was a chilling place indeed, but if the critter hugged the ground in flight, he could easily make it to the Orion side of the passage. So he would. Wings spread and the bird took flight, flapping with powerful and renewed strokes. Eyelids were shut, but he could still see due to nictitating lids, and the mist fogged up his vision.

Despite that, he could hear the sounds of rock splitting. Another Gembound hatching? Swooping down, the bird managed to land ten feet to the left of the now rueful creature in the mist. It seemed that it had dispelled the mist long enough, but it came back. It was a neverending veil, one that invaded every nook and nanny. Aza'zel didn't know where exactly it came from, but he assumed it was the magical essence of the cave. That was what explained everything, right? Hopping close to the newly hatched Gembound, his crown tilted curiously. It was all legs, he could confirm. Very tall, probably. There was a black smudge on it's back, but he couldn't decipher what it was. Shaking his feathers free of the condensation that almost weighed him down, the bird stepped back, in case what he was about to do turned horribly wrong like that one time he blew Bravo away. Bravo was pretty fine, but the Bone Prince was sure that newborn Gembound were much more fragile that Bravo's.

Taking a deep breath, the bird took to the air once more, great wings pumping strongly and hardly to release his pressure magic, pulling the atmosphere close to himself and hurling it in the direction of the misty room. Hopefully it'd be a success. But then, little magic fizzled from his wings, only a gust summoned by regular bird wings. It cleared up his vision a little, but it definitely was not enough. Demurring about his sudden lack of magic, the ave landed, talons making a soft click! on the rocky floor. Hobbling close to the newly hatched creature, he bowed down, nudging its shoulder softly with his beak. "What's your name?" He crooned, not wanting to scare the tiny child with his somewhat fearsome appearance. It was never a good idea to scare a youngster, he'd learned. They were mean little brats sometimes, and they liked to hiss and bite. This thing didn't seem too much like a hiss-and-bite sort of Gembound. He just had to wait and see if his theory was correct.

"Speech"

The young Gembound almost jumped and stared at the Bone King in stupor, as if he were in deep thought. Aza’zel watched it’s dark orbs flicker all over his frame then himself. Perhaps he didn’t understand that Aza’zel was a bird and he were a… wolf? The name sounded familiar. He was a wolf, yes. He was definitely a wolf, like Blue was a gorilla, Krakarak a raven, Bravo a raccoon, and Fortune a dik-dik. It came together perfectly, yet almost it was haphazard the variety of animals that roamed these caves. All of them were very vastly different, some not even mammals!

The little pup gave him a questioning look and goggled constantly, something Aza’zel was almost used to due to Krakarak’s constant following. But something was different. He felt concern and could see it in that pup’s eyes. It didn’t seem to know how to speak. He was afraid naught, for usually… Gembound took a while before they could figure out how to talk. "I’ll call you, Wolf. For now…" He couldn’t think of a better name right off the bat, and Wolf definitely didn’t know who he was. Once again, it’d be a little bit. Nudging the ears of the canine, he tried to balance them atop his head so they didn’t flop down. "Ears." He crooned, hoping he could teach this Gembound a few words. He wasn’t gonna leave one to figure out everything on his own! The Bone Prince had suffered through that, and he wouldn’t desire to bring that upon another. He’d want to be a good friend to those who needed a friend. Most Lammergeiers weren’t too open nor were they social… but little Aza’zel was a social butterfly and friendly as ever. As the pup pressed his cold and wet nose into Aza’s neck fluff, the juvenile jumped. Nobody had ever done that. But the bird simply sat down, letting the pup nuzzle him. He’d be here if Wolf needed him. Aza’zel was fine with that.

"Speech"

The bird continued to look into the wolf's eyes, finding lights in his humble abode. He seemed lost in thought. It was common for the Gembound... but he wasn't sure if he did it. Did he tend to get lost in his own thoughts? Oh, he guess he did. He had just done so! Shaking his head at Wolf, he smiled softly. Could birds smile? He'd have to find out later.

When the youngster mimicked his name, saying 'Woof', Aza's heart nearly melted. He was such an adorable little critter! The ave nodded, bobbing his head happily. "You are Wolf!" He chirped, carmine eyes glinting with pride. Then he thought for a moment. Surely Wolf needed to know who he was! Raising a wing to point at himself, he nodded. "Aza'zel. I am a bird, you are a wolf." Hopefully Wolf knew what birds were. Maybe he'd have to teach him that there weren't just wolves in this world? He'd leave it up to Wolf if he did need to know. The pup attempted to pronounce the word 'ears', and he had been proud to do so. Aza'zel's heart melted, and he nodded once more.

Suddenly, a cold and wet nose pressed against him again, the pup having decided to nose at the crest of the bird. What was he doing? Whatever it was, Wolf was very determined at it. Spindly legs pressed onto his talons, first feeling the scaley skin, then he clambered atop the bird. "Wolf, what are you doing?" He squeaked, turning his head gently so he didn't knock off the young canine.