ORIGIN

Xireidi slinked between rocks by the ridges as quietly as possible, the only noise coming from his stomach as it had been a long while since his last meal. It was hard living with a young herbivore, especially when one didn't want to let on that you ate their kind to survive. Well, not greater gembound herbivores, there were plenty of non-sapient meals around to avoid going that route. Even so, he wasn't sure Gratia would make the same distinction and he didn't want to test the waters to find out.

Once he was sure he was far enough away to be out of hearing range the young red wolf coughed loudly and groaned, slinking down to deal with the unfamiliar sensation of pain deep in his right side. In order to lose the cavy in the first place he'd propelled himself up on a ledge and managed to get a good distance away from above. Unfortunately as he got to this part of the cavern the ledges became more slippery than he'd expected and he fell a good distance onto his side. The juvenile was okay, and would probably be able to hunt, but he would be feeling it for the next couple days.

Having allowed himself that brief moment of displayed weakness Xireidi stood up straight again and with a slight wince leapt up to one of the slick ridges, taking its friction into account this time. From there he'd have a good view of the cavern and hopefully be able to find something suitable to sate him for at least another couple days.

"The words I speak"
The thoughts I hold
And the self I keep hidden away

Xireidi had seen the presence of the others as they got near, but paid no heed at first. They were carnivores like him and were probably here for the same reason. Hopefully they'd see him and move to another hunting location. He wasn't sure how long he could leave Gratia before she got too worried or suspicious and he wasn't sure when his next opportunity to sneak away and hunt would be.

Unfortunately by the looks of it they were not here to hunt after all, and the younger-looking of the two actually approached, driving a couple of potential targets to another area.

Xireidi felt a twinge of rage at the loss of a quick meal, but at the same time couldn't really justify it. The other had no way of knowing what he was doing. He'd have to reposition anyways to try again so the young wolf slid himself down from the ledge, trying his best to hide the sharp aggravated pain in his side upon landing.

"Hey," he greeted, masking his discomfort in a chipper tone, "Haven't seen you around here before. I was just scouting the area for some lunch."

He looked over his shoulder at the landscape as he approached the newcomer who'd addressed him. He still felt a bit of resentment toward their arrival, but he wasn't about to let negative feelings get in the way of making a good introduction. "Not quite as many convenient vantage points here as there were in Orion, but this is one of the better hunting locations."

"The words I speak"
The thoughts I hold
And the self I keep hidden away

Xireidi looked over at the menacing looking cat the younger one had indicated to. The concept of parent was immediately recognizable to the young wolf, yet still a slightly odd one. He had come into this world alone, by chance perhaps. The first older figure he'd encountered had been of his own species, so he might have had the potential to call them a parent, but that really wouldn't have worked out in the end. She, by his own theory about the nature of the world, had possessed a magic spirit of appearance. The spirit of his gem was conflicting; being cynical and focused on revealing the true nature of others.

"Don't worry about the prey, I just got here and haven't had time to spot anything" he lied, "Sorry to hear you didn't get to climb the buildings much, that was definitely one of the best parts of Orion. That and the fact that it's a bit more relaxing than Polaris. Not sure if you've ever been by there but the atmosphere will keep you going full speed like nothing else.”

He hadn't considered it before, but that could actually be a pretty good advantage if he were to ever try to improve his endurance. Orion was significantly better in general due to the terrain and the fact he could actually get a productive sleep, but it might not be bad to revisit his birthplace once in a while to run around.

"Pieces is pretty lively at the moment, but not sure I’d want to stay here too long. Is your parent taking you exploring around the cave system too?”

"The words I speak"
The thoughts I hold
And the self I keep hidden away

The cat's manner was a bit strange, excitable yet vaguely awkward. Then again that might have just been how she was, he had no way of knowing for sure. "I bet it's pretty helpful having an actual guide." he said with a smile, "I've mostly been wandering around and trying to figure stuff out on my own. Not sure if I'm getting everything right but hopefully I'll get close enough."

He wasn't too terribly concerned with the details of the cave, and he was sure if he went with a guide he'd hear much more than he really cared about. All the young wolf really cared about was making sure they could survive the coming- or presence perhaps, he still wasn't sure- of the creature of shadows that loomed over them all. Perhaps later he'd greet Imperia and ask them if they knew anything about it.

"Good to meet you, Aaliyah. I go by Xireidi, or Xi, or apparently Fluffy." he ended with a wry grin, thinking back to Kin-Kin.

Xireidi's ears perked as something moved a short distance away. It sounded like one of the creatures had been hiding and was repositioning now that he and Li were distracted. The wolf lowered his head and nodded to the one before him, attempting to indicate that he was going to investigate.

He moved slowly around the corner, attempting to cover up the pain in his side as best he could. The rustling ceased, but he had gotten close enough to see what had caused it. He'd caught just a glimpse of a cave rabbit dashing into some underbrush next to the ridge.

"Rabbit chose poorly" he whispered, "No way out of that spot except back through the front and past us."

"The words I speak"
The thoughts I hold
And the self I keep hidden away