ORIGIN - Under the Surgeon's Table

Gabriel's muzzle was raised as it sniffed the air, trying to locate the scent of something that wasn't rock or bone- the sweet and warm scent of something breathing. Around it were the towering structures of bone, and no far behind it was the entrance to tunnel K, which it had just left behind. The dog had left Tacitus there so that the owl could find his way in his own time, and as a result, Gabriel was free to hunt. Gabriel had eaten such creatures before, so it knew about the skeletons that lay within their squirming bodies, but as it did not possess the talons required for dissection, this was a very rare opportunity and one that Gabriel leapt at.

Its ears pricked and wet nose twitching, Gabriel cast out its senses, trying to locate something alive amongst the rubble.

Soon, Gabriel's patience was rewarded... it heard a quiet thumping and felt the vibrations of a tiny heartbeat. The pup was not alone, but it soon would be. Lowering its head and steps calculated precisely, the dog snuck towards a pile of bones, beneath which something small was scrabbling. A morbid place for a little thing to live, perhaps... but it was none the wiser. as a non-sentient being, this little mouse did not know that its home lay nestled amongst the dead.

"Speech looks like this."
"Thoughts looks like this."

tags: here
notes: here

Gabriel could hear the tiny being now, ever so close... just within that pile of bones. Its squeaks and scrabbles reached out to the dog, causing saliva to form in its mouth, despite knowing that it wasn't going to be able to eat this one, at least not for a while. The dog hadn't eaten for a while, it was struck with the sudden realization... but in this case the rewards for further research were far greater than that of personal satisfaction.

Gabriel could no longer hesitate. Beneath its small body the dog's legs bunched up, preparing for a pounce. it knew it would only haver one shot at this... if it missed, then the mouse would disappear amongst all the bones. Gabriel paused one last time, using its large ears to pinpoint the exact location of the tiny creature...

Then it leaped.

A tiny scream of terror was audible as Gabriel went crashing into the bone pile, some of the bones tumbling down on top of it. There was the sound of claws frantically skittering, and then the mouse was gone for good, leaving Gabriel struggling to pull itself out of the pile using its hindquarters alone. It seemed that Gabriel had miscalculated this.

"Speech looks like this."
"Thoughts looks like this."

tags: @Tacitus
notes: here

---

The young owlet allowed the canine to travel forward without him, it would take a bit of time for Gabriel to catch what they were looking for so he took his time in heading into Canis. His small claws clicked against the stony earth as slowly made his way into the room of bones, into the place of his birth. There was just something about this place that was welcoming and that would draw him back no matter how far away he went. Perhaps it would always be this way with places that gembounds were born in.

While he waited for his brother to catch a mouse he began to wander around, eyes dancing over the various shapes of different bones. One of which he walked over to and began to examine it with eyes and his talons, carefully dragging the sharp digits over the old leg-bone. He wondered what creature it belonged to. It was rather huge, about twice the length of his body so the animal it once inhabited must have been humongous.

Crash!

He was disturbed from his thoughts by a loud crashing sound which he promptly turned to follow. He hopped along, flapping his wings in an attempt to hurry himself along faster. Finally he came to the spot where he saw a half-fallen pile of bones... and the rear of a tiny dog. He could hear his fellow knight scrabbling to pull itself out and so decided to offer his own assistance.

"Did the specimen get away?" He questioned while hopping forward and attempting to wrap his wings about the canine's rear in an attempt to help pull him out.

---

275 | notes | @Gabriel

"Talking!"
Thinking...

Gabriel held still for a moment as it felt the owl's wings wrap around its hindquarters, and then again scrabbled at the ground, pulling itself slowly out from under the weight of the bones with a little help from the small owl. It took some effort, and no end of concentration, but it was getting there. Soon, the space where it had been was loud with clattering as the bones tumbled down to foll the empty space. My gratitude," Gabriel said, turning its body around to face the owl once more. it didn't sit back as it usually did, however, indicating that it would soon be heading off to try again.

"Yes, I lost it. There was a mouse nestled under the bones... but it would seem a different strategy is required for Canis." The bones were hard, some heavy, and got in the way during delicate operations such as this. "I fear that the noise will have scared off any other potential subjects, but I assure you, I'll find something." Gabriel lifted its head, sniffing the air, and catching a whiff of the mouse's scent. It couldn't have gone far, but it was unlikely to come out from within the bone pile now. Gabriel had also learned some time ago that you couldn't simply chase a nervous animal. It would always find some way to bail out.

"Is there anything you need to do to prepare for the dissection? For example... finding a clear space, or a place where we won't be found by hungry cave dwellers... or, the emotion-driven." If there was the chance that this could be controversial, then Gabriel didn't want to risk being found. The pup was still learning the ins and outs of emotional beings, so it treated just about anything they did as though there was a possibility of it being offensive to some. "If there's anything you need to do, go and prepare. I'll go and find something."

If it were at all possible, Gabriel would prefer to take something alive. but it was very likely that such a kidnapping attempt would result in being bitten or something of the sort.

The pup once more raised its head and sniffed the air, ears pricked. soon, the unseen life around them trickled in. Gabriel trotted away, following a particularly promising heartbeat. Gabriel soon stood just out of the line of sight of a large, grey cave rat that was even slightly larger than it was. The creature was sat upright, munching on a cave mouse, whose warmth had not quite left.

As promising as the heartbeat had sounded... Gabriel thought that taking on such a creature would be foolish at best, and fatal at worst. But if perhaps they could find some kind of an opening... break the neck in a single blow. Or just hang where it couldn't get bitten.

"Speech looks like this."
"Thoughts looks like this."

tags: @Tacitus
notes: here

---

The small canine was yanked out of the pile with the aid of his wings and soon they were standing facing each other once more. In lieu of speaking he gave a little bow as a way of saying "you're welcome" to the tiny pooch. Then, he was nodding his head to show he understood. It was a pity that its catch had gotten away but he was certain that there were other mice that were scuttling around here, it was just a matter of finding them and catching them. "Of course, I have full confidence that you will." He did, it might take time but he knew that Gabriel would eventually find and catch something.

At the suggestion the owl lifted a talon to his lower beak, pondering and then deciding that this would be a good idea. Somewhere that only he and Gabriel could get to. A nice... hidden spot. Yes, he could accomplish that. "I shall do so, Gabriel. Best of luck to you in hunting." With that he turned and wandered off.

His tiny claws clicked on the stony earth as he looked about this way and that in the darkness, trying to find somewhere that would be perfect for the pair. It lead him to a deeper part of the room where several bone structures lay, all arranged into sort of... shelters. Strange. The owl wandered up to a few and examined them, finding nothing inside but more bones and occasionally a gem or two. As intriguing as they were they were too large and anyone could fit into them... Then, he saw it. A shelter nestled into a back corner and hidden almost completely in shadow. He hopped over to it, and began his thorough examination and found that it was perfect. It was small, just large enough for he and his brother to fit but too small for anything dangerous to fit in or at the very least if something could fit they both should be able to defend the spot with relative ease.

Pleased with his fine he began to set up the area for the surgery, clearing the shelter of excess debris and making it perfect for the procedure.

He wondered how Gabriel was faring?

---

374 | notes | @Gabriel

"Talking!"
Thinking...

Skulking behind that bone pile and watching as the cave rat gradually consumed the remnants of its meal, crunching through gem and bone alike, Gabriel contemplated its next move carefully, knowing that it wouldn't end well for the canid if it didn't manage to kill it with the first blow. The rat was facing the opposite way, its back to the bone pile behind which Gabriel hid. It was as vulnerable as it could be whilst eating, which was good for Gabriel but that vulnerability wouldn't last forever.

Thinking it over meticulously, in this case, wasn't going to work. The puppy needed to move, and fast. As the rat began to crunch through the last few vertebrae of the mouse's tail, Gabriel finally made its move... It burst out of the shadows and leaped at the cave rat's back, trying to break its neck before the creature could react.

Gabriel was able to cling to its back, sinking its teeth into its spine. The cave rat bucked and hissed and screeched, trying to throw off the puppy that was only slightly bigger than it was, and the more Gabriel bit, the angrier it got. The two wrestled for some time, until finally Gabriel's teeth were met with a click. The cave rat screeched beneath it, its body falling limp quite suddenly, rasping cries escaping it. It no longer struggled as Gabriel let go and sniffed it, blood staining the soft pink skin around its muzzle. The rat was still alive. Its gaze followed Gabriel full of despair, but it couldn't move. The only sounds that emerged were dying rattles and soft whimpers that tried to be roars or screeches.

Interesting... it cannot move, Gabriel thought as it watched the dying animal, before raising its muzzle to sniff out Tacitus, figuring out which way the owl had gone.

Soon enough, Gabriel was moving back to the rat and grasping it by the bloodied scruff, dragging it away whilst it was still alive.

"Speech looks like this."
"Thoughts looks like this."

tags: @Tacitus
notes: here

---

After waiting for a few minutes on the small canine he decided that perhaps he should take the initiative and seek out his fellow. After a moment of deliberation he decided that this was indeed the best course of action so after taking a minute to memorize the layout of the bone structure and the area around it he hopped off towards where he had seen the canine last.

After hopping for a bit, and gradually growing tired with the weight of his injured leg and his overall malnutrition, he began to claws clicking and the sound of a body being dragged. The owl stood still then, allowing the canine to eventually come into view first as a dark speck in the distance and then more detailed as he came closer.

It seemed that this time Gabriel's hunt was successful but not only that it had managed to snatch the motherload! Pleased, Tacitus hopped closer and began to limp alongside his fellow knight with a bird-like smile upon his beak. "Gabriel, I see you were successful this time around and not only that but you managed to grab a very large specimen. Congratulations!" The loquacious owl praised. "I can lead us back to--" He stopped speaking when he noticed the dying sounds of the rat... Was... Was it still alive? Why was it not moving? Confused he blinked, eyes staring at this strange conundrum as he tried to figure it out. "The rat... It is alive? But how? Why is it not moving?" Had Gabriel used some sort of magick or was this something else altogether?

---

266 | notes | @Gabriel

"Talking!"
Thinking...

As it wrestled the dead weight of the rat, Gabriel let go as it heard talons against the stony ground, and turned to once more see its brother. Gabriel grinned, baring sharp, bloodied little fangs in a grin, the puppy bowed its head in acknowledgement of Tacitus' praise. It perked up its ears as the bird stopped mid sentence, although Gabriel to some degree knew what it was about to say.

"You found a suitable location?" it questioned, tail twitching. It was answered instead by the owl's curiosity, and yet more questions. Gabriel had planned to wait until they'd found their way to the ideal location and it felt as though their questions may be answered by a thorough dissection... But it was worth noting that Gabriel, too, was very curious on the matter.

"I believe our dissection will answer some of our questions. However... I leaped on the beast from behind, and felt its neck crack which resulted in it collapsing." Gabriel began, glancing back to the cave rat. "Perhaps the spine is connected to the rest of the body in some way. I would have thought it would still be able to move, albeit with head dragging on the floor... and an inability to eat and drink."

Gabriel was beginning to suspect that this task would be far more complex than it had anticipated. They'd probably need many more specimens before they had a full understanding of the creatures they shared the caves with. But nontheless, if Gabriel was to understand the creatures in the cave and by extension, its own magic, then it was a very necessary detour.

"Let's go. I feel it will be beneficial to our cause to begin the dissection whilst it's still alive."

Gabriel once more padded back to the limp form of the cave rat and grasped its scruff once more. Then Gabriel began to drag, following Tacitus' scent trail the way it had been moving before, occasionally glancing towards the owl to make sure it knew it was going the right way.

"Speech looks like this."
"Thoughts looks like this."

tags: @Tacitus
notes: marking this thread as M- just in case xD

---

"Yes yes, a bone shelter, protected by darkness and its small size. We will be safe and undisturbed there." He answered almost absently as his eyes were still on the dying rat. Gabriel's explanation filtered through his ears, locking their way into his brain as he tried to understand the whole situation. The bones... the bones in the neck, were they more important than the rest? Connected in such a way that it crippled the entire body if it was damaged? "The inner workings of the body. It is far more complicated than I anticipated." He mused as he took one last look at the creature before glancing back to Gabriel.

"Yes yes, the sooner we get to this the better." With that he walked off with the canine hopefully in tow. He retraced his steps, not quite able to follow his scent trail as they went back to the shelter. Based on his memory he was able to track down the place even as it remained partly invisible in the shadows of the darkness. He stood to the side of the entrance, one wing extended in a sort of "after you" gesture to Gabriel.

---

195 | notes | @Gabriel

"Talking!"
Thinking...

Gabriel's limbs were growing leaden, its movements taxing. The longer it dragged the rat, the more the scent of blood invaded its nostrils and caused its stomach to growl. But the time to eat would come later, when the dissection was done or the body unusable. For now it would have to wait. It sounded like Tacitus had found the perfect space to begin, but that remained to be seen. Still, Gabriel had high faith in its brother's judgement; Tacitus was smarter than most, if not all other beings that Gabriel had seen. He would know what was suitable, and what wasn't.

Tacitus spoke exactly the words that Gabriel was thinking, and it gave a small nod, lifting its head for a mere moment before it continued moving onwards. Soon they seemed to be in the near vicinity of the shelter that Tacitus had found. Tacitus was there, showing the way to the entrance, and Gabriel's eyes gleamed in the dark. it did indeed seem perfect. With the large size of the cave rat, it would perhaps be quite cramped but such a thing wouldn't matter when they aimed to scour the body so intimately.

They were here. Gabriel pulled in the cave rat's body as far as it possibly could, settling back on its haunches to one side. The cave rat's dying breaths echoed in the shelter around them, whispers filled with despair ruffling the fur around Gabriel's ears. Yet it did not feel any sympathy.

"Speech looks like this."
"Thoughts looks like this."

tags: @Tacitus
notes: SHIT I forgot to tag you forgive me friend ;;