@Xireidi OOC: Here you go! <3 Despite the option of going into areas likely unknown and awaiting to be explored, he retreated to Pisces for this time. Salted rock from before was licked again, relishing its particularity. Legs found their way over the rocky start of this tunnel, emerging from the entrance for the heavy moisture-filled room. He stopped once completely out of the opening, gazing over to the waterfall. Mind was not feeling all that gleeful for the hour and minute in which rolled. However, he was not in a pit so, mood would not settle any lower than a small smile. After admiring water that brought echoes within room, the canine trotted pass the waterfall and brought himself to a familiar passage—knowing where it would directly lead. While he was making his way to next path, form stumbled across two stone shards that he certainly recognized. They were of his first chrysalis which seemed to have vanished from its original spot. No matter, at least he had some part of it to savor. Self did not waste much time, running through tunnel that once held those mysterious creatures. He found himself going back and forth between crystal-ruled room and plant-dominate room. One would think he would settle within one of the two, but as youth still hung over him, it was difficult to bring up his abode; especially when friends were scattered all around the cave. Snorting because of that, he finally found himself in Polaris once more, striding pass grouped crystals. Of course, he was heading for a particular spot, sticking to his words on returning. As he cut by a boulder, long steps became short since he knew spot was close. By the time form reached location, pace was slow and steady. The pup stood outside of the small crevice, wondering if they were still there or had left to go journey around as well once rested. Either way he would hang about the entrance, dropping stones to purposely have them create a noise. Surely, he could do something with these but mind was unsure of what should be done. Ears perked when recalling winged fellow that had a strange item around and hanging from them. Perhaps he could have something like that for his "birth" stones! Where to look for an item like that, however, would leave him to figure it out. Until then, he guessed self could bury them for safekeeping. It would be right next to this known spot so, hiding it here was perfect. Although before digging, paw just scratched the dirt and a few short barks came to ensure company would know he was here, if they around that is. |
Some distance away the shadow of a large red wolf held itself upon an outcropping overlooking the rest of Polaris. This was his lookout, where he waited and listened to the sounds of the cave, resting from a productive start of the day. After dragging the deer to a safe resting place in the icy tunnel nearby he had set out to track down other usable hunting spots aided by Kyorai's light. A few spots looked promising, and he'd even been able to make it down to the similarly darkened room of Orion for a short visit to scout out possible small game areas there. As much as he wanted to spend time investigating the darkness he knew he'd have to prioritize food if he was to keep up the strength needed for whatever came next.
As a fortunate side effect to this scouting he'd also spent time memorizing a few previously underutilized pathways he might be able to take advantage of when helping the pup out. He wasn't sure how effective he would actually be as a teacher, and he was even less sure if he could ever prepare the pup for the lurking threat, but he would surely try his best. At the very least it would be a good change of pace form his usual routine.
Clatter.
Ears perked as he heard a noise to his left, from the direction of his cave. The light coming from within illuminated movement nearby but he had placed his perch too far away to tell for sure what it was. A part of him was glad to have the glowing crystal inside the empty hall to tell him at least this much, but another part of him was glad he had not let himself stay there constantly so he'd keep the element of surprise.
The wolf slowly, silently arose from his resting position, head lowered as the clattering became more obvious. One step at a time, using a route memorized over many previous passes with light's assistance, Xireidi slinked down from the ledge. Darkness still masked his position, and practice helped him descend without making undue noise.
Another sound arose from below, a familiar bark this time. Of course! Xireidi let himself relax as he finally reached ground level, taking careful strides back to the illuminated entrance, stopping just as the light began to reveal his form. He stood tall, confident, a distinct contrast from the last time he'd encountered the pup and had been ravaged by hunger and fatigue.
"Welcome back, Kyorai." he spoke with a genial tone to the distracted pup. part of him wondered what the youth was doing, digging at the ground, but he decided not to question it at the moment.
"The words I speak"
The thoughts I hold
And the self I keep hidden away
tags: @Kyorai
notes: None
@Xireidi Attention withdrew from catching the awareness of anyone wandering about here. Giving time back to his previous doing, he licked maw and moved stones behind him—starting to fully dig once finding the best way to remove the dirt. Claws were able to deepen the ground enough to allow treasure to fit nicely. Steps brought him away from the hole as he prepared to push belongings into it. However, the task froze at the sound of someone, pulling stuff under him to shadow it from that someone. Sight went on to seek out the producer but did not need to do too much as they stood some ways from him. Tail wagged in realizing the creature; deciding to finish up his ongoing activity. With a small push, the pup was done with initial action, giving spot a quick cover up before hopping over to the wolf. Almost flipping over when landing near company, he forced himself into a sit to prevent the fall. Gazing over the other canine, something felt a bit off from him but it was likely because they had more energy than before, recalling their weariness last time. "Hey, hey! You good now? Don't seem the same," he chuckled while getting up and trotting around the wolf to only stop beside him. It was nice to see that they were using the crystal he left for as little as lighting up entrance. Deep down, he might of thought it would stand useless for some unknown reason. An "oh" sounded from him, going to where he would be in front of company again; looking somewhat excited. "When I was walking through Pisces, I found some stones that I came from! Was surprising that something was still left there!" he told, spinning around before seating self. Probably was not something to actually tell in eagerness, but after last chrysalis he thought first would be long forgotten. Angling his head, he thought on what wolf could have been doing during his exploration. "Whatcha got going on 'round here? You haven't been making enemies with the deer have you?" he jokingly questioned, face turning into genuine curiosity afterwards. |
The pup had definitely been busy with something, but what Xireidi couldn't tell at first. One thing was for sure though; it appeared to be happy to see him. The large wolf lay himself down as Kyorai rushed over, still holding himself with confidence but now closer to eye level with the youth.
"Food and rest was exactly what I needed. I shouldn't need to hunt again for a while, and thanks to the lovely gift you brought I shouldn't have as much trouble again when I do."
He reached his muzzle out toward the pup in a gesture of appreciation. It might not have realized the extend of its gift but life could go on a little closer to normal now that there was at least some source of light available to him.
Kyorai's mention of his birth stones brought a feeling of nostalgia to Xireidi. He'd emerged somewhere here in Polaris, though strangely his shell had already been cracked open when he came to life. He'd lost track of the location of that one and dared not go back to where he had hibernated last, but a part of him wished he'd kept a few pieces as well as a memento. Had that been what the pup had been burying? Gaze shifted toward the shallow cache as he contemplated this.
The next question, however, shifted his attention back to the present. "Oh no, I'm being good." he responded with a jovial tone, a wry smile planted on his face, "I'd hate to make too much of an enemy with the deer, they outnumber us and could form an unstoppable army if they got the idea in their heads. An unstoppable tasty army perhaps, but lets still try to avoid that."
"How about you? Coming by just to visit this crazy wolf or need to burn off some of that excess energy you seem to have?"
"The words I speak"
The thoughts I hold
And the self I keep hidden away
tags: @Kyorai
notes: None
@Xireidi Following after the wolf, he pressed belly to the ground, shifting around until he fell comfortable with hind legs to the side. Mind was not sure about this surging energy rounding its way through him, but it indirectly blamed the vibe this room always gave. He hummed when told how handy crystal light would be for them, feeling more good about gifting it versus simply taking it with. Head had titled in hearing they would not have to go after prey for a while. It seemed to be a thing with older gembounds, apparently. Well, he was still small and young so, he could not figure out such a thing which brought him to put on a look of confusion. Although company was smaller than friend to even mention this but age could just play a part. "Ooh, but wouldn't your nose and hearing be enough? How would the light work if it could only draw attention?" he inquired, recalling how his last, first hunt went. Nose itself was strong in catching a scent which sorta eliminated hearing as well. However, he had not thought on the matter in which different beings hunted in different ways. He nodded once told they had not been messing with the deer roaming through here, snorting and narrowing his eyes when reason was stated on why not to bother the creatures much. "But what if they already did and they're just waiting to ambush us?" he played along, chuckling. It was not to say there was not at least one that had the thought but had not the plan to execute it with others. Shaking out the thought, Kyorai stretched into a bow while listening to what was asked. Eyes only narrowed again for the second before responding. "Maybe both, maybe one, or neither," he worked around, "I don't have excess energy! Perhaps its you that makes it seem like that," he covered and flopped onto his side. "Though I am here again because I said I would be! To help you out or play games! Slam you down with these moves," he rambled, dragging himself over to the other before getting onto his hind legs and embracing Xireidi's neck from under. Honestly, the pup was a lot less uncertain in battling creatures bigger than him after facing up with that hybrid. How such could be a confidence builder. |
"You would think that just hearing would be enough to catch prey," he started, his jesting expression relaxing a bit, "But you can't hear obstacles, especially of the type that small game likes to hide in. I don't need a lot of light so just placing the glowing gem somewhere fairly high I can illuminate a decent area where I can hunt without having to worry about getting hurt"
Of course he'd never had any luck at all tracking things by scent. He could pretty easily get an idea where prey had been for an extended period of time, but actually tracing their steps seemed like an almost insurmountable task much of the time. Perhaps it was easier for others but his nose apparently didn't really work that well.
"If they are waiting to ambush us we just need to be ready for them." he spoke with amusement, looking differing directions despite the darkness.
It seemed, however, that it was not a deer attack he had to worry about but rather a puppy attack! Xireidi let out a mock yelp as he let himself fall to the side, dragged down by Kyorai's sneak attack on him. He let himself lie still for a moment before righting himself with a start.
"Perhaps I have gotten lazy with age." a bit of pupish glee was welling up in the red wolf, "Whatever the reasoning I'm glad you came back, especially with such spirit. What happened to the worry that I'd squish you?"
"The words I speak"
The thoughts I hold
And the self I keep hidden away
tags: @Kyorai
notes: None
@Xireidi They were right, one could not hear obstacles; recalling the time he fell for one "placed" by a rabbit. He shivered lightly from the small ache in which shortly came to his paw at the time—flexing it while gripping the wolf's fur. Although mind figured light would make it less of a pain in dodging what scattered and stood in the way. He snickered in hearing the response to the deer of this place possibly prepping for an ambush. Hm, the youth was actually imagining such an occurrence. Drawing up the things he could do and would do. Be a warrior, be a hero! How he chose to daydream over the most unnecessary things at an uncalled for time. Lost in the wades, reality came back when company went onto their side. Unintentionally but playfully had he let out a growl, nose pressing against their form in a nonexistent force of keeping them down. Once the wolf found self upright again, he would let them push him up but body was short on its support—chest meeting the ground well for an uncounted amount of times now. He huffed, crawling over to the side with dragging belly; still once by their shoulder but in opposite directions in how body faced. Head went over own shoulders when asked about his previous doubts about wrestling, bringing up a snort due to it. "Laziness is no good! See? This must be fixed," he issued, nodding his head before going on. "I may have gotten into it with someone while adventuring," he lightly laughed, "they were a lot bigger than me, but I stuck till the end," he told with an expression that only forwarded his truthfulness even if it could hold faultiness. All in all, the canine stood less doubtful in his abilities since last encounter with company. Pushing up onto all fours, he pressed skull onto the wolf and began pushing to try getting them up. "You're lazy and I'm energy! Though m'sure no one wants to be lazy," he eyed Xireidi, "so energy will do this!" he announced, touching his nose onto the wolf's leg and bolting off. Although he was initiating chase, the pup was secretly aiming to lead the wolf somewhere. |
"Already adventuring!" he responded with delight, still laying on his chest with head extended toward the energetic pup "Keep that kind of spirit up and the cave will have a much more effective guardian than me!"
Indeed he had been slacking. Ever since his encounter with Yuma the ony one he'd really been guarding had been himself. If he kept staying on the defensive like this he'd have no quarter when something really bad happened, or when a minion more powerful than the monkey-thing appeared. Polaris would act as a fine bastion, but that didn't excuse him from exploring the rest of the cave as well, even the more dangerous parts.
Caught in thought, Xireidi almost missed as Kyorai bolted off in another direction. "Hey!" He exclaimed before stumbling up and starting the pursuit, having the presence of mind to grab the gifted glowing crystal first so he wouldn't trip over potentially unfamiliar terrain.
He lost a lot of time in the stumble and retrieval but the youth wouldn't be able to count him out just yet! Even if Kyorai's dark form blended in pretty well with the caves his scrambling was easy to follow by sound.
"The words I speak"
The thoughts I hold
And the self I keep hidden away
tags: @Kyorai
notes: Sorry about the delays, had fires to put out at work and stuff to do in afternoons
@Xireidi Small limbs were put out by force, exercising their mobility and distance. Each stride was different than the other as he tried to figure out which would put him ahead further and further. Bright eye took a peek over shoulder to see if company was behind, faintly could he see a glow but such light was becoming brighter with each hurried step. Pondering as he turned to view back in front of him, he barely slid by a rock that appeared in his way, snorting at slight carelessness. Such thing slowed him down but heart kept on pumping and legs pushing as he barely saw a cluster of crystals. Nearly there! The puppy would consider it a safepoint but they were to be more than that after reaching it. Although he planned to run directly toward the crystals he decided to go to the side in an abrupt change of direction. He hoped to have wolf loose sight of him for a second to deliver enough time for him to do what he needed to do. As he came around the cluster, a rock about his size stood a few inches from them, issuing the pup to charge at it. Once he threw himself to it and budged it a few centimeters, he felt lower sink which was good! Turning around, he went head first into the shallow hole, looking to hide from pursuer and perhaps give them a scare if successful. Since hiding spot was not very deep, rump and fluffy tail were sticking out a bit but with some rotating and pushing—self was under. The rock he collided with barely covered the hole so, mind hoped it would be enough. To the best of his ability, he tried to conceal his pants with quiet exhales and inhales. |
The face of the glowing crystal fogged as Xireidi's panting grew. His body would adjust quickly of course, but breaking into a full run from sitting still for so long was taxing on the wolf. His heart was beating faster, his adrenaline pumping. This was... really this was fun! How long had it been since he'd cut loose, really rushed around the caves with no purpose beyond obtaining food or getting stronger? Had he ever done that before? Perhaps when he was much younger his training had a lot more of a play element to it, but that mentality had been all but forgotten after his hibernation.
By now visual contact with the pup was completely gone. It didn't sound like he was running anymore either. Even if the pup had feathers Xireidi severely doubted he was capable of flight, Kyorai certainly would have been fluttering around already if he had been. That only left one good option: he was hiding somewhere.
The red wolf slowed to a stop and placed nose to the ground, fruitlessly attempting to pick up some kind of scent like Kyorai had suggested. All he could smell was dirt, perhaps some trace of something else that had passed by in some direction. How anyone was able to gain useful tracking information from that would remain a mystery for him.
His ears, however, would never fail him. His own breathing, while quieter now that he was no longer running, dominated the sounds of the cave. He started walking softly around the area, attempting to hear any kind of change in the environment.
"The words I speak"
The thoughts I hold
And the self I keep hidden away
tags: @Kyorai
notes: None