ORIGIN

Khloros listened, flicking an ear and huffing in thought. No, he could not eat rocks, but he already knew that, so he didn't bother responding. But something the little creature had said interested him.

"It hurts." Why does it hurt? I will ask it, but first-...

Khloros stared at the little weasel for awhile, then shook his mane as if to clear his thoughts.

"If you are always in pain, then being a God will not help with that," Khloros rasped calmly. The weasel's sobs didn't move him, or rather, he ignored them; he wasn't callous, but he had no real way--short of killing it--of removing its pain, regardless. "If you are always in pain, then being a King will not help with that," he explained. "Power will never help with that. Death is the only thing--or mending; and you have said you do not wish to die."

He paced forward slowly, idly, moving to circle Envy in an absent sort of manner as he continued. "I think that true Kings are Kings because they care for their people; they grow in power to protect the ones they love. There are always stronger things in the caves--things that might kill you, or kill your... 'Momma,'" he added pointedly, eyeing her with his lamplike eyes. "If it is power you seek, it might be best to seek power to defend them. To gather friends around you, or join with others, so that you can protect. But power will never take away your pain."

He then paused, again canting his head to one side to inspect the weasel. "What of your Mamma, hurts you? Do you dislike that she must hunt for you?"

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BRING OUT YOUR DEAD

Envy scowled at their words. "B-but..." they began to protest, but knew vaguely that they spoke the truth; and that meant by extension that they might never be happy. The little weasel groaned quietly. As the horse repeated their statement, driving home what they'd already said, the little one sighed deeply. "I still want it, though," they insisted pathetically, clinging to the faintest thread of envy.

Their neck twisted in order to warily follow the pacing horse, nose wrinkling. They shuddered, again a thrill of fear running from their nose to the tip of their tail. But they tried to hold it down. Their explanation only served to beat down their wish further; there was no way they'd ever be able to protect anything. Aaliyah could never be protected by them, nor could Amras; they never needed protecting. Envy did, though, and they hated it. They tried to imagine themselves standing protectively over someone, but they couldn't see it. It seemed like the very definition of a chore, to them.

They finally shook their head. "What is it that I can have, then?" they whined, voice breaking in despair. "What will make me happy? I don't understand. It doesn't make sense. I want it, so surely I'll be happy when I have it!" They stamped a paw in frustration.

They sniffled again, but this time they held back their sobs, gulping down the lump in their throat. They narrowed their eyes, before finally closing them, fidgeting their front paws and twitching their tail. "N-no... It's just that... seeing her do everything I can't do makes me sad. I want to be strong and big like her, but I can't. I want to feel good like her, but I can't. I can't do anything but she can do everything. It doesn't matter how much I try... She just has everything that I need, but she can't give it to me. It's impossible!" their voice rose into yet another high pitched chirp.


"Speech"

Khloros gave a soft whicker as he thought.

"I do not," he said again, "know everything. But, I wonder--you wish to have what others have and you wish to be unburdened of your pain. It is interesting--you want things you perhaps cannot have. Or perhaps age will bring you experience, and peace."

Khloros stepped closer, extending his head down, calling on his magic in an absently idle sort of fashion, tapping into the threads that wound him to all the caves and drawing forth the power that lay dormant there.

"What if you imagined, that you were a king, or a God? What if you pretend; and picture, in your mind, what it is like? If you had a dozen servants, and a dozen guards; yet you were still in pain. Would you be happy, then?" Khloros was, as before, dully curious. There was, in his mind, no right or wrong answer--it was just a matter for thought, a prompting for the little Gembound to find her own way.

And as he spoke, he called up what magic he could, sending a breath of his rancid air in a cloud toward the smaller creature--but one meant to strengthen and mend, not to harm.

Would it do anything for its pain?

He was not sure; but it would do no harm to try.

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BRING OUT YOUR DEAD

Envy didn't know how to respond. They opened their mouth, and then closed it. "That's right," they said eventually. They hoped that maybe they'd get over their sickness; or perhaps their flesh would grow to surround the gem, burying the toxins and the hunger pains long in the past. They imagined to themselves, lost in the bliss of that reality, then they'd be happy.

They tilted their head to consider their question, and it felt more like a proposition to them. They tilted their head far to the side and flicked their tail. "Why would I do that? It still wouldn't make it come true." they closed their eyes and thought hard to themselves, but the longer they did so the more curious they became. If they pretended to themselves, would others come to believe it too? Then, when enough Gembounds believed them, would it come true? From Khloros' words, it seemed like all a king needed was subjects, and all a God needed was belief.

In other words, they needed to make an impression. But how would they do that?

Not by crying, that was for sure.

"Khloros," they chirped, eyes opening again. "If I pretend really hard, will it come true? Will others believe it too? Is that what you meant?" They saw the large head once again leaning in, and before they could ask any more questions, a warm and rancid breath was washing over them. They recoiled, coughing and choking in the stench, curling, twitching and fidgeting as they bounced as far away from the horse as they could without leaving them entirely.

"Gross!" they yelled angrily, pawing at their face to get rid of the stench clinging to their nose. "What was that for, idiot?!" But no sooner had the words passed their lips than the nausea began to subside, and related aches and pains subsiding. although they could still taste the bitterness of their gem, its effects were dulled; at least until the next time they tried to eat. They peered suspiciously at the horse, thinking that it had something to do with their terrible breath, but also doubting it.


"Speech"

Khloros peered at Envy, blinking at its words.

'Will it make it so..?' Does this little one truly need to be taught how to imagine things?

Patient, he set himself doggedly to the task of explaining--but first, he needed to calm Envy down. It was skittering away in fear of his magics--and by Orion's stars, it was loud.

"It is my magic," he rasped. "It is meant to help you. To make you feel a little better, for awhile, but it may not work. I do not know."

There was, as it was turning out, quite a great deal that the black horse did not know.

"Imagine things, Envy, and you may learn something about the things that you imagine. You might see things with new perspective. You might know something you did not before--a warning, or an urge. Something you would not have otherwise foreseen. You might see something wrong with it, or something in particular you realize that you must ensure comes to pass. Or you might realize you do not want it at all. Or you might see a new way to make it happen," he finished.

There. He--thought, that was right? Had he said everything he'd meant to, so far?

I think so. Although--

Khloros peered down, thoughtful. He remembered a long-ago numbat, in a flood of warm, bittersweet memory that held more emotion than he had, as a whole, felt for many cycles.

"I remember one very like you. Do not ever feel that size is a barrier to great things. When I hatched, there was a little one, not much larger than yourself. He aided me, and he aided others; and they helped him, later. I remember, he was friends with a dragon," Khloros added thoughtfully. He remembered, too, that this dragon--a strangely puffy white and pink thing--had not been good, but the point remained--"Size matters little, when there will always be larger, or more, and we have powers of gods within us."

It didn't occur to Khloros that Envy might take this differently than he meant--that rather than forging bonds and taking things slowly, Envy might be tempted to gather darker allies to serve its "godlike powers."

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BRING OUT YOUR DEAD

Envy once more pattered closer to the horse, crinkling their nose, but staying just far enough away that they didn't catch another whiff of that rotten scent. "Oooh..." they said, a look of realization creeping over their young face which was quickly replaced by a look of resignation.
"Well, I'm glad I don't have that magic. It smells terrible!"

Envy listened, and found themselves nodding slowly, although the meaning of the words themselves was lost. Imagine, imagine, imagine... was one of the only things that was clear. Imagine what? Envy thought to themselves. Imagine that everything is fine? Pretend everything is fine? it didn't sound very fun, but they wondered if it'd be beneficial. You couldn't be great if you were so sick and so weak, could you? Could you? Just like how someone big could easily crush them into the dirt without a second thought. so, if Envy pretended that everything was okay, maybe they could be something great. Maybe it would even heal them, like how you can't see something behind a wall. Similarly, building walls around their feelings might make them disappear.

Envy looked as though they'd never thought so hard in their life, their eyes narrowed and tongue poking slightly out, whilst their tiny claws ground themselves into the dirt. Finally, they spoke. "I'm gonna pretend," they said to Khloros, as though they'd heard nothing. "That's gonna make other Gembounds come with me, right? If I be everything they want me to be. Or if I act great. And then I'll feel better too 'cause I'll pretend to myself that I'm fine, and then I'll believe it."

They tilted their head once again, listening as they described someone who they once knew. They shuddered slightly, imagining large, scary creatures in the cave. But also, they were emboldened. So, all they'd need was strong friends, huh? Envy could make friends with a dragon! if they found out what a dragon was, that is.

They also found themselves fidgeting at the mention of godlike powers. "Even me?" they asked.


"Speech"

Khloros peered, listening.

It was becoming clear, now, that the weasel was entirely missing the point. He considered, and tried again.

"If you think about something before you do it, you will see it more clearly. It can help you to plan. That is what I mean, by imagine," the black horse tried to explain.

"But--yes. If you lie, others may come to your lie. That is true." He didn't bother to go over the moral ramifications of this; his mind was still pondering over just how terrible his magic must have seemed to the little one. Was it that rancid?

He shook his mane with a soft snort, pushing the thought away. It was asking, now, if it too could be a God, or a king,

"The only thing that can stop you," Khloros said thoughtfully, "is failure."

Deep wisdom, or oblivious obviousness?

Whatever it was, it would, Khloros thought, do. Satisfied with his words, he fell silent, watching Envy with that same blank, faint curiosity.

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BRING OUT YOUR DEAD

Envy narrowed their eyes slightly, huffing out a short and exasperated breath through their sharp teeth.

Think before you act?

Well, that was a much simpler way of putting it. "Why didn't you just say that in the first place?!" the little weasel whined, feeling humiliated. Then they huffed. "But I'll remember that," they added grumpily. It would probably come in handy, anyway; the words were usually out of Envy's mouth before their brain had much of an input and truth be told, such a thing might end up with them being eaten one day.

They shuddered.

They did seem pleased with Khloros' agreement at their earlier thoughts, however, and curled themselves up on the ground, paws folding under their chest as they watched the death-horse. They felt their stomach beginning to growl again, and licked their lips, knowing that they'd soon have to find something to eat, whether they returned to the stream or not. The sense of weakness was beginning to return to their limbs, and even though they felt stronger from Khloros' stinking spell, it hadn't provided them with nourishment, only strength and a clarity that they'd always craved. They could get used to this.

The small weasel listened once more, and this time a wry grin crawled over their face. "So... If I never stop trying, I'll never fail?" they asked, the smirk sticking to their rounded muzzle and with pointed teeth bared, looking almost wicked.


"Speech"

Khloros snorted softly through his nose, and pricked up long ears.

"What is defeat?" he asked, and he considered his own question. "I believe it is when you are beaten. So long as you keep trying, you are not beaten. Unless, of course, you die," he added thoughtfully.

"So perhaps you can die, or give up, but if you do not give up, you will succeed. If you stay alive." He nodded his long head. That seemed right, to him.

He then eyed Envy with his lamplike eyes, wondering. "Pain is a bad thing," he told Envy. "You want to be a God or a King to keep your pain away. Remember... if you cause others pain. They will do anything to be rid of you, too. If you do not cause pain, I think it is easier to succeed in what you try."

He kept watching her, fairly indifferent, but attentive nonetheless. He remembered the lying fox who had used them for his own gains. "I knew one who lied, who made many think he was their friend. When they found that he had been lying, using them. This hurt them. And so they pushed him from them. I think he is dead, now," he added. He wasn't sure, but he had not seen Louie in many cycles.

It was best, Khloros thought, if Louie had died. He had been carrying a lot of pain.

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BRING OUT YOUR DEAD

Envy listened eagerly. "So, if I never die, I'll never fail! I'll keep trying and trying, until I have what I want!" The little one fidgeted with excitement, bouncing on the spot. "So I'll have everything eventually! I will!" However nefarious its words may have seemed, the childish joy in the weasel's voice was unmistakable.

But Khloros' next words again brought confusion and fear to their heart again. They considered again what their words could mean. Others will want to hurt you. Don't get attached. Don't trust in case they turn against you. they considered long and deep, running over their words again and again in their mind. The conclusion they'd come to didn't seem to fit. "Don't worry, I think I'm too small to hurt anyone," they told Khloros, and that was true. But anyone else... well, they could be squashed flat in a heartbeat. Envy once again shuddered, twitching the end of their tail.

Envy listened to their tale of yet another creature who had once lived in these caves, and tilted their head. "That doesn't sound so bad," they said, appearing relieved. None of it seemed violent. The horse hadn't said anything about them fighting one another. it wasn't as though anyone had been killed. Right?

And, when Envy couldn't do something on their own, surely it'd make sense to use someone else's. like sharing. Like when Aaliyah hunted for them when they couldn't. Or like when Amras gave them the glowing stone. Was that wrong?

Aaliyah wasn't going to leave them, right?

Envy suddenly felt an itching need to run back, and bundle into their mother's warm fur. They needed to know that she wasn't going to leave, that everything they'd done so far was okay. That she was okay with being used like this. They'd never survive without Aaliyah.

They were hungry, too. They were going to need her again.

Envy turned and without a second thought began to bound away on tiny limbs, without a glance back at Khloros. They still weren't quite sure where the stream lay, but they'd have to find it.


"Speech"