ORIGIN

Rift looked around, admiring all the beautiful plants and flowers that sprouted all over Eridanus. He had been restless and traveling since the day of his hatching and an instinct deep in his bones demanded that he stop and find a home. He couldn't think of any better place then here.

But he needed to find a place, first. As he stepped through the thick undergrowth, brushing through the leaves of the bushes, his whiskers and nose twitched constantly, trying to pick up the musty scent of a cave or a nice hidden nook that could serve as a home. The smells of the forest flooded into his nostrils and he felt a surge of affection for ever leaf, every petal, every blade of grass he stepped through. Deep red carnations bloomed across his pelt and his heart lifted. Every moment that he felt this love, he wished he could express his affection for the nature of the caves. Especially Eridanus. He knew he would be happy here.

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

tags: here
notes: here

As he passed through a small clearing, he spotted a small collection of beautiful purple flowers. Curious, he leaned forward and sniffed them. They were crocus flowers and their scent was sweet and invigorating. Cheerful, he wondered if he could take some with him, but he was hesitant to pull them from the ground. Instead, he focused on his pelt and tried to let the magic seep into his skin. However, nothing came. Perhaps from the flowers that already rested there.

So he leaned down and carefully dug out the roots of the flowers, making sure not to break off one bit. Once he had scooped out the entire thing, he covered the pile of earth back and patted it down. Perhaps there were more seeds under there and the flower would grow again. He turned and set off again, holding a bundle of dirt and root flower in his mouth, heading deeper into the cave.

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

tags: here
notes: here

As rift continued to pad along, more sounds and scents entered his nose. Breathing deeply, he decided to take a break from the exploring. He carefully set down the flower roots he was carrying and laid himself on a patch of warm, soft grass. He closed his eyes and just breathed, letting the air of the cave melt into his body. This was living, this was happiness. Calla lilies started to spring from his skin and he smiled. If his magic kept reacting like this to Eridanu,s he was going to be a walking flower bed in no time. Of course, he would love that. He sat his head down, his tail curling with happiness and felt the soft breezes ripple his fur.

Birds singing, bugs buzzing, and the rustling of the leaves lulled him into a content sleep.

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

tags: here
notes: here

After napping in the clearing, Rift slowly found his way back to consciousness. Despite the warmth of the cave, sleeping in the open still made him shiver a bit. He stood from his spot, picked up his flowers, and continued to head deeper.

After a while, he began to feel something fluttering in his stomach. Nervousness? Excitement? Anticipation? He was coming upon something, something wonderful. Was it a home? New plants? Another gembound?

The trees began to grow denser together and Rift found himself having to weave through a path, dodging trees, large bushes, and fallen logs and branches. Fungus was littering the ground and he smiled, wondering if he should start practicing raising those, just as Kera had taught him.

All of a sudden, the line of trees stopped and Rift froze, the flowers falling from his mouth, which gaped wide in amazement. For he had reached a clearing and, in the middle of the clearing, was a huge, twisted, and ancient oak, a large gap in its roots at the base. Flowers and ferns littered the ground and all kinds of colorful fungus grew from the side of the trunk. Carefully stepping through the plants, Rift found himself at the base of the tree, staring up with wonder. At the command of the magicka that now ran free within him, gloxinia began to sprout from the ground, called from the earth by the sheer love that filled his being.

He carefully made his way forward, now focused on the inside of the tree. He stepped inside and looked around. The place was sheltered and dark and warm. the grass changed to soft, fertile soil that felt springy and comfortable under his paws. He loved it. This was it, this was his home. He never wanted to leave this place, ever.

He had some work to do.

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

tags: here
notes: here

Once the initial excitement of finding the tree wore off, Rift bounded out of the roots. First things first, he had to plant his flowers. He walked over to where he had left them and gingerly picked them up in his jaws. But where to plant them? He didn't want to yet move anything inside the shelter of the roots, as they wouldn't get any light. All of a sudden, he felt a jolt in his chest. If the lights went out again, would his beautiful plants die? He hoped not - he planned on taking good care of them.

He found a nice spot just near the end of the tree's roots and carefully dug the earth. He placed the roots of the flower and arranged them so that they would absorb the nutrients they needed before he packed the soil back into the ground. He stepped back and admired his handiwork. The looked nice.

But now there were no plants on the other side of the opening. Frowning, he stepped to the bare patch and wondered what he should put there. Maybe more of the purple flowers? He laid a paw on the earth and willed more of the flowers to grow from the earth.

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

tags: here
notes: here

A large patch of flowers emerged and he smiled as their sweet scent entered his nose. These flowers made him so happy.

Stepping back, he liked how they looked around the entrance to the roots. Next thing on his list was to relocate flowers so that there was a path from the forest to his new home. He thought that he should move them manually, but then he remembered that he could will them to move themselves. He turned away from the oak and mentally traced a path through the ferns and flowers and fungus that would be wide enough to walk comfortable, perhaps with a few others.

He focused, knowing that this was the spell he had the most difficulty with, and carefully released his magic.

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

tags: here
notes: here

He breathed a sigh of relief as the magic seeped through his skin and released through his paws. He felt the earth shifting before him as he willed the plants to move out of the way. He heard shuffling sounds and cracked open his eyes. He almost laughed at the sight of the flowers pulling themselves from the earth and moving, almost as if they were walking on their roots, to new areas where they stuck themselves back in the ground. Within a few minutes of intense concentration, the path was made and Rift released the spell.

He took a deep breath, starting to get tired with all the magical effort. He might have to finish this some other time. He had been walking all day and the nap he had taken in the clearing had seemed so long ago, even if it had been fairly recent.

He turned back to the roots of the tree, deciding that he would rest for now and continue once his magic had been restored. But first, he needed to make a bed.

Conjuring the last of his effort, he touched the ground and willed moss to arise.

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

tags: here
notes: here

A small patch of springy moss appeared before him and he happily scooped it up and lined a small, soft area with it. He settled onto it, savoring the warmth and dryness of the moss. Resting his head on his paws and curling his tail against his body, he drifted off into a blissful, peaceful sleep.

*exit

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

tags: here
notes: here

Rift (Original)

Rift (Original)

Rift (Original)

Rift (Original)

Rift (Original)

Rift (Original)

Rift (Original)

Rift (Original)