ORIGIN

Yellow confines held the creature within captive for far to long, the body slowly growing with sturdiness within the capsule. Strengthening claws pressed against the gem confines, slowly but surely, fur encapsulating flesh and the gemstone of power glinting within similar casing. The form pressed against the confines, the crystal cracking and groaning with pressure until finally the walls shattered. Yellow tourmaline surrounded the young cub as he laid there within the eyrie of stone. Cradling his body within its bowl-like shape.

Slowly the young cub rose to its paws, a low sneeze escaping tourmaline nose. Metallic eyes opened and stared out upon the new world he had found himself within. Darkness rolled within the lands, trees so high blocking out most of the light into a cool blue atmosphere. Murky water sloshed along the bank giving off the impression of danger, to leave it be. Low grasses and other plants decorated the earth and looked well enough off.

A wobbling step was taken into this new place.

Wet fur looked not to be its true brass coloration, but rather a muddy brown. He sat upon the earth, grooming what he could with the little dexterity within his body. Moisture was slowly leaked out of his body, drying within the midday air. With little light and warmth it would be a slow going process, not that he minded. He was far to exhausted mentally to care about appearances. Not when everything around him was so foreign and strange, from the plants to the earth. It was all to much for him to take in at once and threatened to suffocate him with how insignificant and small he appeared to be in comparison.

He felt alone, and being alone was something he was beginning to find he hated.

It was suffocating and threatened to cause his eyes to burn with tears. He was scared, a child within this strange place with no one to look to for guidance. He struggled with the fear of not knowing, of not being able to understand what he was supposed to do. His stomach was already starting to grumble and he didn't know what exactly was edible to him, nor did he trust the water to drink. So he stayed there, alone and scared, looking around for something to take away these negative feelings.

@Dragon

"Speech" - Magic - Link/Familiar

The alligator was making his way up the channel of water when he heard the soft, distinctive cracking of a breaking chrysalis nearby. It had been some time since last he had been witness to a hatching, and he turned, at once forgetting his idea of hunting along the cave spider nests.

Instead he hauled himself from the water, and into the reeds--but there was only silence.

He paused, listening--there! A quiet sneeze. Dragon seemed to grin in amusement--though he looked like that all the time, anyway--and hauled his heavy body through the marsh grass.

When at last he found the source, he paused. It was small, furry and muddy, and it reminded him, somehow (and with a faint twinge of grief for his missing 'kin') Czernobog, the massive boar he had once known. But this wasn't a boar, was it? Its face was different, and its limbs looked thicker, predatory. Well, whatever it is, it is but a hatchling. He eyed over the shards of gemstone scattered about a pace or two behind the cub, and then he crawled cautiously forward. He remained careful to stay in plain sight; it was not his intention to spook the bear cub.

"Welcome to the world," he rumbled, as quietly as he was able. The alligator had few tendencies toward kindness, but instinct still drove him to protect and nurture young hatchlings--alligator or not--and so he did. "I am Dragon. Can you speak?" Some of them could not speak at all upon hatching, he knew this; some knew but a few words, and others were fully capable. It was best to try and speak with the thing first, rather than merely guess at its needs.

The shifting of something within the reeds caught the young cubs attention, metallic eyes snapping to the new creature that presented itself. Quiet rumblings were spoken towards him and the negative feelings of loneliness began to ease. It was a greeting at first, then a question. The young cub knew very little, but he was willing to try this form of communication.

Low babbling escaping the cubs mouth before what could be deciphered as speech came fourth, "Thin' so", innocent eyes looked upwards at the creature he was attempting to speak to in conformation that he had done well. The complaints of his stomach fading into background noise while curiosity took its place.

His paw came fourth to try and touch the creature he was speaking to upon the snout in curiosity. Youth having not yet been exposed to proper social interactions just yet. The scaly hide looking far to interesting to young eyes, causing his fascination with the creature. His legs were wobbly and his balance completely thrown off, a slight breeze being more than enough to make the small child have a tumble. Despite this, he was determined to figure out just what he was speaking with.

More childish banter escaped his lips before something akin to words fell forward, "M' are you", the tail end clipping in the form of a question. He understood both him and this creature he had found to be so curious were different from one an other, but it still seemed to offer a sense of comfort towards the young cub.

@Dragon

"Speech" - Magic - Link/Familiar

Dragon peered. He blinked, briefly, when the cub tapped him--and almost laughed. He is very young, yes. A new hatching. He wasn't sure what the cub was trying to ask him, but they could get to that.

He gathered his thoughts, looking him over. When he had hatched, he had had only one thing on his mind: fighting the source of the buzzing that had awoken him, and then the giant angry creature that had emerged from the swamp. But then, he'd wanted food, and heat. And then sleep. ...So much sleep.

"Are you hungry?" he asked with another rumble. Meanwhile, he was already calling upon his magicka, willing his internal fire to become a little less purely internal.

There was a flash of heat, and he felt himself grow warm--and he struggled, for a moment, to prevent himself becoming far too hot. His clawed feet immediately began to hiss in the swamp's mud, and the tip of his nose grew quite hot. The top of his head, though--he knew from experience--should just be pleasantly warm. "I do not know what you are," he said to the cub, "but those who hatch in Cetus, I will aid! Come, if you wish, and sit upon my head, and I will take you to food."

It was, to be fair, a bit of a leap of faith--but Dragon did not consider that it might look a little suspicious, or at least intimidating, for an alligator his size to be asking a newly-hatched gembound to come over to his massive jaws.

His question went unanswered but that was well enough. His own childish babble difficult to understand. He instead smiled softly and watched as the creature began to speak once more, syllables moving to quickly for the young cub to understand. He did pick out some words such as head and food. The little one stumbled, having been on three paws for far to long, his body shifting backwards at the hissing ground. He could feel heat coming off the reptilian creature in waves and it was far more pleasant than the damp coolness he had been exposed to.

With as much nimbleness he could afford he attempted to crawl upon his new caretakers head, accepting the invitation.

He would curl up, enjoying the warmth that his reptilian caretaker was providing for him. Happily able to doze off, enjoying the peacefulness that was slowly starting to take root within his heart. No more loneliness, no more scary surroundings, and suddenly he didn't feel so small anymore. His stomach grumbled of course, but he was willing to ignore it until it became to much to ignore.

He felt his chest grow heavy, the sudden heat allowing a surge of strength within himself. He attempted to use Fauna Cleanse the alligators use of magic spurring a chain reaction within the young cub. His body wanting to increase his own health and strength to try and match the much stronger adult.

@Dragon

"Speech" - Magic - Link/Familiar

The alligator gave a quiet, satisfied grumble as the cub climbed aboard.

Faint, glowing nostalgia flickered through his mind like fireflies--a bristling young boar piglet riding on his head, an eaglet clutching his hide with her talons... His fatherly instincts were satisfied. With a sense of well-being he turned, slowly and carefully making his way to the water channel. As he slid his heavy body down the slope, the grass rustling beneath, he caught the distinct sense of magic being worked nearby. He wasn't sure what it had been--something near them? The cub, perhaps..?

He glanced upward, wondering; was it using magic already?

"Did you do something?" he asked. His thick tail began to propel them along the shorelines that led to the heart. Teaching a young Gembound of magic was important, he knew--the sooner they learned, the sooner they could defend themselves, and perhaps hunt. But he'd not have thought to speak of it to one so freshly-hatched. If it could do this already, then perhaps it deserved more consideration than he'd thought. Perhaps it would be powerful, some day.

Dragon slipped through the murk with steady strokes of his ridged tail, until at last the two glided out into the open lake. He stayed quite near the shore, and turning right, he paralleled it.

Finally a pile came into view--something dark and towering, a dozen feet high at least--but it was a ways off, yet.

He was taking the cub to eat.

The young cub felt energy rush through him as his magic was just barely used. His body filled with strength and well-being. It made the youth smile brightly, metallic eyes looking down upon his caretaker. He watched as they moved towards the water, a low breath being taken in slight fear of its murky depths. He curled in on himself, watching the water churn around them while his reptilian guardian transported him.

The words spoken were recognized somewhat, a smile coming to the cubs face. A shaky nod was given, enthusiasm evident in the movements he was making. Childish babble escaped his lips, small clips of words tumbling out every few syllables.

"M' me, m' did." a giggle escaped the cubs mouth. He leaned down and offered a few sniffs to the top of the alligators head, a large smile dancing across his face.

A few more giggles came fourth before a single words escaped his lips. "'s good?" The end of the sentence was clipped, the indication of a question being most of what he could manage.

@Dragon

"Speech" - Magic - Link/Familiar

Dragon grunted as he swam on. He thought, briefly, on how best to explain this to the newly-hatched--but it wasn't the first time he had done so. As the distant shape grew closer, a silhouette through the mist, he spoke.

"It may have been magic. Magic can do many things! It can harm your enemies, or bring light. It can find prey, or heal wounds! But you must practice with it. And use caution. The caves are dangerous, little one."

The cub was giggling, and Dragon tolerated this with good-natured indifference. His dark eyes flicked up, the heat slowly fading from his thick hide as he maneuvered around the massive offering pile. The scent was noticeable even from a distance--putrescent, and powerful. Closer still, it could be gag-inducing, though for Dragon, the odor of rotting carrion was appetizing rather than repulsive. He assumed it would be the same for any who would eat it--he had no idea what a bear was... or was not, or whether the stink would appeal to it.

The bottom of the pile was merely muck--rotted to near-liquid. Nearer the middle, other things were visible--bones, pelts blackened with rot, and here and there a skull staring lifelessly out. At the top were the fresh offerings--still quite edible, in various stages of decay. Fish, cave deer, rats and spiders made up the bulk of it, though here and there a bird or other, less-identifiable things were strewn through.

Dragon hauled himself onto land, alongside the source of stench, and lowered his head enough that Munkir could get off of it--if he so wished.

"Perhaps you do not yet understand--but this pile is an offering for our Father, Aquarian. We hunt for him, and he grants us his protection! Take what you wish; he has not eaten in some time."

The young child listened, slowly learning the ways of speech from the reptilian caretaker. Magic being of great interest to the young cub. Although he was distracted by the sudden onslaught of smell. The putrid smell of spoiling foods making his stomach roll. Suddenly a dip in the algid waters didn't seem like such a bad idea. They drew closer and the young cub wrinkled his nose in disgust.

He got off the alligators head when prompted and sneezed, tuning back into the caretaker as he spoke. The young one was able to pick out most of what he was saying now, listening with rapt attention. So much so, that the smell seemed to not bother him as much, or perhaps he had simply gone nose blind to it.

"Aquarian?" The bear smiled and tilted his head to the side, acquainting the name with the words protection and in turn safety. He smiled and nodded his head, showing that he was starting to understand his new home more and more. His head tilted upwards towards the pile of what he guessed was food. The bottom looking disgusting but the things at the top looking nice enough to eat. He waddled upwards, attempting to knock some fish down from the top, his instincts telling him that was the tastiest thing to eat out of the pile.

He teetered but managed to knock a few off the pile down to where he could comfortably eat them. He tumbled down after, rolling to a stop with nothing more than some dirt on his nose. A giggle escaped his lips and he dug into his prize, two nicely sized trout right there on the floor for him to eat. It wasn't fast or gorging, he ate with tentativeness and ease, making sure not to make to much of a mess. His ears and eyes flicking to his reptilian caretaker every few seconds in case anything was said or done.

@Dragon

"Speech" - Magic - Link/Familiar

The alligator blinked, and his grin would have--if it could have--widened as the cub managed to say Aquarian, of all things. Proudly he puffed up, just a little. As Munkir ate, he spoke.

Loudly.

"AQUARIAN IS OUR FATHER! He guards the Children of Rot, and we bring him food. He grants us protection--and knowledge." Dragon then hesitated. The young one was--well, young. He might not understand the idea of discretion... but then, often Dragon never saw a hatchling again after he aided them. They might die, he reflected--but more likely they left Cetus, to somewhere else in the vastness of the caves.

Or perhaps Father eats them, he reflected, a little worriedly.

Pushing that thought aside, he remained silent for a moment. Within his mind he grappled with the idea of warning the cub against the other Elders--or keeping silent for the sake of himself and the other Children. At length his cunning took hold, and he spoke more cautiously. "He is very large, and very old! Listen closely, young one... There are many very old Gembound--like you and I, but ancient--in these caves. Perhaps some can be trusted... but others are vicious, or betrayers. There have been those who would kill us all." There. True, vague, and unlikely to incite suspicion in the likes of Astrea should Munkir repeat Dragon's words around.

Dragon fell still again for a moment, watching Munkir very cleanly stripping meat from the trout. "Do you know your name?" he asked at last, his rumble more gentle than before.