ORIGIN

There had been some unfinished business Kera left behind when she fell asleep. Two stones laid in a crumpled building, right where she'd left them. The first, a sphere of larimar, as pale as the sea. The second, a twisted stone of ammolite, half-fused into the skull of a creature she didn't recognize.

She was nervous, but she didn't know why.

Perhaps because she didn't know who they were when they were alive. Perhaps it was the fear that they'd become something like Blackberry, horrible and insane and murderous. Kera wouldn't want to have to murder a fresh hatchling because she thought they'd turn out to be a goose, or worse, a victim that remembered how they died.

Kera knew she had to suck it up, however. Breathe life into them.

With one long breath, Kera shut her eyes. She reached out for the twisted, crown-like ammolite first, concentrating. She wasn't entirely sure if she was doing it right, but regardless, she felt the magicka rising to her throat, spiralling in her head, and then leaking out of her mouth and into the cold rock.

To her surprise, it took root. The chrysalis turned, almost churning, and then planted itself into the rock. Growing new life. When Kera opened her eyes, she stared at it with hope flooding her belly.

Tentatively, she nuzzled the rock with the tip of her nose. The cold, dead ammolite had seared up with warmth under the cool shell. With a breath, the wolf looked towards the smaller sphere of larimar.

Smaller. Weaker, perhaps.

Kera tried to shake the nervous claws raking into her back. With another long, steadying breath she reached out for the second dead stone and pushed her nose against it.

The familiar feeling of magicka rose in her throat like bile, spilling out of her mouth. It was warm enough that it might as well have been steam rolling into the stone, but a flicker of hope stirred in her belly that it did, at least, feel the same as when she gave life to the other stone.

It took root, too-- just like the other. For a moment, Kera only stared at the two growing stones before she turned back towards the entrance of the crumpled building, settling herself down. Her heart was still racing in her chest but, regardless, she shut her eyes and tried to sleep.

She'd defend them, if she had to. She'd make sure they'd be reborn.