ORIGIN

Kethri blinked as she listened to Doctor ramble, finding herself... interested? How odd. She followed the Doctor and inspected the rats, looking back up at him as he explained further.

"... So you're doing good with morally questionable actions,", she hummed, before nodding, "Sounds alright. I am curious... what made you start to do this? Was it these... Sentinels? Or did they find you after you had started?"

She found herself intrigued with the bird (though she desperately wanted to preen his shaggy feathers, and her own), and even more so with his ramblings.

"What's your name?", she finally asked, looking up, "You have one, right? You may not care, but I'm Kethri."

Trust hadn't yet formed, but she did think that perhaps she could find a way to benefit them both. Perhaps by assisting the vulture. If anything went wrong, she could leave, as the Doctor had said.

Maybe she'd convince him to possibly stick something in Delta's rear. Like a pin. Or a dozen pins. Hm.

@Doctor

"Morally questionable-? He paused, as if this had never occurred to him, then gave a sort of twenty-pound-vulture-shrug. "Well, I suppose I'd never considered the moral aspect. Is there morality-? Whose, then--whose do we judge it by? I am doing good for the sake of all Gembound; surely a little sacrifice is not much to ask, hm?" He didn't seem particularly bothered either way.

"Oh, I am simply Doctor. And I normally refer to my patients and subjects as numbers--best to keep a professional distance, you see--but it's good to meet you either way, of course. Now; as for the Sentinels, yes, they'd--oh, sort of run into me, I suppose? It's been so long, I can hardly remember!" He gave a laugh, here; he'd been doing this for as long as he remembered, and, well, "It just worked out very well. They had need of a medic, and I have need of research subjects, so it works for both of us," he explained.

"Now, if you do get thirsty, there is water up there; if the pain increases let me know and I will bring you more leaves but you cannot have too many. And there's rats, if you do get hungry," he added--gesturing up at the rats, and the upturned water-skulls above. "We must be sure to remain hydrated, yes?"

@Kethri

Kethri sighed, "Morals are just a way to pretend you're good when you're actually an awful person. No one's a good person."

She fluffed up her feathers and felt a bit disgruntled about recieving a number, but brushed it off. She wasn't hungry, but she was a tad thirsty, so she made her way over to the skulls, taking a small drink before gulping down more. It seemed she was less hydrated than she thought.

At Doctor's story, she looked up, listening to his vague tale before making her way back to her previous corner. She stuck out her wing and started to preen, the task rather repetitive, but that's what she liked about it. It was soothing.

"Thank you,", she said again, before returning to her preening, head swiveling around all the way to reach her back feathers.

To most, it would seem unnatural to look at, with her face turned a full 180 degrees with no pain or discomfort whatsoever. A useful trick for when you were a sentinel looking for more prey to catch and eat.

@Doctor

Doctor settled down comfortably a few yards off--a towering, hulking figure of a bird but by all appearances, nothing but thoughtfully cheerful. He seemed to take to the new topic enthusiastically; perhaps he didn't get much conversation, here, or maybe he was just the talkative sort.

"It would depend on definitions, too, yes? Good, or bad; how does one define that, hm? Perhaps one Gembound's definition is different than another's, and then, who is correct? Or is there some universal meter, of things that are good, things that are bad and we have yet to figure them out?"

He paused to lift one thick-taloned foot, to scratch beneath his beak, then continued. "Or perhaps there is no good, or bad, but only things that we do, and things we have the power to do. But that seems wrong, does it not-? To cause pain, with no benefit--surely that is not a good thing, and so good and bad must be defined, by the actors if nothing else. Perhaps we might say, 'good' is an action that causes more positive, ah, emotion, and response, in the long run. And then 'bad,' is something that does not. A selfish behavior that harms many and benefits the self is 'bad,' then; but then, when we kill one to save several, is that 'good?'"

Doctor shrugged. "It is certainly a quandary, and I have not seen any answers written in stone. But it sounds as though you imagine that we are all 'bad,' underneath; I am interested in this. What do you think makes us bad; why is there no one 'good?'" It wasn't some strange, guiding therapy question--he sounded genuinely interested in this perspective, even after his own long babbling.

@Kethri

Kethri listened to the Doctor rambling as she cleaned off her good wing, smoothing the feathers down so it would be ready for flight when she healed. She looked up when she was asked a question and looked down.

"... I haven't met anyone except your that hasn't tried to kill me, or has been weirdly hateful towards me,", she said, "I hate everyone so that I can be pleasantly surprised when someone half-decent comes along. And I have."

What an oddly optimistic way to be pessimistic.

"An owl I met threw me against a tree,", they grumbled, feathers fluffing up, "I couldn't fly because I was so dizzy and yet they had the audacity to say sorry when they weren't. That flying thing that left also tried to kill me. Snuck up on me and we insulted each other until it poisoned me and brought me here for who-knows-why. Generally I keep to myself or I push everyone away."

Kethri shook her head and huffed, "Don't question my reasoning. I'm just... bitter I got handed a short stick. I haven't needed friends... or anyone, for that matter. I've hunted, slept, flown til I couldn't anymore, all alone and by myself, and it's been perfectly fine with me."

@Doctor

Doctor did not show much emotional reaction to what was otherwise an undoubtedly series of tragic admissions. He just stayed bright, cheerful, as if not affected at all, as he responded.

"Ahh, an adaptation from past experience, then. Wise! Adaptable. We learn through what we encounter, yes? Though-! I do wish you better encounters in the future, Three." -He paused. "Ahh--Kethri. Three. Ha, it is a part of your name already!"

He turned and waddled to the rats. "Excuse me for a moment." His back momentarily turned to the owl--perhaps for politeness--Doctor planted a taloned foot down on one. There was a crack of bones, and then he tossed back his head some and gulped it down.

He then turned back. "We must hunt, yes? And these creatures are a force of learning. So satisfying when they may serve two purposes--less waste," he explained. It seemed to be less an attempt at convincing Kethri so much as idle conversation.

@Kethri

Kethri honestly appreciated how Doctor didn't change his demeanor at all, even spinning her stories into reasoning as to why she was so distrustful and hateful of others. She stared at him for a moment before bursting out into sudden giggles at his realization that conviniently, her name already had her number in it.

"What a coincidence,", she hummed, before watching him walk off.

She didn't flinch at the crack of bone, but the lack of death squealing did irk her slightly. She watched him gulp it down and a sort of "oohh..." feeling came over her. It made sense, Doctor wasted nothing in his efforts.

"Doctor,", she said, hopping forward lightly, "I have a question... the sutures, will you use the same sort of process as you did putting them in as you will getting them out? Will they come out?"

Honestly? Kethri didn't want them to remain longer than was needed. She felt uncomfortable at the thought of it, despite it helping her. And strangely enough, the more she talked with Doctor, learning things and listening to him, the more she found herself... satisfied.

@Doctor

He glanced at Kethri, a little quizzically but not bad-natured, as she laughed. At her question, he turned back, eyeing her wing, and waddled toward her again.

"The progression of the wing-mending will depend on, and change, many factors. I need to keep it clean of infection--this is very important--and I may need to replace the grass should it die and wilt. I have used drier, thicker grass--I find it works better than thin, green plants, which wilt away and lose strength quickly. If all goes well? The wing will mend correctly, and I can draw the grass out afterward. It will need to be pulled free, which may hurt," Doctor went on, matter-of-factly, "but then you will be able to fly again. In the worst-case scenario, there will be difficult infection--I can cleanse it, but sometimes it is tenacious-!--and the grass will need replacing. A lesson I have learned from the rats is this: if it is a terrible case, and the sutures must be removed and replaced, it is best to put in new ones first. Otherwise, the wound would open--or in your case, the bone might break a second time!--if the original grass is removed before another brace is put in place."

His single eye was scrutinizing the wing, intent and thoughtful. "Can you tell me how exactly it broke?" he asked, after a moment's thought. "The prognosis is worse if the break is ugly; I am assuming a clean one but I have no way to see bone."

He tried to use his magic to do so, but there was nothing; it would not help him in this regard.

@Kethri

Kethri listened rather intently, standing at attention while the vulture explained the process. If she could take notes, she would be, finding this all much more interesting than her life had been so far.

"Ah- the flying rat did something to hold me still, so I fell to the ground on my shoulder,", she explained, frowning in distaste, "There was a pop and then I couldn't move anyway because the venom took effect. Then they dragged me here."

The owl shook her head out and prowled around the area for a moment or so, wondering if there was a good spot to roost and rest up a bit. She eyed a ledge nearby, wings twitching. She bobbed up and down a few times before jumping up, good wing flapping just enough that her claws latched on. She clambered up the rest of the way and fit herself onto the narrow strip of wall, turning her head around to peer at Doctor rather than attempt to turn around completely.

"Hey... you work with Delta,", she said, finally using their name for once, "Who else do you work for? Are they like... clients, or partners? Do you get anything out of it?"

@Doctor

Single eye widened a touch at Kethri's matter-of-fact recounting. "Ahh, I should have--asked beforehand. It might have just been dislocated and then the weaving would have been a mess! Ha. Lesson learned for the future, ahem. As for your question," he went on, settling in, "they call themselves the Sentinels of the Sands. The leader is a sandy-colored fellow, but I haven't seen him around in some time--resting, I think. And as a... hm, a sort of adjunct, I'd say, they have one of the so-called cave Overseers. Or no--he is a Master, now, I think? -I'm not entirely sure how promotions work among the cave authorities," Doctor added, leaning forward to deliver this line in a conspiratorial, amused whisper.

"They test the strong, sending willing test subjects into Hydra. Some die, I think... The survivors are rewarded. I'm unsure why they do this, but I am present in case they need medical treatment. And it gives me the chance to gather knowledge, with both protection and, well. Test subjects of my own," he explained, with a slight shrug of his birdy wings.

And then, politely, he peered at Kethri and asked: "And you-? What do you do?" -as if professions were commonplace in the caves.

@Kethri