ORIGIN

Teyouma woke from a lengthy sleep feeling rejuvenated, ready to take on the caves again. He descended from his treetop roost beside the Monarch and began to prowl throughout the maw; along the way he investigated plants he did not recognize or veered along paths that were winding throughout the ferns.

He was hungry. The last time he had felt this way it had been a much stronger feeling. The hunger had eaten away at him from the inside out, leading to his hibernation. As he roamed among the mossy crevices of Eridanus he knew one thing for certain: he would never let himself starve like that again.

Eventually he made his way to the center of the room. There he descended until there was nowhere else to go. The trench was immense; it felt damp but not too cold. As he grew adjusted to the retreating light this far down among the lowest groves of the forest, he found a solid object to climb which rose out of the murk. He did not realize the segments that formed this raised pathway were built of spinal column, only that they afforded a dry avenue of exploration.

From along these bones he surveyed his surroundings, hunting for anything he could catch and eat. Unfortunately, he couldn't see much through the mist.

A grimace spread across his face as he realized how difficult any hunt would be here. The mist was thicker along the belly of the trench, soupy and swirling. As he climbed along another of the bone segments Teyouma's supercilious nature was cemented by his hastily souring mood. If he could not find something warm to eat then he would have to look through the plant life for things that could be edible. The chance of making himself sick was pretty high and so he was wary.

A tirade of irritated commentary flooded his mind as he descended one side of the mound he had perched on, in to the mist and the muck, and his tail spiked and writhed, whipping the air.

He focused on finding something, as he had before within the bone fortress. Maybe he could find a decent plant to eat, or sense a creature with the probe of his magic, or even an item - and as the energy fluoresced in his stone heart, he felt it: a strobe of something not far off.

Along he went. His irritation ebbed each time he used his magic, which was good because it helped for him to focus if he was going to find anything and it would be easier to do so if he wasn't so angsty. Leaping from one segment to another, Teyouma crossed beneath a massive curving rib bone, hurrying to travel across the raised dry areas whenever possible - summoning the energy and then waiting patiently for the result.

After gathering up the two specimens that the spells drew him towards Teyouma took a moment to rest. The spells had taken a little bit more energy than he had meant to utilize. He was glad to have come away from this with something - even if food was his true aim. As if on cue with that thought, something moved in his periphery and he jolted after the shape through the mist; it looked small, at least compared to himself, but quick. The possibility of a meal was enough to coerce him to action. He tucked the newfound stones close to his body and began to scramble in pursuit of the shape shrouded in the mist, vanishing among the pale.