Under layers of cold rock and earth, hidden beneath the ruins that covered Orion, ran a river - one that connected to every other room in the caves. The water was calm and cold, cradling the object that lay on the riverbed below. It was huge, partially buried in the dirt that covered the river's bottom, and shiny, almost seeming to glow whenever a flash of light happened to catch on its crystalline surface.

From within, the object hummed softly, a lilting, helpless noise, as if something inside was trapped, unable to escape. Indeed, this was the case: if one looked closely, a shape was encased within the egg, black pelt stark against the pale white-blue of the rock. Though the babe struggled continuously, flippers smacking into the chrysalis again and again, it would not give.

Panting, the Gembound took a break, squeezing its eyes shut to try and think of some way to escape. Aaaeeeeh. A deep breath, and the little one - although it wasn't exactly little, already the size of a small boat - focused hard, trying to find some way out.

post roll:
And just like that, a sharp whistle erupted from the baby orca, echoing about the inside of the chrysalis, bouncing from edge to edge, giving her a better picture of what, exactly, they were in. Eki eee ah? Another whap of flesh against crystal, and a crack formed in the egg, letting in fresh waves of water. Tired out, the babe relaxed, focused on breathing deep and easy for the time being.

sea language land language thoughts

hover over sea language for translations

Oh, Bartos was happy to mind his own business, walking around his room of stars on one of his regular routine patrols. It wasn't really a patrol, and more like a... daily check for anything that may have changed, looking around for any cool rocks, etc. The cat didn't expect any to just show up out of the blue, but every now and then something did, or he'd detect something with his magic, and just like that, he was off on a new mission to find yet another rock to add to his collection. He enjoyed the solitude - his mind wasn't so committed to thinking as it was to just absorbing the scenery around him. It was hard for him to walk around and think of stuff at the same time, so Bartos mostly just focused on absorbing the cave room and looking at the buildings, examining the rocks he found there.

Nearby he could hear the sound of rushing water. Bartos had decided to visit the spring, and after taking a drink from the water, almost immediately he felt his bladder swell. Oh geez. I need to pee! The kitten bit his lip for a moment. It wasn't often that his urges found him in the middle of a walk - he had a designated bathroom area, after all, so this? This was a little awkward for him. Drawing his legs together, Bartos took a quick glance around. Well... there wasn't really anybody here... he could probably get away with letting loose behind a wall or something. With a sniff, Bartos ran over towards a building, hiding himself away behind the wall. There was still considerable space between him and the wall of the room, but at least he wouldn't be in front of prying eyes. There, the cat lowered himself into a squat, preparing to relinquish the pressure in his bladder-

When a loud CRASH and a blast of air announced the shattering of a chrysalis from above, and a massive creature suddenly fell out of nowhere, landing on the ground behind him. Bartos shrieked, jumping and whirling around before promptly wetting himself.

It was a whale. A whole, giant, goddamn whale.

Out of the corner of her milky eyesight, the Gembound within the crystalline egg saw a flash of grey. The sudden movement made them jump, whacking into one side of the chrysalis with rubbery flesh. Working herself into a panic, the little one only stopped when a clear whistle rang through the water, and she clicked back, trying to worm closer to the crack that had split the egg. "Aaaeee areeh ah!" At the sound and feel of tapping, the orca whistled in relief, clicking picking up speed as they practically danced about inside the egg. When the query came, filtering through the slowly widening opening into the chrysalis, the child stilled, clicking thoughtfully.

"Areeh e eekii," she called back, tilting her head to peer out of the crack with a curious eye. The orca practically beamed at the sight of Eeya, taking in the dolphin with a happy whistle. "Koo oooara kaaa Moana!" Another trill, and she reeled back, slamming her tail into the egg's new weakness as hard as she could. With a dull crack! the chrysalis fell open, and the orca shimmied out of it with a bob of her head, swimming closer to the friendly dolphin, vibrant grey-blue eyes practically shining with gratitude.

"Koo eee ee Moana?"

sea language land language thoughts

hover over sea language for translations