forward-dated to be after cycle 121!

Zoey was nervous. She had thought it over and over and over again, psyching herself up and tearing herself down. To complete Emuh's trial would unlock her capacity to do even more for her family, but that meant a challenge that she knew nothing about. Would it require more of her than she could give? She shuttered to imagine.

Thankfully, she didn't have to be herself so much for this challenge. She could fall back on a familiar backbone, the Zoisite, one of the kaiju of the forge. A beast more than a person. It was easier to put on the mask, to put forward a braver front.

So they walked to the great door in Polaris beyond which Emuh's trial awaited them. Well... What had once been a door. Now it was a gaping hole in the wall, that stretched forward into a silent alcove. They clutched in one arm, tucked into their underbelly, a collection of objects for the mysterious Trial-Holder:

An enchanted, flat plane crystal that shimmered with beautiful colors. A scroll that had, in Zoey's own handwriting, transcribed the entirety of episode one of Over/Seen!... And a larger gemstone that had seven different animated baubles upon each of its sides, depicting seven separate scenes from the very same episode. It had taken two entire days to craft.

Zoisite was proud of their work. It had taken true effort. They did not know if Emuh would like it, but that did not take away from the craftmanship of it.

"Good morning, Emuh!" The Zoisite clacked, their rumbling voice echoing off of the stone of Polaris's walls. "My name is V-Zoisite-One. May I enter?"

@V-Labradorite-One is allowed to come along also if Snail wants :)

It felt nervous- potentially even more nervous than Zoey- which didn't make sense, considering it wasn't the one about to test itself today.

It was supportive of it's clutchmate- of course it was!

It was happy that The Zoisite felt strong enough to try doing this. But it couldn't stop thinking about moments where Zoey wasn't strong enough. Cracked chitin and ichor and anger. And The Zoesite wasn't weak but it was... gentle.

And it couldn't help but think I should be the one doing this. I should be stronger.

Zoey's many gifts earned her an odd look and the gentle question of "Are you sure those offerings are necessary?" It knew how much work she had put into each of them. Maybe that was her way of practice, and showing off her efforts. But it also knew she was kind, kinder than some deserved, and fond of giving gifts.

It had kept that blue flower tucked in the corner of it's sleeping nook until it had wilted into nothing.

It would pause just outside the door to the trail chamber- it doubted it would be welcome inside. It would awkwardly bend it's torso as low as it could in an attempt to be more level with The Zoisite.

"Good Luck." Please don't get hurt.

@Zoey

A massive black owl shot out of the silence of the room beyond, after about twenty seconds' wait. It thudded down heavily before Zoisite, talons scratching rock, and eyed her up and down. Oily, ragged feathers shifted as it spared Labradorite a passing, dismissive glance. "TOO WEAK." The appraising look returned to Zoisite. "YOU, THOUGH! ARE YOU HERE TO TAKE EMUH'S TRIALS?"

An aura, one that seemed a soft hiss of constant whispers, shifted abruptly--changing to soft, glowing purple light. This gleamed off the owl's curled horns, and set off the emerald of his eyes. How fancy.

@Zoey

"Well, no... They're not necessary," the Zoisite answered as they waited, wondering if they would simply be turned away in silence as the seconds seemed to stretch on. "But I thought he might appreciate it." It was difficult to explain why it had all felt so important. Maybe it was the physicality of the objects, now held in clutched talons, that had given them the conviction to go through with this at long last.

(Because, even if we don't succeed, maybe we could make Emuh's day a little brighter.)

The Zoisite's mandibles clicked, about to response to the well wishes of Labradorite, when suddenly--

-- suddenly, the owl burst from the darkness, a huge black shadow, and Zoisite's quills bristled as it recoiled, golden eyes wide and mandibles snapping with surprise. The stranger landed before the Zoisite, however, and the momentary fear that they were under attack faded as quick as it had come. She could almost laugh at how ridiculous her own reaction was...

TOO WEAK. Emuh's voice, harsh and grating, seemed to snarl from that hooked beak. They straightened, a flare of disagreement in their heart. Labradorite was not weak-- but this burst of defensive anger was something deeper within the Zoisite. They exhaled. It was not-- A great first impression, but Emuh was... A recluse.

"V-Labradorite-One," the Zoisite said, "is here to watch. I am here for-- two things." They reared back upon their final set of limbs, and unfolded the arm that held their assorted gifts, delicately placing them upon the threshold. "Firstly, it is nice to meet you. I brought you these... I hope you will like them. One is decorative-- the other, is a... reflection, of one of the shows from the palace. I thought you may not get the chance to see it directly, and that I could bring it to you."

They nodded, and continued: "Secondly, I am here for your trial. Is-- Will Labradorite be able to watch it?" Zoey had wanted, rather fervently, for it to be able to cheer her on. It wasn't exactly necessary, but... if anything went wrong, at least the Forge would know what happened.

@V-Labradorite-One (also gm tagging)

Emuh stared hard at Zoey, eyes narrowing in suspicion. "IT IS NICE TO MEET EMUH?! ARE YOU MEETING THE SAME EMUH EMUH KNOWS?! EMUH IS?!" Flames leapt up, small but enough to billow smoke along his body, and somehow it seemed to be mocking laughter.

He did laugh, then, a loud and dismissive caw. But a taloned foot reached out in an attempt to snag the animated gemstone, to pick it up and examine it closely. "IS THIS A BRIBE?" Emuh demanded, voice harsh, and he suddenly stared hard at Zoey.

...Then at the other items.

"IT IS A GOOD BRIBE. EMUH APPROVES. HE WILL NOT BE... UN-LENIENT." The foot aimed to pick up and examine the scroll and the other enchanted stone, and the owl-beast gave a brief hum of thought. "IT IS STRONG MAGIC, AT LEAST. NOT WEAK," and again Labradorite was given a dismissive glance. "YOU MAY WATCH. FROM HERE. BUT DO NOT ENTER AND DO NOT INTERFERE. I WILL KNOW. WHEN YOU ARE READY," Emuh finished, looking to Zoey, "ENTER, AND BEGIN!"

@Zoey

edit note: I wrote the post in response to the GM tag before realizing that Labradorite hadn't yet posted! I can edit mine to incorporate any response Lab may give

It'd jolt hard at Emuh's sudden appearance, tensing and coiling even as it realized he posed no real threat at all.

At Emuh's decisive judgement it's snout wrinkled, flippers folding tightly across it's chest. Its teeth bared as it prepared some sort of retort or excuse. Zoey beat it to the punch, though, and it didn't want to further taint her first impression with it's presence, so it stayed quiet. Its eyes remained narrowed and judgemental, though.

But Emuh was right. That's why it was simply observing rather than completing its own trial. It hoped, one day, to rectify this. It would be as strong as it was supposed to be- strong enough to fight its own battles and defend those it cared about. And then it would return here, and prove it's strength- to Emuh, to itself, to everybody.

But for now, it was simply an audience.

"I won't interfere." It reassured Emuh, taking a step back. Then, it's repeat to Zoey, almost like a prayer, "Good luck."

@Zoey [Assume Lab is going to just watch quietly in the background from now on]

Emuh took pride in being a piece of work.

Zoisite noted this, with a silent blink-blink, and raised their head higher when Emuh asked if it was a bribe. "It's not a bribe. It is a gift, because I wondered if anyone thought of you beyond what you are capable of doing for them." But that was all it was, and while Zoey had been ambitious in her care for a stranger, they would not let the snide comments erase the heart behind the work.

"I do not expect you," they said firmly, a challenge in their clipped words, "to hold back."

The insectoid gembound turned to Labradorite one last time, golden eyes with the warm glow lingering for a few long breaths. "Thank you," they said, short and sweet, mandibles clicking sharply together. It was time.

There was hesitation in the Zoisite. It showed in the way they wavered at the entrance, looking at their hatchmate. But they could not stand idle forever, and so with a soft clattering of quills, they turned back toward the entrance and took the first few steps into the trial's halls.

What would await them? Would they truly be strong enough?

Their guard was raised, quills rattling in their underbelly. Muscles tensed, head up, eyes watching for signs of danger. The trial was not something that they had any true knowledge about.

Be ready, they told themself, for anything.

Rather than his back going up at Zoey's insistence, the challenge in her tone, Emuh instead appeared to approve. His cawing laughter came again, a short bark of it, as the magic around him shifted to swirling frost. "GOOD! NOW... LET ME SEE..."

He turned and took flight, vanishing into the cave beyond--which dimmed into pitch darkness. A moment later, lights came up to illuminate only a narrow strip through the room.

Once Zoey had entered, the test would be made clear.

At the narrow, lit pathway's end, there was a pedestal of stone (formed of the very ground itself, thrust upward); atop its forward-leaning panel were three carved sigils. The first was a sort of an S, the second an upward arrow, and the third, a circle.

Left and right along the passageway, there were walls; and set into these walls, six dimly lit rooms. They were close enough and dim enough that one could only see inside while standing next to them, sort of like a walkway through an aquarium. In each, there Pitch Rats, swarming: a dozen or more. And in each, set randomly across the floor, a pressure plate, marked with a sigil.

And the threat of the whole thing: there were gaps in the floor, between these rooms and the walkway. If Zoey were overly loud, or failed to somehow distract these rats, there was every chance they could come flooding out to attack her.

It would take cautious movement to see the sigil in each room without alerting the rats--and then a clever mind, and strong magic, to correctly solve the puzzle.

@Zoey

The Zoisite was plunged into darkness. It nearly reached for its own magic to light the way-- but that would be a spotlight, wouldn't it? What awaited it in the dark? Its eyes struggled to focus, until the pinprick of lights flickered before it, painting a path that was much longer than the room initially appeared.

Cautious, they stilled themself, taking a few quiet breaths. They stepped forward, talons clicking lightly upon stone as they made their way to the first... obstacle? A pedestal of stone, with several markings. She recognized the crude letter S and the O, but the center... It wasn't a letter, so much as a marking that pointed her forward.

They raised themselves upward to look about at their surroundings, and made out the rooms to each side. Their mandibles clamped together tightly as they tried to piece together what this test was asking of them. The chittering sounds of lessers was a strange distraction to all of this.

What else could she do but investigate further? Zoey shook her head, dropping back down on to all six limbs, and slunk along through the shadowy passageway, looking for answers in the rooms. She reached the first room, peering into the dim, and started small: a little wisp sparked to life before her, and she sent it zipping off toward the center of the room to shed some light on the puzzle beyond.

And maybe, well, see how the rats reacted to the sudden moving light source flying across the enclosure.

The light was both good--and bad.

The rats turned as one, all of them chittering more loudly and moving toward the wisp--but for the moment, at least, it seemed to have blinded them. Still, it was certain that they moved toward it.

Zoey could spot--were she quick and quiet--matching sigils in three of the rooms. In the others--sigils not shown at the pedestal at the room's end.

@Zoey