Who would've thought there was a whole other room hidden in a hole in the sand? Certainly not Bedlam. It was grateful for the reprieve from the searing heat that dried out its lovely blubbery skin, and happily took this opportunity to bask in the humidity and dig around in the dirt and plants. For no particular reason other than it was fun. This catwhale never grew out of its play sand phase.

Giggling happily to itself, it conjured a banana into its paws. Instead of peeling and eating it like normal, it squinted one eye closed, aimed into the trees, and—SPLAT! Shot the banana out the end of the peel like an arrow!

It didn't quite see where the fruit landed. Well, it didn't really matter, did it?

@Howlite T-One

Howlite-T-One had been wandering since she hatched a few days ago. First through a desert which had been much too hot on her thick pelt, and now here through a much more misty and cool room. Whatever it was, she quite liked it. She'd found some of the warmer, dryer spots and spent it lounging around beneath a warm light, or stalking and catching prey.

She was napping on a rock beneath an orb of light that hung from a tree, her sunset pelt ablaze with warm light. The hybrid was only about half-asleep in that way cats are when they sleep, the white tip of her tail twitching lazily.

And then a banana pelted her tooth-face.

She felt it on the enamel and jolted up with an alarm, her fur bristled and sticking out in all directions. Swinging her head over, she saw a green, toady, four-legged thing nearby. "That-- wasn't very nice!" She protested, shaking the splattered fruit off her face and drawing a paw over the pulverized fruit that stuck to her fur. "Why did you do that?"

@Bedlam

To Bedlam's chagrin, it was caught red-handed, the sparkling yellow peel still dangling from its claws. On the bright side, it was hilarious! Its shoulders shook uncontrollably, and it chortled for a good minute to itself before finally finding the breath to respond.

"Sorry, didn't see ya there!" It did not sound sorry at all. "But it was really funny, though. Wanna try?"

Another large, sparkling banana manifested in its claws. This time it didn't shoot the fleshy fruit inside at anyone's face, accidentally or purposely. Instead, it held it out to the other feline with a good-natured grin, a seeming peace offering. Just as it was extending its paw, though, a thought occurred to it.

It was really funny how the feline's fur stood on end like a bottlebrush earlier. Bedlam never got to do that itself, seeing as how it didn't have fur and all. It wanted to see it again! What if... it cursed this banana with a little zap? Just a little one :)

Its magic flowed easily into the banana, and flowed easily back out. The charge discharged onto the catwhale itself, and as it tried to hand the banana over to Howlite it was struck by a sudden shock. Briefly, its face contorted into a comical expression as all its eyes rolled in different directions, and its tongue stuck out of its mouth. Its green Drinker tendrils stood up on end and glowed intensely. Then the moment passed, and it shook itself back to normal like nothing had happened.

"If you don't want to shoot it you can eat it. It tastes good," Bedlam added to Howlite, in case that display had made it reluctant to take its gift.

@Howlite-T-One

Howlite paused. "It doesn't look like it tastes good," she said, the skin along her snout (the top of 'her head') wrinkling. "It looks like it hurt you."

She licked her paw and drew it across her cheeks again, raking out bits of banana-gut. "It smells funny, too," the cat bemoaned. "And it's all gooey and sticky and gross." Luckily none of it had gotten into her mouth, or she might have complained about the sparkles, too.

Though, it might have also been the one thing she'd like about a banana.

Tooth-face wrinkling briefly, the howlite shook out her pelt. Oh, she stank of nanner. She didn't like that at all. "Why don't you eat normal things? Like rabbits? I'm good at eating rabbits."

@Bedlam

Sigh. Why must the world be full of doubt and distrust? "I promise," Bedlam insisted. "Watch." It dangled the banana over its head, and proceeded to shoot the entire fruit down its gullet like it had done to Howlite's face. Such an odd feeling as it slid down its esophagus whole! The catwhale began to glimmer with green sparkles.

It seemed like Howlite still wasn't convinced on the goodness of banana, though. Her face was twisted in disgust--wait, her face?

Bedlam stared, fascinated. "Wow..." it breathed. It'd never seen anything like this before. How exactly did this creature's faces work? And... could it make them even better?

Slowly, it held up a paw and twirled it. Its magic also twirled with a soft green glow about its gem. What would happen if Howlite's faces twirled? Just how would they warp and change and create something entirely new?

@Howlite-T-One

ROUND 1/?

ATTEMPT: warp howlite's face
DEFENSE: none
INJURIES: none

Howlite watched the banana flesh vanish into Bedlam's gigantic mouth with her lips curled. Both of them. "That's a really impolite way to eat," she said, because it was. She was always very dainty and clean when she ate, and everyone else should be, too.

Her ears flattened when she noticed Bedlam getting a good look at her face and tooth. And then-- pain. Whatever Bedlam was doing, she didn't want it to happen. The ground shook-- hopefully interrupting the cast before any permanent deformities were cast upon her face.

"You're being nasty!" She squealed angrily.

ROUND 1/?

82%

ATTEMPT: interrupt warp
DEFENSE: none
INJURIES: sore face :(

@Bedlam

Impolite? Bedlam had to admit it never thought about politeness when eating before. "Okay," it shrugged. It could find a different way to eat next time. There were many fun ways to consume food in the world! It was a shame to stick with just one anyway.

It pouted when Howlite squealed her rejection of its experiment. Nasty? What a nasty word! "I wasn't being that nasty," it protested. "I've done it to myself before too!" Really, it was wounded. Determined to redeem itself, it pressed: "What kind of magic do you like then? Magic that goes in the ground? I felt the shaking!" Bedlam also knew some magic that went into the ground!

The soil its toes sank into was soft and wet. Perfect for this particular spell. Bedlam widened its eyes dramatically, tendrils trembling, and then a wild current of electricity ripped outward from its feet!

@Howlite-T-One

ROUND 2/?

ATTEMPT: show Howlite some cool ground magic! she's so GROUNDED
DEFENSE: none
INJURIES: a bit shaken up

The kitten let out a terrible, shrill squeal as lightning surged through her paws, shooting up into her legs and jolting her entire body. Her heart thundered against her ribcage hard enough she thought it might burst out of there entirely. She was dizzy, pained, oddly numb around the toes. The scent of burning, staticky hair and flesh filled the air.

Howlite could barely see. Her vision was splotchy with thick, black dots. But still, she tried to cast. Nothing came out, though. Maybe her gem had been so shocked and burned it'd never work again. She tried to speak, but her tongue felt big and rubbery in her mouth.

Oh. She was going to die.

ROUND 2/?

69%

(nice)

ATTEMPT: damage
DEFENSE: none
INJURIES: sore face, burned

@Bedlam

The ground magic had the desired effect upon its audience. Bedlam closed its many green eyes and basked in the enthused screams and the smell of burning hair. "If that impressed you," it called to its captive audience, "watch this!"

This time, the smell of ozone filled the air and the dangerous prickle of electricity would run across both their skins as charge built up in the air. BOOM! A flash and a bang! BOOM! Another! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! More and more! Bedlam reveled in the energy that suffused its veins and crackled across its skin, the bright white light that seared its retinas one flash at a time until the world's shapes looked oddly bright and blurry.

It was not aiming to hit the other cat. It was not nasty! However. let's justr say. Its aim was not that good.

ROUND 3/?

ATTEMPT: call down bolts of lightning everywhere to aura farm
DEFENSE: none
INJURIES: a bit shaken up

@Howlite-T-One