Midas was still alive, yes. The great snake had hidden himself within the far reaches of Eridanus, hiding amongst the mosses and verdant plant life. He'd only hunt and show himself if the need arose. Otherwise... the serpent lay in silence, watching and waiting for a perfect opportunity to make his return. Hopefully the caves were quiet once more, the commotion of strange events and such ending.

As the great reptillian beast weaved around and around the tree he was resting upon, he noticed something... shining, down below. It shimmered. It glowed. It beckoned for him to come. Midas scrutinized it from afar, calculating and wondering if he should. Flicking his tongue out, the glands upon it telling his brain that there were no greater Gembound nearby. All there was... was the wet and muddy scent of the jungle. The gilded king could take this stone and claim it as his, and only his. He'd heard tell of Gembound giving life to stones and producing... hybrids.

To the snake, it was an odd act... but could prove useful. If only he could imprint upon the child quickly enough to shape them into what he'd never taken it upon himself to become. A king, a queen... royalty. To say he was a cruel and evil man was an understatement. Since the murder of a peculiar monkey, he often found himself spending many days away, becoming a recluse. His only company had been his own thoughts... but now, he had a companion.

Uncoiling himself from the mighty mango tree's trunk, the serpent slithered down the base, and soon was simply lying on the floor. In a swift motion, Midas wiggled towards the gleaming stone and formed a bit of a haphazard circle about it, as if he were protecting it. "I will give you life once more," he'd hiss in a sweet, fatherly tone, "but in return, you shall give me your loyalty, evermore." Then, the creature clasped his jaws about the Peridot gemstone, careful with his sharp fangs, and spiralled up the tree once more.

Upon the tree, one branch stretched further than the rest, barely touching the stone wall, where a large crack lay. It was where he'd made his home. It was a sheltered little home, and was hidden from sight. Such a perfect place to hide his spawn. "It is almost time, my dear child." The creature slithered into his den, and his pyrite gem began to glow with rich and vibrant magic, buzzing off his being. The stone within his jaws gathered the energy, draining him momentarily... but then it glowed eagerly with a green light. Midas dropped the stone at the end of his little cave, and the gem sunk into the ground, the glow dulling. Now, it was up to time to decide if he had done the ritual properly.

"You shall live once again, whoever you were." He exited the small den. He'd have to find a temporary one while his child developed.