Cold. The abandoned gemstone lay cold and lifeless in the dark, its colors unseen. Magic flooded into the gem, lighting it up a brilliant blue and giving it life. The stone formed a small shell where it would foster life. The gem itself began to grow and change shape and then, as if told by some essence, began to grow living tissue. Warmth. It surrounded the unborn lynx, some sort of magical hum lulling around it, filling its ears and its very being. It formed slowly, mysteriously as the gem turned to life and life formed around and in the gem. The magic hummed on, but soon, the life began to have its own movements. A beat, that animal’s own beat, its heart was blossoming. Soon these movements grew. A twitch. A yawn. The lynx grew in the gem and the gem grew into the animal. Soon, the gem surrounding the animal was too small. It cracked and cool air brushed past the awakening gembound. Then, all at once, the gembound broke free from its chrysalis and fell, gasping onto the ground. Cold. The abandoned gembound lay cold, gasping in air in the dark, its surroundings unseen. Air flooded into the animal’s lungs, lighting up its gem a brilliant blue now as its lower jaw and teeth. The lynx closed its maw, ivories against larimar. The first water elemental wriggled on the ground for some time, how long, no one knows, but somehow, as if told by some essence, rose and began to live. "speak"

As solitary as he would be in life, he stood alone even before then. His shell a solemn testament to his nature, so cautiously crafted, so desolate that it would hold even observers at arm's length. The chrysalis was a bounty of pink spikes, long and dangerous rosy points stretching out in every direction. They glistened in the blue light of the room. Still and so peaceful, they seemed content to be undisturbed, left alone in their remote contrivance. But not for long. No, they could not house him for long. They cradled him, they cared for him, they loved him - but the chrysalis could not hold the child it nurtured forever. One by one, the chrysalis shed its long points. Each of them clattered loudly from the shell. It would fall apart of its own accord, as though slowly dying, slowly accepting its own inevitable destruction. Eventually, the chrysalis was unable to even support itself. It had reached the very end of its lifespan and, in a final shudder, it succumbed to the throes of death.

The entirety of the chrysalis broke apart. It shattered into a multitude of shards, all collapsing into an unrecognizable heap around a small and shivering body. The sound rang through the room, echoing for several seconds before it too faded into nothing, and all trace of the creature's former home, its nurturer, its life giver, was gone.

Ghanyarah lay curled into himself. The rosy points stuck noticeably out of the top of his head, but he tried with his tail to shield himself from the world. His eyes remained sealed shut. He could not fathom what had just happened, but he was met with coldness. It was unpleasant. It was stifling. The dragon curled tighter into himself, but his energy would soon run thin. Before long, he found himself unable to stay compacted for warmth. His muscles yearned to stretch. Very slowly, the reptile unfurled himself. He still lay on his stomach, his front arms splayed behind him, chin resting in the dirt. He would not open his eyes. He refused to.

Slowly, as it began to move, its jarred, sluggish movements began to soften. The being became less shaky and more fluid. It crept across the ground, still a little unstable and unsure of its surroundings. Fallah, the newborn lynx, made its way around by feeling rather than seeing. Its eyes were shut, though it was uncertain if this was due to nature or the creature simply not knowing it could open its eyes. Wobbly, but not fumbling, Fallah moved forward in the darkness of the cave. Everything smelled earthy and significantly less magical than the chrysalis. It caused the lynx to wrinkle its nose at first, but it soon adapted. The little creature pushed onward and onward more until it found its legs suddenly not under itself. Fallah let out a small squeak and tumbled to the ground with a soft thud. It hurt. It really hurt. Big tears welled in the lynx’s eyes. This feeling was unfamiliar and scary. Maybe by magic, or maybe by Fallah’s willpower, its shocking blue eyes flew open. Even in the darkness of the cave, the change from having its eyes shut for so long was unpleasant. Fallah squinted against it, sitting up sloppily. As its eyes adjusted, the cat looked around, seeing many masses and many crystals. Wait- one of those masses was moving. It was moving a little, but it was definitely moving. Fallah felt its own breath catch as its eyes once again widened. What was that?! The creature stood and walked over to the mass shakily. Maybe that’s what had tripped the lynx up! As it drew near, it thought the thing moved again, maybe faster this time, or maybe it just wasn't too good at seeing yet. The cat jumped and summoned its inner power and did… something. AFTER ROLL: That something seemed to suck the water right out of Fallah and the thing suddenly felt a little parched and a little damp. It plopped onto its rump and stared at the mass, mewling softly in its confusion. What was everything? "speak"

Ghanyarah wouldn't be alone for long. His muscles ached too much to remain curled up, much as he wanted to hide himself from the world. He splayed himself along the mosses and waited, listening, feeling; probing the air for disturbances, a sign of something. Before long, he felt it. The thrum of paws against the ground. The little lizard's eyes peeled open, and there he could see a fuzzy creature heading his way. Instinct all but drowned his desire for solitude. This was a threat and the dragon could not mourn the loss of its quiet shelter any longer. Ghanyarah instantly raised his head, peering at the feline. When it sat down and mewled, Ghanyarah instantly rose, elevating himself above the ground on four spindly little legs.

But now what? He stared the creature down. His heart thumped furiously in his chest. The tip of his tail began to vibrate against the soil, a distraction technique; it was meant to lure both prey and predators with its enticing motions. He didn't really realize that he was doing it until a couple seconds later - but what else was he going to do? Everything came naturally to him without a second thought, but instinct could only get him so far. He didn't want to be eaten. It took all he had to convey that emotion.

Ghanyarah parted his jaws. From the depth of his throat he spewed up a strangled noise, as if trying to tell the creature, somehow, that he didn't want to become its meal. "AAHHhh." The dragon croaked at it, blinking in alarm. Then, he stepped back and continued to watch it closely.

As Fallah sat, another rose. Blue eyes followed the rough-pattern as it stood there. The two stared at each other, hearts beating wildly. The lynx was unaware of what other creatures were or what they did. Everything was too big and dim and scary. Icy eyes stayed fixed on the other as it did the same. The dampness the cat felt remained. Whatever the baby had done hadn't helped at all. It had half the mind to try again, but decided against it when the other creature began to move. The other's mouth opened and sound came out rousing Fallah to its feet. The cat tilted its head curiously, sky eyes wide. Its lips trembles and a small, chirpy mewl echoed in the cave. Keeping low, the lynx took slow stepped towards the creature, occasionally meowing at it, but not forming any real words. Fallah's mind didn't know how to approach the situation, but curiosity played sharp in the back of the kit's mind. What was this? Why was it moving? Could it hurt? Was it friend? The cat walked on its toes, though its legs were crouched. It planned on stopping once it could get about a body length away from the creature for a closer, maybe too close, look. If the other gembound were to flee now, Fallah would surely pursue it. "speak"

The strange sound that had come from his throat was nothing compared to the noise that had escaped the lynx. Once the noise he croaked out had vanished into silence, his own wide rosy eyes watched the cat as it suddenly produced a mewl. The sound was loud, and he could feel it resonating from the air to the ground, beneath his clawed toes. Ghanyarah vibrated the tip of his tail again, uncertain of how to proceed. He still didn't know if this cat was going to make a meal of him, but he was starting to feel like he didn't want to stick around and hang out. When the feline had dropped down into a crouch and began to approach him, Ghanyarah's muscles reflexively twitched. He jumped and faced his body away, but didn't move yet.

It continued to approach him, making those sounds. Once it had gotten close enough, however; that was it. The dragon wasn't going to risk lingering here any longer. He wanted to get away, back to where he knew it was safe. Back to where he knew warmth. His old home was no longer accessible - so that meant he had to find somewhere else, and he wasn't going to get anywhere with this lynx invading his bubble. So, Ghanyarah did the only thing he knew. He simply turned away from it and bolted, spindly legs carrying him at a sudden and unprecedented pace away from the feline.

(i'd like to end this to focus on more recent threads, so maybe we can have them exit with fallah chasing ghanyarah, who eventually escapes? :P)

Yeah, that's what I was thinking XD
I'll finish it up quickly.

Fallah crept closer and closer, eyes narrowing at the lizard. It twitched and the lynx would pause, then continue to draw even closer. Squishy paws would quiet its steps, but still the dragon would grow unsettled. IT would turn and run off, causing the cat's ears to perk in response. For a moment, Fallah stood all the way up and watched the creature scuddle away. Nubby tail would twitch back and forth a few times quickly and sporadically. Finally, the cat took off after the sandy gembound, legs flailing in odd directions as both creatures tried to learn exactly how to run properly. "speak"