this is gonna be a private for myself for a bit, but when i say, it'll be aw <3
also a lot longer than i thought, lol oops!

---

With the rise of the Guardians, Xerxes felt somewhat whole again. Cure had returned, Remedy had returned so Cure was even happier than before, and they were back in Eridanus with the sleeping Arkrael. He remembered meeting the she-wolf the first time, shortly after he hatched and met Cure, the secret love of his life. He knew now how he felt for the girl, but had yet to say anything, afraid of her feelings. Everything seemed to line up, but Xerxes wasn't about to destroy what the had on hopes and dreams. When he knows, he'll do what he can to make her his, but until then, Xerxes needed to get his strength back.

He had been without his fire magicka for far too long, in his opinion. He was weakened when he lost it, depressed and alone. Now, with food and Cure back, he could get back to his training and become the strongest lion in these caves! Not that he knew of any others, of course.

The Barbary male rumbled as he entered Polaris, a room he hadn't been in for a long time. He lived in Eridanus even before the Guardians rose there, mostly because of the memories shared with Cure there. Now that Arkrael had found the Guardians and moved them there, he didn't feel more at home. Canis was great, but it was also depressing with all the bones around. Eridanus was full of life, be it trees or lesser gembounds.

Polaris was different though. He could feel the energy emanating through the room and filling his pores with the static in the air. He was here to train now that he didn't have the stacks of rocks and bones to battle back in Canis. He didn't want to turn the trees and vegetation in Eridanus to a disaster area, so he came here, the main room in the cage, to better himself. He had eaten a large meal this morning and was all ready for this. He just needed to find something to practice on.

He remembered the feeling of being full of magick back in Canis when he first discovered it. Since he hadn't felt it in many cycles, he assumed he would need to do the same thing to get there. It was going to be a long day, but he definitely needed this. If he was going to be a protector - a guardian - then he needed to be both physically strong and magickally strong. Today was just day one.

There wasn't much to really beat up on, but that was okay. There were a few rocks he could battle and strengthen himself on, so he started there. Moving towards the nearest rock, he stopped a few meters away and bowed his head. His garnet stone horns were rock hard and used to break rock, but he was never that good at making his mark...

He positioned himself and charged at the rock with his head low and horns ready for impact. The beefy male collided with the rock, cracking it but not breaking it. No big deal, it was his first time in a long time. He was just happy he hit it! Xerxes remembered many times when he missed the rock, or the wolverine, when he really had good odds to. This time, well, at least it cracked!

Shaking it off, the lion turned and returned to his position. He would keep headbutting this rock until it broke or he passed out! Even if his got his magick back, fire didn't work too well on rocks... He wasn't that great with his paws either, so smacking the rock would probably only cause more pain for himself than damaging the rock.

Tucking his chin once more, the mighty lion charged the rock again, this time hoping to break the rock into a million pieces after just two hits! He just hoped it didn't turn into a disaster and fall into the river behind the rock! Not that he couldn't swim, he just didn't quite like the water much...

Success! He hadn't failed! Instead of ending in a disaster, upon contact, the rock broke into many pieces, though they weren't as small as he'd like. Either way, he shattered the rock without missing! This was great because now he had some faith in himself. Smirking, he looked around for some other rocks to beat up on. Polaris didn't have much to offer, but there were plenty here to try if he walked around the spacious room a minute or two. Besides, he did need a minute to rest his head. Although it did only take two tries to shatter it, he was still developing a headache, more or less.

Stopping by the river, he bent down to take a drink of the energized waters. Lapping at the cool liquid, he didn't stay for long before he was returning to the main part of the room. A larger rock caught his sapphire eyes, tempting the male. He strode over to it and sized it, looking it up and down, even checking it's width. It was definitely going to be a challenge, but if he defeated this rock, then maybe he'd even get his magick back! It was certainly worth a shot, so with another smirk, he backed up even farther than before and positioned himself. Thankfully the river wasn't nestled behind this structure, but it probably wasn't going to end up good if he failed.

This couldn't have been going better! He collided with the rock head on, making small cracks in it's base, creeping upwards towards the peak two or three feet above his head. This was a mighty tall rock, but Xerxes was a mighty strong lion. Although he hadn't gained all of his weight back yet, he still had an enormous amount of weight behind him. He had muscle, just not much. Definitely more than fat, though, making him a powerhouse.

The more hits he had though, the higher odds of a disaster... He couldn't give up now though, just because his odds weren't good! Even the cave's monsters fought back against many gembounds, so he couldn't give up over this rock! Not that he wanted to of course, but the pounding headache he was developing between his horns was impressive.

Strength was more important than a little headache, though, and despite the blurry vision and the stars he was seeing, he backed up once more. Baring his horns again, he steadied himself and lunged for the stone. He was slower this time, a little disoriented even, but he still had it in him to headbutt this rock one more time.

Ah, so this was it. He had failed. Stumbling over a rock that wasn't there before, or he just somehow missed it, the man got off balance and missed the rock by a bit, clipping his left horn on the massive structure. Pain struck through him as he fell, his horn cracked, paw throbbing, head pounding, and his body tired. He coughed as he landed on the ground, his back against the crumbling structure. Although he hadn't hit the structure head on, clipping it with his horn had removed a chunk from it's side. Xerxes wasn't aware, but the structure was weaker now, almost wobbling.

There was no telling where the rock would fall, if it even would, but it certainly wasn't a safe spot to be. Disoriented and struggling to stay awake with the pounding in his head, Xerxes relaxed as much as he could. Now he just wanted to sleep...

---

alright anyone is welcome to come see him! maybe even accidently knock that rock over! who knows! preferably someone from the guardians /cough @remedy cough but anyone works! even a few people can join, idc!

She'd woken with the first clash of crystal on rock, the first huff of breath that came with the impact. She'd been nesting amongst the foliage, dozing whilst focusing and following @Cure as he did... whatever it was he was doing. It was boring. Not many emotions or feelings came to her. Neutralized by whatever mundane task her twin was up to.

Still, the fresh link was sensitive, enjoyable. She took perhaps greater comfort in it than might've been healthy, rumbling with a steady cooing purr, as if its subtle pull were as relaxing as a sun beam for a cat. Roll onto her back with her legs folded slack at her chest and hips, wings half-flared and neck exposed with the tuck of her horns, she seemed dead to the world.

Except that damn clatter of crystal on rock echoed again and she finally stirred, rolling to sit up on her hip, wings tucking vaguely at her sides, ears pivoting. What in earth was that?

The hybrid hoisted herself up and away from her resting place to investigate, still bored but distracted from her focus on the link now. Whoever was the cause of such a racket would be shooed away, she decided. How dare they spoil a tender moment.

She came upon a familiar face. She'd known him to live here now, through Cure, but she couldn't help the stab of irritation at having it confirmed. Xerxes. Ugh. Wasn't this the guy making goo-goo eyes at Cure all the time? What a pest.

Annoyance flared in her chest, hot and bitter before she could will it away. The approached with pinned ears and a stiff gait.

"Xerxes!" Her voice was scolding as she leapt from the ground to the nearby to a jutting rock conveniently close to where he lay. "Just what are you doing over here!?"

As she landed on it's peak, it wobbled dangerously and her wings and tail responded in kind to balance everything out again. Perched precariously, she seemed content to balance, wings and tail twitching to keep her and the boulder upright.

"I was trying to nap off a bad hunt!" Scold the dumb lion, big dumb beast. How'd he manage to follow them for so long, anyway? Cure really had to find better friends. Yes, better, less cat-like, no horns. She hated his stupid horns. Stupid face. Stupid roguish mane.

---

_{OOC: She'd think he was cool shit if she didn't feel threatened over Cure. |D @Xerxes}

It stirred quickly.

Annoyance flared. The hybrid could feel it from where she was. Burning hot deep in her gut as the emotions seemed to spiral quickly. Confusion. Concern. These were in response to the sudden flare of emotions.

Remedy...

What's wrong? Are you okay?

She couldn't figure it out. The connection was still far too fresh and new for her to make out what was truly going on. All she could make out was the emotions of her twin and the image of her potentially standing upon a jutting rock. The idea of something annoying her sister stirred more emotions into Cure. Pushing him to want to come see just what his twin was up to....

Remedy..?

OoC: right now Cure isn't here. She's just...in Remedy's head right now XD

Oh how his head hurt. The throbbing was most painful on his left side, where his horn had been violently crashed into a less than ideal location. While the base of his horns and even the first curve were strong enough, the second curve near his cheeks did not appreciate the attempt. He felt like it had nearly been ripped from his head, but he knew better...or at least hoped. With all the dirt in his mouth leaving a horrible aftertaste, Xerxes had a lot going on to focus too much on one thing.

The wobbling rock that Remedy happened the land on went unnoticed. Little particles of the rock crumbled and rained down on his body, losing themselves in his mane and coating his body with a layer of rock dust. He heard a familiar voice speaking to him, but he couldn't place it. Something about bad hunts and napping... Mmm nap. A nap sounded good about now.

With little thought about it and really no effort at all, Xerxes slipped unconscious from a probable concussion. He'd be fine, of course...provided he doesn't sleep for too long...

@remedy @cure

Amazingly (and not without a thrill of surprise and delight), Cure's voice rang clearly in her head, despite the distance between them. Remedy stifled a laugh, earlier annoyance forgotten, distracted by that addiction yet again.

I'm fine. I found Xerxes in Polaris.

She noted with vague disinterest that he hadn't responded to her questioning. She squinted down at him, noticed the loll of his head, the shallow breathing.

I think he knocked himself out, actually.

...


Dumbass.

The hybrid huffed lightly and pushed off of the rock...

...landing beside his unconscious body just as the rock she'd been standing on toppled backwards with a crunch and groan. It fell away from them, thanks to her push, but it clattered with all the roaring of thunder and she winced, chest tightening with instinctive panic before everything settled once again.

Holy shit, that was almost a disaster.

She sounded far too amused in her own head over something so dangerous. Her attentions turned back to the slumbering dumbass at her feet, though. Had he woken from the noise? She prodded at his ribs with an immodest talon.

"Hey, fluffy, wake up. I'm talkin' to you."

---

@Cure @Xerxes

Vsh

It stirred quickly.

Laughter spilled into their bonded link when Remedy's response. Came loud and clear. The sensations of amusement and a few other emotions was sure to tingle their way through the gryphon. There was also a mix of disbelief that xerxes had done something silly as to knock himself unconscious. That was soon followed by curiosity

Remedy..?

Cure's voice quickly spoke up the moment panic coursed through her. She could only imagine what had just happened, but relief quickly consumed her as Rem's voice came through once more.

"You aren't trying to kill him are you, Remmy?"

A grin flashed. Amusement once again taking over as the primary emotion Cure was feeling at the moment

OoC: right now Cure isn't here. She's just...in Remedy's head right now XD