A glistening moonstone chrysalis lay at the foot of the Throne in Orion. The dim light that shone through the entryway of the throne room caused a soft sort of hazy glow to surround the pearly-white chrysalis. It made the rather large Gem look… holy, almost. And, had the creature within known that, it would have suited her just fine. Inside the chrysalis there lay a young wolf, a beautiful feminine Gembound dark as midnight with captivating silver eyes and a crescent-shaped moonstone Gem gracing her forehead. She was just a cycle old, and so her beauty was girlish and a bit gangly, but she would grow into her body with time.

The walls of the chrysalis were pressing down on the she-wolf, and in retaliation, she pushed back. It was hard work, and the young one found herself silently asking for help, though from whom, she did not know. Please, she thought to herself, gritting her teeth and pressing her back up against the curve of the moonstone chrysalis. Let me out of here! Finally, many high-pitched cracks could be heard, followed by the sound of shattered moonstone pieces falling to the ground. And finally, Diana stood up and observed her surroundings with a calm collectedness that was unsettling for one so young.

She frowned as she looked around at the dark room, her jet-black fur wet and sticky from amniotic fluid, and sticking up in random places. Finally, her silver eyes landed on the Throne, and she studied it for some time before deciding that she needed to get up there somehow. She’d passed her first challenge — escaping her chrysalis. But before she could sit upon that Throne (not that she knew it was a throne yet) she needed to figure out how to walk.

Words: 301

It was a quiet cracking that drew his attention--high pitched, multilayered. And then the tinkle of stone shards scattering over the rock floor.

Khloros's ears pricked, and he snorted softly. A chrysalis, perhaps, breaking? Or was it some unknown Gembound that had somehow slipped by while he hadn't been looking?

He turned, picking his way down the slope to the decaying walls that surrounded the throne. His pale ghostlight eyes gleamed, and already he could make out the likewise-glowing moonstone shimmering, broken, where it lay strewn over the ground.

Beautiful. Pristine. Pure.

The horse snorted softly again. It was the opposite of all that he was: bright and soft, untouched, whereas he was dark, a rotting and sickly thing.

He didn't mind.

Nearby he could see a smaller, darker, wet shape: a cub, perhaps. A wolf pup? It was wet, sticky and tufted here and there with fluid. This was more like him: something black, something unclean.

Khloros stepped closer, hooves tapping softly on the stone, and stopped several yards away. His rank odor would probably reach the wolf pup before anything, but he seemed oblivious to this, simply standing with his limp, scarce mane hanging thin over his bony neck.

"Hello, new one," he said softly. For all his gruesome appearance, he seemed friendly and quiet. He had no reason to harm a newborn, after all.

And what would the young one become? Wolf, dog? Lion? He was not sure. What sort of magics would it use? Would it be kind, or cruel? Foolish, or cunning? Gentle, or harsh?

He found himself curious.

What would it become?

________________

BRING OUT YOUR DEAD

@Diana

Diana’s legs were wobbly as she took her first few steps closer to the Throne. And when she stopped walking, her stance was unsteady. She stood, trembling on legs that could barely hold her up, and studied the Throne a little more. What was it? How long had it been here? What purpose did it hold? Her silver eyes took it in with something akin to reverence, for it was much bigger than her. With time, it would not seem so large and imposing, but being a day old as she was meant that nearly everything was large and imposing. She tried her best not to feel intimidated.

And then from behind her came a smell — a horrible, rotten smell that permeated the air and caused her nose to wrinkle and the bile to rise in her throat. The young pup was experiencing for the first time a feeling of disgust. She turned on shaky legs to see what was causing the stench, and heard a voice. Hello, new one, said the voice. And Diana, once she was fully turned around, stared in abject horror at the Gembound before her. It looked… dead. She didn’t know what a dead body looked like, but some instinct told her that this creature couldn’t possibly be fully alive. There was pus coming out of its skin, and the stench rolling off of it was enough to turn her stomach. Had she eaten anything before meeting this creature she might have vomited.

Critical, disgusted eyes studied this Gembound for quite some time, but she did not speak to it — though, whether that was because she deigned not to, or because she couldn’t, was yet unknown. Besides, she wasn’t sure she would even know what to say to it if she were to speak. What did you say to a creature that looked like Death?

Words: 310 @Khloros

The diseased horse stared, unmoving. The young one clearly didn't know how to speak, yet, but the recoil of horror in it was obvious. Khloros blew air out through his nostrils, and then closed his eyes. For a moment he looked instead with his other-sight, calling upon the myriad bacterial forms swarming within him to sense the young one. To see if it was healthy, or sick.

Flickering life, like a thousand thousand tiny lights twinkling--subdued, present, living and breeding and dying--but not consuming. Not sickening. All was well.

Khloros indulged himself for a moment, basking in the vision of microscopic life filling the pup. She was healthy. At length, he opened his eyes again, and turned his near-skeletal body, taking slow steps back away. He would watch from a distance, for now, unless she followed him.

"You are healthy, at least, little one. I will watch you. For now."

He knew that she might get hungry, and need to find food; he knew that predators might come for her. He wasn't busy; he'd keep an eye on her, if from some ways away, for the time being.

Hooves clacked quietly on the stone as he moved to put a dozen or so yards, at least, between them. He knew from experience--he remembered another newborn, a white calf floundering in the mud--that hatchlings feared and despised him. He did not care, but there was no point in tormenting the wolf further.

________________

BRING OUT YOUR DEAD

@Diana

Diana was unaware that the diseased horse was casting a spell on her. She only knew what she saw, which was that his eyes had closed for a time, and when he opened them again, his low, rasping voice had filled the air once more. She understood him despite her young age, yet saying anything in return was… difficult. The parts of her mouth — her tongue, her teeth — felt foreign to her when she tried to mutter a sound. In frustration, she stood taller, head held high, staring coldly at the horse’s retreating form. Finally, the words came: “Who are you?” It was a demand, one that insisted he answer. She gave his putrid body a once-over. “What are you?”

Already, a very dominant personality was put into place, and Diana was too young to understand the subtleties of interaction. She did not yet possess the manipulative charm and courteousness that she would gain later in life. For now, as a pup, she was all aggressiveness. Sometime in the last few minutes the seed had been planted in her brain that she was destined for Greatness, and no one was going to stop her. And when she asked a question, she expected an answer. She stood still, and waited.

Words: 210 @Khloros

Khloros paused, and for a moment stood still.

Who are you.

That one was easy enough to answer. But what? That was more difficult to answer. His mind flitted back, back through life, to birth, to the voices he had heard. He supposed he could explain it, well enough for a child to understand--since it had been explained, in a way, to him.

At length he gave his thin, tangled tail a little swish, and turned with a clicking of hooves to half-face Diana again. His pale green-white eyes remained unblinking.

"I am Khloros," he answered, his voice rough, but his tone still soft. "I carry death." It was simply-enough stated, and he did not bother to elaborate, unsure if the young gembound would even comprehend it. He flared his nostrils again, and lifted his slender head.

"And you can speak. Do you yet have a name? Do you yet know what you are?"

He turned entirely, taking a few steps closer to Diana, more out of politeness than anything--but paused a few yards away, again, aware that she would likely be repulsed.

________________

BRING OUT YOUR DEAD

@Diana

Diana was unafraid of the horse’s green-white gaze, even though his eyes glowed unnaturally. She stared him down — as best she could, seeing as he was much taller than her. She continued standing, her legs growing stronger every second, and soon she was no longer wobbling. Good. A Queen did not wobble, did not show weakness. A Queen was strong, and that is what she was. Diana, the Wolf Queen. She decided all of this in a matter of seconds, just before the disgusting creature before her began speaking. Yes, she was yet young and small, but she would train. She would hunt, as instinct told her to do, and she would gain muscle. She would learn about everything so that she would always have the upper hand.

I am Khloros. I carry death. So. Diana had been right all along. This horse was Death, even if his name did not suggest it. He very presence was enough to make others think of Death. The wolf’s shimmering silver eyes continued to look upon the creature with disdain — for, really, what other emotion was appropriate to feel around a Gembound such as this? He should not even be speaking to her! But she kept this opinion to herself.

And then he asked her if she had a name, and if she knew what she was. Her silver eyes pierced his white-green ones. “I am Diana,” the pup said, lifting her chin proudly. “I am a Queen.” She threw her shoulders back then, to stand tall — as tall as her small body would allow — and waited for Death’s response. She had decided upon seeing the creature that his name was Death, regardless of what he called himself.

Words: 287 @Khloros

Khloros slowly turned his long, narrow head to gaze around.

I am a Queen.

So she was royalty, or thought herself so. It struck him strongly: he had stood in almost this exact place, having the same conversation with another, once upon a time. Perhaps she was another. Perhaps she was even of his blood, or rather, his magic, in some way. But where would her royalty take her? A lesson, he thought, was in order. Not one with a moral, or an answer for her--but knowledge, to impart to the young pup.

Khloros stepped closer, lowering his head so he could more clearly look her in the eyes. He stepped quite close, this time, stopping only a few feet away, unless she moved.

"There was another, here, who spoke of being King. He wished to dominate the other beasts. To force them to obey. He did this because he was afraid. Arrogant. Spiteful. He was hurt, and he lashed out. Much blood was shed."

Khloros lifted his head, looking about. He seemed to be remembering, his voice still slow and gently soft.

"He feared allowing his life to brush against others'. Feared opening himself to emotion. He was weak. Death tested him--and he fell."

The horse turned his head to look down at Diana again. She was stronger, in some ways, already, than Hasira had been. He tilted his head, blinking large and glowing eyes at her.

"If you wish to be a Queen, then I would ask. What are you the Queen of?"

Khloros then looked around again. All that lay in Orion were crumbling stone ruins and half-shattered crystals. The Gembound here barely eked out an existence--they bickered amongst themselves, fighting and killing, dying, mating and fighting again.

What would Diana do with this "kingdom?" She didn't know; she couldn't, she was too young.

But still, he wondered what she imagined. It might tell much of who she truly was.

________________

BRING OUT YOUR DEAD

@Diana

Diana’s response to Death seemed to draw him in — literally — for he stepped closer to her. Too close for her liking, but she refused to show it. She stood still at his approach, even when he bent down closer still. She couldn’t stop herself from swallowing in discomfort at his closeness. There was something very unsettling about this creature. She listened to his tale, determined still to learn all she could — even from the likes of him. So there had once been a King here… who was apparently too stupid to know how to rule effectively. He destroyed his own kingdom with bloodshed and arrogance. The Queen scoffed at such a tale.

“This King sounds like he didn’t deserve to rule in the first place,” the wolf said. “It doesn’t seem like he was very smart.” There. Now she was feeling very confident. Of course she could do better than the one who had come before. She could do better than all of them. Little did she realize her own arrogance in such a thought. It might very well be her downfall somewhere down the road. But she was too young and foolish to see it now — and perhaps would always be too foolish to see it.

But Death’s (Khloros’) question threw her off guard, and she found her eyes widening in surprise. What was she the Queen of? Why, everything, of course! She opened her mouth to speak the words she so desperately wanted to blurt out, but then stopped herself. Now she saw a bit of that arrogance which had destroyed the King before her. She looked past the horse and out into Orion, gazed at the crumbling buildings… and asked a question of her own. “What should I be the Queen of? How do I avoid the fate of the King who came before me?”

Perhaps Diana was not so arrogant, after all…

Words: 316 @Khloros

Khloros again slightly tilted his long and narrow head, eyeing the wolf pup as she spoke. Her arrogance was clear--yet her pause gave him pause, and her question, to him, displayed a vastly important trait.

"You are willing to listen. To question. This already gives you strength," he offered in his soft wheeze. Then he began to circle--slowly, and not too close, his tail swishing and his hooves clacking on stone.

"I do not know how to be a King. I have only seen them fall. There are Kings who would rule empty land--and they fight others who call themselves King, over only broken rock and empty dust."

The horse continued to circle, slowly making his way toward the ruined walls around the throne. He gently lifted his head to touch his nose to the wall, and then looked to Diana. "There are those who would rule others, because they wish power. They dominate, and demand obedience. They harm those who do not listen. This is weakness. Fear, anger."

Khloros paused, and then turned his thin neck so that he could peer at Diana with his left and emptily glowing eye. "Then there are those who rise to save their people, because no one else can lead. To keep them safe, and protect them, and keep them... content. Death comes for all, in the end. But in life--a King or a Queen can change everything, for others."

He snorted softly, turning, thinking. Perhaps he was overburdening the young one's mind--but he might never see her again, and this was a chance to impart some wisdom, to prevent her fall, the suffering of others--the way they had suffered under Hasira.

"I will give you this advice, little Queen: travel, and learn. Keep yourself safe, yes; but continue to listen, as you have listened to me, and you will gain great wisdom. That is the greatest strength you can have, and it will guide you, whatever path you take."

He watched her for a time, eyes flickering dimly. He wondered how she herself would die; whether it would be soon, violent, or later, peaceful. If she would be slain by her own followers in an uprising, or never make it that far, wandering Eridanus to hunt mice and rabbits. If she would take a mate, perhaps, in Pisces, and never be seen again.

He wondered how Death would find her. The answer always came down to the life one had lived, in the end.

________________

BRING OUT YOUR DEAD

@Diana