After her encounter with the Monster, the ice wraith found herself in a part of Cetus she had never been to before. She had run far away, away from the Divine, her Mother. And now she was alone. Being alone had never bothered her before, but there was a problem now that she had never experienced before… The lights were off in the Cave.

The wraith was not even aware of the other parts of Origin Cave, did not know that there were other rooms besides Cetus. Her whole world, it seemed, had plunged into darkness. Little did she know that there were dozens of others all experiencing the same darkness as her in other rooms. She did not care about anyone else in this moment. She was truly alone, stuck where she was for two reasons: she was exhausted and starving to death, and she could not see. These two problems together was causing a panic attack, a silent, still panic attack that could not gain anymore than small sobs in her throat because she was so exhausted that she had no energy left.

Slowly, though, something in her body was changing. As she cried, her gem and eyes began to slowly light up with a glacier-blue color. She stopped crying to stare at her gem, aware of the light also at the corners of her vision. The glow grew and grew until it was so bright that she could actually see a bit of what was in front of her. All she saw only confirmed how lost she was. Nothing was familiar, and she could not see the Divine in the dark and the fog.

She also noticed another change. She was no longer starving, weak, or headachy. And she felt truly strong for the first time since she had hatched, as if she had had a full meal in a matter of seconds. In fact, that was exactly what happened. Her body had somehow absorbed the nutrients from the muddy water she was laying in, and had filled her body with what it needed for her to get by for at least a few days, if not longer. It had been a strong cast. The wraith felt refreshed, at least in body, if not in soul. Her soul was still… wounded, as was the skin around her gem and on her back, from the long talons of the Monster.

She flinched at the thought of It, and pushed it with a shudder from her mind. Now she faced another problem: what was she going to do now that the lights were out she didn’t know where she was? As she mulled this over, the last of the light from her gem and eyes faded away, encasing her again in darkness.

Note: Do not feel compelled to match this post length.

we burn the brightest

in the dark

Darkness had shrouded the cave before, but it was a time before Aries' birth. He was left stumbling in through Cetus, with no light to guide him, wondering if they would ever shine for him again. The swamp was sinister when the lights were on, but now, this was a nightmare. To say that he was not scared would be a lie, but regardless, the ram managed to keep his composure. The only thing he could do was press on and hope.

It had been awhile since he had met the mysterious, white fawn at the Divine, but she had not left his thoughts. True to his promise, he had come back, only to find her gone. Aries did try to find her, but the forest had a way of swallowing up trails. It wasn't long before her presence vanished all together, like a ghost.

With the lights out, she had faded to the back of mind, as he carefully picked his way through the marshy cavern. Occasionally his hoof would knock against a root, or a fallen log, causing him to stumble, and making more noise than he'd like.

Then, a soft blue light lit up his surroundings. He froze and snapped his head towards the source, and for a brief time, he saw the white fawn's face illumnated by her gem, like an eerie beacon. Aries could hardly believe it. She was right there, and he had almost passed her. Then, as her light faded away, the ram moved towards her, picking up his pace into a desperate trot, but he was not fast enough. The blackness swallowed her up, and Aries slowed his pace, fixed on where she once shone.

"H-hey!" His voice quivered, betraying his fear "It's me."

Aries slowed to a stop, unsure of where she was. He spoke to her once more, or rather the darkness that once held her, his voice softly pleading.

"Please don't leave..."

"Listen to me."
Thoughts...

TAG: @Alaska // OOC:

The wraith could hear movement nearby in the darkness, and she immediately thought of the Monster. What if it had come back? What it was coming for her? Her heart rate increased, pounding in her chest, and throughout her body. She took in short, shallow breaths, trying to make as little noise as possible. But she did not flee… Not yet. She was trying so hard to keep a grip on herself. What if it… wasn’t the Monster? And she ran away from someone who really… wanted to see her? It spoke then, whatever it was, and she… thought she recognized the voice.

Who had a voice like that? Whose mouth-sounds were those? A fuzzy memory surfaced, but she just couldn’t piece it together in her mind. Still, it was enough of a friendly memory to cause her to stay. But she did not call out. She said nothing, did not move, simply waited in the dark. The idea of having other Gembounds anywhere near her still made her crazy, so she hoped that, whoever was here, they would simply stay put and be content to be where they were, over there, away from her. She needed space.

@Aries -- wow this post sucks. sorry.

we burn the brightest

in the dark

Aries stared intensely into dark void before him. His ears strained, and he sniffed the air, trying to feel for the fawn's presence. Water sloshed as he dared to take a another step closer, careful not step on her. Someone was there, in front of him. The fact that they haven't spoken to him made his situation more daunting, but he knew it was really her.

He could smell the faint metallic scent of blood. "Are you hurt?" He asked her, though not expecting a reply. He thought back to when he saw her gem glow. It did look like someone, or something, tried to dig it out. What a terrifying encounter that must have been. Guilt struck his chest like a well placed kick. This was all his fault. He shouldn't have left her alone, not here.

"Listen to me."
Thoughts...

TAG: @Alaska // OOC: I really wish aries had torchlight right now

Whoever was there, she could hear it when they took another step towards her. Her breathing rate increased, if that were possible, and now she felt lightheaded from hyperventilating. Why were they getting closer? Why couldn’t they just leave her alone? She let out an odd, strangled sound, as if she were trying to hold back a scream, but still, she stayed where she was. What was the point of trying to run away in this darkness? Right now, the best she could do was not move — not breathe — not make any noise, and pray that whoever was there would be too stupid to track her in the dark. She didn’t care if they knew her, if they were friendly. She was slowly losing her mind at this point, her instincts screaming at her to run or fight, it didn’t matter which. She swore, if they touched her… it would be over.

@Aries

we burn the brightest

in the dark

The white fawn had ran into something in these woods, something depraved enough to hurt a young Greater Gembound. It set Aries on edge. He felt the darkness acting like a fatal veil. With such a monstrous creature lurking about, he'd wished he had a way to see, but Cetus was far too damp to light anything on fire.

He heard a choked cry escape from the fawn. There was no doubt in his mind that she was terrified. Aries attempted to calm her with a gentle shush. He remembered her icy glare when he had gotten too close. The ram took as step back just in case he had accidently encroached. The last thing wanted was her to flee into darkness.

Aries stood firmly, and told her his intentions in the only way he could."I will protect." He said.

"I will protect."

"Listen to me."
Thoughts...

TAG: @Alaska // OOC:

Well… they weren’t coming any closer, and from the sound of it, whoever it was had backed up a bit, even. The wraith let herself breathe a little more, feeling her heart rate drop a fraction. Perhaps… perhaps they wouldn’t hurt her. And then they spoke. She tensed up again with the noise, but heard the words regardless. ’I will protect. I will protect.’

That voice… she tried to pinpoint it again. It was just… there… at the back of her mind, on the tip of her tongue. She remembered only… something uncomfortable. Whoever this was had done something she didn’t like, yet her relationship with them didn’t seem… bad. They were not friends. She had no friends. But she remembered that he had not tried to harm her before. She took a deep breath to steady herself, and repeated a word back to him in a whisper so he would know that she was there, that she trusted him. “Protect…”

@Aries

we burn the brightest

in the dark

It was the first time the he heard her speak. Her voice sounded like any other young gembound, yet Aries was taken aback by it. It was one of the last things he expected from her.

But the initial shock did not last long as it was replaced by wave of relief. He thought, maybe she was beginning to trust him. The ram nodded softly in the dark. "Yes, I protect."

His thoughts drew back to when he was a lamb, with his clumsy legs caught up in roots. The dragon's burning red eyes pierced straight through his soul as it lunged for him. That image was seared into his memory, along with the feelings of terror and utter helplessness it welled up. He knew that if the fawn did indeed run into something that horrifying, it would be a long time before she ever felt safe again. If only he could have been there for her as Leon had been there for him. In that way, he had failed her, but now, she was giving him a second chance.

"As long as I'm here, I won't let anything hurt you."

Aries meant it from the bottom of his heart. They would have to go through him first.

"I promise."

"Listen to me."
Thoughts...

TAG: @Alaska // OOC:

It was so unfortunate that a heartfelt creature like Aries had to feel so protective for a strange and un-emotional creature like Alaska. Even as he was telling her that he would never let anything hurt her, she was drifting in and out, barely aware of his words. Part of this was just how she was, the rest was due to the horribly traumatic incident she’d gone through with Teyouma. If she simply hadn’t understood others before, now she didn’t trust them. Not at all. Not really. Even her calm around Aries was only until he moved again, which would probably be soon. Even if she wasn’t really listening to him, she was definitely watching him, waiting for him to make one… wrong… move…

@Aries

we burn the brightest

in the dark

Fire was a destructive element in Aries' eyes. It was painful to weld, and dangerous when untamed, but deep down, he knew it could serve a different purpose, a more noble purpose. It could become light.

Heat gathered in his stone, turning it white hot, as it swelled throughout his entire body. Gradually, the ram's body began release a soft, warm glow, chasing away the darkness. Aries could now see her and their surrounding, with only his gentle light keeping the creeping shadows at bay. He saw the full extent of her injuries, horrible gashes from talons. His heart ached with pity for the silent fawn. If what whatever done this was still out there, he wouldn't let it hurt her again, as long as he was here.

Like a beacon, Aries stood still, his luminous flank turned to the white fawn. His eyes, now glowing white with radiance, stared at the gemling, wondering if she would run off into the darkness or stay bathed in his light. Truth be told, Aries was not sure how long he could keep it up. Fire was destructive, and the pain was already starting to seep through his insides, growing stronger with each second. Yet, he told himself to endure, if not for his sake then for her's.

"Listen to me."
Thoughts...

TAG: @Alaska // OOC: Oh look, he has it now