Blackberry's dreams swirled before her. Chaos. Anger. Chaos. Blood. Fighting. Anger. Wolf. Cat. Wolf. Snake. Anger. Chaos. Death.

It felt like both an eternity and a few seconds before the flashing dreams melted away and her eyes blinked open. She felt nothing. Hollow. Empty. She didn't like it. It made her cold and scared and weak and her feathers ruffled at just the thought. She was not weak. She was strong. She was Blackberry!

As she slowly got to her feet, she tested out her wing. It had been a while since her fight with the wolf and her wing was still weak. At least there wasn't as much pain as before, but it was stiff and wouldn't fold in all the way. She grimaced at the thought of never being able to fly again. She didn't like that thought. If she couldn't fly then what was the point? She remembered how she had crushed Kera's leg as she leaped from the sky or how she had pounded the cat powerfully with her strong, solid wings. If she didn't have them anymore then what was the point?

She shook off the bits of moss and loose feathers that had stuck to her from her nest. She turned to Moose. "Come on," she hissed, "We're going now."


___________________________________________________________

Hear my honk.
Why are you listening to my thoughts? Get out of my head!

tags: @Blueberry @Faelan
notes: here

Standing with Blackberry, the moose nodded.

"Where are we going Miss Blackberry?" He asked sleepily. She seemed angry but ignored it in his just awoken state. He yawned, wondering why Blackberry was so upset. She seemed to care a lot about him a few nights ago. She even called him his real name.

But that was in this past. And she was his friend, so it didn't matter, right?

@Blackberry

The young goose wasn't the only one in the caves plagued by memories. Faelan lay curled against a half wall, his eyes fluttering behind closed lids as images flashes before him. He saw a huge, male lion, as dark as shadows, with deep blue eyes. A beautiful and sad lioness appeared next, sitting before a colossal mushroom. A black colt, roan filly and some kind of striped horse suddenly ran past, drawing his mind's eye away from the lioness and on to the towering white and blue dragon that sat a little ways away. After that, the memories came faster, too fast for him to catch them all. He caught sight of a snake though, and a drawing on a cave wall.

The strange, swirling lines of the drawing were the last thing Faelan saw, and the image lingered with him even after his golden orbs popped open. He was breathing fast, he instantly noted, and his heart was pounding like he had been running with the equines. For some reason, uneasiness turned his stomach. He wanted to remember his life before, and yet, some part of him didn't. It seemed to be blocking him from remembering, or the memories from surfacing maybe. They were anyways though, more and more every day. Still just flashes, but he knew beyond a doubt that he had emerged from a chrysalis before.

If the pictures from his past hadn't convinced him, then the few young Gembounds he had met recently had. They had all been young, some literally just hatched from their gem. And yet he was full-grown, towering over most of them. Looking down on them felt strange though, and walking around in this cumbersome frame felt even more alien. He kept thinking it'd become easy, but every time he woke up, he still felt out of place inside his own skin.

After heaving a heavy sigh, the tawny brute pushed himself up slowly, stretching along the way. He wouldn't get anything done, or discover anything more about himself laying around. He knew because he'd already tried. So, after a quick glance about, he turned left and started up one of the valley's slopes. It seemed like most Gembounds could be found around the tunnel entrances, so he'd try looking there now. It also seemed like meeting Gembounds that were the same species as Gembounds he knew in the past made him remember things faster. So, the best way to remember everything possible, he thought as he walked along, would be to meet every single Gembound that he could.

@Blackberry @blueberry

She turned to march away when she heard heavy footsteps coming their way. She looked over her shoulder and a jolt went through her stomach when she saw what it was. A huge cat, twice the size of the cougar, with a golden mane and rippling tawny fur. She was frozen, her mind whirling. Would she dare? Dare to challenge such a huge creature? But it was the first one they'd seen in a while, and she had promised herself that the first gembound they meet would be the one to test Moose's new skills.

But could they stand up to it? A baby moose and a young goose? To a lion? Perhaps, if they fought hard. And she sure as hell would.

Darkness crept into her stomach, filling the emptiness that so reviled her. She turned her body around and whispered to Moose, "Ah, just what I was looking for. A chance to see how well we fight together."

She raised her head proudly and honked to the lion, "Who are you to dare to come forward to me, Blackberry? Come one step closer and you'll regret it!"


___________________________________________________________

Hear my honk.
Why are you listening to my thoughts? Get out of my head!

tags: @Blueberry @Faelan
notes: here

Blueberry was giddy. Sure, this freaking thing was twice their size, but they could do it. Berry was sure of it.

"Yeah, come at us if you dare!" He shouted, his voice eager and excited to fight. He was giddy, practically hopping up and down. This was his chance to prove he could be useful to Blackberry, so she'd keep him around forever.

@Blackberry @Faelan

The fresh scent of other Gemboounds washed over the roof of Faelan's mouth at the same time his golden eyes fell on them. He breathed in deep, trying to discern their unfamiliar smell and appearance as he slowed his steps. The pair had already heard him though, and they nearly turned as one to face him.
As soon as they did, he was certain he had never seen Gembounds like them before. The tall, gangly one was similar to a horse, but its head was larger. The other one looked like a feathered, hard-mouthed dragon. They were both smaller than him, making him assume they were younger.

Their sudden shouted taunts didn't attest to their youth though. Or maybe it did, and Faelan just couldn't figure it out because he had been a completely different kind of youth. Since the broad-shouldered lion still had the same personality as when he first emerged from his chrysalis, he didn't understand these two. Why would they threaten him? Was this a different kind of show of fear, he wondered as he slowly drew to a halt.

"I don't mean you two any harm," Faelan said with a tentative smile. Perhaps, if he tried to talk to them like he had with Sebastian, they would understand. Meeting the younger feline had shown him that not every interaction with other Gembounds meant they ran away in fear. It should have been obvious to the lion that these two weren't planning on that, but his hope for friendship blinded him to the imminent danger.

@Blackberry

Blackberry narrowed her eyes. This thing was an idiot. He didn't notice the hostility or the threat in her voice. He wasn't advancing or backing away. He was standing there smiling. She looked over and Blueberry and scowled. "Stop prancing around like an idiot, you're making me look like a fool! Now he won't fear us!"

She turned back to the lion, scowl deepening as hunger for battle crept into her eyes. Yes, trying to take him down would be fun. "Maybe you don't mean us harm, but we certainly mean you harm. I'm Blackberry, the terror of the caves. And you're about to know exactly what that means!" She nodded to Moose and spread her wings.

As she tried to pull forth the magic to make her wings glow red, sparks shot along her wings, electrocuting her. It hurt, a lot, but she tried not to show that she had felt any pain and tried to make it look that she had intended to do that all along. She glared at the lion, daring him to challenge her about it.


___________________________________________________________

Hear my honk.
Why are you listening to my thoughts? Get out of my head!

tags: @Blueberry @Faelan
notes: here

Berry nodded, letting her know that he understood. He let the happiness go, turning serious. This lion meant no harm? Miss Blackberry said they meant the opposite, and Blue couldn't agree more. He needed to prove he was better. He needed to show Blackberry he could be helpful too.

"Fight us, or we'll beat you down without a second thought."The moose bellowed, trying to sound intimidating and menacing. Berry planted his hooves down a bit and tipped his head down, eyes turned up in a glare.

___________________________________________________________

"Hello there!"
Why are you in my head?

tags: @Blackberry @Faelan
notes: here

The lion's brow furrowed in confusion whenever he heard Blackberry's promise of pain. She wanted to hurt him? Why, he wondered silently, before the spark of magic caught his eye.
His golden orbs narrowed as he watched the goose wince through the sparks that were dancing along her wings. This kind of magic was new to him, but it seemed to harm the user, just like Fire. Hopefully, that would deter "the terror of the caves" from trying to use it anymore. Faelan truly didn't want to hurt the pair of youngsters, but he also didn't plan on standing around and letting them hurt him.

"You don't have to do this," Faelan said, even though he was already reaching for his own magic. Perhaps, if he could knock them over, he could make a run for it. Or, if they realized that he was dangerous too, they would calm down and tell him why they wanted to hurt him. Since literally anything but standing here and being hurt sounded good, Faelan reached for whatever piece of power he could find.
It was difficult, more so than he remembered it being with Sebastian. In fact, whenever he finally managed to summon the spell, it was as weak as it was hard to find. The ground around him shuddered for barely more than a few seconds before fading into useless quivers that disappeared far faster than he would of liked.

Well, the lion thought as he finally looked back up at the goose and moose, this wasn't going to be good.

@Blackberry
@Blueberry

Round: 1/10?
Attempt: Pebblequacke - knock them over/disorient them
Defense: none
Injuries: none

As Blackberry prepared to leap for the attack, the ground shuddered around her, flipping her stomach a little bit. However, it was over in just a few seconds and she recovered quickly. That wasn't natural - the lion must have done it. So it used magic. She hoped that he was not anywhere near as adept as the wolf.

With a honk, she leaped forward, aiming to bit down on his huge paw, as hard as she could. Perhaps she could hurt him enough to make it harder to fight or even stand.

Round: 1
Attempt: bite his paw as hard as she can
Defense: none
Injuries: scars, lame wing


___________________________________________________________

Hear my honk.
Why are you listening to my thoughts? Get out of my head!

tags: @Blueberry @Faelan
notes: here