Reseda stumbled into the room. She had no idea where she was now. Her head was spinning furiously and she could barely put one foot in front of another. She stumbled every so often and constantly found herself having to pause and stop herself from throwing up more blood. There was nothing left in her stomach now besides the residual fluids. Yet she still retched and coughed against her will.

This was so annoying. She was supposed to be training, doing magic, getting better. Perhaps going back to Canis to find the deep one and show off her incredible powers. She wasn't supposed to be hobbling around with some kind of weird magic poisoning. Her plans would have to be put on hold until she got better. And that was frustrating.

She eventually couldn't move anymore, she was so exhausted. She collapsed and found her feet falling away from under her as she rolled into a ditch she had not noticed. It was as if her senses just weren't working anymore. She curled in on herself and shivered, her mind blank. Her body was running completely in constant battle against the pain and the radiation. It was doing what it had to do to survive. Reseda just had to wait for it to pass and she was awfully annoyed about it.

"Living with myself."
Nothing but lies.


tags: @Envy
notes:

Envy was wandering through Polaris, feeling mildly pleased with themselves. Perhaps it was the sweet taste still lingering on their tongue, or perhaps the obnoxious sparkling that shimmered in their fur. Though the hours of wasted effort still soiled the pleasure, they were glad that the reward wasn't entirely, for nought. In fact, when used in conjunction with their magic, they themselves could be prettier than the eggs could ever be. They hoped this sparkle could last forever. But even if they didn't, they were sure they could choke down another mouthful or two of the odd yellow fruit.

Even if what little they managed was enough to lie on their stomach and make them feel queasy...

But they were sparkling!

And they wanted to make the most of this. So, even as their antagonistic nature wrestled with gaudy, glittery pride, they held themselves high and slunk forth with confidence. It was then that they caught the unpleasant, but all-too-familiar, sound of someone retching. The weasel winced, the nausea in their stomach rising, but they gulped it back. The sound soon faded, but their curiosity was piqued.

Perhaps it was a weakness they could twist to their advantage.

Lowering themselves close to the ground, they scurried in the direction of the sound. Soon, the little weasel climbed on top of a boulder and was greeted by the sight of an enormous lizard, curled up into a ball. "Hey, lizard!" they called, slinking forward as though nothing was wrong, and rising onto two paws when they were a safe distance away. They looked contemptuous, chest puffed out. "You aren't looking so good."

They sniffed the air.

Bile.

They shuddered.

"speak."

@Reseda

Beyond the haze of sickness, Reseda heard someone approach and distantly heard a voice nearby. What an obvious observation. Sometimes, the intelligence of gembounds truly amazed her.

With great difficulty, she managed to shift herself, causing another wave of nausea to pass through her body, just so she could have a look at the thing that had approached her. It was tiny, barely the size of one of her burly legs, even standing on only two of its stubby little feet. It almost looked like a rodent to her, but it was at least bigger, she would give it that. Still, the tiny one was barely a snack to her. Not that she planned on eating it. She'd just throw it up.

Instead, she wondered if it would be able to do something for her, help make the sickness pass quicker. That would be a useful asset. Her eyes moved so that she was staring at its bright purple irises. Interesting.

"I don't feel good, either," she coughed. "Failed a spell, it backfired and I got like this. You don't happen to have anything that could help it, do you?"

"Living with myself."
Nothing but lies.


tags: @Envy
notes:

The lizard's question struck a chord with Envy; they'd never been asked for help before, and that opened up a whole realm of possibilities. The little weasel's tail twitched dramatically, and they stroked their bony chest with a paw. What were they to do? Envy, of course, was well-attuned to the feeling of nausea, and well used to dealing with it, as well... though not, perhaps, this kind. But the thing they didn't like was sharing that that help.

But something compelled them, a greedy feeling that grew into a nagging feeling in their brain, reminding them of a pit in their stomach. What if, stone-cold logic reasoned, the lizard ended up owing them for the help they gave? what if Envy could save them from death?

"Hmmm..."

On the other hand, instinct caused Envy to look at the komodo dragon's jaws with some degree of concern. Envy wouldn't stick around if she did decide to have a go at them, that was for certain. But the thought of aiding such a beast... the thought of being able to call on this creature's aid... use her to stomp their enemies into the ground... well, she couldn't do that when she was keeled over. Envy brightened, quickly changing their tune. "Well. I don't have anything on me, buuut..." the little one tittered, deep in thought. "...Perhaps what you need, is the strength to get over it without filling your belly. Nothing to throw up, see?" Envy patted their emaciated stomach and scampered over to the komodo dragon's head, looking fearless and excited. "I can absorb energy from the things around me. Maybe you can't do it, but it always worked for me. Maybe 'cause I'm pretty special. But, try it anyway."

"speak."

@Reseda

She stared, unblinking, at the tiny one in front of her. It was chittering and considering so dramatically, she would have rolled her eyes if she could. However, she didn't want to make it angry and risk it running off. She couldn't afford that right now, even though it didn't seem to have anything that could help her.

Absorbing energy? Sounded like useless garbage. She didn't need energy, she had plenty. She just couldn't use it because of this extremely annoying sickness. However, she thought she would at least try, if only to satisfy the little one. She put on a little show of looking concentrated and holding her breath while not actually doing anything at all. But then she felt a faint stirring in her gem as magic, strange and alien, began to wind its way through her body. Out of surprise, she immediately cut it off, the the magic that had managed to get its way into her system already made her feel a bit better. Her stomach was still crunched, but she wasn't nearly as dizzy.

She looked at the little one, slightly surprised. "I-I think its working, somehow." She very much doubted that what she had just done had anything at all to do with the little one, but she might as well think that it did. "I feel a little stronger now."

"Living with myself."
Nothing but lies.


tags: @Envy
notes:

[quote='Envy' pid='41869' dateline='1523813428']

Envy tapped their foot and looked impatient as the lizard did seemingly nothing for a while, using their paws to comb the fur of their chest and lilac eyes slowly narrowing. When the lizard finally spoke, Envy couldn't help but feel a certain smugness crawling through their chest at the surprise apparent in their voice. "See? What'd I tell ya? I know my stuff. Used to do that all the time when-"

They cut themselves off abruptly, realizing that telling their story might as well be begging for pity, and showing weakness. They fluffed themselves up full of bitterness for their own emotion. If only they'd been born strong, then they wouldn't be making that stupid mistake. But was it really a mistake? As always, Envy's insides boiled with indecision. They refused to be pitied, and yet they craved it. Their whole sense of self was one giant oxymoron. "Well, I can do a lot more than that, as you'll see. I'm gonna be the greatest magician in the caves, one day."

Though they did feel a slight annoyance sneaking in, as Envy was torn between the pride of being right, or keeping their magic to themselves. Well, they supposed beggars couldn't be choosers. And the little weasel was certain that the komodo dragon would want to help them with something after this. The little one rubbed their front paws together gleefully. "Name's Envy, by the way. In case you want to... y'know... brag about me later..." they examined the claws of one stubby forelimb.

"speak."

@Reseda

Every passing second, Reseda knew that she had found a good one - one with sense, but also qualities that would be easy to manipulate. The right words would get them where they needed to go. Reseda was completely confident. Her first step was to allow herself to be manipulated back, gain its trust. And then, ask it for a 'favor', use its envy and bitterness to rope it in. This would work...hopefully.

She cast the spell and her remaining queasiness went away and she slowly stood and shook out her skin. She looked down at the little one and smiled "Thanks, Envy, really. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't been here. I'm Reseda, by the way. Is there any way I can repay you?"

"Living with myself."
Nothing but lies.


tags: @Envy
notes:

Excitement sent a thrilling shudder down their spine; the weasel stood up straight, and bared sharp little fangs. But at the same time, they couldn't help but feel suspicion brewing in their chest. Still, they grinned, though their mind ticked fast over various points. Surely it can't be this easy. It's never been this easy. They narrowed their eyes, placing a paw against their chin deep on thought. No, this doesn't seem right. They examined the lizard. Someone big and strong like this was bound to come in useful at some point. Who better to have as a follower? They could be the brains, this big lizard could be the brawn.

Envy's tail twitched, the fur along their back bristling with pride and a hunger that wasn't for food.

They narrowed their eyes. Suspicion was outweighed by want. Any problems, they could deal with it later, but this was an opportunity that couldn't be passed up. They shook themselves, dropping to all fours fora moment before shooting back to their paws. "Follow me," they said boldly. "You can't be strong without good followers. you can be the brawn to my brains. there are some that don't give me the respect I deserve- (can't fathom why) -but I bet they would with someone like you as my right-hand. When I rule the caves, you'll have first pick of -uh- Whatever it is big lizards want."

"speak."

@Reseda

Reseda knew that it was time to look into the little one's mind. It was time for her to figure out the best way to convince it of what she wanted. She discreetly sent magic its way to touch its mind, hopefully without it noticing, and received a stream of broken thoughts.

It was suspicious of her, but it felt degraded, disrespected, small. So small. It wanted to be strong, powerful, respected. She couldn't help but notice the similarities between them. But the little one was driven by bitterness and frustration at the world, while she just wanted these things. She was greedy and she did not care.

Once she had received these thoughts, she pulled back before it could notice and gave it a knowing smiles. "How interesting. Maybe, perhaps, you would be interested in what I have to say. You want to become king. Okay. I'll help you. I just so happen to be looking for the right people with a strong will, a good head, and determination. You, I can see, have all. I know how it feels to not get the respect you deserve. The others in this cave are weak, visionless, rude little beasts. We can show them that they're wrong. That we should be respected and feared."

She smiled and felt her chest rumbling with approval. This was risky, divulging so much so soon, but she had confidence that the little one would take into her words. "But, of course, don't get me wrong. I am no leader. There is no need for leaders. This group I propose will be equals and we shall rule together. I am merely the organizer, the first spark. Would you be interested?"

"Living with myself."
Nothing but lies.


tags: @Envy
notes:

"God-king," Envy corrected pointedly, the words bringing back the ambitious spark that had driven their childhood. Could their dreams really be so close to hand? Could they really be within their reach?

Envy's long body twitched. They listened to Reseda's words with nothing short of impatience, tail flicking, head tilting, gaze darting, distracted. But excitement was also visible; they were listening, but the tension was getting too much for them. Finally, they began to pace on their hind paws, long body wobbling unbalanced on its length and motions serpentine. The lizard showered them with more flattery; the words determination, sense, strong will, good head ringing around their mind. The thought of finally getting what they wanted was intoxicating to them, and their gaze wavered into daydreams of greatness and grandeur. "That's right, that's right! Worms all if them!" they cackled and chirped shrilly, hopping in excitement. Then they stopped, eyeing the lizard suspiciously one last time. "But I'll still be in charge, right? You owe me a favour, remember?"

The lizard went on, and they stroked their chin. this presented complications. Equals, she said? What Envy wanted was followers. They chose their words carefully after a while of pondering. "Can't I be the leader? What if the others all fall into chaos and arguing and ruin everything?" They flicked their tail. "Besides, they'll all think they're better than me by default! That's the point of this, remember? Respect!" They folded their paws against their chest and sagged slightly. "Besides, if everyone is a king, that means nobody is!"

"speak."

@Reseda