Septiezal had watched, waited, from the low hanging branches above. The serpent did not make an effort to hide himself, but his scales had not trouble blending into the dreary trees. The untrained eye might not catch him at first, save for the flicker of his bright, ember eyes.

Dragon called forth the Children and one by one they came. He spied the same komodo lizard from Tuck's party, then, a loud, black bird swooped down from the tree tops. A fox and a cat slunk out of the murky brush. The Bonecaster's son was joining too, apparently .

Good, good.

He listened to what was essentially the same speech Dragon gave him earlier. This time, he spoke it to a crowd. Septiezal smiled, the Children of Rot was reborn, and he was one slither closer to the truth, and Aquarian, at least, he hoped.

"I will join as well." He announced, making his presence known as he slowly slithered down the tree's trunk like creeping vine.
"speak"

@Dragon

ooc: Sept's going to join now, then disappear for a bit later.

Sizzle

Sizzle had been sleeping.

She had no idea why she had ended up in Cetus. The room of mists had drawn her attention, she supposed, and eventually she'd given into curiosity, wanting to see what the rolling clouds of white that drifted out of the room were.

She had wound her way up a jutting crag of a rock, and looped her small coils around them, quickly finding herself lulled to sleep by the burbling of the swamp.

The voices had woken her. A loud one and, when she looked down, she had seen a reptile, much like her. But it was large, and grey-green, and had legs. It was speaking of... of a Betrayer? And so she listened close, wondering what it was.

And then it was yelling, and she flinched. However, she had to admit, the Children of Rot sounded appealing. Seeking knowledge? Yes, she always sought knowledge.

First to show was, well, se didn't know what it was. It looked like an overgrown fox. And it was speaking rather rudely, but it looked young, and so she couldn't fault it. Next was a lizard, one who looked rather like the first, but different. Pinkish in color, it looked rather odd. And then was a black bird, a crow of some sort. Another feline, with dark colored rosettes.

And then the alligator - Dragon, they'd called it - was speaking, telling a tale of monsters of the caves, of elder things. And his speech was riveting, and alluring. She wanted... she wanted to join them.

It had been the appearance of Septiezal who had turned her. Another snake! And so, she slithered down from her rock crag, making her way towards Dragon and his gathering. "I would like to join you, if you'll have me." she hissed.

@Dragon
"I'm speaking..."
'I'm thinking...'

Ghanyarah settled his bulk in the loam and waited. He didn't know how long they would have to wait for - how many Gembounds was Dragon expecting to show up? He did mention he had recruited a few, had he not? His tongue flickered curiously, watching the gathering slowly grow.

It was Eve's arrival that had truly caught him off guard, though. They had spoken of her not long ago with their suspicions, thoughts that had twisted his chest with dismay. And yet here she was now - fluttering in like a shadow that had always belonged in Cetus. He couldn't deny that his heart lifted at the sight, his tongue flicking fondly at her in return of her greeting. A part of him still wondered if it was true, that she had taken her child away from them. But he wouldn't touch on the subject now. His interest was quick to flit to the others that arrived, anyway.

He looked between all of them, before finally settling back on Dragon with his ostentatious show of fire. Ghanyarah could even feel the heat licking his face. He rumbled with pleasure at the display, then listened to the alligator's diatribe, nodding all the way through.

He sought truth. He sought survival.

And it seemed he wasn't the only one.

Ghanyarah felt satisfaction stirring in his stomach as the gathered Gembounds each pledged themselves to Dragon and the Children of Rot. His head turned toward his friend, tipping slightly. "The Children of Rot will rule Cetus once more," he said firmly. "We will prevail over the Masters."

Of this, he was certain. Under Dragon's lead, and with all these new Children by their side, they would overthrow whatever petty machinations the Masters had devised.

Eve still had no idea who most of these other gembounds were. Neither Dragon nor Ghanyarah offered much explaination, but it quickly left her mind. "I've been here for a long time," she squawked matter-of-factly.

She felt the heat gather in Dragon's jaws and the crow was quick to jump ship and flutter towards Ghanyarah instead as orange flames billowed into the air. Her talons met the morganite crest on his head and she got herself comfortable there, half-eyeing the pink stone.

It was shiny.

She approved.

The crow lifted her head to listen to Dragon speak, only about halfway through his speech, but she was curiously silent while he spoke and while the other gembounds pledged to him. She wondered, if only briefly, where Czernobog and Tal'at where.

She ruffled her feathers as Ghanyarah spoke under her before letting out a wordless, raucous squawk of agreement towards the alligator, though she soon turned her head away to look around Cetus itself, half-alert for more newcomers.

Neither the alligator's speech, nor the pile of rotting food at the brim of the lake, had gone unnoticed.

The surface of the water began to tremble as something titanic moved within its depths. As though roused by the alligator's passionate sermon, the beast uncoiled himself from the limitless and dark beyond, pointed and narrow head slicing through the thick, muddy waters, heading for the light glinting off of the jagged surface.

He had slept for so long, waiting for another moment like this. He had listened, and he had judged. What he viewed as failure, he let die. What petty requests came from single voices, he had ignored. But this - there was potential in this. A taste of victory on his tongue, a sense of hope, perhaps the tang of vengeance. It was worth arising for once more.

So with a mighty screech, the serpent burst from the water.

"A COLLECTIVE FORMS ABOVE MY HEAD! FOR WHAT PURPOSE! YOOUUUU!" he shrieked, fixing his vibrant yellow eyes on the alligator. "IS IT TRUE? YOU SEEK TO DEPOSE THE MASTERS?"

The serpent hissed and lunged forward, thrusting the weight of his head and a great length of his teal-scaled body into the loam, to crash down toward Dragon, ignorant of who he might crush in his wake. Massive waves of mud and dirt flung up from the impact site, coating everyone foolish enough to stand close enough. And then he elevated his head again, forming a long, winding 'S' from his body that emerged partially from the water to his massive skull craned and cocked down at the alligator. Yellow eyes glaring, intense with curiosity.

Note: Dragon, Ghanyarah, Eve, Aithaxas, Serek, and Layla will need to roll "Other" to avoid being crushed by Aquarian. Those who fail will be wounded by the impact, but not killed. This roll is optional for Septiezal and Sizzle, depending on how close they had gotten.

Eve let out another Aquarian-screech. Dragon had to be impressed with her ability to mimic, but now was not--WAIT NO--

The screech erupted into full volume as the black lake parted, the fully three-hundred-foot-long serpent arcing up over them and then slamming down. Dragon had barely any time to move--and regardless, he was lame, and slow and heavy--and as he tried desperately to scrabble out of the way DO YOU HAVE NO CONCEPT OF YOUR OWN SIZE-- he felt the impact slam down beside him. There was a moment of thoughtless shock as his body was thrust to one side by the wave of mud, and then he was lying there, blinking up past the goop that now coated him.

"IS IT TRUE? YOU SEEK TO DEPOSE THE MASTERS?"

Oh shit.

The alligator's mind for a brief and rare instant went blank, with the enormous serpent staring down at him, screeching. When if he still serves them? I did not believe he did, but--this could be our end. For a moment, he tried to think of a good way to answer, and he hit upon it quickly. It was, in the bluntest sense, simple honesty.

Fearful to glance around, to check on the others, afraid to take his eyes off his vast "father," he spoke--his own voice a loud bellow merely to be heard. And because Dragon had little other volume with which to speak.

"If that is what we must in time do to survive--then yes. If they have made us our playthings and plan us harm--then yes. But do they? We know little of them."

Let that be the right thing to have said. I do not wish to die five minutes after gathering others to ensure survival.

@Serek @Layla @Aithaxas @Septiezal @Sizzle @Ghanyarah @Eve

In the three seconds that passed since Eve last opened her beak, her mind drifted to her children. She'd escorted her son away from Cetus and away from the Children as fear pricked at her spine. She had been afraid that he would get hurt, that Dragon might lose his shit and end up slaughtering him.

But now, looking at her old two friends and a new group of gembounds to call family, she had almost forgotten why she was ever worried.

... almost.

She felt droplets of water on her back before she heard the screech, and as a fully grown sea serpent burst through the depths, shrieking, Eve let out a shriek of her own that was strewn with a few... choice words. None of them were particularly nice.

The crow promptly abandoned ship (more commonly known as Ghanyarah), wings sprawling and beginning to flutter as she lifted herself off the komodo dragon's head, getting a few feet away before a serpent fell under her with a resounding thump.

She wasn't dead, but there were probably a few broken bones. The crow was too angry to actually take notice, screeching in the marsh under Aquarian's belly. "WATCH WHERE YOU THROW YOURSELF, YOU FAT FUCK," were the ever-eloquent words to tumble out of her beak, muffled under the behemoth. "HOW IN THE SHIT ARE WE GOING TO GET ANYTHING DONE IF YOU'RE KILLING US WITH YOUR GIGANTIC SCALY ASSHOLE."

The abuse continued, for those who cared to listen. The dirt combined with Aquarian's scales provided something of a barrier that blocked out the worst of the crow's swearing and near-constant name calling. Hell, she might have been quieter than she had been in years.

The distinct call once the stream of disgusting words came to an end, however, was clear as day. "Get OFF ME."

Serek listened to the others and realized, in that moment, that this was his new family. He had left behind the family among the bones, Mother and his Siblings. He felt a dull aching in his heart as he realized what he had done. But it was too late to regret his decisions now. He could only move forward and learn to love this family too. Skeena would have to protect herself now. This was his new charge.

His head raised proudly, he listened to the others speaking their determination and he nodded. He could make do with this life. He could make good things out of it.

But then there was a rumbling and the great serpent burst out of the water. With a scream of terror, Serek darted forward, clearing the crash site of the huge monster and dove behind a tree. Even here, mud and water washed into his paws and fur and he shivered as he looked out from behind the trunk.

He hadn't quite believed Dragon when he spoke of Aquarion. There was a part of him that doubted such a creature could exist. But this...this was real. There was a huge serpent there, dripping and glaring down at the congregation below. His eyes widened, his ears pulled back, and he retreated back behind the tree, hoping the thing didn't notice him.

"I'm screaming submission"
I don't know if I am dying or living

tags:
notes:

Sizzle found herself looking around.

She'd never seen such a large gathering of Gembounds - there was a large, pinkish reptile, with a large, jutting crystal. A black-ish bird sat atop its head, squawking loudly.

And then something began to tremble beneath her. If the entire length of her body hadn't been pressed against the ground, she would surely not have noticed it. And it was only that slight warning that gave her the chance to slither out of the way, only moments before a large, serpentine beast thrust its head from the swamp.

Her eyes widened, and she hissed, listening to it speak. And then it was thrusting itself forward, slamming down atop the others. It only just missed Dragon, the Alligator seemingly stunned, and the crow vanished beneath it. Thankfully, it seemed she still lived, as some creative cursing was rather easy to hear. The odd hybrid scarpered, hiding behind a tree, and she couldn't yet see any of the others. "Is everyone alright?!" she called out, drawing herself to her not-so-impressive height of two and a half feet.

Aithaxas watched in wonder as the serpent-- Aquarian-- rose out of the water with a bellow. For several moments it was a beautiful sight. Then he just seemed to fling himself at the shore. Not that the maned wolf payed much attention to the specifics, only that a massive serpent was getting way, way too close.

Aithaxas did not heistate. He turned, running for what was, potentially, his life. Did this creature not comprehend how big it was and how tiny the others were? Did Aquarian not care?

He barely made it out of the way; he already had mud on his pelt, slowing him down, the terrain was still rather unfamiliar, and overall everything just seemed to be against him. But he made it, feeling Aquarian fall not too far away from where he was. Then came the wave of muck, which knocked Aithaxas over. Yet he hadn't been crushed by the beast. Not everyone was faring as well, from what he could hear; there was muffled cursing from somewhere under Aquarian.

Shakily, the wolf stood back up, shaking as much of the filth and water off of him as possible. He was sore, but generally unhurt. The maned wolf turned to look at Aquarian again.

Now he felt something between complete awe and full terror. Aithaxas was frozen in place. Hopefully the serpent didn't do such a thing again, for he might not get out of the way again. He did not answer Sizzle, seemingly unable to speak.

"Speech."