Talion clenched his talons when he felt himself begin to slip, gripping the icy ledge he perched upon more firmly. His dark brown eyes, so deep in hue that they appear black, flicked from the tunnel entrance and then back into the tunnel. Faint, silver light fell through the narrow slit that led into Orion, illuminating the tunnel for several feet.

It was the best place he had found to hunt in the whole tunnel, and the owl didn't plan on leaving until he found something to eat. He'd been left empty taloned in both Cetus, and Pisces, and he was feeling more than a little annoyed about it.
Something was passing amongst the lesser Gembounds. A sickness, he assumed, and one that stemmed from Pisces, since Talion had seen stagnant, sickly looking pools on his way through. He'd seen nothing of the sort in Cetus, but he had noticed a definite lack of lesser Gembounds. In fact, he'd left the swampy room because of it. Talion had had every intention to stay and spend some time there, but it was hardly worth it when it too difficult to find anything to eat.

Pisces had been the same way, bringing him here, the owl thought as he continued to watch the tunnel entrance. He figured he'd swoop into Orion after eating, and see if anything had changed there. He'd only been this way, and into the room of stars, once before, and that had been over a dozen cycles ago.

Movement at the tunnel entrance ripped Talion's thoughts away from his plans, and back to the present. He focused in on the scampering form, thinking it seemed a bit long to be a cave rat. Too hungry to care though, he leaned off the ledge, slowly unfurling his wings as he did so that he began his descent silently.

@Envy

Envy scampered through the dark, their movements flowing, paws pitter-pattering against the icy ground. Small breaths steamed around their muzzle and they moved with a dead-set purpose. It was the first time they'd felt like this for many cycles- awake, alive, energetic- and they were going to make the most of it, even if it killed them.

They raised their head briefly to sniff at the air, but, finding nothing too overtly suspicious, carried on their merry way, bounding on down the tunnel... only to look up in confusion as a shadow fell upon them. They looked up, and upon the shape. The realization of what was happening- again- fell upon them, crushing their jovial mood in an instant. The weasel sprang back with a shrill shriek of rage, shock manifesting physically in a shockwave of magickal energy, potentially powerful enough to knock the bird clean out of the sky.

"The fuck are you doing, asshole!?"

"Speech."

@Talion

The peppered wings tilted so that Talion drifted in as wide a circle as he could in the tunnel. He descended slowly, silently, his gaze fixed on his prey the entire time. The closer he got, the more certain he was that this wasn't a cave rat, but his hunger kept him apathetic to just what it was exactly.

In the same instant that Talion unclenched his talons and reached out, his dive in mid-progression, the thing suddenly stopped and looked right up at him. It screeched in fury, which was almost as surprising as the unseen shockwave that blasted into him.
Talion let out his own screech, though his was definitely more terrified, as he spun end over end. He was used to flying, and more imporantly, rolling in the air, but flipping tail over talons over and over again was quite another thing.

Even in his panic, Talion was aware that the tunnel was only so big and he was bound to hit a wall or the floor sooner rather than later. Since he really didn't want to crash today, he decided to gather some shred of dignity by fixing this, if he could.
He stopped frantically flapping his wings, and concentrated on holding them out for just a moment. They flared, slowing him just enough so that he could wait until he was upright before he thrust downward. That sent him back up into the air, and a few more flaps had him soaring back to his would-be prey.

Talion had no idea what he was going to do once he got to the tiny animal. Thankfully, he didn't have to ponder over it too long, because as soon as he caught sight of it, it caught sight of him, and it screeched at him. In actual words. For some reason, he still hadn't believed that this was another sentient creature, most likely a Gembound, but it was hard to deny that thought any longer.

Too shocked to think straight, the owl helpfully replied,"I was gonna eat you."

As soon as the words came out of his beak, he knew that they were absolutely the wrong thing to say. However, he could hardly take them back in, and he was too proud to apologize for being honest. That had been what he was going to do, but his plans were different now. Perhaps I should say that, he thought as he landed on a jutting rock a few feet away. Then he saw the long rodent's face.

@Envy

Envy was overcome with a savage feeling of relief as the bird was sent tumbling and rolling in the air, only to right itself and come flying back. Envy arched their spine and bared their fangs, preparing to unleash another energy wave. Luckily, the strange bird appeared to come to their senses, and Envy was appalled by the shocked look on his face.

What did the bird think they were, a rat?!

Needless to say, the bird's immediate response didn't help the situation one bit. Their face turned sour, visibly offended, bristling all the way along their length. "Really? I thought you were gonna ask me to dinner, maybe gimme a peck on the cheek for good measure," Envy snapped, fur prickling upright until they were as spiky as a toilet brush. "No shit!" They glared daggers at the owl, coiling and twisting, their tail lashing at their back, barely able to contain their anger.

They were sorely tempted in that moment to let out another energy blast, knocking them clean off that stupid rock.

"Speech."

@Talion

Talion was taken aback by the ferocity of the other Gembound's words. He stared at them with wide, dark eyes, his beak agape, while they snapped at him. The sarcastic nature of their first statement barely even registered to the owl. All he really heard was their sharp, biting tone. It made him flinch, which he hated, but he hated the way it made him want to explain himself even more.

"I haven't seen any food for a while," Talion said defensively,"I was...overeager."

The owl dipped his head to restlessly sift his beak through his chest feathers. He didn't like how the other Gembound made him feel inferior. They seemed like they were going to hold his mistake against him. So what, he'd almost eaten them, but he hadn't gone through with it. That's what should matter, not his ignorant intentions.

Talion unfurled his wings and shook them out, trying his best to regain his composure. After he resettled them at his side, he decided to change the topic of the conversation. He needed to control the situation, and that seemed best when they weren't talking about his mistakes.

"Have you noticed a shortage of lesser Gembounds lately? Or a sickness, perhaps?" He blurted the words out, his tone more rushed than he would have liked it to be. However, Talion was all too aware that he was in the vicinity of a bristling, enraged Gembound. He could be attacked if he said the wrong thing again.

@Envy

Envy's eyes narrowed slightly, accepting the apology with a small snort and a thrash of their tail.
"Overeager? Is that what you're calling it?" they muttered underneath their breath, but the fur along their spine relaxed slightly. They eyed the owl suspiciously as he settled his ruffled feathers and repositioned.

The weasel narrowed their eyes at his words. They didn't seem to appreciate the change of subject, but obliged it nonetheless. "Nope," they said bluntly, an edge of offense in their tone. "Why? Do I look like I spend my life stuffing my face?" they gestured pointedly towards their tight stomach.

Envy began to bristle again, and though they'd never admit it, they were slightly embarrassed; the weasel had never hunted before in their life. They folded their paws against their chest in a slightly self-conscious manner. They forced a grin. "Or is this your way of making excuses?."


"Speech."

@Talion

The brutish manner in which the weasel replied struck a nerve within Talion. He was trying to be civil, and yet they seemed bound and determined to remain as uncordial as possible. The fact that it actually bothered the other Gembound that he might have eaten them just didn't make sense to him.

The final, direct question nearly sent the owl over the metaphorical edge. The urge to screech 'Get over it already!' swelled inside him like a cresting wave. He held it in check by remembering the force of their magic nearly knocking him out of the air. His mind traveled farther back, to the bear cub that he had met in Cetus.
There was a lot of magic that Talion didn't know about, and didn't understand. He had encountered more of it lately than he ever had sitting in Eridanus, but he wouldn't claim to be an expert on it. His recent experiences made him wary of taking on a magic user, especially by himself. He no real reason to quarrel with the weasel, he just wanted them to stop acting like a little shit.

After a deep, steadying breath, Talion opened his eyes and stared at the weasel. For a second, he was tempted to apologize. It seemed like the right thing to do, but even thinking about it made his feathers burn and his stomach cringe. "I am not making excuses, merely asking you a question," he finally stated. His tone was even, more certain of what he said as he continued to speak.

"I didn't exaggerate before. I've come from Cetus, and haven't seen one lesser Gembound on my way here. Granted, I didn't search every nook and cranny of every Tunnel in between here and there but...is that not odd?"

@Envy

The owl's silence caused the weasel to twitch and quiver until they were fit to burst. Gosh, larger creatures seemed to spend so much time thinking and got to the point far too slowly. It was bothering Envy just as much as the other's refusal to show them any kind of respect or remorse. How rude! Envy continued to bristle, glaring at the owl with all their tiny, cold heart.

They sniffed disdainfully. "Reeeeaally? A question? Fine." Envy rolled their eyes. But they tapped their foot, clearly tiring of their little game. They were still pissed at the owl, but lucky for them, he wasn't giving them much fuel for the fire. It seemed that they were gonna have to make their own. "I don't know how many mice usually burrow into ice and eat rocks... but I'd say this tunnel isn't the best place to be looking," they drawled, glancing pointedly out into the tunnel looming beyond, from which an icy chill crawled forth. "...And Cetus is just kinda gross, if you ask me."

Truth be told, Envy didn't have any clue of the state of lesser Gembounds in the cave, nor did they care. They could get along perfectly well with nothing more than mosses and grasses, and they hadn't hunted once since the day they were born. They'd probably make a poor hunter, no matter how much they tried to convince themselves otherwise. Mice probably fled for miles around when they heard Envy's pattering footsteps, and well, they hadn't put any effort into honing their sense of perception. It was all pointless, really.


"Speech."

@Talion

Talion should have expected the same impudent attitude from the other Gembound, but he had held out hope for some sort of courtesy. After all, he didn't often make a real effort to remain calm and civil towards those that annoyed him. He had anticipated that the long rodent would see that and do the same.

It became more obvious with each word the other Gembound said that that was not going to happen though.

Talion clenched the rock beneath him in an attempt to suppress his rising annoyance. Even though they made a good point about the current terrain, all he could hear was their condescending tone. It pricked his ear-holes and needled its way underneath his feather like crystal shards.

Their childish remark about Cetus being 'gross' finally tipped the owl over the edge. "Enough!" Talion screeched with a flare of his wings.

"I have tried to reason with you, but you seem to be nothing more than another impudent child. If you cannot help me, then scurry along and leave me be!"

Triggered by his extreme displeasure, the owl's magic flared to life. Talion felt some sort of energy creep over him, but he ignored it in order to stare the other Gembound down.

@Envy

The owl's screeching voice sent a jolt down Envy's spine, the noise grating at their sensitive ears. They winced vaguely, but otherwise glared evenly at the owl. They peeled back their lips in the ghost of a smirk, holding the bird's gaze even as they fluffed and flared. Even though within, Envy's heart began to pound, and they had an inkling of danger- they felt certain that one wrong move and they'd surely be eaten. Envy felt the nervous thrill of magic running through their skin, and let out their breath. They rose up tall and held the thread of magic tight to the tip of their tongue for when it was needed. Feeling safe in their own power, Envy took the moment to do what any reasonable Gembound wouldn't.

"My my, it seems I've struck a nerve... What's up? Can't handle a taste of logic?" They paused, still grinning, their body quivering with tension. "But wait! I forget... You'd rather a taste of me."

Envy watched the owl's feathers darken and snickered, apparently unimpressed. Was he really trying a gemling's trick like that? Flushing their fur darker was the first thing Envy had ever learned how to do, and they'd come so much further since then. "Fine. I'll 'scurry' away. I'm a very busy weasel, you know. I have better things to do than be insulted by the likes of you." Envy released the magic they'd held so close, and like a ghost, their slinky body faded into the darkness.

They snuck on, past the owl, and down the tunnel.

"And... by the way..."

What was that? The glint of their eyes in the dark? The glisten of spittle on a fang?

"You should probably work on your little party trick."

-exit Envy-

"Speech."