VINNIE THE VOICE

Vinnie stared, looking around in vague alarm. For a moment, everything just seemed to go to shit! The black bird screeching, sweeping in as if to attack Skahan. The black dog talking in a flood of apparent nonsense, as if he'd just gone mad.

Vinnie took a couple steps, glancing to Mongo, but there was --a bat on his back?

...Okay then.

"Okay, righty-o, Iiii'm just gonna..." Vinnie edged toward the stairs as he spoke. "Ya know, ehh...." ...and edged further. "Check out the top." The gull leapt into the air as if escaping, flapping rapidly up and past the stairs to have a more thorough look at the room above.

He was gone for some minutes, strutting to and fro at the alcove, picking briefly at the moss--but not plucking it down--and inspecting the four strange indentations in the wall. At length he flew back down, landing before the others and neatly folding his wings over his back.

"HEY!" he said, excitedly. "There's holes in the wall! I mean like... Important ones. I think!? There's these four holes, all lined up all neat-like. They're like--I dunno, a me wide?! They important, Skahan?"

...Abruptly, something clicked within the seagull, and he stared off, distant. It wasn't anything useful. It was just the realization that "Skahan" was awesome to say. It sounded exactly like his own natural cries!

Entirely unhelpfully, Vinnie spread his wings, leaning his head back in a sudden display of questionable volume. "SKA! SKA! SKA! SKA! SKAHAAAAAN!" It was LOUD. It was SHRILL. It rang through the room, echoing and careening off the stones, and Vinnie felt a thrill run through him at the sheer NOISE of his own voice.

...He then blinked, lowering his head and looking around sheepishly, quietly clearing his throat. "...Ehh. Sorry. Just... a good name... a good name. Yeah." Embarrassed, he shuffled back and away into the shadows.

________________

Alarmed by this whole mess, and decidedly not opposed to getting away from the giant snake and the chaos unfolding around her, Karma took advantage of the general cacophony to begin making her up the stairs. She clung to the shadows at the side farthest from the group, trying to remain as small and inobtrusive as possible. It was a laborious affair, given her size, but her willingness to get away from the situation offered a healthy dose of motivation. Her hooves made little noise as they contacted the stone of the stairs aside from the lightest of tapping, and even that was drowned out by the echoes all around her. The gull sailed past her before she’d gotten very far, and the fawn was momentarily jealous of the winged things, and spent a few moments daydreaming about the possibility of flight.

She wasn’t very high up when the black dog began to speak, and she slowed to listen to his deep, rumbling voice. What could it all mean? She puzzled over his ambiguous words as she climbed, turning them over in her mind like something new and shiny. Several of of the words didn’t even hold meaning in her mind yet, and left to its own devices, her conclusions were not altogether accurate. Dragon, she decided, was a pretty word. Thus, it must name a beautiful creature. She imagined a great, soft thing, glossy black fur covering a regal frame, stark contrast amongst the ceiling as it towered over her. Phoenix, too, conjured images of something large, this time even bigger than the dragon. This thing maybe couldn’t even fit in some of the smaller caverns, and could cross Orion in just a few lanky steps. This thing was a lot less beautiful to behold than the dragon, too, though its composition of pure ice certainly made it prettier. Karma cast around for something to base the phoenix from, eventually settling on something not altogether unlike a feathered version of Howl.

Eager to assess her predictions, the fawn increased her pace. Vinnie passed her in his path down before she ever reached the top, though she was decidedly closer. Breathless, the fawn finally clambered into the alcove, coat slick with a layer of sweat. Still, she made it. She stared around in awe at the dank and dusty chamber, nosing curiously at the lichens before proceeding toward the obvious- the great thing with the holes in it. Karma stood before it, head tilted slightly, trying to work out what it might mean. Unsuccessful and unsatisfied, she stepped closer. Inhaling deeply, she closed her eyes and focused, reaching out to touch the thing with the very tip of her nose. As she did, she spoke to it in her mind, gentle words about teaching her secrets. She didn’t think to ask what it might want in return.

Now sufficiently bored of whatever was going on, Reseda realized that she had no intention of sticking around. She had better things to do then hang out with a giant snake and a bunch of fools.

Without uttering a word, she turned and pushed past everyone, heading towards her cave in the chambers.

*exit


"Living with myself."
Nothing but lies.


tags:
notes:

Attracted by the loud sounds when he had been hanging out in Orion, Huckleberry had dared to wander farther then he ever had before. The room hadn't been particularly interesting to him. He had seen enough bones. His family's cave was littered with them, after all! No, no no no he was interested in the snake thing! So big! He had to see, yes, had to see!

He chased the opening that he didn't realize was new before darting right through, turning to circle above the heads of the gembounds gathered below. "Huh? What's happening? Yeah, what's going on? There's a lot here, many many, yes. What's the snake? And the big dark place? Ooo, an orb! I want it! Or, uh, can I touch it?"

Diving down, he reached out his claws, but stopped himself by flaring his wings as he saw the bird cry out and jump away. Did it hurt them? Oh well. He wouldn't touch it then.

Ever the hyperactive, Huckleberry instead turned his attention to the staircase. He scoffed and looked down. "You're not going to climb? Why not, yes, why not? Weird, how strange. Huckleberry will go! Just watch!" He sped towards the staircase, not bothering to actually touch the ground, but merely following its incline, cackling with strange laughter.

"Speech looks like this."
"Thoughts looks like this."

tags:
notes:

They were all so loud. His scales flared at the approach of several creatures that tried to investigate the orb which he cradled, but the burning of the loud bird's feet came as a pleasure to him. He tightened his coiled grip on the hot, strange object and hissed at the others. It was his now, he had found it. They could fight him for it if they truly wanted it. He had never had such an amazing treasure before, that bestowed upon him such a gift of warmth.

The screaming bird that yelled his name burned like fire in his ears, and he wasn't sure if he appreciated such a gesture or hated it.

But he had to give his attention to the black dog. It knew some of those names, and not the others?

Skahan watched with curious eyes as it gave its explanation of what it saw, flicking his eyes up toward the twin statue for a moment, before looking back down to the Gembound. So the statues were merely held in place, in time; guardians, maybe? He hummed to himself, thinking, looking back at them, between them. They had stones, each a different horn, opposite. It was curious. If what the dog said was true, if those present were those he mentioned, then the lamb could have done this.

"Raheerah, Tenzin," he repeated. "And Raheerah's partner, the lamb, Dawa." He thought on this for a moment. "Dawa has the power to do this, to suspend them—the creatures you saw running, these... well, these." His tongue flicked. He thought more, looking between the twins and then back at the dog. "As for the other creature you saw, HE DOESN'T LOOK LIKE THAT ANYMORE, HAHAAAH," Skahan commented with an airy laugh. Oh, how it surprised him!

Other creatures entered, and some were attempting the long flight of stairs.

"But if they were here, doing something," he continued in his musings while turning his head around to look down at the fiery orb snug in his grasp, "it was likely for a reason." And it angered him. It angered him to be locked out of the place he spent so long building and rebuilding. Why limit themselves only to these areas? A glowing spark rose under his scales and he rumbled with dissatisfaction.

"We need to find these," he decided, massive body shifting and coiling around the glowing orange orb. "Their magic was probably all used, together—like a link. A seal," Skahan hissed with distaste as his gaze shifted up to the Gembound climbing the stairs, then rested on the empty sockets at the top. "Raheerah," he said, gesturing with a backwards tilt of his head to the orb he had claimed possession of, "Dawa, Tenzin, and Astraea."

With a final turn of his head, his demanding, hot eyes burned between the gathered Gembound and he grinned. They were so eager to help him, were they? Alright then.

"If you can find the other three, I'll let you challenge me for this one." But for now, he would keep it. It was warm and comfortable. He wasn't going to give it up to some weird wall if they were never going to be able to find the other orbs—if that was even the case, which he suspected it was. And if he knew those four goons (which he did), then that probably was the case.

Black listened closely, and as he did so he pressed his nose to the nose of one of the doglike statues. To him, it was a horror: to be frozen so, for thousands of years. Could they feel, in there? See, and think? Trapped in their own bodies..? Perhaps not, if they were but a blink in time.

As he thought these things, though, he continued to take in Skahan's words. The creature spoke of Dawa, of Astraea--and from what Black struggled to piece together, the smooth-legged thing had once been the stag. He wasn't sure how, or even if he'd correctly understood, but he tentatively filed that tidbit away deeper in his mind.

"Perhaps it was to lock away Nemean," he said at last, voicing his thoughts. And then he added, "I believe I know the location of another stone. She had taken it. We are guarding it. I will retrieve it, if I can." But it would hurt, he knew, and he wasn't quite sure how to move it without the wolves Kin-Kin and Xireidi helping with their gem 'basket.' Xireidi should be back guarding it, though, so perhaps he'd be lucky.

As an afterthought, he glanced back to Skahan. "The other stone hurts, as well. Perhaps they all do. But it granted magic unknown to me." With furrowed brow he stood silent, summoning up the magicka to infuse the spell-shape he'd learned. He had no idea what it did; it didn't seem to do anything at all, but perhaps Skahan might sense its nature, and know more.

When no answers came he turned, and--purposeful as ever--made his way out. He'd find Xireidi and Kin-Kin, and do his best to get that orb back here.

________________

exit Black due to inactivity

VINNIE THE VOICE

Vinnie listened and watched, and eventually, being the prodigy that he was, he simply shrugged.

"Challenge ya..? Don't feel like being eaten this cycle, pal, but thanks for the offer. ...I think." He looked around at the others, settling his wings on his back, bobbing his head. The black dog said something about magic, then just stood there, and Vinnie impulsively offered some comfort.

"Magic fails all the time, buddy, don't feel too bad, eh?" He then turned, waddling back to Canis' entrance. He had already decided to leave, to go back to eating and foraging, but... "I'll keep my eyes out for your balls."

A helpful nod, and the seagull took flight, wings beating heavily as he exited the new cave.
________________

exit Vinnie

@Huckleberry @Greed @Karma @Mongo @Howl @Rohan @Umbra

Aeroth had snuck in some time during Black's speech about the statues. She cocked her head curiously, she piped up with an inquisitive voice. ”Now what will happen when these orbs are brought together? Listening to the dog over there, I don't think I want to meet this Raheerah fellow. You think we're stupid? You're up to no good and it's pretty obvious” She stated the last sentence coolly, attempting to communicate that she wouldn't allow them to succeed in what they're planning, at least to the best of her abilities.

”Speech”
"Thoughts"

Notes: