As a maiden she tiptoes shy with her light
She is modest and pure as she graces the night
Thothaga reared at Omen's shrieks, startled by its sudden appearance. Bring to mother? She thought, wondering if it somehow meanther mother, the Spire. Then rat-creature, Skeema, cried out to it and everything fell into place. Ah! It speaks to the rat-creature, the Bone Reader's daughter.

Thothaga watched as the black bird flew off in a certain direction, and Skeema took off after it shortly. Better follow, quick. She timidly prodded the gem once more before wrapping her fangs and palps around it and sprinted after the rat-thing.

The dog-sized arachnid had no problem traversing the sea of bones on her eight nimble legs and she arrived shortly after Skeena, in time to their mother-daughter reunion. "You are the Bone Reader?" Her voice rasped. Thothaga approached them and an placed the gem down. Oliver's description of Giggle crossed her mind. This must be a "hyena".

"Help me," Thothaga pleaded. "It tells me something, but I do not understand."

"Listen to me."
Thoughts...

TAG: @Giggle @Glory @Scorch @Felina @Skeena // OOC:

Glory's head snapped up as the cry of the bird came from overhead. A strange, lesser gembound speaking to them? He didn't understand until the rat-thing raced off after it. It must be somehow connected to the bone reader.

The spider snatched up the gem before he could react and took off deeper into the cave. Even if they were wrong and the bonereader wasn't waiting for them, he had no choice but to follow now that she had left with the strange gem. A little annoyed, he spread his wings and took off into the air after them.

It was a short trip to reach the hyena but he was more then a little revolted at her appearance. Covered in fungus and pelt matted with grime. Glory always took good care of his feathers so to see someone that obviously cared so little for their appearance was a little of a shocker.

However, he knew to have some respect. Apparently she was wise and knowledgeable. So he set himself down in front of her and gave her a small dip of his head. "Greetings. We are searching for the meaning of this strange gemstone." He gestured to the glowing orb in front of the spider. "Have you seen these runes before?"

©art by rettamkrad
@Giggle @Skeena @Felina @Thothaga @Scorch

The hyena stared, baffled into inaction, as the crowd tumbled toward her. Skeena bounced right off her chest, and she leaned down, snuffling over her child to ensure that the little one was unharmed, and offering one or two coarse licks of maternal affection. Giggle's ears rotated as the others spoke. Almost before they'd finished, she was grimacing, snapping out words in irritation.

"Stone! Gem! Runes! All at once, and so swift. What has happened?" Then, as if she suddenly decided she didn't care, Giggle gave a short, nervous chitter and turned to trot up to her bone pit. Her dark eyes cast briefly, and uncertainly, over the strange, glowing blue gemstone, and she again spoke. "Runes--no, not familiar." Omen lit by her side, cawing once and folding its wings.

Giggle eyed the blue gem for a moment longer, with a critical eye--she seemed oblivious to the eagle, the spider and the rest. "I will ask the bones--bones! Bones, better than stones." The crowd, such as it was, was making her a little nervous. Her thoughts were somewhat scattered, her heart racing as she snatched up a small but heavy skull. Her paws carried her swiftly to the ledge overlooking the pit--and then she jerked her head, casting the skull down into the bones.

For those who did not know her, it might seem a rather random reaction to the questions she was being asked--but as the bone clattered into the pile, and sent others scattering, she seemed to pay rapt and focused attention to them.

At length, she spoke. Her voice was still clipped--nervously irritable--but her words were sure. "I do not know where it came from or what to do with it," she snapped, "But I know what the bones say! The echo was broken! False! The voice of a god, misunderstood--or the not-god heard, and a God is heard!" With this possibly-less-than-helpful bit out of the way, the hyena took a sharp breath and continued. "A bone revealed beneath! White and pure. A new beginning--new, yes! Good or bad I do not know but very dramatic. And the others, falling there-... they are gifts. Gifts will come."

With that said, apparently satisfied that she had done her part, Giggle looked to the others. "Well? Where did you get it from? The Lorekeeper may know more. She knows much. If you wish to find her--go down this path, and follow the carved wall! But don't touch my mushrooms," she added, with a sharp bark.

________________

ROLL THE BONES

@Skeena @Scorch @Glory @Thothaga
@Felina

... What.

What echo? What god? What not-god? And tossing a skull into some bones made them talk? Scorch couldn't hear any talking except from the Gembounds he already knew could talk. Oh, and there were gifts involved. What was all of that supposed to mean?!

"Could you, uh, say that again? In a more understandable way?"

Oh, maybe giving her more information would make the hyena's information clearer. That kind of made sense. "We got it in Polaris, the room with glowing rainbowy crystals. And it sort of just appeared. With a flash. I think." Now that he thought about it, he had nearly no information on where the gem actually came from. "Uh... Any of you have more to add?"

Glory listened carefully to the bone keepers reading but the meaning went over his head. He was no scholar or master of words - he was a bird of action. So he had about as much idea as Scorch about what the hyena had said to them. He noticed her nervousness though (or perhaps she was always this jittery) and took a respectful step back.

The one thing that did make sense, though, was he suggestion to go see the Lorekeeper. Glory had no idea who in the caves the Lorekeeper was but right now it was their only lead. He was determined to crack the mystery.

"Okay then it's settled," he declared to the group. "We'll go see the Lorekeeper!" Without asking or giving warning, he darted forward and snatched up the gem in his talons. At a pace that the rest could hopefully keep up with, he flew in the direction that Giggle had pointed out, eyes open for any creature that could possibly be the Lorekeeper.

@Thothaga @Scorch @Skeena @Felina

As a maiden she tiptoes shy with her light
She is modest and pure as she graces the night
Thothaga followed he Bone Reader from a somewhat respectable distance, at least far enough to dart away if the hyena's temper flared. She watched as Giggle tossed a skull into the pit, The bones scattered like the broken pieces of ancient pottery. The result was chaotic, but somehow, Giggle managed to make sense of it. Thothaga stroked her fangs inquisitively, she wanted to understand. Suddenly, she cut her attention back to the Bone Reader when she spoke.

"The echo is false, broken?" Thothaga stepped away from the gem. "What do you mean? The stone tells lies?"

Who is the Lorekee-

Suddenly, to her horror, Glory snatched up the gem from behind her back and carry it off like it was his prey. Thothaga reared and let loose a furious hiss. Still bristling, she turned back to the hyena and her pet. "Excuse me, Bone Reader, I have a bird to eat, but I will speak with you later, important. I find you here, yes?"

"Listen to me."
Thoughts...

TAG: @Skeena @Giggle @Scorch @Glory @Felina // OOC:

Glory stepping back to give her room was kind, but then suddenly he was in a flurry of motion. Giggle flattened her ears and gave a sharp and nervous chitter as she winced back. Half the startled fear was that of Omen, through their shared link; the bird had taken flight in an explosive flurry of feathers to flee from the bird of prey. It was obvious that Glory's appearance instinctively frightened the Hallowed Caller.

Giggle peered blankly after him, and then looked to Thothaga.

"Yes," she answered, shortly. And then--because she had little else, and little better, to do, she turned to trot along with them. She trailed a great deal behind, barely watching--but she wanted to know just what the hell was going on, here.

The black bird was nowhere to be seen.

________________

ROLL THE BONES

As the eagle flew toward the far wall, the gem in his talons flashed bright blue. And on the wall itself, a number of carvings suddenly became visible, flaring with a brilliant blue light. The carvings, though long worn-away around the edges, appeared to depict some kind of tall, horned figure surrounded by smaller ones. By the looks of things, they were either breaking him free of a stone--or placing him into it... or perhaps it was merely worship. Behind the smaller figures lay a scattering of other objects, some perhaps familiar, some not.

Abruptly, the gem vanished from the talons of the eagle--only to reappear once more, this time lying before the carvings themselves! There was a bright flash of blinding blue light, enough to take away one's sight for a moment... and when it returned, there stood a new figure. The carvings no longer glowed, and the stone, at first, was nowhere to be seen. The figure--tall, with spiralling horns--was wrapped entirely in a thick, fur-ruffed robe. Long, slender claws extended from the gap at the center... and a long-fingered hand tossed a small, glowing blue gem identical to the one that Glory had carried here--but barely the size of a pebble. The gem vanished into the creature's palm as the hand slipped back beneath the folds of the robe.

A crooning, but distinctly masculine, voice rasped forth, as though long-disused--and as it did so, twin pinpricks of crimson light appeared within the cowl of the hood, peering curiously at those present. "...I am released from that prison. Whom do I have to thank, for this? Whom do I have to reward...?"

You have discovered: The Collector

@Thothaga @Glory @Skeena @Scorch @Felina

As Glory flew along, he caught sight of a blue glow and halted his flight. He hovered in the air, wings flapping hard to keep himself steady when, all of a sudden, the gem disappeared from his talons. He screeched with surprised and instinctively clawed out, as if he had dropped it. But it was gone. Completely gone.

He dived down, a trill of fear lacing his heart. He had worked so hard to get the gem this far! And now it was gone!!

But then...there it was, by the carvings. And when the flash of light came he had no choice but to squeeze his eyes shut. And when he opened them again, he found himself faced by a strange hooded figure. He blinked with surprise and stared blankly at the creature. What had just happened?

It took a few seconds for Glory to come to his senses. There was some kind of gembound in front of him that was offering thanks...and a reward! While Glory didn't really know what he had done, he stood up taller, his neck stretching proudly. "Me! I brought your stone here! I am Glory!" He looked back for the rest of the group and opened a wing to gesture once they had arrived. "These friends of mine helped as well."

©art by rettamkrad
@Scorch @Thothaga @Skeena @Felina @Giggle

Skeena burrowed against Mother, a wide smile on her muzzle. She couldn't care less about the others at this point - it had been seemingly forever since she had seen Mother, and the hyena's stench was welcoming and familiar. It seemed to muzzle the voice.

Her eyes brightened when she was given a few licks, and backed up to allow Mother room to work. When Mother grabbed the bones, she followed her to the pit, peering over to watch as the bones scattered. She didn't yet know enough to read the bones, so she looked to Mother. "The lorekeeper, Mother?" she asked, having never heard of them before.

She squeaked as Glory suddenly took off with the gem, the others quick to follow. Skeena stuck to Mother's heel, her fur brushing against Mother's side.

Her eyes were drawn to the gem when it began to flash, turning to see carvings appear on the wall. It was a fascinating thing to watch, and her breath was taken. The gem vanished before reappearing, and she turned her head to blink the light away, pressing her face into Mother's side.

A voice drew her back to attention, and she looked in shock at the... the thing. "We have all worked to bring your stone here. I am Skeena, this is my Mother, Giggle. The spider is Thothaga, and the owl is Scorch. The cat is Felina. Without all of them, we would never have been able to bring your stone to you."

She sat, leaning against Mother's side as she looked between them to the new... thing.

@Scorch @Glory @Thothaga @Giggle @Felina