It would be today. Auré had rubbed up against the rocks the night—or, rather, sleep—before he would call together the Bonebound; the iron residue on them rather eagerly stained his feathers sans his face. He caught and ate a rather large cave rat by the rocks, and tried to sleep well. Of course, anticipation had a tendency to disrupt rest and he wound up lying awake all night. At least his sleeping mother and her garden were good company. He didn't really need much shut-eye anyways.

When it wasn't such an ungodly hour, the wyvern left the den for the Bone King's cairn. There, he lay and whispered softly to Aza'zel: "I'm going to bring the Bonebound back together, today, I think. If things go well, we'll have a family again. Not one of blood, but— but of bone." Auré told his Father how he had talked to Eythan, had learned some harsh truths about life and how to forgive; he most certainly couldn't forget. The hybrid would never forget the paranoia that had seeped deep into his gut every time his brother would come about. Old habits died hard and he still was somewhat wary. Swallowing, Auré nudged his father's skull—a sweet little father-son bird-kiss—and bid him farewell. "Watch over me," he pleaded, softly.

Descending the cliff, he welled up his magicka. He had figured out the art of making sounds with air, but wasn't too attuned to it. Perhaps, he could conjure up a loud sound as sort of a summons. Voice was powerful, but was rather limited. Auré needed to be heard from afar. Not all of those he had talked to about the Bonebound were presently calling Canis their home. His talons scraped stone, and he flapped his wings to steady himself as he alighted. Giggle had showed him this precipice, pointing out that the previous King had called his group together from this very spot. The wyvern hoped that he was doing it justice as he tucked his chin into his neck and urged forth a powerful screech. Clutching the ledge, Auré reared back and called out—minus the volume he had hoped for, unfortunately—"come, my friends! Those who were Bonebound and those who wish to be!"

'That sounded official enough,' he thought.

"I speak." 'I think.'

IT'S BONEBOUND TIME, MY DUDES! I've tagged everyone who's had their chararacter(s)'s membership already discussed on- or off-screen, but anyone is welcome to join the Bonebound and be part of their reboot! I will likely wait a week or two before posting again, so that should allow for plenty of time to post. Don't worry about making big, fancy posts, since this thread is literally just to confirm memberships so I can hop over to Update Me and get this baby official! Aure will acknowledge all visitors and curious Gembound!

@Umbra @Bremen @Aries @Giggle @Skeena

Today was the day.

He'd been up early--undoubtedly thrilling with nervousness. As was she--and for different reasons. With one cracked-open, dark eye she'd watched him, and then gone to drink, to eat, to awaken, and ever with Omen circling overhead. But always in her mind, the bones' warning lingered.

The Bonebound, coming together, only to shatter once more. A death, perhaps, or something similar. Aure, driven away. A triumph, yes--and his return, joyous. But stagnancy. Was that stagnancy together, or apart? Would the Bonebound break away and remain scattered, or would they come together again, bound tightly and everlasting?

She shook the lingering thoughts away. There was another world--one of dreams, of nightmares and omens, a world where the dead lived. A realm where, when one fought wars in their sleep, they fought for the dead; when one had visions, they were sights granted by spirits long-passed. She tried, always, to show them the utmost respect. They were deserving of this respect. She cared for their bones, and she thanked them for their aid. She thought of them, prayed for them--not to any particular deity, but in the way of murmured well-wishings in the bone-scented darkness.

And thus far, they had never steered her wrong, those inhabitants of this other-world, those linked to the bones of the fallen. They watched, she felt--sombre, though still individual--as the world of the living continued to march on, confusedly chaotic, blood-spattered and violently alive. And so this omen troubled her greatly.

She did not want to see Aure suffer, and she did not want the Bonebound to fall. But this was what would be--the reformation, at least--and she was not about to stop him. He was the Bone King, whether he accepted the title, or not--and she would remain by his side, the side of her son, of her new King, for as long as he would have her.

Quiet, sombre in her hidden knowledge, she followed to the pinnacle. And there she sat--not atop it, as he was, but off to one side nonetheless, so that she, too, could face those who approached. In her mind she was his right hand--not one of those who might gather; and so she sat and she waited, peering out over the bones.

"I'm here," she called up simply, voice hoarsely masculine. And then, with Aure, she waited. From high overhead, Omen's haunting cry echoed through the bones.

________________

ROLL THE BONES

VINNIE THE VOICE

Vinnie didn't really like Canis--it was dry, not full of water, like Pisces and Fornax. Now those places, he liked! But Aure--he liked the kid, too, and Aure'd invited him here to meet the family. The Bonebound. Name fits, at least! he thought, his pale golden-yellow eyes flicking over the bone-strewn ground far below.

He'd been waiting for the gathering, and when he heard the call, it was distant and quiet--he almost missed it, at first. Dark wings pulled closer to his body and he dove for the sound, arrowing across the cave and downward. There he is! Aure was visible, perched--noble, if small compared to the caves. But he was bigger than Vinnie, that was for sure.

He circled ones, passing a black bird that eyed him with one wary, ruby-red eye ("Who the hell is that?") and then opened his wings once more. He swept down to land before Aure, folding his wings over his back and shuffling to face him, tilting his head to peer up.

"Heya, Aure," he greeted amiably, and loudly. "You were kinda hard to hear, lemme--" Vinnie coughed, and cleared his throat, feeling his magicka sparking up and flowing together.

Out it erupted, along with his voice--ringing, reverberating, throughout Canis--over the Bone Fortresses, through the Chambers, along the Circuit. The distant echo even reached the West Wall and the tunnel exit. Up close, the seagull scream amplified by magic was deafening.

"EYYYYYYYYY YOOOOOOO! BONEBOUND AND FRIENDS, MEETING UP NOW! GATHER 'ROUND, FOLKS!" Triumphantly satisfied with his voice, Vinnie stood up a little straighter. He was confident that he'd proven his worth to his new friends: a very loud voice.

...Really, it was his only talent.

________________

vinnie right this very second

Skeena dozed.

Her little brother was four Cycles, now, a full-fledged adult, and she could hardly believe it. How old did that make her? Well, old, at the least. But his fourth Cycle meant something more - the recreated of the Bonebound. He had been born to be King, and it was time for him to take his crown.

So even as she slept, she kept her ear out, listening for the call of her Brother. Giggle's daughter furrowed her brow, sniffed, twitched, and burrowed down deeper into the thick fungi that coated the bottom of her hollow.

The moment her brother's voice reached her, she leaped to her feet. Shaking herself, she grabbed the beloved tiny vertebrae, and began to run, darting through her tunnels before racing out into the main room of Canis, skittering over the piles of bones, rat-like feet easily finding pawholds. The vertebrae was held close to her chest, although she nearly dropped it at a sudden shouting that echoed throughout the cave, so loud that her ears rang and she could barely make out the words. She nearly lost her grip on the bones, cowering as she waited for her sensitive ears to stop ringing.

Finally, she straighened up, skittering over the bones and approaching the gathering. So far only Aure - "Hello Brother!" she called in greeting - and Mother - "Mama, hello!" - and a seagull. She came to a stop near the seagull, sitting down and reaching up with her free paw to groom her muzzle, inclining her head to the seagull with a smile.

Everything had been rough after his and Aure's— er, chat. Eythan, with a few added pounds of guilt on his shoulders, had withdrawn and spent quite a bit of time in the Chambers (the same place as Aure's, ironically enough.) There was no point to it, but he went over every stupid detail he had missed, every little action that betrayed the younger's thoughts and wariness. Thanks to his youth, Aure was not the greatest at concealing his emotions; that took cycles and cycles of practice, and Eythan hadn't even perfected the art, yet. He had, however, become something of an expert on being oblivious and dumb. This was the second time, now, and look where the first incident had landed him. The other party was, obviously, now looking over Canis in the form of bones and half-rotted wings.

The Vita lineage weren't known — if at all, anymore — for their ability to communicate.

A faint call sounded, distinctly his brother's but unintelligible. It seemed to be a summons anyways, and the gryphon didn't want to waste all of his time brooding and looking back. He'd be a hypocrite, otherwise. Just as he began to dive down the rocks, a much louder call sounded out, definitely not Aure's. Eythan's ears pressed against his skull, and he had to scramble to avoid a stalagmite he had swung towards. Well, great, now he had a headache.

After a short flight, the hybrid rounded the old King's perch; there, perched Aure, looking every bit the king Aza'zel used to be. He swallowed thickly, looking away for a moment to see who had come to the call, so far. Giggle sat to the side of the ledge, looking toward the crowd as to welcome them. Skeena, however small, was further back and grooming herself carefully. A rather large, white bird stood out starkly against the dusty-red rocks of Canis. Naturally, Eythan spun and alighted next to them, nodding and greeting simply, "hello."

He turned to face Aure, only nodding and mouthing to him: you can do this.

Wilder was just in time. She was returning to Canis now, tail held high, ready to talk to Aure about everyone she'd met and deliver the message that Dragon had for him. She was just out of earshot of him and didn't hear Aure, particularly, but it was pretty impossible to miss the ridiculously loud screaming of the bird. She sped her walk, getting more and more excited as she got closer.

Finally, she arrived where everyone was gathered and looked up at Aure, her face shining with delight. "Hi!" Her tail wiggled as she looked around at all the other creatures gathered and purred happily. "Friends, friends, new friends!"

Unable to contain herself, she leaped over, first to the hyena, where she looked up at where she sat. She wanted to sniff her and rub her cheek against her leg but she was too high to reach. "Hi! I'm Wilder! Are you Aure's mom? I'm his best friends!" She didnt' give Giggle any time to respond before she shot towards the gull and did exactly what she had wanted to do before. Or at least tried to. A couple of sniffs and an attempt to rub her cheek against his feathers. Indelia had said that not everyone liked being touched but she kind of forgot about that for now. "Hi! I'm Wilder! You have such an awesome loud voice!"

Again, she ran towards the hybrid critter and tried to give her the same greeting. "Hi! Are you Aure's sibling? I'm Wilder!" She liked this one. It was funny. And once more, she darted away, this time approaching the other hybrid that kind of looked like Aure too. He had the same beard. "Hi! I'm Wilder! You look really cool! You look like Aure! I'm his best friend!" A sniff and an attempt to press her cheek against his leg before she darted right towards the front of the gathering and smashed her butt against the ground to stop herself from moving anymore. Aure was gonna say something, she was sure! So she shut herself up but the shining excitement in her eyes couldn't be concealed.

For a moment, Aure feared he hadn't been quite loud enough. Canis barely echoed with his voice, and the bones did not stir for a moment. Only by sheer proximity did his mother seem to hear, but she already knew that the gathering would happen today—or, close to it. Omen called out as Mother took her place, near him but not too close. Her presence was reassuring, and he nodded warmly in her direction; he was glad she was here. In a way, it felt as if she were carrying Aza'zel with her, holding his spirit and memory. Giggle was, of course, one of the two remaining Bonebound he knew of.

A voice—loud unlike his had been—drew his attention to the big white bird he had somehow missed. "Welcome to Canis, Vinnie—wait, no—" Too late. The gull managed to yell louder than Aure thought possible. No amount of flattening his ears or covering them with his wings was enough to keep his hearing intact and safe. Wide-eye from the shock and barely able to hear himself think, he could only muster a quick "thank you" before he wondered just how loud he was speaking. His throat told him quite loud. The wyvern shook his head, as if it would dispel the dizzying ringing. Well, that most certainly was a loud summons. Perhaps Vinnie could teach him how to scream like that; it'd be helpful for in the future.

Skeena, holding a vertebra in her mouth, and Eythan arrived at around the same time. Aure acknowledged the first... well, first: "hi, Skeena! It's been ages." Bright eyes then drifted to the biggest creature of the bunch, so far. For a moment, Eythan was unwilling to meet his brother's gaze, seeming to turn away as soon as the wyvern sought eye contact. The gryphon, instead, landed next to Vincenzo and greeted him simply. Just as Aure was going to turn away, he barely caught the quiet encouragement sent his way. Despite his initial wariness, he smiled.

Just as all of the arrivals seemed to end, enter Wilder. Bubbly, enthusiastic, and seemingly free of any fear of self-mutilation or cursed impulses from afar, the little black cat eagerly greeted every single other Gembound present before firmly planting her rump on the ground. Aure was tempted to tie her down with some mushrooms, but figured that would be pretty immature as a possible leader. Perhaps in private. "Welcome back to Canis, Wilder!"

He paused for a moment, then inhaled. His speech had been practiced before his father many times, recited more than necessary. Aure's chest swelled, and he inched forwards on the ledge. Straightening with one more breath, he began ('no turning back now.'): "a long time ago, my father, Aza'zel, was the first Bone King. He found a family here, one bound to their bones even in death. Some of their bones may be among the others in Canis; I don't know. But, I bear his stone, and he allowed me to live and offered that I try and bring that family back together again—bound by not only blood but by bone." He paused, glancing at Vinnie and Wilder, "it's not as morbid as it sounds, I promise." Then, he continued, "he and the bones saw that there might be trouble ahead for us, but I am prepared to deal with it, to protect you and to help you."

"Each of us—if you want to be part of this family, now or again—will be Bound; bound to protect one another and provide aid when needed. I am not asking for you to sacrifice your live—I never will—or asking you to pledge your service. You will be part of the family, and always welcome."

Then, he waited. It was about time to make this house a home.

BONEBOUND TIME!!! Feel free to post at your leisure and ask any questions your characters want to! Anybody's still welcome to enter and catch the last of what Aure said and join. <3

@Giggle @Vincenzo @Skeena @Wilder

After meeting Winter, Xin wandered the caves. He didn't usually stick in one place for too long, often going wherever he wanted. But numerous times he found himself returning to Canis. It was where he had hatched...something that had happened so many cycles ago he barely remembered it. He just remembered seeing someone like him. Her name..Ash...Ash something. Ashtoreth? It was so long ago.

It was in his return to Canis that he heard it. It was so faint though, he thought for sure he was imagining things. But, no - that was definitely a piercing yell. Something was happening. Bonebound and friends - bonebound? He knew the bonebound. He had tried to join cycles ago but decided against it, as it all seemed to crumble apart. Was it being formed again? And...would he actually join this time?

He was so bored lately. Wandering the caves, only eating when he found it absolutely necessary. Maybe this was just what he needed. So he moved slowly, walking over to a small gathering of others. He didn't recognize any of them - no. He recognized one. A hybrid - though there seemed to be plenty of others - who faced another hybrid who seemed to be the one who originally called them all.

He sat on the outskirts of the little group, eyes narrowed. He caught the tail end of the one speaking's speech. So this was definitely a formation meeting. Well...he may as well join if they'd have him. Though what he could actually contribute to this group, he didn't know.

---

"Hear the words in your mind"
"It's all in my head"

tags: here
notes: here

Giggle listened, looking quietly from Aure back out over those few who had gathered. There aren't many, she thought grimly, and with a little surprise. She wasn't sure what she'd expected--somehow, perhaps, she'd thought numbers exactly equal to the old Bonebound would turn up. But there was Skeena, grooming herself near the loud gull; and there was Eythan, mouthing something she couldn't quite make out to Aure.

Good.

She wasn't sure where Vinea was--nor Bones; and she knew full well that Serek counted himself, for now at least, among those in Cetus. But here... Here they had at least a semblance of a family.

She felt, of all things, faint hope rise in her--hope for all their futures, for the first time in... forever. And with it came dread. Dread that her hope was unfounded, that she would believe, only to have disaster strike and her dreams dashed on the rocks below.

Giggle wondered if she should give a speech, herself--of the Bonebound, or anything like it. No, she realized, almost at once. I must set an example.

So she stood, turning half toward Aure, and raising her voice so that it could be heard, as masculinely rasping as it was. "I will be Bound," she began, echoing Aure's words, "bound by bone, bound to protect all of you, and to provide aid, where needed. Together, may we survive."

Her voice, at this last, raised into a hoarse, firm shout--and then she lowered herself back to her haunches, lifting her head to look imperiously over those below.

________________

ROLL THE BONES

VINNIE THE VOICE

Vinnie sat quiet, and a little confused. Aure'd invited him to come to visit his family, but he'd not expected a full-on ceremony. Or an invitation. He wasn't really sure what the Bonebound were, even. He was a bit uneasy--the whole thing sounded kinda... culty, if he was honest.

But the Gembound next to him seemed friendly enough. He murmured quiet "Heya," and "Yeah, hi!" to Skeena and Eythan as they moved up alongside him. Still, it was best to ask, before committing--so, shifting nervously, he called up toward Aure.

"So it's just--protectin' one another, right? I ain't sure I'm all that good for protection, for fightin', I mean... I can't do magic so good. I can scout for ya, ya know? But ehh--there's no..." and one wing came off his back, sort of gesturing behind him helplessly as he looked for a word. "...Magic in all this, right? Like, actual bone-bindin' stuff? No offense but it sounds a little uhh. Creepy."

He waited, half-glancing to his left and right, as if afraid this might be some kind of trap. He wasn't sure he could fly off in time, if Eythan and Skeena jumped on him, but they seemed friendly enough.

If the Bonebound was just a family, he'd offer himself up. But if there was some kinda weird "bind-yourself-to-actual-bones" shit going on, then no, no siree, no, he was definitely not down.
________________

@Skeena