It's an odd feeling to be alive again. Her current surveys were focused on the new life in Orion. And how much life there was! Strong hearts drew her attention, pounding in her ears and drawing sharp red in contrast to the typical blur she saw in her everyday life.

Her nose twitched as she sniffed at the air. This charcoal was getting to her, though, and she wiped a moth-claw on her snout and clacked her mandibles together quietly. Hm.

A crack. Her head flicked up, bat-ears twisting this way and that. As much as her design was rather unique, she found it to be based in the lessers she watched and ate from so often. The bugs, in particular, were both a favorite of her's to study, to draw comparisons towards, and to consume- but in a particular sadness, to the last.

Of course, when she did feel emotion in her job.

Drawing herself from her conciousness, she surveyed what must've drawn near. A deer? No- The deer that've invaded this city did not sound like that. She lowered her head and chuffed. Might as well deduce it with magic.

Even as she tried to reach out, all she got in return was a headache, an eye squinting at the mental strain she received. Something was interfering- and it wasn't just now. Her powers- many of them were lost to her.

Closing her useless eyes, she shook her head and held it up, turning back to listening as she walked along the ruins of what used to be her home.

@Orthoclase-Alpha

Mutating dogs, slamming hatchmates, breaking rats - those were all things Alpha had done in its singular cycle of living. Those were the more dramatic things, other than more survival-necessary actions.

Something it hadn't done, though... was leaving the confines of Canis, its designated hunting grounds. It'd never really been established that the Initiates shouldn't go beyond the bone room; only that they reported regularly and were available. At least, as far as Alpha knew. The feeling of being so far from familiarity, though; it set the hybrid's quills a-rattling even while it tried to smother them in shadow magic throughout Tunnel K's length.

At the other end was the acrid stench of fire it recognized from Esther's flaming rat carcass. Soot covered nearly the entirety of this room, but even then - the glittering light above was tantalizing. Acidic eyes turned up to them immediately, captivated while it tried to shuffle into a darker space and make its body blend in. It kept on glowing obnoxious shades of yellow-green.

The sight, really, was ridiculous: a hulking monster of a child hunkered down and half-curled on itself as it stared high above. It didn't know the word beauty applied in this context, but it was enraptured by the sight. There wasn't anything quite like this in Canis or Tunnel P - and it felt almost guilty for seeing it.

@Linea

Scuttling turned Linea's head toward the source, still idly walking forward. Another sound she hadn't heard. Today was odd, certainly, and her radial ears twisted this way and that as she steered herself closer.

The sound was large. Too large. Stopping for a moment with a paw raised, she tilted her head as she dredged in deeper for her magic. It came this time- still faint, still blurry, but she got the sense of the thing in front of her. A heartbeat- a breath, and a stillness from its limbs.

The wind blew through Linea's quills, rattling them ever so quietly as she approached gingerly. Should she... Pull it out of whatever it was looking at? Or, she assumed it was doing that, at least.

But the structure seemed odd to her. This must be of that... One line. She couldn't place her mind on it, but she looked on, anyways.

Might as well get its attention. See if it was a predator, or another being from the past looking at the ruins. Crouching down with her shoulders higher than her rump, her mandibles rubbed together accented with a click of her tongue to mimic a loud squeak of a mouse. It wasn't fully correct, but it certainly sounded like a prey item.

@Orthoclase-Alpha

Alpha blinked slowly as a mouse's squeak resounded from somewhere nearby. It sounded guttural, almost, and that was about all it could glean from the sound. Acidic eyes looked to and fro, and it crept forwards from the shadows just a little. Just a small bit of its head was fully visible in the light, and that was it.

But, not too much. Vargas's lesson about traps was ringing true in its mind. It didn't have a broad perception of the greater caves, but there was a sort of implication that criminals and rebels lurked about every corner. No need to find out of that was true right this second.

It simply stared vaguely in the direction of Linea, cautious. Were it hungry (which it always seemed to be, but that was besides the point) Alpha wouldn't even bother with a little mouse.

Suddenly, though, it seemed to have a bit of confidence and sniffed at the air. The orthoclase gave the paths around, up, and down a brief glance before rocking upwards and stepping slowly out of the darkness. Its quills rattled softly as it snuffled around, milling ever-so-carefully towards the scent it'd picked up. Maybe it wasn't just a little mouse.

@Linea

She still couldn't tell if it was a lesser or not. It looked like a sapient, and yet- the way it acted. Was it conscious? Was it a new kind of Lesser?

She took a chance. Raising up, her own quills raised cautiously as she stared at the beast, eyes wide with a hint of concern for her own well-being. It was slow- cautious, not growling loud or threatening other than the sound of its own quills. There were signs of sapience, surely.

Linea's ears flicked back as she dredged up magic. Hormones flooded her senses and she felt its own emotions mimicking her own. Curiosity. Confidence. It certainly would have the latter, with its size. The confidence ran into her, and she clicked her mandibles together in thought.

"Who are you?" She called melodically, head raising high on her tall front legs.

@Orthoclase-Alpha

Alpha's quills rattled as it halted, mid-sniff and giving off the tiniest of coughs to compensate for the shortness of air. It'd been spotted already, and lifted its head to see by who. Chartreuse eyes stared back at it, as well as a splitting jaw and oversized ears.

The orthoclase fixated on a number of things: it was purple with glowing green accents; quills ran down its length; it was fuzzy but not too small and flimsy-seeming. No soft, blunt-clawed paws or hooves. Even with its tiny baby brain, Alpha figured this is old. A right creature. Overseer-spawn?

So, it gave this a good 'ol college try and straightened, "Orthoclase-Alpha." Dropping its head slightly in subordination, the hulking alien clucked more gently, "designation?"

@Linea

So it spoke. Linea's ears dialed this way and that as she leaned forward, trying to get a better look at it with her sub-par eyesight. Even with no way of knowing what it was thinking, she kicked herself mentally for not realizing its form sooner. Of course it's sapient. It looked like it was designed. Was it a fighter, then? A tank?

Why would a tank like this be in Orion, of all places, even if it had changed so much?

Linea's nostrils flared in a huff at the name. "Alpha?" Had they switched to a new method of counting? The numbers were perfectly fine to her. Unless this being had chosen the name Alpha? An odd name to choose, she'd admit, but it was preceded by the gem.

Orthoclases... What were they typically used for? Her mind rolled before she was asked for her own designation, and in a practiced motion she rattled off "Titanite One-Five-Two". Her head cocked, her own mandibles running together in thought. "I was granted the name Linea."

Her head raised and she flicked her ears again, searching. "Where is your Overseer? I need to speak to Ograz, but he isn't in his normal place."

Unbeknownst to her, he was nowhere.

@Orthoclase-Alpha

Alpha took the liberty of pacing forwards a short distance, lowering its head to sniff more intently. New-baby-smell still clung to the creature's fur, and if it had any manner of flexibility in its snout, it would've grimaced - mostly because the scent was just too strong for it. Not an ounce of maternal instinct spurred on by birth, not in this one.

But, again - this was an old creature. She recognized the designations - and the strangeness of its own, at least. "Long sleep. Too many - many new Gembound from Spire. Old numbers lost," every bit of its explanation sounded canned, like it was repeating something someone else had told it, "use different numbers. Life-give order." Clear enough.

Titanite One-Five-Two, otherwise known as 'Linea.' Respected servant, like Hemlocke, Garnet - uh... numbers. The orthoclase could not remember numbers very well. They didn't seem to matter quite as much in regards to Desert Rose or Garnet - since they were usually called just that, anyways. The young ones usually got tagged with the latter half of their designations as a result.

Anyways.

"Overseer Vargas is in Tunnel P," it returned obediently, faltering only slightly, "or elsewhere." Nice and vague, but not intentionally. Alpha's quills rattled in abject confusion, eyes widening at the mention of some Ograz. It said as much, head tilting minutely, "who is that? Another Overseer?" There was a slight shift in its gaze, although it was imperceptible because of a lack of pupils, before it continued, "I only know of Overseer Vargas."

@Linea

Linea raised a moth claw in the air as she stepped to the side, taking in the sounds and smell of this being in turn. The glowing green stood out loudly in her dull eyesight, her own glow fluttering along her ribcage with every breath.

The words ‘long sleep’ came to no surprise, but she brought her head closer as Alpha continued. ”From the Spire?” The words sent her mind reeling. Did it mean they hatched in Polaris? And numbers were lost? ”Are you from after this long sleep, then?” Her head cocked as her front feet drew close, pushing it even higher.

It continued, and Linea’s attention turned to navigating her ears towards Canis. Tunnel P? Must be an Overseer connected with hunting, then. Vargas. Her eyes shut briefly as she returned focus to Alpha, nodding lightly. ”Yes. I’m hoping yours may have more information.”

She paused. If this Vargas was in turn Ograz, wouldn’t she just get burnt up for even trying to find her hypothetical other Overseer? ”How open is Overseer Vargas to being approached?” After all, she’d gone this long being wary enough of her own Overseer; it was easy enough to assume that this one may as well be the same.

@Orthoclase-Alpha

"I don't know," it admitted, eyes narrowing slightly. There wasn't a very good understanding about what it meant to be born from the Spire, other than - "it makes small fuzzy things. Breakable." Alpha had confidence in that, at least, and seemed to puff up minutely; it felt great about beating up things that were fragile. Bully.

"From after, but Overseer Vargas gave life to my stone from a strong Orthoclase." Allegedly, according to the big man himself.

The orthoclase didn't particularly think there was much else to talk about, and figured it could stand up and start leading the way back towards Tunnel P; "I talk to him a lot. I'll take you, if he there." That last part was spoken in kind of an aside, muttered more than actually said.

It lumbered forwards a few paces towards the bone pit, then let its baby brain catch up to how small and wiry this creature was. There couldn't possibly be any purpose in actual combat for her, so...

"What do you do?"

@Linea