It wasn't too over, yet. Giggle'd seen some running off, and Aure had to admit that he did, too. Among all of the chaos, he could only focus on keeping their own cleansed of the fungus. In the quiet, though, they could take closer looks. "We'll do a sweep before we go, but I don't think it's possible to get every Lesser." He sighed softly, "let me know what Omen sees."

Aure nodded at Dragon's suggestion, "I can go around and sense for any more... clusters. This cave's full of fungus, though. And - I... don't know." Would destroying their main hive be enough? There had been one in Canis right beneath their noses, lost in all of the rot and decay that there already was. Bright eyes turned warily towards Pride, wondering would Orion have one, too? It seemed to be a trend, and he'd like to at least politely offer... Aure exhaled, shrugging again, "I'll ask Astraea if he comes this way."

When the fat alligator offered the Children's aid, Aure bowed his head politely: "we appreciate it. The Bonebound are happy to keep offering aid - to all of you. If you have suspicions of another - center or infected, we'll come and help cleanse it." He cast his gaze towards the Seven and the two Sentinels with a dip of his head. "I'm happy to offer myself to... teach any of you how to remove it yourselves."

Speaking of purging - he jumped slightly at Azrael's roaring fit. Aure's ears pricked at the sheer volume of it, tail flicking uncertainly. Pride beat him to the punch for defusing, but he was faintly worried about the demon storming in on another hive - imagining one just as infested as this one and a singular Gembound going against it. Even if he destroyed that node, it wouldn't be without a death toll. The wyvern knew death was unavoidable at times, but... it was a cruel way to go.

Cruel just the same as the possible hundreds of Lessers guided towards them and subsequently blown to pieces by the white rot that had innocuously plagued them. Aure felt a familiar bout of vomit start to crawl up from his gut, but he managed to screw his eyes shut and turn his head away from the crying masses. No amount of pinning ears could deafen that horrific sound.

He swallowed and nearly choked with how dry it was.

For a moment, he was going to plod towards his mother, look for safety in her flank, but Dragon's booming voice distracted him - and he figured he could wallow and purge. Bright eyes gave Giggle a glancing look of I'm really not dealing with this too well before fluttering across the mud towards Temperantia. Eyes watering from the - uh, smell of the blackened rot-mass - he searched over for... any kind of mouth. Ironically, Aure was feeling the same level of confusion as the monkgoose that'd infected them.

Tentatively, he felt out for the fungus, wrenching a hold in it and hoping he made it crawl out through a mouth or somewhere relatively pain-free.

At some point, Eythan'd managed to drag himself out of the swamp, looking for-all-the-world haggard. That brief stint he'd spent in battle was apparently enough to wear him out for ages. Maybe it was just the sheer panic of having his wings nearly burnt to bits. A few of his primaries were worse for wear and might lose a few bits in the next few days, but he was in rather premium quality.

Enough of a good state, at least, to go fluttering after a tiny linsang as he barreled past.

The gryphon came back to the larger group with the snarling, squirming, swearing lump in his mouth. He was careful to avoid any visibly infected areas - wherever those might be - and dropped down next to Giggle, head lowered slightly. "Special delivery," Eythan grumbled around the spotted scruff in his mouth, "I'm pretty sure he's infected."

All of this was said through quite a bit of hissing and muffled mumbling. Hopefully the hyena got the idea.

permission to pp pallas granted by hawkweed!

M FOR SOME F-BOMBS

Activity was swarming, even as the fight broke abruptly off, the winner clearly decided. And it was not the Hive.

It was the screams of the Lessers that tore her mind, and she stood, shocked and staring, all other memory and thought purged from her mind. She did not really notice Aure's glance, too stuck staring in horror that shifted rapidly into rage.

Her dark gaze flicked up to Astraea, as the stag turned, smugly arrogant, to depart.

"What the fuck?" she demanded, and when he kept walking, she took a few stiff and angry steps after him and shouted it. "WHAT THE FUCK?" There was a waver in her voice, the screams of the Lessers and their horrific writhing forefront in her mind, black waves threatening to crash down around it all.

She took a final jerky step after him and then a few ragged breaths, blinking as she stirred from her brief moment of nightmarish unreality. It took a moment to realize that it was Omen who had stirred her from it, the gentle questioning tug at the corner of her mind rousing her from a stress that had nearly dragged her away again.

The ragged hyena shook herself, turning, sending back a distracted reassurance to the bird--and then Eythan was landing there, Pallas in his claws.

Something to focus on, she told herself at once, eyes locking on the Gembound, and she felt distinct relief in it.

She padded over, trudging through the mud, decidedly not looking over at the melting bodies of the Lessers that the fuck-face Master had just tormented to death: she looked instead at Pallas, and took a deep breath.

"Lucky you brought him back now," she said quietly, grimly, with a jerk of her head toward the way Astraea had gone.

What an ASSHOLE, she mentally seethed--and then forced herself to calm, to breathe deep, to really look at Pallas.

There wasn't much to see. She didn't recognize his species, and he was a writhing, spitting little cat-like beast, but it was clear that he was Hive, at least. She focused on her magic.

She grasped at the fungus controlling Pallas--and willed it forth, tugging it (as gently as was possible, though she knew it must hurt nonetheless--but there was no rush, now, no real urgency) out to sprawl across the mud.

And she took note of where it was. If no one burned it away... she still held some interest in-... In testing it.

rain stock: D Sharon Pruitt wiki commons; hyena Benjamin Hollis on flickr

@Pallas

Azrael turned when Astraea approached, eyeing the fungus that blossomed on his antlers. So this was the Master, the one that had killed Mother before, when she had first awakened. He remembered his voice, calling from outside her first den before he'd fled like a coward with bits of Mother to grow her again. "Thank you," he growled, "for making this happen. Freeing us. I will never be caught and controlled like that again." He could have apologized for what he'd done, for causing so much trouble, but he would not bring his pride down anymore. He was grateful, yes, but what demon groveled, even to his saviors?

Unlike most of the others, the horrifying display of magic didn't shock Azrael or disgust him - rather, he watched almost neutrally, the same dark delight as Astraea gleaming in his expression. Seeing Mother's work destroyed so easily, the lives of her servants extinguished one by one, was deeply satisfying. It occurred to his mind that, not long ago, only minutes before, he had been one of her servants - this could have been his fate. But it wasn't - he was cleansed and now he would have no mercy for those that remained.

One by one, they were cleansed, but as he looked around, he didn't see Sergei - that struck something. He'd been cleansed already and...Sergei had been different. Even now, he felt like he wanted to talk to him. They'd been guards together. Perhaps indifferent towards each other, but Azrael liked to think there was some kind of bond there. Perhaps broken, now that they were no longer under Mother's control and linked by minds, but it might be too late now. "You left Sergei under there," he snarled, pointing at the hole that had once been the hive.

There was one more, though. Everyone was preoccupied cleansing others, but there was still one that remained. He put his eyes on her, trapped beneath the cheetah, and stormed over. With a clean sweep of his left arms, he pushed the cheetah off of her and grabbed Shoko firmly by the leg. With a roar, he ripped her off of the ground and swung her over in an arch, slamming her against the hard earth beneath him. There was a crack in the air, enough for him to step over her body and move back to the group with a growl. "Are there any more infected?" he snarled, darkly.

Powerplaying Reign was done with Blackbird's permission

Shoko continued to sob, struggling underneath the cheetah, trying to get away, however futile it was. His purring and licking did nothing to help, only agitated her further. "Shut up! Shut up!! It's not going to be okay! You don't know! You don't know what she means to me! You can't do this don't take her away, please don't!" She struggled and kept trying to reach back and claw him or something but she couldn't.

But then the weight suddenly disappeared from her back. Her chance to escape! Maybe someone had come to rescue, maybe he was letting her go! But she barely twitched before something gripped her leg hard and she was being lifted violently from the ground.

She screamed as she almost went airborne, her stomach flipping from the sudden shift of gravity and, before she could even realize what was happening, she was being smashed into the ground. There was a loud crack! as something, probably multiple things, broke in her and every inch of her body was jarred by the impact, leaving her winded and shocked. She coughed, blood bubbling from her mouth, as numbness spread quickly across her whole body.

No, it wasn't just numbness. The thulite on her claw was expanding, rapidly covering her dying body. She panicked - no, no she couldn't! If she slept...then Mother...

But there was nothing she could do. She couldn't move or fight it. She could only be pulled into sleep, her last thoughts being of a lonely fear. Without Mother...who was she?

*exit

Temperantia froze when Astrea entered the clearing. They didn't know them personally, but they felt through their link who this was. A master. One of the worst. One that needed to be punished. Temperantia could not see from his position, but he could hear. He could feel through Mother's link as Astrea destroyed them.. Their screams ingrained themselves Temperantia's head. They had never witnessed something so vile. So evil. All they could do was stare blankly. The fight temporarily gone. This was who these gembound had allied themselves with? They were all evil--irredeemable.

Temperantia would punish them all. Before they could make any move, a weight settled itself on them. They were going to cleanse them. Temperantia tried to resist, flapping wings that were too small and twisting a body too delicate to force Ischium off them, let alone a massive alligator as well. They desperately pinged those of the family still conscious for help, even though they knew it was far from their control. "No! Let us go! You're all evil."

And then Aure was standing over them. Temperantia felt a strange pulling sensation. The fungi was forced out through Temperantia's spiracles, like a white fuzzy silly string. It was excruciatingly painful. It lasted but a few seconds, but Temperantia could feel as their links were broken. A few seconds, and then Mother was gone. Taken by these who were lost. Who'd never felt her embrace. They felt their consciousness waning. Their single consciousness. Temperantia had never felt so empty. As their awareness slipped, they were wracked by fear and the loneliness. But throughout that there was a rage. It burned them. Temperantia would punish them all. Temperantia would preserve justice.

((forgot to add WHOOPS but))

--exit temp

[M for vomit.]

He'd taken a back seat to everything, cooling down as the pain faded from him. That was a mistake. Sharp breaths hissed through his teeth before he licked over the new scar. That... Wasn't gonna go away, was it?

A sigh rumbled through him, glancing to the now being taken care of bird. A brief thought of 'sorry' flitted through his mind before he turned to the others.

The hive had sunk, and they won. Serek- well. He was lost, now. What could he do? The others were being rounded up, and he took a brief step back. He had brief mind to make himself scarce, hide like he did, but-

A voice jerked himself to attention, head swiveling like a ball joint to face Astraea. Astraea, the Master. One he should be wary about, after all. Great potential for what, to become a lying ball of destruction? No. All he was was a - Well. He didn't do anything in that battle. Guilt tightened its grip on his throat. He was useless during all of that, wasn't he?

Cries shot through his mind to break him out of his thoughts, and... Oh. That grip suffocated his airways as life tore from countless beings, life, showing danger lurking with them. Within all. Underlying that was the danger Astraea brought.

If he wasn't sick from pain before, he could feel his gut churn now. He'd seen his fair share of dead beings but this? This was piles of needless, disgusting gore, and Serek turned away before spitting bile at the roots of the closest tree. Was that necessary? Did- Did everything had to suffer like that? At least the war-band was sensible enough to do it while preserving their lives. And- oh caves, the stench hit him all at once, and he was spitting up again, and-

Astraea had spoken, loud and clear, and Serek averted his eyes from his own bile to focus, avoiding glancing to the red seeping into mud and grime. Too much to not look at- fire still blazed through the tree, mud sucked over chrysalises, and Serek closed his eyes to avoid it all.

He sidled closer to Giggle, looking vaguely for Dragon. He needed family, and Serek bounced back at the snarling mess of fur delivered to his mother. Maybe he could speak to Dragon? But- He was split. He wanted to go home, but where was home? If he went back to the Bonebound, what about the Divine? What about the pile? He needed- "Canis." He shakily said it, merely a whisper. "I'm... I'm going back to Canis." It's barely an announcement, and was only really loud enough for Giggle- once she's done performing her duty- to hear, alongside anyone close enough to her.

His hoof sunk into the mud as he pushed his weight backwards. "I need- time to think. If Dragon asks. I'm- I'll see you at home."

Without barely a second glance, he turned tail and stumbled his way through muck, trying to evict all thoughts of what preceded through his mind.

;exit Serek unless stopped

Maybe he'd finally begun to think for himself as Mother slipped far, far away, but Pallas's eyes slammed shut in the denial. No. NO. His extended vision was crashing down around him. His claws lost grasp on hers that curled in his mind, and-

His head straightened on its long neck. Hard eyes stared back, body frozen in time as he tried to reach out, failing each time to connect, to grasp at the others. They were fleeing. Running. He couldn't focus on the gore as blips of lessers fell off of his radar.

'Siblings...' His lament was short-lived as talons curled about him. "Whothe hell-" He spat, curling and twisting, trying and failing to claw at calloused skin. "Let me go, you bastard!"

Other such obscenities continued as he flew. The height shut him up briefly until he was delivered like a mere package back to his home, his destroyed home! "What did you gemless idiots do to my tree! You sacks of dirt, you assholes- I'm gonna-" Words failed him as he batted his paws uselessly at Eythan's claws.

A pull- sharp, behind his eyes, behind his everything, snapped him to the other creature looming above him. "Stop!" He- wasn't sure what this was. The others were farther away, snuffed out of his mind before he felt the same pain they went through. No! His body reached as he struggled to pull himself away.

It was useless. It was void. Nothing rang back to the echoes of his mental anguish, and they were gone, just like that. The reaching paws fell limp and he no longer struggled under the gryphon's claws.

He lay in the muck, no longer bothered by its texture, nearly comforted by the familiarity of it. He wanted to bury himself it in. Hide away. What... What did- why? Why did he sacrifice himself? What... What was he feeling? Was it guilt? No. He wasn't guilty for loving his family. That was his family, torn from him! But- was it healthy, truly? He... When was the last time he ate? There was the guilt- guilt for mistreating his body, only backed by rage for his decimated home. He had given so much for that.... That thing, and what did he have in return? Nothing. A family, maybe, but a family of servitude.

That wasn't a life for anybody. Even with the silence overwhelming him, he fell into a stunned limpness, his purpose rightfully stripped from him as he struggled to comprehend his past.

Artume was only vaguely aware of Daughter - young Daughter, poor Daughter - rushing up, screaming suddenly, and then fleeing as the stag lays, gasping, on the ground.

And then, a snap, and she can't feel Bold anymore. Poor, poor Bold, who she had betrayed, forced the fungus on, tainted and ruined. She staggered to her hooves, collapsed, and rose again, moaning in pain all the while, 'Bold, Bold, Bold,' her Familiar the only thing on her mind.

She gets to her hooves, barely able to hear the screaming, and fled as fast as she could, wanting nothing more than to hide away in her grove.

-exit Artume, unless stopped

There was - screaming - and the coyote whimpered, even as he crouched down over Temperantia, tail tucked and ears flat, shaking violently.

He remained, frozen, as the odd alligator came over, looking at it with wild eyes, tongue-tied. He wasn't the best at speaking at the best of times, and now to a stranger, frozen with terror, well, all he managed was a low whine.

And then he could have cried as, finally, Auré, came fluttering over, diving to try and work his way under the wyvern's wings, shaking violently and yipping between his high-pitched whines, "Auré!" he loved his bone-family, but there was a positive to those who still had breath, they could protect you while the bones could only watch, "What was that?"

@Dragon @Auré