Backdated to Desert Rose's reemergence after the winter Trial of Hydra

Did Vargas... sleep?

This was a question that, to his knowledge, no one had ever asked. It was, in all fairness, one probably nobody actually cared about.

Whatever he was doing, it certainly resembled sleep: sprawled out on one of the upper ledges of Tunnel P, motionless in the heat where he lay above the chrysalids. Maybe he was sleeping. Maybe, even dreaming.

Or maybe he was resting, calm and alert but with closed eyes, for the sound of a chrysalis cracking down below. A specific one--or any one; he didn't tell anyone his motives. But there he lay, silent and waiting, like an assassin--or dead asleep and oblivious, like anything but.

@Desert Rose Thirty-Five

Desert definitely slept. Even as he recovered in his chrysalis from an imparted gift, he stirred as though his body was ever eager to remove its energy.

But, eventually, everyone had to wake up. His consciousness came back slowly to him as he felt his nerves reconnecting, jaw working on nothing in the fluids of change. Something had been altered there- he could feel it with his tongue, and the sharp tang of amniotic fluid jostled him fully from his rest.

Damn. What a way to wake up. Curling his lips up, he reared back into the sandy gem encasing him, breaking through with ease to reveal a glinting body. He hated waking up, always, the feeling of being content ripped from him every damn time he did it. At least this sleep hadn't been accompanied by any nightmares.

He rumbled out a yawn akin to a weak lion's roar, quiet as he worked his jaw open. What had changed? Damn the trials- they didn't need gifts to prove one's worth. When he rolled his tongue over and over he could feel his front canines extended out to tusks and top ones swept out to the side. Dammit, how was he supposed to learn to eat like this?

Grumbling words of nonsense, he drew himself from the chrysalis and surveyed the scene around him. One chrysalis had broken free- a flint- the chicken? He was surprised it survived. If he honed that energy it showed to him, maybe he could use it for the sentinels...

But he had more important matters on his mind. Vargas's purple form was visible from his position, and Desert squinted a few times to make sure it was him. He was... Asleep? Overseers slept? Well, that was information he never knew that he wanted to know. Then again, a lot of information that came to him tended to be like that anymore.

Like a snake, Desert uncoiled himself from his cocoon and stifled another yawn, shaking out his large wings to fan them dry. Should he wake up the Overseer? Had he already woken up..? Cautiously, the dragon looked around for a loose stone to clatter away-

No shit. There were pieces of diamond around. Where the hell did everyone get these? With wide eyes, he found the closest one he could and curled a wing-paw around it, bringing it closer to inspect. Well, whatever was inside that pearl could find him if it wanted it back. For now, he actually did manage to find an actual stone to knock aside with an echoing clatter that rose above the heated wind of Hydra.

At least Hydra was back to normal.

@Vargas

"You're to keep one," came the Overseer's voice, and there he was, leaping nimbly down from ledge to ledge to come even with the chrysalids. But the way he stretched, even yawned, suggested that, at the very least, he had been resting.

"Everyone who retrieved one gets to keep one. It's a reward for managing: you can create an offspring with it, if you wish." Vargas, for his part, sounded fairly indifferent as he came to stand before--and above--the Desert Rose. He studied him, for a moment, and then his six-eyed hammerhead tilted lightly to one side. "...New teeth. Unsure what the Merchant's aiming for, there," he added, bemusedly. Like Desert, he seemed to think they would only be a nuisance. "More suited for combat, I'd think, unless he's transferring your purpose-? Still too small for that, but we will see. Ahh," he grunted, stretching and yawning again; "Do you remember enough to report-?"

It was said politely enough, though the stare suggested that he'd better.

@Desert Rose Thirty-Five

He full on jumped at the sound of Vargas's voice, leaping a full six inches in the air at least at the words. "Shhhii-" He covered the cuss with a cough. Immediately, his eyes darted away in deference, before he stood and offered the gem.

Vargas knew what to say about it, and while he hadn't retrieved one himself, he'd already begun to claim this as his own. His wing drew back to glance down to the diamond. Oh, how his body began to quiver at the idea of more breeding rights, his competence (even though this false little lie) proven and shooting like adrenaline through his veins. "I will find a suitable match for it." That suitable match? Him, of course- he'd make a better child. Speaking of, how were they..?

But, first, his own changes. He worked his jaw experimentally, a claw running over one of the jutting tusks. "Intimidation? They may provide good for latching," he suggested in thought. "I am... Still too small for true combat." His magic wasn't strong enough to be an assassin- but he could fight other scouts, perhaps? Latch them and bring them down-

But, he was wallowing in his own thoughts. "Of course I do," he responded after the yawn. (Vargas yawning- that gave him a fright right there...) Ahem. Right, report. "There are beings who've hatched in Hydra. They seem to have the notion that the rest of the nest is more dangerous, despite few being repeatedly scarred by their experiences." His head tilted up in thought. "Most seemed adapted to the sands- red horse, small fox, a small owl. The latter two nested in the Crucible."

Speaking of the Crucible, he paused in thought. "The puzzle- four items deposited for the opening of the door- was solved quickly. I had suggested sacrificial uses of beings own parts and few did so without question- bleeding beings had donated their blood instead of healing, the cheetah descendant of the... Storm being, of the last trial, had donated feathers. Palefur had willingly harmed herself- to her own detriment, it seems- and a wolf-bird beast had ripped out an eye without thought."

He looked to the side. "I feel as though without direction, some of these beings do not question unsafe decisions. There were no complaints until after they had gone through with the act." His ears pulled back gently when he looked back to Vargas. "The white descendant of the storm being had offered rides, as had many other larger beings. The Agate and I in the beginning had gone forward, ahead of the group, while Palefur in her greed had surged ahead of even us."

He hadn't seen where the fox had gotten the key, but- "The pearl, when I saw it, had retrieved the needed key to open the door. It carried it through a direct attack and survived amputation and cauterization by the-" He looked about before pointing out the golden aventurine. It was a color he was unfamiliar with, but he tilted to it anyways. "The canine with a golden laurel. The same canine was adamant about retrieving the sword and cauterized the weapon in place to ensure the worm's death. She would be a prime candidate for reproduction, I believe." He gave a beat at that. "Although, it's not my place to say truly."

He sat, now, scratching at his mane and looking up to the ceiling of the tunnel. "Some form of mutated chicken- the Agate with less parts- had survived most of the trial with broken legs by teaming up with a blinded bat hybrid. Actually- the same bat that was in the last trial. When she was deposited near me during the ice worm's death, she was adamant about joining the fray despite her injuries. I would give her a tentative candidacy for breeding, as well, if she proves to heal her legs in the chrysalis." He gestured to a piece of broken flint in curiosity. "If she re-emerged? She's one to keep an eye on, if she doesn't get herself killed through that recklessness. I'd hope that would breed out upon duplication, if she does manage to reproduce."

"As for the others, only two had perished this time- an odd, pale-ish alien, along with Palefur. I imagine this does not bode well for the Selenite and Rubies of our order." He cleared his throat at the suggestion. "It seems canines are more resilient than the power-hungry cat builds. Although, I am not familiar with more felines- but I feel as though the children need to be tested further to see if that specific case is an anomaly or a disease that's infected them through the breeding."

Even if he hated suggesting that his own Selenite be picked apart, he felt such vindication about him being the better being out of the two of them. But- there was his report, and he dipped his head down upon completion of it.

Hopefully he hadn't overstepped once more.

@Vargas

Vargas first recognized his error, for a moment, with the diamond shard. Had Desert, in fact, come out with one-? With a leering grin he corrected his mistake. "Ah, that one wasn't yours, was it-? Well, then you cannot keep it. Maybe one of the others will barter, but it's a reward for retrieving the things. Its own reward, really."

To the rest, he listened closely, and he considered. The information was mostly useful, though Vargas did not come to all of the same conclusions. He considered simply dismissing it all, but Desert Rose--as much a brown-noser as it was--was trying his best to rise to a challenge that Vargas hadn't even, really, set him. If he's so insistent on jumping to his own conclusion, I'd best guide him in that. Maybe he'll rise higher, be more useful some day. (Even in his private thoughts, Vargas was sort of a dick, if unintentionally so.)

The teeth--latching on. That was first, and Vargas acknowledged it with a mere slight dip of his head, and a faint grunt. An unequivocal "maybe."

The rest he addressed one at a time, apparently quite skilled at holding multiple topics, in perfect order, in his mind. The work of an Overseer needed strong organizational skills, it seemed, and memory.

"Is there anything more you can tell me about the creatures who hatched in Hydra-? That shouldn't be," he mused... but really, what was stopping them? If stray magicka was igniting life across the caves, Hydra'd be the perfect natural breeding and testing ground for these beasts. If all the caves were as hostile, as volatile, the new generation wouldn't be so damn soft.

"I know a little of that puzzle. I think you were meant to bring down a vulture, or the like--they were weakened by the snow. A bit of dead tree," he added, slowly and pointedly. While Desert Rose was pointing out the foolishness of the others, it had... mysteriously... returned with a missing antler. "They seem decisive, at least, and obedient, if lacking in critical thinking. That has its purposes," Vargas added. And then, a bit of wisdom--a revelation, as small as it was. "Most of what might be a weakness in one role is a strength in another. It is not always about finding the best beast, but the best job for the beast. The best soldier might make for a terrible scout. A spy might question things; I don't want my soldiers doing so mid-combat. Thought can breed treachery," he added, grinning, briefly, at Desert Rose. "What happened to Palefur, then, in the end-? I need to speak with her awful spawn. It's been utterly useless so far--weak, wretched. I'm unsure there's any job that will find any use for it," the Overseer stated bluntly, oblivious to any impact this might have on Desert Rose. To Vargas, spawn was spawn; he'd felt some measure of something in Titanite's creation, but Dhracia's return had closed that side of him right back up. He'd toss Titanite to the Masters without a second thought, now.

He'd have to, if it came to it. He'd have no choice.

"Tell me more of the two big beasts. The hairy brown one, and the white one--descendent of the storm-thing, you said? As for the pearl, if its survival is that strong it may be of use as a scout. It is small enough. But alone, it would have died, undoubtedly. The chicken, too. Idiocy is not a strength," he said, bluntly; "I see little value in a creature that will throw itself into fatal injury and require assistance to even survive the rest. But I will bear it in mind, if I need to try to infuse fearlessness, relentlessness. Those things do not pass as readily, though." At least, in his experience. A child of a brilliant mind might be a fool; of a coward might be brave. Not always, of course; but those things depended at least as much on how it was raised, trained, than its lineage.

"The canine, though. I agree that one has potential, but as what-? They are--the canines--too..." Vargas paused, searching for a word, sitting back on his haunches to gesture with one overly-long forelimb. "Too lacking in mobility to serve as scouts, yes? Only swift over land. No flight, no fins. Perhaps you could try to breed with one, though I think that might waste your lines, looking only for wings," the Overseer mused. He studied Desert Rose for a minute longer. "I think an optimal scout would have a tougher hide, your overall build, slightly more size. But perhaps a canine trait or two. What is it that makes them so tough..? It might just be that they're generalists," he continued, coming to the realization aloud. "There's nothing particularly extreme about them, is there-?" They had fur, but not too much. Size, but not too much. Pointy bits--but not very much at all. Strength, endurance, speed, but all of these were individually less than other species.

It bore further consideration later.

Vargas shook the thought away and then looked to Desert Rose, and summarized his questions.

"Right, so tell me, then, about the two deaths--what happened? How did they fail? And do you know anything more about the children who hatched in Hydra? And about the dark beast, and the pale one."

He was, at least, treating the scout as though his opinions mattered, which was certainly a step up from the distant past.

@Desert Rose Thirty-Five

”... Ah.” His throat clammed as he returned the shard to its rightful owner, an intense feeling of needing to shed scales taking over him- akin to feeling sweat roll down a mammal’s forehead for a reptile. (Was he even a reptile? He never noticed if he sweat before, at least.) ”I see.” Perhaps his magic wouldn’t take hold if he didn’t properly own it, or perhaps he’d face that Merchant if he ever ended up wronging him in this way. Whoever the Merchant was, at least.

And the conversation split as Vargas picked through the Sentinel’s words, his head tilting in thought. He’d respond in order (thought pausing here and there to keep up). ”They resemble the new beings more than old designs. The horse had led the others directly to the Crucible and was knowledgeable about the dangers of Hydra while all three didn’t recognize any outside beings other than-” He gave a soft hm. ”A striped, orange-ish horse was recognized by the other. I believe the red one’s name was Warrior. None of them were aware why Hydra was snowing, nor did they know what a Trial was. Although, Warrior took good initiative and ended up banding the others together, showing courage in defending and calling out for trailing beings.” He looked to where Warrior’s chrysalis stood, but he hadn’t particularly noticed the gems of the other two. ”Had the others- the fox and bird- owl?- chrysalized?” He nodded to Warrior’s sleeping chamber.

But, the puzzle. His eye barely winced at the mention of ‘dead tree’. He was told to use his head, after all, and weren’t trees typically metaphors for antlers? He literally used his head, after all- but, he’d take that loss. After all, who was he to say if he got his antler knocked off in a battle?

But, that’d be lying. What would Vargas do if he lied straight to his face and not through omission? Desert elected not to wallow in that thought, stuffing it down like he did like the rest of them. ”A lack of intelligence has its strengths when they can make up for it,” he partially echoed- not without a squint at the word treachery. Indeed, even he struggled to not think in these times, anymore. ”As for Palefur, she was crushed when she was hiding from the Ice Worm. As did the pearl- the latter was dug out by the Hydra-born fox, owl, and the chicken.” Should he learn their names, someday? Perhaps, but now was not the time to contemplate that.

”Both of the large beasts- as well as Warrior and a smaller, deer-like creation- had offered services to carry smaller beings. The deer may have been… Ah, beryl? Aquamarine? Both of the larger ones mentioned easily plowed through snow to clear a path for others and many gave themselves up to save others. The stamina in the larger beasts were useful.” The latter was spoken definitively but stated between an obvious observation and an attempt to look intelligent.

His head tilted to the side in thought. ”If the pearl was taught the magic used on it, it may have been able to save itself. The chicken, though…” His nostrils flared in a huff. ”If its bones were light enough to let it glide like it had, it wouldn’t provide resilient enough for much.” He knew first-hand how intelligence didn’t pass down, thanks to the selenite he’d spawned personally. ”Perhaps it could serve as distraction- provided if it was fast enough- to draw attention away from an area that needs infiltrating. Granted it didn’t spoil the surprise before-hand.” Teeth gritted at the last sentence as his eyes darted to the side for the briefest moment.

”The canines are rather variable, from what I’ve seen. They have good sense of attention to others, a mental resilience, but again that’s relying on the personalities rather than the creations.” A wing-paw rested on his chin, where he tapped in thought. ”I’m not aware of their senses, perhaps? They are resilient against pain, from what I saw, and that would pair well with thicker skin. The pearl was capable of surviving through a rockfall caused by the Ice Worm’s death. Despite the lack of dexterity the canine could hold on well to the Worm, as well..” Messengers, maybe? But, those did best with wings, much more of his size. Speaking of- ”Size may be good smaller in certain cases- there are areas I wouldn’t be able to enter if I was any bigger- but, at this size, it takes more endurance to go longer. Less food intake during down-time, at least, but it’s uncommon to find that when everything’s how it should be.” His self-insight was slightly unprompted, but the thinking on scouts brought his mind around to focus on it.

Canines, though. The conversation was on canines. ”Generalists may be the way to go. If they had wings, that would be best, but there’s no reliable way to breed them onto beings… They’d need better dexterity, as well.” His voice trailed as his paw pressed harder onto his cheek.

”I’m not aware how the other failed- it had broken off from the others, from what I saw, and I believe when the Worm had devoured it it had also caused the pearl’s damage, as well. Even through that, it was barely in the Crucible and still managed to plow on through to reach the puzzle in safety.” Again, that resilience was good- but was that ingrained into the design or limited to simply how tenacious the individual was?

@Vargas

Desert Rose's elaboration of the finer points of his report was, in a word, excellent. Vargas found himself actually paying attention, considering the servant's points instead of simply gauging his ability to report.

In particular, he considered, strongly, the idea of a wolf with thicker skin. He wondered if that might affect heat distribution overmuch, but it was an interesting concept. He himself had mentioned a tougher hide, but now he was thinking farther: carapaces, like Orthoclase-Alpha's.

Hmm.

"A canine of the larger sizes, or average, with a thick spined hide may do well. Although I think it would need less fur," he added, "for heat reasons. A messenger through hostile territory. Hm. Kera is sharp, useful, she had a level head. That paired with more initiative and physical ability would be useful, I think; as to their senses I have no idea." He considered sending Desert Rose off then and there to find him some dogs, wolves, and spiny things to breed (a crab, perhaps-?) but eyed him after a moment, and changed his mind.

He'd just awoken, after all.

"You did not HAVE to enter this trial, but you have done well. Your report is good, and well-received. Go and rest now; you have some time before I will call on you again. There are some other things that will need dealing with--but not yet. And no," he added, "I don't think those two returned here. I may send one of the children into Hydra, after some training, to try and seek them out--as their trial," he added. "If there are beasts living in Hydra, perhaps Hydra's not as hostile as it once was--or maybe these are a good line of creature. Either bears investigating."

@Desert Rose Thirty-Five

The champion glanced upwards in consideration. While he wasn't going to revel in the attention given (rather- he didn't allow himself to notice), he was going to draw out this thought as far a she could. It seemed like his Overseer enjoyed the concept, at least? He nodded along, a claw tapping upwards against the bottom of his muzzle.

"A thick hide may be too heavy for wings, however with their endurance-" his voice hitched in a question- "It may be feasible if others had those qualities to combine. Though- I don't think I know of any in particular..." Here, his thought span trailed into the distance, his eyes unfocusing as he lost himself in thought.

Vargas's second line of speaking brought him back to the present. "Of course, Overseer," he spoke simply in a bow in the form of a nod, wings shuffling once more as he ruffled down his ego. The further the thoughts went, the more he felt unqualified to add his own input- it was mere speculation on both their parts, and he had been given his allotted freedom of the day. "I will remain available." Of course he'd be- why'd he say that? Backing off, he nodded again before making to flutter off to the den. He had it in his mind already for things to busy himself with- being available didn't mean wasting away, after all.

@Vargas
; exit unless stopped

Vargas grunted, and turned--it would remain available, and despite Desert Rose's misgivings on having said that, it certainly pacified the Overseer.

"Good. Thank you for your report. I have much to think on," he added, and--in a spiderlike lurch of limbs--slipped from Tunnel P entirely.

exit Vargas