Enoki honestly didn't usually come this far out of Canis, but the journey wasn't as long as it would have been cycles ago and they had been meaning to take a look at some more diverse kinds of fungus anyway. Enoki had, as of yet, shown absolutely no aptitude whatsoever in the magic of their mother and siblings -- they'd figured that looking at weird mushrooms would probably help them get there.

That was why, now, Enoki was staring at a cluster of glowing mushrooms growing close to a shard of rock that looked rather like it was probably a piece of the Spire. Best avoided, then -- Enoki had strayed a little too close to it once, and the resulting zap had been more than enough to satiate their curiosity and discourage them from getting much closer.

Polaris was a strange place. Enoki could taste the magic here -- it felt like it coated their teeth and made their heart beat faster, but they didn't really feel any more or less like they were going to suddenly start spitting out mushrooms. At the very least, it gave Enoki a burst of extra energy, and they were positively thrumming with it -- they just didn't know how they were going to get rid of it!


@edric

Polaris glowed. Its moss glowed, its fungi glowed, the rocks themselves glowed. In a way, it was the complete opposite of the bleak landscape of Tunnel K and the shadows of the Altar. Its light and energy seemed almost in defiance of the inevitable decay into oil.

But Edric was not fool enough to think that Polaris was immune. No, it was only a matter of time. All of it--all the plants, all the animals--would return to the earth in time. He was only here to accelerate the process, and ensure that entropy would thrive instead of barely survive. This was what the whispers told him, and this was what he would do.

There was a grey thing standing by a crystal--Edric eyed its claws, its canine maw. It could be a useful ally, if he could sway it into seeing things as he did. He had no doubt that the whispers could convince anyone, if only they listened, but sadly they were not here with him. He was on his own, more or less.

"You," he grunted. "Look at me!" Edric stood up as straight as he could, tossing his head and thrusting his marble leg forward. It was the mark of the Altar's blessing, webbed with glistening black veins. "Do you see? I am powerful; I am blessed. I have found my true purpose." He paused for dramatic effect. "Do you... want to be as strong as I am?"

It did not occur to him that this sudden speech was perhaps not the best attempt at proselytization. All Edric knew was: if someone had offered him this opportunity, he would be stupid not to take it.

@Enoki

Enoki looked over at Edric, inclining their head slightly. It was a strange-looking creature, albeit one with weaponry. It also had a stone leg -- Enoki had a stone tooth, and peered at it strangely. It was black-veined and looked heavy. "Do you mean your stone?" Enoki asked, confused. "That looks like it's a hinderance more than a help. It looks like you can't move part of that leg, and it looks like it's heavy. I'll bet it makes you slower and less maneuverable -- I'm a small fighter. I need to be light on my feet."

Enoki had never seen marble before, so had no idea that the black veins weren't simply a fancy fixture. Their head inclined slightly. "Were you born that way, or did you find a way to change it? Is that what you mean?"


@edric

Edric frowned. This was not going according to plan. "No!" he boomed. "I'm not--yes, you are small. But I'm big and strong! Look!" he repeated, though it wasn't clear what he wanted Enoki to look at. "I'm not--weak? Are you saying I'm weak?!" Edric snorted angrily, stomping a foot--one that wasn't made of marble.

"I am not weak! I could trample you in an instant if I wanted! But yes! That is what I meant. This leg--it WAS changed! A blessing! Do you see--it is like the Oil that all things turn to, made into a part of me!" Edric then lowered his head, bringing his eyes to Enoki's level. Rimmed with red, oil oozed from their corners and stained the surrounding fur. "Look--my tears, too, are oil! This is the mark of someone who is enlightened! Someone who serves the one true purpose!"

The boar lifted his head once more, glowering down at Enoki. "This is your chance to be blessed, too! You will become strong. Serve well, and the shadows will send you to sleep--and when you awaken, you too will be touched by oil! Become close with your primordial state, but without dying--yet!"

@Enoki

"I didn't say you were weak," Enoki corrected. "I said you were slow. Bigger fighters are slower, but smaller ones need to stay lighter on their feet." They smiled, eyes dancing. "That means that, even if you wanted to trample me, I could probably outrun you."

Enoki peered at the marble leg more closely, looking at the black veins running through it. They were iridescent, and indeed looked like Oil. Their head tilted slightly as they peered at it, and then at his eyes. "Umm... how does it make you stronger?" Enoki asked, somewhat hesitant but not willing to dismiss him outright. The shine reminded them of the Sentinel's stone, and the talk of shadows seemed strangely similar.


@edric

The reassurance that the koalyena didn't think he was weak calmed Edric for only a brief moment. What they said about big and small fighters made sense, more or less. Obviously the smaller creature couldn't possibly overpower him, so the only way they could survive was by running away.

But then they had the gall to claim they could outrun him! Edric's pride flared at the challenge. Whether Enoki had one more functional leg than he did was beyond the point. "I could trample you in an instant!" he repeated, tossing his head. "And it makes me stronger because- because-"

Edric frowned. How did it make him stronger? He just knew that he felt strong. Whereas he'd felt normal, before. "It just does!" he insisted, irritated. "Doing what they tell me feels good! And I AM strong!" He narrowed his eyes at the grey one. They were reluctant about accepting the chaos, were they? Well, he'd show them. Show them just how powerful he could be. "Look!" Edric demanded once again. "I'll SHOW you!"

With that, Edric lurched toward Enoki as fast as his shortened marble leg would allow. Which wasn't very fast, as it turned out.

@Enoki
Round 1/?
Current level: Fledgling
Attempt: charge
Defense: what's that?
Injuries: none

Enoki raised an eyebrow at Edric. Okay, so they were goading him, just a little bit. Polaris made them feel impish. In any case, his business pitch wasn't going over well, but it did have Enoki at least a little bit curious. This one, they thought wryly as he announced that he was about to attack them, doesn't seem very smart.


His battle cry and clumsy movements gave Enoki an opening to strike. "Don't let your opponent take advantage of your weaknesses," Enoki scolded, albeit playfully, as they let him close the distance and then lunged towards him with their claws outstretched. If they hit, it would be a whirlwind of small strikes at his face -- Enoki wasn't actually trying to gouge his eyes out, but they wanted him to think they were.

Unfortunately, Enoki miscalculated the amount of force they needed behind their lunge and ended up hitting the ground -- hard. "Ah... and don't do that," they amended, smiling good-naturedly at their own screwup.



Round: 1/?
Attempt: Aim for the eyes! fall
Defense: None
Injuries: None


@edric

Annoyingly, Enoki was giving him advice and trying to attack back instead of cowering or trembling before Edric's might. Weaknesses? Okay, so Edric wasn't the fastest boar in the world. But that didn't mean this grey furry thing was good enough to take advantage of it! Clearly. As they had just fallen to the ground.

"I never!" Edric proclaimed. "Have never, will never!" Now that he and Enoki were close (and really, wasn't that hypocritical of them to let the boar close the distance when they'd bragged about their ability to outrun just moments prior?), Edric lifted his left leg, marble hoof positioned to hit the koalyena's flank and thus pin them to the ground. It was intended only to teach the thing a lesson, and didn't have the force of a real trampling behind it, but neither could it be considered gentle. Edric wanted this one to have some bruises to remember him by. To know the power of he who prayed to the Altar. He was asserting dominance.

Round 2/?
Attempt: step on Enoki (gently, for now...)
Defense: haha funny joke
Injuries: none

@Enoki

Enoki knew that the marble leg was, at this range, definitely dangerous. If Edric stepped on them with that, then it wouldn't have been pretty, and so Enoki knew that this was not a time to be playing games with him. At least, not until they were in a better position. They managed to roll out of the way of Edric's stomping, but only barely. At the very least, they managed to recover to their feet, and popped up with a doggish grin.

"Almost!" they chimed. "You got close, I'll give you that!"



Round: 2/?
Attempt: Roll out of the way--
Defense: Dodging!
Injuries: None

@edric

Infuriated could only begin to describe how angry Edric was. Not only had this grey thing managed to avoid him twice in a row, it was taunting him now. Edric gave up on words, settling instead for an enraged "ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGH!" as he limp-charged toward the koalyena.

Perhaps, if he failed yet again and managed to muster up the patience to reflect on this later, Edric might note that running away from bigger creatures was as effective a strategy as Enoki had claimed. Right now, though, he just wanted to hurt them. He was no longer holding back; he wanted the grey one to feel the full force of his wrath.

Round 3/?
Attempt: Edric is not a creative boar
Defense: nah
Injuries: none

@Enoki