????????

Everything had been... slow.

Silent isn't the right word, no. There had been a beat, a thumping in everything the now much larger creature had ever been, and something reminds them that this beat existed even before the one that settled in the their chest. The same, but more.

But older.

More... I want more. Out... is new... is more...

Not really words, more of an urge. A feeling. They'll learn the words in time, find them in their mind and in the mouths of the others there had been outside.

It's time. Well past time.

With that, they strike out with first one foot and then the other. Wings then bracing to allow a second, stronger set of kicks.

A second set of splintering cracks, that begin to leak the corrupt liquid from within the chrysalis, and the third strike exposing sensitive skin and wicked claws to air.

@Vargas

- THE LEVIATHAN -

It was as close to excited as he ever got.

The magic, the life, within had quickened; he was pacing, to and fro, tail lashing, for over an hour. He'd almost missed it. A last-second decision to check the stone's status before he'd gone hunting--that was the only reason he was here.

The only reason he'd not almost lost Lord Dhracia's next design.

What worlds would this one ravage? What glory would it reflect upon these caves? And would it be... accurate, to his design--to his intent?

Khavur had borne mistakes. Agate-Two had held errors. But this one--would it be his perfection; his sleek black killing machine, the winged beast in midnight air, denizen of dark seas? Would-

Ahhh.
The stone cracked. Split. And fell away.

Half of him was regretful he had no food waiting to grant it. Reverent, hungry for a vision of his little Frankenstein's monster, he waited. He paced... paused. Paced again, forced his massive bulk to a halt.

Wicked, hooked claws. Black, sleek skin. He saw no errors, yet, no mistakes in his design--hope rose, and he held it back. He waited for a long moment, and then at last he broke his silence.

"V-Chaos-Four..." He took a breath, and then spoke the name he'd labored over, his limited creativity having struggled for a suitable title. "Nightwing, Terror of Dark Skies. Welcome."

It will be ironic, and disappointing, if it drowns now in its own oil before it can even fully hatch.

@V-Chaos-Four (but feel free to wait in case anyone else wants to join!)

Not too far off, Overseer Garnet-Delta was resting on one of the ridges that made up the western wall. Its ear was turned to listen to Master Vargas pace, curious as to what had the Leviathan so agitated. It was a quiet moment for the feline-hybrid, who spent its time licking its fur into place. It only perked up when it heard the crack, the slush of black, embiotic oil seeping from a chrysalis. That was enough to spark its curiosity further, and gleaming red eyes turned to observe Master Vargas in his approach to the hatching stone.

The Overseer considered. Then, it shifted its weight and unfolded its wings, hooking claws over the lip of the ledge. With a single push, it became airborne, and swept its way over to the hatching newborn. It flew overhead, keeping a cautious distance for the first few moments. Master Vargas would have things under control, naturally, but some of the beasts borne under the shadow of the Spire here were... Unpredictable, at first. And, unfortunately, the garnet was often bite-sized.

Not that it particularly feared the child that was coming. It was truly curious more than anything; the distance it offered was respectable but far from shy.

Thinking itself clever, it reached out to try and grasp at what Master Vargas and the new offspring were feeling... to determine, it supposed, how it should proceed. It received nothing but a dark, cold sensation, one that made itself feel numb. It blinked, wingbeats breaking the air as its feeling were washed away, but it didn't... It didn't think this was the feeling of newborne nor Master, more, that its magic had misfired. A minor miscalculation, perhaps. It hovered in the air, crimson eyes flashing toward Master Vargas. If he wanted its involvement, he would request it; for now, the Garnet watched from up high, feeling strangely... empty.

V-Chaos-Four

Noise. Some sort of noise from outside, and they want to know what it is- who it is.

The rumble feels familiar across it's wings, and so it strikes out again to open the hole they'd made, able to pull themselves out of the chrysalis in a... distinctly ungainly way, but now it's free. It levels it's flat head towards Vargas, his bright colors drawing their eye, and then the newly hatched monster jerks its head upwards. Something small flying just out of reach... irritates them, but they register their own wings, like the ones above, and they ruffle them as they take stock of their whole body, rolling shoulders, stretching and rolling it's long neck in wave like motions and letting the flow roll across their spine and down their tail, and striking the stone with the end.

Then, they fall still, staring unblinkingly at Vargas once again, as if waiting for more. Being given a name and title means nothing to them, not yet, but it will bring them pride and pressure both in time. But for now, they wait, and think.

@Garnet-Delta
@Vargas

- THE LEVIATHAN -

Ahh, it was a perfect beast. Exactly how he'd imagined it! (At first glance, he could not see the imperfetion of its skin.) Vast in size, lethal in build, made for devastating silence and swift brutality.

"Perfect," the Leviathan breathed, looking it over with a swell of satisfaction. "You are perfect. You! Are V-Chaos-Four. I am Master Vargas, and you are my creation," he explained slowly, gesturing with hooked claws to himself, and to Chaos-Four in turn, as if demonstrating names. "You are to be a force of chaos. To fight. To hunt. To kill. Do you understand?" he asked.

He gave it a moment to reply--whether it would understand language at once, or never at all, or only a few words here and there, he had yet to find out. He hoped that it would not prove to be the mute that Vjira was, but so long as it could follow order, that was enough.

He glanced toward Delta, then, and gestured for its approach. "Not too close, as yet. It may try to eat you," and this was an honest warning, "but this one will be yours and mine both to train. It is to be an assassin of sea and sky, a killer in the shadows, yes? You can teach it to use its wings, and when the time comes, its teeth and claws. I will teach it to fight. We will need to find someone to teach it to swim--where is the Labradorite, do you know? -And we have four cycles in which to do this."

Vargas looked back to Chaos-Four. They had their tasks cut out for them... but they had excellent material to work with. "This is Overseer Garnet-Delta. It is to be obeyed as I am to be obeyed. Do you understand this-?" he asked, studying it for signs of recognition.

@Garnet-Delta

The Overseer watched from above, until it was addressed. Its lips twitched at the remark-- try was certainly the key word. Overseer Garnet-Delta would have found it funny if it tried, and would have enjoyed making the newborn crumple in submission.

For now, though, none of that was necessary. It agreed that keeping a safe distance was a good idea, if only to prevent instinct from reacting before thought. The winged feline swept down, landing beside its Master's haunches, long ears pricking as it studied the beast from a new perspective. It liked the look of this slick, oiled beast already; what a terrible thing it would be to encounter in the water. (Garnet-Delta had no plans of swimming, ever, personally.)

"It would be my pleasure," it noted simply, but then the question of V-Labradorite-One (it noted with bemusement that Master Vargas had simplified the name; a fault of the V-Number nomenclature perhaps. Too much of a mouthful. Then again, there was only one Labradorite he could mean, so it didn't matter.) Immediately, it tapped into its sixth sense, taking a slow breath. The life of Draco came into clarity: heartbeats like little pings in the distance that it could feel without so much as a glance.

It recognized the approximate size, curled up in their usual resting spot. "I believe they are resting," the Overseer said, and with confidence, offered, "I can give it its task in a moment."

Overseer Garnet-Delta's eyes had not left the new spawn. It watched, tail tip twitching and ears twisting to listen to the sounds that it caught rustling about the cavern. An eagerness, a hunger, filled the feline as it observed V-Chaos-Four. It had not an ounce of doubt that this one would be successful, and that Master Vargas would be proud of what they would achieve with it.

@V-Chaos-Four

V-Chaos-Four

The eyes blink in a wave, from front to back, at each motion from the Leviathan in front of them, and they take note of everything new- still quiet, for now, but putting together what it will say. After all, first impressions are a must, an odd piece of information that sticks to what little common sense this beast has at the moment, and so it bides it's time, a patient nature only partially overriding it's want... need? To snap at the smaller, spiraling thing nearby.

Tiny flying creatures are annoying, it decides, Only good for half of something. I was made for my task, to be perfect. Whatever that means.

"Understood." The beast peels back it's lips and has to force the word out, not quite sure of it's mouth and tongue, but sure enough to slur the response it knows it expected. Language will come in time... in time. Not that it has much time. Not that it knows that.

Cycles mean nothing to it, right now.

The names, though, are carefully documented, and the mention if it possibly eating the small annoying flier would have offended it if it wasn't still thinking of that, but... it flew. They can learn. This flying thing is to share it's training with the toxic titan before it, and so it decides that this small flying this is to be obeyed, for now.

Oh. Nevermind.

Obeyed until further notice. "Understood," this time, slurred with a tad more confidence, and clarity, and they then try out the Master's name, "Master Vahrgas. Overseer Gahrnet-Delta." a small gabbing on the syllables, more them learning their face than anything, and they look as perturbed as the draconic shadow can at it's lack of vocal decorum. After that expression, they lower their head to closer inspect the Overseer, and tilt back and forth to see with all sets of eyes this being that will teach them the ability of flight. At least some of it's coloring is good for it's size. I may be able to learn more than just flight from them.

@Vargas
@Garnet-Delta

- THE LEVIATHAN -

Oh, if Vargas were a cat, he would purr.

It was intelligent enough to comprehend language. Chaotic enough to clearly feel the drive to prey upon smaller beings already. Obedient enough to dutifully repeat back names and ranks.

Its body was perfect. Vargas was proud--almost bursting with it; glee flickered through him. He'd done well, with this one, and for the moment he buckled down to giving it the basic information it would need. Some of it was half-repeated, reiterating the important points, but he did not want mistakes stemming from misunderstanding.

"You are one of my creations. In time, you will be taken to sow chaos elsewhere, and at that time you will be freed to wreak havoc. For now, we will teach you all you need to know for your task. How to hunt. How to kill. How to fly, and swim; how to remain hidden. The Overseer will teach you flight and hunting. I will teach you combat. Labradorite-One will teach you to swim. Take it hunting, will you, Overseer-?" Vargas asked, glancing at Garnet-Delta. "Give it the time it needs to acclimate and rest. You will need to be patient with it." Some of these creatures took time to learn, and adapt to existence.

Vargas looked back to 'Nightwing,' then. "And you, Nightwing--Chaos-Four--listen to those I have named. Obey them, and they will teach you. And then you will enjoy a life of your own choosing."

As long as that life of "its own choosing" was of destruction and entropy--but it had been designed to desire exactly that.

@Garnet-Delta

Overseer Garnet-Delta was a cat, but it wasn't purring. Despite its appreciation for Master Vargas's creation, it put on a quite serious air, crimson eyes watching the beast with a keen curiosity. V-Chaos-Four showed promise as it spoke, slow but putting forth effort. Did Delta remember when it had slurred its Master's name? Could it reminisce those first few steps? For now, it showed no sign of such.

As the black beast lowered its head, Garnet-Delta raised its head higher, allowing its ears to lay back as its whiskers twitched forward, letting the creature inspect it. That moment passed, it gave its attention back to Master Vargas.

Nightwing, Terror of Dark Skies. It was to start with hunting. "Very well," the small, unassuming cat answered with a rasping meow. It raised itself to its paws, and twitched its tail.

The Overseer had a wonderful teacher in regards to properly training, and so the suggestion to be patient amused it-- though it kept that inappropriate reaction to itself. It gave a passing glance to V-Chaos-Four, and slipped into a prowl. "Come," it instructed simply, and began to stalk off toward a Pitch Rat it noticed off away from the Spire and the rest of the Forge.

Would it notice the rat as they got closer? Garnet-Delta was curious if it would have an instinct for hunting, but regardless, it was prepared to show the terror what to do. It stopped well before the lumbering, clumsy newborn would startle the rat, and glanced back to see if the black beast had noticed the creature chewing away at stone to sharpen its teeth.

Perhaps it would be kind to V-Chaos-Four, hm? Make its first hunt easy? With not so much as a twitch, the Overseer seized hold of the black rat's blood from afar, preventing it from running. "See that creature? It is lesser, different from you and I. We call it a 'rat'. Its purpose is food." It waited a beat. "Kill it." And with that, Overseer Garnet-Delta waited to see if it would need further instruction or aid.

@V-Chaos-Four

V-Chaos-Four

Nightwing has no clue what to make of many things, for now, so they decide to observe and collect knowledge, to collect whatever they can.

To be taught stealth, this decision would come in handy and be quite useful. For now, it may make them a tad frustrating being to teach. A lack of a desire to ask questions, simply seeking results and chasing instincts and half formed theories.

So, instincts still say to squish the small one. But they've been given orders not to, and so they... Obey. For now. I dislike obeying, but I must wait and see if there are... results of not listening. Other than not learning.

It nods it's blunt head along with Vargas, having lifted from it's position of inquiry of Garnet-Delta. The gist of what he's saying makes sense. The word Chaos must apply to Not Following Orders. So, eventually, they'll be allowed to Not Follow Rules somewhere else, while also following orders. Confusing, but I suppose it will make sense in time.

The list of other things- Hunt. Kill. Fly. Swim.

Each strikes it's own chord somewhere along it's instincts, so they have no... full definition, but they understand the meanings. To learn to use those instincts, the half thoughts and feelings. Good. This makes it lick it's teeth like a drooling dog would. Flexing it's neck in an arch, and popping some joints - much to it's hidden alarm - and Nightwing breathes deep. "Yes, Master Vargus."

Still got to work on that pronunciation. They have some time....

With that, they track Overseer Garnet-Delta with it's eyes, and seem to hesitate... then bobbing a small bow towards The Leviathan before following the feline. There. That felt right. A period on a sentence.

Much too large to be as naturally quiet as the Overseer, they instead do their best to mimic their so-called teacher's body language. Swaying gait, step within step as best they can-

Wait.

New noise.

Snorting quietly, they lift their head and look about, attempting to pinpoint the decidedly annoying- Small things really are annoying- sound.

Only a few moments pass before they lock eyes on the rat... so it's called, by Overseer. Lesser. Some part of them curls happily at the phrase, less than them Yes. Good.

Kill it.

Absolutely.

So, the large beast springs at the stationary rat, forelegs outstretched and aiming for the center of the animal, but they don't have much else in the way of grace or tact. Baby's first pounce, after all.

@Garnet-Delta
@Vargas