Maximus could be found wandering Cepheus, most days. Searching for flowers that had gone to seed so they could carefully harvest the tiny dots of life to bring to their garden. They already had wildflowers from Pegasus along the edges of the secret room, in all sorts of colors and smells. All the beauty they could collect would be found in their garden one day.

They occasionally grazed from the foliage around them, nibbling off leaves and stems from bushes and trees, or bending down to rip grass up from the ground. Being an omnivore like them meant they could simply eat whatever they wanted. Plants, animals, mushrooms, fruit. It was all fair game. The world was their dinner plate, so to speak.

They stood up slowly, stretching up to their full height of 12 feet minus their antlers. They were a pretty creature, with tawny fur and a light mane, as well as a fluffy tail and feathers on their cloven hind feet. Their arms were massive, though their shoulders were slim, with massive claws like daggers on each finger. Their arms were lined with armored plates, too, though the scariest parts of them were off put by the adorable sock markings they had and their white nose. Even their ears were cute, constantly flicking around and listening.

Maximus stepped forward more delicately than one would assume a creature of their size would do, their steps soft and quiet, each movement graceful and precise. They plucked a fruit from a branch and bit into it, spitting out the seeds into their palm, which was almost full already.

All in all, it was a nice day to be out.

@Eleanora

Eleanora had been wandering, feeling lost and alone in the vastness of the caves. She had only seen a few, but they seemed endless yet still so empty and alien. The Vaa had never seemed empty, no matter how far she'd wandered. She was always surrounded by the sound of birds, flowers she knew, the sky and the clouds above, the gentle touch of wind against her skin. Here, there was no wind. There was a breeze, sure, but it was the cycle of wind through the caves. Cyclones moving the same air from place to place, stale and ancient and dusty. She knew none of the flowers, there was no sky or clouds, and the birds were strange, their warbles alien to her ears.

Still, she fought to find some kind of normalcy. Caves that sparked some kind of resemblance to her home. Cepheus reminded her of summer nights, when the sun had just past the horizon, still lighting the world with dashes of purples and blues, but just barely enough to see. She sat against a tree, trying to imagine she was back in the Vaa...but it was hopeless. This place may never feel like home.

It didn't matter, though. Once Lilith was awake...everything would be right again.

With a sigh she stood, turning to move to another cave when, just as she rounded the corner of the tree she'd been sitting against, she found herself standing mere feet away from a pair of legs. At first she was confused - how could any creature be that humongous - but then her eyes traveled up and she audibly gasped at the creature in front of her. An absolute giant stood before her looking...well it didn't look nearly as intimidating as Vargas and she wasn't as frightened as she had when she first saw Lyn, but after over two centuries living on the surface and plunging into a world of monsters and aliens, it was still more then a little surprising to see yet another one.

She took a step back and immediately tripped backwards, falling onto the soft ground, but her eyes were glued to the creature, awestruck by its size.

@Maximus

Amusingly, Maximus bolted away with a startled bleat, dropping their seeds and taking off a few strides before whirling around and staring at Eleanor with wide eyes, nostrils flaring as they took in her scent warily. They pushed back up onto their hide legs, hunching over slightly and worrying their hands together, ears flicking forward.

”Are you okay?” they asked, their voice meek and shy. ”I'm sorry if I scared you.”

They walked closer and held out a massive hand, more than big enough to grab Eleanora around her torso, and tipped with massive talons. They tried to come across as well-intentioned as possible, not wanting to scare her further.

”My name is Maximus, but you can call me Max if you'd like,” they said gently, their sunset eyes blinking slowly, long lashes drifting across their cheek.

@Eleanora

The sound that came from the creature and the sudden movement frightened the witch even more. She scrambled back a few paces on the ground, heart pounding out of her chest. The creature kind of reminded her of the deer from the meadow, how they'd startled and run before taking a look back. But rile them up or threaten them and they could deliver a painful, sometimes fatal, stomp.

But this is not like the deer at home. Well, obviously not - deer were not that big. But it was something she constantly had to remind herself. Just because she was surrounded by strange creatures and talking animals didn't mean they thought like beasts. They were just as, if not more, intelligent then her.

She took a deep breath and steadied herself. It seemed everything down here was frightening.

But she couldn't be blamed, at least, for finding fear in this creature. His hand could easily wrap around her entire body and one claw was bigger then her hand. Still, she pushed forward, determined to stop finding so much fear in this place and scooted herself into a sitting position. She stared at the huge hand and tentatively reached out and set her hand on one of the talons. She wasn't quite sure what he wanted, but it was strange to touch something so familiar yet so much larger then she was used to.

She looked up at the creature - Max, he called himself - and responded in kind. "I'm Eleanora. Sorry I just...I didn't mean to be scared. I'm just not used to things around here yet. It seems everything around here frightens me."

@Maximus

Maximus ever so gently helped Eleanora up, tilting his claw so she didn't accidentally cut herself. They were scarily sharp, kept that way just in case. They were helpful for digging up dirt, cutting plants, and sawing meat off of prey.

”You're not wrong to be scared,” they admitted, glancing towards the tunnel to Pegasus, where the entrance to Draco was. ”There are scary things everywhere, but as long as you don't go looking for trouble, you should be fine. There are quite a few gembound here who are kind and would help you if you need it. Myself included.”

Their ears perked up and they visibly brightened, their fluffy tail wiggling as they lowered themselves to all fours, hoping to be a little bit smaller.

”You're new!” they exclaimed excitedly. ”I remember when my child was new, he was the cutest thing alive, but I might be biased. A-anyway, when did you hatch?”

They assumed Eleanora was a gembound because they didn't really know better. Even the valkhands had stones, or at least he assumed so. Lady Aethril did, at least, and she and Eleanora looked similar. Perhaps they were related.

”Pardon me, but... are you a valkhand?” they asked, suddenly nervous.

@Eleanora

She allowed Max to gently help her off the ground, grimly aware of the razor sharp claws, but at least they were angled away from her, considerate for her far more fragile body. A thin wave of jealousy ran through her for just a moment - all the creatures here seemed to be strong and sturdy while she felt like a twig in comparison. But, then again, she wasn't native. And she would find her own strengths, in time.

She noticed Max glancing towards the Pegasus entrance, the tunnel she'd emerged from earlier in the day, and she wondered if they were referring to the wretched cave beyond where Lillith rested. She ached to be farther away from her, but at the same time she wanted as far away from that cursed place as possible. "I've been trying not to, but scary things seem to find me." Of course, this wasn't wholly true - walking into Draco had just been an invitation for the valkhounds to approach her.

The word "gembound" fell on ignorant ears. She tilted her head just a bit, confused. "What is a gembound?" It wasn't a term she'd heard before, but perhaps Tamulus had mentioned it. Their conversation seemed foggy at best and felt like it had occurred years ago, rather then merely a month before.

She was surprised at their sudden change and forced herself not to step back in surprise. She smiled a bit at their own bright expression and, almost shyly, raised a hand to tuck a stray curl of hair behind her ear. "I guess you could say I'm new. I woke up here only a few days ago. Or...I think it's been a few days. It's hard to tell time down here." She didn't realize, of course, that Max thought she was a child, new to life rather then the caves, forgetting for a moment that Let natives were incredibly rare.

Her smile softened, however, when she realized that this creature was a parent. Already, comfort in their presence was growing on her at the thought. "You have a child? What do they look like?" She looked them up and down, wondering if there was someone identical to them running around, or if they took after the other parent. "I had a son. I know what you mean - when they first awaken, they're the most perfect thing in the whole world."

She was caught up, for a moment, in remembering his face on the day he'd taken his first steps into the world, and almost missed Max's inquiry, but the word "Valkhand" struck her right out of the memory like a bird from the sky. Shock scrawled on her face and she immediately shook her head. "Oh, no, of course not. I'm a witch," she offered instead. "I don't have anything to do with Valkhounds and Valkhands. I promise."

@Maximus

Oh, if only Eleanora knew how weak and frail they'd been for most of their life. Barely able to walk, constantly in crippling pain, and blind on top of all of that. Not to mention their gemstone, which even two separate mutations couldn't fix.

Maximus waited for Eleanora to answer all of their questions, obvious relief crossing their face when she denied her existence as a valkhand. Good, they wanted nothing to do with valkhands or hounds for a long time. (Their sibling excluded, of course.)

”I don't know what a 'witch' is, but let me answer your other questions,” they said, lowering themselves into a rather awkward looking sit. An old habit from when their legs didn't work the same as they did now. ”A gembound is what the inhabitants of these caves are called. You must have an internal stone, because I don't see one on you. But this is mine.”

They opened their mouth, lifting their soft, pink tongue to reveal a twisted, ugly maw full of teeth and jagged gemstone spikes. Several spikes had dislodged teeth or replaced them entirely, while quite a few lay beneath where the tongue sat, and judging by the thick flesh on the underside and the scars, they'd suffered quite a few pricks and injuries.

”He picked his name, and he rather unfortunately named himself 'Porkchop'. But he is a pig, actually. I found him in Pegasus - the big cave with the fields and forests - and took him in. He was all alone and so confused,” Maximus said, their brows drawing up as they reminisced.

”... Anyway, you know what a valkhound is,” they said, tipping their head. ”I assume you know my stone, too. So there's no hiding it, I am a valkhound.”

Maximus seemed ashamed of that fact, averting their eyes and shuffling gently, licking their nose anxiously.

”I... left. I was created with multiple defects, so already I wasn't exactly cut out for greatness. But I tried my best anyway to please Master Vargas, but it didn't work out. So I left before he decided that I wasn't worth the resources,” Maximus said with a shrug, eyes stuck on the ground. ”I understand if that makes you wary of me. I can only promise that I won't harm you, which you might not believe. But I really do have good intentions. I just want to garden, really.”

@Eleanora

As Max lowered themselves to the ground, so did Eleanora, crossing her legs comfortably in front of her, a more peaceful, conversational air now over the two acquaintances as each settled in for a conversation. She was glad, really, that the creatures here liked to talk. It was one of the many downsides of living in a secluded village - everyone knew everyone, everything that happened. There were few strangers and wanderers to meet and those they did were more likely then not dangerous. But here, everyone was a stranger. It was oddly refreshing.

"Ah, okay," she nodded, thoughtfully, glad that there was a name for the inhabitants of the caves besides just 'creatures'. "That is good to know. Yes, my stone is in here." She gently placed a hand over her naval, beneath which was her obsidian womb.

She watched as Max opened their jaws, feeling a jolt at the sight of the gemstones beneath their tongue - not because she recognized the Oilstone, as she hadn't been down long enough to be familiar with it, but because it looked dangerous for Max, such sharp spikes dragging beneath their tongue. And the injuries affirmed her assumption. "Oh...that looks painful. I'm sorry it formed like that."

The name "Porkchop" made Elanora let out a little giggle at the irony of a young piglet calling himself...well, that. She might as well have named herself "Human". "He sounds like quite a character!" She didn't comment on the adoption part. It had happened enough in her own life - parents never returning home, lost to witchhunters or the wilds. The children here...they all seemed to wander. Perhaps some of them were hatched alone.

The word "valkhound" however, now being attached to Maximus, did indeed wipe the smile from her face and the comfort in her body. She tensed, sitting up straight, but not quite startled enough to run. They were still calm and gentle, but still, after all the warnings that Tamulus and Meissa had given her, it would have been foolish not to doubt their trustworthiness.

To be honest, she wasn't quite sure why she should stay away from them, but after her encounter with Vargas, she had no reason to doubt it. He had told her he'd been ordered - he and his followers - to kill those that looked like her. But if Maximus was talking to her now, being sweet and ignorant about what she is, then they weren't with them, like they said. And she had seen no reason so far not to distrust them. It was possible Tamulus and Meissa were at least a little incorrect about their judgement of the valkhounds as a whole, just as the empire was wrong about her people.

After a moment of silent pondering, she finally spoke. "I...see. I won't lie and say it doesn't matter to me but...I don't think you're bad. I was just told to stay away from valkhounds. That I shouldn't trust them. But you seem alright." She frowned, looking them over, wondering what had caused such a rift between them and the Master she'd met. "I'm sorry you felt like you had to leave. I met him, briefly - Master Vargas, I mean. He seemed...cold. He threatened to kill me if he were given the orders. I don't want any trouble, though. I just want to live, I guess." with Lilith. was the addition she didn't voice, but thought to herself.

@Maximus