The chrysalis shook a few times. Slow and deliberate it was. If any was near, scratching could be heard. Occasionally there was pecking. Only for the shaking to stop, temporarily.

Time passed before the creature could crack and break away the stone. Out came with a bird-like head. Furry, not so much feathers yet.

Dexterous, soft hands pushed against a part of the chrysalis. It climbed, the creature climbed out of its shell. Landing with a soft but wet FLOP. A long fur-like tail swept around it. A slight shiver ran down it's spine. It used what little furry wings it had to surround its body.

Then it let out such a pitiful squeal.

---

"Speaking"

( @Tectus )

The actual moment that the chrysalis started to hatch, Tectus was returning to the tower. She had kept a diligent watch over the developing chrysalis - noting that they one of them was significantly smaller then the others - but at the moment, she had stepped away for food, so she missed the actual moment when the first hatched. But large, bat-like ears caught the distant sound of it shaking and cracking, and she immediately abandoned her hunt to return to the Tower. Food could wait, her spawn would not.

She arrived, then, just in time to see the little creature sliding out of its chrysalis. It was the smallest one by far, but Tectus had learned quickly not to judge by physical size. She lumbered up next to it and lowered her head, turning a bit so she could properly look at without her nose getting in the way. An interesting looking hybrid, with interesting colors. She couldn't pick out individual animals, nor anything from her...ah, that was too bad. But she did not despair. It did not matter if they didn't carry any of her attributes, as long as they were useful.

"Welcome, little one. I am Tectus and I created you. You will be designated Epidosite T-One. Remember it." She noted the shivering and how the fur was still clumped with wetness from the chrysalis. She raised a single claw to point at its hide. "Lick yourself clean, it will help you become warmer, if you are cold." There was very little traditional motherly affection to be found here, but something in Tectus's eyes betrayed her pride - her first spawn! It felt like such a momentous occasion, yet so personal. Still, she was a valkhound and an ancient Overseer without any of the emotional training sometimes needed to handle children. But she would treat them well, she promised herself.

She glanced to the other two chrysalis and grunted. "Your littermates will hatch soon - I will explain more once they are awake."

@Dravite @Bauxite-T-One @Vesuvianite T-One

A shake of its head as a large beast started coming towards her. Purple in color, as the creature's eyes adjusted. She was able to listen to the words. Epidosite T-One. That's what she was called.

Wet furry wings shook themselves and splattered the ground. The beak moved to groom herself, sharp little teeth pulled some of the wet and chrysalis off of her.

Epidosite couldn't figure out how she felt about this beast creating her. But there was much to learn. So she supposed she had no choice but to stick around.

Once she was, well, mostly clean. She picked up her lemur like paws and stood up on her back legs to get a somewhat better glance at the creator before her.

"Epidos…Epi-dote.."

It was obvious she was trying to mimic her name. The small furred creature would move her way to place herself by the paw of the creator. And she didn't nearly even stand as large as a claw. Epidosite showed no sign of fear however, a mere interest in her creator.

---

"Speaking"

( @Tectus )

The bauxite's chrysalis was deceptively small. It was dark with the shape that curled had curled in on itself, pressing against the gemstone walls harder and harder. Perhaps that was why it hatched second- its body was better equipped to cram itself in such a small space. But all things break eventually, and the beige chrysalis was no different.

Its ejection was far less elegant than the epidosite, more akin to a live birth in the sloppy, ugly burst of living tissue from the gemstone growth. A mess of sunset scales and thin dark limbs covered in sodden fluff was left on Orion's floor, motionless.

Carefully, the bauxite righted itself on shaky legs. Good thing it had a lot of them!

It was thin, delicate looking, similar to a foal. It held its head in the sensible way, the mimicry of a human torso hunched. It was still noticeably larger than its littermate, the dravite, and its anatomy promised a full grown size similar to Tectus - though less stocky, perhaps.

The bauxite let out something between a squawk and a whine, crying for attention.

She observed the tiny creature as it did as she asked, cleaning itself of the chrysalis fluid, and then struggling to spell out its name. A spark of impatience burned in the back of her mind. Of course her first hatched would be the kind of gembound that could not speak immediately. She had found that there was variation in intelligence and ability on hatching. It didn't seem to at all impact how a gembound developed, but it would be an annoyance for a while. Still she forced herself to be patience.

"Ep-Id-Oh-Sight," she encourages, slowly. She watched it approached, careful not to move her claw. Damn this thing was small, but that didn't bother her all that much. Another scout and spy for her numbers.

The next to hatch, though, was the second largest chrysalis, and she quickly moved her attention from the miniscule one, to this next one, hatching in a explosion of crystal shards and fluid as it slid onto the floor of the Tower. She stepped forward, careful not to step on the Epidosite, and reached over to help it to its feet, but saw that it didn't really need it. A nod of approval as she looked over this one - much larger, of course, and she could see the traces of her in its torso and coloration. But otherwise, it was wholly alien and strange, very un-gembound-like.

"Welcome, you are Bauxite T-One and I am Tectus, your Overseer and creator." She glanced towards the final chrysalis, wondering if it, too, would hatch soon.

@Dravite @Bauxite-T-One