Somewhere, deep in the maze of chambers, rested a chrysalis. It remained hidden, held comfortably within a fox-sized hole in a structural rock. The twist of black and white signaled the gembound's source; an interesting color of jasper. It rocked only a little, barely seen by any naked eye. The sand beneath it was the only true signal of it's movement, particles rolling down ever so gently. Within the lovely pale egg was a lovely pale snake, who had shifted the chrysalis when making herself inverse inside. It was tight, cramped, almost an instigator for claustrophobia. Thankfully, such a thing could not phase a creature that would later use tight spaces to hide in. However, the instinct in her now said she needed to break free. She wiggled within, adjusting her tail, then began to slam the tip into the shell repeatedly, cracking it and carving a hole into it. Light! Her own element soothed her as the little bit of remaining placenta seeped out and allowed the glow of the outside world in. She squirmed a bit more, putting her nose to the hole and began to push. Her body flexed, puffing out then tensing in effort to work the egg into a weakened state. It was working, as shown my the growing cracks. With a little time an effort, she was soon sliding from the chrysalis and stretching herself out, exiting the safety of the hole her chrysalis had been growing in. All two feet of white scales stuck out like a sore thumb against the browns and greys of the area known as Canis. Carefully, slowly, she carried herself along, pausing now and then to feel the ground and flick her tongue. Scents in the air wafted about, old and new, stale and fresh. The forks of her tongue split a little further, trying to find something fresh enough to follow. Minutes passed before she began to travel again, purpose seeming to possess her. She crawled between rocks and climbed over rough surfaces, exploring and searching. For what, she wasn't quite sure. It was all instinct. It drove her like lithium to a battery. Before she knew it, her instinct led her right to what she needed - food. An adolescent rat was not the preferred meal of a king like herself, but with a drive and need for sustenance, she chose to waste no time. It skittered along, pausing and looking for danger before continuing to sniff and lick mineral-coated rocks, appearing as hungry as the young snake. She creeped closer, tongue sometimes flicking out to be sure of her distance. She closed in, being sure to not make a sound as her muscles groped the crevices and shaped below her belly scales. Just as the rat seemed to notice her, she struck out, mouth open with fangs protruding, ready to latch onto the first meal of life. A symptom of her success was the screeching of her prey as it felt the initial stab of her fangs. In no time at all, it was dead and her mouth had already began to work it over. The venom in her bite per-digested her food and the size of it made it easy to swallow quickly. She rested upon the rock where she performed her first kill, the lump traveling toward her belly. It was very pleasant, this feeling of being full. Her never-blinking eyes staring outward as her body remained relaxed. A good first day. Food and calm. ---- "Speech." Thoughts. OOC: out of character Tag: @ Words: 581

She flew in air unbroken by stone or slant. She was free. Wind parted the feathers on her chest as she spun and twirled in freefalls, endless air, endless space, and she could fall forever before catching herself on angel's wings and soar again. For eternity, there was no stone, no rock walls, no limits. No boundries.

She was free.

And then she woke. And then she fell.

The hybrid threw her wings open as she felt the stone beneath her give away, and by some stroke of instinct, caught herself with a powerful down-stroke before her body even had time to catch up, her back half still twisting as she took flight.

She'd fallen from her perch again.

I've gotten to big for that old ledge now. Remedy thought with a yawn as she circled to land back on its edge, sitting there where she barely had room to stretch. Too big for hiding places. She shook the startled fluff from her feathers and blinked the last of the sleep from her vision before turning to face the cave. Had anyone seen? She didn't care either way- she often dozed too heavily or dreamed too vividly, often fell from her perch and not always did she catch herself but the fall wasn't too far, and she rarely hurt herself in the landing.

Still, its place high on the stone walls gave her ample opportunity to spot activity in Canis before it spotted her. Her eyes drifted across the spread of the stone and bone cave. Something moved across its floor in a stringy white line. That feline instinct kicked in and her eyes trained to the movement, following it.

It was tiny, and behind it streaked a wet trail. It looked akin to a slug trail, and dried closer to the moving creature, who'd slithered amongst some stone and out of sight. Remedy felt a pang of frustration at losing it, but her eyes drifted back the way it had come from. There, amongst ohterwise ordinary rock, were the fine, shimmering fragments of white stone, almost crystalline. Freshly hatched. Has anyone made neonates since the last batch? Not that she could think of. First generation, then. Opportunity.

She followed its line of movement again and found it stalking a rat. Hunting already? Must not be mammalian then. She'd learned the differences in the sub-types of gembound over time. Mammals, she'd come to understand, were a bit slower at first than Reptiles or Birds were, at least in regards to first generationers, or Gen 1's as she'd dubbed them.

The hybrid watched the little snake catch the rat with a single strike and a moment later, the crying prey was silenced. Impressive. Venomous? She watched the little serpent swallow its prey before stretching her wings out and arching her back, flexing still-waking muscles. Predator. Don't spook it. Stay in plain sight, land at a distance. She took off into the air again and began to circle down.

Too easily, she landed with a whisper of feathers across stone and turned to face the snake, a few feet away. She wore a friendly expression and folded her wings neatly, sitting after only two steps towards it and curling her tail neatly around her paws.

"Welcome." Rem's voice was a purr, pleasant and sing-song. "My name is Remedy." Introductions first. Kids loved learning their names. She'd witnessed few hatchings, but she remembered her own fairly well. She'd been whispered the name Remedy her whole life, not just by her parents, but in her heart, her mind. She'd been named and her parents had simply known it instinctively, she was certain.

So surely this new first genner had a name, too.

WC: 618

@Egahi

It was peace. It was quiet. Then something was moving above and she lifted her head, watching as the thing flew down and landed some space away. She stretched up a little higher, a quarter of her body rearing up to look at Remedy from equal ground. Tongue was busy at work, flicking out and shaking up and down before bringing the scent and taste of the air to her mouth. It repeated over and over, even as she began to speak. Remedy. A name. Egahi's head bobbled as the bird had spoke, feeling the vibrations in the air from her voice. Tongue gave a final, thorough flick. My name... She pondered it for a moment, stretched her mouth to ensure her jaw was, indeed, properly in place. "Hello... I am..." She paused, feeling the vibration of her own voice and registering it as such. It flowed, sounding silky and smooth. "I am Egahi," she announced. She raised herself up higher, nearly a third of her body lifted now. Still, she did not expose her hood. This was not the time for a first-time thread display. This thing seemed pleasant enough, although that beak looked suspicious. Surely venomous snake was not on the menu. It would be foolish. Only the mongoose stood a chance. Tongue did a slow flick up and down, tasting the smells of Remedy once more. Her beady black eyes stared, taking in the appearance of the four-legged creature. She could not figure out what it was. Her gem's knowledge was not at all helpful. It was like a bird, but it wasn't. How... odd. What are you, being of air? She was befuddled. "I am... a King," she began. "I am... a King Cobra." Her mind flowed with words, some she wasn't sure she understood. Speaking was slow and steady. She must calculate, she must understand. Her body began to coil around, but not too tightly. There was no need; no threat seemed to be present, today. No mongooses nearby to eat her. Bastard mongoose... she wondered if any even existed. ---- "Speech." Thoughts. OOC: out of character Tag: @Remedy Words: 345

Once again, The Bone King had found himself in the deepest parts of the Chambers of Canis, trying so very hard to find retribution and make himself forgiven by the shadows that haunted his worst nightmares. It was difficult for him to break even with the skeletons in his closet (pun unintended). Azazel wandered out of the cavernous tomb he'd found himself in, before taking flight in the dim half-light. He passed by the location where he and Saudade once sparred. If he'd forced himself to look down, he would have seen Saudade's shadows. It was difficult enough to even think about the 'spirits' haunting him and pleading for him to bring them back. Especially Beau. If he'd just been better... protected them all better... been the father that he should ha—

He shook the thoughts away.

Carmine eyes flicked downwards at the sound of voices, one being the familiar song of Remedy's. Another was... new. Newborn. Young. The lammergeier sighed heavily to loosen the knot in his throat from grossly sobbing despite his inability to cry, and dove downwards, landing a few feet from the two Gembound on the floor. "Hello," he said simply in greeting. With the introduction of a name, he chirped. This bone-colored serpent was... pretty cute. "Welcome, Egahi. I'm Azazel." He lowered his head as not to seem threatening. He didn't know much about snakes aside from the fact that some of their bites hurt like a bitch. A king cobra. Something in the back of his mind told him to definitely not piss her off. Yes, that sounded like the best idea. Clicking his beak in thought, he pondered. After a few seconds, he smiled and cooed, "are you hungry?"

WC: 286

The voice of a true bird grasped her attention like an iron fist. A greeting with a name. The way it vibrated in sound made her head bob a little. The strong roll of a 'z' was enjoyable, to say the least. The bird's cooing voice was quite a different measure of vibes, however. The mention of her hunger lead to no significant thought. She would of shrugged if she had shoulders. "I have eaten," she said simply. A flickering taste of his scents followed. ---- "Speech." Thoughts. OOC: feel free to let me know if you're gonna let me sit with this. i can and will add more unless you wanna go ahead and post Tag: @Azazel

The Bone King watched as the pale serpent bobbed its head to the waves of his voice. Snakes listened to vibrations, and nothing more, right? Strange. Strange creatures, they were. At his question, Egahi simply sat still, only a flicker of 'whatever' within their dark orbs. It hissed quietly, almost a sweet little song. She'd already eaten. Azazel chuckled, ruffling his feathers and gazing out beyond the darkness of the chambers. "Well, welcome to Canis. These are the Chambers. There's a lot more to see if you come out of them. This is my home, as well as the home of the Bonebound, my clan."

@Egahi

Canis. Her mind echoed his calling of the place she had been born to. The name of his clan was as fitting; something that made her head dance a little more. More tasting, more smelling. He seemed... good enough. His presence gave her an oddly comforted feeling. Not the kind where one was a shoulder to cry on, nor someone who was a protector. It was unexplainable, currently. "Is your clan... all of a feather? Or might... a scale... inquire?" Still, the vibrations of her own words distracted her from saying her sentences in one fluid motion. Although smooth in tone, there was a presence of constant pausing, getting used to that feeling. Vibrations from around were not new - she felt some while growing within her chrysalis. However, she'd never experienced her own vibrations, so it was... well, weird. ---- "Speech." Thoughts. OOC: out of character Tag: @Azazel

With an amused expression, Azazel watched as the pale snake bobbed her head up and down, side to side, almost dancing. Her words were a bit widely spaced, but of course, as a father, he was patient.

Of a feather. Of a scale. That phrase alone sent a warm and fluttering feeling to his heart. "We're all of all... not just feathers or scales." Fanning out his tail feathers, Azazel smiled. "There is fur as well. Like Kerberos. There are some of skin, like Götterdämmerung. We're all unique. Just like you." Inching closer, the Bone King continued to chirp, "to us, this is home. Others think not. They only see bones and death. But there is life among the bones." He turned to the side just a little, and extended his right wing forth, offering it to the cobra. "Would you like to see?"

@Egahi

As the large bird explained the Bonebound's differences, she felt an ease settle over her. As he spoke of how others could not call it home, she looked around and found solace in the fact that she was born here. Perhaps she should inquire more about Bonebound. Maybe they could become her clan, as well. She looked up at him, then slid from her spot on the rocks toward him, passing under his wing before turning into a U-shape, then lifted herself up to stand 8 inches tall (a third of her body). "I would be honored to know more and see more. This is my home." ---- "Speech." Thoughts. OOC: sorry for shortness Tag: @Azazel

The serpent eased closer, coming beneath his wing and he smiled. "Well, climb on. I'll carry you and I can show you all of Canis." Surely, it must be tough slithering around without arms or legs to take you anywhere? It must be slow and tiring, especially for a newborn. He lowered his head, perhaps so that she could coil about his neck. Hopefully not too hard. Azazel quietly hoped and prayed that the king cobra was not playing him for a fool and would bite him as soon as they took flight... but she was so innocent looking.

@Egahi