The past few weeks, there'd been quite a... ruckus: a sound like metal knocking together; a stray vase falling off a table; one hurried, hushed voice speaking to a more familiar, bassy one and all its companions. Yet, any Gembound that looked to investigate would find themselves barred off by one of the palace's many magically-charged doors.

Today, though... today, any visitors would find the doors conspicuously gone without so much a hinge or groove to indicate that they'd ever been there.

Within was a rather modest room. It was about the same height as any of the palace's other rooms, and not much longer than twenty five feet. On the left and right side were numerous raised slabs of elegantly-carved stone with treated wood atop them. Each slab had an empty compartment underneath it. Flat saucers and clay pots covered every available surface; a number of them shattered or otherwise broken.

At the back was a broad sort of oven, formed of bricks with clay smoothed over it for stability. To its side was a dark doorway and a steep staircase, from which a low rambling was echoing. It was too quiet to fully make out from the doorway, but the tone suggested quite a bit of complaining.

Before the oven was a pit and crumbling metal poles jutting from either side. The floors may have once been well-decorated, but many ages' of movement have stripped off any paint and finish, leaving them quite smooth and bare.

All across the room were a bristly sort of creature; they danced along just about any surface they could, sweeping up dust in great plumes and arranging the dishware into more orderly piles. Other than those and the mumbling stairwell, there didn't appear to be anyone in this room.

Perhaps, if someone... called out or otherwise made some noise? Did some investigating?

To be honest, Attikias said he wouldn't be back here again. But, he said that the past three times, too. Maybe it was an excuse to go through Ursa, or maybe, just maybe...

He liked this place.

Its architecture was gorgeous, and Vivilene would love it, and she would love the deer and the swans and the flowers. He got to appreciate the architecture, try to figure out how it worked, and marvel at everything. Plus, he liked to say hi to all the little workers the place had.

It was beautiful. He could stay here forever.

But he had a home to go back to, and he felt like an intruder here. He felt so out of place, like a dark stain upon the light colors playing off of the stone. Had Astraea lived here? Was this the purity he spoke of? He'd have to ask him about that, sometime.

But, for now, Attikias would shoulder the thick cloak he held over his shining armor, concealing himself in the warmth it provided. Things seemed off- at least, they were off, compared to the past few times he was here.

Notably, the door. Wasn't there a door there before? There definitely was a door there, before. He remembered trying to remember how it worked. Yeah. There weren't even any hinges left. He lingered at the doorframe for a moment before gingerly brushing his hand over his bow, cautious eyes peering in.

Busy busy busy were the creatures in this room, and Attikias gingerly stepped over them in a careful dance as he approached inside. Even as sounds had attracted him here, he seemed more interested in the actual things strewn about, eyeing the dishes and oven.

Oh, that oven. It looked gorgeous, just like the rest of the palace. The pit, too, was strange, but the oven itself was just mind blowing as he approached. It was like some odd form of his kiln, and his hand came out reverently to run across the surface of it.

This close, though, he could hear what drew him here in the first place- hushed, angry tones. Quietly, he dredged into his magic and drew up nothing, and he frowned. No sensing for him, it seemed. Instead, he resorted to shuffling to the side, moving to knock at the doorframe gently and call out with a soft "everything okay?"

CARJA

The water hears and understands
The ice does not forgive

Carja came up behind Attikias, poking her head over him and peering around. She was impressed to have found a place that actually fit her, even inside the rooms. They all had high ceilings and doorways, and were wide enough to fit her.

She was careful not to step anything as she came inside, and tucked her tail under her belly just in case. She crouched down and was quiet, weirdly enough, just observing.

"It's pretty," she said slowly, "And... delicate."

She'd never really been one for delicate things, even the sea shell she had was rather hardy. If things could be pretty and durable at the same time, she enjoyed it more. Being so big, delicate things just got broken if she turned wrong.

"What's going on?", she finally asked, head turning to the voices, momentarily distracted by one of the creatures, feeling a bit bad about the dirt she'd tracked in the front hall, maybe she'd bubble it and sweep it out with her tail later.

"Hello?", she called out.

Madhukar had been fighting the urge to check in on this place again. She thought it was cool. She thought it had a funny looking butler in it, with a cool hat. Madhukar wasn't often one for mysteries unless someone else she cared about was in it with her, so the mysterious noises and locked doors didn't entice her as it might entice others. The craftsmanship however, that was an entirely different story. Grand, majestic, rarely a spot in sight because cleaned by... creatures, Madhukar supposed, although she was never quite sure if they really classified as "alive" or not. Maybe that was cruel. She classified bugs as alive, and her favorite kind did something similar: menial, repetitive tasks, day in and day out. The simplicity was part of the charm.

Anyways, she was here now, giving in and checking up. Madhukar wordlessly shifted into this new room, which was already cluttered, most unfortunately, with familiars. Carja, how did you get so dang big?! Her plus the one that seemed to accompany her everywhere -- the one who stood like Madhukar... but better -- made three into a crowd. Ah, well. They seemed to be focused on other things. Hopefully, they would stay that way. Madhukar wouldn't speak, yet again. Instead, she would that they just recognized and respected her unending silence, or better yet, didn't notice it and simply moved on.

Madhukar would try to look inconspicuous by quietly busying herself with an investigation of the broken and shattered pottery on quite possibly every surface in the room.

Think "Speak"

Madhukar is attempting to investigate the broken saucers and clay pots.

NOTE THAT PEOPLE SHOULD READ: Madhukar is disguised, as usual. Her disguise DOES NOT USE MUD this time. Assume her disguise is a mess but functional, because I can't roll for it but her skills with setting it up are improving!

Disguise includes a mask and a heck ton of plants.

The puffin was here. Queer. Ready to invoke many emotions of various classes but ESPECIALLY fear.

He'd been here before. And then he'd taken a nap for a while, like Bo. And now he was back and there were FUNKY NOISES, and HE made FUNKY NOISES, and the fact of the matter was, he wanted to make MORE FUNKY NOISES with the NOISY FUNKS!!!

"EXCUSE MEEEEEEEEEE! AAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!" Catafay screamed as he came racing through the room, attempting to dodge, squeeze through, or push past any obstacle. He was heading straight for the staircase. He was gonna go down there. He was gonna make not just FUNKY noises, but the FUNKIEST noises. Ever. It was gonna be amazing.

Good to have an audience! Bad that they were in his way.

If the little idiot could make it to the staircase in the first place (an already unlikely chance), then he would attempt to barrel down into it, shouting "HELLOOOOOOOOOOOO ARE YOU THE proprietor OF THIS ESTABLISHMENT?!"

___

OOC:

Catafay is attempting to run down the staircase screaming because he is. Catafay.

I am so sorry. I am so sorry that I brought him into this. He can be stopped! Feel free to try, or just let him roll loudly down the staircase like the squinky toy he is.

Tema didn't know how she had gotten here, really. She remembered passing through a cave that felt more like home than Eridanus and Cetus combined, but even that memory was nothing more than a shadow. She wondered if it was the altar's influence again or if she was just distracted, wandering the caves in search of something interesting enough to pull her out of her tangled thoughts.

Having come to the cave through tunnel F, Tema was thankful that the black gems lining the ceiling were out of reach. She wasn't sure why they called for her attention so much, but she didn't have a good feeling about it. They made her vision swim with shadow puppets that fought wars, making the ground around her wet with blood... She was relieved to escape them in the light of the palace, following the familiar sound of Carja's voice to the pottery room. She greeted the dragon with a gentle nudge, not wanting to interrupt.

The creature in the room caught Tema's eye for a moment, so did the gembound searching the pottery, but the whispers from the stairwell quickly became her priority. She needed to know if they were real, because if they weren't, she needed to keep the altar's influence far away from her friend.

Spooked by the sudden appearance of a screaming puffin, Tema put out a paw in an attempt to prevent the gembound from charging headfirst into what could possibly be dangerous territory. "Careful!" She warned them, having just managed to stop the careless thing. "You don't know what could be down there. Let's look first." She reclaimed her paw before continuing towards the staircase.

Note: Tema is currently Touched and is going to check out the source of the noise from the staircase
@Catafay

Beast liked the Palace.

Why?
-- It had flowers! Beast liked flowers. He especially liked the way they were all perfect and symmetrical, lined up on the sides of the path.
-- There was plenty of free roaming space around the cave like some big underground golf course. Beast liked roaming space.
-- The halls were so, so cool. Beast, having fewer digits than legs, was not the best candidate for building things. But it was still pretty to look at!

But you know what Beast didn't like about the Palace?
-- Locks.

They were such bummers, putting an end to the hybrid's explorations for no discernible purpose. Each time he visited (which he did a lot, considering he lived just outside the gardens) he found himself retracing his steps through the same hallways, filled with a vague sense of boredom and discreetly trying not to slobber over the tiled floor with his stomach mouth. Eventually he stopped coming inside at all and just sat within the expansive gardens, where there was nothing holding him back from looking around. Save for the hellswans, of course.

But today something else was happening. As the hexapod rested near the outer wall, trying to tune out the ruckus inside (that's been going on for a few weeks, now) when he saw two figures enter the mansion. One a cloaked, vertical gembound, and the other some massive scaly beast. His interest was piqued. Were they friends? Could he befriend them? He liked having friends! Especially given he didn't actually have any.

Oh, and there was a bear, too! Wow, this must be quite the party!

So Beast, the ditzy little tentacle boy, trotted after the entering gembound on hobbling legs. He followed them down to a previously locked room-- which was getting really crowded at this point. The dragon took up much of the space, as did the bear, a huddle of spiny creatures were scurrying about and everything else was covered in clay pots. It was almost dizzying trying to keep track of everything happening. But hey, no locks!

Beast's head panned around, his tentacles grasping at the air in wonder. So, so many people. His stomach beak cracked open, a bit slobbery, whispering the word "Friends!" under his non-existent breath. Most of the others were investigating the ceramics or looking down a whispering staircase, but his attention was immediately taken by one of the bristly creatures hopping about. Were they also a friend?

Kneeling down on his lower four legs, Beast curled out one of his hooves to prod the closest cleaner. A muffled, friendly voice spoke out from his abdomen: "Hello! Are you my friend?"

Beast is investigating one of the sweeping animals!

Anselm was in Cephus, once again. They'd wandered from Kethri not long ago, and through sheer chance, ended up in Cephus. And now they found themselves visiting, every so often when they'd managed to slip out of sight. They were young. Too young to truly appreciate how unique this cave was. But they wanted to share it. With their sibling, and Kethri.

The place was bathed in a warm pinkish-purplish light. It reflected softly off the strange, pale st stone. Smooth beneath their feet. It clicked softly beneath their claws. It was unlike the feeling of dewy grass or icy snow the child had grown used to.

They moved through Cephus with a stop-start gait, pausing to listen to sounds. They kept their body low, with tail tucked an ears forward. There was a loud clang. Their ears flicked once. Nothing new. They'd heard it before.

Where before they would've turned tail and ran, the repeated investigation had brought a budding courage. Today Anselm decided to investigate. And to their surprise, they were not alone. Gembound of different shape and make were here. All curious, as Anselm was.

"I greet you." Anselm said. Their nose twitched subtly. Once or twice, taking in the scents of all around. "Numerous crowns surround us."

Any sense of wariness of the new was soon gone. Catafay had barreled into the room. Screaming and waddling about. It was all Anselm could do to stare in disbelief. So different from everyone they'd known or met. So...open. Obvious.

Anselm found themselves enamoured with the puffin. They yearned to approach, yet the bear nearby gave them pause. Enormous. Large teeth and claws. It hit the basal, animal part of their brain. Their ears laid back. They could look later.

Instead, as Beast had, Anselm decided to investigate the strange, sweeping creatures. One in particular, sweeping the floor. Easier to approach than the ones atop higher objects. "Greetings," they said. Their ears were still back. Yet their nose twitched in anticipation.

---

Anselm is also investigating one of the sweepers!

There was not a sound as the owl swooped in, landing behind the black rabbit, cyan eyes burning holes in the back of their head. Talons clicked on the floor as she walked forward, standing beside her charge with an incredulous look on her face.

"So this is where you went to," she said, "I can... see the appeal..."

It was chaotic, but not in the way of death and destruction like the Valkhounds were prone to doing. It was just... a mess. She really wanted to fix it.

All of the people gathered gave her pause, and she stared at Attikias with fascination. For he had... hands.

"Anselm," she said, "Don't get into trouble, I'll be right back."

Kethri took flight and landed on one of Carja's horns, pleased to see that the dragon didn't at all mind. She leaned in to peer at Attikias and lifted a wing to tap him on the shoulder.

"Show me your hands," she said, "I wish to see them."

It was rather rude of her to so blatantly order him around, but she'd never really learned manners unless it was to get something she wanted.

@Attikias (she's very curious of his hands)

Nowadays, Talys was a lanky and tall teenager who had yet to fully grow into himself. He was easily over six feet tall, though still not quite to his full height -- that would come over the course of the cycle. Today he wore his basalt necklace, but also a 'glass' bead with a flower preserved inside hanging lower on his chest. His skirt of worn cloth hadn't improved to anything better yet, but it kept him covered, and that was all that he really cared about. Especially when he was wandering through Cepheus.

His pain had not stopped, though Sun-Wukong's remedies had helped. Still, his pain tolerance had increased significantly, and he'd discovered that walking with a stick helped him. The stick he had at the moment was really just a random limb he'd picked up -- he'd have to carve and work a better one eventually, but for now, this was sufficient.

It was the bristly things that caught his attention, and he crouched down to look at one with his stick still clutched in his hand. "Aw, hello," he mused, reaching out to nudge one gently. "What are you?"