[center][b]Is creation of something new from things that already exist creation, or transformation?[/b][/center][hr] What had happened next was fleet. Whatever it was that was in that cave was… So Zisqe ran. Back through the woods, along the stream, for some amount of time that didn’t register. Presently, what did register was the intense pain all over. Zisqe couldn’t move without something overstretching. Their head throbbed like the waves, and their legs were plagued by a sensation of pressure and stinging. Opening its eyes was a laborious effort, for they felt full of sand, but when they were open it saw the room it was in belonged to Isi, who wasn’t currently anywhere to be seen. Zisqe sat up, muscles screaming. It saw its legs. The chitin on the bottom had chipped off, leaving raw flesh underneath, teeth sticking out at all angles. It let out a shocked cry and laid back down, making a conscious effort to look at the ceiling. The view of Isi was soon at the side of Zisqe, concern in its eyes at it put a delicate hand on its shoulder to soothe the pained one. For a moment, Isi looked back over the damage of Zisqe’s legs before looking back into its eyes, being silent for just a moment for it finally decided to speak. “It is okay, Zisqe. Just-“ Isi began, her eyes instinctively looking at the legs of Zisqe once more, “Just rest.” [color=gold]”Is- Isi… I couldn’t find,”[/color] Zisqe says, coughing. [color=gold]”I couldn’t find Uzit. I went to the mountain, and…”[/color] The memory returned and cut its words off. Isi seemed to pause in its movement, the only movement being the gentle rubbing of Isi’s thumb against Zisqe’s shoulder. Its eyes met with Zisqe’s once more, concern leading to a restrained, yet silent, sorrow. It allowed that silence to stay there for a moment. “I-it’s fine. I-“ Isi paused once more, controlling its emotions, though sadness still resonating in its voice, “I am o-only concerned about y-you, right now.” [color=gold]”Isi. I will go again when I have healed. I will go until I have found Uzit,”[/color] it says, laying a hand on Isi’s. [color=gold]”But trouble may find this goal. In the mountain…”[/color] “Please… i-if you came back like this. I- I can’t let you go again. W-what if something worse happens?” Isi questioned, before looking away in a vain attempt to cast away the memories. [color=gold]”Oh Isi, you know the chitin heals quickly. It is not bad. I’m not going alone next time,”[/color] Zisqe said, words confident, grip on Isi’s hand tightening slightly. Isi did not look back at Zisqe, not finding the strength to look at it. “... who are you taking with you?” Isi asked softly, its hand squeezing Zisqe’s shoulder as the words escaped it. Zisqe smiled. In truth, they didn’t know at all. They had just said that to stop Isi worrying. [color=gold]”In sureness, there would be many who want to help. Antoz, especially. They were close before…”[/color] they said, trailing off. A thought came to it, unbeckoned. [color=gold]”Our God… I did find a spiral of stones that feels like It, but less wild. I will also ask there”[/color] “Our God... “ Isi echoed, pulling its hand away from Zisqe’s grasp before echoing once more, “Our God…” There was a momentary hesitation, Isi thinking of words to say or even thoughts to settle upon, though finding such a task hard to complete. “Our God... has done little to help find Uzit. M-maybe… m-maybe it’s time to look elsewhere,” Isi said, its voice hesitant and soft as it finally looked back to Zisqe. Zisqe met Isi’s eyes with their own. [color=gold]”Do you speak of Vakk? It is a god, but not our God. But I am not the one to talk of gods and their ways. For all we know, Vakk is just another form of our God.”[/color] Isi looked away once more, nodding its head in a silent agreement before speaking, “I suppose you’re right.” It rested its head upon Zisqe’s chest, “I just do not know what to do anymore.” Tears slowly began to roll down Isi’s face as no longer knew what to do or how to help in finding Uzit. “I- I just want Uzit back,” it cried. Zisqe pulls Isi down to the bed and hugs them to its chest. It says nothing, but holds Isi tight. Sometimes, the lack of words is more helpful. Time seemed to pass slowly as it allowed Isi to sob, knowing that sadness would grip them until Uzit was found, but in times like this, there was little else to be done. After a silence like a hearth, Zisqe felt a pull from the inside of their skull. They spoke. [color=gold]”Isi, carry me to the spiral of stones.”[/color] Isi slowly pulled away from Zisqe’s grasp, its wet eye looking into Zisqe’s own for a moment before silently nodding as it got to its feet. Their hands moved under Zisqe’s back and under their knees before lifting its parent before silently beginning the walk. [center]---[/center] The stones reached into the night sky like hands. The roots beneath twisted. The air was polluted by the night’s vague shine, and a Presence could be felt. One which sat in the back of your mind and posed questions. Uncertainty was the regent here, but uncertainty which was separated from the discomfort that could surround its god. Zisqe looked to Isi. [color=gold]”Walk me around the spiral, to the center,”[/color] it said. So Isi did, cautiously moving over the twisted roots, looking around for the presence that it felt while moving. Their eyes wandering from stone to stone, almost tripping on a root, but quickly catching itself as reality came back to Isi. Eventually, they reached the center of the spiral before Isi looked down at Zisqe. “Would you like me to leave you here?” it asked with hesitation. Zisqe ponders this question for a moment. It seemed like a question to ponder while here. [color=gold]”No. Stay, you might learn something. But do put me on the roots by the stone,”[/color] they said. Isi nodded, walking to the roots before gingerly setting Zisqe on the roots before stepping to the side in silence. After a moment, Isi asked another question, “Why did you need to come here?” [color=gold]”I don’t know yet,”[/color] Zisqe said. A few minutes passed. The trees loomed. Their shadows twisted, falling over the circle. One tendril pushed up and shot forward, going through Zisqe and into the stone. Zisqe saw themselves walking an endless blue corridor, eyes watching from overhead. It walked through a room with ropes dangling from the walls, before reaching a long and narrow one that it would not fit through. Something gleamed on the other side, long and thin and shiny. A loud thud from behind. There sat an eye, like the ones in the sky. Dirt began pouring in like water from the walls, soon enveloping Zisqe. And they were back in the circle as it was before the shadows shifted. [color=gold]”Isi, I know why I asked you to bring me here, but I know not what that is,”[/color] Isi cocked its head at the words before asking, “What do you mean?” [color=gold]”I saw a large corridor, then one I couldn’t fit through. There was something at the end of the second one, but I couldn’t see what it was. Then an eye fell from the sky and dirt poured over it like water”[/color] For a moment, Isi thought to itself a hand going to its chin as it thought of what it meant. Its mind went over the possible answers before its mind went over how their species propagated, knowing that parts of the body had to be buried. Isi looked at Zisqe before letting out its suggestion, “It could mean that you must plant your eye into the ground and grow another child.” Zisqe nodded slowly. [color=gold]”Then I will bear this.”[/color] They reached up to their face. The scream briefly tore away any serenity in the air. Blood and teeth were fresh on the soil as Zisqe scraped at it, digging a hole large enough to bury an eye. The teeth mixed with the soil when it was being heaped back over, forming a gruesome mound. It was saturated with blood, teeth, and other fleshy strings. Isi had looked away for a majority of the process, despite having had done a similar process when making Uzit and their other children, but still finding it hard to watch. When it was all done, Isi looked to the mound, thoroughly covered in blood and viscera, before they thought of what to say next. “Why would you need to make another child, is my question,” Isi said, looking to Zisqe as it took a step forward, but not going any further. Zisqe shrugs in response, clutching their eye socket. And just then, a singular drop of something falls from the sky. It drifts on fleet air to the pile. The earth ruptures. And there it laid, something eyedentical to a Bujzell, but without chitin. It opened its eyes. Then more. And still more, until there were countless. [color=gold]”You will be called Ovainn, and you are my child,”[/color] Zisqe says, impossibly unperturbed. Ovainn casts its eyes around, missing nothing. “What are you?” [color=gold]”Tell me when you find out. But my name is Zisqe,[/color] Ovainn focuses all its eyes on Isi. “And you?” “I am Isi, first of Zisqe,” they said simply, looking at the chitinless Bujzell before casting a concerned look to Zisqe. Zisqe catches Isi’s look of worry. They pull Ovainn in for a hug, who moves for the first time ever. “Hello Isi, hello Zisqe. What’s that?” Ovainn says. It opens one more eye, between the regular two. It was a brilliant blue. It pointed over towards the trees. [color=gold]”Those are trees, Ovainn. Aren’t they so green?”[/color] “No, what I’m pointing at isn’t green” Isi’s eyes did not follow what Ovainn was pointing to, focused on the oddity of the creature that Zisqe was holding in a hug. “It’s chitinless,” she remarked, looking between Zisqe and Ovainn before finally looking in the direction of where Ovainn had pointed to determine whether or not something was green. Ovainn stood up and walked to where it was pointing, and Zisqe looked at Isi, saying [color=gold]”It has no chitin, but that just means we have to protect it more.”[/color]. They smiled. Ovainn called out, “This, it’s a fire now I can see it from close.” There was no eye. Isi gave a confused look over to Ovainn before speaking to Zisqe, “I have never seen a child with no chitin. It’s… strange.” [color=gold]”So were you when you first arrived. And me,”[/color] Zisqe said, smiling. Blood had stopped flowing so freely from their eye. [hr] [Hider=Summary] So basically we learn that Zisqe ran from something in the cave from the last post. They wake up in Isi’s house and their feet are all raw and gross, the chitin that grows around them has chipped all the way off. There’s a bit of a heart-to-heart where Isi is sad that Zisqe didn’t find Uzit, but Zisqe is like “yeah no worries I’ll look again with more people” Zisqe tells Isi to carry them to the holy site of eury. Zisqe gets a vision riddle thing, and Isi solves it. Zisqe rips an eye out and grown a Bujzell from that. It’s got no chitin and has shitloads of eyes instead of teeth. Isi is weirded the fuck out. [/hider] [hider=prestige] +1 for main role +1 for minor role +1 for pursuing a quest +1 for jolly co-operation -1 for running a 4 day walk in one and a half days with no breaks -1 for ripping their own eye out 9 from previous posts 11 total [/hider] [hider=might] 1 mp to create a subspecies of Buzjell: Buzjii. So these guys are Buzjell but with eyes instead of teeth and no chitin. 1 FP to create the Fallen Eye. This is an artifact that can see through illusions and lies that have not had might or prestige or some other equivalent spent on them. It is in Ovainn’s skull and so cannot be removed without killing them. It’s a brilliant blue, the same as the ones in the Infinite Maze. [/hider] Collab with my man [@Lauder]